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

Episode Date: September 12, 2025

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On Fridays, the 1A podcast is all about helping you cut through the info fog and get to what's important in the news. Close out the week with us on our Friday News Roundup. Here from reporters who've been embedded with the biggest news of the week. Join us every week for the Friday News Roundup. Listen to the 1A podcast from NPR and WAMU. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Shay Stevens. Law enforcement officials say they've received thousands of tips as the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk reverberates around the country. As NPR's Dominica Montanaro reports, the attack is the latest in a series of politically motivated violent acts committed in recent months.

The attacks have crossed the political spectrum, a firebombing of a Democratic governor's residence, the killing of a Democratic lawmaker and her husband, fires set to Tesla charging stations and, of course, two assassination attempts on President Trump during last year's presidential campaign. Despite the often knee-jerk reactions and blaming of the other side and the immediate aftermath of these events, the truth is often more nuanced. In this case, the shooter is still on the loose and the motivation is not yet known, and Americans have been growing more and more concerned with the potential for violence. Seventy-three percent in a recent NPR-PBS News-Marris poll, for example, described politically motivated. violence as a major problem.

Domenico Montanaro, NPR News, Washington. Investigators are still trying to find the motive for Wednesday school shooting at a high school in Evergreen, Colorado west of Denver. A 16-year-old student killed two peers and later died of a self-inflicted wound. Jackie Kelly is a spokesperson for the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office. Based on some of the information that we're seeing about this suspect, is that there's some, he was radicalized by some extremist nexus. Kelly says investigators are searching the suspect's phone, social media accounts, locker, and other belongings for more information.

The UN Security Council is condemning the attack on a building in Qatar. Israel says the deadly attack was aimed at Hamas leaders who were gathered in Doha to discuss the Gaza's ceasefire proposal. The Qatari government is accusing Israel of ignoring the hostages in Gaza and violating another country's sovereignty, threatening regional peace. Stocks on Wall Street hit record highs today after a Labor Department report boosted investors' hope for an interest rate cut soon. NPRS Maria Aspen reports. Inflation inched higher last month, up 2.9% from a year ago, as consumers are paying more for groceries and gasoline. That's still higher than the Federal Reserve's target rate of 2% inflation. But investors think it's relatively mild.

That's giving Wall Street more confidence. about next week when the Fed is due to meet and is widely expected to cut interest rates. The Fed has been trying to keep inflation under control, which it does by keeping interest rates higher. But now, the central bank is also facing signs of weakness in the labor market as hiring slowed to a crawl this summer. The Dow Jones, the NASDAQ, and the S&P 500 all closed at record highs. Maria Aspen in New York. This is NPR. A federal judge in Washington is blocking a Trump administration order that prevented undocumented migrant children from attending federally funded preschool programs.

The policy is being challenged by Head Start Associations in several states and 21 Democratic attorneys general. The wife of former New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison for her role in a bribery scheme. Nadine Menendez was convicted in April of being the go-between in her husband's dealings with Egyptian officials seeking political favors. Prosecutors say $480,000 in cash, more than $100,000 in gold bars, and other items were seized from the couple's home. Senator Menendez resigned after his conviction last year and is serving an 11-year sentence. NPR has a new editor-in-chief. Thomas Evans is replacing Ieth Chapin, who announced in July that she's leaving the network. More from NPR's Jacqueline Diaz.

Thomas Evans joined NPR last year from CNN. Since coming to the network, Evans led the creation of the editorial review team, responsible for checking all of NPR's reporting for accuracy and fairness. The creation of that desk resulted from public criticism of NPR's news coverage. Next week, Evans will secede Chapin as the network's newest editor-in-chief. Chapin has served as editor-in-chief, senior vice president, and NPR's chief content officer for the past two years. NPR plans to hire a separate person to fill the chief content officer role at a later date. Jacqueline Diaz, NPR News. This is NPR. This message comes from WISE, the app for using

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