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Friday • February 3, 2012
CANCER GROUP, REVERSING COURSE, SAYS IT WILL MAINTAIN PLANNED PARENTHOOD FUNDING: Susan G. Komen for the Cure said on Friday it was retreating from a decision to cut funding to Planned Parenthood, which provides abortion and birth control services, and apologized for a move that thrust the breast cancer charity into a deeply politicized controversy.
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Friday • February 3, 2012
U.S. JOBLESS RATE DROPS: Great news, and much better than expected: The U.S. economy created 243,000 non-farm jobs in January, up from a 200,000 increase in December, and the unemployment rate dropped from 8.5 percent to 8.3. The private sector added 257,000 jobs, while the public sector cut 14,000. At one point during trading Friday, European stocks hit a six-month high as investors were optimistic about the U.S. jobs report and cheered data that the euro zone might avoid a recession.
U.S. FEARS ISRAEL WILL STRIKE IRAN: Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is reportedly worried that Israel is going to attack Iran because of its nuclear ambitions. The Washington Post quoted Panetta as saying the attack could happen as early as April or May because they want to disrupt Iran’s progress on a potential nuclear weapon even though Iran says it only has peaceful intentions. Neither Panetta nor the Pentagon have commented further on the supposed comments. Israel, however, issued a blunt warning that time is running out to stop Iran’s nuclear program. said that U.S. officials have also said they believe the Iranian government has taken several al Qaeda members off of house arrest.
EGYPT ANGER BOILS OVER: Egyptian protesters threw rocks at the Interior Ministry building Friday in Cairo as anger boiled over a day after 74 people were killed in the country’s worst soccer disaster. Demonstrators repeatedly clashed with the police, and hundreds have been injured in Cairo, while at least three people were killed in Cairo and Suez on Friday when security forces used live rounds to hold back angry crowds. They charge the military-led government for not preventing a stampede that killed dozens of people at a soccer stadium in Port Said Thursday.
U.S. TOURISTS KIDNAPPED IN EGYPT: Two American tourists and their guide were kidnapped Friday after gunmen stormed their minivan in the Sinai near a popular Red Sea resort. Officials say the abductors sped away in a sedan and a pickup truck, but left behind three other people who were in the minivan. The incident happened near St. Catherine’s Monastery; no one has taken responsibility for the crime, though Egypt has faced a surge in crime since former dictator Hosni Mubarak was ousted nearly a year ago.
TSA TRAINS SUPER BOWL HOT DOG SELLERS TO SPOT TERRORISTS: Despite acknowledging there are “no credible or specific threats” to the safety of the 2012 Super Bowl in Indianapolis on Sunday, the TSA is training thousands of fast food sellers to spot terrorists under the “First Observer” program. “TSA said over 8,000 stadium vendors, parking lot attendants, shuttle bus drivers, and other transportation professionals received the agency’s First Observer training for detecting and assessing indicators and planning tactics of potential terrorist activities,” reports Government Security News.
S.E.C. IS AVOIDING TOUGH SANCTIONS FOR LARGE BANKS: Even as the Securities and Exchange Commission has stepped up its investigations of Wall Street in the last decade, the agency has repeatedly allowed the biggest firms to avoid punishments specifically meant to apply to fraud cases. By granting exemptions to laws and regulations that act as a deterrent to securities fraud, the S.E.C. has let financial giants like JPMorganChase, Goldman Sachs and Bank of America continue to have advantages reserved for the most dependable companies, making it easier for them to raise money from investors, for example, and to avoid liability from lawsuits if their financial forecasts turn out to be wrong.
HTC ADMITS TO FLAW COVERUP: The cellphone maker HTC finally admitted days ago that many of its Android smartphone handsets have long had a “critical” bug that seriously affected its Wi-Fi security—a claim that researchers told them about as far back as last September. Not only that, now HTC has admitted that it’s deliberately kept it quiet for five months. The flaw affects recent devices like the Thunderbolt and EVO 4G handsets, and also older models like the Desire HD. Customers will have to check the HTC support website for a manual update next week.
CEZANNE BECOMES PRICIEST PAINTING EVER: Not so fast, David Choe—you can no longer call your Facebook murals the most expensive work of art, because Qatar has come to the rescue. The oil-rich country has bought Paul Cezanne’s painting The Card Players for more than $250 million, making it by far the highest price ever paid for a work of art. Up until this point, the most expensive painting ever sold was a Jackson Pollock for $140 million in the frenzied pre-recession year of 2006, and in recent days the graffiti artist David Choe was reportedly given Facebook stock options for decorating the company’s murals in 2005 that cost mere thousands then but will now be worth some $200 million after the social-network giant goes public.
LBN-THINK AGAIN:
BRUCE WILLIS URGED DEMI MOORE TO SEEK HELP: Shortly before Demi Moore split with Ashton Kutcher, her previous husband Bruce Willis went to her house to ask her to get help for her worsening health, a source say. “He was worried about her and wanted her to get better,” says the source. “Many of her friends did the same thing, but she just wouldn’t listen.”
