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NPR's Sarah Chayes reports from Paris that investigators say it's too early to tell what exactly brought down the Concorde supersonic jet that crashed last week. The Accident and Inquiry office says investigators have identified a fuel leak as one of a number of problems with the plane.

Host Alex Chadwick talks to Garry Russell, the organizer of a one-day-a-week boycott of gas stations in Britain, to protest high prices at the pump. Russell says the idea behind the "Dump the Pumps" boycott is to pressure Britain's government into doing something to bring gas prices down, starting with a reduction in the high gasoline tax.

Recent Republican conventions have given new visibility to religious conservatives, who were finding a home and a power base as never before in the GOP. The role of religious activists has been far less prominent in Philadelphia this week. But that does not mean the Christian right has disappeared. NPR's Lynn Neary reports.

Robert talks to Jacob Weisberg, Chief Political Correspondent for the on-line magazine Slate, about political advertising throughout the campaign, and the BIGGEST political ad of them all, the four-day convention. This year's GOP convention has been highlighted by music and video and packaged presentations. There's been a look and sound from the stage unlike any other GOP event before, with lots of minorities. And Weisberg notes the inclusion of performers like Brian McKnight, an R&B artist, whose song Monday night seem to baffle a lot of the audience who weren't used to hip-hop at a GOP event. There have also been video presentations of past Republican presidents. Another recurring theme: the live feed of the candidate, George W Bush from the campaign trail every night, making his way to Philadelphia.

NPR's Gerry Hadden reports that a traditional form of Cuban music and dance that is rarely heard on the island is thriving in one part of Mexico. In the streets of the port city of Veracruz, you can often find live danzon concerts, and dozens of couples dancing to the melody. Even young people have fallen in love with the danzon. A local danzon troupe has toured the US, Canada and Europe.

All Things Considered host Robert Siegel is at the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia. He spent time on the floor of the convention hall Tuesday night, with the Michigan delegation during John McCain's speech. McCain won Michigan's primary. And here in Philadelphia, the delegation from Michigan includes some people who backed McCain. Robert talks with two delegates after the speech about their reaction to McCain's speech, and whether they now support George W. Bush. This week has been a huge exercise in persuasion for those McCain supporters -- as they attempt to harness their enthusiasm for McCain to the Bush bandwagon.

Linda Wertheimer talks with NPR's Linda Gradstein about the double blow suffered today by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak. Foreign Minister David Levy quit the government saying Barak had offered too many concessions to the Palestinians. And the Knesset passed the preliminary reading of a bill for early elections.

NPR's Ted Clark reports that Syria's new president, Bashar Assad, has released 30 political prisoners imprisoned by his father. The prisoner releases have sparked speculation that the new president might prove to be more liberal than his father. But experts say the late Hafez Assad initiated the liberalization and had begun releasing political prisoners before his death earlier this summer.

National Correspondent for The New York Times, NICHOLAS KRISTOF. He's written a series of biographical articles on George W. Bush, focusing on his early years. KRISTOF is former Tokyo Bureau Chief for The Times, and was co-recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for international reporting for his coverage of Tianamen Square. (THIS INTERVIEW CONTINUES INTO THE SECOND HALF OF THE SHOW)12:28:30 FORWARD PROMO (:29)12:29:00 I.D. BREAK (:59)12:

Veteran newsman Robert Trout has the second of two reports about the history of the Republican party, through his own reporting on the last 17 conventions over a period of nearly seventy years. Today, Trout picks up in the late 1940's and early 1950's, and the fight between moderates and conservatives -- between the forces of Dwight D. Eisenhower and Robert A. Taft. Eisenhower won. But the pendulum swung back in the 1960's with the nomination of Barry Goldwater. Ultimately, Trout points out that the struggle between moderate and conservative still marks party proceedings today.