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Vince Zampella, video game pioneer behind megahit Call of Duty, dies at 55

Three versions of Activision

One of Vince Zampella's crowning achievements was the creation of the Call of Duty franchise, which has sold more than half a billion games worldwide.

(Image credit: Paul Sakuma)

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Scientists learn more about how human embryos implant using artificial wombs

Microscopy image of a day 14 human embryo that has implanted in the new artificial womb.

Scientists have developed an experimental way to study how human embryos implant in a uterus, which may provide new insights into why miscarriages occur and how they can be prevented.

(Image credit: Matteo Molè at the Babraham Institute.)

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2025: The images that stayed with us

Cookie Jones (left) sits with her mother, Valerie (right), in Cookie

Photographs help us look back on the moments that defined the year. Taken by NPR photojournalists nationwide, this collection goes beyond the headlines to reveal quietly powerful human stories.

(Image credit: Tyler Russell)

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The U.S. economy grew robustly as Americans continued to spend

Consumer spending has been a key engine of the U.S. economy, but polls show Americans are getting more concerned about their finances.

The data, which was delayed from October by the government shutdown, comes as the economy takes center stage for voters and the Trump administration.

(Image credit: Spencer Platt)

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Trump's plans for warship fleet. And, deported Venezuelans must receive due process

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio listens to President Trump announce the U.S. Navy

President Trump has announced the Navy will begin building a new fleet of warships. And, a federal judge has ruled the deportations of more than 100 Venezuelan men to El Salvador were illegal.

(Image credit: Andrew Canallero-Reynolds)

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It's the 'gold standard' in autism care. Why are states reining it in?

Just months ago, Gaile Osborne (left) didn

Budget shortfalls and nearly $1 trillion in looming federal Medicaid cuts have prompted states to rein in spending on a widely embraced autism therapy, pinching families who depend on the services.

(Image credit: Katie Shaw for KFF Health News)

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U.S. regulators approve Wegovy pill for weight loss

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration building is seen behind FDA logos at a bus stop on the agency

U.S. regulators on Monday gave the green light to a pill version of the blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy, the first daily oral medication to treat obesity.

(Image credit: Jacquelyn Martin)

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American journalist injured in Israeli attack wants answers from Washington

AFP camera operator Dylan Collins speaks on his mobile phone after being injured by Israeli shelling, at Alma al-Shaab border village with Israel, southern Lebanon, on Oct. 13, 2023. An Israeli shell landed in a gathering of international journalists covering clashes on the border in south Lebanon, killing one and leaving six others injured.

AFP's Dylan Collins was among journalists injured in an Israeli attack on Lebanon in 2023. The attack killed Reuters' Issam Abdallah. Collins was in Washington this month to press for accountability.

(Image credit: Hassan Ammar)

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Biden stopped the executions of 37 men. Trump's DOJ wants to punish them

A guard tower looms over a federal prison complex which houses a Supermax facility outside Florence, Colo., in 2015.

Since Trump took office, officials have transferred ten of the 37 men Biden spared from execution to the "Alcatraz of the Rockies." One prisoner still awaiting transfer has attempted suicide.

(Image credit: Brennan Linsley)

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Federal student loans are changing. Here's what to expect in 2026

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The SAVE Plan is ending and repayment options will change dramatically in the new year.

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Immigrants now have fewer legal options to stay in U.S. under Trump

A immigrant from Venezuela tries in vain to access the CBP One app a day after the second inauguration of President Trump on January 21, 2025 in Nogales, Mexico. The incoming administration shut down the app, which was created by the Biden administration to allow migrants to schedule appointments to gain entry into the United States.

The 1.6 million number marks the largest-ever effort to strip permissions for immigrants who attempted to migrate to the country through legal means, advocates said.

(Image credit: John Moore)

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Can't find the perfect holiday gift? Some people hire personal shoppers to help

Struggling to find the perfect holiday present? Some gift-givers turn to personal shoppers to take the pressure off of gift giving.

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U.S. strikes another alleged drug-smuggling boat in eastern Pacific

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks as President Donald Trump looks on, at Trump

The U.S. military said Monday that it had conducted another strike against a boat it said was smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing one person.

(Image credit: Alex Brandon)

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At least 5 killed after Mexican Navy plane on medical mission crashes in Texas

In this image provided by Sky Decker Jr., authorities and volunteers respond to a Mexican Navy plane crash near Galveston, Texas, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025.

A small Mexican Navy plane transporting a young medical patient and seven others crashed Monday near Galveston, killing at least five people and setting off a search in waters along the Texas coast.

(Image credit: Sky Decker Jr.)

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Trump announces plans for new Navy 'battleship' as part of a 'Golden Fleet'

President Trump departs after speaking at his Mar-a-Lago club on Monday in Palm Beach, Fla.

President Trump claims the warship will be "the fastest, the biggest, and by far 100 times more powerful than any battleship ever built." A month ago, the Navy scrapped plans to build a new, small warship, citing delays and cost overruns.

(Image credit: Alex Brandon)

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Federal judge rules the U.S. violated due process with Alien Enemies Act deportations

A prison guard mans an interior perimeter at the CECOT (Counter Terrorism Confinement Center) on Dec.15, 2025 in Tecoluca, El Salvador. CECOT gained notoriety in 2025 when the Trump administration began its controversial policy of deporting people to El Salvador who they claimed were members of the Venezuelan gang Tren De Aragua.

Judge James Boasberg said the U.S. denied due process to the Venezuelan men it deported to a prison in El Salvador after President Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act.

(Image credit: John Moore)

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Nearly two dozen states sue the Trump administration over funding for CFPB

A view of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau headquarters building in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 10, 2025.

The attorney generals say the Trump administration is refusing to accept funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which could hurt consumers in their states.

(Image credit: Saul Loeb)

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A rift in MAGA has top Heritage Foundation officials leaving to join with Mike Pence

Former Vice President Mike Pence takes part in the 2025 Atlantic Festival at PAC NYC on Sept. 18, 2025 in New York City.

The exit of more than a dozen staffers follows turmoil at Heritage and the larger conservative movement over the role of right-wing influencers who've promoted antisemitic and other extremist ideas.

(Image credit: Michael Loccisano)

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The Trump administration pauses wind projects off New England, New York and Virginia

Wind turbines operate in July at the Vineyard Wind 1 offshore wind farm off the coast of Massachusetts.

An Interior Department statement did not detail the national security risks. It's the administration's latest pus to hobble offshore wind and limit renewable energy sources.

(Image credit: Carolyn Kaster)

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DOJ releases more Epstein files. And, immigration court 'no-shows' surged, NPR finds

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents look over lists of names and their hearing times and locations inside the Federal Plaza courthouse before making arrests on June 27 in New York.

The DOJ has released more files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. And, NPR finds a rise in the number of immigrants without legal status who aren't showing up to immigration court.

(Image credit: Bryan R. Smith)

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Rep. Adam Smith says Trump's oil blockade is about power over Venezuela

Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, leaves after a classified briefing with Adm. Frank "Mitch" Bradley, commander of the U.S. Special Operations Command, and Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, at the United States Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Dec. 4.

Rep. Adam Smith, the Democratic leader of the Armed Services Committee, says Trump's oil blockade is about driving Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro out of power more than anything.

(Image credit: J. Scott Applewhite)

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'Music makes everything better': A Texas doctor spins vinyl to give patients relief

Dr. Tyler Jorgensen, a palliative care doctor at Dell Seton Medical Center, plays a Charlie Brown Christmas album in an office on December 9, 2025. Ferguson said this album is popular due to the lack of lyrics, which makes for easier listening.

A palliative care doctor in Austin says listening to vinyl music can lift heavy moments for families and patients receiving end-of-life care.

(Image credit: Lorianne Willett)

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Here are some of the NPR stories that had a big impact in 2025

From left: Mahri Stainnak, who was fired from the federal government; Caleb Strickland, 4, who is waiting for a heart transplant; and a federal agent patrolling the halls of immigration court in New York City.

A sampling of the stories NPR staff believe made some of the deepest ripples this year — reminders of what rigorous, compassionate journalism can do, and why the work remains as urgent as ever.

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How President Trump reshaped capitalism in 2025

President Trump has spent the past year actively favoring some U.S. companies and investors, while threatening others.

His policies are picking winners and losers — and blurring the lines between business and government.

(Image credit: Pool)

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How systemic failures turn state mental hospitals into prisons

Family photos and hospital records of Quincy Jackson III, gathered by his mother, Tyeesha Ferguson. The mental health system makes it "easier to criminalize somebody than to get them help," she says. "He

The share of people with severe mental illness in state psychiatric hospitals accused of serious crimes has risen steeply. The shift has all but halted the possibility of care before a catastrophic crisis.

(Image credit: Meg Vogel for The Marshall Project and KFF Health News)

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NPR analysis shows skyrocketing number of 'no-shows' in immigration court

A Paraguayan woman whose relative was detained by federal agents scuffles with officers in the halls of immigration court at the Jacob K. Javitz Federal Building on in New York City in July 2025.

More immigrants are not showing up for their mandatory immigration court hearings compared to prior years, an NPR analysis shows, allowing the government to order their immediate deportation.

(Image credit: Spencer Platt)

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The DOGE mindset is still central to the Trump administration's agenda as 2025 ends

Earlier this year, Elon Musk wielded what he called a "chainsaw for bureaucracy" during the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Oxon Hill, Maryland, on February 20, 2025. While Musk no longer leads DOGE, the idea of trimming the federal government remains.

The Department of Government Efficiency effort was one of the most consequential and controversial – if not entirely successful – changes the Trump administration made in 2025.

(Image credit: SAUL LOEB)

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Some patients face hurdles getting HIV prevention drugs. Here's what to know

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A daily preventive pill can be invaluable for people at risk for HIV. But some doctors don't know much about prescribing them. And billing headaches are common. Here's how to overcome those hurdles.

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Can Americans learn to love tiny, cheap kei cars?

A driver takes a Honda Life on a ride during a meeting of the Capital Kei Car Club in Clifton, Virginia. Kei cars are ultracompact Japanese vehicles defined by strict size and engine limits.

President Trump recently embraced kei cars, tiny vehicles that are popular in Asia but hard to get in the U.S. Kei car enthusiasts are delighted — but doubt whether much will change.

(Image credit: Michael Noble Jr. for NPR)

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Why comedian Mike Albo says it's better to be a last-minute holiday shopper

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with author and comedian Mike Albo about the virtues of buying holiday gifts at the absolute last minute.

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