It’s the most wonderful time of the year — and with that, the obligatory office holiday party. Thing is, some choices around holiday parties can tell a story of how a company is doing. Who's there? Who's chatting together or sticking to a corner? What food and drink are being served? Today, we'll help you read the room. But first, most regional Federal Reserve bank presidents have been reappointed, despite some Trump administration proposals to exert greater control over the Fed's regional banks.
CBS News Roundup - 12/12/2025 | World News Roundup
Cascades of rain flood the Pacific Northwest. Trump turns up the heat on Venezuela. It's a day in court for fired Michigan Coach Sherrone Moore. CBS News Correspondent Steve Kathan has those stories and more on the World News Roundup podcast.
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Marketplace All-in-One - Reddit fights Australia’s social media ban
From the BBC World Service: Reddit has filed a lawsuit calling for Australia's social media ban for children under 16 to be declared invalid. The text-based forum is one of 10 online platforms covered by the ban, which came into force this week. And later in the program, we head to Peru, where conflicts are brewing over how money from Machu Picchu tickets is being spent and whether it's benefiting tourists and locals.
Up First from NPR - Zelenskyy and Peace Promises, Abrego Garcia Release, Indiana Rejects Redistricting
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he’s willing to hold elections if the US and other allies help ensure security. Is that a promise Trump can make as he pushes Ukraine to surrender territory to Russia? Also, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a man illegally deported by the Trump administration in March and eventually returned, is now free from immigration custody. Plus, Republicans in Indiana have rejected a redistricting proposal. President Trump successfully pushed other states to redraw their congressional maps to help Republicans win next year’s midterm elections, so why did Indiana’s Republicans break with the president?
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 Kate Bartlett, Anna Yukhananov, Larry Kaplow and Alice Woelfle.
It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas.
We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott. Our technical director is Carleigh Strange
Our Executive Producer is Jay Shaylor.
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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 Kate Bartlett, Anna Yukhananov, Larry Kaplow and Alice Woelfle.
It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas.
We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott. Our technical director is Carleigh Strange
Our Executive Producer is Jay Shaylor.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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WSJ Minute Briefing - Trump Signs AI Order to Curb State Power
Plus: OpenAI rolls out a new version of ChatGPT in a bid to move ahead of competition from Google and Anthropic. And Lulelemon’s CEO plans to step down following a pressure campaign from the company’s outspoken founder. Luke Vargas hosts.
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Marketplace All-in-One - Bytes: Week in Review – Apple’s leadership departures raises concerns over its AI future
There’s been something of a critical mass of high-profile departures and retirement announcements at Apple in recent weeks. Plus, how will consumers be helped or hurt by a potential merger between Netflix and Warner Bros or a hostile takeover from Paramount? And McDonald's pulls an AI-generated Christmas ad because some folks on social media weren't “lovin' it.”
Marketplace’s Meghan McCarty Carino spoke with Joanna Stern, senior personal technology columnist at The Wall Street Journal for this week’s “Tech Bytes: Week in Review.”
WSJ What’s News - Washington Tightens the Screws on Venezuela’s Maduro
A.M. Edition for Dec. 12. The U.S. is ramping up efforts to force Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro from power, by sanctioning his family members and oil tankers that provide critical revenue for his regime. Plus, the White House tries to rein in a surge of state AI regulations. And WSJ tech reporter Sam Schechner looks at how OpenAI’s latest ChatGPT update stacks up against competitors from Google and Anthropic. Luke Vargas hosts.
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The Daily - Trump’s Plan to Reorder the World
President Trump has overseen an aggressive foreign policy, including harsh words about Europe and a lethal military campaign in the Caribbean.
Last week, the White House unveiled its new national security strategy, which made Mr. Trump’s true goals clear and alarmed countries around the world.
David E. Sanger, who covers the White House and national security for The New York Times, explains what the strategy is and how it may change America’s global relationships for good.
Guest: David E. Sanger, a White House and national security correspondent for The New York Times.
Background reading:
- Mr. Trump’s security strategy focuses on profit, not on spreading democracy.
- The policy document formalizes Mr. Trump’s long-held contempt for Europe’s leaders.
Photo: Ricardo Arduengo/Reuters
For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Start Here - Another Grand Jury Refuses to Indict Letitia James
For the second time in a week, Justice Department prosecutors fail to secure an indictment against New York Attorney General Letitia James. The U.S. plans to seize the oil from a tanker leaving Venezuela. And Australian teens struggle through their second day without legal access to major social media sites.
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The Ezra Klein Show - Best Of: Zadie Smith on Populists, Frauds and Flip Phones
This is one of my favorite conversations in recent memory — with the writer Zadie Smith.
Smith is the author of novels, including “White Teeth,” “On Beauty” and “NW,” as well as many essays and short stories. Her ability to give language to the kinds of quiet battles that live inside of ourselves is part of why she’s been one of my favorite writers for years.
“We absolutely need to gather in our identity groups sometimes for our freedoms, for our civil rights. There’s absolutely no doubt about that. But for that role to be the thing that is you existentially all the way down — that is something that I personally believe all human beings revolt from at some level,” she told me when we spoke last September, shortly before Trump’s re-election.
It’s ideas like these that I found interesting to revisit now, in a starkly different political climate. In this conversation, we discuss Smith’s novel, “The Fraud,” which Smith wrote with Trump and populism front of mind; what populism is really channeling; why Smith refuses the “bait” of wokeness; how people have been “modified” by smartphones and social media; and more.
This episode contains strong language.
Mentioned:
Feel Free by Zadie Smith
“Fascinated to Presume: In Defense of Fiction” by Zadie Smith
Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman
“Generation Why?” by Zadie Smith
Book Recommendations:
The Director by Daniel Kehlmann
The Rebel’s Clinic by Adam Shatz
Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com.
You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs.
This episode of “The Ezra Klein Show” was produced by Annie Galvin. Fact-checking by Michelle Harris, with Kate Sinclair. Our senior engineer is Jeff Geld, with additional mixing by Aman Sahota and Efim Shapiro. Our senior editor is Claire Gordon. The show’s production team also includes Rollin Hu, Elias Isquith and Kristin Lin. Original music by Isaac Jones. Audience strategy by Kristina Samulewski and Shannon Busta. The executive producer of New York Times Opinion Audio is Annie-Rose Strasser.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.