NPR News: 12-25-2025 11AM EST

Summary

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NPR News Now: December 25, 2025, 11AM EST

Episode Overview

This brief news update captures key global and national stories on Christmas morning. Coverage includes the Pope’s Christmas message, severe weather in California, efforts to prevent airline travel meltdowns, new developments in the Jeffrey Epstein files, the enduring popularity of "Home Alone" as a holiday movie, and a historic Powerball jackpot win in Arkansas.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Pope Leo’s Historic Christmas Mass (00:16–01:21)

• Event: Pope Leo celebrated Christmas Day Mass at St. Peter's Basilica—the first time in over 30 years a pontiff has led this service.

• Call to Action: He urged compassion for the suffering, especially those affected by war and displacement.

  • Quote (Ruth Sherlock, 00:44):

    "He spoke of young people conscripted into militaries who on the front lines feel the senselessness of what is asked of them and the falsehoods that fill the pompous speeches of those who send them to their deaths... peace is possible and urged people not to remain cold to people's suffering."

• Memorable Moment: The Pope emphasized that allowing others' pain to affect us is the beginning of peace.

  • Quote (Ruth Sherlock, 00:44):

    "When the fragility of others penetrates our hearts, when their pain shatters our rigid certainties, then peace has already begun."

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2. Severe Weather Emergency in Southern California (01:21–02:15)

• Situation: Heavy rain and snow have hit Southern California, prompting Los Angeles to declare a state of emergency after floods, mudslides, and significant disruptions.

• Details:

  • LA Mayor Karen Bass and California Gov. Gavin Newsom both declared states of emergency.
  • The National Weather Service warns continued danger from reinforcing storms, with more than 10 inches of mountain snowfall in some areas.
  • Quote (Ariel Cohn, 01:56):

    "We're going to see the flood waters be reinforced. Landslides, rock slides and mudslides all being reinforced across the area."

• Timeline: Storm conditions are expected through Friday.

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3. Airlines Prepare for Busy Holiday Travel (02:15–03:10)

• Background: Airlines, especially Southwest, are intent on avoiding travel chaos reminiscent of the recent past.

• Changes:

  • Southwest’s CIO Lauren Woods highlights major investments in IT to facilitate rapid recovery from tech outages.
  • Quote (Lauren Woods, 02:48):

    "We may have a tech outage, but you care less about it if it's a five-minute recovery and I have many of those versus I had one major tech outage and it took me down for a day."

• Broader Context: Airlines are judged by how swiftly they can resume operations after disruptions.

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4. DOJ’s Progress on Epstein Files Release (03:10–03:35)

• Update: The Justice Department is behind on a Congressional deadline to release Jeffrey Epstein-related files after discovering over a million additional records.
• Status: DOJ attorneys are reviewing the files and making necessary redactions, working "around the clock."

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5. “Home Alone” Remains Top Christmas Movie (03:35–04:40)

• Highlight: According to Nielsen ratings, "Home Alone" is, once again, the most popular Christmas movie on TV and streaming, topping the charts three out of the last four Decembers.

  • Quote (Neta Ulaby, 03:55):

    "It's been the most watched holiday movie every December since 2021, except for last year when the prime video movie 'Red One' took the top spot."

• Other Notables: “Elf,” “Home Alone 2,” and “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” are also perennial favorites. “A Christmas Story” benefits from TBS/TNT’s 24-hour marathon. The debate over “Die Hard” as a Christmas movie continues, with it ranked #11 last year.

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6. Powerball Jackpot Winner in Arkansas (04:40–04:55)

• Headline: A single ticket sold in Arkansas has won the $1.8 billion Powerball jackpot—the second largest in U.S. history.
• Human Interest: Someone in Arkansas is waking up a billionaire on Christmas.

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Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• Pope Leo’s Message of Peace & Compassion

  • Ruth Sherlock (00:44):

    "Peace is possible and [he] urged people not to remain cold to people’s suffering..."

  • Ruth Sherlock (00:44):

    "When the fragility of others penetrates our hearts, when their pain shatters our rigid certainties, then peace has already begun."

• Severe Weather Warning

  • Ariel Cohn (01:56):

    “We’re going to see the flood waters be reinforced. Landslides, rock slides and mudslides all being reinforced across the area.”

• Southwest’s Holiday Tech Strategy

  • Lauren Woods (02:48):

    “You care less about it if it’s a five minute recovery... versus I had one major tech outage and it took me down for a day.”

• Christmas Movie Rankings

  • Neta Ulaby (03:55):

    “It’s been the most watched holiday movie every December since 2021, except for last year when the prime video movie 'Red One' took the top spot.”

