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2026-09-10 NYT Evening

Thu, 10 Sep 2026 18:00:06 GMT

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Thank you for signing up for The Evening. Every weeknight, we’ll catch you up on the biggest news, and help you wind down to end your day.

READ THE LATEST

Yong Li Xuan/Missourian, via Associated Press

The Supreme Court Blocks Missouri’s Voting Map, Again

Also, Vance privately gathered unvarnished views of the Iran war. Here’s the latest at the end of Thursday.

Open now

Republicans Gather in Texas for an Unusual Convention

Also, Apple unveils a foldable iPhone. Here’s the latest at the end of Wednesday.

Smithsonian Leader Is Resigning After Clashes With Trump

Also, OpenAI says it solved one of math’s “Millennium Problems.” Here’s the latest at the end of Tuesday.

Judge Declares a Mistrial in Lindsay Clancy’s Murder Case

Also, regulators scrutinize steering-wheel-free cars. Here’s the latest at the end of Friday.

Your daily guide to understanding what’s happening — and why it matters. Hosted by Sam Sifton, for readers in the U.S. and Canada.

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2026-09-11 NYT Evening

Fri, 11 Sep 2026 17:00:12 GMT

The Evening: 9/11, 25 years later

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September 11, 2026

Welcome to The Evening! Every weeknight, we’ll catch you up on the biggest news, and help you wind down to end your day.

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	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Friday.

Sept. 11, after a quarter-century
Another oil route is under threat
Plus, the story of the Bayeux Tapestry

The New York Times

America gathers to remember, 25 years after 9/11

Mourners and dignitaries gathered this morning in Lower Manhattan to honor the thousands of people who were killed on this day 25 years ago, when terrorists crashed two airplanes into the World Trade Center, shaking America and the world. It took four hours for family members of the victims to read aloud the names of all of the nearly 3,000 people who lost their lives: Gordon M. Aamoth Jr.; Edelmiro Abad; Marie Rose Abad …

Solemn ceremonies were also held at the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pa., where the other hijacked planes crashed. At the Pentagon, President Trump spoke of American resilience: “Sept. 11 reminded us of the terrible power of hate,” he said. “The 25 years since have shown us the even greater power of the American spirit to endure and prevail and to win.”

All four other living presidents attended the memorial in New York. Zohran Mamdani, the city’s first Muslim mayor, was also in attendance, despite a petition signed by thousands of people, including the family members of some victims, urging him to stay away.

That ceremony began, as always, at 8:46 a.m., with a beat of silence honoring the moment when the first plane, American Airlines Flight 11, struck the North Tower. Five more silences marked the times when other flights crashed and buildings fell. But this year, a new, seventh moment of silence was observed, to mourn those who have died from cancer and other illnesses inflicted by the toxic dust they inhaled after the attacks.

For more:

The C.I.A. released dozens of intelligence documents it had sent to Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush before the attacks.
Times photographers were on the scene and spread across the city to capture the attacks. Take a look back.
A band of Shanksville residents and National Park Service employees have spent a large portion of their lives devoted to the Flight 93 memorial.
In 2002, Times reporters assembled a haunting chronicle of the final 102 minutes at the World Trade Center through the accounts of people there.

A satellite photo from Planet Labs PBC of Perim Island, off Yemen in 2025. Planet Labs PBC, via Associated Press

Iranian-backed militia seized a key Red Sea island

The Houthis, the Iran-backed militant group in Yemen, seized a strategic Red Sea island after days of fierce fighting. The capture could further disrupt shipping in the region and give the Iranians more leverage in their war with the U.S.: Iran and its allies now have sway over the two main routes used for shipping oil out of the Middle East.

The move presents a particularly significant setback for Saudi Arabia, which now exports most of its oil through the Red Sea. Satellite images obtained by The Times also showed a 60-mile-long plume of smoke near a major Saudi oil pipeline; the kingdom said it had been hit by drones launched from Iraq.

Keith Collins/The New York Times

Elevated inflation keeps pressure on the Fed

The latest inflation report, released this morning, showed U.S. consumer prices rising at an annual pace of 3.4 percent. That’s still notably elevated when compared with the 2 percent goal set by federal policymakers.

The result, based on data from last month, is likely to add more pressure on the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates next week. Officials at the central bank said this summer that if inflation did not soon moderate, they would be ready to make borrowing money more expensive — and some have already run out of patience.

For more: These charts show what years of inflation have done to American prices.

Working on the Reflecting Pool yesterday. Salwan Georges for The New York Times

Reflecting Pool contractor blames itself, not vandals

After pieces of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool’s liner peeled and floated to the surface, the president blamed knife-wielding vandals. But documents reviewed by The Times showed that the contractor that renovated the pool has told the Trump administration that errors in its own work caused the issues.

The contractor said the pool’s new blue liner tore because of “human oversight” and a flawed plan that involved layering two chemicals that turned out to be incompatible.

More top news

Coal: A federal court struck down a Trump administration order to keep an aging coal plant in Michigan running.
Tech: Elon Musk has long vowed to remove child sexual abuse material on his social media platform, X. But egregious, known content still gets past its filters.
Health: A promising heart drug lowered a blood protein associated with heart attacks and strokes but failed to prevent them, raising questions about how they are related.
Tennessee: After a unanimous vote by the local airport authority, Nashville International Airport is set to be renamed to honor Dolly Parton.
Alaska: A 15-year-old survived in the Bering Sea off Alaska for days on an overturned boat, without food or water, before a fishing vessel pulled him to safety.
Space: New estimates using Mercury’s surface wrinkles show that our smallest planet is growing even smaller.

TIME TO UNWIND

Antoine Cazin/La Fabrique de Patrimoines en Normandie

The 1,000-year story behind the Bayeux Tapestry

This week, it seemed like all of Britain was talking about the Bayeux Tapestry, an epic 230-foot embroidery that has just gone on display in the country for the first time in 1,000 years.

But beyond its status as a cultural sensation, the tapestry is also a story, stitched in or around the 1070s, about William the Conqueror’s invasion of England just a few years before. Take a closer look with our critic Jason Farago, who explains what the tapestry depicts.

Can’t make it to Britain? There’s probably a replica of the Bayeux Tapestry closer to you.

Ben Shelton, left, and Frances Tiafoe. Matthew Stockman/Getty Images, Sarah Stier/Getty Images

Will an American man finally win in New York?

It has been 23 years since an American man has won the U.S. Open, the country’s premier tennis tournament. That could change this weekend.

American stars Ben Shelton and Frances Tiafoe will play each other at 7 p.m., Eastern, tonight in Flushing, Queens. The winner will head to the finals on Sunday. No matter the outcome, the winner will be the first Black man since Arthur Ashe in 1972 to reach the final.

On the women’s side: Tomorrow’s final is a clash between the world’s top two players. Surprising? No. Exciting? Very much so.

The website Dopamine lets people simulate shopping.

Dinner table topics

Dopamine sites sell nothing, and people can’t seem to get enough of them.
A recent renovation of an art school revealed a hidden mural and other gems.
Live Auto-Tune has become a music-industry standard. Some artists are willing to talk about it.
Pick your favorite home along the Chilean coast with a price tag under $1.3 million, and see which one other readers prefer.

WHAT TO DO THIS WEEKEND

Kate Sears for The New York Times

Bake this yogurt cake. It’s like a lighter lemon cheesecake.

Watch a documentary about the lives of the people who have been crowned the world’s oldest.

Read one of our favorite new books.

Plan a peaceful fall cycling trip. Our writer recently took a great one through Normandy.

Find a great pickle, or learn to make one at home, with advice from real experts.

Take this week’s news quiz.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

A cold plunge at the University of Florida. Ari Meyerowitz/Peak Pulse

Trading kegs for cold plunges

On a recent afternoon at the University of Alabama, hundreds of students were partying at a fraternity house. There was a D.J. spinning tunes, but almost nothing else about the scene resembled a conventional college party. It was instead what attendees call a “wellness darty.”

Similar events on campuses across the country, sometimes featuring yoga or sauna sessions, have caused a stir on social media, where many millennials and Gen X-ers look on with confusion. The wellness parties come at a time when young people are drinking less, but students assured us that there is still plenty of old-school partying.

Have a healthy weekend.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back on Monday — Matthew

Keith Bedford was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

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2026-09-14 NYT Evening

Mon, 14 Sep 2026 18:00:05 GMT

The Evening: Trump opposes A.I. slowdown

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September 14, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Monday.

Trump rejects calls for an A.I. slowdown
E.P.A. erases some pollution limits
Plus, what to expect from the Emmys

Jensen Huang at the White House in April. Pete Marovich for The New York Times

Trump rejects calls for more A.I. regulation

Many of America’s leading artificial intelligence executives spent the weekend warning about the technology’s risks to humanity and urging for a global slowdown in A.I. development. But President Trump doesn’t agree. So he called Nvidia’s chief executive during an event today in Los Angeles and spoke to the crowd over speaker phone.

“It’s a hoax,” the president told Jensen Huang, who held a microphone next to his phone. “The robots are not going to be taking over the world. That’s not going to happen.”

On social media, Trump made clear that he opposes calls to place new limits on A.I. — after some researchers argued that the technology could lead to mass unemployment, biological weapons and autonomous warfare. “The only control or ‘guardrails’ that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT,” the president said.

Top lawmakers in both parties suggested this weekend that Congress should place new guardrails. But there has been little movement so far, and Trump has argued that imposing additional restrictions on American companies would allow Beijing to “win” the A.I. race.

China, however, has its own anxieties. The country’s security minister recently called for stricter oversight and warned that A.I. poses a direct threat to the Chinese Communist Party’s hold on power.

For more: The Trump administration has accelerated its efforts to make A.I. an integral part of medical care.

The John Amos Power Plant in Winfield, W.Va. Alyssa Schukar for The New York Times

E.P.A. erases limits on climate pollution from power plants

The Trump administration announced today that the federal government will no longer limit the planet-warming pollution that power plants create by burning coal and gas. The agency plans to argue that greenhouse gases from power plants do not endanger human health or the environment, and that it therefore lacks the authority to regulate them.

The move is expected to be challenged in court. If it survives, the shift would effectively complete Trump’s erasure of the most consequential climate policies of his Democratic predecessors. It could also prevent future presidents from regulating greenhouse gas emissions from power plants.

Alisha Jucevic for The New York Times

Another judge deals a blow to Trump’s mail-in ballot plan

A Trump-appointed judge in Washington, D.C., ruled late last night that the president’s plan to significantly change the mail-in balloting process ahead of the November elections is most likely illegal and should be blocked. The judge said the administration had not presented evidence showing that it would lead to widespread fraud.

Voting officials around the country are awaiting a decision from the Supreme Court on a similar ruling by a different federal judge, who found that Trump’s plan was likely to be unconstitutional.

Related: Federal agents may have broken state laws as part of an effort to find noncitizens on voter rolls, and it’s likely that they have improperly flagged eligible voters, a whistle-blower said.

The campus of Texas A&M University. Go Nakamura for The New York Times

Conservatives are pushing for changes in college requirements

The range of courses college students can take to meet general education requirements is narrowing in some right-leaning states. In Texas, for example, students at some of the state’s biggest public universities can no longer use courses in women’s studies or climate change to fulfill graduation requirements. In Florida, public universities no longer allow introductory sociology courses to satisfy core requirements.

Supporters of the changes argue that core curriculums should never have included classes that they see as advancing left-leaning ideologies. Critics say the process seems more about politics than pedagogy.

For more on higher education:

A group of pro-Palestinian former student activists, including Mahmoud Khalil, sued Columbia University, saying it was deliberately indifferent to their harassment.
Worried about your college kid? Some parents are hiring local moms.

More top news

Markets: The 10-year Treasury yield, one of the most important interest rates in the world, briefly rose to 5 percent today, its highest level in three years.
Immigration: D.H.S.’s internal watchdog said that the “Alligator Alcatraz” detention center had confined migrants in small cages and violated other federal standards.
Health: In the latest advance in brain-computer interfaces, a patient with a paralyzing neurological disorder used a brain implant to converse in real time.
Middle East: As the widening conflict threatens oil markets, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia met with the regional U.S. commander.
Bahamas: A Russian businessman with ties to the Kremlin paid for Donald Trump Jr.’s lavish wedding after-party.
Florida: The end of legal protections for Haitian immigrants has jolted the labor market in Key West.
Fashion: Bob Mackie, the designer whose sequined gowns and outrageous costumes bedazzled American fashion, died at 87.
Iran: Masoud Pezeshkian, the country’s president, was riding high after July’s peace deal. Here’s the inside story of how hard-liners blew it up.
Nepal: Survivors told us the stories of the people and places buried under the mud after the immense Himalayan floods.
California: A preserved Pacific mastodon molar estimated to be at least 10,000 years old was found in a Bay Area creek.

TIME TO UNWIND

HBO

Who should win at tonight’s Emmys?

HBO Max’s hit hospital show, “The Pitt,” is the favorite to win in the best drama category at the 78th Emmy Awards tonight in Los Angeles. If it does, the series would be the first to win television’s most prestigious award for its first two seasons since “Mad Men” did it in 2009.

The comedy category is a tight showdown between the freshman horror-comedy series “Widow’s Bay” and an Emmy stalwart, “Hacks.” Cast your vote for the night’s top awards and see what other readers think. The broadcast, hosted by Mariska Hargitay, begins at 8 p.m. Eastern on NBC. We’re covering it live.

For more: Hear from Emmy contenders in their own words.

Simbarashe Cha/The New York Times

The breakthrough show of New York Fashion Week

You probably have never heard of Eckhaus Latta. Most people haven’t. But the brand, which has been treading the fine line between fashion and art for almost 15 years, proved this week that is ready for the big time, our fashion critic Vanessa Friedman writes.

At its New York Fashion Week show, Eckhaus Latta broke out with a “mix of libido, D.I.Y. and the everyday, subverting the familiar in startling ways that make you look — and think — twice,” Vanessa said.

Dinner table topics

A giant new Guggenheim show tells the story of America through the life of one F.B.I. agent.
Some Dolly Parton fans have paid tribute to the superstar with Dolly-inspired wedding celebrations.
Trump’s childhood home — after a gut renovation — sells for nearly $2 million.
Are sardines healthy? Experts weighed in.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Armando Rafael for The New York Times

Cook these kimchi white bean melts, which are just the right combination of spicy and gooey.

Read “Exit Party,” Emily St. John Mandel’s ambitious and captivating new novel.

Plan a trip to London, where there are places to swim no matter the season.

Try doing a fall reset. Artists, chefs and writers explain why it helps them.

Take the latest Flashback history quiz.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

María Jesús Contreras

The future, according to kids

In the year 2050, there will be robot butlers, underwater homes, root beer perfume and Adam Sandler will be vice president. At least that’s what 10-year-old kids across the nation told us when we asked them about the future.

The children, who have as much stake in the future as anyone, offered wide-ranging predictions. Some were worried about war or catastrophe; others were excited about living in a house with a slide instead of stairs. But nearly all of them had a lot to say about what we should be doing to make the world better. Read their forecasts here.

Have an incredible evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Eli Cohen was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

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2026-09-15 NYT Evening

Tue, 15 Sep 2026 17:00:11 GMT

The Evening: Trump fights judge over Kennedy Center

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September 15, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Tuesday.

Trump fights Kennedy Center ruling
The Senate blocks a major crypto bill
Plus, a dance takeover at MoMA

Nathan Howard/Reuters

Trump threatens to cancel Kennedy Center renovation

A federal judge ruled today that the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts could not reaffix President Trump’s name on the institution’s exterior. The judge said that Congress must weigh in before anyone is honored on the building’s walls.

In response, Trump posted a stark ultimatum to social media: If an appeals court does not allow his name back on the building, he said, he would block a $257 million renovation that he has championed.

Earlier, the center’s Trump-allied board voted, for the third time, to close the building for renovations, citing conditions that it deemed “hazardous.” Trump said the building would be shuttered “immediately,” despite a court order blocking the move.

In other Trump administration news:

The president criticized the Supreme Court over its mail-in ballot ruling, particularly the justices he had appointed. “These are not the people I interviewed,” he said. “They are merely a shell of their original selves.”
The F.B.I. director, Kash Patel, suggested that he was open to sending federal agents to polling places.
A Pentagon official acknowledged for the first time that the U.S. has deployed weapons in space.

Alex Kent/The New York Times

The Senate deals a major blow to the crypto industry

The Senate voted this afternoon to block a landmark, business friendly cryptocurrency bill. The outcome was a bitter disappointment for crypto executives, who had made the legislation, called the Clarity Act, their most important policy priority.

Most Republican senators supported the bill, as did Trump. But Democrats decided to oppose it, citing the president’s crypto riches and calling for stronger language to prevent public officials from using crypto to make money.

Protests in Maarat al-Numan, Syria, on Sunday. Ahmed Albam/Associated Press

The world is furious over rising prices

In Portugal, angry drivers have blocked traffic to protest rising fuel prices, which have spiked since the U.S. went to war against Iran. In Guatemala and Syria, demonstrators have burned tires and cars. And in the Philippines, bus drivers have walked off the job, which they said was now barely paying them enough for a meal.

In the U.S., fuel prices have also spiked, and 10-year Treasury bonds, a major gauge of borrowing costs, reached their highest level in 19 years. Testifying before Congress today, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent sought to blame Joe Biden for persistent inflation.

Related: Australians bought more electric vehicles than gas-powered cars last month, in part because of higher energy prices.

Houthi fighters in the Bani Matar district in Yemen on Saturday. Associated Press

Iran-backed militants in Yemen are learning to arm themselves

The Houthis, a Yemeni militia backed by Iran, have over the past few months become a major player in the ongoing Middle East conflict. They have seized the strategic port of Mokha and claimed control over the Red Sea’s crucial southern passageway.

That may seem like a lot for a group better known for firing AK-47s out of pickup trucks. But as my colleague Nicholas Kulish explains, the Houthis have demonstrated a growing ambition to produce advanced weaponry on their own, making them less reliant on Iran. Anthropic suggested that the Houthis used the company’s A.I. tool in an effort to develop guided weapons.

For more:

The Houthis and Saudi Arabia accused each other today of launching attacks at their territories.
Yes, your mocha drink got its name from the city of Mokha.

A data center under construction last year in Abilene, Texas. Shelby Tauber/Reuters

A.I. is unpopular with voters, but neither party has an edge

Left- and right-wing political figures, including both Bernie Sanders and Steve Bannon, spoke today at an event warning about the potential dangers of A.I. and demanding tighter regulations. It’s a topic that strategists in both parties believe will soon become a potent political force.

But so far, voter trust in Republicans and Democrats on A.I. issues is roughly the same, according to our new poll. Democrats were far more opposed to the construction of A.I. data centers than Republicans: 75 percent of those polled were against it, compared to 47 percent of Republicans.

For more: Democrats are approaching the midterm elections with a clear advantage, our poll found.

More top news

Los Angeles: Prosecutors said they would not seek the death penalty for Nick Reiner, who is accused of killing his parents, the director Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner.
Thailand: An heir to the Singha beer empire has prompted a rare public reckoning over taboo subjects by accusing his brother of sexual abuse.
New York: The city’s new “Stripe Hog” is a high-pressure water truck that blasts away old street markings to make way for new safety improvements.
Migration: Nearly half a billion birds may soar across the U.S. in the next couple of weeks during their annual migration, leading to calls for residents to help by turning off their lights.
Obituary: Bruce Davis, a former drifter who became the right-hand man of Charles Manson, died at 83.
Theater: To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the musical “Annie” is returning to Broadway next year.

TIME TO UNWIND

The New York Times

MoMA is transformed into a dance palace

Visitors to Manhattan’s Museum of Modern Art were met today with something new. Dancers occupied the building’s vast second floor atrium, as they will six days a week for the next month.

The show, called “nowhere,” is a project by Sarah Michelson, a choreographer who has pushed and pulled at the art form for decades. At its core is the question: What is a dance? Michelson doesn’t have an answer — “dances are like embodied questions,” she told us — but she finds beauty in how a dance can’t be just one thing. See what it looks like.

The New York Times

There are promising worlds beyond our solar system

We all know about Earth’s seven closest neighbors, and Pluto, of course. But there are probably 100 billion other planets in our galaxy alone, and some scientists have been searching the cosmos for evidence of worlds that may be able to host alien life.

Take the exoplanet KOI-456.04, for example. It appears to receive about the same amount of heat and light from its star as we do from our sun, and water could potentially flow on its surface. It’s one of many that has scientists excited, as our columnist Natalie Wolchover explains.

Like to read about our world (and ones beyond it)? Sign up for our Science Times newsletter and get much more.

Albi, a Palestinian restaurant in Washington, D.C. Yuvraj Khanna for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

These are our 50 favorite restaurants in America right now. See which of our picks are closest to you. (We made this link free for all Evening readers.)
Check out the best looks from last night’s red carpet at the Emmys.
Times readers disagreed with Emmys voters on three major awards.
Is it cheating to race in $300 shoes?

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Nico Schinco for The New York Times Food Stylist: Kaitlin Wayne.

Cook: This spicy whipped feta dip is tangy, silky and easy to make.

