The Democratic Republic of Congo's troubled election this week has already scored at least one small victory for peace.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto argues in an exclusive interview that his country remains the only NATO nation to avoid sending weapons to Ukraine because such a step, he believes, would only prolong a war with Russia that it is increasingly evident neither side can win.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, hobbled by a one-vote majority and dogged by a small band of disgruntled archconservatives who want to fire him, is determined to defy his critics and remain speaker in the next Congress.

Maryam Rajavi, president-elect of the world's largest Iranian dissident organization, says in an exclusive interview that the Tehran theocratic regime is on its last legs and warns there can be no real peace in the Middle East so long as the mullahs remain in power.

Taiwan's top diplomat in the United States tells The Washington Times in an exclusive interview that China's communist government is intensifying its campaign to pressure countries not to recognize the legitimacy of the island democracy and to block it from participating in the United Nations and other key international organizations.

We love it on this podcast when we meet people who are natural storytellers. And it’s an extra bonus when they happen to be talented musicians or poets, too.  This episode, we celebrate some of our favorite musical and lyrical moments from Out of the Blocks.

This episode is about a virtual block that makes up the current world of one fascinating and unusual young man. His name is James Burrows. He’s a musical genius, and he’s autistic. This week, he’s graduating from high school in the midst of a pandemic. What might James be able to teach the rest of us about living in the shared social isolation of the moment?

NOTE:  All the music in this episode was composed and produced by James. Check him out on SoundCloud.

We first met James Carter and Theresa Marable on the 3300 block of Greenmount Avenue in back 2012, in the very first episode of Out of the Blocks. This episode, we reunite with James and Theresa, we listen back together to their original recordings, and we ask them, “What’s changed in your life in the past nine years?”

We first met Tymekia Spellman and Will Jackson on the 4700 block of Liberty Heights Avenue back in 2015. This episode, we reunite with Tymekia & Will, we listen back together to their original recordings, and we ask them, “What’s changed in your life in the past six years?”

We first met Gregory Hill (AKA Foots) and Lateef Aderomilehin on the 2100 block of Edmondson Avenue back in 2017. This episode, we reunite with Foots & Lateef, we listen back together to their original recordings, and we ask them, “How’s life changed in the past four years?”

We reconnect with Arlo Iron Cloud, our partner at KILI Radio, The Voice of the Lakota Nation, on the Pine Ridge Reservation. He tells us how life has changed for him and his family over the past few years. We also check back in with Lei Ann Shiramizu in Seattle’s Chinatown International District to hear how she and her neighbors have coped with the pressures of the pandemic.

We first met Gus Zissimos & George Anagnostou on the 4700 block of Eastern Avenue back in 2015. This episode, we reunite with George & Gus, we listen back together to their original recordings, and we ask them, “How’s life changed in the past six years?”

We first met Okhui ‘Sissy’ Benlein & Shaniqua McCready on the 1900 block of Pennsylvania Avenue back in 2018. This episode, we reunite with Sissy & Shaniqua, we listen back together to their original recordings, and we ask them, “How’s life changed in the past three years?”

We first met Wayne Brewton & Pastor Aaron Hannah on the 600 block of Cherry Hill Road back in 2017. This episode, we reunite with Wayne & Aaron, we listen back together to their original recordings, and we ask them, “How’s life changed in the past four years?”

We first met Antonio McDuffy and Pat & Andrea Wills on the 400 block of E Patapsco Avenue back in 2015. This episode, we reunite with them, we listen back together to their original recordings, and we ask them, “How’s life changed in the past six years?”

This episode, we reconnect with Traci ‘B-Love’ Bartlow, who runs a boutique hotel on the ground floor of her home in West Oakland’s Lower Bottoms neighborhood. She tells us how her life and her business have changed over the past few years. We also check back in at a day shelter that helps families in crisis in the St Louis neighborhood of The Ville. Director Kelli Braggs talks about how the organization is bearing up under the strain of the pandemic.

We first met the guys at Barbara’s Groceries back in 2015 on the 4700 block of Liberty Heights Avenue. This episode, we reunite with them, we listen back together to their original recordings, and we ask them, “How’s life changed in the past six years?” Plus, Aaron & Wendel bid a fond farewell to listeners as Out of the Blocks comes to a close.

"Outlander" is returning with the concluding episodes of its seventh season this month, but its stars have already wrapped official production on the show's eighth and final season.

Nearly two decades ago, My Chemical Romance released their career-defining rock opera, "The Black Parade," cementing their shift from mainstays of the emo scene to mainstream recognition and becoming one of the most inventive bands of the 21st century.

You could say that Ethan Slater's yellow brick road to getting cast in the big screen adaptation of "Wicked" had an element of magic to it.

Last season, Maryland beat Indiana so bad that the Hoosiers fired their offensive coordinator less than 24 hours later. How much things can change in just one year, as Indiana is at 4-0 in 2024 as they await the Terrapins on Saturday.

