Plus: TikTok finalizes a deal allowing it to keep operating in the U.S. And gold hits a new record with prices nearing $5,000 an ounce. Luke Vargas hosts.
Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve (Sicangu Lakota and Ponca) mistook her first interaction with racism — a separate gas station outhouse reserved for “Indians” — as a privileged courtesy for her and her people. It is one of the “Special Places, Sacred Circles” that she recalls in the account of her life on the dry, windy plains of South Dakota. She tells of the Great Depression, grandmothers who taught her the power of words, and the navigation of a literary world that embraced her. Sneve was one of the first authors to offer an alternative to children’s literature flush with stereotypes. Her insightful writing took her from her home along Ponca Creek to a presidential honor at the White House. We’ll hear Sneve talk about her life as a writer and public school educator.
Break 1 Music: Song of Encouragement (song) Porcupine Singers (artist) Alowanpi – Songs of Honoring – Lakota Classics: Past & Present, Vol. 1 (album)
A Micron memory chip factory in upstate New York is wrangling with local groups who want legal assurances the project will benefit the local community. Plus, YouTube plans to crack down on AI slop.
But first, it's shaping up to be a big year for very big initial public offerings. Elon Musk is reportedly preparing to take SpaceX public at an anticipated valuation of around $1.5 trillion. AI companies Anthropic and OpenAI are also expected to follow suit this year.
Marketplace’s Meghan McCarty Carino spoke with Paresh Dave, senior writer at Wired, to discuss all these topics on this week’s “Marketplace Tech Bytes: Week in Review.”
President Trump signs his Board of Peace charter at Davos on Thursday. Also, two updates about ongoing ICE operations. First, ICE is targeting immigrants in what DHS officials are calling "Operation Catch of the Day" in Maine, though state officials there are pushing back on this plan. Meanwhile, California senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff toured, for a second time, California's most recent ICE facility on the books. The detention center is a former prison, and immigrants in a federal class action lawsuit accused DHS of sewage water in showers and foul drinking water. In business, Kim Kardashian's brand Skims pays $200,000 dollars to settle fraud allegations in New Jersey, and Speedo moves its headquarters from Orange County to Long Beach ahead of the 2028 Olympics. Read more at LATimes.com
In Minnesota, protests and business closures spread as immigration operations continue and confrontations with federal agents intensify. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Ukraine’s president delivers a blunt message to Europe, warning that the continent must stop relying on the U.S. and prepare to defend itself as Russia’s war grinds on. And across the U.S., states are bracing for a massive winter storm threatening millions of people with dangerous weather conditions.
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Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Eric Westervelt, Willem Marx, Russell Lewis, Mohamad ElBardicy, and Alice Woelfle.
It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Ben Abrams and Christopher Thomas.
We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis. Our technical director is Carleigh Strange.
Our Executive Producer is Jay Shaylor.
(0:00) Introduction (01:55) Minnesota Protests (05:28) Zelenskyy Slams Europe In Davos (09:00) Winter Storm Approaches
Three years after his appointment as special counsel, Jack Smith finally delivered the legal argument against President Trump on Thursday that he was never allowed to make in court.
Glenn Thrush, who reports on the Justice Department, explains what Mr. Smith told Congress and why his message is likely to make him Mr. Trump’s next target.
Guest: Glenn Thrush, who reports on the Justice Department for The New York Times.
Former Special Prosecutor Jack Smith defends his investigation into President Trump to Congress. “Sinners” sets a new record for Oscar nominations. And a code-breaker claims he’s solved the Zodiac case – and that it’s connected to another famous murder.
After the leaders of Japan and South Korea ended their summit with the two participating in a drumming duet, we’re marching to the beat of our own drum and exploring some rhythmic science.
First, we look at nature’s drummer, the woodpecker, and why their pecking doesn’t give them a concussion. We also discuss how the rhythm of your brain waves impacts your sense of ownership over your own body.
Then, we’re joined by Daniel Levitin, author of Music as Medicine, who tells us all about using rhythm in the treatment of neurological conditions.
Next, we hear about a new claim to the title of the world’s oldest computer, and how flying affects your body’s natural rhythms.
All that, plus many more Unexpected Elements.
Presenter: Anand Jagatia, with Sandy Ong and Edd Gent
Producers: Sophie Ormiston, with Ella Hubber, Lucy Davies and Imy Harper