Merrit Kennedy
Merrit Kennedy is a reporter for NPR's News Desk. She covers a broad range of issues, from the latest developments out of the Middle East to science research news.
Kennedy joined NPR in Washington, D.C., in December 2015, after seven years living and working in Egypt. She started her journalism career at the beginning of the Egyptian uprising in 2011 and chronicled the ousting of two presidents, eight rounds of elections, and numerous major outbreaks of violence for NPR and other news outlets. She has also worked as a reporter and television producer in Cairo for The Associated Press, covering Egypt, Yemen, Libya, and Sudan.
She grew up in Los Angeles, the Middle East, and places in between, and holds a bachelor's degree in international relations from Stanford University and a master's degree in international human rights law from The American University in Cairo.
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At the same time, HHS Secretary Alex Azar criticized the deadlines as "artificial" and said that they prevent the government "from completing our standard or even a truncated vetting process." -
NASA posted the glittery image of stars that "live fast and die young" on the eve of Independence Day. It shows a cluster of "huge, hot" stars called NGC 3603, about 20,000 light years away. -
A new video shows them smiling and saying they're healthy. Now attention is shifting to the extraordinary challenge of getting the team out safely from where they are trapped inside the flooded cave. -
The disgraced movie mogul is already facing first-degree rape and other charges in New York. Now, Weinstein is facing new accusations that he assaulted a woman in 2006. -
For every World Cup, there's a custom official ball. But how does the Telstar 18 actually stack up? To find out, scientists stuck it in a wind tunnel with a bunch of sensors. -
We consulted experts on how human brains perceive sound. The poor quality of the audio file can be blamed for the different ways our brains perceive it. What we expect to hear also matters. -
A viral video is drawing attention to a problem in hospital emergency rooms across the country. More and more patients with urgent psychiatric conditions aren't receiving the care they need. -
The ecosystem has collapsed for 29 percent of the 3,863 reefs in the giant coral reef system, according to new research. Scientists are learning which corals are the "winners" and "losers." -
SAG-AFTRA is calling for an end to auditions in private hotel rooms or residences, after a spate of sexual harassment allegations against powerful Hollywood figures.
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This brings the total number of dead to at least 29 since last week. On Friday, thousands of Palestinians once again gathered to demonstrate for the right to return to lands in today's Israel.
