Worried about coaxing people into pews when they’d rather be in their pajamas, some Protestant pastors are canceling Sunday services on Dec. 25.

O Come All Ye Faithful, Except When Christmas Falls on a Sunday

The combination of the war in Ukraine and concern about longer-term threats from Russia and China is driving a bipartisan push to increase U.S. capacity to produce weapons.

Military Spending Surges, Creating New Boom for Arms Makers

Hiroyuki Nishimura has become a famous voice for disenchanted young Japanese. What he talks much less about is his ownership of the notorious website 4chan.

In the U.S., His Site Has Been Linked to Massacres. In Japan, He’s a Star.

The network’s chief executive knew the job would not be easy. But this hard?

The Education of CNN’s Chris Licht

It looked like another title might have slipped through its fingers, but Argentina, and its star, claimed the ultimate trophy.

For Messi, and Argentina, the (Extra) Wait Is Worth It

The charge of seditious conspiracy is the same as in a recent trial of members of the Oath Keepers militia, but the Proud Boys defendants are accused of a central role in the fighting at the Capitol.

Proud Boys Trial Is Set to Open, Focusing on Role in Jan. 6 Violence

After years of breakneck growth, the number of scripted TV series orders made by networks and streamers is in decline.

Streaming’s Golden Age Is Suddenly Dimming

The company has struggled to earn enough from streaming to make up for losses from its traditional cable business. It is a story widespread in the industry.

Want to Understand Television’s Troubles? Look at AMC.

A Times photographer who documented the spiritual diversity of the city’s boroughs for nearly a year said he was deeply moved by the assignment.

Capturing the Religions of New York on Camera

Quotation of the Day for Sunday, December 18, 2022.

Quotation of the Day: With Christmas a Sunday, Pews May Be Empty

Elon Musk suspends several journalists’ Twitter accounts, then reinstates them. The Fed is continuing to raise interest rates. And inflation is affecting the mind-set of holiday shoppers. 

The Week in Business: The FTX Founder’s Rapid Fall

A cascade of military failures started with Vladimir Putin.

What Russia Got Wrong

Phil O’Brien, a Briton who has run a Manhattan publication for several years, had his visa denied because immigration officials deemed his struggling business “marginal.”

Another Sign of Hard Times in Local News: A Declined Visa

Women over 65 are being screened for cervical cancer in diminishing numbers. But some are reluctant to give up the tests.

Why Many Older Women Are Getting Pap Tests They Don’t Need

Two privately funded pilot programs are covering the rent for City University of New York students who face housing insecurity.

A New Lifeline for the Unseen: Homeless College Students

Julie Taymor’s version of Mozart’s opera, a fairy tale of puppets and plexiglass, achieves its finest form in the Met’s condensed version for families.

Review: ‘The Magic Flute’ Directs Its Whimsy Toward the Younger Set

Spontaneous marches broke out across the country after the Argentine national team won its first World Cup title since 1986.

Argentina Hits the Streets for Long-Awaited Celebration

Amid doubts about Moscow’s true war losses, Russian data journalists and volunteers use news articles, tombstone photographs and other open-source information to tally the Russian toll from the war in Ukraine.

Counting Russia’s War Dead, With Tips, Clips and a Giant Spreadsheet

An adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky urged Western allies to take seriously the threat of a new Russian onslaught, which could include mass infantry attacks.

Ukraine Says Russia Is Training Soldiers for Possible New Offensive

Ticket sales totaled $134 million in North America, nearly doubling the opening for the first ‘Avatar.’ But Hollywood was expecting more.

‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ Has a Subdued Start at the Box Office

In the end, after a tournament shadowed by controversy since the host rights were awarded, Qatar had the turn in the global spotlight it sought.

Qatar Got the World Cup It Wanted

The actress, Taraneh Alidoosti, had urged people to speak out after the execution of a man involved in nationwide demonstrations.

Famed Iranian Actress Arrested After Voicing Support for Protests

The North has made similar claims before when it was in fact preparing for ICBM launches.

South Korea Accuses the North of Launching Missiles. The North Says It Was a Satellite Test.

A food recall from Australia sheds light on an unusual aspect of brain chemistry.

How Can Tainted Spinach Cause Hallucinations?

New technology could clear a path for relaxed security checks at airports by June 2024.

December 18, 2022

Headlines from December 18, 2022

O Come All Ye Faithful, Except When Christmas Falls on a Sunday

Military Spending Surges, Creating New Boom for Arms Makers

In the U.S., His Site Has Been Linked to Massacres. In Japan, He’s a Star.

The Education of CNN’s Chris Licht

For Messi, and Argentina, the (Extra) Wait Is Worth It

Billboard 200

Heroes & Villains

Midnights

Her Loss

Un Verano Sin Ti

Christmas

Historical Context for December 18, 2022