NPR News Now - NPR News: 05-11-2025 6AM EDT

Episode Date: May 11, 2025

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Does the idea of listening to political news freak you out? Well, don't sweat it. The NPR Politics Podcast makes politics a breeze. Every episode will break down the day's headlines into totally normal language and make sure that you walk away understanding what the day's news might mean for you. Take a deep breath and give politics another chance with the NPR Politics Podcast, available wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Giles Snyder. U.S. and Iranian officials are due to hold another round of talks aimed at keeping Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

The talks to be held today in the Gulf state of Oman come ahead of President Trump's visit to the region this week. Here's NPR's Jackie Northam reporting. Jackie Northam This is the fourth round of talks between Iran and the U this week. Here's NPR's Jackie Northam reporting. This is the fourth round of talks between Iran and the U.S. since mid-April. An earlier one set for last weekend was postponed at the last minute for what Oman said was technical reasons. President Trump's special envoy, Steve Wittkopf, is due to meet with Iranian Foreign Minister

Abbas Arakchi to discuss Iran's nuclear program, sanctions relief and uranium enrichment. Iran insists it has the right to enrich uranium for civilian use. President Trump has indicated he's willing to give negotiations with Iran a chance but has not ruled out military strikes if the nuclear talks fail. The president is due to visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar and United Arab Emirates this week. Jackie Northam, NPR News. More tariff negotiations between the U.S. and China are set for today in Switzerland. The two sides met for hours yesterday in Geneva. No major breakthrough was announced. As Pope Leo XIV delivers his first Sunday blessing today, he has begun publicly talking

about his agenda. NPR's Jason DeRose reports from Rome on remarks he made to Catholic cardinals before they began departing from the Vatican. Jason DeRose The pope told cardinals that he chose the name Leo because of a previous Leo, Leo XIII, and his encyclical Rerum Novarum. That document offers expansive social teaching on economic justice and human dignity, specifically related to the Industrial Revolution. The current Pope Leo says a similar challenge is emerging today due to artificial intelligence. He also told cardinals that he envisions a

church that listens to the voices of lay Catholics. That approach follows in the footsteps of the late Pope Francis, who convened synods to hear the voices of people in pews from around the world. Jason DeRose, NPR News, Rome. New York, New Jersey, Mayor Ros Baraka calls his arrest outside an immigration detention facility in his city on Friday a distraction from the Trump administration's mass deportations without due process. And he's challenging those who call it a political stunt.

I didn't wake up that morning yesterday thinking I was going to go to jail. So I don't know what that is. If I wanted to go to jail, I could have easily went any morning that I was down here. Barack was arrested and charged with trespassing after he accompanied three Democratic members of Congress who tried to enter the facility to conduct an oversight visit in a statement. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries stood by the House members and said the charge against Baraka should be dropped. A spokesperson for the Homeland Security Department told CNN there will likely be more arrests. And from Washington, you're listening to NPR News.

The Tufts University doctoral student who was held for more than six weeks at from Washington. You're listening to NPR News. The Tufts University doctoral student who was held for more than six weeks at a Louisiana immigration detention center is back in Boston. Rumeza Ozturk told reporters at Logan Airport that she's looking forward to getting back to her studies. A federal judge found Ozturk raised substantial claims that her rights were violated. He ordered her release pending a final decision. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Russia's call for direct talks is a positive

sign, saying on social media, that Moscow is finally engaging. Zelensky said Ukraine is ready to meet if Russia confirms a ceasefire to begin tomorrow. Instead, Russian leader Vladimir Putin is proposing direct talks in Istanbul to begin Thursday without preconditions. A newly rediscovered pilot of the children's cartoon series Thomas and Friends is publicly available for the first time. MPR's Chloe Veltman reports on the 1988 episode narrated by Ringo Starr that's been released on YouTube. The pilot has been restored and digitized in honor of the 80th anniversary of the first Thomas Book's appearance in 1945.

Titled Down the Mine, it tells of Thomas's hubristic attempt to chuff past a danger sign. There's no danger, there's no danger. Lockout! Shouted his driver. Come back! Fire and smoke, said Thomas. I'm sunk. A producer of the series, which ran from 1984 until 2021,

told the BBC his team recently stumbled across old film cans containing the footage shot in 35 millimetre film in a storage unit. Chloe Valtman, NPR News. And I'm Giles Snyder. This is NPR News. The scary new movie Sinners from the director of Black Panther And I'm Giles Snyder. This is NPR News.