Coming up next on NewsDepth... The Fed lowered interest rates for one last time in 2025.

Australia has banned social media for children and teens.

Margaret explains the benefits of reading and Mary tells us about some impressive skaters.

NewsDepth is now!

The Federal Reserve ended 2025 by cutting its benchmark interest rate by one quarter of 1%.

Hello everyone.

I'm Gabriel Kramer.

Thank you for joining us.

As we learned earlier this season, the Federal Reserve is the central bank of the United States in the body that is responsible for controlling the economy.

The Fed, as it's commonly called, decided to make borrowing money a little cheaper by lowering interest rates.

The hope is that this will help businesses hire more workers and get people to spend more money.

But if everyone spends too much, prices could go up again.

Right now, jobs are slowing down, but people are still shopping a lot for the holidays.

But as Karin Caifa reports, next year's economic outlook is still uncertain.

The final call on interest rates in 2025 by the Federal Reserve caps off a turbulent year for the central bank and current chair Jerome Powell, and tees up an uncertain new year ahead.

The Federal Open Market Committee decided to lower our policy interest rate by a quarter percentage point.

Major inflation in jobs reports delayed by the recent government shutdown aren't due out until later this month, but economists say the fed has enough private data about the U.S.

labor market to see it slowing and cutting interest rates is aimed at encouraging businesses to borrow, spend and hire more.

It can get consumer spending, too.

When interest rates come down.

That lowers the overnight lending rate that banks use to send money to each other overnight while we're all sleeping.

That can lower the broader interest rate that people think about when you think about you know, the rate you've got on your credit card, the rate you've got on your mortgage.

But loosening the reins on borrowing also risks further heating up prices at a time when inflation remains stubborn, despite consumers saying they feel the pinch.

Americans are spending this holiday season.

People are still spending.

It is the holidays.

So I think we're seeing credit card debt rise and "buy now, pay later" behavior is growing.

So folks are still spending, but they're putting money in places where their debt is going up.

The Fed, facing a growing economy on one hand and a slowing labor market on the other, making the 2026 outlook for interest rates murky.

Thank you, Karin.

Staying within your budget during the holidays, can definitely be tough.

According to a recent Bankrate survey, more than 1 in 4 shoppers may take on debt this gift buying season.

So how could you buy something special without turning into a financial Grinch?

Michael Yoshida has some financial pitfalls to avoid and ways some shoppers are finding savings while still giving meaningful gifts.

'Tis the season when gift giving can take over our lives.

But with many Americans still worried about rising costs, resale or secondhand shopping is becoming a more popular way for finding value and meaning and gifts.

What we're finding is that consumers are ready to spend nearly 40% of their holiday budgets on second hand, which is up significantly from last year.

Alon Rotem of ThredUp, an online thrift store, says the stigma around buying secondhand is starting to disappear, with it becoming more mainstream Because value is king with consumers, this is a great way for them to extend their dollar and get more for their money.

Second hand is also a way to sort of cut through the noise of the ordinary and find more unique items items that tell a story, items that are more personal.

And to keep your holiday shopping from turning into a financial horror show.

Remember for your debit card, know your balance.

Don't overdraft and suffer fees.

For your credit card, even if you have a high limit don't spend beyond your budget.

And with buy now, pay later options.

Try not to use them for discretionary spending that can quickly add up.

Let's head down under for the latest social media news from Australia.

Last week, Australia became the first country to ban children under 16 from using social media.

Now, regulators, parents and teens around the globe are watching closely to see how the new law plays out.

Sherrell Hubbard has the latest.

Teens, parents and politicians around the world are eyeing the rollout of the world's first social media ban for children under 16.

It says my account is banned and I can no longer log on or use app at all.

What started in Australia is gaining interest in the United States.

I think what Australia is doing is what a lot of the world is starting to step into and say, well, the ills of social media.

There's a lot of good things about social media, but the ills of social media are enough that something has to be done beyond just leaving it to Meta and the platforms themselves.

Facebook, Threads, X, Snapchat, Kick, Twitch, TikTok, Instagram, Reddit and YouTube ordered to block children or face millions in fines.

While the companies have been critical of the ban.

Many parents and lawmakers in Australia say the new restrictions will make kids safer.

Wanted to keep them away and give them a reprieve from the persuasive and pervasive design features that are designed to keep us all hooked.

Some in the US are now pushing for Washington lawmakers to follow Australia's lead.

This is the next frontier we have to do to protect our kids.

And either you're going to leave parents alone facing Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, all the other social medias, or you're going to help parents do the job of being a parent.

