They do not appropriately cover the ICJ ruling, numerous U.S. vetos, and destruction of civilian infrastructure let alone the civilian deaths in Gaza.

Very biased coverage and they have really gone off the rails. Read Uri Berliner’s piece on the Free Press - it sheds some light on what’s going on at NPR.

I listen every day to get the liberal take on current events. I listen to Daily Wire for the conservative take. They both have their own bias, but Up First is extremely biased and sometime flat out propaganda in that it poses as straight news, but there’s so much political spin. If you listen, I highly recommend my practice of adding a contrasting show to compare it to. I appreciate the short format; and it addresses topics some conservative platforms don’t. The “banter” at the beginning needs to go. It is so hard to listen to. Just the news, please. I do appreciate the traditional very calm NPR tone. I’d love more shows to follow that example.

I don’t know if it’s an alogorhythm issue or production issue but it’s 8am and a new episode still isn’t loaded.

I’ve been subscribing since about 2019. It was perfect because a new episode would be available by 6am- when I left the house for work. Then it changed to 7am.

In 2020, I tried using different podcast apps just to make sure Up First loaded and was visible at the top of my feed.

Nothing worked.

It’s so disappointing because this is my absolute favorite news show. All the anchors are my friendly familiar voices that make my morning, it’s just not dependable.

Should change the name of the podcast to "Nothing changed in Gaza today. Still a war but we'll talk about it for 15 mins"

This podcast has always been great but since Oct 7, NPR has been very bias toward Israel. Detailed reporting on Hamas’s attacks but minimizing the atrocities and 33k+ murdered by Israel.

Not as entertaining as other podcasts.

But that’s the point.

have a paywall on friday morning news but no other day? seems like you are testing the water. up first+? forreal? i love the program but simply do not have money for a subscription service for a 12 minute daily podcast. geez very disappointed and unsubscribing

person leaving a review under the name ‘5 seasons’ is a simp

I’ve been listening to NPR programs for years and find it to be a great start to my day. Today I very much enjoyed the China man playing the piano, a story of tragedy, struggle and finding a path to move forward.

I’ve been listening to NPR Up First every morning as part of my daily routine. It provides me essential news in a convenient and accurate way. I’m especially into the Sunday Story which gives me detailed reports and valuable insights into every single story. What’s even better is all the episodes are free and accessible and the ads are not disruptive at all.

Can’t listen, oh well, Like all NPR programs, extremely biased, subjective, reporting of what is essentially trauma porn both in content and delivery. So sick of hearing all of npr reporters and hosts share their over privileged, sheltered, highly emotional opinions. I’m here for the news not your out of touch feelings. They were fair, balanced and well researched in the past. Not anymore.

Apparently some reviewers are upset that they have to purchase a subscription in order to listen to Up First. I’m listening to my free version as I write the review. The Ad-free version is the paid version, which they would know if they’d paid attention to the ad on the UpFirst podcast window.

Someone else complained that UpFirst is just presenting facts and figures and no critical analysis (opinion?). I find it refreshing to get my morning intro to the news without editorials. And the pre and post ads aren’t annoying enough to purchase an ad-free subscription. However, as a long time admirer and listener to NPR/PRI I’m happy to support your work with a paid subscription. It’s cheaper than a latte.

I’ve been listening to NPR for 30 years! I credit NPR with teaching my father more English vocab words and growing both our minds on the world around us. What I love about this show in particular is that it gives me the sound bites just as long as I jump in & out of the shower keeping me informed as I walk into my job each day. This show is as important to me as drinking my morning coffee everyday! Thank you! Keep it up!!

I’ve been listening to NPR for 30 years. I’m not a fan of Iesha Rosko her questions and style seem juvenile and uninformed. It’s more like she checks a box rather than a qualified broadcaster

Just taking whatever you’re told at face value and passing it along without any critical reasoning. I guess I was just expecting too much, this is just the headlines read and summarized. If that’s all you’re gonna give us, don’t be surprised when you’re automated away.

Truly outrageous that a publicly funded news company is requiring a paid subscription to hear a daily news update.

Late state capitalism at its best.

Severely disgraceful and disappointing that you put necessary news updates behind a paywall, with no prior warning.