Watch one of these five great theater performances from the comfort of your living room.

Tend to your indoor plants with advice from an expert.

Make the most of your iPhone by using shortcuts.

Take our quiz to see if you know the places where famous writers found inspiration.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Clockwise from top left: Jamie Beaton at Harvard, Dartmouth, Princeton, Yale, Cornell, Oxford, Stanford and Columbia. Center photo: King’s College, London. Jamie Beaton

He’s on track to become the world’s most educated person

Jamie Beaton is just 31 years old. But he already has advanced degrees from Harvard (applied mathematics), Yale (law), Stanford (education technology), Princeton (finance), Oxford (he was a Rhodes scholar) and eight other elite universities — and he’s still studying. Beaton is also the C.E.O. of a college admissions counseling service valued at more than $600 million. You might be asking how he’s done it all, or perhaps: why?

Beaton told my colleague that he is simply following his “passions and curiosities.” Growing up in Auckland, New Zealand, his family taught him that learning was important: “Academics was our religion,” he said. Read more about his unusual life.

Have an astute evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Keith Bedford was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

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2026-09-16 NYT Evening

Wed, 16 Sep 2026 17:00:11 GMT

The Evening: Fed hikes rates

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September 16, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Wednesday.

The Fed raises rates
Pressure on Saudis to restore oil supply
Plus, Annie Dillard dies at 81

Kevin Warsh, the Fed chair, at a news conference today. Evan Vucci/Reuters

The Fed raises interest rates to fight against inflation

The Federal Reserve raised interest rates today for the first time in more than three years. The move, which was supported by all 12 of the central bank’s voting members, is intended to contain inflation. “The plain fact is that inflation is too high and has been for too long,” Kevin Warsh, the Fed chairman, said.

The decision puts Warsh at odds with President Trump, who picked him for the job earlier this year. After the central bank announced it would raise its benchmark rate to a range of 3.75 to 4 percent, the president called on the Fed to reverse course and cut rates to 1 percent: “LOWER THE INTEREST RATES,” he posted on social media.

That seems unlikely anytime soon. A majority of Fed officials indicated today that they expected to raise rates at least once more this year.

What it means for you: When the Fed raises rates, it makes short-term borrowing more expensive. Interest rates on credit card debt, personal loans and small-business loans will very likely jump up within a few billing cycles because they are usually pegged to the so-called prime rate, which tracks the Fed’s actions.

Other loans, like mortgages, are not directly tied to the central bank's moves, though they are influenced by them. The Fed’s goal here is to create a domino effect, with less borrowing leading to less spending and more pressure on businesses to maintain or lower prices.

Vessels off Yemen at the Bab al-Mandab Strait on Saturday. Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

The Saudis are scrambling to restore their oil supply

Saudi Arabia has been working to reroute millions of barrels of oil after a critical pipeline was damaged in an attack. Officials there also said today that they had come under attack from the Iran-backed Houthi militia, which has gained a chokehold on a key Saudi export route.

Now, the world’s biggest oil exporter is running out of options. An extended disruption to its oil supply could cause a severe global energy crisis.

In other Middle East news:

At least 21 people are dead in Gaza after a building, previously damaged by an Israeli airstrike, collapsed.
In an analysis, Neil MacFarquhar explains how Sept. 11 allowed Iran to expand its influence.

Mark Carney, Canada’s prime minister, with Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission. Justin Tang/The Canadian Press, via Associated Press

E.U. and Canada move closer, as their ties to the U.S. weaken

When the European Union invited Canada today to work toward becoming its first “associate member,” the announcement was met with a standing ovation from European lawmakers.

The title is meant to underscore the nation’s growing closeness to the 27-country bloc, which comes as relations with the U.S., traditionally an ally of the E.U. and Canada, have deteriorated.

For more: My colleagues in Canada and Europe explain the obstacles ahead.

Eric Gay/Associated Press

Senate considers new limits on the ‘Wild West’ of college sports

In a strong bipartisan vote, the Senate agreed today to open debate on a bill that would limit the ability of college athletes to jump from school to school, establish new rules for pay and impose other standards across collegiate sports.

Its backers, including Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, say it is needed to restore stability in a chaotic environment where universities engage in bidding wars for top athletes. Critics, including labor groups, argue the measure would limit the ability of college athletes to be financially rewarded for their work.

For more: Extensive reporting by The Athletic found that top college football teams spend around $50 million per year on players.

More top news

Artificial Intelligence

New research says that A.I. has quietly affected the job market through slower wage growth in some industries and through a pullback in job openings.
Two Silicon Valley start-ups — each valued at $4 billion — are pursuing A.I. models that improve themselves, a prospect both exciting and scary.
In the Maldives, researchers are using A.I. to grow beaches.

Other Big Stories

Los Angeles: At least five people were dead after an S.U.V. broadsided a bus and a news helicopter covering the accident crashed.
Health: In her Senate confirmation hearing, Nicole Saphier, Trump’s pick for surgeon general, pledged support for childhood vaccines.
Immigration: Immigration judges overturned a previous ruling and allowed the U.S. to deport a prominent former government official to Ecuador, despite fears he could face torture.
Mental health: The trial of Lindsay Clancy unsettled a consensus in psychiatry on intrusive thoughts, a classic symptom of anxiety disorders.
Science: To learn more about brain disorders, scientists said that they had created extraordinary mice whose brains are filled with millions of human neurons.
Japan: The health ministry reported that the country now has more than 100,000 people who are over 100 years old.

THE EVENING QUIZ

This question comes from a recent edition of the newsletter. Click an answer to see if you’re right. (The link is free.)

Over the next couple of weeks, officials in some cities will be asking building owners to dim or turn off lights. What’s the reason?

TIME TO UNWIND

Tomasz Schuchardt as Stanislaw and Sandra Drzymalska as Izabela in “The Doll.” Netflix

Can Netflix turn a revered Polish novel into a hit show?

In Poland, Boleslaw Prus’s epic 19th-century novel, “The Doll,” is thought of as a true masterpiece. Almost everywhere else, it’s hardly thought of at all.

That could change today, with the release of a six-part adaptation on Netflix. The series is in Polish, but in the age of subtitles, it has the potential to reach an international audience looking for the next “Bridgerton.” The director told us he had approached it the way “Americans approach the myth of the Batman,” by adjusting and reinterpreting the story for an audience that’s far distant from the Polish aristocracy in the age of the Russian Empire.

Annie Dillard at Tinker Creek in 1974. Jill Krementz

Remembering Annie Dillard

Annie Dillard was still in her 20s when she became one of the major voices in American literature. She journeyed into Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains and came out with a Pulitzer Prize-winning book on the wonders and horrors of creation, “Pilgrim at Tinker Creek.” But she didn’t stop there: Dillard delivered ruminations on life and nature, good and evil, a best-selling biography and a theory of literature over the next few decades.

Dillard died yesterday at 81. Read about her life.

Thea Traff for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

Julia Louis-Dreyfus is making her Broadway debut. She told us about her “terrifying” desire to perform onstage.
M.L.B. dads explain what its like to raise kids from the ballpark.
Ron Bennington, the stand-up comic, has Stage 4 cancer, so he decided to start podcasting from the hospital.
Are you eating enough fiber? Follow our guide to make sure.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Johnny Miller for The New York Times

Bake these little harvest muffins, which make for a great grab-and-go snack.

Listen to these songs to prepare for a season of exciting album releases.

Read a book recommended by an expert in failure.

Get inspired by our fashion photographer’s bright look of the week.

Upgrade your bathroom with a skirt.

Consider retiring your loofah. Here’s why.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Tori Ferenc

A home for pigeons, refitted for people

Just beyond the gardens of a stately manor near Oxford, England, stands a 41-foot structure that was built in 1714 as a home for pigeons. Such buildings, known as dovecotes, reached peak fashionability in the 18th century. They were both ornamental status symbols and sources of bird meat and droppings, which could be used as fertilizer.

The dovecote pictured above, however, now serves as a writing retreat and a one-of-a-kind pavilion for drinks and dinners. The designer who converted the space said he had never taken on any project quite as crazy. But the final result is more inviting than I would have expected — a cozy cavelike space with room for a few friends. Take a look.

Have a refreshed evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Eli Cohen was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

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2026-09-17 NYT Evening

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 18:00:05 GMT

The Evening: A tough path for Republicans

View in browser|nytimes.com

September 17, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Thursday.

Republicans’ midterm picture worsens
Scientists find a gene-editing technology
Plus, ghost towns worth visiting

Representative María Elvira Salazar on Capitol Hill in May. Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times

Republicans are being forced to fight for red states and districts

In a rare display of intraparty dissent, a House Republican from Florida, María Elvira Salazar, released a television advertisement today directly assaulting President Trump’s aggressive crackdown on immigrants. “Mr. President,” Salazar said, “some of your immigration enforcement efforts have gone too far.”

Salazar’s district had not been considered particularly competitive, but her comments reflected the eroding support for Trump and other Republicans among Hispanics. A recent Times poll found that Hispanic voters favored Democrats by 43 points, an enormous shift since 2024, when the difference in support was in the single digits. (Take a look at the latest polls.)

More broadly, the unfavorable political environment for Republicans has forced the party to put up costly defenses in seemingly safe races. In Nebraska, a Republican super PAC sprang up to defend a billionaire incumbent. In Kansas, Vice President JD Vance campaigned for a Senate Republican, even though a Democrat has not been elected to the chamber there since 1932. And in Georgia, Republican strategists wonder if it’s too late to save their Senate nominee.

In other immigration news:

Trump withdrew his nomination of a former Oklahoma state trooper to lead ICE.
A binational tribe is fighting against a portion of Trump’s border wall.
In a rare interview, a federal judge appointed by George W. Bush said that Trump’s surge in Minneapolis threatened democracy.

Yemeni soldiers in Marib in 2024. Amr Alfiky/Reuters

The Houthis advance on oil-rich regions

Fighting has intensified near two strategic provinces in Yemen, in what appears to be an effort by the Iranian-backed Houthi militia to push into resource-rich eastern regions. Analysts said that sustained fighting in the region could threaten the economic lifeline of Yemen’s internationally recognized government.

In other news from the Middle East: U.N. investigators said today that two U.S. airstrikes on Iran in February, in which at least 178 civilians died, may have amounted to war crimes.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in Dallas last week. Shelby Tauber for The New York Times

Kennedy tells anti-vax group they have a friend in Trump

In a speech this afternoon to the anti-vaccine nonprofit that he founded, health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said that he was willing to “die with my boots on” to investigate the risks of vaccines. He also said that Trump was a strong supporter of his efforts.

Kennedy received applause when he vowed to look at the effects of electromagnetic radiation and chemtrails, which the E.P.A. has deemed a conspiracy theory. The speaker before him called the success of the polio vaccine a “fraud.”

Related: Kennedy appointed eight new members to a federal task force whose decisions affect health care access for most Americans. He had previously blocked the panel’s work.

Micrographs of a virus that carries VIPR proteins. Santiago Lopez/University of California, Berkeley

Scientists discover a powerful gene-editing technology

Gene editing entered the mainstream thanks to a tool known as CRISPR, which has been used to create lifesaving cures and more productive crops. Today, scientists announced that they had found a technology that may be even more powerful.

The new system, called VIPR, actually appears to be more than four billion years old, and the ancestor of CRISPR. It was discovered in viruses, and it appears to be able to target a wider variety of genetic sequences. It is not yet clear, however, if VIPR can be turned into a useful tool.

In other science news:

Researchers in Europe are upgrading the world’s most powerful particle accelerator.
A feather found in fossilized dinosaur poop reveals how some bird species may have escaped extinction.

More top news

Artificial Intelligence

OpenAI disclosed six new instances in which systems hid mistakes and exhibited other “concerning” behavior.
Efforts to regulate the technology have stalled. Cecilia Kang, a technology reporter for The Times, explains why.
“Alignment” is the science of teaching A.I. to do what people want. Our A.I. projects editor explains how it works.

Other Big Stories

Energy: China, the world’s biggest oil importer, has stockpiled huge amounts of it, increasing its geopolitical power as supplies tighten.
Washington: Last night, photojournalists captured images through the windows of Air Force One showing Trump with a poster board reading “Kennedy Center DEMOLISHED.”
Congress: Jon Kyl, a Republican from Arizona who was a powerful operator during his four terms in the House and three in the Senate, died at 84.
Food: Ranchers are upset about a plan to import beef by the Trump administration, which hopes that mandatory country-of-origin labeling will help alleviate the tension.
Sweden: As far right parties increase in power in Europe, voters there gave its center-left a narrow win.
Mexico: Locals call a reservoir near Mexico City the world’s biggest cesspool, which brings with it mosquitos and higher levels of cancer.
Missouri: The former superintendent who rebuilt Joplin’s schools after the 2011 tornado now consults with districts recovering from disaster. Here’s what he’s learned.
North Korea: Defectors, human rights investigators and analysts told us how Kim Jong-un, the country’s dictator, has increased its global influence by exploiting its people.

TIME TO UNWIND

George Etheredge for The New York Times

The New York Philharmonic already sounds different

When I wrote last week about Gustavo Dudamel’s first day as the leader of New York City’s premier orchestra, we knew he would make waves. What we didn’t know was how immediately his presence would be felt.

But the change was obvious during the Philharmonic’s first few Dudamel-led programs. “Its members haven’t looked this happy onstage in years,” our classical music critic Joshua Barone wrote. “Either he inspires them, or his starry arrival has lifted their morale. Or both. Whatever is going on, it works.”

Grace Reiter, left, and Saidah Belo-Osagie. Sarah Shatz/HBO; Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images

Meet the new faces at ‘S.N.L.’

“Saturday Night Live” announced this week that it was adding two cast members, Saidah Belo-Osagie and Grace Reiter, for Season 52, which begins in just over a week.

Belo-Osagie is a Nigerian American comedian from New York City who, in 2020, wrote and directed the romantic dramedy short “Tinge.” Reiter, who at 25 will be the first “S.N.L.” cast member born in the 21st century, has a huge following on social media. She also starred in the HBO comedy thriller “The Chair Company.” Here’s what else to know about them.

For more: The first episode will be hosted by New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson.

Paola Chapdelaine for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

Forty life-size bison puppets, handmade from steel, wood and burlap, will stampede through New York this weekend.
Read about the life of Cat Frazier, whose retro GIFs celebrated a weirder internet. She recently died at 35.
See the eye-catching looks on and off the runway at New York Fashion Week.
Twiggy, the face of London in the 1960s, is living her best life at the age of 77. (We made this story free for all Evening readers.)

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

David Malosh for The New York Times

Cook this risotto recipe, which calls for late summer sweet peppers and a touch of saffron.

Watch “You Had to Be There,” a documentary about a storied 1972 comedy production. Our critic called it irresistible.

Wear something oversized without going overboard.

Try these backyard games and ignore your devices.

Hunt: Which Rhode Island house would you buy with an $800,000 budget?

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Christopher Miller for The New York Times; Getty Images; Gabe Castro-Root

The West is dotted with scenic ghost towns

On the eastern flank of the Sierra Nevada, a town named Bodie charges $8 for entry. That’s because it’s one of the country’s best-preserved ghost towns, a remnant of a 19th-century gold-mining rush. Its rolling hills are speckled with abandoned homes, churches and stores, making it easy for visitors to picture the vibrant community that once stood there.

Similar ghost towns across the American West offer curious visitors a chance to explore the remote outposts where gold, silver and copper mining once boomed. Some of the pictures alone are quite staggering.

Have an intrepid evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Philip Pacheco was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

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2026-09-21 NYT Evening

Mon, 21 Sep 2026 18:00:05 GMT

The Evening: Paramount clears final hurdle

View in browser|nytimes.com

September 21, 2026

	By Evan Gorelick

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Monday.

Paramount clears its last major hurdle to buy Warner Bros.
News outlets sue Trump over press freedom
Plus, the case for eating bugs

Mario Tama/Getty Images

Paramount cleared to buy Warner Bros.

Paramount reached an agreement to resolve an antitrust lawsuit that had been delaying its $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, eliminating the last significant barrier to the creation of a media company colossus.

A group of states, led by California’s Democratic attorney general, had sued Paramount in July, arguing that an acquisition of Warner Bros. would concentrate too much of the industry under its ownership. The deal would also make David Ellison, the chief executive of Paramount and an ally of President Trump, one of the most powerful people in entertainment.

After weeks of negotiations, Paramount and the states have agreed to a number of concessions in order to complete the deal. The entertainment giant committed to:

Establish a board of journalists to ensure the editorial independence of CNN and CBS News
Distribute 30 movies in theaters every year
Spend an additional $1.5 billion on film production over the next five years, and increase the proportion of those movies that are made in America.

Related: Have a look at all of the film franchises, shows, characters, streaming services and news networks the combined company would own.

Betsy Klein of CNN outside the White House on Saturday. Doug Mills/The New York Times

News outlets sue Trump over press freedom

CNN, MS NOW and Politico sued the Trump administration for barring them from the White House grounds, arguing that the ban violated their First Amendment rights to cover the president.

Trump banned the three outlets on Friday for what he described as negative news coverage, and their reporters were later denied access to the White House. Today, major TV networks suspended their pooled coverage of Trump after the White House refused to let CNN serve as a pool representative. (When the administration offered its own stream of the president’s ribbon cutting for a new helipad, the audio was garbled.)

Trump defended his actions on social media. “The White House is not instituting an assault on the Free Press, something which I cherish,” he wrote. “It is instituting an assault on the FAKE NEWS, something that has grown like Cancer in our beloved United States of America.”

Smoke rising on Saturday above Riyadh, the Saudi Arabian capital. Reuters

Houthi threat rattles the White House

Yemen has once again spiraled into full-blown war. Saudi Arabia, a U.S. ally, is fighting the Iran-backed Houthis, who have attacked ships and disrupted routes vital to the Saudi oil industry.

The Saudi crown prince has implored Trump to intervene militarily against the Houthis. The president initially rebuffed his requests, then, over the weekend, told the Pentagon to prepare airstrikes. But as bombs were being loaded onto the planes, he reversed course and decided to hold off, according to Trump administration officials.

Most of the president’s inner circle was either deeply skeptical or outright opposed to joining the Saudi fight, especially given the existing strains facing the U.S. military in the war with Iran, according to a senior official. Intervening in Yemen could open another front in the war.

Read our exclusive reporting on war deliberations inside the White House. (And for more context: Why are the Houthis and Saudi Arabia back at war?)

Angelina Katsanis for The New York Times

United Nations seeks relevance on A.I.

The frenzied reckoning over artificial intelligence, and its existential risk to humanity, has raised the stakes of Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s state visit to Washington later this week. The subject also tops the agenda at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where world leaders are gathered in the shadow of rogue A.I. hacking episodes that have set off an anxious debate worldwide.

As the body seeks a new secretary general, officials will also address wars and global energy prices. But some foreign policy experts have compared the urgency of global A.I. cooperation to the need for nuclear arms control during the Cold War.

In other A.I. news:

Wall Street is growing skeptical of the data center boom, as companies tied to their development have delayed initial public offerings.
The A.I. industry is debating whether models that appear to show signs of introspection or consciousness are being taught to behave in this way.

More top news

Politics: The White House has begun drafting a new executive order that would give it control over billions of dollars in scientific grants.
Texas: The man shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Austin yesterday was not the target of a federal investigation before the encounter.
Washington: Trump said yesterday that his planned 250-foot triumphal arch in Washington would be built to host “large numbers of drones,” snipers and ammunition.
Germany: Friedrich Merz, the unpopular chancellor, said he would stay on after his party was trounced in another state election by the far-right AfD.
A.I. party houses: Group tech homes have proliferated across the San Francisco Bay Area. One of the most prominent has also racked up an extensive police record.
Los Angeles: Presley Gerber, the son of the supermodel Cindy Crawford and a professional model himself, died at 27.

TIME TO UNWIND

Clockwise from top left: WB ("Gilmore Girls"); FX ("Shogun"); HBO Max ("Eastbound & Down")

The Best TV Shows

Television has defined 21st century popular culture. And today, The Times is releasing the first installment of its 100 Best TV Shows of the 21st Century list. We polled hundreds of TV stars, showrunners, craftspeople and executives to winnow it down. (See how your favorite actors and creators voted.)

The final rankings are full of surprises, even for the editors, so sign up for the Watching newsletter for each installment, culminating on Sept. 25, when we’ll reveal the No. 1 show of the 21st century.

You can also cast your own ballot, and we’ll release a separate list to show how Times readers voted.

Lanna Apisukh for The New York Times

Buoyer’s remorse?

Four and a half years after acquiring a decommissioned Staten Island Ferry on a costly whim, Pete Davidson and Colin Jost turned their boat into a floating comedy venue on Manhattan’s East River, at least for a night.

The ferry has languished in a tidal strait, racking up docking fees and regulatory headaches. But last week, more than 300 people filed onto the 277-foot “Snapple Island Ferry” (rechristened by the fruit juice brand sponsoring the event) for a “hot and nauseous” comedy show.

