NPR News Now - NPR News: 10-15-2025 4PM EDT

Episode Date: October 15, 2025

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A lot of short daily news podcasts focus on just one story. But right now, you probably need more. On Up First from NPR, we bring you three of the world's top headlines every day in under 15 minutes. Because no one's story can capture all that's happening in this big, crazy world of ours on any given morning. Listen now to the Up First podcast from NPR. Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh. A federal judge is temporarily blocking the Trump administration from laying off federal workers during the government shutdown. And Pierre Steven Fowler has more on today's court hearing. Judge Susan Ilson of California said the Trump administration's push to fire workers during the shutdown was hastily done and illegal.

During a hearing, she set efforts to lay off more than 4,000 federal workers and the subsequent reversal of some notices was like, quote, ready fire aim. So for now, those reductions in force, and any future ones are on hold. It's unclear for how long. The White House has painted the firings as financially necessary and a leverage point to get Democratic lawmakers to agree to a spending plan that reopens the government. Stephen Fowler, NPR News. Well, today the Senate was once again unable to pass a short-term spending measure to reopen the federal government. And today's vote pushes the shutdown toward a 16th day. The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on Louisiana's congressional map stands to upend a key provision of the Voting Rights Act.

It outlaws voting practices that discriminate on the basis of race, color, or membership in a language minority group. And P.R.'s Nina Totenberg reports on the historic implications if the court's conservative majority strikes down Section 2. Since 2013, the increasingly conservative court has time and again gutted key provisions of the law. The one big exception has been the provision aimed at ensuring that minority voters are not shut out of the process of drawing new congressional districts. If the court removes the guardrails to redistricting that it endorsed just two years ago, indeed, if the Supreme Court either nullifies this part of the Voting Rights Act or makes it much more difficult to enforce, recent studies indicate that Democrats could lose as many as 19 congressional seats in the process, putting control of the house effectively out of reach for the foreseeable future.

And P.R. Zina Totenberg. The bodies of at least three returned Israeli hostages held by Hamas and Gaza were set to be buried today in Israel. Hamas has handed over 10 bodies as set out in the initial phase of the ceasefire. NPR's Kerry Kahn is more. In Renana in central Israel, Gai Luz was buried. The 26-year-old was wounded by Hamas militants at a music festival on October 7, 2023. His father, Miquely Luce, told mourners identifying his son's body was not difficult. He immediately recognized his smile and serenity. You've returned to your family's embrace and to the millions whose hearts your story touched, he said. Hamas said recovering more bodies will be difficult due to the massive destruction of Gaza.

Israel reduced the amount of aid going into Gaza, citing Hamas noncompliance. That's NPR's Kerry Khan reporting. You're listening to NPR News. A new deal between Netflix and Spotify reflects the extent to which consumers are turning to video podcasts. NPR's Netta Ullaby with details. Back in the good old days, meaning like five years ago, we listened to podcasts. Now we watch them. More than half of the world's top podcasts now release video versions, like the sports show hosted by Bill Sissau.

The Celtics are like, whoa, Simon's. Like, this guy's like a really gifted office. Video podcasts are being consumed right now 20 times faster than audio ones. People often just have them on in the background. The number one platform for podcasts is YouTube. But Netflix and Spotify are challenging that. This new deal will make 16 top video podcasts available only on Netflix and on the Spotify app starting in January, including the Bill Simmons podcast.

Netta Ulii, NPR News. The average amount of money a customer spends on a new vehicle has topped $50,000 for the first time this week. The automotive valuation and research company Kelly Blue Book released a report that finds the average transaction price in September was 2.1% higher than the month before and jumped 3.5% from a year ago. The report says the increase is aligned with the long-term average of inflation. and the price people pay for a new car. The Dow was down 17 points at the close, ending at 46,253. The NASDAQ picked up 148 points.

The SMP was up 26. I'm Lachby Singh, NPR News. In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life. Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors. On our new show, sources and methods, NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people. helping you understand why distant events matter here at home. Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.