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Stories from August 12, 2025

Election results: 2025 Minnesota special and primary elections on Aug. 12

Election results: 2025 Minnesota special and primary elections on Aug. 12

A handful of special and primary elections were held Tuesday, Aug. 12, in Minnesota, including a primary for State House District 34B and a special election for a St. Paul City Council seat.
by MPR News Staff

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Handwritten confession in 1998 murder speeds request to vacate man’s conviction

Handwritten confession in 1998 murder speeds request to vacate man’s conviction

In 1998, a judge sentenced Bryan Hooper, now 54, to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 30 years for the killing of Ann Prazniak. But in a handwritten confession and multiple interviews with authorities, Chalaka Young, 50, admitted killing Prazniak and lying on the witness stand in Hooper’s trial.
by Matt Sepic

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Comfortable humidity for now; steamy again by Friday

Comfortable humidity for now; steamy again by Friday

Fresh breezes are blowing in a more comfortable air mass with lower humidity, but steamy tropical air returns to much of Minnesota by Friday.
by Paul Huttner

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Health care provider CentraCare to lay off 535 employees

Health care provider CentraCare to lay off 535 employees

CentraCare says it's responding to “significant external pressures,” including rising costs and reimbursement rates that no longer cover the cost of care.
by Kirsti Marohn

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4 new University of Minnesota regents selected

Four new members gained spots Tuesday on the University of Minnesota's Board of Regents, a full third of the board at a time of immense challenge for the land-grant college. St. Paul city officials say hackers who launched an attack on the city’s computer systems have posted some of that data online, after the city refused to pay a ransom.

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Hackers post some St. Paul files online after city refuses to pay ransom

Hackers post some St. Paul files online after city refuses to pay ransom

Mayor Melvin Carter said late Monday that what was posted is a tiny percentage of what’s kept on the city’s servers, and it appeared to be from a single shared drive used by parks and recreation employees.
by MPR News Staff

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St. Paul auction house leads effort to return sacred Native items

St. Paul auction house leads effort to return sacred Native items

The Association on American Indian Affairs has tracked tens of thousands of potentially sensitive items sold at auction worldwide. Now, one Minnesota auction house is setting a new standard for repatriation.
by Nina Moini and Ellie Roth

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Federal judge to hear case of Salvadoran mother in ICE detention

Federal judge to hear case of Salvadoran mother in ICE detention

A Salvadoran mother detained by ICE in Minnesota is at the center of a federal court case Tuesday, after immigration officials blocked her release despite a judge's bond ruling.
by Nina Moini and Sarah Thamer

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Restaurant faces discrimination charge after accusing a woman of being a man in women's restroom

Restaurant faces discrimination charge after accusing a woman of being a man in women's restroom

A Minnesota nonprofit is filing a charge of discrimination with the state Department of Human Rights, claiming a restaurant server harassed an 18-year-old while she used the women’s restroom; the server allegedly believed she was a boy.
by Estelle Timar-Wilcox

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Alaska was once a full-fledged Russian colony. Now it’s hosting a U.S.-Russia summit

Alaska was once a full-fledged Russian colony. Now it’s hosting a U.S.-Russia summit

Russia lost a war in Crimea in the 1850s. To pay off war debts, Russia sold Alaska to the U.S. Now presidents Trump and Putin will meet Friday in Alaska to discuss another war involving Crimea.
by Greg Myre

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Taylor Swift announces 12th studio album, ‘The Life of a Showgirl’

Taylor Swift announces 12th studio album, ‘The Life of a Showgirl’

Taylor Swift has announced her 12th studio album, “The Life of a Showgirl.” The full-length release announced Tuesday follows her last original album, 2024’s “The Tortured Poets Department.”
by The Associated Press

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Morning Announcements for Aug. 12

Morning Announcements for Aug. 12

These are the Morning Announcements for Tuesday, Aug. 12. Tell us what you’re celebrating!
by MPR News Staff

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The changing media landscape

The changing media landscape

From streaming shake-ups to shrinking newsrooms, how we get news and entertainment is shifting fast. MPR News host Angela Davis talks with a media analyst and a pop culture critic about what’s changing and why it matters. 
by Angela Davis and Cari Dwyer

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Buying a pop album on vinyl? You might be paying for a fraction of the music

Buying a pop album on vinyl? You might be paying for a fraction of the music

Fans who pre-ordered the new albums by Lil Wayne and The Weekend on vinyl got a rude awakening: More than half the songs that appeared on the streaming version were missing on the LP.
by Marc Hogan

