NPR News Now - NPR News: 04-23-2025 8AM EDT

Episode Date: April 23, 2025

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Cell phones, cars, coffee. How do these goods make their way to us from overseas, and what will President Trump's tariffs mean for their price tags? Join the 1A Podcast as we explore supply chains and costs associated with some of your favorite products. It's our series, How Did This Get Here, every Wednesday. Listen to the 1A Podcast from NPR and WAMU. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Korova Coleman.

The body of Pope Francis is lying in state in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. He'll remain there through Saturday when his funeral is set. Numerous heads of state will attend the pontiff's funeral, including President Trump. On Wall Street, stock futures are soaring in pre-market trading. Dow Jones Industrial futures are up more than 600 points, or nearly 2%. NPR's Scott Horsley says investors are still buoyed by remarks from President Trump and the Treasury Secretary.

Treasury Secretary Scott Besant has emerged as kind of the administration's good cop on trade. And yesterday, Bloomberg and others reported that Besant was telling investors he sees the current level of tariffs between the U. the US and China as unsustainable and suggesting there could be some de-escalation. That was welcome news on Wall Street where the Dow Jones industrial average surged more than a thousand points. Markets were also probably relieved that Trump said after the closing bell yesterday that he has no intention of firing Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. NPR's Scott

Horsley reporting. The Trump administration is touting a largely voluntary measure to phase out the use of synthetic food dyes. NPR's Yuki Noguchi explains. Some studies have linked synthetic food dyes to various behavioral and cognitive problems. Food and Drug Administration head Marty McCary says the FDA will revoke approval for two dyes while urging food companies to phase out use of six other dyes. Thomas Galligan is a scientist with Watchdog Group's Center for Science in the Public Interest. He supports

eliminating dyes but says the voluntary measure falls short. It's worth pointing out that many food companies historically have made promises like this before. They claim they're going to get rid of these food dyes or other additives within a certain time frame and then they have consistently reneged on those promises. The FDA says it will authorize natural dye alternatives. Yuki Noguchi, NPR News. New Jersey officials say that a wildfire in the southern part of that state has burned at least 8,500 acres. Some 3,000 people have been forced to flee.

NPR's Giles Snyder reports the wildfire is 10% contained. The fire is burning in southern New Jersey's Greenwood Forest Wildlife Management area in Lacey and Ocean Townships in Ocean County. No injuries have been reported, but the State Forest Fire Service says the fire force has shut down of a portion of one of New Jersey's busiest highways, the Garden State Parkway, and that flames are threatening more than 1,300 structures. As a precaution, officials say the utility, Jersey's Central Power and Light, cut electricity to more than 20,000 customers, the move coming

at the request of state fire officials to safeguard crews battling the flames. The cause of the fire is under investigation. It's the region's second major forest fire in less than a week. Trial Snider, NPR News. You're listening to NPR. The U.S. Geological Survey says there was a strong earthquake near Istanbul, Turkey today. Its magnitude was 6.2. There are no initial reports of injuries or severe damage.

More than two years ago, another tremor hit southern Turkey. That quake's magnitude was 7.8. It killed nearly 53,000 people in Turkey and another 6,000 people in Syria. In the U.S., a federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from dismantling Voice of America and other government-funded networks that deliver news overseas, at least temporarily. And Piers Alina Hartounian has more. VOA offices in Washington have been padlocked shut and its employees on paid leave since a March executive order from President Trump.

The federal judge called the administration's decision to dismantle the agency arbitrary and capricious. He's directing the Trump administration to return VOA employees and contractors to their status before the president shut them down. Voice of America delivers information to countries around the world that lack a robust or free press. The court's preliminary injunction will remain in effect while the case plays out in court. Alina Hurtunian, NPR News. A gunman who shot and killed seven people at a July 4th parade near Chicago in 2022 will appear at his sentencing hearing today. Robert Cremo III faces life in prison without

the possibility of parole in Illinois. Several victims and relatives of those killed in the shooting will first deliver impact statements to the court. Again, on Wall Street, the Dow is up nearly 700 points. I'm Corva Coleman, NPR News. Do you remember when discovering a new artist felt like finding buried treasure? At All Songs Considered, NPR's music recommendation podcast, we put that kind of magic back into discovering new tracks.

We're here to make the hunt for new music easy, delivering you the cream of the crop from every genre. We'll help you make music feel fun again, only on All Songs Considered from NPR.