A small theater in the heart of a Latino neighborhood in Los Angeles is giving voice to the immigrant community there. The place has provided a stage for new artists at risk of social exclusion. Some of them had been catapulted to the Hollywood sets. Arturo Martinez has this report …

Thousands of dollars worth of parts, more than a year of hard work, attention to hundreds of intricate details — this is what it takes to build a musical organ. A small company in Tennessee has been building these grand musical instruments for nearly 30 years and recently walked VOA’s …

Anna Wintour, the influential editor of Vogue magazine, is remaining in her job “indefinitely,” publisher Conde Nast said Tuesday, refuting rumors that she was on her way out after 30 years. “Anna Wintour is an incredibly talented and creative leader whose influence is beyond measure. She is integral to the future of our company’s transformation …

More than 40 years after they became the world’s most famous journalism duo, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein are still making news. Bernstein was among three CNN reporters who last week broke the story of former Donald Trump lawyer Michael Cohen’s allegation that Trump knew in advance of the June …

With the launch of a public school in his hometown of Akron, Ohio, LeBron James has joined a long list of celebrities who have sought to leave their mark on education centers. The NBA star, who recently left the Cleveland Cavaliers and signed with the Los Angeles Lakers, was on …

A rare draft poster for the “Star Wars” sequel “The Empire Strikes Back” has sold at auction for $26,400. Heritage Auctions says a long-time pop culture collector who wished to remain anonymous made the winning bid Sunday in the Dallas auction.   The poster features Han Solo and Princess Leia …

An Israeli court jailed an Israeli Arab poet for five months on Tuesday after convicting her of incitement to terrorism for a poem and remarks she posted on social media during a wave of Palestinian street attacks. Dareen Tatour, 36, posted on Facebook and YouTube a video of herself reading …

After the devastation of World War II, architects in Yugoslavia got to work helping to rebuild the country which straddled the Cold War divide between the East and West. The architecture reflects styles from both sides and the architects’ vision of the future. The Museum of Modern Art in New …

McDonald’s is fighting to hold onto customers as the Big Mac turns 50, but it isn’t changing the makings of its most famous burger. The company is celebrating the 1968 national launch of the double-decker sandwich whose ingredients of “two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions and a …

Lindsay Lohan, whose promising movie career crashed in a string of legal woes and substance abuse, is returning to U.S. television in a reality series about her night club ventures in Greece. MTV said on Monday that “Lohan Beach Club” will follow the actress as she works to expand a …

Madonna on Monday launched a $60,000 fundraiser to support her work with children in Malawi, and had already raised more than $10,000 in the first 24 hours. The “Rebel Heart” singer, who has adopted four children from the African nation in the past 10 years, said 100 percent of every …

It was just meant to be: Pop singer Bebe Rexha and country duo Florida Georgia Line’s massive crossover hit “Meant to Be” has broken a new record on Billboard’s Hot country songs chart, remaining in the No. 1 spot for 35 weeks.   Billboard reports the song, which was dually …

The happy shouts of children participating in a summer soccer camp emanate from the Tubman Elementary School playing field in Washington D.C. Pay-to-play soccer structures can make it challenging for kids from low-income families to play competitive, organized soccer in the United States. DC Scores, a nonprofit organization, tries to …

It would be easy to imagine yourself in a tropical jungle when you walk into Ed Willis’ store. The room is filled with whistles, chirps and shrieks, made by dozens of bright-colored parrots, from chatty cockatoos to giant macaws to tiny parakeets. In case you’re still not sure what’s for …

A new initiative in the Chilean capital of Santiago is making some of the city’s dramatic street murals more accessible to visually disabled people by offering them a tactile representation of the artwork. VOA’s Mariama Diallo has more. …

CBS said Friday it is investigating sexual misconduct allegations against Les Moonves, the company’s 68-year-old chairman and CEO. The claims were detailed Friday on the website of The New Yorker magazine in an article written by Ronan Farrow. Farrow won a Pulitzer Prize last year for an article in the …

Carrie Fisher is not done with Star Wars after all. Lucasfilm says unreleased footage of the actress will be used in the next installment of the science fiction saga to draw her character’s story to an end. The studio and writer-director J.J. Abrams announced Friday that footage of Fisher shot for 2015’s …

Whether it’s in movies, comic books or video games, fans say there is diversity in the superhero universe. At the international Comic-Con convention that ended July 22, Emmeline Ye, a Chinese-American from San Diego, is dressed up in a Wonder Woman costume. She said her next costume will be of …

Tom Cruise’s latest action installment of Mission: Impossible Fallout follows operative Ethan Hunt, the daredevil spy, on an extremely perilous quest to save the world. Cruise and the rest of the Mission: Impossible cast, along with the powerful visuals and the megastar’s mind-bending stunts, keep audiences on the edge of …

Tom Cruise’s latest action installment of “Mission: Impossible FALLOUT” follows operative Ethan Hunt, the daredevil spy on a mission impossible to save the world. VOA’s Penelope Poulou spoke with Cruise, inhabiting his character Ethan Hunt, along with the rest of the cast, about the powerful visuals and megastar’s mind-bending stunts …

Superheroes in comic books and American popular culture have become increasingly diverse, but fans and creators say more work needs to be done, especially on the big screen to fully represent American society. But Hollywood is already looking beyond the U.S. as it tries to capitalize on the popularity of …

The Japanese city of Iga is fighting off would-be ninjas after a news report suggesting the city wanted to hire the traditional assassins went viral. The confusion began last week, when a reporter for National Public Radio in the United States said Japan was suffering from a shortage of workers …

As American women seek a larger role in politics, fairer wages and an end to sexual harassment, the Girl Scouts see an opportune time to show some swagger in promoting their core mission: girl empowerment. They recruited Queen Latifah to narrate a video featuring famous former Girl Scouts — Venus …

Former President Donald Trump aide and “Apprentice”  contestant Omarosa Manigault Newman has a memoir coming that her publisher calls “explosive” and “jaw-dropping.” The book is called “Unhinged.” Gallery Books announced Thursday that it will be released on Aug. 14. Manigault Newman was a Trump ally who joined his administration in …

German Football Association (DFB) head Reinhard Grindel on Thursday said he should have made clearer that racism is unacceptable after midfielder Mesut Ozil quit the national team citing “racism and disrespect” over his Turkish roots. Ozil, who plays for English Premier League club Arsenal, was widely criticized for having his …