NPR News

Westboro Baptist Church first gained notoriety in 1998, when members picketed at the funeral of Matthew Shepherd, who was murdered because he was gay.

Since then, the members have protested at the funerals of public figures such as Elizabeth Edwards, children killed in bus accidents and soldiers killed in war. Shirley Phelps-Roper, the church spokeswoman, says the members want God to punish Americans for tolerating homosexuality. They picket funerals to make people angry, she says: They want people to reject God and be condemned to hell.

Press conferences are usually pretty tame, but not in Somalia's bullet-riddled capital, Mogadishu.

When a local faction held a briefing a couple weeks ago, its enemies responded with mortars, wounding two journalists.

One of the city's best-known news organizations is Radio Mogadishu, where reporters brave death threats and more to get the story.

Most plastic products, from sippy cups to food wraps, can release chemicals that act like the sex hormone estrogen, according to a study in Environmental Health Perspectives.

The study found these chemicals even in products that didn't contain BPA, a compound in certain plastics that's been widely criticized because it mimics estrogen.

It's March — and that means spring break is around the corner for many college students. But Texas officials are advising students to avoid going to Mexico, saying that drug violence there isn't isolated to border areas.

The Texas Department of Public Safety put out a document today listing potential dangers to students traveling to Mexico for their schools' holiday. DPS officials also urged travelers to do careful research before any trip.

Women who use oxycodone, codeine and hydrocodone painkillers early in pregnancy may increase the risk of birth defects, according to a study led by researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.