Today's Headlines: At Vice, Cutting-Edge Media and Allegations of Old-School Sexual Harassment

[Stoking Fears, Trump Defied Bureaucracy to Advance Immigration Agenda]( | View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. | [Unsubscribe]( [The New York Times]( [Most Popular]( | [Video]( | [Today's Headlines]( Sunday, December 24, 2017 IN THIS EMAIL [NYT] [World](#worldNews) | [U.S.](#nationalNews) | [Politics](#politicsNews) | [Business](#businessNews) | [Technology](#technologyNews) | [Sports](#sportsNews) | [Arts](#artsNews) | [N.Y./Region](#nyregionNews) | [Magazine](#dailyFeatureNews) | [Today's Video](#videoNews) | [Obituaries](#obituaries) | [Editorials](#editorialsNews) | [Op-Ed](#opinionNews) | [On This Day](#onthisdayNews) | [CUSTOMIZE »]( Top News [Helen Donahue, a former Vice employee, said she had been groped at a company party. She said that the head of human resources told her to ]( [At Vice, Cutting-Edge Media and Allegations of Old-School Sexual Harassment]( By EMILY STEEL A media company built on subversion and outlandishness was unable to create "a safe and inclusive workplace" for women, two of its founders acknowledge. [President Trump at the White House in July. His visceral approach to immigration defined his campaign and has shaped the first year of his presidency.]( Trump's Way [Stoking Fears, Trump Defied Bureaucracy to Advance Immigration Agenda]( By MICHAEL D. SHEAR and JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS The changes have had far-reaching consequences, both for the immigrants who have sought to make a new home in this country and for America's image in the world. [Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Central Command Commander Gen. Joseph Votel discussed Washington's military strategy in Syria during a briefing in April at the Pentagon in Washington. Mr. Votel said in an interview in Bahrain that American forces will remain in eastern Syria as long as needed to defeat the Islamic State.]( [The Hunt for ISIS Pivots to Remaining Pockets in Syria]( By ERIC SCHMITT The last phase of the American campaign against the caliphate is relying heavily on warplanes that are focused on an area half the size of Manhattan. For more top news, go to [NYTimes.com »]( [Get the Morning Briefing in Your Inbox]( What you need to know to start your day, delivered Monday through Friday. [Sign up »]( ADVERTISEMENT Editors' Picks [Sensitivity readers are reshaping children's fiction.]( BOOKS | Books News [In an Era of Online Outrage, Do Sensitivity Readers Result in Better Books, or Censorship?]( By ALEXANDRA ALTER A new class of editors is quietly reshaping children's literature, vetting books for cultural and racial stereotypes before they reach readers. [Protesters claimed that a U.F.O. appeared in Roswell, N.M., in 1947.]( OPINION | Op-Ed Columnist [Flying Saucers and Other Fairy Tales]( By ROSS DOUTHAT Why ancient folklore might tell us more than federal research about alien encounters. QUOTATION OF THE DAY "It's a craft issue; it's not about censorship. We have a lot of people writing cross-culturally, and a lot of people have done it poorly and done damage." [DHONIELLE CLAYTON]( a former librarian and writer who has evaluated more than 30 children's books as a sensitivity reader this year. [] Today's Videos [[Video] Video: Weaving Around the World]( From Venice to Addis Ababa, the West Bank to the Navajo Nation reservation, follow the process of weaving, which has been developed across cultures for thousands of years. [Melissa Lyttle for The New York Times]( [[Video] Video: Trump's Tough Immigration Talk Meets Reality]( As ICE arrests have gone up, deportations have gone down. Why? It's partly because of the complex realities of a tough policy put in practice. [] World [Rahima, 15, fled Myanmar in September. She was gang-raped by soldiers, one of whom bit her cheek, leaving a scar. ]( ['I'm Struggling to Survive': For Rohingya Women, Abuse Continues in Camps]( By HANNAH BEECH Even after escaping Myanmar, survivors of rape and other trauma find themselves still vulnerable and commodified in the brokenness of refugee life. [Palestinian protesters clashing with Israeli forces near a checkpoint in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, following President Trump's decision this month to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.]