--:-- Rylan Barton: This message comes from NPR sponsor Rosetta Stone, an expert in language learning for 30 years. Right now, NPR listeners can get Rosetta Stone's lifetime membership to 25 different languages for 50% off. Learn more at rosettastone.com slash NPR.
--:-- Rylan Barton: Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Rylan Barton.
--:-- Rylan Barton: President Trump has announced massive new tariffs on Chinese goods. The new import taxes are in response to new restrictions China placed on rare earth materials this week.
--:-- Rylan Barton: Trump made the announcement today on social media after markets closed.
--:-- Rylan Barton: NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben has more.
--:-- Danielle Kurtzleben: Trump wrote that new 100 percent tariffs will be imposed on Chinese goods starting on November 1st. That's in addition to the 30 percent tariffs Trump has already imposed on Chinese goods this year.
--:-- Danielle Kurtzleben: The president had threatened the higher tariffs earlier in the day in another post railing against China's new export controls on rare earth minerals.
--:-- Danielle Kurtzleben: Those are used in many high-tech goods, including smartphones and defense systems.
--:-- Danielle Kurtzleben: China processes the overwhelming majority of the world's rare earths.
--:-- Danielle Kurtzleben: Trump had been set to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a visit to Asia later this month.
--:-- Danielle Kurtzleben: However Trump also wrote Friday that quote "now there seems to be no reason to do so."
--:-- Rylan Barton: Danielle Kurtzleben NPR News
--:-- Rylan Barton: Stocks had been heading for a slight gain this morning until Trump took to social media and said he was considering the quote "massive increase of tariffs on Chinese goods"
--:-- Rylan Barton: By the end of the day, the S&P 500 sank 2.7 percent in its worst day since April, and the Nasdaq composite fell 3.6 percent.
--:-- Rylan Barton: The Trump administration says that, quote "substantial layoffs to federal workers have begun."
--:-- Rylan Barton: It's not clear yet how many agencies are affected or how many employees are receiving these reduction in force or RIF notices.
--:-- Rylan Barton: NPR's Stephen Fowler has more.
--:-- Stephen Fowler: Some agencies are telling employees layoffs will come soon.
--:-- Stephen Fowler: Others, like the Department of Health and Human Services, have already notified affected staff.
--:-- Stephen Fowler: The Trump administration blames Democrats and the shutdown for ordering the reductions.
--:-- Stephen Fowler: But firing federal workers has been a priority of the president since he took office in January.
--:-- Stephen Fowler: The layoffs come as some agencies, before the shutdown, were hiring back workers because they couldn't perform basic tasks or carry out Trump's agenda.
--:-- Rylan Barton: Stephen Fowler, NPR News
--:-- Rylan Barton: An explosion at a military munitions plant has officials in Tennessee searching for 19 missing people.
--:-- Rylan Barton: They've confirmed multiple fatalities and are sifting through rubble at the facility owned by Accurate Energetic Systems
--:-- Rylan Barton: Tony Gonzalez of member station WPLN reports
--:-- Tony Gonzalez: Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis choked up at a press conference calling the wreckage the most devastation he's seen in his 30-year career.
--:-- Tony Gonzalez: He says that understanding what caused the blast will take time.
--:-- Tony Gonzalez: Do I see a short-term explanation? No.
--:-- Tony Gonzalez: Do I see us being here for many days? Yes, I do see that.
--:-- Tony Gonzalez: The powerful explosion at the plant southwest of Nashville obliterated one building and could be felt as far as 40 miles away.
--:-- Tony Gonzalez: Neighbors say they have grown accustomed to smaller test blasts, but knew immediately that this explosion was something different.
--:-- Tony Gonzalez: The company, AES, handles explosive products for the military, demolition firms, and the aerospace industry.
--:-- Rylan Barton: For NPR News, I'm Tony Gonzalez in Nashville.
--:-- Rylan Barton: This is NPR.
--:-- Rylan Barton: First Lady Melania Trump says eight children displaced by the Russia-Ukraine war have been reunited with their families.
--:-- Rylan Barton: She says she had her husband hand deliver a letter to Russian President Putin,
--:-- Rylan Barton: who, when the two leaders met in Alaska, Putin's invasion of Ukraine has resulted in Russia taking Ukrainian children out of their country so they can be raised as Russian.
--:-- Rylan Barton: Hollywood studios and talent agencies are sounding the alarm over a new artificial intelligence tool.
--:-- Rylan Barton: NPR's Mandelit Delbarco reports
--:-- Mandelit Delbarco: Sora 2 allows users to create social media videos.
--:-- Mandelit Delbarco: It's about creating new possibilities.
--:-- Mandelit Delbarco: This promo from OpenAI says Sora 2 allows users to insert images into any virtual background.
--:-- Mandelit Delbarco: Giving you the power to step into any world or scene and letting your friends cast you in theirs.
--:-- Mandelit Delbarco: Some creators have used Sora 2 to make unauthorized videos of famous people such as Mr. Rogers, Tupac Shakur, and Michael Jackson.
--:-- Mandelit Delbarco: The Motion Picture Association says Sora 2 videos infringe on the copyrights of films, shows, and characters.
--:-- Mandelit Delbarco: The three top Hollywood talent agencies also weighed in on the new tech.
--:-- Mandelit Delbarco: CAA says clients' intellectual properties are at risk.
--:-- Mandelit Delbarco: UTA says it's exploitation.
--:-- Mandelit Delbarco: And WME announced all its clients are opting out, so Sora 2 cannot use their names, images, or likenesses.
--:-- Rylan Barton: Mandelit del Barco, NPR News
--:-- Rylan Barton: A baby eastern black rhino has made its debut at the Cleveland Zoo, giving a boost to efforts to conserve the endangered species, which has fewer than 583 adults left in the wild.
--:-- Rylan Barton: The 120-pound rhino was born earlier this month.
--:-- Rylan Barton: The zoo is holding a contest to name it.
--:-- Rylan Barton: This is NPR.
--:-- Rylan Barton: This message comes from Warby Parker.
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--:-- Rylan Barton: Thank you.