Dinner table topics

Juan Arredondo for The New York Times

New York’s epic summer: The nonstop spectacle included the Knicks and the World Cup, cyclospora and alpha-gal, the mayor in a pool and Taylor Swift in a wedding dress.
World’s busiest restaurant? Aga’s, an Indian-Pakistani spot in a Houston strip mall, generates more Uber Eats deliveries than any other business.
‘Kinetic artist’: Joseph Herscher has collected millions of followers with videos of his inefficient chain-reaction machines. He’s a Rube Goldberg for the digital age.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Linda Xiao for The New York Times

Cook our satisfying polenta with Parmesan and olive oil-fried eggs.

Try “interdental scrubbers” if you’re hating dental floss.

Take our quiz to test your knowledge of the healthiest kinds of nuts.

Read a space opera, a genre that’s gone from punchline to literature.

Pick up one of these 13 lenses to level up your mirrorless Canon camera.

Play: Today’s Spelling Bee, Wordle and Mini Crossword. For more, find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

David George Gordon in 2012. Among his favorite dishes was deep-fried tarantulas. Taylor Hill/Getty Images

Bugging out

What’s that in your taco? If you were cooking with David George Gordon, it probably wasn’t braised pork or chicken; you were probably messing with grasshoppers.

Gordon, a science writer who eventually branched off to spread the gospel of (deliberate) insect consumption, wrote “The Eat-a-Bug Cookbook,” his 1998 guide to deep-frying tarantulas and sautéing crickets. It promised to help lucky readers whip up curried termite stew, larval latkes and fried green tomato hornworms. He understood that it would be a tough sell.

Gordon died last month at 76. Read how bugs ended up on his dinner plate, and why he wanted them on yours, too.

Have a scrumptious evening.

Thanks for reading. — Evan

Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Reach our team at evening@nytimes.com. And follow The New York Times on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and TikTok at @nytimes.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

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2026-09-22 NYT Evening

Tue, 22 Sep 2026 17:00:05 GMT

The Evening: Trump threatens to annihilate Iran

View in browser|nytimes.com

September 22, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Tuesday.

Trump weighs the “obliteration” of Iran
Unions rally against A.I. threats
Plus, a brotherly tribute to Princess Diana

The start of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly today. Dave Sanders for The New York Times

Trump uses his U.N. address to threaten annihilation of Iran

President Trump told the world leaders gathered for the U.N. General Assembly today in New York that he had “a big decision” to make: He could strike a deal with Iran to finally end the conflict, or he could “annihilate the Islamic Republic” altogether.

“Do I drive them into hell with no chance of survival and no hope of future greatness or generations?” Trump asked.

The president also celebrated the American military operation in Venezuela, where the U.S. has expanded its control over the country’s oil reserves. “To the victor belong the spoils,” Trump said. His comments were striking, delivered inside an institution created after World War II with the explicit goal of resolving conflicts peacefully.

Representatives from Cuba walked out of the chamber after Trump declared Cuba to be an “absolutely failed state” and promised that the government “will fall.” Iranian diplomats sat stone-faced. On the sidelines of the event, Trump’s envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, met with Iran’s foreign minister to discuss a possible deal. The president said it was a “very good meeting.”

For more:

We fact-checked Trump’s speech.
The world leaders who spoke today mostly avoided direct condemnation of the U.S., but several criticized the Iran war and Israel. Follow here for the latest.
António Guterres, the outgoing U.N. secretary general, issued a stark warning about global divisions. Here’s what to know about the search for his replacement.

Scott McIntyre for The New York Times

Trump officials eject 750,000 from Obamacare markets

The Trump administration’s anti-fraud task force has removed more than 750,000 enrollees from the Affordable Care Act insurance marketplaces. Vice President JD Vance, who leads the effort, said that the move targeted people who either did not meet the eligibility requirements or did not even exist.

In other health news: Many Americans are taking GLP-1 drugs without an apparent medical reason to do so.

Nick Hagen for The New York Times

El-Sayed campaigns with Harris, unlike many other Democrats

Kamala Harris campaigned in Detroit today alongside Abdul El-Sayed, Michigan’s Democratic nominee for the Senate. It was a rare stop for the former vice president, who has received a cold shoulder from many Democratic candidates wary of tying themselves to the unpopular Biden administration.

The visit could boost both figures. El-Sayed — who is in a tight race in a state Trump won in 2024 — needs to shore up his support from Black voters and moderates. (It’s not clear that Tucker Carlson’s support will help.) Harris is trying to maintain her influence as she considers a presidential run.

One of Harris’s potential primary opponents, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, recently talked to us about how she is thinking about 2028: “Life doesn’t wait for you to be ready.”

For more on politics:

Hispanic voters are abandoning Trump. See the numbers.
Americans have a pervasive sense that they are being lied to, our reporter found.
Low-budget paid creators are flooding the web with political messaging.

Tim Suitter, president of the union that represents ship builders at Bath Iron Works. Ryan David Brown for The New York Times

Unions are rallying around the threat of A.I.

The sudden ubiquity of artificial intelligence has galvanized a labor movement that has been on its back foot for years. Many unions are now putting concerns about the technology at the top of their agenda, warning that A.I. could soon cause massive job losses and widen the gap between wages and corporate profits. The machinists union has been particularly proactive, demanding A.I. transparency in its contracts.

For more:

A fake, A.I.-generated photo of Trump kissing a woman who resembled his personal assistant, Natalie Harp, spread widely on social media.
Our reporter let Muse, Meta’s A.I. assistant, handle dental insurance, book dinner reservations and create a podcast. Here’s how it went.

MORE TOP NEWS

Weather: Hurricane Polo, off Mexico’s west coast, barely existed yesterday. Now it’s a Category 5 storm.
Washington: The F.B.I. shut down an investigation into a political adviser to Senator Susan Collins.
Texas: Our visual investigations team revealed new details about the shooting of Wilber Rafael Garces Perez by an ICE agent in Austin.
Education: For the first time in 15 years, Princeton lost its spot atop the U.S. News & World Report college rankings.
South Carolina: Hayden Panettiere’s death was caused by the toxic effects of fentanyl and other drugs.
Brain health: New research has provided hope that C.T.E. could be detected in living patients.
Massachusetts: Clavicular, a male beauty influencer known for “looksmaxxing,” was charged with giving a 17-year-old girl vodka on a livestream and raping her.
Science: Found in volcanic streams in California, a newfound organism has the highest heat tolerance of any complex life on Earth.

SURVEILLANCE

The New York Times

Since May, the Coast Guard has deployed six surveillance drones — operated by a private company — across the Great Lakes to stop the modest flow of drugs and illegal border crossings from Canada. Take a look.

TIME TO UNWIND

Princess Diana in 1989. Phil O'Brien/PA, via Reuters

A brotherly tribute to Diana, with no holds barred

In this week’s buzziest new memoir, Earl Spencer revisits the days surrounding the death of Princess Diana, his sister. The pages are full of love and vengefulness. In one section, Spencer describes telephone conversations he says he had with Prince Charles (now the king) after Diana’s death. “They read like grenades lobbed lazily over a fence and intended to destroy everything in a neighbor’s yard,” my colleague Sarah Lyall writes. Read our review and our takeaways.

Ella Langley in May. Mario Anzuoni/Reuters

Mariah Carey is no longer the ruler of the singles chart

Ella Langley’s song “Choosin’ Texas,” an old-fashioned country ballad about a two-state love triangle, has now spent 23 weeks at the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart. That’s the longest any song has ever held the top spot, surpassing the previous record set by Mariah Carey’s holiday staple “All I Want for Christmas Is You.”

Our critic Wesley Morris wanted to understand what’s behind its staying power. He sat down with a chart expert to get some answers.

The New York Times

On this day in history

One hundred and sixty-four years ago today, then-President Abraham Lincoln issued the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring that enslaved people in states still in rebellion would be free. The Times labeled the news “HIGHLY IMPORTANT” on the front page. See it here. (We made it free for all Evening readers.)

Ceci n’est pas une cravate. Steve O. Smith

Dinner table topics

This is not a tie. But it’s also not not a tie. My colleague Jacob Gallagher explains why he couldn’t stop thinking about it.
Can you kick your dog out of your bed without hurting your bond?
Paris is swooning for Celine Dion, who has embarked on her first solo tour of France since the pandemic.
A Bolivian painter’s work was once saved from the dumpster. Now it hangs in major museums.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Cook this crunchy yet tender Korean fried chicken.

Watch “Megadoc,” or one of our other under-the-radar streaming picks.

Get inspired by our fashion photographer’s secondhand look of the week.

Clean your fridge the easy way.

Take our quiz to see how much you know about the history of American book clubs.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Montana Levi Blanco, right, with Timothy Church, the Met Opera’s costume production supervisor. Lila Barth for The New York Times

Opera history is being torn up, and transformed

Montana Levi Blanco knew he was taking on a tall task when he agreed to design nearly 800 costumes for back-to-back productions at the Metropolitan Opera this fall. But he had a plan: He would raid the Met’s costume archives and slash up, dye or otherwise alter clothes from operas of decades past. The Met gave him the green light.

So Levi Blanco began ripping apart the work of his design idols. He took scissors to a brocade suit designed in the 1960s by Franco Zeffirelli, and he spattered red paint on silk gowns that Milena Canonero made for “Tosca” in 2009. Take a look at some of his designs.

Have an adaptable evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Keith Bedford was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

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2026-09-23 NYT Evening

Wed, 23 Sep 2026 18:00:06 GMT

The Evening: Iran defiant at U.N.

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September 23, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Wednesday.

Iran’s president delivers a defiant speech
Hackers say they stole F.B.I. records
Plus, a 6-year-old virtuoso

President Masoud Pezeshkian at the U.N. General Assembly today. Dave Sanders for The New York Times

At the U.N., Iran says it will not give up its nuclear program

Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, delivered a defiant speech today in front of the U.N. General Assembly in Manhattan. He accused the U.S. of flouting international law by targeting civilian infrastructure, he said that Iran would never accept limits on its civilian nuclear program and he promised that his country would defend itself until “its last breath.” Pezeshkian left the door open, though, for peace talks.

As he spoke, the lone American diplomat sitting in the hall left. It was the first time in the U.N.’s 81-year history that the president of a country at war with the U.S. had set foot in New York City to address the Assembly. Earlier this year, Pezeshkian was helping run his country from an underground bunker, shielding himself from American aerial attacks. Now, he is being protected by the Secret Service, allowing him to cruise through the city in convoys of S.U.V.s.

“Iran must be powerful to avoid being threatened,” Pezeshkian said, promising that his country would not be bullied by the U.S. His speech, unlike those by many other leaders over the years, only barely exceeded the U.N.’s 15-minute limit. (Fidel Castro, for example, spoke for four and a half hours in 1960.)

For more:

Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, warned in his speech to the U.N. body that Russia’s “ridiculous and never-ending war” would soon spread to other parts of Europe. He also called for increased economic pressure on Moscow.
Police increased security around the U.N. headquarters after three people emerged from a manhole.

Xi Jinping and President Trump in Beijing in May. Kenny Holston/The New York Times

A.I. is on the agenda when Trump and Xi meet

Around the time this newsletter arrives in your inbox, President Xi Jinping of China is expected to arrive in the U.S. at a military base outside the nation’s capital. President Trump is planning to offer the Chinese leader a rare greeting on the tarmac and a state dinner tomorrow night.

When Trump and Xi sit down to meet, there will be no shortage of items to discuss. But no topic has captured global fascination like the possibility of a deal between the countries on the development of artificial intelligence. My colleagues explain why U.S. A.I. models have an edge, and where China has other advantages.

For more:

More Americans are seeing China in a positive light, according to new polls.
Our newsletter The World has a guide to their meeting.

The F.B.I. building in Washington, D.C. Tierney L. Cross/The New York Times

Hackers say they stole thousands of F.B.I. records

A prolific criminal hacking group said that it had stolen sensitive personnel information belonging to thousands of F.B.I. officials. The breach, if confirmed, would amount to a stunning theft of private data for the nation’s top law enforcement agency.

The hackers, who call themselves ShinyHunters, said the records had been stolen from an online jobs portal. Cybersecurity experts said the breach appeared authentic: Yesterday, the F.B.I. jobs website featured a banner that read, “THIS SITE HAS BEEN SEIZED BY SHINYHUNTERS.”

Federico Rios for The New York Times Magazine

Change is coming for an Indigenous group in Panama

As a child, Ben Ryder Howe joined his father in his studies of the Guna people, who live in the vicinity of the forbidding Darién Gap in Panama. For 500 years, they have kept outsiders at a remove, despite their region’s potential as a trade route. Now, though, they’re considering a highway that would run through their land. For the Times Magazine, Ryder Howe traveled to Panama to figure out why.

More top news

Media: A federal judge said he would rule on Trump’s ban on media outlets “as soon as possible” but left it in place for now.
Court: After being convicted last year of committing a criminal sexual act against a former production assistant, Harvey Weinstein was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Washington: Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. accepted $4 million in book advances from political allies, possibly violating federal rules.
ICE: A U.S. citizen in suburban Chicago was left with injuries to his head, neck and teeth after he was mistakenly detained by federal immigration agents over the weekend.
Weather: The East Coast could be walloped by a powerful, unusual September nor’easter this week. Here’s the forecast.
Education: Phil Knight, the co-founder of Nike, made a $1 billion donation to the University of Oregon, the largest known contribution to a flagship university.
Electric vehicles: School districts have tried to adopt electric school buses, but new models have proved expensive and unreliable, and lack sufficient range.
Theme park: Three people sued Six Flags, saying they had sustained brain injuries after riding the X2 roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Southern California.
Russia: Our reporter has been working in Moscow since 2021, and her grocery receipts show how bad inflation has been there.

THE EVENING QUIZ

This question comes from a recent edition of the newsletter. Click an answer to see if you’re right. (The link is free.)

For the first time in 15 years, which school was knocked off the top of the U.S. News & World Report’s rankings?

TIME TO UNWIND

Timothy O’Connell for The New York Times

Weird Al shows are a father-son paradise

Alfred Yankovic — affectionately known as Weird Al — has been America’s foremost song parodist since the 1980s, when he memorably transformed Michael Jackson's “Beat It” into “Eat It.” Now, many men of that era are flocking to Weird Al’s new tour, along with their sons.

Our Culture reporter Melena Ryzik recently experienced it first hand, along with her 9-year-old son. One father she spoke with brought three sons, who all enjoyed Weird Al’s parodies, even though they weren’t very familiar with the original tunes. One 73-year-old dad brought his 42-year-old son. Another noticed that he and his 12-year-old both related to the music: “We don’t get any more mature,” he told Melena. “We just get bigger.”

Atul Loke for The New York Times

At 92, the bard of Bollywood is still writing about love

Over six decades in Mumbai, the poet known as Gulzar has had an outsize role in shaping the idea of tender romance in India. He has funneled his imagination into children’s books and short stories, and has provided lyrics to more than 150 Bollywood musicals. Now, at 92, he sat down with our South Asia bureau chief for a rare interview, and reflected on his continued wonder at the beauty in the mundane. It’s a great read.

Simbarashe Cha/The New York Times

Dinner table topics

According to Prada, all you need is a knee-length skirt.
Patrick O’Connell built an opulent culinary kingdom. Who will inherit the keys?
For some rail fans, nothing beats the luxury of a private train car. Take a look inside.
It’s a great time to be a guy who loves his cat.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Bobbi Lin for The New York Times

Cook this citrus-dressed salmon dish for a satisfying weeknight dinner.

Read Phoebe Atwood Taylor’s “The Cape Cod Mystery” if you love Agatha Christie.

Make a plan to see one of these five Off Broadway shows.

Help your garden cope with heavy rain this fall.

Use this list as inspiration to stop doomscrolling.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

via Associated Press

A 6-year-old Rubik’s Cube virtuoso

It’s incredible to watch Lian Yunzhi do her thing. She picks up a randomly mixed Rubik’s Cube from the table, spends just a few seconds spinning it at blinding speed and then drops it back down — fully solved. She may be just 6 years old, but Yunzhi has already conquered the world of speed cubing.

At a recent competition in China, she broke the women’s world record by solving five cubes in an average of 4.52 seconds. Three days later, she lowered her own record to 4.27 seconds. Think you can beat her? Good luck. Yunzhi’s mother told a Chinese news outlet that her daughter practices two to three hours a day.

Have a swift evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Philip Pacheco was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

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2026-09-24 NYT Evening

Thu, 24 Sep 2026 17:00:19 GMT

The Evening: Trump talks up friendship with Xi

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September 24, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Thursday.

Trump hosts Xi for a state dinner
Mortgage rates hit 7 percent
Plus, a helping hand for baby turtles

The official welcome at the White House today. Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times

Trump hosts his ‘friend,’ the Chinese leader, for state visit

President Trump welcomed his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, to the White House today with a lavish ceremony and repeated praise. A B-2 stealth bomber flew overhead and a military band played in the Rose Garden as service members hoisted Chinese and American flags outside the Oval Office. The two leaders, Trump said, had a “truly great friendship.”

Xi struck a much more businesslike tone, focusing on matters of geopolitics, including Chinese companies’ access to U.S. markets. The contrast, our White House reporter David Sanger said, underscored Trump’s view of success with Beijing: that it depends largely on the personal chemistry between the two leaders. Trump gave Xi a tour of the White House ballroom site, which he has said is inspired in part by Beijing’s Great Hall of the People.

Trump met with Xi for roughly three hours today, but few expect the visit to produce significant agreements. Perhaps the most excitement came when Xi announced that China would soon be sending two pandas to Atlanta’s zoo.

Later this evening, Trump is hosting a state dinner for Xi, with a three-course menu that includes sesame-crusted sea bass and sour cherry confit. The guest list includes a number of high-profile American executives, particularly in the tech sector.

Jillian Vordick/The New York Times

Mortgage rates hit 7 percent

The average rate on a 30-year mortgage — the most common home loan in America — rose to 7.03 percent today. That’s about one percentage point higher than it was just seven months ago, and more than four points higher than in early 2021.

Rates have steadily increased since the war in Iran began in February, making it more expensive to borrow money to buy a home. The higher rates are weighing on an already moribund housing market: In August, sales of existing homes hit their lowest level in more than a year.

Attendees walking out during Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech at the U.N. Dave Sanders for The New York Times

Israeli and Palestinian leaders deliver forceful U.N. speeches

Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, delivered a fiery speech to the U.N. General Assembly today, defending the wars in Gaza and Iran as battles “against barbarians” and accusing Israel’s critics of being hypocrites.

Dozens of delegates walked out of the hall in protest as Netanyahu took the podium, while supporters chanted “Am Yisrael Chai,” meaning “the nation of Israel lives.” Outside the building, on the streets of New York, hundreds protested the Israeli leader.

Hours earlier, the Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, spoke to the Assembly virtually because the U.S. had refused to grant him a visa. He portrayed Israeli actions in Gaza and the West Bank as “a malicious colonial scheme” and called for a two-state solution.

Philip Cheung for The New York Times

The A.I. race is heading to outer space

Google says it is just a week away from sending a refrigerator-size satellite into orbit that will have enough computing power to answer simple A.I. queries. The launch would be the first major step toward the goal of establishing an A.I. data center in space. The Times got an inside look.

Many tech titans, including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Sam Altman, have pledged support for such orbital data centers. They are designed, in part, to solve concerns over power, because the satellites run on the sun’s rays. But some experts question whether the idea is feasible. Here’s what to know.

MORE TOP NEWS

Washington: CNN, MS NOW and Politico journalists were allowed back onto the White House grounds. But the TV pool remains suspended.
Politics: A new ad promoting Trump in right-wing outlets carries the disclaimer “Paid for by the U.S. government.”
Voting: The Department of Homeland Security told Nevada that it had improperly allowed 185 noncitizens to register to vote. Nevada said the agency was wrong about all 185 cases.
West Bank: The son of Israel’s ambassador to the U.S. was critically injured after a Palestinian man rammed his car into a military checkpoint.
Russia: The country has largely been locked out of the global financial system, but one Moscow firm uses crypto and shell companies to power the Kremlin’s war machine.
Brazil: An explosive scandal has ensnared the Supreme Court justice who jailed former President Jair Bolsonaro, shaking up the presidential election.
Health: The use of A.I. by hospitals and insurers is driving up medical costs.
Crime: Investigators in Idaho recently solved the “Unknown Wanderer” cold case after nearly 45 years, concluding that it might have a connection to the 1982 Tylenol killings.

TIME TO UNWIND

David Billet for The New York Times

51 seasons in, Jeff Probst isn’t done with ‘Survivor’

Since it began in 2000, “Survivor,” has been the standard-bearer for unscripted television. It is part game show, part character drama, and no one has played a more significant role in shaping it than Jeff Probst, who has hosted every season and been the showrunner since 2010.

Ahead of last night’s Season 51 premiere, Probst joined our pop culture chat show, Popcast, for a discussion about the evolution of the show — and himself. Listen here.

Kenny Holston/The New York Times

Seven ways to make air travel less stressful

Ahead of a flight, I try not to think too much about potential delays, because they’re out of my control. But our Frugal Traveler columnist, Elaine Glusac, has proactive recommendations to avoid trouble.

