NPR News Now - NPR News: 09-11-2025 12AM EDT

Episode Date: September 11, 2025

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What's made you happy as of late? On Pop Culture Happy Hour, we've been talking about the things that have made us happy in the pop culture universe for the past 15 years. Whether it's a blockbuster or deliciously bad reality TV, the newest shows, dramas, and reboots, we're here to keep your spirits high. Listen to Pop Culture Happy Hour on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shay Stevens. President Trump is expressing anger and grief over the assassination of conservative activists Charlie Kirk.

The 31-year-old co-founder of Turning Point USA was gunned down Wednesday during an event at Utah Valley University. Trump blamed the slaying of Kirk on rhetoric from the political left. An assassin tried to silence him with a bullet, but he failed because together we will ensure that his voice, his message, and his legacy will live on for countless generations. succumb. Today, because of this heinous act, Charlie's voice has become bigger and grander than ever before. In a video recorded in the Oval Office, Trump says he's ordered U.S. flags blown at half staff. Charlie Kirk was killed while taking questions about gun violence in the U.S. A search for his killer continues. As NPR Stephen Fowler reports, Kirk helped usher in an age of in-your-face conservative politics that resonated with the young voters.

Charlie Kirk was well known as an energizing speaker and organizer, getting young conservatives registered to vote and ultimately activating a key demographic for a party that has struggled with young people. At 18, he co-founded Turning Point USA as a college campus free speech organization. I had the crazy and wild idea. I want to try to start a youth organization to try and save Western civilization. It evolved into an empire with annual summits, faith leader outreach, and successful media platforms, Kirk was speaking at Utah Valley University at what was supposed to be the start of a 15-campus American comeback tour when he was shot. Stephen Fowler, NPR News. At least two teenagers are in critical condition following a shooting at their high school in Evergreen, Colorado. Authorities say the suspected gunman took his own life.

He was a teenager as well. Evergreen is situated about 30 miles west of Denver. President Trump lines to appeal the federal judge's ruling that blocks the firing, of Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. The story from NPR Scott Horsley. The Justice Department says President Trump will appeal a ruling by federal district judge Gia Cobb that allows Lisa Cook to keep her job

on the Federal Reserve's governing board, at least for now. Trump tried to oust Cook with a social media post last month after allegations from a Trump ally that Cook made false statements on a mortgage application four years ago. Cook denies any mortgage fraud. The judge said in any case, Cook should not be fired over

actions that took place before she joined the central bank. The campaign to firecook comes amid a month-long effort by the president to exert more control over the Fed, even though the central bank was designed to be insulated from that kind of political pressure. Scott Horsley and Pair News, Washington. On Wall Street stocks closed mix, the Dow lost 220 points. The NASDAQ added six. You're listening to NPR. South Korea's foreign minister, Cho Heung, met with Secretary of State Markle Rubio, Wednesday in wake of the immigration arrests at a Hyundai auto plant in Georgia. The foreign ministry says Cho expressed dismay over images of Korean workers being shackled and chained.

Some 300 Koreans were among 475 people rounded up during an ice raid last week. A charter plane is in Atlanta to ferry them home as soon as Thursday. As fall draws nearer, many people are thinking about vaccinations for flu season and for COVID-19. But as NPR, Sidney Lubkin reports, COVID shots may be harder to get this year. The Food and Drug Administration's approvals for this year's COVID boosters are narrower. But drug companies say they're still making similar volumes of the jabs as last year. Claire Hannan is the executive director of the Association of Immunization Managers. She says pharmacies are able to order the shots and they've been shipped out.

I think it's going to be harder to access, but I think anybody that wants it, you know, will be able to get it. it, but they're just going to have to work hard to find it. She says patients can use vaccine finders, which Pfizer and Moderna both have up and running, to find pharmacies with COVID shots in their area. Sydney Lubkin and PR News. Award-winning actress Polly Holliday has died at the age of 88. Holiday is best known for her role as Flo in the sitcom Alice, which aired for nine seasons on CBS from the mid-1970s to the mid-80s.

The gum-chewing character she played became famous for the catchphrase, kiss my grits. This is NPR News. This message comes from Wise, the app for using money around the globe. When you manage your money with Wise, you'll always get the mid-market exchange rate with no hidden fees.

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