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Segment Timestamps

• 00:16: Pope Leo celebrates Christmas Day Mass & message on compassion
• 01:21: Southern California severe weather and emergency responses
• 02:15: Airlines update: Southwest’s tech strategy to avoid travel chaos
• 03:10: DOJ update on Epstein files release
• 03:35: "Home Alone" and the most-watched Christmas movies
• 04:40: Powerball jackpot winner announced in Arkansas

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This episode synthesizes major Christmas morning headlines: spirituality and solidarity from the Vatican, urgent weather and travel logistics for millions, a developing federal investigation, a snapshot of holiday screen culture, and a life-changing lottery win.

Transcript

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[Windsor Johnston]

Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Windsor Johnston. Pope Leo celebrated a Christmas day Mass in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican today. He he's the first pontiff to do so in more than 30 years. NPR's Ruth Sherlock reports. The pope urged the faithful to care for those who are suffering.

[Ruth Sherlock]

During the Mass. Pope Leo blessed the faithful.

[Neta Ulaby]

In this.

[Ruth Sherlock]

First Christmas Day message. He highlighted the plight of those caught in war in Gaza and of refugees and the displaced. He spoke of young people conscripted into militaries who on the front lines feel the senselessness of what is asked of them and the falsehoods that fill the pompous speeches of those who send them to their deaths. He said peace is possible and urged people not to remain cold to people's suffering because, he said, when the fragility of others penetrates our hearts, when their pain shatters our rigid certainties, then peace has already begun. Ruth Sherlock, NPR News.

[Windsor Johnston]

Southern California is getting slammed by heavy rain, snow. Steve Fetterman reports. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has declared a state of emergency.

[Steve Fetterman]

The declaration comes after a day of floods, fallen trees, mudslides, traffic jams and power outages. The move paves the way for the city to deploy adequate resources to deal with the storms. Earlier, California Governor Gavin Newsom also issued a state of emergency. Right now, the forecast does not look good. A new series of powerful storms will hit the area today. Ariel Cohn is with the National Weather Service.

[Ariel Cohn]

We're going to see the flood waters be reinforced. Landslides, rock slides and mudslides all being reinforced across the area.

[Steve Fetterman]

In some mountain areas, more than 10 inches alone fell on Wednesday. The storms are expected to continue into Friday. For NPR News, I'm Steve Futterman in Los Angeles.

[Windsor Johnston]

Millions of Americans will fly during this holiday season. NPR's Joel Rose reports. Airlines are hoping to avoid a repeat of the technical melt that have disrupted the industry.

[Joel Rose]

It's been three years since a major winter storm brought Southwest Airlines to its knees. While other airlines managed to get their operations going within days, Southwest did not. Since then, Chief Information Officer Lauren woods says Southwest has made big investments in technology so it can anticipate and respond to outages more quickly.

[Lauren Woods]

We may have a tech outage, but you care less about it. If it's a five minute recovery and I have many of those versus I had one major tech outage and it took me down for a day.

[Joel Rose]

Southwest is just one of many airlines that have been forced to ground their planes because of IT outages. The test is how quickly they can get their planes and their customers back in the air. Joel Rose, NPR News.

[Windsor Johnston]

You're listening to NPR News from Washington. The Justice Department says it may need a few more weeks to finish releasing files tied to the Jeffrey Epstein case. Despite missing a deadline from Congress. Officials say more than a million additional records were recently discovered by federal prosecutors and the FBI. The DOJ says attorneys are working around the clock to review them and apply legally required redactions. The most popular Christmas movie on broadcast and streaming TV is Home Alone. NPR's Neta Ulaby reports. The movie from 1990 has been the top ranked film by Nielsen for three out of the past four Decembers.

[Neta Ulaby]

Home Alone takes place over Christmas. It's about a little boy left behind when his family goes on vacation. It's been the most watched holiday movie every December since 2021, except for last year when the prime video movie Red One took the top spot. The action movie stars Dwayne Johnson as head of Santa's security detail.

[Unidentified Speaker]

Someone took Nick.

[Neta Ulaby]

Other recent top ranked Christmas movies include elf Home Alone 2 and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. The movie, A Christmas Story benefits from a 24 hour marathon that runs on TBS and TNT. And although there's debate about whether Die Hard is really a Christmas movie, Nielsen says last year it landed on the holiday list at number 11. Neta Ulaby, NPR News.

[Windsor Johnston]

Someone in Arkansas is waking up a billionaire. A single ticket matched all six numbers to win the 1.8 billion Powerball jackpot drawn last night, the second largest in US history. This is NPR News.

[Sponsor/Advertiser]

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