All Things Considered is a comprehensive source for afternoon news and information provided by various MPR hosts in St. Paul and NPR hosts in Washington over the decades. The program contains interviews, reports, speeches and breaking coverage.
November 19, 2010 - All Thing’s Considered’s Tom Crann talks with Lee Greenfield, former state legislator from Minneapolis, about his friend Senator Allan Spear and Spear's posthumous autobiography "Crossing the Barriers." Spear was one of the first openly gay Americans serving in elected office.
November 30, 2010 - MPR’s Dan Olson reports that 30 years after their initial arrival, poverty for Hmong is still an issue, but rates are down sharply, and life for many is improving. Olson talks with members of Hmong community about reasons behind the change.
January 5, 2011 - All Things Considered’s Tom Crann checks in with U.S. Representative Tim Walz as the new session of legislators are set to be sworn in, with Republicans taking control of Congress. It is a different experience for Walz, when Democrats took control of Congress four years ago. Walz comments that all are there to serve, no matter the party affiliation.
January 5, 2011 - Former Twins pitcher Bert Blyeven finally learned that he has been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. To be selected, a player needs to be listed on at least 75% of the ballots submitted by baseball writers. After 13 straight years of falling short of that threshold, Blyleven was picked by 79% of the writers this year to earn his spot in the Hall.
January 7, 2011 - MPR’s Dan Olson profiles General Vang Pao, a key U.S. ally during the Vietnam War, who died in California at the age of 81. The military leader is described by admirers as a warrior chieftain of the 18 Hmong clans he helped lead. General Pao was a familiar figure in Minnesota, home to the country's second largest Hmong population, including some of his family members.
January 14, 2011 - All Things Considered’s Tom Crann speaks with U.S. Representative Tim Walz about “Congress on Your Corner” events taking place, even after the horrific event in Tucson where U.S. Representative Gabby Giffords and 18 others were shot during a constituent meeting held in a supermarket parking lot. Walz shares his belief on the importance of events and tone of dialog amongst legislators.
January 19, 2011 - MPR’s Jess Mador reports on "The Value of One Life," a photo exhibit at the Minnesota History Center that features Minnesotans who've survived serious illnesses, deadly accidents, even the Holocaust. One of the eight people featured is Koua Fong Lee. The St. Paul man spent more than 2 1/2 years in prison on a conviction of criminal vehicular homicide, after his Toyota Camry was involved in an accident that killed three people and left two others injured.
April 15, 2011 - How do you prepare for a year at war? MPR’s Jess Mador profiles the Munoz family, and how the married couple deal with the stress of military deployment.
May 19, 2011 - All Things Considered’s Tom Crann interviews Desiree Shelton, a lesbian highschool senior, about the impact of discrimination and bullying.
May 23, 2011 - MPR’s Tom Crann interviews Sarah Heller, who lives in the Webber-Camden neighborhood in northwest Minneapolis, where a deadly tornado struck. Heller recounts the actual tornado and the wreckage it left in its wake.