Why Amanda Knox returns to Italy — and how she talks with her daughter about injustice

Amanda Knox spent nearly four years in prison and eight years on trial for the 2007 murder of Meredith Kercher. In 2015, Italy

Amanda Knox spent nearly four years in an Italian prison for a murder she didn't commit. After her exoneration, she reached out to the man who prosecuted her case. Knox's new memoir is Free.

(Image credit: Lucien Knuteson)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 4:25 PM

What is the 'state secrets privilege' invoked by the Trump administration?

The Department of Justice and Trump administration officials are invoking the state secrets privilege in the case involving Venezuelans sent to El Salvador.

The state secrets privilege allows the U.S. government to withhold sensitive evidence in court cases. Both Democratic and Republican administrations have invoked it.

(Image credit: Patrick Semansky)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 3:54 PM

What's soil blocking? This seeding method helps gardeners use less plastic and peat

Grace Wertanen, the "seedling intern" at Growing Hope Urban Farm in Ypsilanti, Mich. carries a tray of soil blocked plants

Soil blocking is an environmentally friendly method to prep seedlings. The technique has captured the attention of serious gardeners who'd like to make their growing more sustainable.

(Image credit: Neda Ulaby)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 3:44 PM

Trump cuts threaten measurement lab critical for advanced chips and medical devices

The Atomic Spectroscopy Group provides standardized measurements used across wide swaths of science and industry. The Trump administration plans to cut it.

(Image credit: N. Phillips/NIST)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 3:22 PM

Judge freezes Trump plan to dismantle Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

The headquarters of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in Prague, Czech Republic, are seen on March 18.

Federal Judge Royce Lamberth ruled the continued operation of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty was "in the public interest" and froze White House plans to shut it down.

(Image credit: Michal Cizek)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 2:37 PM

Supreme Court upholds Biden-era rule regulating ghost guns

The Supreme Court upheld the Biden administration

The court said that ghost guns, which are virtually untraceable weapons that require assembly, are considered "firearms" and subject to ATF regulation.

(Image credit: Andrew Harnik)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 2:27 PM

Watch: U.S. intelligence leaders testify in House after Signal flap

Central Intelligence Agency Director John Ratcliffe (R), accompanied by FBI Director Kash Patel (L), and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard (C), speaks during a Senate Committee on Intelligence hearing on March 25.

The use of civilian software to discuss sensitive military and government matters came to light after a journalist from The Atlantic magazine said he was mistakenly added to a group chat on Signal.

(Image credit: Andrew Harnik)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 2:00 PM

'Grandpas' got together to help kids. Scientists say it boosts the elders' health, too

Fourth-graders line up to shake hands with Dennis Cuddy, one of the volunteers with Grandpas United, in White Plains, N.Y.

Older men can find themselves isolated after retirement. Volunteer groups like Grandpas United are good for both physical and mental health.

(Image credit: Ashley Milne-Tyte for NPR)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 1:19 PM

NPR and PBS heads appear on Capitol Hill to answer allegations of bias

A view of the U.S. Capitol as (L-R) House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), U.S. President Donald Trump and Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin depart a luncheon on March 12, 2025 in Washington, DC.

The CEOs of the largest U.S. public broadcasting networks are appearing before a House subcommittee chaired by Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.

(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 1:00 PM

DOGE says it needs to know the government's most sensitive data, but can't say why

White House adviser Elon Musk at a Cabinet meeting at the White House on Monday. Musk, who is also the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, is leading the Department of Government Efficiency effort that is trying to get access to data from across the government to find waste, fraud and abuse.

DOGE staffers have skirted privacy laws, training and security protocols to gain virtually unfettered access to financial and personal information stored in siloed government databases.

(Image credit: Win McNamee)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 12:58 PM

'An unbelievable cocktail of incompetence': a U.S. representative on Signal messages

U.S. Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT) speaks to members of the press after a briefing at the U.S. Capitol on February 14, 2024 in Washington, DC.

Leila Fadel speaks with Congressman Jim Himes (D-Conn.) ahead of a hearing on the Trump administration's inadvertent disclosure of war plans on messaging app Signal.

(Image credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 10:53 AM

Dems want to investigate Signal blunder. And, federal return-to-office complications

CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Tulsi Gabbard

Top Democrats call for an investigation into how war plans were shared with a journalist on Signal. And, federal employees face complications and shortages when returning to the office.

(Image credit: Andrew Harnik, Kevin Dietsc)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 10:00 AM

Why don't diving seals drown? Scientists finally have an answer

Trish, a juvenile gray seal, was one of the seals featured in a new study that looks at the mammals

New research suggests seals sense internal oxygen levels to know when to come up for air. Digital version of story that already aired. Skedded for pub Weds. 3/26 at 6 a.m. Reporter: Lambert. Editor: Khan.

(Image credit: University of St. Andrews Sea Mammal Research Unit)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 10:00 AM

'Felt like a kidnapping': Wrong turn leads to 5-day detention ordeal

U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents direct vehicles re-entering the U.S. from Canada at the Ambassador Bridge Port of Entry in Detroit, Michigan.

A Guatemalan immigrant without legal status says she took a wrong turn on a highway near the Canadian border and was detained with her two children, who are American citizens. They were held for five days.

(Image credit: Matthew Hatcher)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 9:00 AM

Buying or selling on StubHub? It's probably not showing you all the available tickets

Susan Burke is trying to sell her extra Beyoncé tickets on StubHub, but they are not showing up for most users. In this photo, Burke is posing with her cat, Peaches.

StubHub has a "Recommended Tickets" filter that only displays some tickets but not others. It's automatically turned on — and it's upsetting users.