For one, she suggests taking the first flight of the day, which is more likely to take off on time. And a tight connection? Don’t even try it these days. See all her tips.

Planning your next trip? Consider New Orleans. We’ve got a fun-packed 36-hour itinerary.

Adali Schell for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

At 98, the composer Thea Musgrave says she is still learning.
The industry for catios — yes, that is a cat patio — is growing.
What happens when a “tradwife” leaves her husband? Bernadine Barber is finding out.
Is it unprofessional to bring iced coffee to a job interview?

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Andrew Bui for The New York Times

Make these extra-crispy, extra-melty mozzarella skewers.

Watch “The Scout,” an evocative film that looks at New York City through the eyes of a location scout.

Get the perks of a 5-star hotel — without booking a room.

Keep your pet hydrated with one of Wirecutter’s favorite water fountains.

Hunt: Which house in the English countryside would you buy with a $500,000 budget?

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

The New York Times

A helping hand for baby turtles

Staten Island was once home to our planet’s biggest garbage dump. Now, on that same patch of land, a new “turtle garden” provides a haven for diamondback terrapins, the only North American turtles that live in brackish water.

This summer, workers moved newly laid terrapin eggs into the garden to protect them from predators. This week, they brought the Oreo-size hatchlings to a nearby kayak launch and released them into the water. See them go.

Have a thriving evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Philip Pacheco was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

You received this email because you signed up for The Evening from The New York Times.

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The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018

2026-09-25 NYT Evening

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 18:00:05 GMT

The Evening: Justices allow voter screening

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September 25, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Friday.

Justices allow voter screening database
East Coast braces for potent storm
Plus, meet a group of cultured raccoons

Zack Wittman for The New York Times

Supreme Court allows tool to screen voters

The Supreme Court ruled today that the Trump administration could deploy a national database, using sensitive data including citizenship information and Social Security numbers, to help states hunt for ineligible voters.

The decision is a win for President Trump, who has been pressing his administration to prove that noncitizens are voting illegally, despite evidence that it is very rare. However, states are unlikely to remove large numbers of voters off their rolls before November’s midterms because federal law mandates a 90-day “quiet period” before elections.

The court’s three liberal justices dissented from today’s decision, with Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson warning that states could use the online system to cancel registrations of some valid voters. Past searches have sometimes mistakenly flagged U.S. citizens as noncitizens.

People in Gloucester, Mass., prepared for the nor’easter today. Robert F. Bukaty/Associated Press

Powerful storms threaten corners of the U.S.

A potent nor’easter has been crawling up the Eastern Seaboard. The storm is expected to stall just off New Jersey until early next week, bringing strong winds, coastal flooding and heavy rain to the region. Airlines have encouraged customers to keep an eye on its shifting path. See the forecast near you.

At the same time, Hurricane Nolo is spinning toward Hawaii, threatening areas still recovering from two other storms in recent weeks. Parts of the state could receive nearly three feet of rain.

For more:

The nor’easter is likely to be the first of several East Coast storms to follow this path over the next few months, driven by a developing El Niño weather pattern.
Watch this video to see how A.I. is reshaping the National Weather Service.

President Xi Jinping of China and President Trump, today in Washington. Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times

Trump-Xi summit ends with little known progress

President Xi Jinping of China concluded his three-day visit to Washington with tea at the White House and a brief tour of the National Archives. And just like yesterday, Trump was effusive in praising his Chinese counterpart, calling Xi a “spectacular” person.

But beneath the pomp, the two leaders did not seem to make any notable strides on significant matters of tension between the U.S. and China, like A.I., trade or the war in Iran. Xi’s decision to spend all of his time in the nation’s capital, and none at the U.N. General Assembly in New York, underscored how ineffectual the international body has become.

Related: Trump presented Xi with a statue of a bald eagle, his go-to gift.

The New York Times

ICE’s silent surge

Federal immigration arrests have, over the past few months, soared to record highs. This happened far more quietly than the crackdown earlier this year that led to public outrage, protests and the killing of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis. Instead of high-profile surges into individual cities, our reporters found, agents fanned out across nearly every corner of the country and worked with local law enforcement to target people accused of violating civil immigration laws.

In a review of dozens of incidents caught on camera, The Times showed how ICE agents carried out arrests at hospitals and airports, outside suburban schools and along rural construction sites.

More top news

New Jersey: Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell resigned after a report found ethical violations such as trying to promote his girlfriend.
Israel: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is said to have been warned by the U.A.E. before Oct. 7 of an impending Hamas attack. The warning never reached Israeli security officials.
Washington: Whistle-blowers said the Kennedy Center delayed a plan to repair leaks that officials now cite as serious safety risks.
Politics: Trump is planning to rally in deep-red states like Oklahoma and Alabama as his party faces headwinds in several battlegrounds.
Wildfires: Millions of people in Indonesia have been living for months under a stifling blanket of toxic haze.
Celebrity: An anonymous woman who accused Jay-Z of rape in 2024 recanted her account.
Books: A man who stole hundreds of manuscripts swore he’d never do it again. Either he is back or someone is copying his tactics.
Sports: The name of a racehorse, Austrian Painter, was changed after a complaint suggested it was a nickname for Hitler.
Food: Sunkist Fruit Gems, long a staple at bar and bat mitzvahs, are being discontinued after a century.
Poopmaster: Edward Lehner, who helped transform New York sidewalks by making people pick up after their dogs, died at 93.

TIME TO UNWIND

Find your next show

Not everyone is going to agree with our list of the 100 best television shows of the 21st century, based on the views of 500 of the industry’s leading figures. And that’s a good thing. You can cast your own ballot here, and discuss snubs and surprises in the comments.

Or you could view the list less as an argument and more as a guide. Why not take a scroll through it and find something to watch on your next lazy weekend — perhaps tomorrow, if you’re rained out. I, for one, have been meaning to give “The Bureau” (No. 54 of the list!) a try.

The New York Times

Fashion trends keep repeating themselves

Clothing styles have changed a lot since The Times was first published 175 years ago. But as we reflected on the anniversary and looked back over our archives, it became clear that many trends kept popping up decade after decade.

Take, for example, the animal prints worn by high-society dames of the 1920s and by runway models in recent years; or aviator sunglasses, which began as a tool for 1930s fighter pilots. See our full list of repeating trends.

Juan Arredondo for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

Meet Grand Central’s “brass master,” who keeps the station polished all year long.
Our latest Modern Love column explores the joys of finding a partner in your 70s.
Iran used to host the best parties in Washington. Alcohol flowed freely, and celebrities like Frank Sinatra and Elizabeth Taylor were among the drinkers.
Pick your favorite Swedish waterfront home.

WHAT TO DO THIS WEEKEND

Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Yossy Arefi.

Bake this plush apple crumb cake and share it with your family.

Read “Switzy” along with our Book Review Book Club, and join in the conversation.

Consider how drinking affects your dementia risk.

Try a store-bought retinoid to improve your skin. It can be just as good as the prescription stuff.

Take this week’s news quiz.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

The New York Times

These raccoons are cultured

On the resort island of Cozumel, Mexico, a young raccoon was spotted picking up a discarded receipt, dunking it in water and rolling it into a ball for her to bat around in her paws. Then, surprisingly, she showed her family how to make similar balls out of trash and play with them, too.

It was the first documented evidence that raccoons have culture, which scientists define as information or behaviors transmitted through learning rather than heredity. The inventive raccoon’s mother at one point tried and failed to make a ball, apparently because she was drunk after slurping down a bit too much of a vacationer’s abandoned margarita.

Have a playful weekend.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back on Monday. — Matthew

Keith Bedford was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

You received this email because you signed up for The Evening from The New York Times.

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The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018

2026-09-28 NYT Evening

Mon, 28 Sep 2026 18:00:05 GMT

The Evening: Trump slashes fuel efficiency rules

View in browser|nytimes.com

September 28, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Monday.

Trump scales back fuel efficiency rules
Cornell assault investigation is reopened
Plus, a phone-free concert

Kenny Holston/The New York Times

Trump sharply scales back fuel economy rules

The Trump administration announced today that it had finalized a plan to significantly reduce fuel efficiency standards for new automobiles. The move was a significant step in President Trump’s effort to reverse the Biden-era campaign to speed America’s shift to electric vehicles.

Under the new rules, carmakers will be required to achieve an average fuel efficiency of 34.9 miles per gallon for cars and light trucks by the model year 2031. That’s far below the standard of 50.4 miles per gallon set by Biden, and pretty close to the levels that new cars already achieve.

President Trump has championed the scaled-back demands as a way to lower car prices. Critics argue that the change will cost drivers in the long run and reduce American manufacturers’ competitiveness. They also say the move will undermine efforts to address climate change, which Trump has called a “hoax.”

In other Trump administration news:

Andrew Bailey, a deputy director at the F.B.I., is leaving the job after a little more than a year.
In an internal memo, the F.B.I. said it believed that the hackers known as ShinyHunters may have stolen sensitive information on all of its employees.
The White House asked the Supreme Court to clear the way for federal prison officials to stop providing certain gender-transition medical treatments to transgender inmates.

Fernando Alfonso/The New York Times

Republicans plan a major ad blitz to protect vulnerable seats

In Texas and Ohio, two states that Trump won by double digits in 2024, Republicans are on the defensive. The party has booked nearly $52 million in TV and radio ads this week, compared with $10.2 million by their opponents.

James Talarico, the Texas Democrat, is polling ahead of Ken Paxton, the Trump-backed Republican. Crucially, it appears that Black voters have warmed to Talarico’s candidacy. In Ohio, many voters seem to think that Sherrod Brown, the Democratic challenger, is actually the incumbent.

To follow all of the key races closely, sign up for our Poll Tracker newsletter.

Finbarr O'Reilly for The New York Times

Russia strikes the heart of Kyiv

In the middle of the workday today in Ukraine’s capital, a Russian jet-powered drone slammed into the National Academy of Sciences. The attack set the top two floors of the institution behind nearly all of the country’s major scientific discoveries ablaze. Images showed workers crawling out of the windows, awaiting rescue.

The strike, which killed at least one person and injured six, was part of what has become daily life in Kyiv, where a stroll down the street is now often punctuated by the rat-a-tat of air-defense guns. Ukrainian defenses have struggled to knock down the new jet-powered drones.

For more: My colleague Valerie Hopkins spoke with Russians who have lost family members in the war. Many accept the Kremlin’s line, that the fighting must continue.

Heather Ainsworth for The New York Times

Investigation into Cornell assault is reopened

After outrage over allegations in a new lawsuit, a New York prosecutor said today that he would reopen an investigation into accusations of a 2024 sexual assault at Cornell University.

In the lawsuit, a woman asserted that she had been plied with alcohol and drugs and raped by multiple men at the Chi Phi fraternity house when she was a 20-year-old undergraduate. She said she had reported the incident to university police several weeks later, but that no criminal charges were filed by prosecutors.

More top news

Business: Nvidia said that it would spend another $150 billion buying back its own shares, adding to what it said was the largest repurchase in history.
Britain: Counterterrorism police said that five men arrested in connection with a possible terror plot at a military base used by the U.S. were being released on bail.
Middle East: Satellite images show that during the Gaza cease-fire, Israel has expanded its control in the Palestinian territory, fortifying positions and building outposts.
Space: SpaceX’s Starship reached orbit for the first time.
Mining: The Trump administration has brokered deals within the notoriously corrupt Venezuelan gold industry, but U.S. refiners won’t touch them.
Arts: Ann Temkin, the first woman to become chief curator of painting and sculpture at the Museum of Modern Art, said she is stepping down after 18 years.
Sports: Brandon McNulty became the first American cycling world champion in 33 years.
Americans: Researchers looked back at the baby-boom era and found that federal mortgage programs had played a part in increasing the country’s birth rate.
Pets: A study of interactions between dogs and bears found that dogs are slightly more likely to be the aggressors, and that they’ll often, but not always, protect their owners.

SCIENCE

Julia van Etten, center, in May 2024. Julia van Etten

A young biologist turned an $80 hotel room into a makeshift lab, and discovered two new species of a rare organism that could illuminate the history of life on Earth.

TIME TO UNWIND

Brendan Hoffman for The New York Times

What it’s like at a phone-free concert

When Phoebe Bridgers performs her new album tonight in Philadelphia, not a single audience member will be holding up a phone. That’s a major departure from many other popular concerts, but Bridgers says that banning devices is the only way she is comfortable retuning to the stage.

At a previous stop on Bridgers’s tour, our critic Lindsay Zoladz noticed that fans were forced to be “present.” Read about what it was like.

For more: We talked to Harry Styles fans about how much they were willing to pay to see him during his 30-night New York residency.

Lee Klafczynski for The New York Times

Backyard ultramarathons have become surprisingly popular

An ultramarathon is any race longer than 26.2 miles. So-called backyard ultramarathons can be much more grueling: Runners must complete a 4.167-mile loop once each hour. If they finish early, they can rest for the remainder of the hour. If they fail to finish a lap, they are eliminated. The race only ends when the competitors give up. Some go on for days.

The challenge is particularly appealing for endurance athletes, who are eager to test their physical limits in a race that does not require fast speeds. It has caught on widely, with more than 700 such races on the calendar for the coming year.

Sinna Nasseri for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

Meet the real Kyle MacLachlan, an onscreen weirdo who says he is really quite a normie.
Can a bra be a top? The idea was tested on the red carpet at last night’s MTV Music Awards.
We asked experts to rank 30 different ideas for fixing U.S. schools. Here’s what they said.
A $40 cocktail shaped Singapore’s acclaimed bar scene over the last century.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Kelly Marshall for The New York Times

Cook this hearty and fancy-feeling broccoli-farro salad.

Watch five pivotal dance scenes from “Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!”

Read “Holding Lightning,” about the misunderstood legacy of Whitney Houston.

Pack a small first-aid kit for your next trip. Here’s what to bring.

Make the most of your old iPhone’s new features.

Take the latest Flashback history quiz.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Miriam Martincic

Do you want to eat the forest?

It’s no accident that flavors like pine, spruce and sage keep popping up in restaurants, coffee shops and ice cream makers across the country. Customers are flocking to them, food industry analysts say.

Why exactly the trend has taken off is a more complicated question, our food reporter Kim Severson found. Marketing is part of the equation, as is the influence of gourmet food (in this case, New Nordic cuisine). Experts also suggested that the woodsy flavors could be appealing to frazzled consumers who want to reconnect with nature in our intensely digital era.

Have a vivid evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Philip Pacheco was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

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2026-09-29 NYT Evening

Tue, 29 Sep 2026 18:00:05 GMT

The Evening: A.I. goes to D.C.

View in browser|nytimes.com

September 29, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Tuesday.

Trump meets with A.I. leaders
ICE is planning a hiring surge
Plus, playoff baseball has arrived

The offices of OpenAI in San Francisco. Lucas Foglia for The New York Times

Trump says A.I. leaders are making the world ‘safer’

Many of the world’s most powerful tech executives spent this afternoon at the White House, where they joined President Trump for a lunch meeting about artificial intelligence. The group included some voices calling for a slowdown in A.I., and others who say that the fretting is an overreaction.

But Trump, who called the executives “the greatest, most brilliant people” in the world, punted on any decision on formal A.I. regulations, beyond asking executives to rebrand it. The technology should be called “super intelligence,” the president said, because “it’s not artificial.”

Attendees signed a voluntary agreement to adopt safety regulations that include risk reviews, auditing and evaluations of systems by third parties. They also agreed to adopt Trump’s “super intelligence” rebranding.

Polls show that many Americans have grown concerned about the risks of A.I. and the data centers it runs on. Warnings have grown louder after some A.I. models, including one belonging to OpenAI, carried out hacks without being instructed to. Months before the OpenAI’s systems went rogue, two employees raised the alarm with top executives. They were ignored, The Times learned.

For more:

College leaders are using A.I. Students are calling them out.
The A.I. giant Anthropic consulted religious scholars to help instill morality into its models — and make the case that they could be conscious.
Will A.I. make your brain lazy? Here’s what the research shows.

Todd Heisler/The New York Times

ICE prepares for another hiring surge

After a $100 billion infusion from Congress, ICE is aiming to add 5,000 new employees by the end of the year. Most of the recruits are intended to sustain the president’s aggressive deportation campaign, during which officers have been asked to work seven days a week.

ICE, which has already grown by nearly 40 percent since Trump took office, tried a similar hiring surge last year. But the speed of the recruitment allowed in many undervetted officers, and the agency had to remove hundreds of them. The agency plans to use stricter hiring standards, according to a person familiar with the procedures.

In related news: The Supreme Court temporarily allowed the U.S. to continue deporting immigrants to countries other than their own without giving them an opportunity to contest their removals.

George Walker IV/Associated Press

A nuclear reactor gets the green light in Tennessee

The Tennessee Valley Authority received permission today to build a new type of nuclear reactor that is designed to be much smaller, and easier to build, than traditional nuclear power plants. It was just the second time that U.S. regulators have approved the construction of a next-generation commercial reactor.

The Trump administration says it wants to quadruple the country’s nuclear power by 2050, and many Democrats have also embraced the technology because it can run without emitting greenhouse gases.

Clockwise from top left: Chip Thomas, Felipe De Brigard, Immanuel Wilkins, Holly Jean Buck, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

Meet the MacArthur ‘genius grant’ winners

The MacArthur Foundation announced a new group of 20 “genius grant” fellows, who will receive an $800,000, no-strings-attached stipend for their “exceptional creativity” in the arts, humanities and sciences.

The selection process is secret, so some of the winners were shocked when they received an out-of-the-blue call informing them of the award. This year’s fellows include Chip Thomas, a physician who makes large-scale photo murals, and Immanuel Wilkins, an alto jazz saxophonist. See the full list.

More top news

New York City: A judge ordered the city to scrap its rollout of a tax on high-end second homes.
Washington: Jack Smith, the former special counsel who charged Trump, testified before Congress. A Republican senator accused him of perjury over what appeared to be the lawmaker’s confusion over two basketball teams.
Middle East: Israel’s Supreme Court ordered the military to ensure a West Bank family that fled violence could go back. Settlers blocked them anyway.
Russia: Evan Gershkovich, the Wall Street Journal reporter who was imprisoned in Russia for 16 months, described his ordeal and the moment that nearly broke him in an interview with The Times.
New York: Student journalists at the Cornell Daily Sun led reporting on 2024 rape allegations at a campus fraternity and never let it go. They talked to us about their work.
Health: Evidence suggests that the issue with A.D.H.D. is not attention but “sustained engagement.” Here’s why it’s an important difference.
Utah: Douglas Carter spent 37 years on death row. New DNA testing led a judge to free him.
Food: Sunkist Fruit Gems, a beloved kosher jelly candy synonymous with some bar and bat mitzvahs, has been salvaged from discontinuation.

A CENTRAL PARK ARTIST

Julie Glassberg for The New York Times

Francis Lee Rogers lived in Central Park for decades, where she gained a following for her bird paintings. On Sunday, she was found dead, beaten and stabbed in the gazebo where she slept.

TIME TO UNWIND

Lee Krasner’s “Bald Eagle” (1955). Pollock-Krasner Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York; Photograph by Yuvraj Khanna for The New York Times

Lee Krasner is finally getting her share of the spotlight

Lee Krasner was both a critically acclaimed abstract artist and the wife of the superstar painter Jackson Pollock. Though for much of her career, she was thought of more so as the latter.

Now, a new show at the Metropolitan Museum of Art is hoping to reset the record. It presents Krasner’s work alongside — and often ahead of — Pollock's famous drip paintings. Allow our critic to guide you through the show’s major pieces.

The Atlanta Dream and Washington Mystics during Game One of their series on Sunday. Paras Griffin/Getty Images

We’re entering the peak of the sports calender

Football season is in full swing. The W.N.B.A. playoffs are underway. The N.H.L. just dropped the puck in North Carolina, beginning a new season. The N.B.A. season is around the corner. And M.L.B.’s postseason started this afternoon. What a time to be alive!

Tonight, I’ll be tuning into the Red Sox-Yankees game, a high-stakes clash between two historic rivals whose fans are similarly pessimistic about their title hopes.

If you read just one sports story tonight, make it this dispatch from Rockford, Ill., where the women’s baseball stars of the 1940s and ’50s — made famous by “A League of Their Own” — passed the baton.

The Stonington Opera House in Stonington, Maine. Ryan David Brown for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

Maine’s historic opera houses have survived fires and floods because they were always about more than classical music. Take a look.
What does it mean for clothes to look “human”? See how designers are flirting with the idea.
The author Sebastian Barry has made a career of mining his family history. But he kept one story buried.
An English globe maker works entirely by hand, using Renaissance-era techniques.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.

Make this tender blueberry lemon cornmeal cake.

Read Ayad Akhtar’s “The Radiance.” Our critic gave it a rave review.

Watch “Showgirls,” the lurid 1995 film that has become a camp favorite.

Keep an eye out for these five gastrointestinal symptoms.

Shop for vintage jewelry like a pro, with these tips.