Thank you, Sherrell.

Now we want to know.

What do you think of this social media ban?

Should kids be on social media?

Jump over to our poll page to vote.

You can choose between.

Yes Yes, but with supervision Or: No, it's too risky.

On our last episode, we learned that schools in Kansas City are almost out of snow days for the rest of the school year.

And that brought up the question, how do you think schools should deal with snow days?

65% of you think that the best option is to cancel classes if the weather is bad.

27% of you said that virtual learning is a great idea.

And another 8% of you think that the lost days can be made up later in the year.

Thank you all for voting.

Now, the topic of too much social media got me thinking.

A great alternative to doom scrolling is reading.

Did you know that reading a good book can really stick with you?

I don't mean just when a story really connects with you.

I mean it can actually change the way your brain works.

Margaret put on her thinking cap and this week's Spot on Science.

Ever finish reading a book and feel bummed out because it's over?

Well, it turns out that reading can grip more than your immediate attention.

It can impact your brain, too.

Let me explain.

Researchers at Emory University discovered that reading a book can actually stick with you after you've shut the back cover.

The researchers chose to have the study participants read the book Pompeii by Robert Harris.

It's a novel about the famous explosion of Mount Vesuvius in ancient Italy that buried the city of Pompeii with ash.

Needless to say, the novel is pretty riveting.

At the beginning of the study, scientists measured the resting state of the participants brains.

Then, for nine days, they gave the participants some reading homework.

After finishing the book, the scientists took more measurements for five days.

Well, it turns out that even after the participants had finished their reading assignments, they still showed activity in the left temporal cortex of their brains.

This is the area that lights up when dealing with language.

So it was almost like the brain was still chugging away with reading, even though the book was closed.

Lead scientist Gregory Burns calls this shadow activity.

The scientists also found more activity in the central sulcus of the brain, which is what lights up when you think about moving.

So it's as if when you're reading about someone running, your brain actually responds like it's running too.

So a good book really can take you on adventures.

Okay, so maybe you're thinking, why read a book when you can just watch a movie with the same story?

Good question.

But I've got a good answer for you.

It turns out that reading is a great exercise for your brain.

Other studies have shown that reading can strengthen your memory.

And it's not just for adults.

Researcher Anne Cunningham and Keith Stanovich studied fourth, fifth, and sixth graders reading and found out that the more the children read, the bigger their vocabulary became, and the bigger their vocabulary became, the more they read and the more they read, the bigger their vocabulary became.

And well you get the point.

Now, if that's not enough, entering into the world of a book is actually shown to be super stress relieving by the University of Sussex.

Even more stress relieving than listening to music or drinking a cup of tea.

And reading can make you a more empathetic person.

Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of others.

So next time you crack open a new book.

Besides getting a great story, you're also improving yourselves.

Pretty neat.

Thank you, Margaret.

Now I feel inspired to visit the library and pick up a new book.

For our write-to-us this week we'd like you to reflect on the last two stories.

The one about Australia's social media ban, and the Spot on Science and tell us: Are books better than screens?

And why?

students can use our inbox form online, or send us an email to newsdepth@ideastream.org to share your thoughts.

Last week, Natalia explained what Seasonal Affective Disorder is and shared some tips for dealing with the winter blues.

We wanted to hear your great tips too.

So we asked, how do you take care of your mental health during the winter?

Eli from Botkins Elementary in Botkins said, NewsHound approves of this answer.

Thank you, Eli.

Sammi from Springmeyer Elementary in Cincinnati said, Sounds fun!

Thank you, Sammi.

Kowyn from Bellevue Elementary in Bellevue said, Nice!

Thank you, Kowyn.

Prisha from Strongsville Middle School in Strongsville said, Great answers!

Thank you, Prisha.

Mia from John P. Parker in Cincinnati wrote, Amazing!

Thank you Mia.

Thank you all for writing.

Those are some great tips for mental health.

I'm definitely going to try some of them this winter.

Winter weather is notoriously unpredictable, shifting from calm skies to severe storms in a matter of hours.

Last week, an atmospheric river has caused major flooding in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States.

An atmospheric river is a current of air containing large quantities of water vapor.

Think of it as a river of rain clouds.

The Kalama River overflowed its banks, forcing RV Park residents to evacuate.

Nearby areas like Castle Rock saw severe flooding, prompting road closures.

Joe Raineri has the details.

Day two.

- In fact, where we're parked right here, you wouldn't have been able to.

That was all underwater, so definitely receded.

Probably a couple of feet.

