Up First from NPR
Hosted by A Martinez, Ayesha Rascoe, Leila Fadel, Michel Martin, Scott Simon & Steve Inskeep · 69 decoded episodes · newest Oct 8, 2026
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.<br><br><em> Support public media by joining NPR+ at </em><a href="http://plus.npr.org/"target="_blank" ><em>plus.npr.org</em></a><em>. You’ll get perks for over 25 NPR podcasts, including sponsor-free listening for Up First, NPR News Now, and more.</em>
Episodes 69
- Sep 3, 2026 · 16 minMilitary shake-up tests wartime readinessThe episode connects senior military departures, Venezuelan oil diplomacy, and a contested mental-health defense to questions of institutional stability and accountability.
- Sep 2, 2026 · 15 minHormuz tensions collide with gas-price politics and Democratic divisionsThe episode connects a volatile confrontation over a critical oil route with domestic affordability pressures and a Democratic Party still debating its direction.
- Sep 1, 2026 · 15 minCourt lets Trump ballroom rise as Pentagon tensions deepenThe episode connects an unresolved constitutional fight, a senior military resignation, and global economic anxiety over the Iran conflict.
- Aug 31, 2026 · 15 minOil access tests Washington’s Venezuela strategyThe episode connects a high-stakes oil agreement to questions about democracy, military escalation, government funding, and Republican strategy before the midterms.
- Aug 30, 2026 · 27 minShaboozey turns Black cowboy history into a revenge sagaThe conversation connects a cinematic concept album to questions of artistic risk, personal loss, and the overlooked Black roots of cowboy culture.
- Aug 29, 2026 · 18 minEl Niño, vaccine failures and Iran’s wartime strainThe episode connects a climate threat, public-health breakdown and prolonged conflict to the pressures shaping everyday life and policy.
- Aug 28, 2026 · 15 minFlood rescue worsens as Fed weighs inflation and AIThe episode connects an unfolding humanitarian emergency with consequential questions about monetary policy and a legal fight over a national memorial.
- Aug 27, 2026 · 15 minTrump’s foreign-policy turmoil tests Republicans before midtermsConflicts, tariffs, inflation and climate-linked disasters are converging with a major child-safety case to expose political and social vulnerabilities.
- Aug 26, 2026 · 16 minCanada Escalates Tariffs as Administration Targets Visitor VisasThe episode connects a cultural loss with two policy fights that could reshape trade, immigration enforcement, and relations between the United States and Canada.
- Aug 25, 2026 · 15 minTrump escalates Iran pressure as court tests mail-voting limitsThe episode connects a widening foreign-policy pressure campaign with a domestic voting dispute that could affect states preparing for the midterm elections.
- Aug 24, 2026 · 15 minIran pressure collides with a widening trade warThe episode connects escalating economic pressure on Iran with threats to global energy flows and a tariff fight that could raise costs across North America.
- Aug 23, 2026 · 29 minPalmyra’s thriving reef faces a new protection fightPalmyra shows what strong conservation can restore, while proposed commercial fishing threatens to test how much protection these ecosystems need.