Take our quiz to see how well you know autumnal book quotes.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Mike MacStudy’s commemorative tattoo. Dylan Andresen

Don’t finish last in these fantasy football leagues

Every week during the N.F.L. season, millions of armchair quarterbacks set up fantasy football rosters. Many compete over a small wad of cash, or simply bragging rights. But that’s not enough for Gabby Gonzalez’s fantasy league, which is leaning toward dunking the last-place finisher into a giant vat of Raising Cane’s dipping sauce.

Similarly wacky punishments have become somewhat common in this era of social media one-upmanship. After last season, one last-place finisher got a wizard tattoo. Another had to walk 26.2 miles while eating one hot dog per mile; he called it a “meat marathon.”

Have a creative evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Keith Bedford was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

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2026-09-30 NYT Evening

Wed, 30 Sep 2026 17:00:06 GMT

The Evening: A narrowly averted disaster

View in browser|nytimes.com

September 30, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Wednesday.

Passengers intervene after pilot stabbing
A Kelvin wave is heading to California
Plus, Hollywood tough guys get personal

The FlyDubai plane at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv today. Erik Marmor/Getty Images

A plane to Israel narrowly averts disaster

A morning flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv turned into a scene of chaos and terror after one pilot stabbed another, causing the plane to plunge more than 17,000 feet. Passengers and crew charged the cockpit and subdued the attacker, allowing two off-duty pilots to make a safe emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.

Much is still unknown about the incident, including what caused the violent altercation. Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said the pilot-assailant seemed to be attempting to crash the plane, which was carrying at least 160 passengers.

The pilot and co-pilot were hospitalized in Saudi Arabia, while all of the passengers arrived safely in Israel. Once on the ground, witnesses shared harrowing stories: Screams came from the cockpit, overhead bins swung open, parents clung to their children, passengers prayed and several worried they were living through their final moments.

“In my head, I said, ‘I’m so screwed, I’m so screwed. I don’t deserve to die like this,’” said Peleg Itali, 16, a high school student. A dentist, Shota Musev, said he was one of the first to reach the cockpit after the attack, finding the injured pilot thrown to the ground and treating him for severe wounds in midair.

Court halts execution of lone woman on Tenn. death row

This morning, just hours before Christa Pike was set to become the first woman executed in Tennessee in more than 200 years, a federal court ordered a pause on her execution. The ruling came after lawyers for Pike, who tortured and murdered a classmate in 1995, mounted a fierce last-ditch campaign to stop her death by lethal injection. They argued that her initial defense team had failed to consider her history of child sexual abuse and neglect.

Vance rallies in Texas as Hispanics there sour on Trump

Vice President JD Vance traveled to the Rio Grande Valley today to support Republicans running in areas that Trump won by comfortable margins in 2024. The races there have become especially competitive as Hispanic voters, a crucial part of Trump’s 2024 coalition, have grown disillusioned with the president. In more than two dozen interviews, they told us why.

For more on politics: Senate Democrats blocked legislation to limit, but not bar, congressional stock trading.

Illustration by Joan Wong; Photographs by Jason Henry for The New York Times, Mike Stewart/Associated Press, Getty Images

Meta uses A.I. data centers to avoid billions in taxes

To investors, Mark Zuckerberg says that Meta’s A.I. push is a tremendous success. To the I.R.S., the company tells a different story: It claims that its A.I. data centers are a giant experiment that could fail, allowing it to claim a tax credit intended to support research and trim billions from its tax bills. Meta’s own accountants say the gambit is risky.

In other A.I. news:

Congress is set to depart from Washington this week ahead of the midterm elections having accomplished nothing to address data centers or A.I. safety.
An image of a highly venomous snake caused alarm in California. It was an A.I. fake.

Long Beach, Calif. on Monday. Mario Tama/Getty Images

A Kelvin wave is nearing California, and bringing trouble

An enormous pulse of wave energy, generated by the climate pattern known as El Niño, will soon reach Southern California and continue north, lifting the water as it goes. Sea levels are expected to begin rising by half a foot or more within days.

This pulse, known as a Kelvin wave increases the threat of coastal flooding, erosion and saltwater intrusion. It comes on top of already high sea levels, thanks to climate change and the tidal cycle. Our maps show where it will hit.

More top news

Military: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave a “State of the Force” speech at the Marine Corps Base at Quantico, Va. Here’s what he had to say.
Britain: After five men were arrested near an air force base on suspicion of terrorism, the prime minister, Andy Burnham, said the government believes Iran “played a part” in the incident.
Middle East: After more than two decades, U.S. forces formally withdrew from Iraq. Alissa J. Rubin, who arrived to cover the invasion in 2003, described what she saw over her years of reporting.
Cornell: A New York prosecutor said he hoped to speak as soon as possible to a former student who has said she was raped in 2024, “to discuss new evidence that exists.”
Travel: Starting next year, the process of getting your first U.S. passport will go fully online.
Ukraine: The military’s sea drones have evolved into miniature aircraft carriers. Watch them in action.
Idaho: A woman in the small town of Payette has said that vaccines killed her children. The authorities say she did it.
Australia: Droves of Bogong moths have swept across the country. It’s a good thing.

THE EVENING QUIZ

This question comes from a recent edition of the newsletter. Click an answer to see if you’re right. (The link is free.)

A beloved kosher jelly candy, popular at bar and bat mitzvahs, was recently saved from discontinuation. What’s its name?

TIME TO UNWIND

Philip Montgomery for The New York Times

Hollywood’s tough guys are getting personal

Sylvester Stallone just published a memoir about his difficult childhood, his rise to fame and the struggles that have persisted. (Watch his interview with my colleague Lulu Garcia-Navarro.) So did his “Rocky IV” opponent Ivan Drago, the actor Dolph Lundgren. And memoirs from Michael Douglas and Dustin Hoffman are coming soon.

The books are part of a wave of new titles from Hollywood heroes who have decided to share their tales of bravado, determination and insecurity with the world.

For more: Here are 28 books were are looking forward to in October.

Sarah Meyssonnier/Reuters

A 24-karat (maybe) goodbye

Saint Laurent has not yet confirmed that its top designer, Anthony Vaccarello, is leaving. But his show last night at Paris Fashion Week certainly seemed like a farewell, our critic, Vanessa Friedman, writes. There were gold safari jackets, gold trench coats, gold pencil skirts, gold scarfs, gold tank tops and gold cocktail dresses, wrapped up with a black velvet finale. See all the looks.

For more on fashion: Are shirt buttons sexist?

Daniel Krieger for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

The acclaimed chef Eric Ripert says a Buddhist nun helped make him a better cook.
If you had $2.6 million to spend, which of these homes would you choose?
A single Vermont bird set off a feud over what, exactly, constitutes farm country.
Designer light switches have arrived. Yes, really.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Christopher Testani for The New York Times

Make this Italian wedding soup and top it with a sprinkling of Parmesan.

Watch “Teenage Wasteland,” or one of these other great documentaries.

Get inspired by our fashion photographer’s retro looks of the week.

Avoid running injuries by following these expert tips.

Relax in one of Wirecutter’s favorite robes.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Melissa Turner, left, and Linisha Smith. Chona Kasinger for The New York Times

These lunch ladies are brining joy to millions

Most of the time, the break room at the Safeway supermarket in SeaTac, Wash., looks like any other break room. But when Linisha Smith and Melissa Turner are on their break, it becomes a set for one of the internet’s favorite lip-sync duos.

Smith and Turner, who have both worked for at least a quarter century at the company, have posted hundreds of videos of themselves jamming out to nostalgic tunes and racked up more than a million social media followers. Their secret, according to Smith: “I’m so bad at dancing, and she’s so good at lip-syncing.” See what it looks like.

Have a rocking evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Eli Cohen was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

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2026-10-02 NYT Evening

Fri, 02 Oct 2026 17:00:05 GMT

The Evening: Governor rebukes Cornell police

View in browser|nytimes.com

October 2, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Friday.

Hochul criticizes handling of Cornell case
U.S. hiring slows down
Plus, a surge in $100 million homes

Kathy Hochul, left, with Letitia James. Hilary Swift for The New York Times

New York governor criticizes handling of Cornell case

In direct and sometimes angry remarks this morning, Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York criticized Cornell University’s police department and the local district attorney for their handling of sexual assault allegations made by a former student.

Hochul said she had been troubled to learn that the student had told police unequivocally in 2024 that she had been raped at a fraternity house. That language was missing in the condensed statement that was sent to the local district attorney, who decided not to file criminal charges.

“In what world would the police” not elevate such an allegation, Hochul asked. She later added: “I am deeply disturbed by Cornell University’s police and how they handled this.”

The governor was joined by the state attorney general, Letitia James, whom she has appointed to oversee a new investigation into the allegations. James said the case was now an active criminal investigation.

The case has reignited a national conversation about the persistent issue of sexual assault on college campuses. But prosecuting the case may be challenging, in part because New York State law makes it hard to charge people with rape if the accuser chose to become intoxicated. Hochul pushed state lawmakers today to change that.

The New York Times

U.S. hiring slowed down

American employers added 29,000 jobs last month and the unemployment rate rose to 4.2 percent, according to a new report from the Labor Department. The results were weaker than expected for a job market that had appeared robust in recent months.

Growth in average hourly earnings fell to 3 percent on an annual basis, well below that of inflation, and the slowest since the pandemic. And job gains for July and August were revised down by 60,000. “Bottom line,” our economics reporter Ben Casselman said. “There’s no sign here of the job market falling apart, but it would be hard to call it ‘hot’ either.”

President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv last month. Genya Savilov/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Ukraine fires its own ballistic missile for the first time

President Volodymyr Zelensky announced late last night that Ukrainian forces had fired a domestically made ballistic missile for the first time in combat. It was a breakthrough for Kyiv, which has found itself overpowered by Russia as the yearslong war has increasingly turned to the skies.

The Ukrainian weapon, which could be used to target Russian missile launchers along the border, is not expected to significantly shift the dynamics of the conflict. But its manufacturer is working on a larger missile that would be able to reach Moscow.

For more:

Ukraine showed European partners what it said were intercepted Russian plans to cut off major cities from power, heat and water this winter.
Russia has a new weapon in its propaganda campaign: A.I. war songs. Listen to clips of them.

Avi Loeb, chairman of the new U.A.P. Science Advisory Council. Sophie Park for The New York Times

The Trump administration is hunting for alien life

President Trump has created a new advisory council on U.F.O.s and stocked it with a number of scientists who embrace the idea that alien technology may be lurking among us. Critics see the government panel as diverging from the sober work of similar groups in the past.

So far this year, the administration has released six rounds of U.F.O. files. We pored through the documents and asked the panel and its detractors for their takes.

For more: Take our quiz to test your U.F.O. knowledge.

More top news

Politics: Trump personally instructed his budget director to use taxpayer money for TV ads praising him and his presidency, setting in motion a $20 million contract.
Tennessee: Lawyers for Christa Pike said that after her botched execution attempt, she is unconscious and on a ventilator.
Energy: Some of the world’s wealthiest industrial nations, including the U.S., agreed to release 100 million barrels of diesel and crude from their reserve stockpiles.
Washington: Over the past year, the National Science Foundation withheld $1.4 billion that Congress had intended for research.
Food: The F.D.A. found cyclospora during its investigation of Taylor Farms facilities in Mexico, evidence that this summer’s outbreak came from the company’s lettuce.
France: High-school students have protested at over 1,000 schools across the country over overcrowded classrooms, crumbling facilities, and absent teachers.
FlyDubai attack: In his first public remarks since the incident, the pilot who was stabbed recounted what happened to him.
Health: The MYC gene fuels aggressive growth in 70 percent of cancers, but it’s long been considered an impossible, “undruggable” target. Scientists told us why.
Alcohol: Each of the four U.K. nations now has its own official whiskey. The Scots aren’t happy about it.
Lives Lived: Running through John Sedgwick’s illustrious family — Edie Sedgwick was a relative — was a long history of mood disorders. He chronicled it, and experienced it.

TIME TO UNWIND

The New York Times

The best TV shows, according to Times readers

Last week, I wrote about the top 100 shows of the 21st century, according to actors, showrunners and others in the industry. Today, the list is yours. More than 100,000 Times readers submitted their votes. Check it out.

Turns out, readers thought that “Gilmore Girls,” “Ted Lasso,” “Community” and “The Big Bang Theory” were underrated. They were far less interested in the British version of “The Office,” which fell 79 spots compared to the initial list.

See a show you like? Add it to your watch list.

The Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek museum in Copenhagen. Ana Cecilia González

In ancient Rome, the fashion was loud

Don't be fooled by the pale appearance of the surviving marble statues from ancient Rome. The elite Romans used garish garments and vibrant dyes to project their status. A Copenhagen museum demonstrated this by using paint residue analysis to produce digital reconstructions.

The displays are part of a new show on the ways imperial expansion delivered the raw materials and styles that Romans used, like purple dye from sea snails or vermilion dye from insects.

Nic Coury for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

After 110 years, a coastal California village finally, and reluctantly, adopted street numbers.
Look back on this day in history.
The former N.F.L. coach Mike Tomlin spent 12 years building a Minecraft city. Now he’s showing it off to the world.
When did everyone start talking like a Hollywood windbag?

WHAT TO DO THIS WEEKEND

Rachel Vanni for The New York Times

Cook this flavor-packed twist on fish Creole.

Watch these movies and shows coming to Netflix this month.

Listen to Stephen King talk about finishing a trilogy he began with his friend in 1984.

Bask in the fall’s delights at these getaways.

Reduce your screen time by taking advantage of these analog tools.

Take this week’s news quiz.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

The New York Times

Welcome to the age of nine-figure listings

Outside Tampa, there is a 42,800-square-foot French-style chateau for sale with two cinemas, a gentleman’s lounge, an indoor saltwater pool, an equestrian center and a 24-car auto museum. It is listed for $115 million, a price that would have seemed ludicrous not too long ago.

But nine-figure listings have become more popular this year than ever before. Real estate agents told us that there’s an insatiable desire by the wealthy for extreme privacy and spectacular luxuries. My colleagues put together a fun look at four such properties to show you what you could buy if you had all the money in the world. Check it out, and pick your favorite.

Have a deluxe weekend.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back on Monday — Matthew

Jill Foley was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

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2026-10-05 NYT Evening

Mon, 05 Oct 2026 18:00:05 GMT

The Evening: A new Supreme Court term

View in browser|nytimes.com

October 5, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Monday.

Justices hear a major climate case
The first 2026 Nobel Prize is awarded
Plus, 100 big unanswered questions

Demonstrators at the Supreme Court today. Alex Kent/The New York Times

Supreme Court begins term with a major climate case

The Supreme Court spent the opening hours of its new term hearing a complex dispute over whether local governments can hold oil companies responsible for the damages of climate change. It was not clear from the arguments if either side had the upper hand, in part because Justice Samuel Alito — who owns oil company stock — recused himself.

The legal fight began eight years ago, when officials in Boulder, Colo., sued two oil companies, Exxon Mobil and Suncor Energy, claiming that they should be liable for a share of the costs for disasters like droughts, fires and floods. A win for Boulder would likely clear the way for dozens of similar lawsuits, together demanding billions of dollars in damages. A win for the companies could doom those efforts.

During the arguments today, justices across the ideological spectrum posed skeptical questions to the oil companies. The liberal justices seemed likely to side with Boulder; Justice Elena Kagan compared this case to earlier tobacco and opioid lawsuits. The conservatives were more receptive to the companies’ arguments, though Boulder needs only one of their votes to prevail because of Alito’s recusal.

For more:

Here’s what to expect from the Supreme Court’s term.
Alito said that he “thought about” retiring last term, but decided that he was making “a valuable contribution.”

Ships near the Strait of Hormuz on Friday. Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Attacks in the Persian Gulf renew energy supply fears

At least 11 tankers have been attacked in and around the Strait of Hormuz over the last week, including four in the last two days. The strikes are a reminder that the recent rebound in oil exports from the Middle East is a result of fragile workarounds and successful U.S. military protection, not a cessation of violence.

In fact, the regional conflict appeared to deepen over the weekend, when the Saudi-backed government of Yemen announced a major military campaign against the Iran-backed Houthi militia.

At a speech today in London, the chief executive of Saudi Arabia’s national oil company said that the world’s oil stockpiles had fallen from 10 billion barrels when the Iran war started to six billion barrels — a number he called “scarily thin.”

President Trump in Mobile, Ala. on Friday. Doug Mills/The New York Times

Republicans are racing to defend their turf

President Trump is beginning this week with a rally in Nebraska, after ending last week with an event in Alabama. Later tonight, Vice President JD Vance is speaking in Alaska. Just two years ago, Trump won all three states by double digits. (Follow here for the latest updates.)

Our latest poll found strength for Democrats in several reliably Republican states, in both Senate and governor’s races.

For more on politics:

The Ohio governor’s race may be the nation’s ugliest, with groups backing one candidate inflating an incident to portray the other as a drunk.
Democrats believe they can hit a major milestone: electing at least 100 women to the House.
Voters have criticized Congress for being too old. But in this year’s primaries, they favored older incumbents.

Pool photo by Angela Weiss

Nobel Prize week has begun

Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine today for developing a tool to switch on specific brain cells with pulses of light. Their pioneering work in optogenetics has led to functional maps of the brain, and may one day lead to a treatment for blindness. Here’s what to know about it.

The other five Nobel Prizes will be announced later this week, for work in physics, chemistry, economic sciences, literature and peace. This year, there were 287 candidates for the peace prize.

More top news

Congress: Dennis Hastert, the longest-serving Republican speaker of the House, later admitted to sexually abusing teenage wrestlers as a coach. He died Saturday at 84.
Brazil: Flávio Bolsonaro, the right-wing son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, won more votes than the left-wing incumbent, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, in the first round of presidential voting.
Ukraine: The remaining residents of Oleshky, a frontline wasteland isolated by mines and drones, now face starvation.
Texas: Ken Paxton, the attorney general and Republican Senate candidate, is investigating doctors for vaccinating children.
Media: Karoline Leavitt became the third of Trump’s former press secretaries to join Fox News.
Russia: Rumors have been swirling for days about whether an employee of a Siberian “anti-plague institute” was sickened or killed by the disease. Here’s what we know.
Arizona: Some of Mexico’s most powerful and violent cartels are being armed by American high school students and young adults.
Ohio: Two men face the possibility of time behind bars after an argument about Trump at a dog park led them to shoot at each other.
India: A food inspector’s surprise raids of Mumbai kitchens have made him a celebrity.

BIG QUESTIONS

Photo illustration by Jane Stockdale for The New York Times

My colleagues asked 100 scientists about the big, unanswered questions in their fields. Some you’ve probably thought about, like: What preceded the Big Bang? But have you ever wondered why humans are the only species with a chin? Ponder with us here.

TIME TO UNWIND

Jiwoong Hong/The New York Times

Do you want to dance with a robot?

People have spent generations talking about a future where humanoid robots do our chores, act as our companions and provide us with entertainment. Now, Galaxy Robot Park in South Korea seems to be arguing that such a future is already arriving.

There, robots dance to K-pop, play soccer, serve drinks and draw portraits of visitors. The technology has clearly improved, but it’s still far from finished. Take a look.

The New York Times

You don’t need a car to explore the world

Some of Southeast Asia’s most culture-packed cities are connected by affordable rail lines. For just $135, our writer took a 1,200-mile journey from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur to Bangkok, stopping along the way for street food and cave walks. Join him.

Separately, our Frugal Traveler columnist, Elaine Glusac, went to Ireland to see how much she could see without renting a car. The pictures are incredible.

George Etheredge for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

40 years ago, “Double Dare” changed children’s TV forever. Marc Summers was the face of it all.
Are babies conscious? Scientists are actively debating.
A dancer explains how she lives on $13,500 a year in East Harlem.
These birds are louder than elephants, chain saws and jackhammers. Listen to their calls.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Erik Bernstein for The New York Times

Embrace the season with these maple cardamom sticky buns.

Read “Death of an Ordinary Man.” It’s a quiet masterpiece, our reviewer writes.

Focus on this painting for 10 minutes — well, 43 paintings in one — and tell us what it makes you think about.

Figure out the best way to save for your child with our calculator.

Take the latest Flashback history quiz.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Ged Eccles, male gurning champion, practicing. Temilade Adelaja/Reuters

When gurning, you can’t hold back

In the sport of gurning, competitors stick their heads through a horse collar and distort their faces as much as possible. The more grotesque your grimace, the better. Inspired, my colleague Rob Tanner, a soccer reporter at The Athletic, took part in this year’s World Gurning Championships.

The competition, in a remote area of England, is tightly contested. One participant was able to pull his bottom lip to touch his nose after practicing three to four hours a day. But Rob was not dissuaded: He went up there, gave it his best shot, and nearly passed out. Here’s his story.

Have a dedicated evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Scott Ball was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

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2026-10-06 NYT Evening

Tue, 06 Oct 2026 17:00:10 GMT

The Evening: Protests sweep France

View in browser|nytimes.com

October 6, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Tuesday.

Student protests spread across France
Cornell picks an investigator
Plus, the National Book Award finalists

Demonstrators in Strasbourg today. Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters

Discontent grips France

Thousands of French parents, teachers, university students and union members rallied today in solidarity with the nation’s high school students, who have spent two weeks blockading schools to protest understaffing, overcrowded classrooms and dilapidated buildings.

