Reading Rainbow Kickstarts a Pot of Gold, Snowden Says He's a Patriot

May 29, 2014 11:13 AM EDT

Here are the stories TIME is watching this Thursday, May 29:

Edward Snowden tells NBC’s Brian Williams he considers himself a patriot in his first U.S. television interview.

Former Field Marshal Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi wins Egypt’s elections despite poor voter turnout.

Children get ready to sound it out as the Scripps National Spelling Bee finals begin.

Butterfly in the sky, I can go twice as high. Reading Rainbow’s Kickstarter surpasses its goal of $1 million in just one day.

The Brief is published daily on weekdays.

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