NPR News Now - NPR News: 12-30-2024 3AM EST

Episode Date: December 30, 2024

NPR News: 12-30-2024 3AM ESTLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

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, I'm Dale Willman. Former President Jimmy Carter died Sunday at his home in Plains, Georgia. He was 100 years old. As NPR's Brian Naylor reports, Carter was a peanut farmer and former Georgia governor

who defeated incumbent Gerald Ford in 1976. Jimmy Carter's four years in the White House were marked by a number of crises. There was the hostage crisis with Iran in which 52 Americans were held captive for over a year. An oil embargo caused long lines and spiraling prices for gasoline. It led to Carter's so-called malaise speech in 1979. It is a crisis of confidence. It is a crisis that strikes at the very heart and soul and spirit of our national will. But there were also successes. Carter helped Israel and Egypt reach a peace agreement at Camp David. Much of Carter's legacy was shaped after his defeat by Ronald Reagan in 1980. He remained

active in public life, writing more than 20 books and helping build homes with Habitat for Humanity. In 2002, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Brian Naylor, NPR News, Washington. Republicans are continuing to debate immigration, particularly H-1B visas, which allow skilled foreign workers to enter the U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said recently that while he wants to stop immigration, he supports the H-1B visa program. But Missouri Republican Senator Eric Schmidt says the system can be unfair to American

workers. Right now it's a lottery. There's really no merit to this. It's just a lottery. So you see companies trying to gain the system, IT companies sometimes putting 30,000 applications in hoping to get 10,000 from a random lottery. That is a system I think that needs to be reformed. President Trump's talked about that.

And then also undercutting wages by bringing in somebody, you know, under a loophole, for example, you can't have it be the same employer, but it's a consulting firm. So those are the kinds of things. I think the starting point that President Trump articulated Schmidt was speaking on Fox News Sunday. Wall Street is headed into another quiet week where it will close out what's been a great 2024 for stocks. NPR's Rafael Nam reports. There are only two trading sessions left of the year and already investors are sitting on some big gains. The S&P is up 25% so far this year. A big reason is that stocks tied to artificial intelligence have continued to do well. Chip company Nvidia, for example, has seen its share price more than double in 2024.

The economy has also remained healthy under President Biden. And since November, stocks have gained even more because of hopes that Donald Trump will be good to Wall Street when he returns to the White House. Those stocks have lost some momentum in December. Rafael Nam, NPR News. Asian stocks closed missed, mixed on Monday, with Tokyo's Nikkei index losing nine-tenths of a percent. Shares of Jeju Air lost almost nine percent after the crash of one of its planes in South

Korea. This is NPR News. Broadway is no stranger to so-called star casting, with the likes of Nicole Scherzinger, Jim Parsons and Robert Downey Jr. headlining shows earlier this year. The musical and Juliette, though, is taking a different approach by casting TikTok influencer Charlie D'Amelio, not in a lead role, but in the ensemble. And Piers-Eve Pukac has more. With more than 155 million followers, Charlie D'Amelio has the second most followed account on TikTok. And this fall, fans got to follow her journey online

as she made her Broadway debut in the ensemble of the musical, Ann Juliet. Hi, I'm Charlie D'Amelio, and I want to take all of you behind the scenes to an Ann Juliet rehearsal. Let's go. While some Broadway shows have struggled to find audiences post pandemic,andemic, and Juliet sales have increased compared to the rest of the year since D'Amelio joined the show in October.

And the show's social media accounts have seen a large boost in followers and engagement. Eva Pukac and PR News. It was Family Day at North American theaters this weekend. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 earned $38 million in ticket sales to claim first place. Mufasa, though, was close behind bringing in $37.1 million in ticket sales. And the R-rated horror flick Nosferatu had a surprisingly strong showing, bringing in $21.2 million. Giant waves are pounding the northern coast of Peru at this hour.

The waves are dangerous. They've prevented many fishermen from returning to their beaches. Peru's Navy has rescued about 30 fishermen on Sunday. Those waves have also closed several of the country's ports. I'm Dale Willman and you're listening to NPR News.