Melissa Block

Credit Doby Photography / NPR

Melissa Block is a 28-year veteran of NPR and has been hosting All Things Considered since 2003, after nearly a decade as an NPR correspondent.

Frequently reporting from communities in the center of the news, Block was in Chengdu, China, preparing for a weeklong broadcast when a massive earthquake struck the region in May 2008. Immediately following the quake, Block, along with co-host Robert Siegel and their production team, traveled throughout Sichuan province to report extensively on the destruction and relief efforts. Their riveting coverage aired across all of NPR's programs and was carried on major news organizations around the world. In addition, the reporting was recognized with the industry's top honors including a Peabody Award, a duPont-Columbia Award, a National Headliner Award and the Society of Professional Journalists' Sigma Delta Chi Award.

Throughout her career, Block has covered major news events for NPR ranging from on-the-scene reporting from the Mississippi Gulf Coast in the days following Hurricane Katrina to a series from Texas gauging the impact of the Iraq War on the surrounding communities. Her reporting after the September 11, 2001 attacks was part of coverage that earned NPR a George Foster Peabody Award. Block's reporting from Kosovo in 1999 was cited among stories for which NPR News won an Overseas Press Club Award.

House Pulls 'Plan B' Tax Measure From The Floor

By Melissa Block

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House Speaker John Boehner's alternative plan to the automatic tax hikes set to take effect at year's end fell short of enough votes to pass. The bill would have placed a higher tax rate on income over $1 million a year.

Politics

4:27 pm

Mon December 3, 2012

Republicans Counter With $2.2 Trillion Deficit Plan

By Melissa Block

Originally published on Mon December 3, 2012 6:08 pm

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On Monday, House Speaker John Boehner answered criticisms that Republicans have not proposed a deficit plan to counter the one from President Obama which they find so objectionable. Boehner's plan takes elements from presidential nominee Mitt Romney's proposal. David Welna talks to Melissa Block about the counteroffer.

The Salt

5:15 pm

Thu November 15, 2012

A Dash Of Latin Flavor On The Thanksgiving Table

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Credit Jason Varney

Chef Jose Garces' quinoa soup.

Credit Jason Varney

Chef Jose Garces

By Melissa Block

Originally published on Fri November 16, 2012 4:59 pm

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When Chef Jose Garces, the Philadelphia-based restaurateur and author of The Latin Road Home, thinks back to the Thanksgiving table of his youth, he remembers the turkey, and his father's chicken giblet gravy.

But his parents, who emigrated to Chicago from Ecuador in the 1960s, whipped up Ecuadorean staples as well.

7:57 pm

Tue November 6, 2012

Ohio Already Reporting Solid Voter Turnout

By Melissa Block

Originally published on Tue November 6, 2012 8:08 pm

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Melissa Block talks with Don Gonyea as polls close in Ohio.

Election 2012

5:41 pm

Fri September 21, 2012

In Wisconsin, Political Circus Leaves Voters Wounded

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Credit Melissa Block / NPR

Heidi Accola works a stand at the farmers market in Baraboo, Wis. She runs a 1-acre organic farm with her husband, but she says they don't talk politics at home because it gets too heated.

Credit Melissa Block / NPR

A bumper sticker on the car of Bob Greenwood of Baraboo, Wis. "Recall Santa" reflects the bitterly divisive recall election this year, which Republican Gov. Scott Walker survived easily.

By Melissa Block

Originally published on Fri September 21, 2012 6:53 pm

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Wisconsin is a prime battleground state in this year's presidential election.

Republicans hope the pick of native son Paul Ryan as their vice presidential nominee will bolster their chances to turn the state red in November. Wisconsin hasn't voted for a Republican for president since 1984. Barack Obama won the state by a blowout 14 points in 2008. And a run of Wisconsin polls this week shows him widening his lead over Mitt Romney.

So what do Wisconsin voters have to say about their choices — and their mood?

Economic Strain

6:05 pm

Thu September 20, 2012

Senate Race Tough To Call As Wisconsin Swings

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Credit David Goldman / AP

Wisconsin Senate candidate Tammy Baldwin sits with state delegates during the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., on Sept. 5.

Credit Andy Manis / AP

Wisconsin Senate candidate Tommy Thompson, a Republican, talks to the media after voting in the primary election on Aug. 14 in Madison.

By Melissa Block

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4:14 pm

Wed June 20, 2012

Saving Calif. State Parks: The End Of Public Funding?

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Credit Melissa Block / NPR

Brad Beadell (right) takes his 11-year-old son, William, on his first backpacking trip through Henry W. Coe State Park in Morgan Hill, Calif.

Credit Melissa Block / NPR

Coe Park is California's second-largest state park, spanning more than 87,000 acres.

Credit Ron Fischler / Courtesy of Coe Park Preservation Fund

Dan McCranie (left) hands over a check for $279,000 to Ruth Coleman, director of California State Parks, at a ceremony at Coe Park in May. The amount is the first installment of about $900,000 from the Coe Park Preservation Fund that will keep the park open for three years.

By Melissa Block

Originally published on Wed June 20, 2012 6:23 pm

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On July 1, 15 California state parks are slated to be closed permanently to the public — the first such closures in the state's history. They're the victim of budget cuts in a state with a $16 billion shortfall.

Over the past year, park enthusiasts have scrambled to save dozens of parks from closure, including Henry W. Coe State Park, California's second-biggest state park, located about 30 miles south of San Jose.

4:18 pm

Mon June 18, 2012

You Know You Want One: Personal Robots Not Ready For You Yet

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Credit Melissa Block / NPR

Research scientist Leila Takayama poses with a PR2 robot at Willow Garage, a robotics company in Menlo Park, Calif., that produces programmable robots.

Credit Melissa Block / NPR

A PR2 robot named Jake opens a refrigerator at Willow Garage's office.

By Melissa Block

Originally published on Mon June 18, 2012 11:06 pm

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