( [In Bethlehem, a Mood of Hopeless Resignation Among Palestinians]( By ISABEL KERSHNER Normally bustling around Christmas, Bethlehem, like the rest of the Palestinian territories, appears suspended in a kind of limbo, neither basking in seasonal cheer nor raging in a new intifada. [Zakirullah, 9, in white, with his friends in the women's wing of the Nangarhar Provincial Prison, where he and dozens of other children live with their jailed mothers.]( [For More Than 300 Afghan Children, Many Older Than 5, Home Is Mother's Cellblock]( By ROD NORDLAND Orphanages that could help house the children are packed, and there has been little international interest in addressing the issue. For more world news, go to [NYTimes.com/World »]( ADVERTISEMENT [] U.S. [Sensitivity readers are reshaping children's fiction.]( Books News [In an Era of Online Outrage, Do Sensitivity Readers Result in Better Books, or Censorship?]( By ALEXANDRA ALTER A new class of editors is quietly reshaping children's literature, vetting books for cultural and racial stereotypes before they reach readers. [Carols by a Cellphone's Glow: See How Puerto Rico Is Celebrating Christmas]( By ERIKA P. RODRIGUEZ Large parts of Puerto Rico still don't have power after Hurricane Maria, but some residents are determined to celebrate Christmas one way or another. [Amier Agha, a Syrian refugee who arrived in New York in February, in front of Trump Tower, which he said was his favorite building in the city.]( The Neediest Cases Fund ['I Was Not Going to Accept It': After Captivity, Blind Syrian Forges Path to U.S.]( By KENNETH R. ROSEN Amier Agha was beaten and his best friend executed by fighters in Syria. Intent on escaping the country, he persevered in the face of visa problems and President Trump's travel ban. For more U.S. news, go to [NYTimes.com/US »]( ADVERTISEMENT [] Politics [A traveler removing her laptop from her bag for scanning in May at Kennedy International Airport in New York.]( [Privacy Complaints Mount Over Phone Searches at U.S. Border Since 2011]( By CHARLIE SAVAGE and RON NIXON Complaints filed by people whose electronics were searched at the border without warrants highlight a growing debate over privacy, security and technology. [Andrew G. McCabe was appointed deputy director of the F.B.I. in January 2016 and has endured one of the most contentious periods in the bureau's history.]( [Andrew McCabe, F.B.I.'s Embattled Deputy, Is Expected to Retire]( By ADAM GOLDMAN Mr. McCabe's plans to leave early next year should take some of the pressure off the new director, who has been criticized by President Trump for not replacing top leadership fast enough. [Education Secretary Betsy DeVos at the White House earlier this year.]( [The DeVos 'Nice List']( By ERICA L. GREEN It pays to be a cause that Education Secretary Betsy DeVos cares about. She has a lot of money and gives a lot of it away. For more political news, go to [NYTimes.com/Politics »]( [] Business [The relationship between Rupert Murdoch and Donald J. Trump, a presidential candidate at the time, reached a turning point when they met at Trump International Golf Links Scotland on June 25, 2016.]( [Rupert Murdoch and President Trump: A Friendship of Convenience]( By AMY CHOZICK After decades of mutual wariness, the two titans now have a close relationship - just in time for Disney's proposed acquisition of 21st Century Fox. [The Bay Area became a center of shipbuilding before and during World War II, drawing on raw materials and manufactured goods from around the country. Workers at Belair Shipyard in 1943.]( [What Happens When the Richest U.S. Cities Turn to the World?]( By EMILY BADGER As the economy has changed, so have the relationships between places, to the disadvantage of smaller cities and rural areas. Strategies [[Graphic] Graphic: Apple Is the Most Valuable Public Company Ever. But How Much of a Record Is That?]( By JEFF SOMMER and KARL RUSSELL Its market capitalization is now worth more than the entire G.D.P. of Turkey, and last month, when adjusting for inflation, pushed past Microsoft's high point set during the height of the dotcom boom. For more business news, go to [NYTimes.com/Business »]( [] Technology [Instagram Is Now a Dating Platform, Too. Here's How It Works.]