Meta; Mail-in voting; Nuclear safety; Nepal flood : NPR

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Today’s top stories

Meta has agreed to pay up to $17 billion in penalties as part of a settlement in a groundbreaking federal child safety lawsuit. The states of California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey have accused Meta of making Facebook and Instagram addictive for children, alleging the company was aware of the risks but concealed this information. Although Meta denies these accusations, the settlement will include funding for youth mental health initiatives, after-school programs, and crisis intervention services. Additionally, Meta will implement platform changes, such as setting a two-hour daily usage limit for users under 18, restricting nighttime access, and removing the display of likes and reactions on posts.

• 🎧 It could take years to implement these changes, psychologist Mitch Prinstein told NPR’s Rhitu Chatterjee. Prinstein, who was scheduled to testify at the trial on Monday, stated that constant notifications about likes and dislikes aren’t suitable for the developing pre-teen and teen brain. At this stage, children are increasingly focused on popularity and hypersensitive to social signals.
• ➡️ The settlement is among the largest ever reached by a U.S. company. Here’s what it could mean for the rest of the tech industry.

A federal judge in Boston recently revoked a nationwide ruling that blocked the U.S. Postal Service from adhering to President Trump’s executive order limiting mail-in voting. This decision marks another temporary victory for the administration as it battles legal challenges ahead of the midterm elections. U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani’s decision follows the Supreme Court’s earlier ruling this month that a similar decision by Talwani, which applied only to 23 primarily Democratic-led states and Washington, D.C., was premature before the USPS finalized plans based on Trump’s directives. This development paves the way for another potential Supreme Court review of the president’s executive order. Thus far, the high court has addressed only procedural issues without ruling on the legality of Trump’s order.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is planning to abolish a 50-year-old rule designed to minimize radiation exposure. This update aligns with the Trump administration’s broad changes to nuclear oversight and efforts to promote nuclear energy for powering data centers for artificial intelligence. The proposed rule would eliminate the “As Low As Reasonably Achievable” (ALARA) standard, which requires the nuclear industry to reduce workers’ radiation exposure to below-stated limits wherever possible. The new rule would also permit certain workers to receive higher radiation exposures under specific conditions. While some view the removal of ALARA as a necessary improvement, critics warn it could increase radiation exposure. The public comment period ends on Aug. 31, and the rule could take effect early next year.

Severe flash floods in Nepal and Tibet have resulted in at least 270 deaths. More than 1,500 people are confirmed missing, including at least 65 Americans, according to the Nepal Tourism Board. The floods were triggered when a glacier collapsed into a valley, blocking a river and causing water levels to rise by about 30 feet in just 30 minutes, engulfing people and communities in mud.

• 🎧 Search-and-rescue efforts are still in the early stages, NPR’s Diaa Hadid reports. Rescue workers are trying to dig people out of the mud, but washed-out roads are hindering progress, according to Riaz Lodhi, head of the World Food Program. Nepali authorities are experienced in emergency response, especially following incidents like the 2015 earthquake that killed around 9,000 people, aid workers say. However, they note that authorities have not encountered anything of this magnitude before. Experts warn that catastrophes like this are likely to happen again due to rising temperatures in the Himalayas, which are warming faster than the global average, destabilizing the region’s 60,000 glaciers and triggering more avalanches.

Deep dive

Black man appearing middle aged sitting at desk talking to Black woman and Black child in office setting, principal discussing school matters with parent and student

DragonImages/iStockphoto via Getty Images

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DragonImages/iStockphoto via Getty Images

The U.S. Department of Education is investigating Fayetteville Public Schools in Arkansas for instructing teachers to consider students’ racial identities when administering discipline. The school system claims this method is part of a “restorative justice” initiative to address “the disproportionality of discipline on students of color.” The Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has issued new guidance warning school leaders against considering a student’s race in disciplinary matters, and non-compliance could lead to an investigation. This action rekindles a civil rights debate over discipline in K-12 schools and what qualifies as discrimination. Here’s an overview of school discipline data over the years:

• 🏫 In 2014, the Obama administration released guidance highlighting that U.S. school discipline data often showed significant, potentially discriminatory impacts on students of color. At that time, African American students represented 15% of the student population but accounted for 35% of those suspended at least once.
• 🏫 Following the 2014 guidance, many school districts moved away from suspensions and expulsions, adopting restorative justice policies that emphasize dialogue over punishment.
• 🏫 By 2018, student suspensions had decreased from 5.6% to 4.7%, according to NPR. Hispanic students experienced a 30% reduction, while Black students and students with disabilities also saw notable declines.
• 🏫 The Trump administration’s latest guidance argues that previous policies led schools to conceal student misconduct to avoid federal scrutiny for any racial disparities.

Picture show

Members repair tracks, operate trains and chat at the Carquinez Model Railroad Society in Crockett, Calif., on May 13, 2026. The volunteer-run organization maintains an expansive model railroad layout based on Bay Area railroad towns and hosts public open houses throughout the year.

Beth LaBerge/KQED

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Beth LaBerge/KQED

In Crockett, Calif., train enthusiasts have found a community at the Carquinez Model Railroad Society (CMRS), where they can design, build, and express their creativity. With nearly 180 members, the club hosts open houses every few months, inviting the public to admire model trains navigating miniature versions of Oakland, Calif., and Sparks, Nev., on over a mile of track. Beyond public events, members maintain the club’s 129-year-old building, construct new track sections, and repair each other’s trains. Whether you’re a train aficionado or simply appreciate intricate miniatures, explore the CMRS world with captivating photos of the members’ creations.

3 things to know before you go

Tim Curry played Dr. Frank-N-Furter, the tyrannical gender-bending alien scientist in both stage and screen versions of The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Movie Poster Image Art/Moviepix/Getty Images

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Movie Poster Image Art/Moviepix/Getty Images

1. Actor Tim Curry passed away on Tuesday at the age of 80. He was renowned for his role as the gender-bending scientist Dr. Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
2. In this week’s edition of Far-Flung Postcards, NPR’s Jane Arraf visits Karbala, Iraq, where more than 20 million Shia Muslims gathered to commemorate Arbaeen, marking the death of Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, 14 centuries ago.
3. Scientists rescued 34 endangered humped tree snails from Guam by collecting them in empty peanut butter jars ahead of a powerful typhoon. The snails are now housed at the St. Louis Zoo. (via STLPR)

This newsletter was edited by Suzanne Nuyen.