LBN-MEDIA INSIDER: ***CBS plans some counter programming Sunday night. With the Super Bowl airing on NBC, CBS’s “60 Minutes” gives it up for the ladies, with the special “Three Remarkable Women.” The special will feature interviews with Dolly Parton, Anna Wintour and Meryl Streep. ***This week marks the 10th anniversary of the death of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, who was killed by militants in Pakistan. The Journal’s website has rounded up several articles from the last decade that celebrate the reporter’s work, life and legacy. ***Washington Post chief Don Graham, who sits on the board of Facebook, holds 1 million shares of the social network’s stock. Following Facebook’s IPO, the shares will have a value of about $46 million. Graham said he plans to eventually donate the shares to charity.
YOUR FUTURE IS IN THE TOILET WITHOUT LBN:
LBN-VIDEO LINK: WATCH: American Teens Lack Really Basic Knowledge
WHO READS THE LBN E-LERT? Motivational speaker and author Aura Imbarus along with 474,000 other “influencers” in all 50 states and 11 different time zones.
LBN-INVESTIGATES: The first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution, or the Bill of Rights, were adopted as a single unit on Dec. 15, 1791. They constitute a collection of mutually reinforcing guarantees of individual rights and of limitations on federal and state governments. The Bill of Rights derives from the Magna Carta (1215), the English Bill of Rights (1689), the colonial struggle against king and Parliament, and a gradually broadening concept of equality among the American people.
LBN-VIDEO LINK: WATCH: Lana Del Rey Wows Letterman
LBN-BOOK NEWS: ***Billy Ray Cyrus is the latest celebrity to sign up with Amazon.com. The singer of “Achy Breaky Heart” and father and former co-star of Miley Cyrus has a memoir, “Hillbilly Heart,” coming in spring 2013. Amazon has been aggressively expanding its publishing operation.
LBN-MUSIC INSIDER: ***It’s been an unfortunate week for R&B and soul. Yesterday — on the same day as Soul Train founder Don Cornelius‘ death — R&B/gospel singer, David Peaston, died at 54 years old. ***Steven Van Zandt says Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are having to do more rehearsing than normal for their upcoming world tour because of the band’s unusual new album. “We usually only rehearse for a week or two,” Van Zandt told us at a premiere of his Netflix series, “Lilyhammer,” Wednesday. “But the music is . . . interesting, and more difficult.
LBN-SPORTS INSIDER: ***NBA legend Bill Bridges claims he was left permanently scarred by a recent trip to a Marriott spa — where the steam room allegedly seared his skin and eyes — and now, he’s suing the hotel for ruining his life. Bill — who won a championship ring with the Golden State Warriors in 1975 — filed the lawsuit in L.A. County Superior Court, claiming he visited the steam room last year at the Le Merigot Spa in the Marriott Santa Monica … and upon entering, a cloud of steam “engulfed Mr. Bridges’ face.”
LBN-HOLLYWOOD INSIDER: ***Philip Berk, the current chairman and former president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. and a key witness in the organization’s legal battle against Dick Clark Productions over who controls the television rights to the Golden Globes said in court Thursday that he’s “never really been interested in contracts.” In his testimony, not only did Berk say he was not in the habit of scrutinizing contracts during his last few decades as a top-ranking HFPA executive, he also seemed to contradict himself at times during questioning from Dick Clark Productions’ legal team and gave a version of events regarding a meeting he had with CBS Chief Executive Leslie Moonves that contrasted Moonves’ account. ***Sarah Silverman is welcoming an old friend and a former Lost co-star to her NBC comedy pilot. The vehicle, in which she stars as a woman readjusting to single life following a decade-long live-in relationship, will re-team the actress with her The Sarah Silverman Program pal Tig Notaro. Notaro will play a gay, “tiny Tom Cruise” who is the mother to a 4-year-old Martha and is a tenant in Susan’s upscale Manhattan apartment building. She’s an eccentric woman who immediately “gets” Susan with the role written with Notaro in mind. ***Jeffrey Katzenberg will host a spring fundraiser for President Obama at his new $35 million home in the Trousdale Estates section of Beverly Hills.
LBN-MEET: Cecile Richards, the president of Planned Parenthood.
I, LBN: Rachel O’Dell, an LBN E-Lert reader from Philadephia, Penn.
LBN-COMMENTARY By CHUCK OJEDA (Sports writer): We’re going to step away from the stats just for today. Most can agree that we live in a country dominated by Christian ideals. It’s a charitable and kind point of view in a lot of instances, but the mentality can be detrimental when casting a decent musical act for the Super Bowl. One day this nation will set aside its superstitious fear of music containing Pagan undertones and when that happens ACDC will give us the greatest Super Bowl Half-time show ever. If we can accept Madonna’s history of promiscuous behavior, we surely can accept Hell’s Bells.
