Jennifer Goren

Assignment Editor

Jennifer Goren helps manage the planning desk for PRI's The World.

I am one of the planning editors for PRI's The World, which means I'm constantly thinking about what's going to go on the show tomorrow and the days after that.  It's ironic, since I don't consider myself a planner by nature.

I also work with reporters to help them tell stories. Before I arrived at The World, I worked as a producer and writer at WBUR in Boston. I have a masters in science journalism, which comes in handy from time to time. When I'm not at work, I'm happy to tune out the news, by biking, hiking, not cooking, and hanging with my family.

Posters promoting National Brotherhood Week in the US

Whatever became of National Brotherhood Week?

In the mid-20th century, National Brotherhood Week was a huge public relations campaign in the US aimed at promoting tolerance and brotherhood as American virtues. Most people don't remember it anymore.

Whatever became of National Brotherhood Week?
Children drink water from the SHRI sanitation system.

This doctoral student is building public toilets in India that also provide clean drinking water

This doctoral student is building public toilets in India that also provide clean drinking water
New Orleans held emotional hearings over the summer about a plan to remove its Confederate monuments. Last week, the City Council voted to take four of them down.

America's unfinished civil war through the eyes to two US reporters in Africa

America's unfinished civil war through the eyes to two US reporters in Africa
Dr. Inge Rapoport

The Nazis stopped her. For a while. But she got her medical degree — at age 102

The Nazis stopped her. For a while. But she got her medical degree — at age 102
A scene from the upcoming Fox animated series, "Bordertown."

Lalo Alcaraz warns the sensitive to avoid his new show, 'Bordertown'

Lalo Alcaraz warns the sensitive to avoid his new show, 'Bordertown'
A manufactured story in Eastern Ukraine. The billboard reads, "We won't forget, we won't forgive," but Antelava says the photo of the girl has been faked.

Along Ukraine's ceasefire line, war is 'crowdfunded'

Freelance fighters are raising money for spy drones. Spin doctors are manufacturing false stories. Welcome to Ukraine's cease-fire, a term that makes people on both sides of the line laugh.

Along Ukraine's ceasefire line, war is 'crowdfunded'
The World

Is that Putin's daughter doing a flip? A Russian journalist says it is.

Vladimir Putin almost never talks publicly about his family. But now a Russian journalist has identified her as a competitive dancer.

Is that Putin's daughter doing a flip? A Russian journalist says it is.
In Brussels, a woman holds a copy of Charlie Hebdo to pay tribute to the victims of a shooting at the offices of the weekly satirical magazine in Paris on January 7, 2015.

France reels after the Charlie Hebdo attack kills 12

Neither the occurrence of a terrorist attack nor the deaths of people who were widely loved was easy for France to bear on Wednesday. But as people gather in French cities to mourn, there are hopes that the attack on the Charlie Hebdo satirical newspaper will help spark a conversation about radicalism in France.

France reels after the Charlie Hebdo attack kills 12
A man uses his phone to read updates about former American NSA contractor Edward Snowden answering users' questions on Twitter.

To see the changes Edward Snowden wrought, just look at your smartphone

Edward Snowden's biggest legacy may not come from changed laws or powers — it may just be the way that the debate over privacy has forced big companies like Apple and Google to safeguard its customers' information in more ways.

To see the changes Edward Snowden wrought, just look at your smartphone
Students from a high school cheer for their seniors in front of a college entrance examination hall before the exam begins in Seoul, South Korea.

South Korea falls silent for college entrance exams — but students still feel the pressure

Every year in South Korea, high school seniors are faced with the biggest challenge of their young lives — college entrance exams. Teens are told their whole futures depend on how well they score, and the entire country works to accommodate the stressed out test takers.

South Korea falls silent for college entrance exams — but students still feel the pressure
Flight Lt. Caroline Paige is the first openly transgender officer to serve in the Royal Air Force. She says once fellow officers saw she could do the job, her identity was no longer an issue.

The RAF's first openly transgender officer says competence trumps prejudice with her fellow soldiers

After serving in the military as a man for nearly two decades, Caroline Paige became the Royal Air Force's first openly transgender officer in 1998. She says her colleagues have accepted her like any other officer, and she wants to help lift bans on transgender people serving in places like the United States.

The RAF's first openly transgender officer says competence trumps prejudice with her fellow soldiers
People attend a rally in support of Scotland's independence referendum, in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine.

Russia says 'Yes' to self-determination — as long as it's not within Russia

Russia is eagerly watching the Scotland referendum on independence. Russia media portray it as a validation of the March vote in Crimea for self-determination. But Moscow-based reporter Charles Maynes tells Marco Werman that Russia's government is less eager to embrace self-determination inside its own borders.

Russia says 'Yes' to self-determination — as long as it's not within Russia
Nelson Mandela, as a young man, before he gave his famous Rivonia speech

Why hearing Mandela's Rivonia speech is so powerful. It's not just the words, it's the sounds behind them

South Africa kept recordings of Nelson Mandela's famous Rivonia speech. But no one could hear them because they were on dictabelts. And then South Africa's last remaining dictaphone machine broke.

Why hearing Mandela's Rivonia speech is so powerful. It's not just the words, it's the sounds behind them
No new cars at this Nissan dealership in Caracas, Venezuela.

Why it's almost impossible to buy a new car in oil-rich Venezuela

In Venezuela, new cars are so scarce that they appreciate in value the minute you drive off the lot.

Why it's almost impossible to buy a new car in oil-rich Venezuela

Yulia Simonova: Making Russia's Disabled Less Invisible

Yulia Simonova is a 30-year-old disability advocate in Russia. She's used a wheelchair since she was 10 years old. She says she sees a lot of changes in Russia since then. For one thing, people with disabilities are more visible.

Yulia Simonova: Making Russia's Disabled Less Invisible