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NPR's business news begins with a media divorce.

Village Voice Media Holdings, the company that publishes the newspaper of the same name, is breaking up with its controversial advertising service. Backpage.com has been accused of facilitating sex trafficking, and activists have been pressuring the Village Voice to shut down its adult classifieds service - so the company is splitting up its portfolio.

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The Dow Jones industrial average may be the most famous barometer of stock market sentiment. It's not a broad measure. Only 30 stocks are in the Dow and this elite group of big blue chip companies supposedly represents the health of the U.S. economy. So, it is noteworthy when a company is kicked off the Dow or allowed in.

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It's MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm Steve Inskeep.

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And I'm David Greene.

It's the final week before the debates begin and the presidential candidates are stepping up their campaigning as they try to shake loose what polls are still showing to be a very tight race. We'll hear about one of those polls of rural voters in just a minute. But first, both President Obama and Governor Mitt Romney appeared last night on the CBS program "60 Minutes."

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OK. So, all those political ads are on the air. Last night, the candidates themselves were on the air. They did interviews on the same CBS program, "60 Minutes." NPR's David Schaper was watching.

DAVID SCHAPER, BYLINE: After a week in which his campaign was on the defensive, Romney told "60 Minutes" he remains confident.

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MITT ROMNEY: I'm going to win this thing.

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The city of Nuevo Laredo, which hugs the border of south Texas, is the latest hotspot in Mexico's violent drug war. Over the past two weeks, over 70 people have been killed there in drug-related violence. Monica Ortiz Uribe from member station KJZZ visited the city and she found a community terrified and afraid to even speak.

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A sitcom premiering Monday night called Partners has a major advantage over the other new shows this season. Partners was directed by James Burrows. That's a name with particular resonance in Hollywood. When Burrows directs a TV pilot, it's more or less a given the show will be picked up for a full season.

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The big broadcast networks are rolling out their new fall TV shows. And this season, there are not one but two shows with Asian women in starring roles. Indian-American Mindy Kaling has her own showcase on Fox's "The Mindy Project" and Chinese-American Lucy Liu stars in "Elementary" on CBS. TV critic Eric Deggans is looking forward to seeing more of them.

ERIC DEGGANS: Mindy Kaling could not have more expectations attached to her new TV comedy.

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Violent protests in eastern Libya have set in motion a movement to take back the nation from dozens of militias born from the revolt against strongman Moammar Gadhafi. Since the dictator's demise, Libya has been beholden to men with guns.

The transitional state is weak, and it depends on the militias to help secure the streets. The state has now promised to integrate the militias into the security forces.

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This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. Good morning. I'm David Greene.

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And I'm Steve Inskeep. A riot involving at least 2,000 workers broke out late last night at a Foxconn facility in northern China, where employees make iPhones. Foxconn says about 40 people went to the hospital with injuries. Now, in recent years Foxconn has come under intense scrutiny for the working conditions in its factories. Now we have this episode, so we're bringing in NPR's Frank Langfitt, who's following the story from Shanghai.