Author: NY TIMES

Hey, Jim Cameron here. I’m the director of “Avatar: Fire and Ash.” So this is Varang, played by Oona Chaplin. And she’s sharing with Quaritch, now that he’s in this altered state of consciousness, her backstory about how the volcano erupted. She doesn’t use the term “volcano.” She says the fire came from the mountain. We can fill that in for ourselves, destroyed her homeland, she says, “burned our forests.” And she talks about the plight of her people. So this is Oona imagining flame. There’s no flame. And we even went back and did a pickup on this line…

new video loaded: It’s a Hard Forkin’ Christmas!transcriptBacktranscriptIt’s a Hard Forkin’ Christmas!The “Hard Fork” co-hosts Kevin Roose and Casey Newton sing an original, tech-inspired rendition of “The Twelve Days of Christmas.”On a Hard Forkin’ Christmas, my true love gave to me 12 A.I. bubbles, 11 chimpanzinis, 10 Signal war chats, nine Meta reorgs, eight MechaHitlers, seven White House memecoins, six Roblox scandals, five Bum Bum creams, – Bum, bum bum four Humane pins, three code reds, two robot pants, and a bot trained on all our I.P. – That’s “intellectual property.” – Can Ezra Klein do that? I don’t think…

new video loaded: What Parents in China See in A.I. ToystranscriptBacktranscriptWhat Parents in China See in A.I. ToysA video of a child crying over her broken A.I. chatbot stirred up conversation in China, with some viewers questioning whether the gadgets are good for children. But the girl’s father says it’s more than a toy; it’s a family member.This video of a girl crying over her broken A.I. chatbot went viral in China. Xiaozhi A.I. is powered by artificial intelligence and it can have long conversations with six-year-old Shisan Hu. The gadget and similar chatbot toys are part of a multi-billion…

new video loaded: Is Australia’s Social Media Ban for Kids a Good Idea?On the “Hard Fork” podcast, the hosts Kevin Roose and Casey Newton discuss a new law in Australia barring kids under 16 from social media.By ‘HARD Fork’December 23, 2025

new video loaded: How Much Water Does the A.I. Industry Use?Kevin Roose and Casey Newton, the hosts of “Hard Fork” at The New York Times, spoke with Andrew Marley, executive director for Effective Altruism DC, about how much water A.I. data centers use.By ‘HARD Fork’December 23, 2025

new video loaded: Uber Clears Violent Felons to DriveOur reporter, Emily Steel, found that in many states, Uber’s guidelines allow people with serious criminal convictions to drive, as long as those convictions are more than seven years old. Some of those drivers have gone on to sexually assault or harass passengers.By Emily Steel, Christina Shaman, Zach Caldwell, David Jouppi and Thomas TrudeauDecember 22, 2025

Across the newsroom, journalists picked their most notable movies from 2025.

new video loaded: Cyclone Aftermath in Sri LankaMujib Mashal, our South Asia bureau chief, takes us to Kandy in Sri Lanka, which suffered the worst of the devastation from last month’s cyclone.By Mujib Mashal, Christina Thornell, Christina Shaman, Laura Salaberry and Atul LokeDecember 12, 2025

new video loaded: How Power Cuts Are Affecting UkrainiansRussia has been targeting energy infrastructure in Ukraine, leaving multiple cities without electricity. Kim Barker, who’s been covering the war, gives us a glimpse into the daily life of Ukrainians living with power cuts.By Kim Barker, Oleksandra Mykolyshyn, Stanislav Kozliuk, Rebecca Suner and Leila MedinaDecember 12, 2025

new video loaded: ‘Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery’ | Anatomy of a ScenetranscriptBacktranscript‘Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery’ | Anatomy of a SceneThe writer and director Rian Johnson narrates a sequence from his film.“My Name is Rian Johnson. I wrote and directed “Wake Up, Dead Man.” “All right, everyone!” This is a scene that’s about halfway through the movie. And Father Jud right here, who’s Josh O’Connor, he is the prime suspect in the murder of Monsignor Wicks, kind of the local priest that was his colleague. And all the parishioners who you see here…