NPR News Now — October 28, 2025, 8AM EDT

Host: Korva Coleman

Episode Overview

This five-minute NPR News Now update provides listeners with urgent headlines, focusing on an unprecedented hurricane threatening Jamaica, ongoing challenges in the Israel-Gaza hostage recovery, persisting effects of the U.S. federal government shutdown, key 2025 election reminders, Amazon layoffs, the end of a decades-long federal student survey, and the latest from the World Series.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Hurricane Melissa Approaches Jamaica

[00:17-01:01]

• Hurricane Melissa is a Category 5 storm with sustained winds of 175 mph, making slow but direct progress toward Jamaica.
• Jamaican officials are urgently calling for residents to seek shelter.
  • The Prime Minister warns: "there's no infrastructure in the region that can withstand the strength of this hurricane's onslaught." (Korva Coleman, 00:38)

2. Israel-Gaza Hostage Remains

[01:01-01:42]

• Hostages’ remains: Last evening, Hamas handed over what was believed to be a hostage’s body remains, but Israeli forensic analysis showed they did not match any of the 13 known deceased hostages still in Gaza.
• Challenges in recovery:
  • Hamas cites extensive war rubble as an impediment.
    • “The rubble from the war is a major obstacle in locating many of the bodies.” (Rob Schmitz, 01:10)
  • Israeli officials allege Hamas knows the location of several bodies.
• Peace process impact: Resolving the status of the deceased has become a significant barrier to implementing the US-brokered peace plan.
• International action:
  • Israel allows Egyptian and Red Cross teams to assist.
  • President Trump has issued a warning to Hamas: “if Hamas does not hand over the remaining bodies of hostages soon, the parties that oversaw the peace process will take action.” (Rob Schmitz, 01:35)

3. Federal Government Shutdown: Day 28

[01:42-02:24]

• Most federal employees are furloughed; only essential personnel such as military and air traffic controllers remain active.
• A federal judge in California will address a union lawsuit aiming to stop President Trump from firing federal workers during the shutdown.
  • Current status: layoffs paused temporarily pending hearing.

4. 2025 Election Mail-In Ballot Deadlines

[02:24-03:07]

• Several states (CO, GA, ME, PA) require receipt of absentee ballots by November 4.
  • “The U.S. Postal Service recommends mailing return ballots at least one week before your state’s deadline because of changes due to USPS’s reorganization.” (Hansi Lo Wang, 02:41)
• Risks of last-minute mailing: higher risk your vote isn’t counted on time.
• Options: ballot dropboxes, post office postmarks—voters can request same-day postmarks to ensure validity.

5. Amazon Corporate Layoffs

[03:07-03:51]

• Amazon announces layoffs: 14,000 corporate positions to be cut.
• The company links innovation increases to artificial intelligence but does not specify changes to individual job roles.
• Amazon is identified as a financial supporter of NPR.

6. End of High School Longitudinal Studies

[03:51-04:31]

• The federal government, since the 1970s, has been collecting high school experience data to inform education policy.
• The effort ended in February 2025 when the Trump administration canceled the contracts.
  • “Every single person in this country who's been educated in the past 50 years has benefited from something that one of these longitudinal surveys has done.” (Elise Christopher, Dept. of Ed., 04:10)
• Department of Education states reason is to review the studies’ return on investment.

7. World Series Update

[04:31-04:56]

• Los Angeles Dodgers now lead the series 2–1 after defeating the Toronto Blue Jays in an 18-inning, 6.5-hour game (score: 6-5).
  • Notable highlight: Shohei Ohtani hit two home runs and is set to pitch game four.

Notable Quotes

• “There’s no infrastructure in the region that can withstand the strength of this hurricane’s onslaught.”
  — Korva Coleman, reporting on the Jamaican Prime Minister (00:38)

• “The rubble from the war is a major obstacle in locating many of the bodies.”
  — Rob Schmitz, recapping Hamas’s statement (01:10)

• “If Hamas does not hand over the remaining bodies of hostages soon, the parties that oversaw the peace process will take action.”
  — Rob Schmitz, quoting President Trump (01:35)

• “Every single person in this country who’s been educated in the past 50 years has benefited from something that one of these longitudinal surveys has done.”
  — Elise Christopher, former Department of Education official (04:10)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [00:17] — Hurricane Melissa update
• [01:01] — Israel-Gaza hostages dispute
• [01:42] — Government shutdown & court challenge
• [02:24] — Election mail-in voting deadlines
• [03:07] — Amazon layoffs
• [03:51] — End of education longitudinal studies
• [04:31] — World Series results

This summary captures all the critical news discussed in the episode, presented in NPR’s straightforward and concise style.