Morning Headlines - Friday, April 18, 2025

Start your day informed with today’s must-read headlines from around Wisconsin and the world. And don’t forget to check out our Meme of the Day at the end for a little humor to go with your news!

U.S. and World Headlines

US Will 'Move On' From Ukraine Peace Talks If No Progress Soon

The US will abandon trying to broker a Russia-Ukraine peace deal within days unless there are clear signs a truce can be reached, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned.

"We're not going to continue with this endeavour for weeks and months on end," Rubio said, adding that the US had "other priorities to focus on".

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and has placed a number of conditions on any potential ceasefire.

FSU Mass Shooting Kills 2 People, Injures 6; Suspect In Custody

Two people were killed and six were injured after an active shooter opened fire on the Florida State University campus in Tallahassee on Thursday, law enforcement said at a news conference. The injured victims and the suspected shooter were brought to a local hospital.

The alleged gunman has been identified as 20-year-old Phoenix Ikner, an FSU student who is the son of a Leon County sheriff's deputy, Leon County Sheriff Walter McNeil said at the briefing. 

The suspect was taken into custody after being shot by police, officials said, adding that he invoked his right not to speak with police.

Netflix Posts Major Earnings Beat As Revenue Grows 13% In First Quarter

Netflix posted a major earnings beat Thursday, as revenue grew 13% during the first quarter of 2025.

The report marks the first time the streaming giant did not disclose quarterly subscriber data, as it shifts its strategy to focus on revenue and other financial metrics as performance indicators.

Netflix reported revenue of $10.54 billion for the first quarter, higher than Wall Street’s estimates of $10.52 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Many First-Time Homebuyers Are Pushing 40 As Millennials Wait In Vain For A Better Market

The youngest U.S. homebuyers aren’t so young anymore, as a forbidding market turns first-time house hunting into an activity for people nearing 40.

“No one in their young 20s are buying homes,” said Ricky Voong, a real estate agent in Southampton, Pennsylvania, who has noticed his clientele getting older lately.

While the opening months of this year showed early signs of a long-awaited thaw, the nation’s housing market remains far out of reach for many would-be buyers.

Instagram’s New Blend Feature Creates A Custom Reels Feed For You And Your Friends

Instagram on Thursday announced that it’s rolling out Blend, a new feature that lets you create a custom, personalized reels feed for you and your friends. Blends are invite-only and can be created with a singular friend or with a group chat. The custom feeds are refreshed with new content each day.

The launch doesn’t come as a surprise, as TechCrunch reported in March 2024 that the social network was developing the feature.

Once you join or accept a Blend invite, you will be able to browse through reels picked for each person in the chat. When someone in the group reacts to a reel, Instagram will notify you so you can keep a convo going in the DM (direct messaging) chat.

Wisconsin Headlines

Wisconsin Customers Could Pay More Under New Utility Proposals

Three of Wisconsin’s largest utility companies are asking state regulators to approve hundreds of millions of dollars in rate hikes that could affect customers across the state.

Alliant Energy, Madison Gas and Electric (MG&E), and Xcel Energy have each filed requests with the Public Service Commission (PSC) to increase electric and natural gas rates. The utilities say the additional revenue would fund improvements in service reliability, renewable energy expansion, and infrastructure modernization.

BLS Data: Wisconsin Employment Numbers Released

The Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD) today announced 3,055,200 total nonfarm jobs in the state, according to March 2025 preliminary estimates from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Preliminary employment estimates for March 2025 showed Wisconsin's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained unchanged at 3.2% over last month, which is 1.0 percentage points below the national unemployment rate of 4.2%. The state's labor force participation rate ticked down to 65.6% in March while the national rate increased to 62.5%, marking Wisconsin's participation rate 3.1 percentage points above the rest of the nation.

• Place of Residence Data: Wisconsin's unemployment rate was 3.2% in March, 1.0 percentage points below the national rate of 4.2%. Wisconsin's labor force decreased by 5,000 over the month but is up 8,200 over the year. The number of people employed decreased 5,600 over the month to 3,071,900 employed and is down 3,100 over the year.
• Place of Work Data: Total nonfarm jobs increased 10,000 over the month and increased 15,000 over the year to 3,055,200 jobs.

At A Heated Wisconsin Elections Commission Meeting, The Democratic Chair Threatens To Eject A Republican Official

A Wisconsin Elections Commission discussion of uncounted ballots in Madison devolved into a shouting match on April 17, with the Democratic chair threatening to kick a Republican commissioner out of the meeting.

The commission is investigating former Madison City Clerk Maribeth Witzel-Behl after she failed to count 200 absentee ballots in the November 2024 election and didn’t tell the commission about the oversight until after election results were certified. Witzel-Behl resigned this week.

Wisconsin Legislators Want To Renew Pre-Kindergarten Learning Program

In an effort to close achievement gaps, Wisconsin legislators want to revive a pre-kindergarten learning program for the state’s poorest families.

The bipartisan legislation is currently being circulated for sponsorship. It would establish a two-year pilot program to offer kindergarten readiness educational opportunities at child care centers in Wisconsin.

The program would be administered by the Department of Children and Families. It would be offered in low-income school districts to families who meet the income requirements, said State Rep. Robert Wittke, R-Caledonia, who co-authored the bill.

State GOP Launches Review Of ‘25 Supreme Court Race Ahead Of ‘26 Contest

The state GOP announced to members that it’s launching a postmortem on the 2025 state Supreme Court race that conservative Brad Schimel lost by 10 points as the party prepares for next year’s contest.

Since liberal Susan Crawford’s victory April 1, some have questioned the party’s efforts this spring as well as its track record. It was the 15th time in the last 19 contested statewide elections since Donald Trump first took office in 2017 that the GOP or conservative candidate has lost.