I just heard an NPR ad about how they never put content behind a paywall, but as

I'm going to listen to my morning news today, guess what? For Up First + subscribers only. Great. The same thing has been happening with Consider This. Guess I need to find a different news outlet because NPR is in fact moving towards subscriber-only based content. It was fun while it lasted

Despite the left-leaning bias, I always listened to this and another morning show for my daily news but as of today 3/22/24, I see that I can’t listen unless I subscribe. Crazy as this is already funded by Americans and is the NATIONAL news. Will not be subscribing nor listening to NPR ever again.

Very disappointing!

This can’t be real….. we can’t listen to this anymore without paying for it? Considering the crisis of misinformation and reality of news deserts in many parts of the U.S.; this is a bad move. I’ve been listening to Up First for years, but have to find another news source apparently. What a shame. Hoping NPR changes its mind.

For several months now, this podcast is not reliably played. Often it isn’t ready in the morning or has deployment issues. Now it is becoming a subscription service. I realize that journalism must be funded, but this pod seemed to be functioning perfectly fine with ads. Now it will be behind a pay wall. The result is that centrist reporting is even more elusive to the public. I’m really disappointed that NPR decided to make this a subscription service. As the pod has not been reliably available for quite some time already, I am not inclined to pay for unreliable delivery. Back to the drawing board for a concise, neutral news pod.

Big time disappointment. I am both stunned and saddened by this recent development. This is the first podcast I listen to every day. Imagine my shock and annoyance to see a paywall this morning. NPR has been my go to for years now. No more.

It’s a big error to make to have a new episode on the website but not have jr uploaded in the apps.

What next is presented by Slate not NPR. I also hold NPR in high regard but gotta give credit where credit is due.

I love Emily Peck who was the host for the What next program about private equity and the American medical system. Really excellent episode.

Love how this is going to be paid now. Not the other hours long content just the fifteen minutes that I was only listening to because you’re basically the only trust worth people. Let me guess some MBA or VC convince you to do this??? Now I have no news. And will just sub with Joe Rogan great. JUST GIVE ME THE AD VERSION WHO CARES THEURE JUST ADS

High ad load like the other short form NPR podcasts. Also odd how one of their Middle East correspondents consistently mispronounces Gaza.

Support my local station and then pay three bucks to listen? I’m done.

STOP treating the Trump issue likes it’s not. MAJOR concern and that covering for Biden is in Aany way similar to voting for a racist, rapist, dictator! You people are Disgusting

This used to be such a solid podcast. But it’s 40% commercials now which is a massive disappointment. Do we not have successful fall edge drives anymore?

Your coverage of the GENOCIDE in Gaza has been absolutely atrocious. Five months in and you can’t even say the word. Over 30,000 people have been killed by the Israeli military. Many of them children. But please tell us more about how the settler colonial state of Israel should be seen as the victim in the scenario. I have been listening to your show since its inception. Never again. You have absolutely no spine, no political agency. A worthless news organization.

Simps for settler colonialism. Just casually covering fascism and supporting the systems that uphold it. Zionist genocide enablers.

The news should be provided in an unbiased manner, but Up First shows its bias loud and clear. So clearly anti-Israel. Your reporting on the sexual offences against Israeli women on October 7 was shameful. Casting doubt and only reporting on the minimal question marks within the UN report (which itself was problematic). Every Israel-Gaza news story is always first on the podcast, yet this one was placed at the end, the introduction was even biased leaving it open as to whether the report found sexual violence (it did… which should be a shock to absolutely no one).

Thanks for your March 4 episode in which you approvingly spotlighted France’s efforts to “inscribe” the right to an abortion in its Constitution. The US should follow their lead which significantly limits abortion access after 14 weeks. Thanks UpFirst!

Hopelessly left biased on social and fiscal issues.

I’ve been listening to Up First for a few years and have noticed how NPR has diminished Ms. Roscoe’s voice by moving her from the weekly show to the weekend show only, and how only using her voice for transitions.

I’m very disappointed that this is happening: it’s so obvious, especially when she’s mute during discussion about 45, whom she used to cover when he was President. If she and Scott do not get along, then give Roscoe her own show!

Calling a massacre of starving civilians the “Gaza aid tragedy” is incredibly offensive and wrong. Yall are supporting genocidal behaviors with irresponsible reporting. Call it what it is- murder, abuse, terrorism, etc. the world is watching a people starve and be slaughtered when there’s any chance of food. Be better.

