Politics & World
White House Turns Away CNN, MS NOW, Politico
The White House on Saturday denied entry to reporters from CNN, MS NOW and Politico and confiscated their press badges, enforcing a ban President Trump announced Friday.
You’re reading the edition from Sunday, September 20, 2026. Read today’s
Sunday, September 20, 2026 · 4-minute read
CNN Barred, Ukraine Drone Blitz, and a 728-Foot Moon Crater
The White House bars three major news outlets, Ukraine sends over 1,000 drones into Russia, and Céline Dion serenades Paris from a car roof.
Need to know
Politics & World
Ukraine Fires Over 1,000 Drones at Russia
Ukraine launched more than 1,000 drones at Russia overnight, killing two people in the Moscow region…
Sources: NPR News, BBC World, DW
Science & Tech
Trump Announces ‘AI Force,’ Plans AI Czar
President Trump said Saturday he will create an ‘AI Force’ modeled on Space Force and soon name an…
Sources: Reuters, The Hill, Axios
728feet
The width of a brand-new crater on the moon, gouged by a building-sized object that struck in 2024 — wider than two football fields laid end to end and 141 feet deep. Scientists are calling the chance to observe such a fresh impact a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ event.
Source: Smithsonian
In the know
Worth a longer read
The Gulf cargo trade that vanished
What happened to the Gulf cargo trade that vanished — and the forces behind its disappearance. (Read, paywall)
Financial TimesSubscription
Mathematicians Hate AI. They Can’t Quit It
Why mathematicians who distrust AI keep coming back to it — and what the tools are doing to their field.
Wired · Isabella Ward
Private Equity’s Next Target Is Indie Music
How private equity money is moving into independent music, and what that means for artists and labels.
Rolling Stone · Christian Hoard
- Today
The NFL’s Week 3 Sunday slate kicks off across the league, with a full day of afternoon and evening games.
- Tonight
Madonna opens the MTV Video Music Awards — her first opening slot since 2003.
Etcetera
- The 24 Gen Alpha slang terms of 2026, from ‘mogging’ to ‘6-7’
- Yes, it’s actually illegal to burn your own money
- Watch a very determined Labrador haul a giant stick through a tight tunnel
- Louisiana firefighters answered a house fire call and found an African serval
- Céline Dion climbed onto a car in Paris to sing with her fans
- The electric VW bus that drove through 92 countries into the record books
Today’s clickbait, so you don’t have toThere’s a Humpback Whale in a California River, 60 Miles From the Ocean
On this day · September 20
The Historybook- 1519Ferdinand Magellan sets sail from Spain on the first expedition to circumnavigate the globe
- 1946The first Cannes Film Festival opens on the French Riviera
- 1963President John F. Kennedy proposes a joint US-Soviet expedition to the moon at the UN
- 1973Billie Jean King beats Bobby Riggs in the ‘Battle of the Sexes’ tennis match
Compiled by the Desk, not linked to a source · Report an error
Quote of the day
“Pressure is a privilege.”
— Billie Jean King, who won the ‘Battle of the Sexes’ match on this date in 1973
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