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Thunder headlining NBA’s opening night, Christmas schedule for this season

Thunder headlining NBA’s opening night, Christmas schedule for this season

The Oklahoma City Thunder felt slighted last season when they were left off the NBA’s Christmas schedule. The other Christmas games, released by the NBA on Tuesday: Cleveland at New York, Houston at LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg and Dallas visiting Golden State, and Minnesota playing at Denver.
by The Associated Press

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What to know about past meetings between Putin and his American counterparts

What to know about past meetings between Putin and his American counterparts

Bilateral meetings between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his U.S. counterparts were a regular occurrence early in his tenure. But as tensions mounted between Moscow and the West following the illegal annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and allegations of meddling with the 2016 U.S. elections, those became increasingly less frequent, and their tone became less friendly. 
by The Associated Press

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Two injured in ‘use-of-force incident’ involving police in Moorhead

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is investigating after two people were injured in what authorities are calling a “use-of-force incident” in Moorhead on Monday night.
by MPR News Staff

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Inflation remains elevated as Trump's tariffs take hold

Inflation remains elevated as Trump's tariffs take hold

Inflation remained elevated last month as President Donald Trump's tariffs continued to make their way into the prices that consumers pay. The average cost of living in July was up 2.7 percent.
by Scott Horsley

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No-knock warrants in Minnesota decrease in first year with new legislation

A new report on no-knock warrants in Minnesota shows a 79 percent decrease in their use in the first full year since state legislators passed restrictions on the controversial law enforcement practice. There were 18 no-knock warrants issued last year. In 2023, that number was 84. And the year before that it was 179.
by Phil Picardi

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Video shows steel workers scrambling into wreckage left by explosion that killed 2 in Pennsylvania

Video shows steel workers scrambling into wreckage left by explosion that killed 2 in Pennsylvania

After an explosion rocked a steel plant outside Pittsburgh, workers scrambled into the wreckage alongside firefighters directing streams of water. By the time the scene was secure, two people were dead and more than 10 others were injured, including one who spent hours trapped in rubble left Monday by the blast that was powerful enough to shake nearby homes.
by The Associated Press

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Twins reinstate Byron Buxton from injured list to start series vs. Yankees

Twins reinstate Byron Buxton from injured list to start series vs. Yankees

The Minnesota Twins reinstated center fielder Byron Buxton from the 10-day injured list. He homered in his first game back after missing 13 with an injury. He rejoined the Twins to start a three-game series against the New York Yankees and was leading off.
by The Associated Press

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Cooler, less humid Tuesday and Wednesday before heat, humidity return

Cooler, less humid Tuesday and Wednesday before heat, humidity return

It’ll be cooler and less humid behind Monday night’s front for Tuesday and Wednesday. Heat and humidity return late week, increasing the chance of storms. 
by Sven Sundgaard

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Why lung cancer is a 'hidden epidemic' in this part of the world

Why lung cancer is a 'hidden epidemic' in this part of the world

Rates of the world's deadliest cancer appear to be low in sub-Saharan Africa. But that statistic is masking the scope of the disease, doctors say.
by Simar Bajaj

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A Palestinian activist was killed by the violence he sought to stop

A Palestinian activist was killed by the violence he sought to stop

Awdah Al Hathaleen was shot during a clash with an Israeli settler. His West Bank village hoped “No Other Land,” the Oscar-winning film about settler violence that he worked on, might help protect them.
by Eleanor Beardsley

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Minnesota is armoring its shorelines with rocks, but lakes are paying a price

Minnesota is armoring its shorelines with rocks, but lakes are paying a price

Homeowners increasingly layer rocks on their shores to prevent lake shorelines from eroding. But experts say rock riprap increases pollution and warms lakes, creating conditions that spur algae blooms. And often, it’s not necessary.
by Kirsti Marohn

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Trump taps conservative economist to lead statistics agency

Trump taps conservative economist to lead statistics agency

President Trump plans to tap an economist from the conservative Heritage Foundation to oversee the Bureau of Labor Statistics. He fired the previous leader after a disappointing jobs report.
by Scott Horsley

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Ford says it will roll out a cheaper electric pickup truck

Ford says it will roll out a cheaper electric pickup truck

Ford announced it will retool its Louisville Assembly Plant to focus on electric trucks. Its goal: to bring down prices for U.S. buyers and compete with Chinese EV makers on the global market.
by Camila Domonoske

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