NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-18-2024 5PM EST

Episode Date: December 18, 2024

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Hi, it's Terri Gross from Fresh Air. I just interviewed Billie Eilish and Finneas about many things, including how Billie's signature baggy clothes came from watching hip-hop videos. Instead of being jealous of the women who get to be around the hot men, I would be jealous of the hot men. And I wanted to dress like them and I wanted to be able to act like them. Find this Fresh Air interview wherever you listen to podcasts. to act like them. Find this fresh air interview wherever you listen to podcasts. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack Spear. There's some momentum in ceasefire talks for Gaza,

but there are also mixed feelings about what it could mean if Israel and Hamas agree to a step by step plan to end their 14 month long war. Yours, Michelle Kelley, is more. Families of the hostages held by Hamas are sounding worried that the deal will bring only some of the 100 hostages home in exchange for Palestinian detainees released from Israeli jails and their loved ones may be left behind. Palestinians fear that the ceasefire and hostage deal will be temporary and they won't be able to return to their homes in the north. A source close to the negotiations tells MPR that the step-by-step plan

will get women and elderly hostages out first, with a six to seven week ceasefire to allow vital aid into Gaza. Meanwhile, a right-wing member of Israel's cabinet, Betzalel Smotrich, says it would be a mistake to release any Palestinians or remove troops from northern Gaza. Michelle Kellerman, NPR News Tel Aviv. Former Congressman Matt Gates in a social media post is acknowledging he quote probably partied womanized drank and smoked more than he should have in his 30s. However in his response to reports the House Ethics Committee is order released the findings from its probe and the allegations of sex trafficking and illicit drug use.

Gates said he did not do anything criminal. Gates also denied having sex He was able to release the findings from its probe and the allegations of sex trafficking and illicit drug use. Gates said he did not do anything criminal. Gates also denied having sex with anyone under the age of 18. One of the allegations against him was he paid an underage girl for sex. NPR has not independently confirmed the reporting on the release of the House Ethics Committee report. Officials in Indiana executed a prisoner today as George Hale from Member Station WFIU reports it was the state's first execution in 15 years. Joseph Corcoran's execution was Indiana's first by lethal injection using a single-drug protocol since previously used drugs are no longer available. Officials used the anti-seizure drug pentobarbital but refused to release information about how it was obtained. Indiana Capitol Chronicle reporter Casey Smith witnessed part of the execution.

He was calm. He did not seem to be stressed in any way. Smith says Corcoran let her take one of his spaces for friends and family. Indiana is unusual in that it doesn't guarantee access to journalists during executions. Corcoran was sentenced to death in 1999 for shooting and killing four people inside his home in northern Indiana. For NPR News, I'm George Hale in Michigan City, Indiana. The Federal Reserve moved to lower interest rates by another quarter of a point in its final rate-setting session of 2024, where the central bank signaled a strong U.S. economy

means a more temperate approach might be in order for next year, policymakers saying perhaps two rate cuts instead of the previously forecast four. That would seem to suggest consumers may not see substantial lower interest rates, moving from car loans to credit cards to mortgages. Stocks reacted negatively to the Fed's announcement that Dow plunged more than a thousand points today. You're listening to NPR. The Supreme Court says it will hear arguments next month on the constitutionality of the federal law that would call for a ban on the social media platform TikTok, that is, unless its Chinese parent company agrees to sell. Justices say that there are arguments on January 10th as to whether such a law amounts to a restriction of First Amendment rights. The law sets a January 19th deadline for the sale or else TikTok would face a U.S. ban.

An upcoming animated series from Pixar has been changed to remove a transgender storyline. As NPR's Neda Ulubi reports, the series called Win or Lose is scheduled to debut on Disney Plus in February. The show is about a co-ed middle school softball team called The Pickles. Pickles, puddle up! It's the first long-form original animated series from Pixar, which is owned by Disney. One of the characters is transgender and voiced by a transgender teenage actress. That character is not being removed, but dialogue about gender identity will no longer be part of the series.

In a statement, Disney said, when it comes to animated content for a younger audience, the company recognizes that many parents prefer to discuss certain subjects with their children on their own terms and timeline. Nadeh Ulupi, NPR News. The final meteor shower of 2024 will peak just a few days before Christmas, and while not an unusually bright display, the Earth's meteor shower can contain some surprises. Most years, only about 5 to 10 meters per hour detected, though some years have many more.

The Earth's is a result of debris from a comet. The peak is Sunday. I'm Jack Spear, NPR News, in Washington.