--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: From the New York Times, it's the headlines. Today's Tuesday, June 17th.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Here's what we're covering. What specifically is better than a ceasefire? What are you looking for here? An end. A real end, not a ceasefire. An end.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: President Trump arrived back in Washington this morning after abruptly cutting short his time at the G7 summit to deal with the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: I wish I could stay for tomorrow, but they understand. This is big stuff. Do you have questions for anybody else?
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Trump had been in Canada for the annual Summit of World Leaders, where the fighting between the two countries had been a major focus.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Before leaving, Trump signed a joint statement with G7 allies, criticizing Iran and calling for restraint, de-escalation, and diplomacy in the Middle East.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: He had previously refused to sign the statement until its language changed.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: A spokesman for the German government said the purpose of the statement was to have, quote, impact on the situation.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Iran fired barrages of ballistic missiles at Israel on Monday, some of which struck several cities, killing at least eight people, according to Israeli officials.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: This morning, Israel said it killed Iran's recently appointed top military commander.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: And after telling residents in some parts of Tehran to evacuate on Monday, Israel's military struck the headquarters of Iran's state broadcasting network, claiming it was used for military communications under the guise of civilian news.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: An Iranian news anchor was live on the air when strikes hit, and she could be seen shaking and then quickly evacuating.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: An official from the broadcaster said several people were injured in the bombing.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Israel is also renewing its request for American intervention.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: For decades the country has lobbied the U to help it hit a key nuclear enrichment site located deep inside an Iranian mountain Israel has argued that destroying the site requires a 30 bomb called the Massive Ordnance Penetrator which is so heavy it can only be carried by B-2 bombers.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Israel has neither the bomb nor the planes to carry out such an attack, but the U.S. does.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: So far, the Trump administration has not said it would get involved.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Now, two quick updates from Washington.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: The Trump administration is threatening to expand its new travel ban to as many as 36 more countries, most of them in Africa.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Trump already imposed a full or partial ban on almost 20 countries, barring their citizens from traveling to the U.S.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: He said it was for national security reasons, but critics say it discriminates based on ethnicity alone.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Countries on the new expanded list now have 60 days to address concerns from the U.S., including passport security and citizens overstaying their visas.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: A government cable reviewed by the Times shows that the State Department is giving those countries another option, though.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: They can mitigate concerns by offering to take in people deported from the U.S. regardless of their nationality.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Also, Senate Republicans have released their version of a major domestic policy bill, laying out a plan for deep cuts to Medicaid and salvaging some clean energy tax credits.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: The bill would require adults with children over 14 to work at least 80 hours a month to qualify for Medicaid.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: That's stricter than the House version of the bill, which already could cause an estimated 5 million people to lose coverage by the end of the decade.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: The Senate bill would also slowly phase out some clean energy tax credits put in by President Biden rather than quickly cut them
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Some GOP House members are already complaining about the legislation though saying it's not aggressive enough in gutting clean energy.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: That frustration could complicate the bill passage which is a key part of Trump's economic agenda
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: The Times has been tracking a crime wave fueled by gang activity in the country of Peru.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Gangs there are gaining control of urban areas and have ramped up extortions, targeting small business owners and the working poor.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Crime data has also shown a rise in contract killings in recent years, carried out by hitmen.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Peru's government is struggling to contain the violence.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: After years of political turmoil and corruption, government services like policing have taken a toll.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: As one small business owner told The Times, quote, who's going to protect me? The level of violence that we've seen is really kind of unprecedented this century here in Peru.
--:-- Mitra Taj: I've been reporting on the crime wave from Lima, the country's capital.
--:-- Mitra Taj: There have been a lot of people shot dead in the street by hired gunmen, often on motorcycles.
--:-- Mitra Taj: There was a dynamite set off at a regional prosecutor's office.
--:-- Mitra Taj: There's been grenades left at hardware stores and bodegas and pharmacies.
--:-- Mitra Taj: I spoke to one motorcycle taxi driver who knows five people, other drivers who were killed for not paying extortionists.
--:-- Mitra Taj: And so now he's setting aside a small part of his earnings, his meager earnings every day to keep them from attacking him.
--:-- Mitra Taj: Peru's president has declared a state of emergency multiple times to combat the gangs, but they've had little impact.
--:-- Mitra Taj: And corruption is making that fight even harder, with police officers being arrested for their own roles in the extortion schemes.
--:-- Mitra Taj: In fact, a lot of victims of extortion say they don't go to the police because they don't think doing so would lead to anything, or they think it actually might make things worse because often the gang members find out that they filed a report and they end up getting even more threats.
--:-- Mitra Taj: Peru, for a long time, was a very stable country in a very unstable region.
--:-- Mitra Taj: Its economy was growing very fast It seemed to be making progress on different socioeconomic indicators But now it kind of gone the other direction
--:-- Mitra Taj: And I think this crime wave is threatening to make Peru another source of instability, not only political instability, but migration and economic instability in a region where that's already very common.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: And finally, it's official, the streaming future has arrived.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: May was the first full month in which more Americans watched television on streaming services than on traditional cable and broadcast networks, according to Nielsen, which tracks viewership.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Younger audiences had already been quick to jump on the streaming bandwagon, but now older viewers over the age of 65 are flocking to these services, especially free ones that don't require a subscription.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Think Tubi or Pluto, if those words mean anything to you.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: The biggest winner in all of this, though, is YouTube.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: In fact, over the past two years, viewers over 65 are the fastest growing age group watching YouTube on their TVs.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: The shift is largely due to cable companies cutting original programming on TV and pouring money into their own streaming platforms.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: That means many cable channels are now essentially zombie networks, playing endless reruns of Law & Order SVU or The Office, and pushing viewers and advertisers away.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Even big broadcast events like the Super Bowl and the Oscars are available for streaming now too.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: So if you're looking for something new to watch, you can be relatively sure it'll be on a streaming platform.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: But according to these numbers, you probably already knew that.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Those are the headlines.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: Today on The Daily, why ADHD diagnoses have been rising in the U.S.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: That's next in the New York Times audio app or listen wherever you get your podcasts.
--:-- Michael Simon-Johnson: I'm Michael Simon-Johnson. We'll be back tomorrow.
