NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-11-2025 10PM EDT

Episode Date: May 12, 2025

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Am I a propagandist? A truth teller? An influencer? There's probably no more contested profession in the world today than mine, journalism. I'm Brian Reed, and on my show, Question Everything, we dive headfirst into the conflicts we're all facing over truth and who gets to tell it. Listen now to Question Everything, part of the NPR Podcast Network. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janene Herbst. President Trump says he will sign an executive order tomorrow morning to reduce drug prices. He made the announcement on social media today. NPR's Luke Garrett has more.

President Trump is promising to reduce drug prices by 30 to 80 percent, quote, almost immediately. Posting on social media, Trump says his executive order will lower pharmaceutical costs to quote, the same price as the nation that pays the lowest price, end quote. He's calling it a most favored nation policy. In 2020, Trump signed an executive order

of the same name and general principle, but it was blocked by the courts and then killed by President Joe Biden a year later. The driving idea is that Medicare would refuse to pay more for certain drugs than the lowest price paid by other developed nations. Drug companies criticized the idea as unworkable and irresponsible in 2020. It's unclear what payments or drugs this new order would apply to. Luke Garrett, NPR News, Washington.

Moneast envoy Steve Witkoff is heading to Israel tomorrow to work out details of the Hamas prisoner release of Eden Alexander, a dual U.S.-Israeli citizen and the last known living American still being held in Gaza. Hamas said today they will release him as part of steps to end the war with Israel and they say they want ceasefire talks to start immediately. He's been held since October 7th, 2023, when Hamas attacked southern Israel. President Trump heads to the Mideast this week on a four-day trip to visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.

Ukrainian President Zelensky says he's traveling to Turkey Thursday for direct talks proposed by Russian President Putin if Putin agrees to a 30-day ceasefire tomorrow. And Piers Johannica Kissis reports. In his nightly video address, Zelensky said he was optimistic that Russia could agree to a ceasefire on Monday. I will be in Turkey on May 15th and I will be waiting there for Putin, Zelensky said,

and I hope this time Putin will not look for reasons why he cannot do something. On Saturday, the Russian leader said he was ready for direct talks with Ukraine but did not address a ceasefire. The same day, the leaders of four major European countries traveled to Kiev. Together with Zelensky, they proposed an unconditional ceasefire that would last 30 days starting on Monday. President Trump says he supports the proposal. Joanna Kekesis, NPR News, Kiev.

The Trump administration says progress was made in two days of talks in Switzerland this weekend between the US and China over tariffs. I'm happy to report that we made substantial progress between the United States and China in the very important trade talks. Treasury Secretary Scott Besson says he will release details of those talks tomorrow. China says the talks were candid and constructive. That has Wall

Street futures trading higher. The Dow's futures are up 1%. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. Opening statements are scheduled to start tomorrow in New York in the sex trafficking trial of music mogul Sean Diddy Combs. And despite his lawyers trying several times to have it excluded from evidence, a video of him assaulting his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura is set to be shown tomorrow. When the video was released last May, he posted an apology on Instagram. Cassie is expected to be one of the first three witnesses called in the trial, and her testimony is expected to take up most of the week. Rare diverse spring flowers are now in bloom at Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Jackie Sieber from Member Station W-O-T has more. The spring

ephemerals in lower elevations of the park usually go dormant in the summer months. Some flowers, like the yellow trillium, can only be found in southern Appalachia. Ephemerals in lower elevations of the park usually go dormant in the summer months. Some flowers, like the yellow trillium, can only be found in southern Appalachia. Visitors are encouraged to download the app iNaturalist to document the spring flowers and other wildlife. The non-profit Discover Life in America uses data from that app to keep track of plants and animals in the park. Todd Wichert is the executive director.

We have a project through iNaturalist called Smokey's Most Wanted and so we try to encourage people to look for some very specific things we're wanting to know more about or where it is in the park. Visitors are advised to avoid picking the flowers. For NPR News, I'm Jackie Sieber in Gatlinburg. And that park straddles the border of North Carolina and Tennessee. The Great Smoky Mountains Park is home to more than 1,500 flowering plants. U.S. futures contracts are trading higher at this hour. Dow futures are up 1 percent. NASDAQ futures are up 1.9 percent.

You're listening to NPR News from Washington. This message comes from WISE, the app for doing things and other currencies. BR News from Washington.