What to know about the closure of the Kennedy Center

NPR | By Scott Simon,

Eric McDaniel

Published March 21, 2026 at 6:43 AM CDT

Scott Simon and former director Deborah Rutter look out over a soon-to-be shuttered Kennedy Center.

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Scott Simon

Scott Simon is one of America's most admired writers and broadcasters. He is the host of Weekend Edition Saturday and is one of the hosts of NPR's morning news podcast Up First. He has reported from all fifty states, five continents, and ten wars, from El Salvador to Sarajevo to Afghanistan and Iraq. His books have chronicled character and characters, in war and peace, sports and art, tragedy and comedy.

See stories by Scott Simon

Eric McDaniel

Eric McDaniel edits the NPR Politics Podcast. He joined the program ahead of its 2019 relaunch as a daily podcast.

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