And round two of what has been an unforgiving round of heavy rain across the Pacific Northwest.

This morning I got up to do my regular routine.

Made some breakfast, watch the news for a minute.

Didn't hear anything about it, and, stepped outside and noticed my mat was floating and my ice chest was floating.

The Kalama River started spilling its banks on Monday, and by early Tuesday morning, residents of the Kalama RV Park were racing to get their trailers out.

Decided I better take a drive through the neighborhood, and I saw it looked like a river running through here, so I hooked everything up.

Hooked up my trailer to my truck and got it up on the main road out here and, was able to move it to another park.

It was just as bad in Castle Rock, where there was even more flooding as the Public Works Department was forced to close roads because of the rising water.

First time I've ever seen it like this.

It's.

I cannot believe the debris in it.

In Longview... A lot of rain.

As as you can see, some isolated flooding, neighborhood flooding.

Assistant City Manager Chris Collins was thankful a good part of Tuesday brought drier conditions.

We're very fortunate to have this break.

One of the things that Longview has to do, that may be unique, in some ways to Longview is we have to pump everything all the rain that falls in Longview has to be pumped out.

But those drier conditions aren't expected to last.

Right here in the coastal Longview area.

We look to be right on the edge.

So basically, if you live north of here, probably wetter than dry.

And if you're south of here drier than wet.

NOAA Meteorologist Lee Picard knows this could be just the beginning.

Even if the water is falling up in Saint Louis County, that's still a Cowlitz Basin.

That's going to have to come down through here eventually.

So it's going to be mostly a river flooding thing that we watch here over the next few days.

Of what's expected to be another round of flodding.

Thank you, Joe.

From up high, you could see why everyone in Snohomish County in Washington state was in a hurry.

Fields looked like giant puddles, and barns were surrounded by water.

Farmers didn't wait.

They loaded up their horses and cows and rushed them to the Evergreen State Fairgrounds were empty stalls turned into cozy shelters.

More than 40 horses and 40 cows are now safe there, though they're a little nervous in their new home.

Reporter Bridget Chavez speaks to the volunteers taking care of these animals.

From above, the reason people in Snohomish County didn't wait is clear.

Better safe than sorry.

Rising water from the Snohomish and Skykomish rivers made evacuating livestock the obvious choice.

Empty stalls at the Evergreen State Fairgrounds turned into safe havens in just hours.

Now home to more than 40 horses and 40 cattle, all evacuated from flood threatened farms.

Just a lot of like, scrambling, trying to figure out the plans.

What's up?

Who's doing what?

The whole barn.

What do we want to do?

That scramble is taking a toll on the animals, too.

All these horses, these new surroundings, all the different noises and smells, their whole herd isn't with them.

The anxiety causing.

It's not safe.

They don't feel safe.

Fairgrounds staff say they can open more barns if needed.

They have stall space for over 400 animals.

We do want to just make sure that you know the animals are safe, that people are safe, and they can get them all back home once the floodwaters recede.

It's not just livestock.

The Red Cross is also sheltering people here.

Our philosophy is sheltering first.

Volunteers say they can take in at least 100 people.

Helping people during something that's can be one of the worst times in their life.

And I just want to be able to support them and help them get through that.

The goal now to keep everyone safe until they can go back home.

Better to be fools and do all the work and not have needed it.

Than to be the fools who thought we didn't need it and really were in a lot of trouble.

Glad to see those animals are safe.

Thank you, Bridget.

It's not just farm animals who can use a little help sometimes.

Let's toss it over to NewsHound to see what he's found for us on this week's Petting Zoo.

Hey, NewsHound!

I like the tie.

Looking very professional today.

What did you find for us?

Oh, wow.

A story about a girl who helps stray cats find homes.

In the seven weeks since she started Khloe's Cat Project, Khloe has rescued 87 cats.

I never thought that would be this many.

I seen a lot of cats on the streets and I felt really bad for them, so I wanted to take them in so they all had a nice warm home.

Khloe's parents have let her transform this unused garage into a space for her rescue.

To watch more about Khloe and her 87 cats, click the Petting Zoo button at the bottom of this episode page.

Very important to keep those cats warm these winter months.

Thank you, NewsHound.

Ski season is getting an early start in parts of the northeast, thanks to a mix of cold air and high tech snowmaking.

But building a winter wonderland takes more than freezing temperatures.

Emily Pike takes us behind the scenes at a Maine ski resort to show how snow was created from the ground up.

It's a very wet and loud occupation.

Lost Valley owner Scott Shanaman and his crew are working day and night to get the slopes ready for the resort's second earliest opening in more than 30 years.

