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Source Spotlight: NPR's Cutting-Edge Content

July 16, 2021 (3 min read)

Whether you’re looking for business insights into the latest trends, commentary from the national and local Washington D.C. political desk, or cultural context about an event in the past, National Public Radio (NPR) deserves a spot on your go-to source list.

In describing its “mission to work in partnership with Member Stations to create a more informed public – one challenged and invigorated by deeper understanding and appreciation of events, ideas and cultures,” this independent, not-for-profit media organization notes, “Every day, NPR connects with millions of Americans on the air, online, and in person to explore the news, ideas, and what it means to be human.” In fact, according to NPR “98.5% of the U.S. population lives within the listening area of a station carrying NPR programming.” And we’ve been right there with NPR for decades. Here’s why you should consider including NPR sources when conducting business or academic research.

1. Connect with the past and the present with news from NPR

Recently, we extended our nearly 24-year relationship with National Public Radio, ensuring that you continue to have access to NPR’s wide variety of programs via broadcast transcripts and web news. In addition to the ongoing news coverage available, LexisNexis maintains a deep archive that dates back to 1992 for most programs and to the debut of All Things Considered in 1971, which covered the gathering of 20,000 anti-war protesters in Washington, DC.

In an article marking the 50th anniversary of this broadcast, NPR wrote, “All Things Considered documented all sides of the anti-war protest with a visceral 23-minute sound portrait, taking listeners to the heart of America's agonies over the war in Vietnam. Against an aural backdrop of helicopters, motorcycle engines and police sirens, NPR reporters recorded the voices of protesters, police officers, veterans and office workers on the streets of Washington.” That broadcast is now part of the Library of Congress archives, having been inducted on March 29, 2017.

Imagine the context you gain by adding NPR sources to your research into world or national events, trends and more. NPR sources are excellent for finding out people’s reactions, opinions, and prevailing attitudes around the time of a historical event or a culturally important topic thanks to updating new views and a rich archive of historical perspective.

2. Capture a thought-provoking perspective on topics critical to business or academic research

When you need to understand nuances of a particular event, trend, or topic, choosing NPR as a source is ideal.  NPR digs deep with its reporting, offering valuable insights and analysis that explore not just the topic at hand, but how it connects to the bigger picture of the human experience.

NPR focuses on educating the public on new trends and developments—cross-cutting today’s news with impactful reporting on political and legislative developments, finance, science, culture and more. NPR provides reporting that helps to dissect complex events and issues and understand their potential impact or influence.  

3. Reporters on the ground wherever news is happening

NPR’s audience of 60 million listeners and readers may be confined to the US (mostly), but its coverage is global. NPR has 35 news bureaus, including 17 international and 18 domestic. The result? You gain an understanding of events or topics from multiple angles, which can be a critical advantage when your company is looking to expand in emerging markets or when your academic research needs to reflect a global point of view. 

In addition to its regular news programs, NPR offers special news coverage on elections, breaking news, and timely topics, such as the Coronavirus Daily which NPR produced at the start of the pandemic. NPR is also a great source for cultural reporting on the arts, entertaining trivia, or personal finance—with popular programs like Fresh Air, Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me and Planet Money.

Whether you’re seeking a blast from the past or the latest take on today’s top stories in politics, science, technology or even music, make sure you explore the current and archival news from NPR the next time you are conducting research in Nexis®. Nexis Uni®Nexis Diligence™ or Lexis Advance®.

Available NPR Titles 

  • All Songs Considered
  • All Tech Considered
  • All Things Considered
  • Latino
  • Ask Me Another
  • Bryant Park Project
  • Consider This
  • Day to Day
  • Deceptive Cadence
  • Embedded
  • Fresh Air
  • Goats & Soda
  • Hidden Brain
  • Invisibilia
  • It's Been a Minute with Sam Sanders
  • Life Kit
  • Pop Culture Happy Hour
  • Morning Edition
  • News and Notes
  • News and Notes with Ed Gordon
  • NPR ED
  • NPR News Special Coverage
  • NPR Politics
  • NPR Public Editor
  • NPR TED Radio Hour
  • Parallels
  • Planet Money
  • Radio Ambulante
  • Talk of the Nation
  • Talk of the Nation Science Friday
  • Tavis Smiley Show
  • Tell Me More
  • The Record, Music News From NPR
  • The Salt
  • Short Wave
  • Shots
  • TED Radio Hour
  • Throughline
  • The Two-Way
  • Wait Wait Don't Tell Me!
  • Weekend All Things Considered
  • Weekend Edition Saturday
  • Weekend Edition Sunday