Here's the Scoop

The U.S. has seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, a move President Donald Trump is calling “the largest one ever seized.” The White House says the ship is a “sanctioned shadow” vessel tied to the Iranian military and that the administration plans to take possession of the oil on board. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the tanker is moving through a federal forfeiture process, which includes interviewing the crew and collecting evidence. NBC News senior national security correspondent Courtney Kube joins host Yasmin Vossoughian to break it down. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence is everywhere, and Disney is jumping in. Time has named the “Architects of AI” its 2025 Person of the Year, and Disney just struck a deal with OpenAI to bring its beloved characters into the Sora social video app, alongside a billion-dollar investment to supercharge the technology. NBC News reporter Jared Perlo joins the pod. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Up first: The Federal Reserve is closing out 2025 with a quarter-point rate cut — its third this year. And investors were glued to this one. Policymakers headed into today’s meeting unusually divided: focus on a softening job market, or keep the inflation pressure? Adding to the drama, the Fed has been operating in a partial data blackout due to the lingering fallout from the federal shutdown. NBC News managing editor for business and the economy Mike Calia joins host Yasmin Vossoughian to break down what today’s move signals for the economy heading into 2026. And foreign visitors to the U.S. may soon have to share five years of social media history under a new Trump administration proposal. Customs and Border Protection wants all international travelers, even visa-exempt ones, to submit their accounts before entering the country. NBC News’ senior homeland security correspondent Julia Ainsley joins the pod to discuss what’s driving the move and the privacy concerns piling up. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Up first, the Trump economy. President Trump is back on the road today, heading to Pennsylvania for what the White House is calling a “campaign-style economic event.” He’s expected to tout his record, sell his vision and make the case that his policies are fueling a stronger economy. NBC News senior White House correspondent Garrett Haake, who is traveling with the president, joins host Yasmin Vossoughian to break it down. And in an NBC News exclusive, a yearlong investigation into one of the world’s largest Pentecostal denominations uncovered allegations of sexual abuse inside the Assemblies of God. Reporters focused on its signature youth program, the Royal Rangers, which is a Boy Scouts–style rite of passage built around camping trips, outdoor skills and Scripture. Dozens of former program leaders have been accused of abusing boys in their care, and, despite mounting claims, church leadership has resisted reforms that survivors say are urgently needed. Mike Hixenbaugh, senior investigative reporter on the NBC News Enterprise team, joins the pod. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

It’s a significant test of presidential power at the Supreme Court. Today, the justices are weighing whether President Donald Trump can fire a member of the Federal Trade Commission, an agency Congress intentionally shielded from political influence to protect its consumer-protection and antitrust mission. The case comes as Trump’s administration moves to dramatically reshape the federal workforce, slashing agencies and removing thousands of career employees. Now, the court must decide just how far presidential authority can reach. NBC News senior legal correspondent Laura Jarrett joins host Yasmin Vossoughian to explain. And Paramount Skydance just launched a hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, dropping a stunning $108 billion offer for the entire company. It’s a move that could reshape Hollywood overnight and ignite a new era of media mega-mergers. So, what exactly is going on here? And why now? NBC News senior reporter Daniel Arkin joins the pod to break it all down. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