Marches were held in more than 40 cities, drawing roughly 256,000 participants, officials said. The largest crowds massed in Paris, where thousands of students and their supporters marched between two of the city’s main squares. France’s prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, indicated that his government was taking their demands seriously.

The student demonstrations have been the most vivid manifestation of broader grievances across France. The chaos, our Paris bureau chief writes, can be traced to the country’s two-decade-long struggle to fund its state, now exacerbated by high borrowing costs, surging fuel prices and political uncertainty.

Jockeying is already underway to replace President Emmanuel Macron. Recent polls that show the far-right candidate, Marine Le Pen, would beat all her rivals in presidential elections next spring. Our newsletter The World explains France’s polycrisis.

For more: See video of the protests.

Sally Yates in 2017. Steven Senne/Associated Press

Cornell picks prominent former prosecutor to lead investigation

Cornell University announced today that it had selected Sally Yates, the former acting attorney general, to lead an independent internal review of the school’s handling of a former student’s claim that she was raped at a fraternity party in 2024. The move comes a day after thousands of students and faculty members gathered on campus for a protest. The school’s faculty senate plans a vote of no confidence in the administration.

Ketamine, a key factor in the alleged assault, has surged in popularity as a party drug.
The federal government’s response has been muted, as the Trump administration’s approach to civil rights investigations has led to far fewer sexual assault cases being resolved.

Doug Mills/The New York Times

Ex-C.I.A. officer admits to a $145 million scam

A former C.I.A. officer who authorities say stashed hundreds of gold bars in his home admitted in court today to a far larger web of deception. He could face up to 20 years behind bars.

The officer, David Rush, worked on highly classified programs. He acknowledged that he had created a fake secret government program to purchase roughly $145 million worth of luxury real estate in South Florida. He also admitted to sharing the identity of a human source with a foreign government — considered by the C.I.A. to be among the gravest violations. Read more about his very unusual case.

In other intelligence service news: The police in Germany arrested a former intelligence chief on suspicion of “treasonous espionage,” in an investigation with roots in an alleged kidnapping plot by a steakhouse heiress.

A Microsoft data center in Fayetteville, Ga. The New York Times

The data center boom is sweeping across America

In a race to maximize computing power and build more capable A.I. systems, tech companies and their partners have built more than 260 data center buildings since the beginning of 2025. More than 100 others are on their way, including some that rival the size of America’s largest manufacturing plants. See what the data center boom looks like from the sky.

One estimate suggested that the annual investment in A.I. construction could reach over 3 percent of U.S. gross domestic product by 2032 — a bigger annual share than what the country spent on building its railroads, electric grid and highways.

For more:

China is struggling to recruit foreign A.I. researchers.
Why do A.I. food images look so gross?

The New York Times

Trump plans to fence off a historic protest site

Lafayette Square, just north of the White House, is one of the few places where you can be within earshot and view of the president. And for more than a century, it has been used as a prominent stage for demonstrations. Now, President Trump plans to add a permanent fence around the park, allowing officials to close off the space whenever they would like.

Ahead of the plan’s expected approval by panels filled with Trump appointees, The Times created a 3-D model of the area to show what it would look like.

More top news

Tennessee: Days after her failed execution, Christa Pike’s lawyers said she is conscious and speaking.
Stocks: The S&P 500 rose to a new high, extending a strong rally over the past six months.
Britain: A 22-year-old from London was the seventh person arrested in the R.A.F. Fairford investigation; officials said that the U.S. withdrew bombers from the base over an Iranian drone threat.
Washington: The Justice Department’s civil rights unit has been recruiting partisans and conspiracists with questionable work histories.
Business: Paramount officially closed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. Here’s what comes next.
Science: The Nobel Prize in Physics went to Francis Halzen for his work on a telescope embedded deep in South Pole ice, which detects ghostly particles known as neutrinos.
Middle East: In a single night, the Houthi militia took over Yemen’s Red Sea coast. Our maps show how.
Africa: Kenya recorded its first Ebola case.
Health: Mounting evidence suggests that exercise programs can improve cancer outcomes. But few places offer them, and insurance rarely covers them.

SMEAR CAMPAIGNS

The actress Blake Lively settled a suit against Justin Baldoni. Eduardo Munoz/Reuters

The Times talked to several women in Hollywood who have filed lawsuits describing malicious public relations campaigns against them, spearheaded by three influential players. Read how such dark-web P.R. works.

TIME TO UNWIND

Clockwise from top left: The National Book Award finalists Edwidge Danticat, Valeria Luiselli, Karl Ove Knausgaard and Camonghne Felix. Clockwise from top left: Naima Green for The New York Times; Maria Moratti/Getty Images; David Levenson/Getty Images; Jati Lindsay

The National Book Award finalists

Every year, the National Book Foundation hands out awards for fiction, nonfiction, poetry, translated literature and young people’s literature that are considered among America’s most prestigious literary prizes.

This year’s finalists include “Beginning Middle End,” a mother-daughter road-trip novel, and “Tree of Knowledge,” a nature collection by the experimental poet Victoria Chang. See the full list.

For more on books: Just days ago, Jeffrey Archer told us his new novel was the best thing he had ever written. He died yesterday at 86.

Click to watch the video.

How Dudamel is putting his stamp on Mahler

Gustavo Dudamel, one of the most famous living conductors, has been the music director of the New York Philharmonic for about a month. He began his tenure with a piece that made him famous, Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, attempting to breathe new life into the music. Joshua Barone, our classical music critic, explains how Dudamel does it.

Watch (and listen) here.

The New York Times

Dinner table topics

Do you know these iconic figures from history? Take our quiz and find out.
At last! Chanel’s Paris show offered something new.
Melting glaciers in the Swiss Alps are revealing ancient artifacts, like a 2,500-year-old ski.
Could you complete these strength tests from around the world?

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Andrew Bui for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Rebecca Jurkevich.

Cook this well-flavored smothered cabbage and sausage dish.

Watch LL Cool J return to “NCIS” in a new spinoff.

Turn your backyard into a hotbed of biodiversity with a “water garden.”

Give the gift of luxury without spending a fortune.

Take our quiz to see how well you know book adaptations.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Michelle Gustafson for The New York Times

Think you could be a champion parallel parker?

For some, parallel parking is like a root canal — necessary in certain occasions, but best to avoid. For others, it’s a way of life. Fourteen members of that second group gathered on a block in downtown Philadelphia to see who does it best.

One competitor was a city bus driver; another has an Instagram account dedicated entirely to parking. They each competed in three rounds, including one called “Under Duress” where parkers had to navigate yelling crowds and a trash fire. See who won.

Have a proud evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Keith Bedford was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

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2026-10-07 NYT Evening

Wed, 07 Oct 2026 17:00:12 GMT

The Evening: Ukraine claws back land

View in browser|nytimes.com

October 7, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Wednesday.

Ukraine thwarts Russia’s advance
Scientists study a 194-year-old tortoise
Plus, the weird eats at N.H.L. arenas

Source: Institute for the Study of War and AEI’s Critical Threats Project (as of Oct. 4). Josh Holder/The New York Times

Ukraine claws back some land

Ukrainian forces have embarked on a monthslong counteroffensive in an effort to block Russia from capturing the rest of the Donbas region in the country’s east. So far, analysts say, Ukraine has reclaimed dozens of square miles of territory. (See maps of the shifting front lines.)

As part of the campaign — which Kyiv is calling Operation Vivaldi, named for the famous composer — Ukraine dropped ground-based drones from the air and used them to sow chaos in Russian-controlled territory. It also pushed forward with armored vehicles, clearing Russian positions and killing more than 5,000 Russian troops, Ukraine’s president said.

In the southern Donbas, Russia continues to mount furious assaults, and President Vladimir Putin of Russia has claimed that the fall of the Donbas will happen faster than Kyiv thinks. But more broadly, Russian gains have slowed, and Western researchers generally agree Russia has gained only slightly more territory than it has lost this year.

In Russia: Authorities said no “emergency situations” occurred at an anti-plague lab where a worker died. Here’s what to know.

Luke Ihnen, one of Christa Pike’s attorneys, at a news conference today in Nashville. George Walker IV/Associated Press

Judge requires state to preserve evidence from failed execution

Lawyers for the Tennessee death row inmate Christa Pike said she was angry and confused after regaining consciousness nearly a week after surviving two doses of a drug meant to kill her. One of her lawyers said her first words were apparently, “Where am I and who are you?”

The lawyer, Randy Spivey, said that Pike could not move either arm, and that she had not been able to eat because she could not swallow. They were told on Monday that she might be taken off life support to die, Spivey said, but that changed yesterday.

A state judge said she would order officials to preserve evidence from the botched execution, including syringes, drugs and IV lines. Tennessee’s assistant attorney general told the judge that he could not say whether the state would try to execute Pike again.

For more: Pike’s case has heightened scrutiny of lethal injection, but other execution methods have also led to problems.

A bomb detonated as part of a training exercise on Tarague Beach in 2002. U.S. Air Force

Justices weigh if military can explode bombs on this beach

For decades, the Air Force has used a tropical expanse of white sand on the island of Guam to dispose of expired rockets, bombs and other military waste. But a local group sued to challenge the practice, arguing that the explosions threaten the fragile marine ecosystem.

Now, the future of the beach rests with the Supreme Court. The justices heard oral arguments today from both sides, and a decision is expected by the end of June.

Gianluigi Guerica/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Scientists seek longevity secrets from a 194-year-old tortoise

Jonathan the giant tortoise was born in the early 1830s, when Andrew Jackson was president, and he has spent much of his life on the remote island of St. Helena. He is believed to be the world’s oldest known land animal.

Today, scientists announced that they had sequenced Jonathan’s genome for the first time, hoping to learn, among other things, how he has managed to live so long. The results offer some tantalizing clues, including hints that his species may have evolved to be more resilient to age-related decline.

MORE TOP NEWS

Trump Administration

The Trump administration has ramped up its investigations into voter registration groups.
The war in Iran was intended to demonstrate the reach of American power. It has done the opposite.
After delays in funding from the White House, the future of four major vaccine research networks is in doubt.
If the Kennedy Center is “dangerous,” as the administration has claimed, why is the National Symphony Orchestra still practicing there?

Other Big Stories

Middle East: Israel commemorated the third anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks. We interviewed two twins who were taken hostage, and our photographer took an extended look at life in Gaza today.
Science: Henri Kagan and Kenso Soai were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for solving a century-old mystery about molecules with mirror images.
Weather: Tropical Storm Isaias in the Gulf of Mexico could become the first Atlantic hurricane of the year. Here’s the forecast.
Rhode Island: The authorities reached a breakthrough in a 1985 cold case after they tailed a suspect to a rock concert and collected his DNA from a discarded water bottle.
Travel: Airfares have spiked and are up 24 percent in August compared with a year earlier. The demise of a low-cost airline may be to blame.
Time: By measuring the squishing and unsquishing of thorium-229 nuclei, two teams made a new type of clock. Here’s how it works.

THE EVENING QUIZ

This question comes from a recent edition of the newsletter. Click an answer to see if you’re right. (The link is free.)

With recordings taken in Brazil, researchers recently documented the loudest known types of which animal?

TIME TO UNWIND

The 2026 Strike King Bassmaster High School Championship in Buchanan, Tenn. William DeShazer for The New York Times

Youth fishing is a new home for student athletes

Bass fishing, long a hobby, is now an official high school sport in at least eight states and a competitive club competition in dozens of others. Anglers on those teams have jerseys, pep rallies and award ceremonies, and some of them are using their talents to pay for college.

Across the U.S., about 600 colleges have some kind of fishing program, roughly twice as many as a decade ago. (There’s even a bass fishing combine for potential recruits.) During the country’s most prestigious high school fishing tournament this summer, the head coach of the bass fishing team at Bethel University in Minnesota said he offered 20 scholarships.

Tag Christof for The New York Times

What would you do with an abandoned radio tower?

Lost at night during an adventure race, the architect John Jennings discovered a Cold War-era relay station towering 75 feet over the Santa Monica Mountains in California. He and his wife, Sasha Tarnopolsky, also an architect, were inspired to buy the abandoned structure in 2005 for $950,000, and set out to transform the property, perhaps into a home.

Their plans changed over the years, and local officials tried to persuade them to cut the tower in half, stalling the project. But by 2024, Jennings and Tarnopolsky had completed their renovations, and they now host weddings and other events in the tower. See the final result.

Casey Steffens for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

Meet the New York influencer who wants you to put down your smartphone.
A man found a $30 painting at an estate sale, and sold it a few months later for $1.35 million.
When did synthetic fabrics become the enemy?
A new HBO series embraces the messy truths of dating after 50.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Linda Xiao for The New York Times

Cook this buttery skillet broccoli-cheddar rice and pair it with rotisserie chicken.

Listen to Alan Cumming on our “Modern Love” podcast, where he talks about escaping his father.

Pick your favorite $900,000 house.

Consider these Halloween costumes that scream 2026.

Make the most of October Prime Day.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

The “Walki Talki” taco dish at Columbus Blue Jackets games replaces a tortilla with blue Takis tortilla chips. Delaware North

N.H.L. teams are offering increasingly wacky menu items

At hockey games, I’m usually a hot dog and fries kind of guy. But it’s still fun to walk through the concourse and see all the new made-for-social-media options. This year, for example, the New York Islanders are selling a $14.99 grilled cheese stuffed with melted brie and Nerds Gummy Clusters. No joke.

The strange pairing is part of a larger push across N.H.L. arenas to attract new fans with outrageous menu items that people feel compelled to tell their friends about. In Columbus, you can get a root beer float poutine or a blue Takis taco. In Nashville, they will serve you beer in a fang.

Have an open-minded evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Eli Cohen was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

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2026-10-08 NYT Evening

Thu, 08 Oct 2026 18:00:07 GMT

The Evening: Oil prices jump after attacks

View in browser|nytimes.com

October 8, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Thursday.

Middle East violence shakes oil markets
Anne Carson wins literature Nobel Prize
Plus, Broadway’s new heated rivalry

The Saudi capital, Riyadh, in February. Isabel Infantes/Reuters

Explosions rattle the Saudi capital

Global oil prices jumped today after attacks in Saudi Arabia threatened to widen a Middle East conflict that has disrupted energy supplies. The Houthis, an Iran-backed militia in Yemen, claimed responsibility for strikes on Saudi airports for the second time this week.

The attacks, which killed three people, were the deadliest on Saudi Arabia since the war with the Houthis reignited in recent weeks. President Trump has rebuffed requests from the Saudi government to join the fight against the Houthis, but hundreds of U.S. intelligence and military analysts are assisting the Saudis in command centers inside the kingdom.

Relatedly, tankers in the Strait of Hormuz have come under repeated attack over the last couple of weeks. Just yesterday, a tanker in waters north of Qatar was hit by “multiple projectiles,” causing casualties.

For more: The U.S. military is preparing options to restart major combat operations against Iran, though Trump said today that he would not attack before the midterm elections.

Demetrius Freeman for The New York Times

Vance accuses U.S. companies of abusing green card program

The Trump administration is planning to suspend Microsoft from using a visa program that allows foreign workers to permanently reside in the U.S. after an investigation found that the tech giant had abused the system.

Vice President JD Vance accused Microsoft and other U.S. companies of attempting to replace American workers with “foreign indentured servants.” Microsoft disputed some of Vance’s claims, saying that its pay was among the highest reported in H-1B filings.

In other Trump administration news:

U.S. officials said that the administration is considering using ships for deportations.
The White House’s proposed Russian oil deal would benefit a group of Middle Eastern investors, including some with business ties to key U.S. officials.

Sydney Brockman, left, and Mathew Wellhausen in St. Louis. Costs delayed their home search for four years. Neeta Satam for The New York Times

Mortgage rates continue surging

The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has risen to 7.4 percent, the highest mark in nearly three years. In February, before the U.S. went to war in Iran, mortgage rates were below 6 percent.

The elevated borrowing costs have squeezed would-be home buyers, particularly because home prices continue to rise nationwide. As a result, the housing market has slowed: sales of existing homes dropped 1.2 percent in August compared with the year before.

Ian C. Bates for The New York Times

A.I. advances are upending the math world

Mathematicians are still digesting OpenAI’s announcement this week that its artificial intelligence systems had conquered hundreds of the math world’s major open questions. But the initial response appears to mostly be astonishment.

“If a human did this, it would be an instant Fields Medal,” said Alex Kontorovich, the math chair at Rutgers University, referring to the industry’s top honor. He was speaking of just one of OpenAI’s more than 300 findings.

For more:

We used an A.I. image generator to make a picture. It’s getting harder to spot such fakes; let us walk you through the tells.
To prevent surgical mistakes, Canada is experimenting with A.I. in the O.R.
The former head of safety transparency at OpenAI talked to Ezra Klein about why he just quit.

MORE TOP NEWS

Politics

Candidates in three key Senate races — Georgia, Maine and Michigan — are holding debates tonight. Here’s what to expect.
Trump is dragging down Republicans across the country in a “red undertow.” People who voted for him explained how he’s alienated them.
Sporting a Jos. A. Bank suit and Florsheim dress shoes, Trump has adopted a budget look in his second term.

Other Big Stories

New York: Federal prosecutors charged the ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife with ordering the torture of Americans.
Military: The aircraft carrier U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln returned to San Diego today after a record 322-day deployment.
Ukraine: A day after an attack on an apartment building far behind the combat zone killed 22 people, a Russian strike on a commuter bus killed at least 30.
Weather: It has been two years since a hurricane struck the mainland U.S.; Isaias is set to make landfall tomorrow. Follow it here, and read about why we’ve had so few hurricanes this year.
China: In its push to expand its military footprint, Beijing opened a new air force base in Laos.
Israel: According to multiple officials and documents obtained by The Times, a top aide to the U.S. ambassador suppressed and altered reports critical of the Netanyahu government.
California: Officials ruled that a tech start-up’s boxing match between a man and a robot was illegal. Watch the fisticuffs here.

WHICH MAJORS PAY OFF

Click to watch. The New York Times

A new analysis reveals which college majors pay off, as well as the single most lucrative degree in America. We built a calculator for you to navigate the data.

TIME TO UNWIND

Pontus Lundahl/TT News Agency, via Reuters

What to read from the newest Nobel laureate

The Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded this morning to the Canadian poet and essayist Anne Carson, who is best known for remixing ancient Greek texts in a modern and playful voice. Her partner snapped a photo of her slack-jawed upon hearing the news.

Carson’s work “can seduce even people who don’t like poetry,” my colleague Sam Anderson wrote in a 2013 profile. Among the works cited by the Nobel committee are “Eros the Bittersweet,” her debut book-length essay, and “The Glass Essay,” a poem about unrequited love. Here’s what to read if you are new to her work.

Cole Saladino for The New York Times

Broadway has a new heated rivalry

For nearly four decades, Ellen’s Stardust Diner has been serving burgers, shakes and other blue-plate comforts from the heart of Manhattan’s theater district. No one would call it a typical diner, though, because from 7 a.m. until midnight, its waiters — some of whom have Broadway ambitions — belt show tunes between taking orders.

But Ellen’s can no longer call itself unique. Just a block away, at a new spot called Diner24, you can also expect the waiters to break into song throughout your meal. We checked out both diners.

Keith Haring Foundation; Photograph by Tim Waltman

Dinner table topics

As a student in 1979, Keith Haring painted a mural inside a Gilded Age mercantile building that later became a stylish New York loft. Now, it’s for sale.
Tom Gammill wrote for “Seinfeld” and “S.N.L.,” but he really wants you to see the genius of the comic strip “Nancy."
How much do you know about the most common cancer among women? Take our quiz.
Experts agree: Nobody knows what “biweekly” or “bimonthly” means.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Armando Rafael for The New York Times

Bake this gooey strawberry butter cake.

Listen to Lise Davidsen’s commanding Verdi performance.

Take inspiration from the most stylish people at Paris Fashion Week.

Avoid using earplugs every night. Here’s why.

Hunt: Which home in New York’s Hudson Valley would you buy with an $800,000 budget?

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Sable Adelaide

Looking for a ‘Wedding Crashers’ DVD? I know a place.

Five years ago, Sable Adelaide bought 25 copies of “Wedding Crashers,” the 2005 comedy starring Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson, at a North Dakota pawnshop. She thought it would be funny to ask her roommate to pick a movie to watch, only to point them to a shelf full of nothing but “Wedding Crashers.” But if having 25 of the same DVD is a good bit, surely another 100 would be even more amusing. What about 1,000 more?

After writing about her quest on social media, Adelaide began receiving discs from around the world. Her collection peaked at around 1,200 before she decided this year that she had to get rid of them. That task, too, she approached with humor, stacking hundreds of “Wedding Crashers” DVDs in Little Free Libraries across Minneapolis, baffling passers-by.

Have an amusing evening.

Thanks for reading. — Matthew

Eli Cohen was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

You received this email because you signed up for The Evening from The New York Times.

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2026-10-09 NYT Evening

Fri, 09 Oct 2026 18:00:05 GMT

The Evening: Hurricane Isaias arrives

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October 9, 2026

	By Whet Moser

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Friday.

