NPR News Now — November 25, 2025, 12 PM EST

Host: Lakshmi Singh
Length: ~5 minutes
Overview:
This fast-paced NPR News Now update covers breaking developments in Ukraine’s war and peace talks, the Pentagon’s break with Scouting America, NASA’s shifting partnership with Boeing, the passing of a Tulsa Race Massacre survivor, severe weather and tornado updates in the U.S., and a brief financial markets snapshot.

1. Ukraine Peace Talks & Escalating Russian Attacks

[00:15–01:20]

• Possible Zelensky Visit:

  • Ukraine’s national security adviser announces that President Volodymyr Zelensky may come to the U.S. to meet President Trump about sensitive elements of a potential peace plan with Russia.
  • Quote [00:15, Host Lakshmi Singh]: “Ukraine's national security adviser says President Volodymyr Zelensky could be heading to the United States in the next few days to meet with President Trump…”

• Peace Plan Developments:

  • The European-backed peace initiative replaces a “28-point Pro Russian peace draft” recently struck down in Geneva.
  • The Kremlin has rejected the new plan.
  • President Zelensky warns Ukraine to “steel itself for intensified Russian pressure.”
  • Within hours, Russia launched a massive missile and drone attack on Kyiv region:
    • 22 missiles and over 400 drones
    • 7 fatalities
  • Personal Story [00:36, Eleanor Beardsley from Kyiv]:
    • “I woke up from the explosions and I wanted to cry,” says Mykhailo Didenko, a 25-year-old barista.
    • Didenko supports the idea of a new peace plan, saying the previous one was “a complete capitulation.”
    • Quote [00:36, Didenko via Beardsley]: “It’s good there’s a new plan… people are exhausted.”

2. Pentagon Cuts Ties with Scouting America

[01:20–02:12]

• End of Tradition:

  • NPR reveals Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth plans to halt Pentagon cooperation with Scouting America (formerly Boy Scouts), breaking over a century of tradition.
  • Hegseth criticizes the organization’s direction, notably the inclusion of girls.

• Leaked Documents:

  • Pentagon documents show plans to:
    • Stop supporting next year's Scout Jamboree, a large national event.
    • Bar scout troops from meeting on military bases.
    • End military incentives that previously helped scouts enter the armed forces.
  • Quote [01:41, Graham Smith]: “We also have memos and draft orders relating to other ways the military is going to cut ties.”

3. NASA Scales Back Boeing Starliner Program

[02:12–03:09]

• Starliner Mission Reduction:

  • NASA will now conduct only four crewed Starliner flights with Boeing, down from six.
  • Technical failures in the first crewed flight—specifically with the propulsion system—forced astronauts to extend their stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS) until SpaceX could return them.

• Future Missions:

  • Next Starliner flight, scheduled for no earlier than April, will carry only cargo.
  • If successful, up to three more crewed flights may follow.
  • Quote [02:25, Nell Greenfield Boyce]: “The glitches worried NASA so much that officials decided not to use Starliner for the crew's return trip.”

4. Passing of Tulsa Race Massacre Survivor Viola Ford Fletcher

[03:09–04:15]

• Historic Loss:

  • Viola Ford Fletcher, one of the last known living survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, has passed away at 111.
  • Known as “Mother Fletcher,” she fled the attacks at age 7.
  • Tulsa’s first Black mayor, Monro Nichols, shared the news and praised her legacy.

• Testimony & Struggles:

  • Fletcher had testified before Congress about the massacre and its generational trauma.
  • Quote [03:46, Fletcher]: “I will never forget the violence of the white mob. I still smell smoke and seafar. I still see black businesses being burned.”
  • Despite private donations, Fletcher’s legal efforts for reparations did not succeed.
  • Only one known survivor remains: Lessie Benningfield Randall.

5. Tornadoes & Thanksgiving Week Weather Disruptions

[04:15–04:54]

• Tornado Impact:

  • A tornado damaged over 100 homes in the Houston area. No injuries reported.
  • National Weather Service to survey the area and investigate reports of multiple twisters.

• Nationwide Weather:

  • Thanksgiving holiday travel is hampered by:
    • Heavy rain from Mississippi to Georgia
    • Snow forecasted for parts of the Midwest

• Markets Update:

  • Dow Jones is up 375 points (+0.75%), S&P up 16, Nasdaq slightly down.

Notable Quotes & Moments:

• 01:20, Lakshmi Singh: “Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth plans to stop cooperating with Scouting America… that would break a century old tradition.”
• 02:25, Nell Greenfield Boyce: “The glitches worried NASA so much that officials decided not to use Starliner for the crew's return trip.”
• 03:46, Viola Ford Fletcher (testimony replayed): “I will never forget the violence of the white mob. I still smell smoke and seafar. I still see black businesses being burned.”
• 03:29, Elizabeth Caldwell: “Tulsa’s first black mayor broke the news... Mother Fletcher... leaves behind Lessie Benningfield Randall, now the only known living survivor of the massacre.”

Summary Takeaway:

This news roundup captures high-stakes international diplomacy, historic institutional changes in the U.S. military and space programs, the passing of a civil rights icon, ongoing domestic weather crises, and key financial market moves, all in a tight, informative format.