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Listening to the news can feel like a journey. But 1A guides you beyond the headlines – and cuts through the noise. Let's get to the heart of the story, together – on 1A. Support NPR and get your news sponsor-free with 1A+. Learn more at plus.npr.org/the1a
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Episodes
Donald Trump And Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion
2/13/2025
As of Tuesday, President Donald Trump has signed seven executive orders or proclamations related to DEI.
They include ending virtually all such programs in the federal government, calling them "illegal," and "Ending racial indoctrination in K through 12 schooling."
According to the Trump administration, that includes teaching "gender ideology and critical race theory" in the classroom.
A number of private companies and institutions are following suit. Target, Google, Meta, Goldman Sachs, Deloitte, and PBS are just a few now changing or eliminating their DEI initiatives following Trump's orders.
We explore what DEI actually means, and what happens when we just get rid of it.
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Duration:00:35:27
Strangers Share Their Love Stories With Author Trent Dalton
2/13/2025
In 2021, Trent Dalton sat down with a typewriter on a busy corner in Brisbane, Australia, and asked people to tell him their love stories.
Those tales are now collected in his first book, "Love Stories." It's over 300 pages and talks about the meaning of love, from strangers and Dalton alike.
As a nod to Valentine's Day, we revisit our conversation with Dalton about his book "Love Stories."
We discuss what it means to know love and talk and how to talk about it with strangers.
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Duration:00:33:41
ICYMI: Bird Flu Is Roiling Egg Farms Across The Country
2/12/2025
Having trouble finding eggs in the grocery store this week? You're not alone. Bird flu is roiling egg farms across the country.
In April 2024, the first hens tested positive for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, or H5N1. Since then, the avian flu has spread to turkeys, cows, and humans.
What are farmers doing to protect their flocks? And how worried should we be about catching it?
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Duration:00:10:57
The Rising Popularity Of 'Dry Dating'
2/12/2025
It's not uncommon — or even always bad — to drink on a date. But most of us have a story of over-doing it and having one too many drinks.
At what point does alcohol hinder our ability to make true romantic connections, or blunt our decision-making so that we wind up with someone our sober selves wouldn't have chosen?
Dry dating is becoming more popular. According to a 2024 survey from the dating site DatingNews.com, nearly 2 in 3 Gen-Z and Millennials said they preferred alcohol-free dates.
With Valentine's Day just around the corner, we talk about the benefits of dating and intimacy without alcohol.
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Duration:00:34:19
The American Judiciary Versus The Trump Administration
2/11/2025
It's been three crazy weeks. It can be hard to keep up with the new commander-in-chief.
There are at least 45 challenges in the courts against the Trump administration. These complaints are broad in scope, dealing with the role of Elon Musk's new Department of Government Efficiency to the gutting of The United States Agency for International Development.
Judges are beginning to step in and put a damper on Trump's plans. But will the judicial branch keep the executive branch in check? We answer the question on a lot of people's minds these days: Can he do that?
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Duration:00:34:33
The Lessons Couples Learn From Living Apart Together
2/11/2025
Does distance really make the heart grow fonder?
A growing number of couples who are choosing to live apart together (LAT) seem to think so. These lovers are in a committed relationship but live or sleep separately.
Between 2000 and 2022, the percentage of married couples who decided to live apart grew by more than 40 percent. The trend has been driven mainly by older women.
New research from a U.K. household study found that older couples who decided to live in separate places have better mental health.
With Valentine's Day right around the corner, we discuss what living apart together looks like.
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Duration:00:35:45
'If You Can Keep It': Where Is The Resistance?
2/10/2025
President Donald Trump has dominated the news cycle in the earliest days of office, firing off rounds of executive orders, turning billionaire Elon Musk loose on the federal workforce, and blitzing the press.
But where is the opposition? Democrats lost big in 2024, ceding control of the Senate, House, and the presidency to the GOP. But as Trump continues to swing big at our governing apparatus, they've been more passive than some Americans would like.