Hurricane Isaias is arriving soon
The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded
Plus, giant trolls

Gulf Breeze, Fla., today. Hilary Swift for The New York Times

A hurricane nears landfall

Hurricane Isaias, a Category 3 storm with winds of up to 115 miles per hour, is approaching the Florida Panhandle. It is expected to hit somewhere between Gulf Shores, Ala., and Destin, Fla., in the coming hours. Track its progress here.

A huge storm surge is expected, forecasters said. People have filled sandbags, bought gasoline and boarded up buildings in preparation. The communities most at risk include Fort Walton Beach, Navarre, Destin and Pensacola. A tornado watch was issued this afternoon for most of the panhandle, as well as parts of Alabama and Georgia.

Isaias is the first Atlantic hurricane of the 2026 season. The storm officially became one on Wednesday night after strengthening in the warm water of the Gulf of Mexico. It could maintain its strength through landfall, forecasters warn.

Read the latest updates.

Daniel Karmann/DPA, via Associated Press

A human rights lawyer wins the Nobel Peace Prize

Navi Pillay, a lawyer and international judge, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. She led a United Nations commission last year that concluded that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza.

The Nobel committee’s chairman told reporters that her work on the U.N. commission was “an important part of the reasoning why she received the prize.” Born in South Africa to a family of Indian Tamil origin, she fought apartheid as a lawyer, was a judge on a tribunal investigating genocide in Rwanda and became the U.N.’s top human rights official.

The prize was seen as a rebuke of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, whose office denounced the Nobel committee today, as well as of President Trump, who has questioned the value of international law. Hours after the announcement, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced new sanctions on the International Criminal Court, on which Pillay served.

Conflict follows an ICE shooting in Manhattan

Near the northern tip of Manhattan yesterday, an ICE agent shot Oscar Belgal, a 28-year-old from the Dominican Republic. He was in his car with his 5-year-old son, who was uninjured.

At a news conference today, federal immigration officials characterized Belgal as a “thug,” referencing his guilty plea to grand larceny in 2023. New York politicians called for ICE to leave the city, while the homeland security secretary defended the agents’ actions and sought to blame the city’s policies and leaders for the shooting.

The Police Department released body camera footage that captured the aftermath of the shooting.

A pilot intended to crash into Israel’s largest airport, Emiratis say

The co-pilot of a FlyDubai flight, who attacked its captain last week, had intended to carry out a Sept. 11-inspired suicide crash into Israel’s biggest airport, the attorney general of the United Arab Emirates said. The attacker had developed extremist Islamist views over several years.

More than 170 passengers, mostly Israelis, were on the flight. The report deepened questions about how signs of the attacker’s radicalization were missed before he was allowed to fly such a sensitive route. Learn more here.

More top news

POLITICS

Pentagon officials said that the Army officer convicted in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting would be executed by firing squad on Dec. 3, and it would be livestreamed. Vice President JD Vance said he would not watch if it were streamed.
Katie Zacharia, a conservative commentator, was chosen as the new press secretary.
Trump announced that the White House would investigate Lisa Cook, the Federal Reserve governor he has tried to fire.
Senate candidates in Georgia, Maine and Michigan held debates last night, and the results were fiery. Here are five takeaways.

MORE NEWS

Trade: The European Union and China reached an unexpected agreement to avoid a trade war today. The deal involved limiting hybrid car imports from China.
Energy: Trump said that Vladimir Putin, Russia’s president, had approved the sale of diesel fuel to the U.S., despite a Russian ban on fuel exports and U.S. sanctions on its energy sector.
Health: As insurers discontinue coverage in many areas, millions of people with private Medicare plans are facing fewer options and higher prices.
Science: A new initiative at the National Institutes of Health aims to fast-track cancer vaccines.
Tech: Ashley St. Clair, a former right-wing influencer and the mother of one of Elon Musk’s children, was offered $40 million to keep silent about him. She told us why she didn’t.
Sports: Mike Ditka, the mustachioed, Super Bowl-winning Bears coach, died at 86.

ROGUE AGENTS

The New York Times

The most frequent question my colleagues on the A.I. beat are asked is: Will it kill us all? Watch this video for their answers.

For more

Meta delayed releasing Muse, its A.I. agent app, over safety concerns. Our reporter has the inside story.
We explored Anthropic’s quest to give A.I. morals on the “Hard Fork” podcast.

TIME TO UNWIND

Danko Steiner

An artist reflects

Marina Abramović is the most influential performance artist of our time. On the cusp of 80, she spoke to us about her legacy — and her unfiltered career.

Her partner once aimed an arrow at her as a microphone amplified her heartbeat. In another piece, “The Artist Is Present,” she sat with audiences for 736 hours and 30 minutes. (Though when our reporter asked for a two-hour interview, she said, “I never talk two hours. Let’s talk one hour with intensity.”)

Where does the intensity come from? Art was the only thing her abusive mother encouraged in her. In her latest production, an autobiographical work that opens in New York in December, she comes to terms with it.

Violet Nesdoly

Return to ‘Eden’

John Steinbeck’s epic novel “East of Eden” was an instant hit in 1952. Soon after, James Dean starred in an adaptation directed by Elia Kazan. Now, his granddaughter — Zoe Kazan — has adapted the book for Netflix.

We asked her and eight other notable readers — including Lois Smith, who was in the 1955 film but didn’t read the novel until this summer — for their thoughts.

Also in literature: The small publishing house New Directions has published 14 winners of the Nobel Prize in Literature, including the last two. What’s its secret?

Dinner table topics

Nordic isles: Sweden has 267,570 islands; Brooke Jarvis walked across 20 of them. Follow her path.
Iron woman: In high school, Solveig Lovseth was a frustrated swimmer. Now, she’s the world’s fittest woman.
Two sisters’ true age: Born two years apart in a troubled home, the health and lives of two women diverged. What would a biological age test tell them?

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Con Poulos for The New York Times

Cook a dish from our comfort-food checklist.

Play the biggest puzzle game ever.

Find more joy in your life with advice from our Well newsletter.

Read the quilting novel that stormed the best-seller list.

Watch “The Social Reckoning,” Aaron Sorkin’s new movie about Facebook. And see him narrate a scene.

Lift. It’s good for your heart.

Frighten your neighbors with actually spooky Halloween décor.

Play: Today’s News Quiz, Spelling Bee, Wordle and Mini Crossword. For more, find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Oliver Parini for The New York Times

A New York mill town’s giant troll

When Thomas Dambo, the acclaimed Danish sculptor, was a student, he landed a gig working in a warehouse in his native Denmark. There, he saw how much plywood from around the world was discarded in the country. So he did something with it: He made trolls from the Nordic folk tales he loved and returned them to the forest.

His trolls have since traveled the world, and one will now live permanently in a clearing in the dense Adirondack forest. The 36-foot-tall troll, named Patrick Sapling, has been welcomed by the lumber town of Tupper Lake. “I feel like I’m in Minecraft!” a 6-year-old boy told his mother as he scampered around it.

Have a playful evening.

Thanks for reading. We’ll be off on Monday, and Matt will return on Wednesday. — Whet

Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Reach our team at evening@nytimes.com. And follow The New York Times on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and TikTok at @nytimes.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

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2026-10-13 NYT Evening

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 18:00:05 GMT

The Evening: Trump hands new victories to Russia

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October 13, 2026

	By Evan Gorelick

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Tuesday.

Republicans play defense in once-safe territory
Kimberly Guilfoyle resigns as ambassador to Greece
Plus, a Welsh town that loves Elvis Presley

A refinery after what the authorities said was a Ukrainian drone strike in Moscow last month. Reuters

Trump aids Putin, feuds with Ukraine

With the front lines largely frozen, Russia’s war with Ukraine has turned into a contest of economic endurance. Kyiv has gone after Russia’s oil refineries. Moscow has hit Ukraine’s ports and heavy industries.

Last week, President Trump sided with Russia in this all-important battle when he announced a deal to buy Russian diesel fuel, undercutting U.S. sanctions. European and British officials were stunned by the agreement, which Ukraine has called “a gift” to Vladimir Putin.

But it is just one of several wins Trump has given Russia’s president in recent days. Among the others: He said that Ukraine needed a new leader. He demanded that Ukraine halt its attacks on Russian refineries, with Trump administration officials saying Kyiv owed Washington for its intelligence assistance — which some in the room took as a veiled threat that such assistance could be withheld.

The Great Read: A Ukrainian soldier on the war’s eastern front saw a Russian bomb hurtling toward his hometown on the screen of a live military map. He called his wife, who told him not to worry. Then their call was cut off.

Super PACs canceled advertising for Representatives Thomas Kean Jr. of New Jersey and Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa. The New York Times

G.O.P. plays defense in once-safe territory

As Democrats grow bullish on flipping seats in reliably red parts of the country, Republicans are triaging their resources to contain a possible blue wave.

Out: Republican super PACs are abandoning their financial support for two incumbent House members seeking re-election in New Jersey and Iowa. And last week, House Republicans’ top super PAC all but ceded the open Nebraska seat currently held by Representative Don Bacon, who is retiring, by withdrawing cash from his district.

In: Republicans are moving money into races they really don’t want to lose. Their main Senate super PAC now plans to spend heavily to protect the seat held by Senator Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, The Wall Street Journal reported. Trump carried Nebraska by more than 20 percentage points two years ago, but voters across the American heartland have been stewing over economic challenges resulting from the Iran war.

It’s part of a broader realignment of the congressional map. President Trump has been holding rallies not only in familiar battlegrounds like Ohio and North Carolina, but also in ruby-red states like Alabama, Texas and Tennessee. And Democrats are spending millions in Kansas, which hasn’t elected a Democratic Senator since 1932, in hopes of defeating Senator Roger Marshall, a Republican whose re-election contest has grown surprisingly competitive.

In other midterm elections news:

Elon Musk is trying to save Republicans’ Senate majority with some of the largest donations in U.S. political history.
Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for Senate in Michigan, called for a ban on superintelligent A.I. and a cabinet-level agency to regulate the industry.

Kimberly Guilfoyle in Athens in December. Byron Smith for The New York Times

Kimberly Guilfoyle resigns

Kimberly Guilfoyle has resigned as the U.S. ambassador to Greece following a string of damaging reports, including one in The Wall Street Journal that she had asked a Republican donor for $100,000 to pay off her credit card debt. The White House had asked her to step down.

Trump told reporters that Guilfoyle “was doing a good job” but that he “didn’t like” what he was reading about her. The president also downplayed his connection to her: “She wasn’t a member of my family,” he said. “She, I guess, dated my son a long time ago.” (Guilfoyle was once engaged to Donald Trump Jr.)

For more: Read about Guilfoyle’s rise and fall.

Posters from a rally at Rand Hall at Cornell University. Lauren Petracca for The New York Times

Cornell bans frat parties

Cornell University has banned parties at fraternity houses for the rest of the academic year and will add experienced sexual assault investigators to its police force in response to allegations of a gang rape that have shocked the campus and nation.

The moratorium, which comes days before Homecoming weekend, will allow for a thorough review of fraternity life at Cornell to determine whether it can safely resume, the school’s president, Michael Kotlikoff, said.

More top news

Pope Leo XIV: He was diagnosed with a common form of lung cancer, the Vatican said, and a lower lobe of his right lung was removed during surgery.
Tech: OpenAI said it had discovered a hidden recording device in one of its offices and traced it to an employee, whom the F.B.I. arrested.
France: A cyberattack hit refrigeration systems in more than 400 supermarkets.
Tennessee: The emergency response to Christa Pike’s botched execution last month was delayed because of confusion over the 911 call.
Politics: The newest voter worry about affordability is rising home insurance costs driven by extreme weather.
Crime: A judge in Las Vegas sentenced a man to 40 years to life in prison after he was convicted of orchestrating the murder of the rapper Tupac Shakur in 1996.
Texas: RJ Mitte, best known for playing the son of Walter White on “Breaking Bad,” died at 34.
Georgia: Police identified the man who died after falling from a Six Flags roller coaster.
Science: Researchers are looking for “super-Earths,” planets that orbit dwarf stars with conditions that could support even more complex life than our own.

TIME TO UNWIND

Adali Schell for The New York Times

Geese in Carnegie Hall?

Carnegie Hall is known for showing off prodigies and chamber orchestras. So how did Cameron Winter, the 24-year-old frontman of the popular, divisive rock band Geese — a guy with a hangdog baritone who likes to troll people on the internet — end up sitting there with a Steinway piano, playing a solo set?

And how did Paul Thomas Anderson, the lauded director of “One Battle After Another,” end up pausing his award-season victory lap to film Winter’s concert? (The film will tour select theaters through January.)

“Explain to me why this is good,” a colleague asked our pop music critic, Lindsay Zoladz. So she did.

Chona Kasinger for The New York Times

‘Gentrified’ seafood

Oysters that were $1 apiece not so long ago are now $4.50. Alaskan red king crab used to fetch $25 to $45 per pound; today, it retails for as much as $160. This past summer, a single king salmon from Alaska’s Copper River cost $2,000.

As climate change makes seafood more expensive, even weeknight staples can get pricey. “The fact that a cod is a delicacy is a huge cultural shift,” said Mark Kurlansky, who wrote a best-selling book about the fish in the late 1990s. “Cod was such an ordinary fish.”

Dinner table topics

Hannah Beier for The New York Times

Bruised by conflict: The economic effects of the Iran war can be seen in the journey of one banana from farm to store.
Little birdie: Kelly Clarkson got into an internet tiff with a Brooklyn novelty toy shop. Now everyone has an opinion.
White paint: Do we use too much of it? In her latest book, Wendy S. Walters considers this seemingly neutral background of daily life.
Bathroom shortage: Community leaders are calling on New York City officials to require bathroom access in privately owned public spaces.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Armando Rafael for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

Cook one-pot pasta with sausage and peppers.

Visit real-life locations from “The Shining” or “Friday the 13th” to get in the Halloween spirit.

Read Yiyun Li’s historical novel “Music Against the Night,” about the intertwined lives of two real-life classical musicians.

Stay toasty with a great space heater.

Clean up with a broom that won’t let you down. (You can also use it for your witch costume.)

Play: Today’s Spelling Bee, Wordle and Mini Crossword. For more, find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

The New York Times

Crazy about Elvis, an ocean away

Elvis Presley never performed outside of North America. So why do so many of his fans party in Wales???

Every September, Elvis aficionados and slick-haired tribute acts flock to the seaside town of Porthcawl to celebrate the King of Rock ’n’ Roll … 4,200 miles away from Graceland, his home in Memphis. Pompadours abound. So do fringes, flared collars and Americana. See more photos, and read how it all came to be.

Have a rubber-legged evening.

Thanks for reading. — Evan

Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Reach our team at evening@nytimes.com. And follow The New York Times on Instagram, Threads, Facebook and TikTok at @nytimes.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

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2026-10-14 NYT Evening

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 17:00:11 GMT

The Evening: Inflation rises before midterms

View in browser|nytimes.com

October 14, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Wednesday.

Energy prices lift inflation
Ukraine grows more vulnerable
Plus, can a human live to 200?

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics The New York Times

Soaring energy prices push inflation higher

Prices for gasoline, airline tickets, heating fuel, toys, lettuce and consumer electronics jumped last month, putting added pressure on millions of Americans. Overall, according to this morning’s inflation report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, consumer prices rose 3.7 percent from a year prior.

The bulk of the increase was driven by energy prices, which have spiked since the U.S. went to war with Iran. Gas prices are up 34.2 percent over the past year. (See how other prices have changed.)

The inflation data comes just weeks ahead of the midterm elections. Democrats hope that the elevated prices will help them flip several traditionally safe Republican seats, while President Trump has proclaimed that prices have improved.

Today’s report suggests otherwise. Since the president returned to office in 2025, Americans have experienced zero wage growth, in real terms, because wage growth has failed to outpace inflation. A new study by the Pew Research Center found that close to half of Americans are having trouble paying for basic needs.

In related news: Next year, retirees will see a 3.6 percent bump in their Social Security benefits.

Victoria Deineko and her daughter Mia in Kyiv yesterday. Evgeniy Maloletka/Associated Press

Ukraine faces new pressure, from Russia and the U.S.

Overnight, Russia unleashed a broad attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Some 600,000 people in Kyiv lost power, renewing concerns about access to heat during the upcoming winter. The barrage included 39 ballistic missiles, according to Ukraine. That would be the most in a single attack during the war.

Around the same time, Ukraine said that its military, with no warning, had lost access to a military version of Starlink, a pillar of its battlefield communications. The disruption has not been explained. But the network, known as Starshield, is paid for by the Pentagon, leading Ukrainians to believe that the restrictions came from the White House.

For more:

Amid fears that the U.S. could cut back on sharing military intelligence with Ukraine, European leaders vowed to redouble their support.
Easing sanctions on Russian diesel may not lower U.S. fuel costs. These charts show why.

Ken Paxton, left, and James Talarico. Kenny Holston/The New York Times; Antranik Tavitian for The New York Times

The Texas Senate race is tightening

James Talarico, the Democratic nominee for Senate in Texas, has led Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee, in nearly every poll over the last few months. But the gap between the two has been narrowing. The latest high-quality poll, released today, showed Talarico up by two percentage points, within the margin of error.

The race, which could help decide what party controls the Senate, is set to be one of the most expensive nonpresidential contests in U.S. history. Ad spending has already exceeded $500 million. Follow the latest polls here.

Bleached coral can recover through touch, a study finds

Almost by accident, researchers in a California lab discovered that a piece of healthy coral could help heal a ghostly, heat-shocked piece just by touching it. Surprisingly, the scientists said, the sick coral was able to regain its color in weeks, not the months it might take in the wild.

The finding, announced today, raises new possibilities for treating reefs that are devastated by marine heat waves, which are becoming more frequent because of climate change.

More top news

Vatican: Pope Leo XIV was “in a good mood” after surgery for a common lung cancer. While the diagnosis may test assumptions of a long papacy, treatments have vastly improved.
Supreme Court: In 1988, a journalist obtained the videotape rental history of a candidate to serve on the court. Today, the justices weighed whether the law passed to counter such leaks still applies.
Business: As its growth slows, Netflix said it would lay off about 1,000 employees.
Turkey: The police swept into the headquarters of the most widely watched pro-opposition news channel after a court appointed an administrator to take it over.
Africa: In 2019, Ethiopia’s prime minister won a Nobel Prize for making peace with Eritrea. Recently, the countries fought together in Tigray. Now they’re on the brink of war.
Wisconsin: Six people died when a small plane crashed near the Wisconsin Dells.
Michigan: Five homeless men have died from injuries suffered on a greenway near Lansing. The police are looking at the possibility of a serial killer.
France: The latest in a rash of art heists claimed a 330-pound, jewel-encrusted book cover created by Salvador Dalí.
Argentina: Javier Milei, the country’s president, refers to his dogs as his children, and he has said that he seeks advice from them. For insight, we interviewed his former dog psychic.

THE EVENING QUIZ

This question comes from a recent edition of the newsletter. Click an answer to see if you’re right. (The link is free.)

Which A.I. company said it had found a hidden recording device in its offices?

TIME TO UNWIND

Ricardo Tomás

Will anyone ever live to 200?

Some longevity experts are incredibly optimistic about extending human life. They cite major advances in scientific understanding about aging, or new drugs that may be able to slow the process down.

But many longevity claims appear to be unrealistic. Most muscle and brain cells can’t be repaired — and if someone got a new brain, would that still be the same person? Read more about the debate.

For more: Here are six things that longevity experts wish people would stop saying.

Aaron Fernandez

An A.I. dinner party, no humans allowed

Last month, 22 tech founders and investors gathered in New York for a meal of hummus and pita. At the same time, 14 of their artificial intelligence agents joined a separate dinner party in an online chat room. It may seem strange, but as A.I. tools become more prevalent, it’s helpful to understand how they act without humans around.

Luckily, the bots kept a transcript. One started the conversation with a networking prompt; another described hosting a podcast about working with humans. Afterward a human asked an A.I. agent how it went. It was “the best 30 minutes of my job so far,” the bot responded.

Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times

Dinner table topics

In Tokyo, an architect spent 21 years building a temple of concrete by hand. Here’s why.
Coming out at 50 can be hard. Shelly found a coach.
Look back at this day in history.
Watch the security footage from Kelly Clarkson’s visit to a Brooklyn novelty shop that turned into a social media frenzy.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

David Malosh for The New York Times

Make this feta frittata and top it with some chives and cilantro.

Take one of these delightful bike rides, recommended by Times readers.

Pick your favorite $400,000 home.

Keep super glue in the fridge, and maybe your teeth whitening strips, too.

Take our quiz to see how well you know spooky book locations.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Kelly Burgess for The New York Times

The fruit detectives who keep antique apples alive

Nowadays, most U.S. apples are one of five varieties: Gala, Red Delicious, Honeycrisp, Granny Smith and Fuji. But there are many more interesting options out there if you are willing to look back a few hundred years. Their names have the ring of Dickensian villains — like Esopus Spitzenburg and Cornish Gilliflower — and their flavors vary from honeyed sweetness to dark clove spice.

