NPR 2011-07-07

A first for President Obama today when he launched a town hall meeting on Twitter.

"I'm going to make history here as the first president to live tweet."

Jobs and the economy were at center stage. He also reiterated 1 the warning about raising of the debt ceiling, saying if an agreement's not reached soon, the country risks falling to a second and worst economic recession. In deficit-reduction talks, Democrats 2 and Republicans are deadlocked 3 over tax increases which the GOP opposes.

A new study finds this is the first economic recovery in three decades in which men have fared better than women. NPR's Jennifer Ludden reports that women's unemployment has actually risen since the official end of the recession. 

In part, that's because women are being hit harder amid state budget cutbacks. More men also lost jobs during the recession, so more are in the job market, but Rakesh Kochhar of the Pew Research Center says that's not the whole story.

"Men are having success finding jobs in the areas where women are not having success, and even where women are finding jobs, men are finding them at a faster rate."

The Pew study finds men gaining jobs in education, health care and retail 4, traditional areas of strength for women. Jennifer Ludden, NPR News, Washington.

Former reputed mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger has pleaded not guilty in Boston to 19 counts of murder. Prosecutors 5 say that as head of Boston's Winter Hill Gang, Bulger ordered the deaths of rivals and potential witnesses. The 81-year-old was arrested last month in California after eluding 6 capture for 16 years.

The perjury 7 trial has begun for Roger Clemens, one of Major League Baseball's most decorated pitchers 8. The 48-year-old is charged with lying to a congressional committee when he denied accusations 9 that he used performance-enhancing drugs during his career.

The weather forecast is worse for Friday's planned launch of the space shuttle Atlantis. NPR's Russell Lewis reports that NASA managers are still hoping to attempt to lift off as scheduled.

Meteorologists now say there's just a 30% chance of favorable weather for the final launch of the space shuttle program. A tropical wave is expected to bring thunderstorms and rain across Florida on Friday. Launch Integration 10 Manager Mike Moses says his team doesn't want to delay.

"We're not at all in the mode that taking more time to make this launch happen is a good thing. The team's ready. They're prepared. Everything's in the right spot. This is a normal countdown for us. It's time to go."

Three quarters of a million people are expected to turn out for the liftoff. If there is a delay, the forecast for this weekend is better. Russell Lewis, NPR News at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Before the close on the Wall Street, Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 56 points at 12,626 in trading of three billion shares; NASDAQ was up eight at 2,834; S&P 500 up slightly at 1,339.

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The army psychiatrist 11 accused in the 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood 12, Texas will be court-martialed and could face the death penalty. Major Nidal Hasan is charged with 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder.

The US is warning airlines about renewed interests among terrorists who surgically 13 implant 14 bombs in humans to carry out attacks on planes. The Obama administration reportedly warned executives of domestic and international carriers last week. There has been no indication of a specific plot, but people traveling overseas are warned that they may encounter heavier-than-usual airport screening.

Pyeongchang, South Korea will host [the] 2018 Winter Olympics. Pyeongchang easily beat out rival bidders 15 from Germany and France in the voting by International Olympic Committee members. NPR's Tom Goldman reports South Korea will be the first country in Asia since Japan to host the Winter Games.

The final tally 16 was Pyeongchang 63 votes, Munich 25, Annecy seven. Pyeongchang had a strong and well-received final presentation with emotional speeches and even a little humor. The electronic Olympic newsletter, Around the Rings, reports Korean Olympic Committee President Yong-sung Park apologized to IOC member Prince Albert of Monaco, who was recently married, for having to spend his honeymoon 17 listening to a Pyeongchang speech for a third time. Pyeongchang narrowly missed out getting the 2010 and 2014 Winter Games. Pyeongchang's slogan of "New Horizons" seemed to resonate. In recent years, the IOC awarded the first Winter Games to Russia in 2014 and the first Olympics to South America in 2016. Tom Goldman, NPR News.

The Dow was up 56 points or nearly 0.5% at 12,626.