Do better than simply reporting for the extreme Israeli government. Why is an Israeli a hostage and a Palestinian a “prisoner”? What about starving Palestinians targeted by sniper fire as they wait for aid trucks? What a shame.

The title says it all! Claire posts BTS of the news WE need to start our day. But I cannot live without this podcast.

Suffer trump

I love listening to this show every morning on my way to work. I can’t help but have one complaint though. Carrie Johnson is essentially impossible to hear. She is the only reporter i cannot hear on this podcast. Her voice is not strong enough for a podcast.

Excellent story and certainly a needed cautionary tale,

The stories are well told -as anything done by NPR typically is. My question is; why is there no photo recognition of Aisha Roscoe or other hosts of color? Offensive.

I really like the Gun Machine story, fascinating to learn that history about guns in the U.S. the guest host was great too.

Do you like one sided news stories? Npr is definitely for you!

First started listening to Up First years ago. It still does the job but it doesn’t get 5 stars from me because of these critiques:

1) it’s creeping up in length. A recent episode is 17 minutes long! The original point of it was for it to be an approx. 10min brief news update in the mornings. I might eventually unfollow if it keeps creeping because I didn’t come here for a 20min news podcast.

2) The reporters’ side commentary or opinions keep slipping in more and more. I’m left-leaning but to hear it come out in my news source can make me cringe. I didn’t remove another star just for this because I have somewhat accepted that Up First will just do that and it’s that flavor while I still have PBS for a neutral/factual flavor.

3) It’s fine to report on sports news but sometimes it covers it for way too long. I remember some soccer thing a while back was a solid 3 minutes. In a brief 10-12min news podcast!! It didn’t fit. Other than these critiques I appreciate the podcast.

I have listened to this show for years but have noticed over the past several months that they seem to be trying to add in a lot more humor/levity/shaping of the hosts' personalities. And I get that on many podcasts, this is absolutely what connects listeners to hosts and enriches the listener experience. But on a 12 minute headline news podcast, it often feels incredibly out of place and frequently pretty insensitive. To go from an odd 40 second open where the hosts are singing and cackling about needing coffee and engaging in giggly banter that maybe is fun for the hosts but really isn’t funny to an outside listener to suddenly diving into news of genocide and crumbling democracies feels clunky at best. On today's episode, a correspondent delivered a line about how Russia has "thousands of nuclear weapons pointed at us that could reduce the U.S. to a pile of ash" with laughter and intonation as if he was delivering a line in a standup routine. I’m shocked at what producers are allowing to go out to the masses on such a big and respected platform. I don't doubt that the journalistic integrity behind NPR is as strong as it always has been, but delivery has changed so much recently and has added a level of distaste and mistrust in how I receive the news from Up First. Today's episode was my last. I'll be sticking with The Seven, What a Day, and The Daily moving forward, all highly recommended!

You guys found a way to slip in material about T. Swift in a story about a mass shooting at a parade. You disgust me. I remember when NPR was trustworthy news. That is clearly no longer the case. Gross.

Lost your job? Climate change! Mother in law hates you? Climate change! Found a hair in your salad? Climate change!

Only subscribed so I know the Lies of the Day being pushed by this leftist propaganda network

NPR has some of the best hosts on the planet. IMHO what makes a great host is the art of vocal pitch. Accent has nothing to do with it. Speech impediments have nothing to do with it. Style has nothing to do with it. It’s Pitch. A serious news outlet knows it has nothing to do with the reporter, their “voice”, or their personality. If the pitch of their voice hits the ears like a whiny child, a crazy chimp, an angry mother, a nagging girlfriend, or a controlling boyfriend, they will lose me as a listener. Today the news is bad enough without triggering added stress through vocal pitch. A whiny, intense voice that projects from the throat and nasal cavity does not sooth a listener. A calm voice from the chest at just the right pace, lets a story speak for itself. I don’t know if journalism professors and vocal coaches teach this to students, but news sources should pay attention when hiring staff that report the news program vocally.

I like that you’re choosing news highlights. Please try to always tell us both sides, and stay as neutral as possible. It’s really hard to know what media to believe, and NPR stands in my mind as the most trustworthy, but it is very hard to be truly unbiased. Please try, though! Thank you!