(Image credit: Courtesy of Susan Burke)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 9:00 AM

Colorado is poised to pass some of the toughest gun laws in the country

Sen. Tom Sullivan hears testimony of opponents of a bill at Old Supreme Court chamber of Colorado State Capitol building in Denver, Colo., on March 8, 2023.

A proposal to severely limit guns that use detachable magazines is approaching final passage in the Colorado legislature. The state's Democratic governor, Jared Polis, is expected to sign it into law.

(Image credit: Hyoung Chang)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 9:00 AM

Why a tiny bit of oil can be a big deal

Scott Rabinowitz, president of Grand Resources, stands near a pump jack in Sperry, Okla., on March 20, 2024.

More than three-quarters of U.S. wells make just 6% of the country's oil. They're called marginal wells because of their small output. But they're a big deal to oil producers and environmentalists.

(Image credit: September Dawn Bottoms for NPR)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 9:00 AM

As opposition to fluoride grows, rural America risks a new surge of tooth decay

James Flanagin, the only dentist in Leslie, Ark., treats David Potts. About 25 million Americans live in dentist shortage areas, according to new research from Harvard University.

Many rural counties are short on dentists, and if they lose water fluoridation, tooth decay could surge to levels that have not been seen in decades, experts warn.

(Image credit: Katie Adkins)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 9:00 AM

Parts of America will experience a partial solar eclipse this weekend

A partial solar eclipse is seen as the sun rises behind the U.S. Capitol building on June 10, 2021.

The partial solar eclipse will be visible in various locations in the U.S. Northeast.

(Image credit: Bill Ingalls/NASA)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 9:00 AM

March Madness is underway. So is March Napness, the tournament for hibernating bears

Bear Michal sleeps on the ground at Bear Sanctuary Müritz in Germany in May 2015.

A handful of rescued bears in Europe are competing in March Napness, a bracket-style tournament to see what bear can stay in hibernation the longest.

(Image credit: FOUR PAWS)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 9:00 AM

Federal workers ordered back to office find shortages of desks, Wi-Fi and toilet paper

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration campus in Silver Spring, Md. Employees at the FDA and other federal agencies say the Trump administration

As agencies scramble to comply with President Trump's Jan. 20 order terminating remote work, employees say the process has been marked by confusion, changing guidance, and frustrating conditions.

(Image credit: Andrew Harnik)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 9:00 AM

Kennedy Center lays off Social Impact employees

The Kennedy Center in Washington DC laid off its social impact team on Tuesday — the latest in a wave of dramatic changes at the national performing arts institution.

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., has dissolved its Social Impact division, which partnered with local organizations to bring in diverse artists and audiences.

(Image credit: Kennedy Center)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 9:00 AM

A glimpse into the newly opened archive of Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne

Photograph of Joan Didion in the Vogue Art Department, c. 1958

The New York Public Library's Joan Didion archive opens March 26. Here's what you'll find inside.

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 6:10 AM

Gunman who killed 23 in Texas Walmart attack can avoid death penalty with plea deal

A memorial to honor the victims of the 2019 Walmart mass shooting, is pictured on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, in El Paso, Texas.

El Paso County District Attorney James Montoya said that his decision in the prosecution of Patrick Crusius was driven by a majority of victims' relatives who wanted the case behind them.

(Image credit: Andres Leighton)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 5:20 AM

'Like a sound from hell:' Was an illegal sonic weapon used on protesters in Serbia?

In this photo provided by the Serbian Interior Ministry, Serbian Gendarmerie officers show the U.S.-made Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD) – which is illegal in Serbia and many other countries, in Belgrade, Serbia on March 19, 2025.

The weapons, which are illegal in Serbia, emit sound waves which can trigger sharp ear pain, disorientation, eardrum ruptures or even irreversible hearing damage.

(Image credit: AP)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 5:11 AM

Wildfires ravage South Korea, killing 18 and destroying a 1,300-year-old temple

A man walks near a burnt-out house in a damaged village in Yeongyang, South Korea on Wednesday.

A 1,300-year-old Buddhist temple, houses, factories and vehicles were among the structures destroyed in the wildfires that have burned 43,330 acres and injured 19 people.

(Image credit: Yun Kwan-shik)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 5:09 AM

Trump's new executive order could upend voting

A man places his ballot in a box during early voting in Waukesha, Wis Tuesday, March 18, 2025.

The order tests the power of Trump's authority and would require voters using a federal form to show proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections. It's sure to be tested in court.

(Image credit: Jeffrey Phelps)

NPR NewsMar 26, 2025, 4:23 AM

Pilot and 2 children survive a night on airplane wing after crashing into Alaska lake

This photo provided by the Alaska National Guard shows an airplane partially submerged into the ice of Tustumena Lake at the toe of a glacier on Monday, March 24, 2025, near Soldotna, Alaska. (Alaska National Guard via AP)

A pilot and two girls survived on the wing of a plane for about 12 hours after it crashed and was partially submerged in an icy Alaska lake, then were rescued after being spotted by a good Samaritan.

(Image credit: AP)

NPR NewsMar 25, 2025, 11:07 PM

'Plain sloppiness': Sen. Mark Warner says on Signal chat fiasco

Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) addresses the nation

During a heated Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on Tuesday, Sen. Mark Warner described the actions of the nation's top intelligence officials as "sloppy, careless, incompetent behavior.

(Image credit: Andrew Harnik)

NPR NewsMar 25, 2025, 11:01 PM

Republican lawmakers seek to put PBS and NPR in the hot seat

Katherine Maher of NPR, at left, and Paula Kerger of PBS are scheduled to testify on Capitol Hill about the federal funding their organizations receive.

A House subcommittee led by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and named after Elon Musk's government-efficiency team has set its sights on the public broadcasters.

(Image credit: StephenVoss/NPR and Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)