Culture wars delay defense bill approval; Threads' news policy; SAG-AFTRA strike vote

Plus, why it's so hard to end homelessness.

View this email online by Suzanne Nuyen July 13, 2023  Good morning. I hate to be the bearer of bad news: A new forecast says the Northern Lights won't be very visible in the U.S. this week after all. Here's what else we're following today. Hard-right House Republicans have delayed a vote on an $866 billion defense spending bill because they want to make amendments that would shape military policy on things like abortion access, gender-affirming care and diversity in recruiting.   Getty Images for Get Free 🎧 The defense bill is one of the few pieces of bipartisan, must-pass legislation, according to Washington Post reporter Marianna Sotomayor. On Up First today, she says the divisive amendments put a lot of vulnerable Republicans in swing districts in "pretty perilous positions." They also don't want to vote on controversial issues that would complicate their upcoming reelection campaigns. Threads, the new Twitter rival from Facebook's parent company, Meta, has quickly become one of the most downloaded apps ever. But while many news and politics made Twitter relevant, top Meta executive Adam Mosseri has been transparent about de-emphasizing news and politicson Threads. 🎧 Meta learned that its users are more engaged when people share content about influencers, celebrities and their friends and family — and that keeps the ad dollars rolling in, according to NPR's Bobby Allyn. Allyn spoke with former Facebook researcher Solomon Messing, who tells him that if Threads replaces Twitter and successfully pushes politics and news to the wayside, it could make users less engaged with those topics or vote. SAG-AFTRA will vote on a strike order this morning after negotiations between the Hollywood actors union and major studios have failed to produce a new deal. Federal mediators joined negotiations yesterday.  🎧 Joshua Flax, Deputy Director for Policy and Strategy at the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, explains how federal mediators help with negotiations on Morning Edition. He tells A Martinez that often, mediators will separate the parties in a private caucus and use reality testing and shuttle diplomacy to try and move negotiations forward. Fox News is facing another defamation lawsuit. Trump supporter and Jan. 6 protester Ray Epps sued Fox News over statements by Tucker Carlson alleging Epps was actually an undercover FBI agent who instigated the violence at the Capitol to make Trump and his supporters look bad.  Newsletter continues after sponsor message David J. Phillip/AP  Much of the American South is still experiencing dangerously high temperatures. Heat can take a toll on the body, and there are many misconceptions about how to protect yourself. Avoid these mistakes to stay safe from heatstroke or heat exhaustion, and read the story for four more tips.  ☀️ Your body needs time to adjust to heat. Acclimate yourself over a few days. ☀️ Hydrate in advance. You're already 10 to 25% dehydrated by the time you feel thirsty. ☀️ Certain medications make you more vulnerable to heat. Take extra precautions if you're on them. ☀️ Don't ignore the early telltale signs of heat exhaustion: sweating, fatigue, dizziness, nausea and headache. Robert F. Bukaty/AP New York City and LA have recently declared a record level of homelessness. Many other cities have also seen numbers rise, despite dedicating a considerable amount of money to the issue. What's going on? Here are four reasons why homelessness is so hard to end. ➡️ Housing people is only one part of the equation. An even higher number of people are becoming homeless. ➡️ Rents have risen faster than wages, and millions of low-cost rentals have disappeared. ➡️ Zoning laws and local opposition make it hard to build new housing for low-income renters ➡️ Many pandemic-era aid programs many people relied on to keep their homes are ending. Aleksandar Furtula/AP Two Dutch museums have returned hundreds of cultural artifacts looted from Indonesia and Sri Lanka during Dutch colonization to their rightful home. It's the latest in a move for Western powers to repatriate items they plundered during colonial times. HBO's Succession led the pack at the Emmy nominations yesterday. Pop Culture Happy Hour host Aisha Rascoe has a few takeaways about what's next for the award show as an actors strike looms. I scream, you scream, we all scream for swords made out of ice cream. A cafe in Japan plans to sell 16-inch "swordsicles," roughly the size of a ninja sword. 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 Up First emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy