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🌤️ 49 – 90° Logan | 🌤️ 62 – 94° Salt Lake | 🌤️ 51 – 88° Manti

☀️ 64 – 96° Moab | ☀️ 53 – 88° Cedar City | ☀️ 67 – 99° St. George

Good morning!

The Jazz selected Ace Bailey out of Rutgers with the No. 5 overall pick of the 2025 NBA Draft Wednesday night.

The Jazz moved up three spots with their second pick of the night in a trade with Washington to take Walter Clayton Jr. from Florida at No. 18 overall.

Egor Demin, BYU’s star point guard, was selected by the Brooklyn Nets with the No. 8 pick.

Read more about the biggest moves for the Jazz at the NBA Draft.

Utah powering NASA’s SLS rocket and Artemis program

Five decades since humans first stepped foot on the moon, we're heading back — and Utah is making it possible.

A group of guests from NASA teams working on the Artemis program visited the Clark Planetarium on Tuesday to talk about the next steps in space exploration. Utah will play an essential role in two of NASA’s upcoming missions: Artemis II and Artemis III, which are heading to the moon.

Artemis II, which is scheduled to launch in April 2026, will be the first mission with crew aboard the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft.

Astronaut Kjell Lindgren called Utah a “partner in exploration for decades.” With more than 3,000 Artemis suppliers nationwide, Utah has become the factory for the very propulsion systems that the SLS rocket uses.

Read more from Bryan Barba about Utah’s role in getting humans back to the moon.

This BYU grad helped Orrin Hatch go viral. Now Dana Perino’s helping him do the same

Matt Whitlock made waves running the social media accounts of Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch during his final term. Now, he’s a rising star in conservative media.

Six years ago, Whitlock’s funny tweet about paper straws caught the eye of one of the most-watched television hosts in the country, Dana Perino. Perino has been a champion of Whitlock’s latest online endeavor, a punchy 10-minute podcast that transforms the Trump-era news cycle into clear takeaways for voters and concise talking points for Republican politicians and their communications staffers.

“Matt has transitioned from a behind-the-scenes strategist to a trusted, more public voice,” Perino told the Deseret News, “without losing the humility and discipline that made him so effective in the first place.”

Brigham Tomco writes, “As red-state senators and representatives struggle to craft a compelling message on Medicaid reforms, ICE raids and Iran, Whitlock offers a polished rundown, twice a week, with digestible news nuggets tailored for what he calls his ‘most valuable focus group’ — his family, split between Utah and California.”

Read more about why Dana Perino says Matt Whitlock is a rising GOP star.

Utah Business 2025 Innovation Awards Summit

Recognizing the state’s vibrant community of innovators — from startups to established companies — and their breakthrough creations. Submit your nomination before July 9!

Perspective

Jennifer Graham: The other bomb Trump dropped this week — and why it matters (Deseret News)
The Deseret News Editorial Board: Sell some public lands, but do it carefully (Deseret News)

Politics

Mike Lee removes U.S. Forests from public lands proposal in last-ditch effort (Deseret News)
Supreme Court rules fuel producers can sue EPA over ‘harming’ regulations (Deseret News)
Sen. Chuck Schumer hospitalized. Here's what happened (Deseret News)

The U.S. & World

White House pushes back on preliminary report about damage to Iran nuclear site (Deseret News)
Is the Trump administration helping ‘viewpoint diversity’ on campus? The academy has something to say (Deseret News)
The US and Iran have had bitter relations for decades. After the bombs, a new chapter begins (The Associated Press)
NATO commits to spending hike sought by Trump, and to mutual defense (Reuters)

Sports

John Collins picks up his player option with Jazz (Deseret News)
How you (or more likely your kids) can try X Games sports this weekend (Deseret News)
Why landing Ryder Lyons means so much for BYU football (Deseret News)
The Utah Mammoth’s offseason strategy, per GM Bill Armstrong (Deseret News)

Faith

Why Pope Leo XIV’s message at the Jubilee of Sport still resonates (Deseret News)
How Amazon Prime Video is helping share the story of Jesus with the world (Deseret News)
The Soviet Union fell, and spiritual hunger was filled (Deseret News)

Health

When it comes to finding meaning in life, you need this emotion (Deseret News)
How much fast food do Americans eat? (Deseret News)

🗓️ Events Calendar

We put together a list of events and activities going on around the state of Utah in June. Check it out and let us know if we are missing anything!

Here are some highlights for events in Utah today:

June 26-28 — Taylorsville Dayzz | Taylorsville
June 26 — West Valley City Farmers Market | Centennial Park, West Valley City
June 26 — Bountiful Farmers Market | Bountiful Town Square, Bountiful
June 26 — Syracuse Farmers Market | Syracuse

Check your inbox tomorrow morning for more news from the Beehive State and beyond!

And reply to this email or email newsletters@deseretnews.com to tell us what you think of Utah Today.

Thanks for reading!

— Ariel