Brett Zongker

Read the latest stories and analysis from Brett Zongker.

FILE - This Feb. 18, 2005 file photo shows the original Emancipation Proclamation on display in the Rotunda of the National Archives in Washington. As New Year's Day approached 150 years ago, all eyes were on President Abraham Lincoln in expectation of what he warned 100 days earlier would be coming _ his final proclamation declaring all slaves in states rebelling against the Union to be "forever free." A tradition began on Dec. 31, 1862, as many black churches held Watch Night services, awaiting word that Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation would take effect as the country was in the midst of a bloody Civil War. Later, congregations listened as the president's historic words were read aloud. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

Watch Nights mark Emancipation Proclamation 150th

Brett Zongker · December 30, 2012 5:59 am

FILE - This Feb. 18, 2005 file photo shows the original Emancipation Proclamation on display in the Rotunda of the National Archives in Washington. As New Year's Day approached 150 years ago, all eyes were on President Abraham Lincoln in expectation of what he warned 100 days earlier would be coming _ his final proclamation declaring all slaves in states rebelling against the Union to be "forever free." A tradition began on Dec. 31, 1862, as many black churches held Watch Night services, awaiting word that Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation would take effect as the country was in the midst of a bloody Civil War. Later, congregations listened as the president's historic words were read aloud. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

Watch Nights mark Emancipation Proclamation 150th

Brett Zongker · December 30, 2012 5:00 am

In this 2009 image provided by Charity: Water, Scott Harrison walks in a field in the northern region of Tigray in Ethiopia in 2009, as he visits a water project completed by local partner, Relief Society of Tigray. Harrison's organization has funded nearly 7,000 clean water projects in some of the poorest areas of the world. He wanted to add sensors to the wells to give donors more assurances about the projects. But raising millions of dollars for the innovation was a problem. Google stepped in with major funding to create and install sensors on 4,000 wells across Africa that will send back real-time data on the water flow. Experts say the new annual grants are a part of a growing trend in venture philanthropy from donors who see technology as an instrument for social change. (AP Photo/Charity: Water)

Nonprofit tech innovators inspire new philanthropy

Brett Zongker · December 27, 2012 12:39 pm

This Dec. 19, 2012 image shows a frame grab of gofundme.com. This web page solicits donations to rebuild a New York restaurant, The Good Fork. In the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, some who lost their homes or businesses have turned to crowd-funding websites. (AP Photo/gofundme.com)

Crowd-funding draws donations for Sandy relief

Brett Zongker · December 22, 2012 4:04 pm

This image released by Paramount Home Video shows a movie poster from "Breakfast at Tiffany's starring Audrey Hepburn. Memorable movies, including "Breakfast at Tiffanyâs," "Dirty Harry," "A League of Their Own" and "The Matrix" are being preserved for their enduring significance in American culture as The Library of Congress announces, Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2012, the slate of films it will induct into the National Film Registry. (AP Photo/Paramount Home Video)

‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ added to US film registry

Brett Zongker · December 19, 2012 2:41 pm

Smithsonian parallels Emancipation, Civil Rights

Smithsonian parallels Emancipation, Civil Rights

Brett Zongker · December 14, 2012 3:36 pm

FILE - This June 18, 2010 file photo shows Carole King performing on the NBC "Today" television program in New York. King is the first woman to win the Library of Congress' Gershwin Prize for Popular Song for her five decades of songwriting. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

US library to honor Carole King with music prize

Brett Zongker · December 13, 2012 6:07 pm

FILE - In this Nov. 6, 2002, file photo Michelangelo's "David-Apollo" is bathed in light at the Art Institute of Chicago. The sculpture goes on view Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012, at the National Gallery of Art in Washington. The sculpture, from the year 1530, is on loan from the Museo Nazionale del Bargello in Florence, and was last shown in the U.S. capital in 1949 when it drew nearly 800,000 visitors. It was also a centerpiece for those who attended President Harry Truman's inaugural reception at the gallery. (AP Photo/Brandi Jade Thomas, File)

Italy brings Michelangelo’s ‘David-Apollo’ to US

Brett Zongker · December 12, 2012 7:16 pm

FILE - This Jan. 15, 2012 file photo shows the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial in Washington, with the quote carved on the side of new memorial in Washington that will be changed. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar endorsed a plan Tuesday to remove a disputed inscription from the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, rather than cut into the granite to replace it with a fuller quotation. Salazar said he had reached an agreement with Kingâs family, the group that built the memorial and the National Park Service to remove a paraphrase from Kingâs âDrum Majorâ speech by carving grooves over the lettering to match existing scratch marks in the sculpture. Memorial sculptor Lei Yixin recommended removing the inscription this way to avoid harming the monumentâs structural integrity. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

APNewsBreak: Quote on MLK Memorial to be removed

Brett Zongker · December 11, 2012 9:34 pm

US library to fund literacy awards with $1.5M gift

US library to fund literacy awards with $1.5M gift

Brett Zongker · December 6, 2012 9:14 pm

This undated handout photo provided by the Smithsonian Institution shows the obelisk-shaped Dom Pedro gem. The world's largest cut aquamarine gem will soon go on display in its new home at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in Washington. The museum will unveil the obelisk-shaped Dom Pedro gem Thursday for long-term display. The blue-green crystal was mined in Brazil in the late 1980s and is named for Brazil's first two emperors. (AP Photo/Don Hurlbert, Smithsonian Institution)

Smithsonian to unveil largest aquamarine gem

Brett Zongker · December 5, 2012 4:31 pm

Google gives $23M to spur innovation in charities

Google gives $23M to spur innovation in charities

Brett Zongker · December 4, 2012 10:16 am