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The NewsWorthy
High-Stakes Peace Talks, First Lady's Epstein Message & Artemis II Returns - Friday, April 10, 2026
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Today is Friday, April 10th. We'll tell you about the upcoming peace talks between the US And Iran and how the fragile ceasefire is holding up. Also, a rare public announcement from first lady Melania Trump, what she said about Jeffrey Epstein and what she wants Congress to do next. Plus, the final day of the historic Artemis 2 moon mission, a new report about how and when American women are having babies and the star studded Coachella music festival. Available to watch from your couch. Those stories and even more news to know coming up. Welcome to the Newsworthy all the days news in less than 15 minutes. I'm Monica Armitage filling in for Erica Mandy today. Thank you so much for being here. Let's do this. Both the US And Iran are gearing up for high stakes peace talks in Pakistan this weekend, hoping to turn the current temporary ceasefire into into a long term plan to end the war for good. Of course, there are a lot of big issues on the table. For example, Iran's nuclear enrichment and ballistic missiles programs. Since the beginning, the Trump administration has been demanding major restrictions on both, which Iran has resisted. Another key factor in the talks, how the vital Strait of Hormuz should be managed. Because right now there are a lot of conflicting messages. As of this morning, hundreds of tankers are still waiting to pass through the waterway that once transported a fifth of the world's oil. But Iran says it's wide open. At the same time, some oil companies say access is still being restricted, conditioned and controlled by Iran. And ships are apparently unclear on how to get through without risking attack. Also, a Financial Times report said Iran is demanding ships passing through pay a toll of a dollar for every barrel of oil on board, paid in cryptocurrency. President Trump posted on Truth Social that better not be true and that if it is, it better stop now. Another key issue that needs to be sorted out in this weekend's talks, Israeli attacks on Iranian backed Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon. Iran says for any long term peace plan to work, the attacks in Lebanon need to end. But remember, Israel and the US Say the current ceasefire doesn't apply to Lebanon and Israel has been expanding its military operation there over the last couple of days. Israel and Lebanon did agree to have their own talks next week to discuss disarming Hezbollah. But but reports say they face even steeper hurdles than the ones between the US And Iran, in part because the Lebanese government has no direct control over the militant group and also because Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu wouldn't agree to an immediate pause in strikes. So President Trump has reportedly told Netanyahu to at least start scaling back the attacks or risk jeopardizing any chance at long lasting ceasefire. Despite all these hurdles, Trump says he's hopeful a deal can be struck. In the meantime, all US Military personnel and assets are staying put near Iran, and the Pentagon has said it's ready to take action if necessary. For the first time, the public is hearing from American soldiers who survived the deadliest attack on U.S. forces since 2021. An Iranian drone strike hit their unit at a U.S. facility in Kuwait March 1. Six service members were killed. More than 20 were hurt. The day after the attack, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth described the drone as a squirter that happened to hit a fortified tactical operations center. But now survivors are giving a different story to CBS News. They told the news outlet the unit was actually not prepared to defend itself and was not in a fortified position. Apparently in the hours before the attack, a missile alarm signaled to the troops to take cover in a cement bunker. But later an all clear alert sounded. Officers removed their helmets and returned to their desks in the wood and tin workspace. About 30 minutes later, there was a direct hit. As the soldiers explained it, the operations center has barriers designed to shield service members from the blast of a mortar or rocket, but it offered no protection from attacks from the air. But in response to the CBS News report, the Pentagon said every possible measure has been taken to keep troops safe, including, including six foot walls at that specific facility. The incident is still under investigation. First lady Melania Trump made a surprise public statement from the White House to talk about Jeffrey Epstein and rumors about her connection to him. Reports say even the president was taken by surprise with her statement, especially now when most of the White House is focused on the Middle East. But as the first lady explained it, she was ready to fight back against fake images and statements circulating on social media and that tried to connect her to the convicted sex offender. Both President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump did socialize with Epstein in the 1990s and early 2000s and were photographed together at events. And the Epstein files include at least one from the first lady to Epstein's accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell. But in her statement, Mrs. Trump said it was nothing more than a casual correspondence and she said most importantly, she was never aware of any abuse, that she was never personally abused, and that it's not true that Epstein introduced her to her now husband. She also called for Congress to hold a public hearing to let Epstein's victims testify under oath, while A group of 13 survivors responded to say they've already gone through enough by filing reports and giving testimony in the past. Or as they put it, quote, survivors have done their part. Now it's time for those in power to do theirs. But both the first lady and the survivors say the ultimate goal should be uncovering the truth. To be continued. It's official the US has had its warmest March ever by a lot. The federal agency known as NOAA put out a new report that shows last month not only broke the previous March record set in 2012, but it also marked the first time any month exceeded the long term average by more than 9 degrees. Of course, if you live in the Southwest, this likely doesn't come as a huge surprise since daily record highs were happening over and over again last month and overall weather observation stations around the country broke nearly 2,000 monthly high. Maximum temperature records and even more records could be falling soon because NOAA is now forecasting a potentially strong El Nino, though its true strength, of course, remains to be seen. More news still coming up, but first, here's your regular host Erica Mandy to tell you about this sponsor today.
