The sweet smell of election uncertainty

Today we saw a complex series of moves and non-moves at the Federal Election Commission. Marketplace's Scott Tong reports that the upshot... may be just what the country's hankering for: more uncertainty.

And the winner is ...

Much has been said about how votes will be collected. There've been heated discussions about computerized voting machines - and methods of vote tabulation. But one thing that hasn't received much attention is how we, the people, will get word of the results. Easy answer, right? We'll watch TV or listen to public radio. But after the debacle of the 2000 election night, you have to wonder, how do the media plan to call the winners and the losers? We asked Marketplace's Lisa Napoli to check it out.

But how will it play in Paris?

Lately, many American companies haven't been doing so well abroad. Gap's international sales have fallen and it's pulled out of Germany. Disney's theme park near Paris is doing so badly that it's been rescued by its U.S. parent. Even Wal-Mart is struggling with European sales. Commentator Fareed Zakaria argues the fate of American icons abroad may depend on what happens November Second.

Outsourcing issues

President Bush has defended the outsourcing of American jobs as an inevitable byproduct of globalization - while challenger John Kerry claims to have a plan to slow the flow of jobs overseas. This issue has special resonance in textile producing areas of the Southeast and the industrial Midwest. But as Miranda Kennedy reports from Bangalore, the world's largest democracy is anxious over the outcome, too.

The business of being uninsured

You've heard the statistic in a campaign ad. Nearly 45 million Americans have no health insurance. To the presidential contenders, it's a thorny political problem. But to entrepreneur Brenda Broberg of Green Bay, Wisconsin, this sounds more like a business opportunity. Work and Family correspondent Sarah Gardner explains.