Trump Midterm Pressure, Meta Settles In Social Media Case, Nepal & Tibet Flash Floods
August 27, 2026
AI Summary
5 min read“So many people lost their lives. Everything is gone, my childhood, my family, my community.” That was the voice of a 25-year-old university student in Nepal, speaking to NPR after a glacier collapse triggered flash floods that killed more than 107 people, including at least 65 Americans missing. The disaster — which sent a wall of water 30 feet high through river valleys in minutes — is one of three major developments in this episode of Up First. The others: Republican candidates are scrambling to distance themselves from President Trump’s latest trade and foreign policy moves ahead of the midterms, and Meta has agreed to a landmark $17 billion settlement with U.S. states over allegations it designed its platforms to be addictive to minors.
Trump’s Midterm Headaches: Iran, Tariffs, and Beef Imports
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What you'll learn
- 1 (00:02) **Trump's Midterm Pressure on Republicans** - Republican candidates are distancing themselves from President Trump as midterms approach and he picks new fights.
- 2 (05:58) **Meta Settles Landmark Social Media Lawsuit** - Meta agreed to a settlement with states alleging its platforms were designed to be addictive to minors, paying up to $17 billion.
- 3 (09:25) **Devastating Flash Floods in Nepal and Tibet** - A glacier collapse triggered catastrophic flooding, killing over 107 people and leaving 65 Americans missing.
- 4 (13:09) **Episode Wrap-Up** - Credits and production team for this August 27th episode of Up First.
- 5 Standout Quotes
- 6 "So many people lost their lives. Everything is gone, my childhood, my family's my community." — Santa Tamon, a 25-year-old university student and survivor of the Nepal floods.
- 7 "We don't have a lot of data from the region so that we can develop some AI model to know the fragile areas or to know the areas where we are about to having such events." — Mahmoud Faroq Azam, from an environmental advocacy group covering Asia's high mountains.
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Show Notes
Meta has agreed to settle with states that accused it of making its apps addictive for kids, paying up to 17 billion dollars and agreeing to change how Facebook and Instagram work for minors.
A glacier collapsed on the border of Nepal and Tibet and unleashed a catastrophic flood that buried whole villages in mud and left hundreds missing.
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Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Kelsey Snell, Diane Webber, Tina Kraja, Mohamad ElBardicy, and Alice Woelfle.
It was produced by Julie Depenbrock and Nia Dumas.
Our director is Christopher Thomas.
We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis. Our technical director is Carleigh Strange.
And our deputy Executive Producer is Kelley Dickens.
(0:00) Introduction
(02:01) Trump Midterm Pressure
(06:00) Meta Settles In Social Media Case
(09:28) Nepal & Tibet Flash Floods
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