NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-22-2024 9AM EST

Episode Date: December 22, 2024

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In 1987, a young black man named Ben Spencer was convicted of a brutal murder in Texas, but there was no physical evidence linking him to the crime, and he had an alibi, but that didn't matter. It's hard to overcome a dead white guy who was killed by two black men. Follow Ben's 30-year fight for justice. Listen now to the Sunday story on the Up First Podcast. Live Snyder Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Joe Snyder. Two U.S. Navy pilots were shot down over the Red Sea early this morning.

The military says the incident was due to friendly fire and happened around the same time that the U.S. was conducting airstrikes targeting Yemeni militants who struck Israel in recent days. NPR's Kerry Kahn reports. Kerry Kahn According to the U.S. military, two pilots strikes targeting Yemeni militants who struck Israel in recent days. In Piers Carey-Kahn reports. According to the U.S. military, two pilots ejected from their aircraft after being struck by a cruise missile, apparently fired from a different U.S. carrier, also operating in the Red Sea.

Both pilots were recovered. One suffered minor injuries. The U.S. says it was conducting precision attacks in Yemen targeting sites used by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels. Yemen state media reported airstrikes rocking the capital. Just hours earlier, Houthi rebels had fired a missile into Israel. The weapon evaded Israel's air defense systems and landed in a Tel Aviv suburb, injuring 16 people.

The Houthis have been targeting Israel as well as cargo ships in the Red Sea during the 14-month-long war between Hamas and Israel. Kari Kahn, NPR News, Tel Aviv. The role social media may have played is under scrutiny following Friday's car attack in a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany. Officials say the 50-year-old Saudi man, accused of killing five people and injuring more than 200 others, describes himself as a former Muslim and that he used the X platform to post anti-Islamic sentiment. The German ambassador to the UK, Miguel Berger, tells the BBC that Elon Musk has questions to answer about X.

We have seen that the man who committed this terrible attack was extremely active threatening on X. And the question is, does X really act against these things? We have a digital safety act in the European Union which requires social media to act against people threatening to take down these social media pages. It has not happened. So I think Elon Musk should look at the responsibility of his own platform. Authorities in Magdeburg say the suspect is being kept in pre-trial custody. He appeared before a magistrate yesterday. This month marks the 50th anniversary of the Safe Drinking Water

Act from Member Station KUNC. Alex Hager reports that water experts say the law is doing its job, but new protections are needed in the decades to come. The Safe Drinking Water Act created new quality standards for the country's tap water. Experts say the rules are working and the next 50 years of water oversight should focus on water supply. Chad Seidel, a water engineer in Colorado, says threats are posed by climate change and aging infrastructure. It's going to take vigilance to keep that up to date and avoid the risk of failure. And by doing so, we can make sure that everybody has safe, affordable and reliable water for everybody everywhere all the time.

Seidel says he's concerned that declining investment in water infrastructure could jeopardize pipes, treatment plants and the people who keep them running. For NPR News, I'm Alex Hager. This is NPR News, I'm Alex Hager. This is NPR News. Advances in artificial intelligence may soon significantly reduce income for at least some people working in the music industry. NPR's Neda Ulibi reports on a new study predicting that some music creators could lose nearly 25 percent of their revenue within the next five years.

Perhaps you enjoy listening to mood playlists on streaming platforms like Spotify. That's when you pick a category like relaxing music and just let it wash over you. These passive consumption playlists are increasingly curated by artificial intelligence. AI sometimes creates the music as well. AI can write lyrics, generate melodies, find samples, clone voices, and figure out how to best market the music as well. AI can write lyrics, generate melodies, find samples, clone voices, and figure out how to best market the music it makes. That will cut into the paychecks of people doing that work, according to a study from the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers. It predicts ballooning revenues by 2028 that will largely benefit

tech companies. Neda Uli, NPR News. President-elect Donald Trump's daughter-in-law is removing herself from consideration to be a U.S. Senator from Florida. Lara Trump's announcement ends speculation that she could replace Marco Rubio if he's confirmed as Secretary of State. Albania is shutting down the video-sharing app TikTok for a year. The Prime Minister blames TikTok for inciting violence and bullying, especially among children. Concerns increased last month after the stabbing death of a teenager by another teen after a quarrel that started on the app. The ban is to begin sometime in the new year. I'm Giles Snyder. This is NPR News from Washington.