Where does the party go from here? And what sort of plan do they have to respond to Trump's plans for the next four years?
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Duration:00:37:47
The News Roundup For February 7, 2025
2/7/2025
All USAID workers were placed on leave effective Friday, Donald Trump and his administration are now turning their attention to the Department of Education.
Millions of federal workers now have more time to make a decision after a judge suspended the Office of Personnel Management's deadline for them to accept, or reject, the agency's "deferred resignation" offer.
Meanwhile, President Trump suggested that the U.S. might take over Gaza and that Palestinians will relocate to neighboring countries.
And the trade war with China is heating up. Tariffs on goods imported from the country are causing the prices of clothes, toys, and electronics to surge.
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Duration:01:23:28
Donald Trump And Elon Musk Are Targeting USAID
2/6/2025
USAID workers worldwide were pulled off the job Tuesday as President Donald Trump's administration posted notices online and sent emails telling employees that the government's spending overseas is now considered a waste and that they have 30 days to return home.
These workers have also been placed on leave effective midnight Friday. The organization's website was recently taken offline. What happens next?
We discuss what these moves mean for the future of America's international relationships and the potential consequences for people around the world who relied on this work and funding.
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Duration:00:38:56
How The FCC Regulates Media
2/5/2025
The Trump Administration's FCC Chair, Brendan Carr, has already made some moves when it comes to media.
Only two days on the job, Carr reinstated complaints against ABC, CBS, and NBC for bias against Trump during the 2024 election.
Last Thursday, he ordered an investigation into NPR and PBS for allegedly running advertisements.
We discuss how the FCC regulates media and protects free speech.
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Duration:00:36:07
The College Affordability Crisis
2/4/2025
The graduating class of 2025 is the largest the country has ever seen — around 3.9 million students. That's according to the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education.
And it'll likely be the largest group for a while.
That's because starting next school year, the number of high school seniors is expected to drop sharply. That's partly due to low birth rates connected to the 2008 recession.
We discuss how colleges and universities are grappling with declining enrollment.
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Duration:00:35:53
"If You Can Keep It": President Trump's Crypto Dealings
2/3/2025
On the 2024 campaign trail, Donald Trump vowed to end a regulatory crackdown on the cryptocurrency industry.
Crypto was part of the deluge of first-week executive orders from the new administration. Trump established a working group on digital asset markets that is chaired by his new crypto AI Czar David Sacks.
Trump meanwhile made crypto moves for himself that could potentially put billions in his pocket.
For this week's installment of our series "If You Can Keep It," we take a closer look at of this and why it matters to you.
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Duration:00:30:38
The News Roundup For January 31, 2025
1/31/2025
An American Airlines plane collided with a helicopter on Wednesday in Washington D.C., sending both crashing into the Potomac River. There are no survivors.
Donald Trump ordered a freeze of all federal grants, disrupting vital national processes.
Meanwhile, tens of thousands of Palestinians are making their way back into the northern parts of Gaza. Israel's ban on working with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency goes into effect this week.
A new Chinese AI app, called DeepSeek, has upended the tech industry and Wall Street. Industry watchers note the country's programmers can deliver a product on par with that of the West, for a fraction of the cost and without access to similar hardware.
We cover all this and more during the News Roundup.
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Duration:01:26:58
The Debate Over Fluoride In American Drinking Water
1/30/2025
Fluoride in American tap water is nothing new. We've been safely adding it to our drinking water for decades and staved off tooth decay in our population.
But new skepticism has some Americans wondering about the benefits of the practice. This is in large part thanks to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Donald Trump's pick to run the Department of Health and Human Services.
We discuss why fluoride is added to our water supply, the risks and benefits.
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Duration:00:35:02
America's Relationship With The World Health Organization
1/29/2025
It was instrumental in coordinating global action during the pandemic. However, that meant became a target for the president of then and now.