( By VALERIYA SAFRONOVA Show the love with likes and comments. Get intimate in private chat. Find out who's checking up on you. For more technology news, go to [NYTimes.com/Technology »]( [] Sports [In an Unforgiving Sport, They Minister to Hearts and Souls]( By RORY SMITH and ROB STOTHARD A chaplain is part of the team for about three-quarters of England's professional teams, offering spiritual or secular counseling to the players. [Carmelo Anthony, Kristaps Porzingis, Selena Gomez and the rapper Big Sean all own art made by Jojo Anavim, who hosts a Shabbat dinner at his Chelsea apartment.]( [Jojo Is the Artist of Choice Among N.B.A. Stars]( By MALIKA ANDREWS Joseph Anavim, a Long Island native, has made pop-art paintings for Carmelo Anthony, Kristaps Porzingis and many others. [Élise Béliveau, 85, remains steadfast in her support of the Montreal Canadiens three years after the death of her husband, Jean, one of the team's greatest players.]( [The First Lady of the Canadiens Sits Behind the Montreal Bench]( By ALLAN KREDA Élise Béliveau, the widow of the Canadiens great Jean Béliveau, is a beloved regular at games and an inspiring presence for players and fans. For more sports news, go to [NYTimes.com/Sports »]( [] Arts [Elizabeth Banks Was a Frustrated Actress. Now She's a Determined Mogul.]( By MELENA RYZIK The "Pitch Perfect" star has become an industry force, with producing deals at many studios: "There just became a moment where I was like, I need more control." [John Latouche in Manhattan in the early 1940s, in a photograph reproduced on the cover of Howard Pollack's biography of the temperamental but beloved lyricist.]( [Capturing the Short, Glamorous Life of a Forgotten Broadway Lyricist]( By JOSHUA BARONE Howard Pollack on writing "The Ballad of John Latouche," the first biography to explore the cult figure's prolific career. [Ishmael Sanford]( [Watch These Brooklyn Skate Club Regulars Dance Their Wheels Off]( Photographs and Video by JESSICA LEHRMAN There's magic in the skates: On Wednesday nights, the Brooklyn Skate Club transforms a gymnasium in Bedford-Stuyvesant into a swirl of bodies. For more arts news, go to [NYTimes.com/Arts »]( Movies [A moment from ]( On DVD [Elusive Vampire Film Steps Out of the Shadows]( By J. HOBERMAN "Vampir Cuadecuc," Pere Portabella's highly regarded avant-garde film, is now available on DVD; so is Stan Brakhage's "Anticipation of the Night." For more arts news, go to [NYTimes.com/Arts »]( [] Metropolitan [In Brooklyn, a Hare Krishna Reckoning]( By KAYA LATERMAN As the Hare Krishna Society builds a lavish new temple in India, it is struggling to control a faction in the city where the religion was born. [A scene from New York's financial district, where high earners may find things to like in the new tax bill.]( [Life, Death and Taxes in Inequality City]( By GINIA BELLAFANTE There is a lot we still don't know about how the Republican tax plan will play out in New York, but there's enough to be dispirited about in the meantime. [Kava drinkers hanging out near the to-go window of Brooklyn Kava, in Bushwick.]( [Stressed New Yorkers Take to Kava, 'Nature's Xanax']( By ZACH MONTAGUE Cafes serving kava, a Polynesian drink with mild calming effects - not to mention an "aggressive" flavor - are providing a new remedy for stress and an alternative to alcohol. For more New York news, go to [NYTimes.com/NewYork »]( [] Travel [Senoia, Ga., a picturesque town about 35 miles southwest of Atlanta, has become famous as the home of ]( Road Trip [As Seen on TV: A Road Trip Tracks the Shows of the South]( By JEREMY EGNER Using "True Detective," "The Walking Dead" and other shows as travel agents is a decent way to see things that give an area its character. [Wonder Valley in California.]( Explorer [In the California Desert: Vast Darkness, Vibrant Music, an Oasis]( By IVY POCHODA In Wonder Valley, the silence makes its own kind of noise. And Twentynine Palms makes its own kind of music. [The main lobby.]( [The Oberoi Hotel in New Delhi Got a Major Makeover. Here Is a First Look.]( By SHIVANI VORA The enduring hotel has a lively history - and now, a more modern style from the designer Adam Tihany. The rooms are larger too. For more travel news, go to [NYTimes.com/Travel »]( [] Fashion & Style [Who Wants to Buy the Most Expensive House in America?]