Bill Chappell

Bill Chappell is a blogger and producer who works with NPR's Morning Edition and Digital Media group. In addition to coordinating Web features, he frequently contributes to NPR's blogs, from The Two Way and All Tech Considered to The Salt.

Chappell's work at NPR has ranged from being the site's first full-time homepage editor to leading the London 2012 Olympics blog, The Torch. His assignments have included being the lead web producer for NPR's trip to Asia's Grand Trunk Road, as well as establishing the Peabody Award-winning StoryCorps on NPR.org.

In 2009, Chappell was a key editorial member of the small team that redesigned NPR's web site. One year later, the site won its first Peabody Award, along with the National Press Foundation's Excellence in Online Journalism award.

At NPR, Chappell trains both digital and radio staff to use digital tools to tell compelling stories, in addition to "evangelizing" — promoting more collaboration between departments. Other shows he has worked with include All Things Considered, Fresh Air, and Talk of the Nation.

Prior to joining NPR in late 2003, Chappell worked on the Assignment Desk at CNN International, handling coverage in areas from the Middle East, Asia, Africa, Europe, and Latin America, and coordinating CNN's pool coverage out of Qatar.

Chappell's work for CNN also included producing Web stories and editing digital video for SI.com, as well as editing and producing stories for CNN.com's features division. He also worked at the network's video and research library.

Before joining CNN, Chappell wrote about movies, restaurants and music for alternative weeklies, in addition to his first job: editing the police blotter.

From 2002-2003, Chappell served as editor-in-chief of The Trans-Atlantic Journal, a business and lifestyle monthly geared for expatriate Europeans working and living in the United States.

A holder of bachelor's degrees in English and History from the University of Georgia, he attended graduate school for English Literature at the University of South Carolina.

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All Tech Considered
3:02 am
Mon April 2, 2012

You Should Keep Tax Records — But How, And For How Long?

Tax Day 2012 is looming — and after we file our returns, many of us will try to figure out what to do with the seemingly innocuous but possibly crucial documents we use to prepare our returns. Filing electronically can make those records easier to manage. But what should we really keep, and for how long?

Most experts recommend holding on to financial records for three years after they're used in a tax return — that's the amount of time the IRS has to audit taxpayers.

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The Two-Way
4:52 pm
Thu March 29, 2012

In Saturday's Final Four, Expect A Kentucky Showdown And Lots Of Emotion

Credit Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images
Senior guard Darius Miller of Kentucky shoots during the Wildcats' win over Baylor in the South Regional final. Kentucky, the NCAA Tournament's No. 1 seed, faces rival Louisville in the Final Four Saturday.

Originally published on Fri March 30, 2012 5:53 am

College basketball's Final Four men's teams will play in New Orleans Saturday, to decide which two squads will play in Monday night's NCAA championship game. The first match-up pits the University of Louisville against tournament favorite — and archrival — the University of Kentucky. In the second game, Ohio State University will face the University of Kansas.

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The Two-Way
4:30 pm
Tue March 27, 2012

After 'Hunger Games,' U.S. Archer Shoots For Olympic Games

Originally published on Wed March 28, 2012 9:31 am

This summer, U.S. archer Khatuna Lorig hopes to return to the Olympic Games. But she's already helped put archery into The Hunger Games this spring — by training the film's star, Jennifer Lawrence, to shoot.

In the kill-or-be-killed competition in the film drawn from Suzanne Collins' book, Lawrence's character, Katniss Everdeen, relies on her ability with a bow. And Lorig worked with the actress to ensure she had proper form.

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The Two-Way
12:36 pm
Thu March 8, 2012

Solar Storm Goes Easy On Earth — But More Are Sure To Come, NASA Says

Credit NASA/JPL
The sun-orbiting SOHO spacecraft captured this image of filaments erupting off the sun's surface and magnetic plasma blasting into space. The field of view of this image, seen in ultraviolet light, extends some 1.243 million miles from the solar surface.

Originally published on Fri March 9, 2012 11:07 am

The Two-Way
3:52 pm
Wed March 7, 2012

Sun Sends Solar Flares Speeding Toward Earth; Will Hit Thursday [VIDEO]

Credit NASA
This image of a huge and powerful solar flare was captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory Tuesday.
The Two-Way
2:21 pm
Wed March 7, 2012

Brazil Moves To Ease Soccer Beer Ban, As World Cup Spat With FIFA Grows

Brazil took a step toward relaxing its strict ban on alcohol at soccer stadiums Tuesday, responding to World Cup organizers' concerns. The Federation International de Football Association is pushing for the change so it can make Budweiser the "Official Beer of the FIFA World Cup" when Brazil hosts the event in 2014.

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The Two-Way
11:01 pm
Tue March 6, 2012

How Do You Ship A Horse To The London Olympics? Carefully, And Via FedEx

Credit Don Emmert / AFP/Getty Images
U.S. Olympic Equestrian rider Phillip Dutton jumps with Zeizos in West Grove, Pa., in this 2010 photo. Dozens of horses will fly from America to England for the 2012 Summer Olympics.

The elite athletes who travel to London for this summer's Olympic Games will include petite gymnasts, huge wrestlers — and elite horses, which compete in dressage and other events. Getting these strong and delicate animals to the Olympics is no job for an amateur. In fact, it's the job of Tim Dutta, who owns an international horse transport company.

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All Tech Considered
10:16 am
Wed February 29, 2012

How To Adjust Your Privacy Settings, Before Google's Big Shift

News that Google will place its dozens of services under one privacy policy — a change that also means the company will compile and collate each user's data from all those products — has some of its customers scrambling to restrict their privacy settings before the new policy goes into effect on March 1.

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All Tech Considered
9:30 am
Fri February 24, 2012

What Science Fiction Books Does A Futurist Read?

Credit

One of science fiction's jobs is to give humanity a map of where we're headed. From Jules Verne to William Gibson, sci-fi authors have described their versions of the future, and how people might live in it.

Those ideas came up in a recent conversation I had with Brian David Johnson, who works for Intel as a futurist — a title that gives him one of the tech world's cooler business cards.

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The Two-Way
11:18 am
Mon February 20, 2012

Holiday News Roundup: Mardi Gras, Greece And John Glenn

Credit NASA / AP
An image captured on Feb. 20, 1962, by NASA shows astronaut John Glenn during his space flight in the Friendship 7 Mercury spacecraft, weightless and traveling at 17,500 mph. The image was made by an automatic sequence motion picture camera.

The Two-Way is formally off-duty for the Presidents' Day holiday. But not only does the news not take a holiday — often, holidays are the news. Here's a quick roundup of some of today's important and most-discussed stories:

  • Syria is reinforcing its military in what seems to be a bid to control Homs. (AP)
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