Today is Monday, April 6, the 96th day of 2009. There are 269 days left in the year.

TODAY’S HIGHLIGHT:

One hundred years ago, on April 6, 1909, American explorers Robert E. Peary and Matthew A. Henson and four Inuits became the first men to reach the North Pole.

ON THIS DATE:

In 1830, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was organized by Joseph Smith in Fayette, N.Y.

In 1862, the Civil War Battle of Shiloh began in Tennessee.

In 1896, the first modern Olympic games formally opened in Athens, Greece.

In 1917, Congress approved a declaration of war against Germany.

In 1954, after being criticized by newsman Edward R. Murrow on CBS’ “See It Now,” Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy, R-Wis., was given the opportunity to reply with a filmed response in which he charged that Murrow had in the past “engaged in propaganda for Communist causes.”

In 1965, the United States launched the Intelsat I, also known as the “Early Bird” communications satellite, into orbit.

In 2008, President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin, meeting at the Black Sea resort of Sochi, failed to overcome sharp differences over a U.S. missile defense system as they closed their seven-year relationship.

Associated Press