To the Point

Maid in America

Middle class families are becoming employers of cheap labor, hiring others to do housework their parents used to do themselves. Such domestics free their employers from many mundane but physically demanding chores, allowing them to develop an identity independent of family members. Such suburban homes and downtown apartments have replaced inner city factories as a starting point for immigrant workers. We explore the personal and professional nature of such relationships, their social cost, and affect on children with a working mother, sociologist, domestics and an immigration reformer. (Rebroadcast from May 21.) Newsmaker: Technology Exposes Cheating at University of Virginia - At the University of Virginia, there were rumors of widespread cheating in Physics 105 and 106. Professor Lou Bloomfield designed a computerized solution to computerized cheating and dealt a blow to the honor code at a major University. (Rebroadcast from May 9.) Reporter's Notebook: Navajos Honored for Use of the Navajo Language During World War II - In the 1920's, Navaho children were punished for speaking their native language. Today, they're getting the Congressional Medal of Honor. During World War II, Merrill Sandoval was a Navajo code talker, one of a secret elite band of radio operators who confounded Japanese intelligence by passing messages in their unique complex tongue. (Rebroadcast from July 26.)