Episodes

  • Trump's US Steel Reversal, Court Win For Harvard, Musk Leaves DOGE

    Trump's US Steel Reversal, Court Win For Harvard, Musk Leaves DOGE
    May 30 2025
    US Steel is entering a multi-billion dollar partnership and Japanese competitor Nippon Steel. President Trump campaigned on a promise to block the deal. Now he says he approves it, so what changed? Harvard University for now can continue enrolling international students after a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction. And Elon Musk is leaving the Department of Government Efficiency, commonly referred to as DOGE.

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    Today's episode of Up First was edited by Kelsey Snell, Lauren Migaki, Padma Rama, HJ Mai and Mohamad ElBardicy. It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis and our technical director is Carleigh Strange. And our Executive Producer is Jay Shaylor.

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    13 mins
  • Court Blocks Most Trump Tariffs, Trump Grows Frustrated With Putin, CPAC Hungary

    Court Blocks Most Trump Tariffs, Trump Grows Frustrated With Putin, CPAC Hungary
    May 29 2025
    A federal court has blocked most of President Trump's "Liberation Day" tariffs. The judges said the president overstepped his authority when he put tariffs on nearly every country in the world last month. Trump also appears increasingly frustrated with Russian leader Vladimir Putin over Moscow's ongoing airstrikes in Ukraine. How could this affect any peace negotiations? And one of the largest right-wing political gatherings is getting underway in Eastern Europe.

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    Today's episode of Up First was edited by Kara Platoni, Miguel Macias, Arezou Rezvani, HJ Mai and Lisa Thomson. It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis, and our technical director is Carleigh Strange.

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    13 mins
  • Gaza Food Distribution Chaos, New COVID-19 Vaccine Guidelines, Children Of ISIS

    Gaza Food Distribution Chaos, New COVID-19 Vaccine Guidelines, Children Of ISIS
    May 28 2025
    Israeli forces fired shots at a food distribution site in Gaza after people, many of whom face the threat of starvation, had overrun the place. The incident happened on the first day that a new U.S.-based system distributed humanitarian aid. The U.S. government has updated its COVID-19 vaccine guidelines. The shot is no longer recommended for healthy children or healthy pregnant women. But independent health experts are voicing concerns. And thousands of children of ISIS fighters are stuck in Syrian detention camps.

    Want more comprehensive analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.

    Today's episode of Up First was edited by Carrie Kahn, Rebecca Davis, Barrie Hardymon, HJ Mai and Alice Woelfle. It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis and our technical director is Carleigh Strange.

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    13 mins
  • Harvard President says critics' "fire is misdirected"

    Harvard President says critics' "fire is misdirected"
    May 27 2025
    In addition to revoking Harvard's ability to enroll international students, the Trump administration is pulling all federal contracts from the university. NPR's Steve Inskeep sits down with Harvard's President Alan Garber and asks whether he sees the current actions as a warning.

    Want more comprehensive analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.

    Today's episode of Up First was edited by Reena Advani and produced by Ana Perez. Our Executive Producer is Jay Shaylor.

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    19 mins
  • New Gaza Aid Group Faces Criticism, Harvard President Speaks Out, DEI Rollbacks

    New Gaza Aid Group Faces Criticism, Harvard President Speaks Out, DEI Rollbacks
    May 27 2025
    Israel has lifted its restrictions on humanitarian aid. A new U.S.-aid group is now preparing to bring food to Gaza, where hunger is widespread. But the UN and other groups have raised questions about this new entity. The Trump administration has targeted Harvard University over a number of issues. Steve Inskeep sat down with Harvard President Alan Garber. And thousands of positions in the area of diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) have been eliminated across corporate America.

    Want more comprehensive analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.

    Today's episode of Up First was edited by Carrie Kahn, Reena Advani, Pallavi Gogoi, HJ Mai and Lisa Thomson. It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas. We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis and our technical director is Carleigh Strange.

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    13 mins
  • Russia Intensifies Attacks On Ukraine, Summer Travel Season, Wildfire Forecast

    Russia Intensifies Attacks On Ukraine, Summer Travel Season, Wildfire Forecast
    May 26 2025
    Ukrainian officials say Russia launched its largest airstrikes since the start of the conflict. Sunday's attack, which killed 12 people, happened only hours before a prisoner exchange. Memorial Day is considered the unofficial start of summer and the summer travel season, but a deadly midair collision in the nation's capital in January and reports of air traffic control outages have raised safety concerns. Also, government forecasts predict an above normal wildfire risk for some parts of the country yet cuts to the US Forest Service makes fighting fires harder.

    Want more comprehensive analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.

    Today's episode of Up First was edited by Ryland Barton, Catherine Laidlaw, HJ Mai, Mohamad ElBardicy. It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Lindsay Totti. We get engineering support from Damian Herring and our technical director is David Greenberg.

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    13 mins
  • The Class of 2025

    The Class of 2025
    May 25 2025
    A lot has changed in higher education since President Trump took office. This week on The Sunday Story, Ayesha reflects on her own college graduation, and she sits down with three graduating college seniors. They talk about how funding cuts have upended their postgrad plans and how the last semester has made them think differently about what college is all about.

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    19 mins
  • National Security Council Shakeup, George Floyd Murder and Political Extremism

    National Security Council Shakeup, George Floyd Murder and Political Extremism
    May 24 2025
    Another major shakeup at the White House National Security Council. Officials tell NPR that dozens of staff were fired yesterday. Also, Sunday marks five years since George Floyd was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer. His death triggered a reckoning with racism. But we explore how Floyd's murder also fueled conspiracies and political extremism.

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    20 mins
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