It’s a Hollywood shake-up for the ages. Netflix’s merger with Warner Bros. Discovery is officially a go. The streamer is spending $82.7 billion to acquire Warner Bros.’ massive movie, TV and streaming portfolio, one of the largest entertainment mergers in modern history. The deal pairs Netflix’s disruptor DNA with a 102-year-old Hollywood heavyweight, blazing a trail for how a streaming pioneer blends with a legacy studio. Mike Calia, the managing editor for business and the economy at NBC News, joins host Yasmin Vossoughian to break down what this blockbuster deal means for the future of entertainment. Plus: It’s the day soccer fans have been waiting for nearly four years. It’s the FIFA World Cup draw. It’s the largest tournament in competition history, with 48 teams now competing to hoist that golden trophy. Where did your country place? What are the potential upsets? Is there a ‘Group of Death’? Oh, and what is the draw anyway? The host of the Men in Blazers podcast, Roger Bennett, joins the podcast. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Federal immigration officers are conducting raids across Minnesota’s Twin Cities, home to one of the nation’s largest Somali communities, just days after President Trump verbally attacked immigrants from the country in eastern Africa. The administration has said the ICE raids aren’t targeting Somalis, but community members tell NBC News it sure feels that way. NBC News senior homeland security correspondent Julia Ainsley joins host Yasmin Vossoughian to break down what’s happening on the ground. Plus, in an exclusive interview, Vice President JD Vance discussed with NBC News senior national politics reporter Henry Gomez his frustration with the stalled peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, the speculation about his family life and his political future. Henry joins the pod to tell us what he learned. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A potential warning sign for Republicans in Tennessee. Matt Van Epps, the party's nominee, won the special election in the 7th District and thanked President Trump for a boost. Both parties poured money into the race, but Van Epps' single-digit margin of victory is a far cry from Trump’s 22-point win there in 2024. So, what does the result signal nationally? Chief Data Analyst Steve Kornacki joins host Ryan Nobles to break it down. Plus, San Francisco is taking on big food, in a first-of-its-kind lawsuit. The city is suing 10 of the country’s biggest ultraprocessed food makers, accusing them of knowingly selling products designed to be addictive and harmful to Americans’ health. The defendants include household names like Kraft Heinz, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Nestlé USA. NBC News Legal Analyst Danny Cevallos joins us to break down the case, what’s at stake and why legal experts are watching this one closely. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

President Trump met with his Cabinet this morning as questions continue to intensify over a U.S. strike on a shipping boat allegedly carrying drugs in the Caribbean. The White House now confirms that in a September anti-smuggling operation, the military launched a second strike that killed survivors of the first attack, a move some lawmakers and legal experts say could be a war crime. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt has said the operation was legal and Adm. Frank M. Bradley acted within his authority. NBC News senior national security correspondent Courtney Kube joins host Anne Thompson to break it all down. And amid ongoing bloodshed in Ukraine and fragile cease-fire negotiations, Russian President Vladimir Putin is meeting today in Moscow with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Witkoff is expected to brief Putin on the newly updated peace plan hammered out in recent days by U.S. and Ukrainian and European negotiators. As these high-stakes talks unfold, we’re checking in with our team on the ground: NBC News chief international correspondent Keir Simmons is in Moscow, and chief foreign correspondent Richard Engel is in Ukraine. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

As a bonus for Here's The Scoop fans, we’re sharing the trailer for Something About Cari, an all-new original podcast series from Dateline and Keith Morrison. In this podcast Keith Morrison takes us to America’s heartland, where single mom Cari Farver disappears just weeks into a new romance. What follows is a series of strange and terrifying events, including taunting texts and threatening emails to Cari's boyfriend and his ex that escalate to stalking, arson and murder. But nothing could prepare friends, family, and investigators for the mind-bending twist that would come next… If you like what you hear, just search Something About Cari to listen to the first two episodes now, completely free. Or subscribe to Dateline Premium on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or DatelinePremium.com. Subscribers get early access to new episodes and can listen to all Dateline podcasts ad-free. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Luigi Mangione is back in court today for a pivotal pretrial hearing in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. The 27-year-old has pleaded not guilty to nine state counts and four federal charges, the latter carrying the possibility of the death penalty. His defense team is now fighting to exclude key evidence, a process that could take more than a week. NBC News legal analyst Misty Marris joins host Laura Jarrett to break down what this means for the case. Adobe Analytics is predicting Americans will drop a record-breaking $14 billion on Cyber Monday deals today but, where there are shoppers, there are scammers. Not even our host was immune, getting caught up in a gift card scam herself. NBC News chief consumer investigative reporter Vicky Nguyen is here to break down what went wrong, what’s being done to stop it, and the red flags you need to watch for while you shop this holiday season. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.