Penalties have been a reoccurring problem for Maryland during the Mike Locksley era, and though the Terrapins tamped them down last season, they are racking up quick again in 2024.

Maryland has been selected to finish in the middle of the new 18-team pack in this year's unofficial Big Ten men's basketball preseason poll.

Maryland is a 'developmental' program, as coach Mike Locksley likes to frequently remind, and it is in the midst of producing the next offensive player with star potential -- Octavian Smith Jr.

Year 1 for Kevin Willard was a supernova streaking through the sky, but year two brought high expectations that quickly crashed back to earth. For year three, the Maryland coach believes he has found the answer to the Terrapins offensive woes via both the transfer portal and one dynamic freshman: Derik Queen.

The new Big Ten truly comes to full bore for Maryland this weekend with its first-ever West Coast conference trip to No. 1 Oregon, bringing with it a host of logistical tweaks and challenges.

Tyler Reddick went high and overtook Ryan Blaney on the final turn to win at Homestead-Miami on Sunday to secure a spot in NASCAR's winner-take-all finale in Arizona in two weeks. Reddick led 98 of the 267 laps, the last of them the one that mattered most.

The hardest hit that Tyler Reddick took at Homestead-Miami Speedway wasn't from a bounce into the wall or from another driver crashing into him.

Max Verstappen suggests he won't change his aggressive driving this weekend at the Brazilian Grand Prix as he bids for a fourth successive Formula 1 title.

McLaren driver Lando Norris won Saturday's Formula 1 sprint race at the Brazilian Grand Prix to cut his deficit to championship leader Max Verstappen.

Ryan Blaney had the checkered flag in sight and a spot in NASCAR's title-deciding race within his grasp last week on the last lap of a contentious battle.

British driver Lewis Hamilton has won seven Formula One titles, holds multiple records and has clocked some of the fastest laps in history. But the greatest honor of his career, according to the 39-year-old, came on Sunday as he drove the late Ayrton Senna's title-winning car around Interlagos ahead of this afternoon's Brazilian Grand Prix.

Roger Penske already won two sports car championships this season and heads to Phoenix Raceway with two chances to win a third consecutive NASCAR Cup Series title with both Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney in the winner-take-all season finale.

President-elect Donald Trump is looking to fill hundreds of top positions in his incoming administration during the next two months -- but one of the most coveted, flash point slots is that of attorney general.

Vice President Kamala Harris' luring of celebrities out of their mansions to perform songs for middle-class voters struggling to afford groceries and rent was symbolic of an attitude that ultimately doomed her presidential campaign.

Free college tuition. New cars. Complimentary passes to government gyms. And cold, hard cash. Militaries all over the world are at war right now. And they're getting creative with pay and benefits to lure in potential recruits and to keep battle-hardened veterans in their uniforms for another round.

President-elect Donald Trump says that Tom Homan, his former acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement director, will serve as "border czar" in his incoming administration.

Tom Homan, President-elect Donald Trump's new border czar, delivered a stern warning to sanctuary cities on Monday by telling them to "get the hell out of the way" as the next administration comes for illegal immigrants.

Donald Trump's victory may bring some relief for the leaders of three authoritarian Southeast Asian nations caught in the influence struggle between the U.S. and China -- Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia.

The incoming Trump administration has a message for left-leaning Justice Department employees hoping to block or interfere with the new president's agenda: Get out.

Amid the smoldering wreckage of last Tuesday's elections, Democrats must ask themselves a simple question: Who is in charge?

President-elect Donald Trump is to return to Washington with the distinct advantage of having previously served in the Oval Office. He is wiser.

President-elect Donald Trump's resounding victory may spell doom for the anti-freedom, anti-prosperity international movement that is the push for net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.

The hard-left billionaire George Soros and his heir apparent son Alex have championed, with donations, defunding the police movement, open borders and soft prosecutors.

Kamala Harris's defeat runs deeper for Democrats than its surface appearance. Even at first sight, it was stunning: Ms. Harris didn't just lose the presidency but, unthinkably, the popular vote too.

Can't Stop Talking is part of our Contemporary Christian Music Library.

A doctor accused of criticizing the war in Ukraine in front of a patient was convicted Tuesday of spreading false information about the Russian military and sentenced to 5 1/2 years in prison, part of an unrelenting Kremlin crackdown on dissent.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is heading to Europe for urgent meetings on Ukraine with NATO and European Union officials following last week's U.S. presidential election and the return of Donald Trump to the White House in January.

World leaders are converging Tuesday at the United Nations annual climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan although the big names and powerful countries are noticeably absent, unlike past climate talks which had the star power of a soccer World Cup.

United Nations peacekeepers warned Tuesday that the Israeli military has committed "severe violations" of a cease-fire deal with Syria as its military continues a major construction project along the so-called Alpha Line that separates the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights from Syria.