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A threatened strike by the International Longshoremen's Association at 14 ports along the East and Gulf Coasts has been called off. Federal negotiators say the union has reached an agreement with the United States Maritime Alliance and will extend contract talks.

President Vladimir Putin on Friday signed a bill banning Americans from adopting Russian children. U.S. adoptions from Russia had already been on the decline over the last several years — reflecting a broader downward trend in international adoptions. For more on adoption trends, host Audie Cornish talks with Adam Pertman, executive director of the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute.

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act has been approved for another five years, as the Senate voted to renew the law that grants the government wide surveillance authority. President Obama has said he intends to sign the measure, which senators approved by a 73-23 margin Friday morning.

It's that time of year when best-of lists abound, and Fresh Air's critics get in on the game: David Bianculli chooses his top television shows, David Edelstein names his favorite films, Maureen Corrigan weighs in with notable books and Ken Tucker tunes into to some of the best albums of 2012.

As thousands of candles glow at a somber scene in a central Delhi park on Saturday, there is quiet, sober reflection in India about the tragic end of a young woman who has come to symbolize violence against all women in India.

The gong business is still a hit for Andrew Borakove, a comedy television writer turned gong salesmen. Despite the rocky economy, his doors have been open for eight years. "We've watched the world go up and down," he says, "but when you're selling gongs, there's no up or down, it's just round."

When Rep.-elect Joseph Kennedy III is sworn in this week, he'll end a short gap in his family's service in the nation's capital. Last year had marked the first time in more than six decades that there was no Kennedy serving in elected office in Washington.

After the 1917 Russian Revolution, there was a debate over what to do with the spectacular jewels that had symbolized the power and wealth of the czars. Most have remained in the Kremlin, but some can't be traced.

As the year comes to an end, NPR librarian Kee Malesky shares closing lines from some great novels — those last few moments spent with a story that you love.

He was elected general secretary of the Communist Party of China early Thursday morning. But those hoping for change in China say the make-up of the party's elite makes it unlikely major reforms will come anytime soon.