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NPR's Peter Kenyon has a roundup of the legislative activity in Congress, as members try to conclude business, so they can return home and campaign for the election.

NPR's John Ydstie reports that a new study by the Census Bureau shows the number of Americans living in poverty has dropped to the lowest level in two decades. The study also shows that approximately 17 percent of American children are growing up in poverty.

NPR's Cheryl Corley reports on the beginning of televised Presidential debates. In 1960, then Vice-President Richard Nixon faced off with Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy at CBS affiliate WBBM in Chicago. Some of the people involved in the debate, including moderator Howard K. Smith and debate director Don Hewitt, spoke last night in Chicago about the event.

Host Mike Shuster talks to Minnesota Governor, and author, Jesse Ventura. Today, Ventura releases an essay of a fictional press conference, where he asks all the questions...and muckraking reporters have to provide all the answers. (3:51) The essay can be found on our website, www.npr.org

The US women's softball team won a gold medal at the Sydney Olympics Tuesday in the hardest possible fashion. As NPR's Tom Goldman reports, the team was considered unbeatable after a two-year winning streak of 112 games. But it lost three straight games in the early round of competition, nearly putting it out of medal contention. The US then fought back and swept the three teams -- China, Australia and Japan -- it lost to earlier in the tournament.

NPR's Larry Abramson reports the Supreme Court will NOT hear a direct appeal of the Microsoft case. Instead, the landmark anti-trust suit will go the a federal appeals court first. The decision is a setback for the Justice Department, which wanted the Supreme Court to hear the case without first going through the Court of Appeals.

NPR's Julie McCarthy reports from Prague that demonstrators rioted in the streets of the Czech capital today as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank formally opened their annual summit. The protesters -- who see the IMF and World Bank as evil forces of "globalization" -- threw gasoline bombs, rocks and bottles at police. Inside the convention center, the meetings got under way without interruption.

NPR's Kathleen Schalch reports that lawmakers on Capitol Hill are holding another hearing today on violence in TV and video games. Earlier this month the Federal Trade Commission, issued a report stating that the entertainment industry was peddling inappropriate materials to children. The FTC also said it was encouraged to see the industry was paying attention to the call for improved self-regulation.

Two stories on the Presidential campaign: NPR's Anthony Brooks reports on Democratic nominee Al Gore's appearance last night on MTV's Choose or Lose program, where he answered questions from college students. NPR's Andy Bowers reports on Republican nominee George W. Bush's appearance on CNN with Larry King. Host Larry King interviewed Governor Bush and his wife, Laura.

Osnos' new book focuses on coal country in West Virginia; hedge fund culture in Greenwich, Conn.; institutional racism in Chicago and why Democrat Joe Manchin holds remarkable sway in the Senate.