Good morning. You're reading the Up First newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox, and listen to the Up First podcast for all the news you need to start your day.
Today's top stories
The conflict in the Middle East shows no signs of slowing down as Israel announced new strikes on western Iran yesterday. Iran's foreign minister has denied President Trump's claim that Iran asked for a ceasefire. The Strait of Hormuz remains closed, cutting off a quarter of oil and natural gas supplies from the rest of the world. Trump is pressuring countries to help reopen it. New Israeli ground operations in Lebanon are also heating up a second front in the war.
- 🎧 NPR's Daniel Estrin tells Up First that one major question about the war is whether it will end with Iran still in possession of its highly enriched uranium, which it could use to build a nuclear weapon. Iran says it is buried under the rubble of last year's war. While Iran's military is weakened, the regime remains intact and capable of causing global disruption. Meanwhile, Israel's plans continue to shift. Today, a military spokesperson revealed that operations in Iran are set for the next three weeks. In Lebanon, Israel is ramping up its military presence and making attempts at diplomacy. A person briefed on the matter tells Estrin that Israel is pushing for direct ceasefire negotiations with Lebanon.
- 🎧 As gas prices soar, global markets struggle and polls show that Americans are skeptical of the war, Trump's administration is pushing a message of victory. The administration at first struggled to provide clear justification for U.S. involvement in this war, leaving it politically vulnerable, NPR's Franco Ordoñez says. Jenny Stromer-Galley, who studies political messaging at Syracuse University, tells him that the focus on winning aims to shift the narrative towards a theme of collective strength and vision. The president is repeatedly using simple, strong language as a branding tool, which Stromer-Galley says is an attempt to convince people of something their eyes cannot see. His criticism of the media has also intensified. The FCC chair has threatened to revoke broadcast licenses over stations' coverage of the war.
Senate Republicans are preparing to vote on the president's controversial SAVE Act this week. The bill aims to address a hot-button issue that's close to Trump's heart: non-citizen voting. Trump remains adamant that it's a widespread concern in the U.S., despite a lack of evidence.
- 🎧 The bill would require a photo ID that proves U.S. citizenship, like a birth certificate or passport, in order to register to vote. Millions of Americans don't have easy access to those documents, NPR's Miles Parks says. As the vote approaches, it is increasingly likely that Trump will be disappointed with the results. Senate Democrats are firmly opposed to the bill. To pass the legislation, it needs 60 votes to break the filibuster threshold, but Republicans only hold 53 seats. Trump has insisted he doesn't want a watered-down version of this bill. But Parks says that if it were narrower and possibly focused solely on photo ID, it might have garnered more support from both parties.
Linda Holmes, Pop Culture Happy Hour host, joins the Up First newsletter today to provide key takeaways from last night's Oscars.
It was a very good night for best picture winner One Battle After Another, as well as for Sinners, at the Oscars last night. There were a few surprises (a rare tie), plus some politics, too. Here are our takeaways from the evening:
- 🏆 Celebrated director Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another) finally won best director after three previous nominations. He also brought home best adapted screenplay.
- 🏆 Michael B. Jordan won a rare best actor award for what is very much a genre film — the vampire horror drama Sinners. He beat performers from much more traditionally awards-friendly films.
- 🏆 Amy Madigan won best supporting actress for her deeply unsettling and entirely singular performance in Weapons, which is even more fully a horror movie than Sinners.
- 🏆 Cassandra Kulukundis won the long-overdue, first-ever Academy Award for casting, for One Battle After Another. The biggest problem in the category was that everybody couldn't win.
- 🏆 Autumn Durald Arkapaw, who won best cinematography for her work on Sinners, was only the fourth woman, and the first woman of color, to be nominated in the category. She is the first woman to win.
Check out photos from the red carpet and see the full list of winners.
Stay pop culture savvy by subscribing to the Pop Culture Happy Hour newsletter. Once a week, you'll get NPR's guide to movies, TV, books, music and more.
Life advice
It can feel difficult to reclaim your time and attention from your phone when it's designed to keep you scrolling. Life Kit spoke to experts in behavioral science, psychology and technology for real-world advice. Check out these expert-recommended strategies to effectively stay off your phone:
- 📱 Try "urge surfing," which is the practice of riding out the urge to pick up your phone without doing anything about it. The more you do it, the less you will feel you have to give in to the urge.
- 📱 Make your device less visually enticing to decrease your motivation to use it. Turn it black-and-white or set up a simple home screen with only a list of apps and no pictures.
- 📱 Keeping your phone out of the bedroom cuts down on phone time by removing the temptation to scroll before bed, in the middle of the night and when you first wake up.
For more tips on how to better stay off your phone, listen to this episode of NPR's Life Kit. Subscribe to the Life Kit newsletter for expert advice on love, money, relationships and more.
Picture show
Songs from the Hole is a powerful visual album and documentary that tells the story of James Jacobs, known as hip-hop artist JJ'88, as he reflects on life within California's prison system. In 2004, at age 15, Jacobs shot and killed a 20-year-old at a party. By 2021, Jacobs had spent more time in prison than outside it. After meeting and befriending Contessa Gayles while she was on assignment for CNN, Jacobs and his producer, Richie Reseda, approached filmmaker Gayles with a bold vision. They wanted to create a visual album that Jacobs had written during his incarceration. The film intertwines Jacobs' letters and recorded phone calls with Gayles and Reseda, showcasing scripts, shot lists and lyrics. The documentary delves into themes of Black boyhood, family ties, faith, crime, forgiveness and redemption, creating a compelling narrative of resilience and hope. Check out these images from the film.
3 things to know before you go
- The remake of the classic sci-fi novel War of the Worlds starring Ice Cube cleaned up at the 46th Annual Golden Raspberries, or Razzie Awards, which parody the Academy Awards.
- German philosopher Jürgen Habermas, an influential thinker on modernity and democracy, died Saturday in Starnberg, Germany, at 96.
- Trump announced Friday that Richard Grenell is stepping down as head of the Kennedy Center before it closes for scheduled renovations in July.
This newsletter was edited by Suzanne Nuyen.
Copyright 2026 NPR