( By CANDACE JACKSON One man is building a house so enormous, and so absurdly lavish, that it may be the ultimate symbol of our age of thirst, excess and inequality. Asking price? $500 million. The Cycle [When a Grieving Mother Talks, Listen]( By JEN GUNTER At age 36, I joined the saddest sorority of mothers: those who gave birth but have no baby. [Yes Me Can]( By ALEXANDRA JACOBS So long, you! Who's back? Me's back! For more fashion news, go to [NYTimes.com/Fashion »]( [] Magazine [Alka Pradhan in Virginia in November]( Feature [Alka Pradhan v. Gitmo]( By JEFFREY E. STERN The human rights lawyer thinks she has a good defense for her client, one of five accused Sept. 11 plotters imprisoned at Guantánamo Bay - if the government ever actually lets the case go to trial. [Dancers from the Prestige Academy of Dance in Fairfield, N.J.]( Feature [Inside the High-Drama World of Youth Competition Dance]( By LIZZIE FEIDELSON False eyelashes and real tears on the competition dance circuit. Feature [Jordan Peele's X-Ray Vision]( By WESLEY MORRIS "Get Out," his docu-horror-thriller-comedy about race in America, was the movie of the year. What will he show us next? For more from the Sunday magazine, go to [NYTimes.com/Magazine »]( []Obituaries [Yu Guangzhong reading his poems this year at National Sun Yat-sen University in Taiwan. ]( [Yu Guangzhong, Exiled Poet Who Longed for China, Dies at 89]( By AMY QIN Mr. Yu's poem "Nostalgia" symbolized the aching separation felt by a generation of homesick Chinese who lived in Taiwan. [The arms negotiators Edward L. Rowny, left, and Paul H. Nitze at a briefing in Washington in 1983.]( [Edward Rowny, Outspoken Treaty Negotiator, Dies at 100]( By NEIL GENZLINGER General Rowny advised presidents from Richard Nixon to George H.W. Bush during talks with the Soviet Union about nuclear arms. He could be blunt. [Frank Lary, left, with Bucky Harris, the manager of the Detroit Tigers, in the mid-1950s.]( [Frank Lary, Pitcher Known as the Yankee Killer, Dies at 87]( By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS A two-time American League All-Star, he earned his nickname for his success against one of baseball's hardest-hitting lineups. [Hiep Thi Le played Le Ly Hayslip in Oliver Stone's Vietnam War drama ]( [Hiep Thi Le, Vietnamese Refugee Who Became Film Star, Dies at 46]( By NEIL GENZLINGER Ms. Le was merely accompanying friends when she went to an open casting call for Oliver Stone's "Heaven and Earth." She landed the central role. For more obituaries, go to [NYTimes.com/Obituaries »]( [] Editorial [Reuters journalist Wa Lone, working in Sittwe in the state of Rakhine, Myanmar, in September. Lone and Kyaw Soe, another Reuters journalist, were arrested this month on the order of Myanmar's president, Htin Kyaw.]( Editorial [Free Detained Journalists in Myanmar]( By THE EDITORIAL BOARD When it comes to press freedom, Myanmar's new democracy is little different from its old military dictatorship. [Wassily Kandinsky's ]( Editorial [For Russian Artists in 1917, Art Was the Thing, Not Revolution]( By SERGE SCHMEMANN Amid suffering and chaos, painters of every leaning largely continued doing what they had been doing, whether to mark time or to provide escape. For more opinion, go to [NYTimes.com/Opinion »]( [] Op-Ed [The Lansdowne Madonna, one of two versions of ]( Op-Ed Columnist [Cardinal Tobin, Am I a Christian?]( By NICHOLAS KRISTOF Nicholas Kristof put blunt questions to Cardinal Joseph Tobin of Newark. Op-Docs [Santa Is a Psychedelic Mushroom]( By MATTHEW SALTON It's time to embrace the shamanistic side of Christmas. [When the War Came Home]( Vietnam was a small-scale, intimate tragedy, as one young California mother discovered in 1967. For more opinion, go to [NYTimes.com/Opinion »]( [] ON THIS DAY On Dec. 24, 1992, President Bush pardoned former Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger and five others in the Iran-Contra scandal. [See this Front Page]( | [Buy this Front Page]( FOLLOW US: [Facebook] [Facebook]( | [Twitter] [@NYTimes]( | [Pinterest] [Pinterest]( | [Instagram] [Instagram]( [NYT]( Access The New York Times from anywhere with our suite of apps: [iPhone®]( | [iPad®]( | [Android]( | [All]( [.] Save 15% at [The NYTimes Store »]( [.] Have questions? [Help Section »]( [.] Visit our mobile website at [m.nyt.com »]( About This Email This is an automated email. Please do not reply directly to this email. 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