All thanks to December's cold and snowy start.

With a solid base already down, Lost Valley groomers can focus on making a predictable terrain even with unpredictable temperatures.

You know, it's hard to get perfect snowmaking temperatures to get the really nice quality snow, so when we get it, it's fantastic.

Snowmaking depends on how fast water droplets can freeze, which is controlled by the wet bulb temperature, a measure that focuses on humidity.

It can be cold, but it can be wet cold and that's not good for snowmaking.

Ski resorts carefully measure wet bulb temperature, humidity, air pressure, and water temperature to create the perfect snow.

Even small changes in humidity can affect how fast the snow freezes and how it falls.

Water is drawn from the brook at the base of the hill and pumped to the pump house.

Then staff turn on the snow guns, adjusting them however they need.

The higher you go in stages, you're putting more water in less air, much more efficient snowmaking.

The pressurized water travels through a network of buried pipes up the hill, with connectors, wherever a snow gun may be needed.

This right here is the air separator.

Moisture builds up in the air pipe, and then it comes through this side and gets deposited down.

And then we shoot it out of this valve Like we're getting some mounds here.

Just get the nice forms that we like to see more skiing and snowboarding.

What do you think this is actually accumulating to?

Maybe an inch an hour?

And since manmade snow often has rounder, denser structure than natural snow, it lasts longer on the slopes, surviving through light rain and warmer temperatures.

That is pretty cool.

Thank you, Emily.

Sticking with winter sports, check out these impressive Ohioans.

Turns out a lot of great ice skaters came from our state.

Our Mary Fecteau hits the ice rink in this week's Know Ohio.

When I think of ice skating, I think about all the times I have lost my footing and faceplant.

But Ohio is home to some famous ice skaters who don't need to grab onto the wall like me.

Let me introduce to you David and Hayes Jenkins from Akron.

These two brothers are both Olympic medalists.

The younger brother, David, first debuted at the Olympics in 1956.

At just 19 years old he won the bronze medal.

Talk about talent.

There's even a video on YouTube of David performing a triple axel in 1957.

A triple axel is a forward facing three and a half revolution jump.

David landed that jump 21 years before anyone in competition.

David Jenkins, 1957 King of the rink.

Four years later, he had the chance to get the gold at the 1960 Olympic Games in California.

It was the first time the games were televised, and boy did he put on a show.

His performance there even earned him a perfect score of 6.0 from one of the three judges.

On top of David's athletic skills and Olympic medals, he also studied medicine at Case Western Reserve while he was competing.

He graduated as a medical doctor in 1963, and then served two years in the United States Air Force.

Enough about David.

Let's get to his older brother, Hayes.

He was the first of the two brothers to win the gold medal in the 1956 Olympics.

With an accomplished ice skating family like the Jenkins, it was only natural that Hayes would marry an Olympic medalist, Carol Heiss.

She also won the Olympic gold medal for ice skating the same year they were married.

1960.

Another accomplished athlete that we are proud to have from Ohio is Scott Hamilton.

Born in Toledo in August of 1958, he was adopted by two professors at just six weeks old and was raised in Bowling Green.

One of the most recognizable things about Hamilton is his height.

He's a bit short for an ice skater, just five foot four.

But he never let his stature stop him from becoming a recognized ice skater with a signature move, the backflip.

It's a maneuver that the majority of his competitors aren't able to perform.

Not to mention that it is against the U.S.

Figure Skating and Olympic competition rules because it is so dangerous.

But Hamilton liked to show it off during his exhibition routines.

Obvious it's a crowd favorite.

He got penalized for doing the backflip in the short program in the technical program, but he's been assured he's allowed to put it in today.

Besides the backflip, he also was one of the best skaters of his time, with many near-perfect or completely perfect scores given to him by judges.

Hamilton was a very strong skater, and once he hit his stride, he couldn't be stopped.

His first major breakthrough performance was at the 1981 U.S.

Championships, where he executed a flawless performance met by a standing ovation before he even finished the routine.

After that performance, he never lost an amateur competition.

Despite his major accomplishments, he actually only got the gold medal once, in the 1983-84 Winter Olympics.

Before that, in the 1979-80 Winter Olympics, he had actually placed fifth, but had the honor of holding the American flag in the opening ceremony.

Being the talented athlete he was.

Hamilton was the first solo male figure skater to be awarded the Jacques Favart Award in 1988 and was inducted in 1990 to the United States Olympic Hall of Fame.