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Today is set to be the final day of the Artemis 2 moon mission. As we've told you, the astronauts on board have already made history in many ways, including by setting the record for the farthest distance humans have ever traveled away from Earth. Yesterday, the crew packed up and spoke to members of Congress saying they hoped the expedition would inspire the next generation to go even further. They say they're already convinced that, quote, unquote, there is nothing this nation cannot do when it has a vision. Now the astronauts are preparing to return to Earth today. They'll be Traveling at nearly 24,000 miles an hour on an extremely precise flight path before slowing down and making a final splashdown off the coast of San Diego tonight about 5 o' clock Pacific time. The operation requires multiple teams and careful coordination to safely get the crew from the spacecraft. The U.S. navy will be on hand to recover the astronauts. Then they'll be medically evaluated and eventually brought back to NASA's Space center in Houston, where they say they're excited to share more pictures, more data and plenty of stories from space. The federal government is now investigating the NFL over how its fans are able to access games. Specifically, the Justice Department is looking into anti competitive tactics that might not be totally fair. It's something a lot of fans have complained about since in the past they watched games over broadcast tv delivered for free. But now games are spread across many different platforms and channels and some require paid subscriptions. One key lawmaker did the math and found if fans wanted to watch every game last season, they'd have to spend almost $1,000. He's now questioning whether current antitrust laws have kept up with the modern broadcasting landscape. The NFL's already defending itself though, saying it's actually the most fan and broadcast friendly league. It pointed out how for the most part, fans can always watch when their local team is playing for free. The last NFL season was actually the Most viewed since 1989. The League Credits the distribution model, saying it just made those games more accessible than ever. The next NFL season begins in September. The US Fertility rate has dropped to another record low. The CDC put out new data yesterday that shows about 3.6 million babies were born in the U.S. last year. That works out to about 53 births for every 1,000 women between 15 and 44 years old. And here's the number that's really significant. The rate is nearly 20% lower than it was two decades ago. One long term trend that's driving the downturn is fewer teenagers and women in their 20s are having babies. And part of that has to do with more people using longer acting contraceptives. But experts also explain that even people who want to have children are waiting longer to get other things settled. First, for example, they want financial and relationship stability and and because women are starting later, they're also having fewer children. Overall, that rate also hit a record low last year and America's death rate went up. So reports say the population is very close to not replacing itself, meaning any growth will depend on immigration. Actor Michael J. Fox has confirmed he is still very much alive. Concerns had been spreading because this week CNN erroneously published an article titled Remembering the Life of Actor Michael J. Fox. The news outlet quickly deleted it and confirmed it was published in error. Fox has been living with Parkinson's for more than 30 years now and has been the subject of death hoaxes multiple times. This time he provided proof of life with a little humor on social media saying, quote, how do you react when CNN is reporting your death? And he gave some options. One suggestion was, quote, relax. They do this once every year. Then beyond social media, Fox was out and about this week speaking about the Apple TV series Shrinking, which he appears in the show's most recent season. What's arguably the most famous music festival in the US Is happening this weekend. The first weekend of Coachella kicks off today in Indio, California. This year's headliners Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber and Carol G. It was also recently announced that Jack White would play a surprise show. Other artists set to perform include the Strokes, Somber David Guetta, Katseye and many more. More than 125,000 fans are expected each day of the festival, but if you're not able to make it in person, you can watch it online. YouTube will be streaming live from all the festival stages with seven different live streams. We've added a link in today's episode notes. That's it for the main news today, but now it's time for Feel Good Friday where we bring you one extra feel good or positive news story before the weekend. But first, here's Erica again to thank our sponsor.
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Music's most famous phone number is now being used for good. The phone number is 867-5309. Yeah, you get it. Anyone who listened to music in the 1980s knows that's the same number from the song by Tommy 2 Tone in which the band sings about calling a girl named Jenny. Well, it's not Jenny's number. It's the number for cancer patients to call when they need a friendly ear to talk to. The band's lead singer, Tommy Heath, worked with the nonprofit Cancer Support Community to make this happen. Heath says he's passionate about the cause since he has family members struggling with cancer, and he hopes he's able to give his 80s hit a new, meaningful legacy. The Cancer Support Community is also excited since the number will be easy for people to remember when they need help. The helpline is free and staffed by professionals training in listening and offering support, and many callers say it's already helped them feel heard, informed and less alone. So again, that number for anyone who might need it is CSC 8675309. Thank you so much for listening today. It was great to be with you. Ericka Mandy will be back tomorrow with a special edition Saturday episode with a fascinating interview about the future impact of AI and then she'll be back on Monday with the latest news. Thanks so much for letting me join and fill in today. I hope you have a great weekend. Sam.