While driving down an East Texas country road I spotted this scene. The autumn trees and the late afternoon sun made these golden bales of hay shine just a little bit more. Fortunately I had my camera with me. (c) James Q. Eddy Jr.
The Four States NPR News Source 2025 Kansas Association of Broadcasters Award Winner 2nd Place for Website in a Medium Market
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Hear KRPS Weekday Morning & Evening Newscasts in the NPR App

Criminal justice experts explain why crime rates fell in 2025

Crime rates in the U.S. fell in 2025. Murders in particular fell dramatically. That is a major takeaway among criminal justice experts as we approach the year's end.

Copyright 2025 NPR

Meg Anderson
Meg Anderson is a reporter and editor on NPR's Investigations team. She reported the award-winning series Heat and Health in American Cities, which illustrated how low-income neighborhoods nationwide are often hotter in temperature than their wealthier counterparts. She also investigated the roots of a COVID-19 outbreak in a predominantly Black retirement home, and the failures of the Department of Justice to release at-risk prisoners to safer settings during the pandemic. She serves as a producer and editor for the investigations team, including on the Peabody Award-winning series Lost Mothers, which investigated the high rate of maternal mortality in the United States. She has also reported for NPR's politics and education desks, and for WAMU, the local Member station in Washington, D.C. Her roots are in the Midwest, where she graduated with a Master's degree from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism.