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Up First from NPR

Up First from NPR

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NPR's Up First is the news you need to start your day. The three biggest stories of the day, with reporting and analysis from NPR News — in 10 minutes. Available weekdays at 6:30 a.m. ET, with hosts Leila Fadel, Steve Inskeep, Michel Martin and A Martinez. Also available on Saturdays at 9 a.m. ET, with Ayesha Rascoe and Scott Simon. On Sundays, hear a longer exploration behind the headlines with Ayesha Rascoe on "The Sunday Story," available by 8 a.m. ET. Subscribe and listen, then support your local NPR station at donate.npr.org.

Support NPR's reporting by subscribing to Up First+ and unlock sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org/upfirstCopyright 2015-2026 NPR - For Personal Use Only Politics & Government
Episodes
  • Trump Delivers State Of The Union, Economic Focus, Aviation Safety Bill

    Trump Delivers State Of The Union, Economic Focus, Aviation Safety Bill
    Feb 25 2026

    President Trump touted the beginnings of an American revival during his State of the Union address. He talked about a “turnaround for the ages,” in a record-length speech filled with exaggeration.

    And a bipartisan aviation safety bill failed to advance in Congress after the Pentagon withdrew its support.

    Want more analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.

    Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Rebekah Metzler, Rafael Nam, Russell Lewis, HJ Mai and Adriana Gallardo.

    It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas.

    Our director is Christopher Thomas.We get engineering support from Neisha Heines. Our technical director is Carleigh Strange.

    And our Supervising Producer is Michael Lipkin.

    (0:00) Introduction
    (01:54) Trump Delivers State Of The Union
    (05:34) What Trump Had To Say About The Economy
    (09:34) Aviation Safety Bill

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    13 mins
  • Trump State of the Union Strategy, Mexico Cartel Violence, Epstein Files Naming Trump

    Trump State of the Union Strategy, Mexico Cartel Violence, Epstein Files Naming Trump
    Feb 24 2026
    Republican strategists say President Trump needs a reset in his State of the Union tonight, with new NPR polling showing 60% of Americans think the country is worse off than a year ago.
    Mexico is still reeling from cartel violence after a military operation killed the country's biggest drug lord, El Mencho, and triggered a wave of retaliation, raising questions about whether the government can take on the cartels without fueling even more violence.
    And an NPR investigation finds the Justice Department removed or withheld dozens of pages from the Epstein files database that include allegations mentioning President Trump, even as the administration says it has released everything.

    Want more analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.

    Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Rebekah Metzler, Rebecca Rosman, Megan Pratz, Mohamad ElBardicy, and Alice Woelfle.

    It was produced by Ziad Buchh and Nia Dumas.

    Our director is Christopher Thomas.

    We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis. Our technical director is Carleigh Strange.

    Our Supervising Senior Producer is Vince Pearson.

    (0:00) Introduction
    (02:16) Trump State of the Union Strategy
    (05:57) Mexico Cartel Violence
    (09:43) Epstein Files Naming Trump

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    14 mins
  • Trump's New Tariffs, China Reacts To Tariff Ruling, State Of The Union Poll

    Trump's New Tariffs, China Reacts To Tariff Ruling, State Of The Union Poll
    Feb 23 2026
    President Trump says he’s raising global tariffs to 15% under a different authority after the Supreme Court blocked his emergency tariff power, forcing Congress to decide how closely they want to own the policy in a midterm election year.
    China is weighing what the court ruling actually changes on the ground for exporters and how it could reshape Trump’s leverage ahead of his trip to Beijing in a few weeks.
    And a new NPR/PBS News/Marist poll finds most Americans say the state of the union is not strong, as President Trump heads into Tuesday night’s address facing deep divides over the country’s direction.

    Want more analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.

    Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Krishnadev Calamur, Vincent Ni, Dana Farrington, Mohamad ElBardicy, and HJ Mai.

    It was produced by Ziad Buchh and Nia Dumas.

    Our director is Christopher Thomas.

    We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis. Our technical director is Carleigh Strange.

    (0:00) Introduction
    (02:13) Trump's New Tariffs
    (05:55) China Reacts To Tariff Ruling
    (09:37) State Of The Union Poll

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    Show more Show less
    14 mins

Featured Article: Stay Up to Date and Informed with the Best News Podcasts of All Time


In a world where breaking news headlines change hourly and we're inundated with constant notifications, articles, news blasts, and think pieces, it can be difficult to simply keep up with what's going on in the world—let alone make sense of it. That’s where podcasts come in. Ranging from global and breaking news to politics, art, and finance, these shows are hosted by experts in their fields. No matter what your interests, there's a podcast for you.

Featured Article Stay Up to Date and Informed with the Best News Podcasts of All Time
All stars
Most relevant
So much of what people think of as news is just talking heads who try to appease their followers with whatever will make them angry or excited so that they continue to watch. This then feeds the talking head more money and power. There are not many true news channels left. This is one of them. It actually gathers the information and does its research And lets the listener decide.

Actual news not talking heads

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he title was good enjoyed listening to the audiobook. the story line was interesting. nice

good

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I always learn something listening to this program. It is my daily must-listen program to catch up on important news & insightful analysis. I greatly appreciate their fair-minded reporting.

Reporting with honesty & integrity

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I am so glad to hear Ayesha Roscoe hosting this show. I have been a fan of her reporting for some time. Up First is my favorite morning news podcast and it is great to hear her as a host.

Yay! Ayesha’s here!

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NPR offers this well produced, in-depth news for commuters. Their network of independent informed reporters do a great job explaining both domestic and international news.

Well produced, in-depth news for commuters

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