This year has been full of interesting and important news stories, we’ve recapped all of our biggest news stories here.
ICE in Chicago
In early September of this year the Department of Homeland Security launched “Operation Midway Blitz,” which aimed to tighten the enforcement of immigration laws within Chicago. The Chicago mayor has repeatedly condemned these raids and has signed orders to prevent ICE agents from using city property as staging grounds. These raids still happening today. Salma Abas first reported on this story on September 16th.
Charlotte Train Stabbing
On August 22nd of this year 34 year old Decarlos Brown stabbed 23 year old Iryna Zarutska, a Ukrainian Refugee who was returning home from work on the Lynx Blue Line light rail train. Brown had several arrests and was known to have had severe mental health issues. According to ABC News Brown’s mother she had tried to have Brown involuntarily admitted to a mental facility.
On October 22, Brown was indicted by a federal grand jury for violence against a railroad carrier and mass transportation system.
Taylor Vernia first reported on this story on September 16th.
56 Year Old Man Found Dead after Killing his Mother Because of ChatGPT
On Aug 5th, a 56 year old man named Erik Soelberg and his 83 year old mother Suzanne Aberson Addams, were both found dead in Greenwich after months of discussion with Chat GPT. The chats show both his paranoia and Chat GPT’s disturbing responses. Soelberg had a history of mental illness. After several months talking with the LLM he had named the bot Bobby and called it his best friend. 3 weeks after Soelberg’s last message with the bot, he was found dead by Greenwich Police.
Alastor Wolf first reported on this story on September 17th.
Trump and Tylenol
During a press conference on September 21st President Trump stated that pregnant women shouldn’t take Tylenol during pregnancy, saying that it could cause autism in their baby. Tylenol has been proved safe multiple times by researchers and professional societies. Trump also admitted that no doctor s were involved in the conclusion. Robert F Kennedy and Donald J Trump, are both determined to crack down on what they call the “Autism epidemic.” The manufacturer of Tylenol has stated that they are fighting new required safety labels as a result of this investigation. Alastor Wolf first reported on this story on September 30th.
Jimmy Kimmel Drama
‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ returned to air on September 23rd following comments seen as inappropriate and insensitive towards the death of Charlie Kirk. Upon Kimmel’s return he talked about the support he received and expressed grief over Kirk’s death. Originally, Nexstar stated that they would not be airing the show on their ABC stations, but have since resumed airing the program. You can read Nexstar’s press release here. Ricky Profitt first reported on this story on September 30th.
Typhoon Ragasa
On September 22nd super Typhoon Ragasa hit the Philippines leading to thousands of evacuations. The typhoon was the equivalent of a category 5 hurricane. Wind speeds were recorded as more than 150 mph. At least 29 deaths were recorded with more than 200 injuries as a result of the storm. Quincy Vann first reported on this story on October 7th.
The 2025 Government Shutdown
The longest government shutdown in United States history occorded between October 1st and November 12th. It lasted 43 days beating the previous record by 8 days, which was set during President Trumps first term in 2018. The shutdown impacted Medicare and SNAP benefits most famously but also lead to over 900,000 government workers being furloughed. Lakhrya Joiner first reported on this story on November 6th.
Trump’s Ballroom Project
On Monday October 20th demolition work for the new White House ballroom began. Originally only part of the East Wing was to removed but as of now the entire East Wing has been demolished to make room for the ballroom. According to Trump the project is being funded by many “generous patriots.” The East wing was originally constructed in 1902 and was last modified in 1942. The project was not approved by the National Capital Planning Commission but moved ahead anyway. Yara Farawn first reported on this story on October 22nd.
Donald Trump Plans to Resume Nuclear Testing
After over 30 years, Donald Trump has decided to has decided to resume nuclear weapon testing. The consequences of nuclear testing are deep and dangerous, and especially so if not done properly. Trump has posted on social media that testing will begin immediately. Engineers have said that safer and accurate testing can be done through computer simulation, instead of detonating real warheads. Quincy Vann first reported on this story on November 5th.
New York Mayoral Election
Despite consistent pushback from Andrew Cuomo and establishment party members, Zohran Kwame Mamdanis policy and never ending stream of charismatic campaigning led to a monumental win. He won in a landslide with 60% of the votes, on November 4th. He marks the first muslim mayor in NYC history. Samuel Walters first reported on this story on November 6th.