The World Health Organization helps to protect and maintain the health of the world's population. It receives about 10 percent of its budget from the United States. President Donald Trump, however, doesn't see a lot of value in its work, signing an executive order Monday to withdraw America from the membership of the agency.
He called the organization "corrupt" and has accused it of taking more from the U.S. than it gives.
We discuss the future of global health without America at the table of one of its greatest proponents.
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Duration:00:35:40
The Movement To Restrict Minors' Social Media Use
1/29/2025
Social media bans for minors have been making the rounds internationally. Now, Congress is looking to follow that lead.
In November, Australia imposed a sweeping ban on social media for users under 16 years old. The ban holds social media companies responsible for enforcing age restrictions on their sites and prohibits minors under that age limit from using those platforms or creating new accounts.
The law doesn't name specific apps or websites, but companies could face fines of up to $32 million if they violate the ban.
We discuss how social media bans like Australia's are enforced and what it would take to pass similar measures in the U.S.
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Duration:00:11:15
Tech Critic Nicholas Carr On Why Social Media Hurts More Than It Helps
1/28/2025
Humans love to connect. We're social like that. Whether we're sending telegrams, calling each other on the telephone, or DM'ing each other on the social media platform of our choosing, we're interacting.
Whether or not that constant connection is a good thing is another matter entirely. Writer and author Nicholas Carr spends a lot of time thinking about that very question (and others like it). His new book, "Superbloom: How Technologies of Connection Tear Us Apart," tells a story of the parallel rises of mechanical, efficient electronic communication and mass confusion.
But it's not just the fault of tech giants and social media companies. Carr encourages us to look inward and consider how our own psyches play a role. He joins us to talk about the realities of social media and constant connection.
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Duration:00:32:24
ICYMI: Bishop Budde On Faith And Politics
1/28/2025
It's a moment that's run through President Donald Trump's first week in office — a bishop in Washington imploring the incoming commander in chief to show mercy to the less powerful during a national prayer service.
This simple claim meant a lot to million worrying for the future of their country. It also offended many more who think it's on the right track.
But that hasn't caused Bishop Marian Budde to waver in her convictions.
She joins us to discuss her faith, what that moment meant to her, and what she hopes for the future of the U.S.
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Duration:00:18:29
'If You Can Keep It': Trump's Early Moves And The Constitution
1/27/2025
The first week of President Trump's new term ended with a late-night purge of around 17 federal inspectors general on Friday.
The exact total is still unclear. Trump said the move was a, quote, "very standard thing to do." But federal law requires a 30-day notification to Congress before inspectors general can be removed from their posts.
Also, in the first week of his second term – four Democratic-led states filed a lawsuit to stop President Trump's executive order to end birthright citizenship. On Thursday a federal judge in Seattle temporarily halted the implementation of the order, calling it, quote, "blatantly unconstitutional."
Our series, "If You Can Keep It," cuts through political noise to consider the state of our Democratic Republic and what matters to you.
We discuss the IG purge, take a closer look at the legal challenges to Trump's early moves, and how the Constitution guides our understanding of executive power today.
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Duration:00:32:46
The News Roundup For January 24, 2025
1/24/2025
Donald Trump's first week back in office has been frenetic. The 47th president issued a slew of executive orders and actions on subjects ranging from immigration to diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
And a Bishop made a heartfelt plea directly to the president and Vice President JD Vance, asking them to show mercy towards immigrants and LGBTQ youth.
Friday marks five days since the beginning of the first stage of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. And this week the Israeli Defense Force launched renewed raids into the city of Jenin in the Occupied West Bank, killing at least 12 Palestinians.
Pope Francis had strong words for Donald Trump as the president began to implement plans to target immigrants living in the U.S.
Despite campaign trail promises, the war in Ukraine did not end on the first day of Donald Trump's presidency. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pondered this week whether Trump would even pay Europe much notice.
We get into all this and more during this week's News Roundup.
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Duration:01:22:58