NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-01-2025 1AM EST

Episode Date: January 1, 2025

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Okay, so does this sound like you? You love NPR's podcasts, you wish you could get more of all your favorite shows, and you want to support NPR's mission to create a more informed public. If all that sounds appealing, then it is time to sign up for the NPR Plus bundle. Learn more at plus.npr.org. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dan Ronan. The Central Time Zone of the United States is now welcoming in 2025. People in cities including Chicago's St. Louis, in Minneapolis' St. Paul are celebrating. This is what it sounded like an hour ago, when more than a million people were in New

York City's Times Square to watch the crystal ball drop as the crowd chanted down the seconds and a Frank Sinatra classic played. Start spreading the news. I will need them today. I want to be a part of it. New York, New York. Police say security was very tight, with hundreds of extra officers on duty for the big event. Business and political leaders from around the world have been visiting Donald Trump's Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, to meet with the president-elect.

That list now includes the mayor of Washington, D.C. From member station WAMU, Jackson Sinterberg has more on the story. Mayor Muriel Bowser met with the president-elect on Monday. Her office says she traveled to the president-elect's Florida Resort for an hour-long sit-down. The main subject of their meeting concerned the federal workforce. Both Trump and Bowser want to end current federal telework policy, which allows many workers at federal agencies to work remotely five days a week. Bowser wants workers to return to the office to help boost the economy of

downtown DC. Trump, through his Department of Government Efficiency co-chairs Vivek Ramaswamy and Elon Musk, has threatened to fire workers who refuse to return to the office five days a week. For NPR News, I'm Jackson Sinnenberg in Washington. Outgoing North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper Tuesday commuted the death sentences for 15 inmates on death row to life in prison without parole. From member station WFAE, Eli Portillo has more. On his last day in office, Cooper, a Democrat, commuted the sentences of 15 of the 136 inmates on North Carolina's death row.

Cooper's office said the commutations were based on considerations such as the prisoners' conduct since their conviction, their age and mental capacity at the time of the killing, and the potential influence of race on their trials. It said he took input from victims' relatives. Anti-death penalty advocates swiftly praised Cooper's decision, but noted that 89 inmates had requested commutation. North Carolina has not carried out an execution since 2006. For NPR News, I'm Eli Portillo.

An estimated 9.2 million Americans will get a pay raise because 21 states have raised their minimum wage levels on January the 1st. Washington state will have the highest minimum wage at $16.66. New York and California raised their wage up to $16.50 an hour. The federal minimum wage was last raised in 2009 to its current $7.25 an hour. From Washington, you're listening to NPR News. The Treasury Department is imposing sanctions on two groups that officials said are linked to Russian and Iranian disinformation campaigns targeting this November's past election.

Officials said the Russian organization worked with Moscow's military to use artificial intelligence to create fake videos about American political candidates. The Iranian group is accused of working with Tehran's military to spread disinformation and incite voters. Both the Russian and Iranian governments have previously rejected claims that they sought to impact the outcome of the 2024 election. This week's Billboard charts are out, and the holiday songs have done something they've never done before. NPR's Stephen Thompson has the story.

The Christmas season is behind us, which means this may be the last time you hear Santa Tell Me for almost 11 months. But there are still two holiday milestones worth noting from this week's Billboard charts. One for the first time ever, the entire top ten consists of holiday music. In fact, the top 16 songs are all shouting at us to be of good cheer. That's a product of the streaming era, which has pushed Christmas to the top of the pop charts. Also, for the first time ever, a holiday song from this century has hit the Billboard top five. You heard it just seconds ago.

It's Ariana Grande's Santa Tell Me, which joins Mariah Carey, Brenda Lee, Wham! and Bobby Helms at the top of the Christmas canon. Stephen Thompson, NPR News. Wall Street is taking Wednesday off for the New Year's Day holiday that was a shortened session on Tuesday. This is NPR News. Support for in- The Indicator is a podcast where daily economic news

is about what matters to you. Workers have been feeling the sting of inflation. So as a new administration promises action on the cost of living, taxes, and home prices. The S&P 500 biggest post-election day spike ever. Follow all the big changes and what they mean for you. Make America affordable again. Listen to The Indicator, the daily economics podcast from NPR.