NPR News Now - NPR News: 03-23-2026 1AM EDT

Episode Date: March 23, 2026

NPR News: 03-23-2026 1AM EDTTo manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Live from NPR News, I'm Dale Wilman. Ice agents are expected to begin showing up in some U.S. airports on Monday. President Trump has ordered the move following another weekend with major airport slowdowns. TSA agents are calling in sick after not receiving a paycheck because of the ongoing government shutdown. In an interview with CNN, White House borders are Tom Homan says the ice agents will help to get travelers moving again. We're simply there to help TSA do their job in areas that don't, don't, need their specialized expertise, such as, you know, screening through the X-ray machine. Not training that? We won't do that. But there are roles we can play to release TSA officers

from the non-significant role, such as guarding an exit, so they can get back to the scanning machines and move people quicker. The union representing TSA agents says the ICE agents don't have the proper training needed to be able to help. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is holding an emergency meeting with top cabinet members and the head of the Bank of England this week, the leaders will discuss the Iran War's effect on economic output around the world. Vicki Barker has our report from London. The Iran War has already pushed up gas prices and mortgage rates in Britain, with nearly a thousand home loan products pulled off the market.

And fuel and fertilizer prices are surging, just as farmers are planting spring crops. Tom Bradshaw, president of the National National. Farmers Union warning the BBC. Things like cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, it'll be over the next month, six weeks that we see those cost increases. The war has reignited Britain's cost of living crisis just ahead of local elections in early May when Kier-Starmer's struggling Labor Party had been hoping to emphasize the improving economy. For NPR News, I'm Vicki Barker in London. A jury in Los Angeles is expected to deliver a verdict this week. in a trial over social media addiction.

As NPR's Bobby Allen reports, jurors have heard weeks of testimony about whether Instagram and YouTube were designed to hook young people and to keep them spending more time on the social media sites. A jury of five men and seven women have been deliberating for more than a week and have indicated they may be close to a verdict. The case focused on a California woman who said she developed depression, anxiety, and body image issues after compulsively using Instagram and YouTube as a young child. Lawyers for the woman say Medit and Google built defective products that led to her becoming addicted to social media and contributed to her mental health struggles.

Tech company attorneys say social media platforms are being scapegoated for complex mental health issues that have many root causes. It's the first time the question of social media addiction has been before a jury and the case is tied to 1,600 other pending cases. The outcome could shape how those cases eventually settle. Bobby Allen, NPR News. And you're listening to NPR News. Project Hail Mary, a feel-good film about a space forage blasted off at cinemas this weekend, and Pierre's Bob Mandello has our details. The story of an alien encounter during a long-shot trip to save the Earth from extinction

seems to be morphing into a tool to save Hollywood from extinction. It is Time Go. I think you're being Go-Time, pal. Project Hail Mary will take in more than $80 million in North America this weekend, easily the best opening of 2026. Oh, my God. It's also doing extreme. Well overseas, it's worldwide total through Sunday night will top 140 million.

Thumbs up. No, that's thumbs down. We do the thumbs up. It's close enough. And Exip polls say 85% of those who've seen Project Hail Mary would recommend it to a friend, suggesting it'll continue to soar for a few more weeks at least. Bob Mandello, NPR News. Claire Enright scored the go-ahead goal in the third period Sunday as number two-seed Wisconsin.

beat top-seated Ohio State 3-2 at the Women's Frozen 4 in Pennsylvania. Ava McNaughton had 34 saves and gold for the Badgers. It was Wisconsin's second consecutive championship. They'll lead all NCAA programs with nine titles, including four in the last six. Manchester City won the English League Cup Sunday with a two-nil win over Arsenal in the final at Wembley Stadium in London. Nico O'Reilly scored both goals in the second half as City claimed its first major trophy of the season. Manchester City's win and at Arsenal's bid for an unprecedented four major trophies by an English team in one season.

I'm Dale Wilman, NPR News.