School shooting hoaxes; Violence in Jerusalem; climate change and turbulence

Plus, Twitter falsely labels NPR "state-afiliated media."

View this email online by Suzanne Nuyen Good morning. As Jewish people marked the beginning of Passover yesterday evening, many left an empty seat at the Seder table for jailed journalist Evan Gershkovich. Here's what else we're following today.  Violence between Israeli police and Palestinians continues for a second night as the Jewish Festival of Passover overlaps with Ramadan, Islam's holy month. Israeli police stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem’s Old City, firing stun grenades at Palestinians who hurled stones and firecrackers. Palestinian militants in Gaza responded with rocket fire on southern Israel, prompting repeated Israeli airstrikes. 🎧 NPR's Daniel Estrin tells the Up First podcast this morning that factors like the far-right government's hostility towards Palestinians and the country's internal turmoil over the judicial overhaul could exacerbate the violence. Associated Press The Tennessee House could expel three Democratic members today for participating in protests supporting gun control in the House gallery following the deadly shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville. 🎧 On Up First, WPLN's Blaise Gainey says the community is rallying around the Democratic members, who say an expulsion for breaking House rules is too harsh a punishment. Their expulsion would mean 210,000 residents would lose their representatives. After two years of failed votes, the Kansas legislature rallied enough votes yesterday to override Gov. Laura Kelly's veto of a bill banning transgender women and girls from participating in women's sports at public schools and colleges. The decision comes after the state Senate passed a bill that some critics say is some of the most restrictive in the country. (via KCUR)  If you follow us on Twitter, you may have noticed that NPR's account is now labeled "state-affiliated media," which the company uses to designate official government propaganda outlets in countries like Russia and China. NPR operates independently of the U.S. government and gets less than 1% of its annual budget from federal sources. NPR officials have asked Twitter to remove the label. Newsletter continues after sponsor message Luis Robayo/AFP via Getty Images  Researchers think climate is making your flights a much more uncomfortable experience. Unpredictable "clear-air turbulence," which happens without clouds or bad weather, is becoming more frequent, causing problems for pilots and passengers. ✈️ Clear-air turbulence is hard to avoid because you can't see it. Avoiding jet streams helps, but it burns more fuel and increases greenhouse emissions. ✈️ It often comes with no warning, which means passengers might not have their seatbelts on or have time to put them on. ✈️ Flight attendants face the most danger. Because of their job duties, they're often standing and not buckled in when turbulence hits. Stephen Lam/Reuters The school shooting is fake, but the trauma is real. For months, NPR has been investigating a series of seemingly connected hoax calls reporting shootings and bomb threats to schools nationwide — a practice called "swatting." The calls prompt a terrifying, resource-heavy emergency response that includes police, SWAT teams, ambulances and more. 🎧 On Morning Edition, NPR's Jenna McLaughlin provides an in-depth analysis of these hoaxes, along with firsthand accounts from individuals at affected schools, who describe how the incidents have shaken their communities to the core. University of Western Australia What's that lurking in the dark depths of the ocean? It's the deep snailfish! Scientists have captured images of the deepest-swimming fish ever caught on camera after 15 years of research. The official invites for King Charles' coronation are out, and all eyes are on his wife's new title: Queen Camilla instead of Camilla, Queen Consort of the U.K.  Enough is enough! South African pilot Rudolf Erasmus was in for a big surprise when he felt a highly venomous Cape cobra slithering in his cockpit while he was in midair. Listen to your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to hear live radio from WUFT 89.1 (edit station). This newsletter was edited by Majd Al-Waheidi. Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Music, Politics, Health and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Best of NPR emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy