NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-17-2024 9PM EST

Episode Date: December 18, 2024

NPR News: 12-17-2024 9PM ESTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy...

Transcript
Discussion (0)
Starting point is 00:00:00 Support for this podcast and the following message come from Autograph Collection Hotels, with over 300 independent hotels around the world, each exactly like nothing else. Autograph Collection is part of the Marriott Bonvoy portfolio of hotel brands. Find the unforgettable at autographcollection.com. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack Spear. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has visited a strategic high point in Syria the Israelis now control. He and his defense minister say they plan to keep troops there for a while despite outrage in the Arab world.
Starting point is 00:00:37 More from NPR's Michelle Kellehman. Mount Hermon is the highest peak in the Golan Heights. Israeli troops took over a Syrian post there following the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime. And now the Israelis say they plan to stay as long as needed. During a visit, Defense Minister Israel Katz described the summit of Mount Hermon as, quote, Israel's eyes, saying from there they can observe Hezbollah in Lebanon and keep watch on the Syrian capital Damascus. Arab states have expressed anger over the Israeli moves into Syria calling it a land grab. The UN is also expressing concern. Israel has moved into a buffer zone where the
Starting point is 00:01:15 UN has had peacekeepers for 50 years. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News, Tel Aviv. Men and boys are responsible for most of the shootings in the US as NPR News, Tel Aviv. Men and boys are responsible for most of the shootings in the U.S., as NPR's Rachel Triesman reports this week's incident at a Wisconsin school is a rare exception. Authorities say a 15-year-old girl was behind Monday's deadly shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison. She apparently then turned the gun on herself. Female shooters are statistically unusual. The nonprofit Violence Prevention Project says there have only been four of them
Starting point is 00:01:45 among the 200 mass shooters since 1999. Women have carried out some high-profile shootings in recent years, including at YouTube's California headquarters and a kosher supermarket in New Jersey. And one of the earliest school shootings in the U.S. was the work of a California teenage girl in 1979. Rachel Triesman, NPR News.
Starting point is 00:02:05 Authorities in Moscow say senior Russian general was killed when a bomb hidden in a scooter detonated outside a building. Ukrainian officials saying today, its security devices or service rather carried out the remote-controlled bombing. They claim the life of Igor Kilarov and an assistant. The officials speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. Health insurers are drawing more scrutiny as NPR's Maria
Starting point is 00:02:29 Aspen reports shares in UnitedHealth Group, CVS, and Cigna fell today. It's been a bad month for big healthcare companies. Investors are spooked by the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. They're also bracing for more scrutiny of his industry. Thompson ran the largest U.S. health insurer. The apparent motive for his killing uncorked waves of consumer frustration over denied claims and the high costs of care in the United States. Now both Congress and President-elect Trump are talking about breaking up the behemoths. Trump threatened to go after the pharmacy benefit managers, known to their critics as
Starting point is 00:03:04 middlemen. We're going to their critics as middlemen. We're going to knock out the middlemen. Any crackdown would likely target United Health, CVS, and Cigna. Combined, they process 80% of all US prescriptions. Maria Aspin, NPR News, New York. This is NPR. When it comes to the future of the economy,
Starting point is 00:03:22 both sides of the political divide appear somewhat sour headed toward year's end. Democrats say they're more pessimistic about the economy after Donald Trump's presidential win. Republicans are also dour about the current state of things. They're a bit more hopeful about stronger economic growth next year. Survey from the Associated Press-Nork Center for Public Affairs research seems to indicate the economy is more tied to whomever is in office. This week's Billboard rankings are out and as NPR's Stephen Thompson reports, holiday perennials dominate. It's beginning to look a lot like last year's Billboard charts. If you compare this week's Hot 100 to the same chart from 12 months ago,
Starting point is 00:04:01 you'll find that the top five is identical. 12 months ago, you'll find that the top five is identical. Mariah Carey's at number one, where she's been for 16 non-consecutive weeks in six consecutive years. Then you've got Brenda Lee, Bobby Helms, Wham! and Burl Ives. In that exact order just like last year, what's really hard to find on the holiday charts is new music. The highest-charting holiday song from this year is Christmas Magic by Leve at number 79. Stephen Thompson, NPR News.
Starting point is 00:04:49 Good old futures prices eased today oiled down 63 cents a barrel to 70.08 a barrel in New York. I'm Jack Spear, NPR News in Washington. This message comes from WISE, the app for doing things in other currencies. Send, spend, or receive money internationally and always get the real-time mid-market exchange rate with no hidden fees. Download the Wyse app today or visit wyse.com, tease and seize apply.

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.