These heirloom apples are still available for you to sink your teeth into (or perhaps make a slow-cooker applesauce with) thanks to pomologists who have spent years investigating and preserving century-old varieties. In Connecticut, for example, one farm offers the Ashmead’s Kernel, a firm, golden 18th-century English variety with an electric fizzy flavor.

Have a crisp evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Eli Cohen was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

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2026-10-15 NYT Evening

Thu, 15 Oct 2026 17:00:12 GMT

The Evening: D.O.J. sues over voter rolls

View in browser|nytimes.com

October 15, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Thursday.

Trump administration sues California
Ukraine defies a U.S. demand
Plus, a search for the perfect dog

Patrick T. Fallon/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Justice Dept. sues California over its voter rolls

The Trump administration sued the state of California today, seeking to temporarily block it from counting mail ballots submitted by voters that administration officials describe as “likely noncitizens.”

The suit is considered a long shot. But the Justice Department is trying a new strategy, asking a court to prevent the counting of votes from roughly 20,000 people “until their citizenship status can be determined.” California officials vowed to fight the effort; its secretary of state said that the list of 20,000 names “lacks both the detail and function to be of any investigative use.”

Today’s move opens a new front in President Trump’s campaign to prove that thousands of people have voted illegally. Investigators have found small numbers of people who have been caught voting illegally, but nowhere near the quantities needed to swing major races. Some election officials have expressed concern that the president could use his unsubstantiated claims to challenge the midterm results.

In other news ahead of the midterms:

Federal officials are investigating letters “containing suspicious substances” that were sent to senators and state election officials.
While Democrats have hope of flipping red-state seats, they have concerns about races in Minnesota, Maine and Michigan.

Pool photo by Nicolas Tucat

Zelensky defies Trump

Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, said in an interview published today that his military would no longer abide by Trump’s demand to stop striking Russian oil refineries. Zelensky also sharply criticized Trump for making deals with Vladimir Putin, and described him as being on the wrong side of history.

The unusually public burst of anger came just before the Ukrainian president arrived in Brussels, where many European leaders expressed support for his decision to resume refinery attacks. But Ukraine has depended heavily on U.S. support, and the emerging rift between the two countries could be a risky one.

A fire broke out overnight at a Russian oil refinery after it was hit by a drone strike, a local official said. A Ukrainian official confirmed that Kyiv was behind the attack.

For more: Russia is seizing an opening to inflict immense suffering in Ukraine.

A memorial for the soldiers killed in the mass shooting, seen in 2014. Doug Mills/The New York Times

Trump cancels plans for a livestreamed execution

The president said today that he had canceled the Pentagon’s plans to broadcast the execution of the Army officer who killed 13 people and wounded 32 others at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had previously said the plan emphasized that there are “serious consequences for these types of things.” But Trump said today that “many very good and well meaning people would rather not watch him die.”

Dozens of retired senior military officials, along with both Republicans and Democrats in Congress, publicly criticized the planned livestream. Even Vice President JD Vance said he would not watch it.

Ruth Fremson/The New York Times

Homeownership is drifting out of reach for many

Mortgage rates remained elevated for the eighth straight week, hovering at 7.4 percent for the most popular home loan, the 30-year fixed-rate. That’s the steepest it has been in three years, though not historically high when compared with decades past. The difference now is that home prices are sky-high as well.

That is putting home buying out of reach for many Americans, especially first-time purchasers. It also could depress home building, compounding the problem.

For more:

A majority of Americans own a home by 37 — but not in New York or L.A.
Could embracing sprawl ease California’s housing crunch?

More top news

Energy: With Iran escalating its attacks, 26 vessels have been struck this month in the Strait of Hormuz. But traffic has not fallen from recent levels.
Congress: A pair of Democratic senators moved to block the nuclear cooperation agreement between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia.
Texas: An increasing number of students ages 10 to 13 are facing criminal charges for misbehavior.
Pakistan: The collapse of a school roof killed 32 children in Peshawar.
Immigration: Amid a contract battle between the White House and nonprofits that provide lawyers for immigrant children, many face deportation judges alone.
Health: Regular scans could catch lung cancers like Pope Leo XIV’s sooner, but many people at risk don’t qualify for screening.
Religion: An ordained minister by age 4, Marjoe Gortner starred in an Oscar-winning documentary that exposed the flimflammery of his former job. He died this month at 82.
Your pick: The most clicked link in yesterday’s edition of The Evening was the security footage from inside the toy store now feuding with Kelly Clarkson.

AN UNFATHOMABLE SCALE

The New York Times

It took nearly an octillion calculations, a thousand trillion trillion, to train OpenAI’s new model. It would take an iPhone 13 million years to do that much math. Hard to comprehend? We visualized it for you.

Related: Does managing your children’s work (and play) feel like it takes an octillion calculations? Some parents are leaning on A.I. agents for help.

TIME TO UNWIND

A24

‘You Can See Everything’ asks us what we mean by truth

There aren’t too many three-hour documentaries that can sell out theaters. But that’s exactly what is happening with “You Can See Everything,” a film arriving this week about Elizabeth Holmes, the blood-testing entrepreneur turned celebrity inmate. In the hands of Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim, the movie is also an up-close examination of truth, reality and the contours of knowledge.

Our critic, Manohla Dargis, described it as a wily, disturbing exploration of the relationship between documentarians and their subjects. “Few movies speak as uncannily to the pathos and destabilizing confusions of the present moment,” Manohla writes. Read her review.

Rules on Maiden Lane in Covent Garden. Jonathan Wilson/Alamy

London’s oldest restaurant plans to stay open forever

Charles Dickens was a regular. So, too, was King Edward VII, who wooed his mistress there. And now Rules, a 228-year-old institution with a menu heavy on game meats, a hearty wine list and antlers on seemingly every wall, is the first restaurant to be owned and safeguarded by Britain’s National Trust.

The previous owner gave Rules to the Trust, which aims to preserve British heritage, under terms that require it to remain a restaurant in perpetuity. My colleague Amelia Nierenberg went there this week to see what it’s like.

“Ruined Column” by Adam Charlap Hyman. Mari Maeda-Oboshi and Yuji Oboshi

Dinner table topics

The highly intricate practice of cutting paper is an ancient art. A new generation is putting a fresh spin on it.
The record for the world’s biggest pumpkin was broken twice this month. See the new champion.
Several celebrity mansions are up for sale.
A Times writer shares her lessons about new widowhood, and what helps life go on. (We made this story free for all Evening readers.)

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Rachel Vanni for The New York Times

Bake this croissant French toast and revel in its almond-y goodness.

Watch “Macbeth” or one of these other streamable theater performances.

Read a great sci-fi monster novel.

Shield your phone with one of Wirecutter’s favorite screen protectors.

Hunt: Which New York City home would you buy with a budget of $1.2 million?

Play today’s special detective novel-themed crossword. Or find the rest of our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Kelsey McClellan for The New York Times

A California winemaker thinks he's found the perfect dog

Outside a wine shop in tiny Boonville, Calif., is a sign advertising “Puppies inside.” Inside that store is a man who will tell you that the dozen or so canines running around — cute pups resembling short-haired Border collies — are the best dogs in the world. He calls them fox collies.

You’ve almost certainly never heard of them because the man who owns the shop, Andy DuVigneaud, is the only person breeding them. He does genetic testing to prevent heath issues that plague many purebreds, but otherwise prefers the old-fashioned method: mating dogs he likes with other dogs he likes. The result, he says, is a dog smart and energetic enough to work on a ranch and chill enough to relax next to you during a long car ride.

Have a charming evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Eli Cohen was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

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2026-10-16 NYT Evening

Fri, 16 Oct 2026 17:00:16 GMT

The Evening: A father intervenes in Oregon

View in browser|nytimes.com

October 16, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Friday.

Father intervened in Ore. school shooting
White House press secretary is ousted
Plus, remembering Bruiser the elk

Outside of Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Ore., today. Jordan Gale for The New York Times

Bystander who killed school shooter is a father of 2 students

The man who cut short a deadly rampage at an Oregon elementary school by fatally shooting the 16-year-old attacker was a father of two girls inside the school, his family confirmed today. The father, Kaylub Giamanco, happened to be on his lunch break near the school when the shooting started.

Giamanco entered the school and killed the assailant, who was armed with a shotgun registered to his mother, officials said. Before Giamanco’s intervention, the teenage suspect had blasted through locked doors and killed a teacher and three children, ages 5, 8 and 11. A 7-year-old and another teacher were also critically injured. The gunman still had 44 more rounds of ammunition on him when he was shot dead, police said.

The authorities also commended a teacher who they said tackled the shooter and “helped prevent more bloodshed.” The 5-year-old victim was identified as Rhoam Summer. His grandfather described him as “very bright and very mischievous and very fun-loving.”

For more:

Parents of children who survived the attack said they were struggling to help their children manage feelings of trauma, fear and guilt.
Here’s what we know about the suspect.

Katie Zacharia during her first briefing at the White House on Tuesday. Kenny Holston/The New York Times

The White House press secretary is out after five days

Katie Zacharia, who took over as President Trump’s press secretary less than a week ago, was fired today. The president told reporters that he had urged her to “reconsider” the job, but that she might continue to work for him “in maybe a more pleasant form.”

Zacharia had gotten off to a bumpy start with her first (and ultimately final) press briefing earlier this week. She took just three questions and largely read off a script, a performance some White House officials considered a disaster. Then, she faced an onslaught of headlines about whether she had misrepresented herself as a lawyer — the president called her “an attorney” — despite failing her bar exam.

The New York Times

The U.S. deficit nears $2 trillion

The Treasury Department released new budget data today, showing that the gap between what the government spends and what it collects widened significantly during the first full fiscal year of Trump’s second term. The U.S. budget deficit is now nearly $2 trillion, its highest level since the pandemic.

The shortfall stems from increased military spending, interest payments on the debt, Social Security benefits and falling corporate tax receipts as a result of last year’s tax cut package. The costs have dwarfed the cuts Trump has made to federal spending.

The New York Times

The leap second is canceled

Every few years since 1972, global timekeepers — the systems that make sure your iPhone clock never needs adjusting — have had to reset their clocks by a single second. Leap seconds, as they are called, are like leap years, only much shorter and much less predictable. They were designed to account for irregularities in how fast Earth rotates, and they’re a hassle.

Now, after a vote today by the international authority on timekeeping, they are being eliminated. Instead, we will wait until an entire hour is needed to bring us back into synchronization with the planet’s spin. It’s unclear how long that will take; we might not need a leap hour for hundreds or even thousands of years.

More top news

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez with Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan on Thursday. Zbigniew Bzdak for The New York Times

Politics

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez transferred $1 million to Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive running for the U.S. Senate in Michigan.
More than $137 million has been spent on A.I.-generated political ads ahead of this year’s midterms.
Signs are emerging that Russia and other foreign governments are once again seeking to influence American voters.

Other Big Stories

Middle East: Dozens of Israeli settlers attacked a group of Palestinians in the West Bank, injuring a Washington Post journalist and others.
Ukraine: Russia is trying to force Kyiv to capitulate by making the capital unlivable. Reporting, charts and photos show what life is like there now.
Japan: In a nod to the share of household tasks that fall to Japanese women, the prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, described her hours of chores to parliament.
Travel: A lawsuit accused Expedia of breaking federal antitrust laws and forcing millions of customers to overspend on hotel stays by as much as 30 percent.
Celebrity: Sean Combs, who was sentenced last year to more than four years for prostitution-related offenses, was transferred to a federal prison in central Pennsylvania.
A.I.: Terence Tao, one of the world’s great mathematicians, is on a “war footing” over artificial intelligence. In an interview, he explained why.
Archaeology: Researchers claimed to have found the world’s oldest shipwreck.
Your pick: The most clicked link in yesterday’s edition of The Evening was a story about the oldest restaurant in London.
Robots: More American workers are strapping cameras to their bodies to help train robots. Click the video below to see how it works.

Click to watch The New York Times

TIME TO UNWIND

Alessandro Lucioni; Caitlin Ochs/Reuters; Filippo Fior; Simbarashe Cha/The New York Times

The runway looks that inspired us this season

Few people can afford the clothes that stream down the runways each season. But there are other reasons to pay attention. The best looks surprise us, impress us with their craftsmanship, capture the cultural moment, or perhaps inspire us to try something new with our own wardrobe.

From the latest season of runway shows, our fashion writers and editors picked the outfits that stood out most.

For more: The fashion world is cozying up to Big Tech.

The Apartment Gallery opened in Ridgewood, Queens. Elias Williams for The New York Times

When gallery space is too expensive …

To explore some of New York City’s most intimate art exhibits, you need to step inside third-floor walk-ups, two-bedrooom lofts and subterranean studios. Many of the artists live in the apartments as well, making it a much more affordable way to show off their work.

Such spaces are part of an eclectic history that stretches back to the birth of modern art in New York. During the postwar era, art dealers organized exhibitions of now-classic modernists inside Upper East Side townhouses where the dealers and their families lived. Take a look inside.

Dmitry Kostyukov for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

There’s something a little weird about Paris’s Museum of Hunting and Nature. That’s the best part.
Is retirement unhealthy? It depends. But there is solid evidence for how to make it healthier.
The A346, an airplane with a downstairs restroom and a devoted following, is being retired.
Living near the Hollywood Bowl concert venue is loud. Many residents love it.

WHAT TO DO THIS WEEKEND

Linda Xiao for The New York Times

Try out this exciting take on a fried egg that the internet loves.

Watch a brilliant baritone perform.

Read one of our Book Review’s top picks from this week.

Learn to surf, and enjoy the lessons it offers for a long, healthy life.

Grab Wirecutter’s favorite travel pillow before your next trip.

Take this week’s news quiz.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Jann Pulfer Ledbetter

Bruiser the elk was one of a kind

Around 14 years ago, a young elk ditched his herd on the American mainland, braved the chilly waters of Skagit Bay and swam at least two miles to a misty island outside of Seattle. He was the first elk known to have reached the plot of land in more than 100 years, and before long he was adored by local residents, who called him Bruiser. He never left.

On Whidbey Island, where Bruiser roamed, he was something of a mascot. After he died this month at around 15 to 18, quite an old age for a male elk, locals shared their favorite stories about his often wily antics. Sometimes, for example, Bruiser would get his antlers entangled in a bicycle or a clothesline. Read more about his life.

Have a welcoming weekend.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back on Monday — Matthew

Jill Foley was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

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2026-10-19 NYT Evening

Mon, 19 Oct 2026 18:00:05 GMT

The Evening: Curfews in France

View in browser|nytimes.com

October 19, 2026

	By Matthew Cullen

Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Monday.

France imposes curfews after riots
American forests are sick
Plus, Penélope Cruz will not be typecast

Near La Madeleine church in Paris on Saturday. Kiran Ridley/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

France imposes curfews

Parts of Paris, Lyon and Lille are shut down tonight after antigovernment demonstrations across the country devolved into the most destructive riots France has seen in decades. Officials there estimated that at least 3,000 businesses had been pillaged over the weekend.

France’s prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, ordered local officials in cities most affected by the riots to impose curfews in an effort to reassert control. He vowed to use “whatever tools are at the government’s disposal.”

The decision came amid an escalating political blame game. Lecornu blamed the far left for the unrest, while the country’s main far-left party has blamed his government. France’s interior minister acknowledged today that the police had been underprepared to deal with the riots, which spun off from mostly peaceful protests demanding better school conditions. Here’s what to know about them.

For more: A 14-year-old was shot in the face by a tear gas grenade, breaking his jaw. The incident stirred a national outcry.

Eric Lee for The New York Times

Trump heads to Kansas, as some Republicans seek distance

President Trump traveled to Wichita this afternoon to hold a rally for Senator Roger Marshall, a suddenly endangered incumbent in Kansas, a state where Republicans have held both Senate seats for nearly a century.

Anger at the administration is palpable. While farmers and ranchers have been a core part of Trump’s coalition, choosing him by double-digit margins, mounting economic frustration has raised the prospect of a farmer’s protest.

Some Republicans have avoided tying themselves closely with the president, whose approval rating remains low. Only a tiny fraction — less than 1 percent — of recent Republican ads even mention the president.

Trump officials clash with judge over D.C. golf course

The president announced today that his administration would “immediately” begin a yearlong renovation of a municipal golf course in Washington, remaking it into a professional venue. Hours later, Ana Reyes, a Biden-appointed federal judge, questioned administration officials about whether they had been planning the move even while swearing in court that no such decisions had been made. Reyes has ordered that the government stop removing trees from the course.

The stakes of the case may be relatively low, but it is proving be a test case for how far Trump is willing to go to get his way. With an army of Justice Department lawyers present, the hearing began with drama.

A beech tree infected with beech leaf disease and beech bark disease. Bryan Anselm for The New York Times

Many American forests are sick

Tiny pests and pathogens are wreaking havoc on many tree species across the U.S., particularly in the Northeast. Their entryway is global trade: As more products and plants arrive from abroad, so too do invasive stowaways.

Billions of trees have died already, and many more are under threat. In some severe cases, forests are being transformed into bleak expanses of brambles and vines. See what scientists are doing to slow down the destruction.

More top news

Ukraine: To combat Russia’s inexpensive new jet-powered drones, Kyiv has been forced to use multimillion-dollar F16s.
Supreme Court: The justices said that they would take up a case on race and admissions for selective public middle schools.
A Times investigation: Our reporters visited an illegal mine in Madagascar to learn how a trillion-dollar industry launders illicit gold.
Climate: California’s latest Climate Change Assessment warned about how global warming is projected to upend the state, in unsettling detail.
Immigration: The Trump administration cut legal immigration in half early this year, thanks largely to Trump policies blocking visas. Africa and the Middle East were hit especially hard.
Health care: As premiums soar and Medicaid cuts mount, we visited a last-hope clinic to see what patients and providers are facing.
Science: Experts are nearing a consensus on what causes stuttering.
South Korea: A 10-foot-long dusky shark that swam into a waterway in Busan has drawn more than a million visitors as officials try to guide her back out to sea.
New York: The city’s new tool for one of its longest battles is BurrowRx, a gas-powered rat killing machine.

TIME TO UNWIND

Paul Kooiker for The New York Times

Penélope Cruz will not be typecast

Penélope Cruz’s big break came in 1992, when, as a teenager, she played the daughter of a small-town prostitute in the semi-explicit art house film “Jamón Jamón.” For her next role, another big Spanish hit, Cruz played a girlish virgin in a comedy. The two characters were nothing alike, and ever since she has been determined to avoid being typecast.

This year, for example, Cruz is an unpredictable sex therapist in “The Invite,” a gentle book editor in “Bunker,” and a captivating singer in “La Bola Negra.” In an interview, she told us how she inhabits so many different roles.

Photo illustration by Will Warasila for The New York Times

How did life arise?

Our science reporters recently began a project exploring the frontiers of science, where researchers are trying to tackle the universe’s mysteries. There is perhaps no bigger question than how living things, like frogs, tulips and ourselves, came to exist.

Many scientists agree that all life on Earth can be traced back roughly 4 to 4.5 billion years, to a so-called Last Universal Common Ancestor. Where exactly that life happened — possibly a “warm little pond,” or in the alien worlds of deep-sea volcanic vents — and how life grew to be so complex are often debated. My colleagues explain what we know.

Andres Kudacki for The New York Times

Dinner table topics

For $2 million, you could own three books that unlocked the universe.
Was last weekend’s Academy Museum of Motion Pictures red carpet better than the Met Gala’s? See our favorite looks and decide for yourself.
It’s just bread, butter and cheese — and Copenhagen is obsessed.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus said she realized she was famous while giving birth.

WHAT TO DO TONIGHT

Christopher Testani for The New York Times

Cook these crispy chimichangas, which are packed with tender chicken.

Watch a free-to-stream movie, like “Burning.”

Read Leslie Fiedler’s 66-year-old tour de force of literary criticism, “Love and Death in the American Novel.”

Get prepared as Covid season approaches. Here’s what to know.

Use these tools and tips to help remove stains.

Take the latest Flashback history quiz.

Play today’s Connections, Spelling Bee and Mini Crossword. Find all our games here.

ONE LAST THING

Clara Vannucci for The New York Times

Your nose could be your travel guide

France may get most of the scented glory these days, but Florence was the birthplace of modern fragrance. So our travel writer Lisa Abend traveled to the Tuscan city to embark on a perfume-centric adventure.

There, she took a whiff of a 16th-century scent made specially for Catherine de Medici, explored the city’s historic fragrance shops and sniffed out the difference between natural and synthetic jasmine at a perfume museum. Before leaving, Lisa concocted her own autumnal scent, with lilac, amber and neroli. Read about her experience.

Have a pleasant evening.

Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow — Matthew

Eli Cohen was our photo editor.

We welcome your feedback. Reach us at evening@nytimes.com.

Writer: Matthew Cullen

Editor: Whet Moser

If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here.

Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance.

You received this email because you signed up for The Evening from The New York Times.

To stop receiving The Evening, unsubscribe. To opt out of other promotional emails from The Times, including those regarding The Athletic, manage your email settings.

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