NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-14-2025 6PM EST

Episode Date: December 14, 2025

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Live from NPR News, I'm Janine Herbst. In Australia, the death toll in the mass shooting attack on a Hanukkah celebration at Sydney's Bondi Beach has risen to at least 16, including one of the gunmen. As Christina Cougola reports, one child is among the dead. Police in the state of New South Wales say the alleged shooters were a 50-year-old father who was killed by police and his 24-year-old son. They say the son is in police custody with injuries in hospital and officers are no longer looking for a third suspect. New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyan says the investigation is ongoing. It's important for the community to have the reassurance that New South Wales police working

with our Commonwealth partners will not stop until we understand the reasons behind this senseless incident. Authorities say more than three dozen people received hospital treatment after the attack. Australian Federal Police and the country's domestic intelligence agency are resisting the investigation. For NPR News, I'm Christina Kukolla in Melbourne. Police in Rhode Island say a person of interest. A man in his 20s is in custody in the shooting at Brown University yesterday that left at least two people dead, nine others injured. Sources identified him as Benjamin Erickson. And here's Windsor-Johnston reports President Trump paid his respects to the victims. Speaking from the White House, President Trump offered his condolences to the families of those killed

and expressed support for the people injured in the attack. To the nine injured, get well fast, and to the families of those two that are no longer with us. I pay my deepest regards and respects from the United States of America. Authorities say a person of interest is in custody, and investigators are working to determine a motive. The shooting prompted an hours-long lockdown on campus as students and faculty sheltered in place. Brown University has canceled all remaining classes and exams for this semester.

Windsor Johnston NPR News, Washington. Washington State is beginning to assess damage from historic flooding. Scott Greenstone, with member station KU-O-W, has more. After days of rain and clouds, mists burned off to blue skies this weekend in Monroe, north of Seattle, allowing responders to take helicopters up and begin to see how far the waters reached. Democratic Congresswoman Kim Schreier represents part of the flooded area. It was practically unfathomable. To think near where we were standing, there was water that would have been five feet over my head.

She took a bus tour with other officials through soggy dairy farmland. While damage is widespread, so far the only fatality was outside the flood zone. A kayaker swept over a dam in Seattle by swollen currents. For NPR News, I'm Scott Greenstone in Monroe. And the National Weather Service says more rain is possible soon. You're listening to NPR News from Washington. In Wisconsin, a federal trial gets underway tomorrow for Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan, who's accused of concealing an undocumented man to prevent his arrest by immigration authorities.

Dugan was arrested in April and charged in a two-count federal indictment, alleging obstruction of official immigration removal proceedings and knowingly concealing the man, Eduardo Flores. Ruiz from authorities. He was appealing in her courtroom on, appearing rather, in her courtroom on battery charges. Dugan allegedly sent authorities in one direction, Anne Flores Ruiz and his attorney out a non-public door. The Mexican resident was later arrested in charge with unlawful re-entry into the U.S. Dugan has pleaded not guilty. The Walt Disney Company recently signed a $1 billion deal, allowing its characters to appear on Open AI's video platform, SORA. Under the agreement,

PR's Andrew Lindbergh reports, Disney becomes a major open AI customer. Starting in 2026, users will be able to use SORA to gin up their own videos using Mickey Mouse, Ariel, Captain America, Luke Skywalker, and 200 other characters from Disney, Star Wars, and Marvel Worlds. According to a joint statement put out by the two companies, the agreement does not include any talent likenesses or voices. As a part of the deal, Disney will be using open AI technology to build products and tools, and a few of the videos created all. on SORA will be available to stream on Disney Plus. Andrew Limbong, NPR News. U.S. Futures contracts are trading flat at this hour. I'm Janine Hurst, NPR News, in Washington.