With all the ice we experience here in Ohio during the winter, it's no wonder that we've produced some amazing ice skaters.

Who knows, maybe you could be the next great ice skater from Ohio.

Just slip with style the next time you lose your balance.

Thank you, Mary.

Slip with style I like that.

After all that action on the ice.

It's time to slow down and enjoy the sweet sounds of the season.

There's nothing I enjoy more than sitting back and listening to music.

It really puts me in the perfect mood.

And now that the holidays are here, I really get into some relaxing holiday music.

Jingle Bells anyone?

This week's A+ Award winners are a group of very merry musicians from Midview Middle School.

Wow, that is a tongue twister.

Recently, we got to spend time with these musician Middies during their guitar class.

We were not only impressed with their talents, but also how hard they're working.

Lucas told us that he's having a good time in class, and he's worked very hard to master a few chords.

Susie, who can also play the flute, clarinet and piano, told us that she really enjoys the guitar because while she loves music, she finds wind instruments difficult to play.

Their teacher, Mr.

Schmidt, explained to us that this class is unique because the music they're playing doesn't necessarily fit into the regular performance programs of the band, so they need to develop other opportunities to show off their skills.

The class will get to play for the Midview school board, and they'll even go caroling through the halls of the middle school to spread some holiday cheer.

Sophie, a seventh grader, even played us a few chords from Silent Night.

A chord is a group of notes sounded together to form a harmony.

Trigg and Trevor told us that outside of class, they're teaching themselves to play other songs.

Trigg likes Iron Man from Black Sabbath.

And Trevor is working on some White Snake songs with his dad.

Ariel added that she's working on a few Nirvana songs.

We were really impressed with how hard they're working and the amount of practice they're putting into their new skill outside of class.

Isabella kind of summed it all up when she said that she was motivated by the challenge of playing a new instrument.

This week's A+ award goes to the guitar playing Middies at Midview Middle School for their musical abilities and more importantly, all of their hard work.

And that's a wrap for 2025.

The NewsDepth team will be on winter break the next few weeks, but we'll be back in the studio with a new episode on our website on January the 15th.

Until then, you can keep the conversation going because we always like to hear from you, and there are plenty of ways for you to stay in touch with us.

You can write to us.

We're at 1375 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio.

Our zip code here is 44115.

You can email us at newsdepth@ideastream.org.

Plus, you can catch all of our special segments on YouTube.

Hit subscribe if you're old enough so you don't miss out on any of our new videos.

Thank you for joining us.

I'm Gabriel Kramer.

See you next year.

NewsDepth is made possible by a grant from the Martha Holden Jennings Foundation.

Thank you.

Michael, what goes on your dinner table this holiday season is being impacted by the economy as much as what goes in your stocking.

Tamales are a holiday tradition for many Mexican families.

Tamales, or singular tamales, are a Mexican dish made of corn flour dough stuffed with meat or vegetables and steamed, wrapped in a cornhusker or a banana leaf.

My favorite type of tamales is Ramos.

That's the one stuffed with queso fresco and jalapenos.

Anyway, this year tamales are coming up with a higher price tag as well.

Tariffs are driving up the cost of key ingredients.

Reporter Madison Kivi tells us that higher costs means some customers are cutting back.

Inside this local market, the kitchen is hustling with every ingredient added.

The prices climb higher and higher every holiday is different, but this was the worst one I've ever been.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yes.

Daniel, our home owns La Estrellita meat market in West Sacramento, where tamales are usually a top seller this time of year.

It is selling a lot less, a lot less.

The cost of everything has gone up, including the ingredients to make tamales.

These are the corn husks by the numbers, though.

Last year this business went through about 100 dozen.

This year they're looking at more like 30 dozen.

This is a chicken family right here.

Masa is a $1.99 a pound up $0.30 from last year.

And while that might not seem like much, it adds up.

I just have one shopper buying 14 pounds of.

Masa says she understands why it's more expensive, but it's the time of year to make tamales.

It's culture.

It's tradition.

It's something that we love to eat.

So yeah, it's worth it to me.

Our home puts the costs in perspective.

$100 doesn't go as far now.

You were able to buy the masa for tamales.

The meat that has the husk, husk and everything with the $100 right now, just with the half of the $100, you're just able to buy just the masa by itself.

He's trying to keep the prices low for his customers, but it's hard to avoid.

Everything is just too much right now.

Yeah, it's the the food, the veggies, the meat test.

The the food that we cook here is just we have to raise it up so we're able.

So I'm able to pay everybody pay the bills.

Thank you for the report, Madison.

From tamales to trending topics,