LBN-COMMENTARY By BLAKE LIVELY (Actress): I’ve had four boyfriends in my whole life. I’ve never been with anyone that’s not a boyfriend. If I spend time with a man, it’s because they are somebody that I know well who has been a friend for a while.
LBN-COMMENTARY By ROSEANNE BARR: I am pleased to announce that I am seeking the Green Party’s nomination for President of these United States of America. The Democrats and Republicans have proven that they are servants—bought and paid for by the 1%—who are not doing what’s in the best interest of the American people. As a long time supporter of the Green Party, I look forward to working with people who share my values. Behold the greening of America!
LBN-COMMENTARY By DR. PHIL MCGRAW (Author, Host “Dr. Phil”): Super Bowl Sunday. For most men, it makes their year. Unfortunately, for too many, the year ends the day after. PFDS, Post Football Depression Syndrome sets in and sets in with a vengeance.
LBN-NOTICED: ***Maybe that werewolf role left its mark! Twilight’s Taylor Lautner was enjoying a low-key dinner with a male and female companion at Locanda del Lago in Santa Monica, Calif., where the actor was spotted eating a very rare steak. ***Baseball star Alex Rodriguez didn’t have too difficult a time getting through airport security. The New York Yankees star was spotted at Los Angeles International sipping an iced coffee as he waited in the line. ***She’s making the most out of her Parisian trip! After a two-day high fashion shoot with photographer Mario Testino, Kristen Stewart managed to grab a little down time in the City of Light. The Snow White and the Huntsman actress picked up some gifts at Bonpoint, a children’s boutique on Avenue Montaigne. ***Jim Caviezel, who plays a sexy CIA agent on CBS’s “Person of Interest,” turning heads while walking into the Sanctuary Hotel in black boots and jeans on a break from filming his series on West 47th Street in NYC. The actor sent two security guards ahead to make sure the staff could show him several rooms when he arrived. ***Hannah Bronfman and Mirabelle Marden testing out new Web site The 24th Letter at its launch party at new bi-level NoHo restaurant Acme.
LBN-A DIFFERENT VIEW:
LBN-OVERHEARD: ***It looks like Pippa Middleton may be off the market. The royal bridesmaid is reported to be dating her university friend George Percy, heir to the Duke of Northumberland, one of Britain’s richest and grandest titles – whose family owns Alnwick Castle, which was used as the setting for Hogwarts School in the Harry Potter movies. And that’s only part of their $500-million estate.
LBN-TODAY’S BIRTHDAY, NORMAL ROCKWELL (1894): Rockwell was an American illustrator whose idealized scenes of family life in small-town America gained enormous popularity with the public. His illustrations appeared in major periodicals such as Collier’s and Life. From 1916 to 1963, he produced 317 covers for The Saturday Evening Post, and during WWII his patriotic posters were distributed by the government.
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Thursday • February 2, 2012
PATH IS FOUND FOR THE SPREAD OF ALZHEIMER’S: Alzheimer’s disease seems to spread like an infection from brain cell to brain cell, two new studies in mice have found. But instead of viruses or bacteria, what is being spread is a distorted protein known as tau. The surprising finding answers a longstanding question and has immediate implications for developing treatments, researchers said. And they suspect that other degenerative brain diseases like Parkinson’s may spread in a similar way. Alzheimer’s researchers have long known that dying, tau-filled cells first emerge in a small area of the brain where memories are made and stored. The disease then slowly moves outward to larger areas that involve remembering and reasoning.
TALIBAN CAPTIVES DISPUTE U.S. VIEW ON AFGHANISTAN WAR: More Taliban insurgents are being killed or captured than ever before, yet when the captives are interrogated by the American military, they remain convinced that they are winning the war. That is because the Taliban believe that their own hearts-and-minds campaign is winning over Afghans — or so they tell their interrogators — and even converting a growing number of Afghan government officials and soldiers. Those are among some of the findings of a NATO report, “State of the Taliban 2012,” based on 27,000 interrogations of 4,000 Taliban and other captives that portrays a Taliban insurgency that is far from vanquished or demoralized even as the United States and its allies enter what they hope will be the final phase of the war. A copy of the document, which was first reported by the BBC and The Times of London, was given to The New York Times by a Western official, on the condition of anonymity because it was classified.
PAKISTAN CHARGES PM WITH CONTEMPT: The turbulence in Pakistan’s government reached a new level on Thursday with the supreme court’s announcement that it will charge Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani with contempt of court. The court accuses Gilani of refusing to reopen a corruption case against President Asif Ali Zardari. If convicted, Gilani could face six months in prison and be booted from office. The trial starts on February 13.
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WASHINGTON SENATE PASSES GAY MARRIAGE: It looks like Washington State will be the seventh state to legalize same-sex marriage. The State Senate voted late Wednesday to approve a bill that would allow same-sex couples to marry. The Senate was considered the primary hurdle for the bill, but it passed by a wider margin than expected—28 to 21, after less than 90 minutes of debate.
SECRECY SHROUDS ‘SUPER PAC’ FUNDS IN LATEST FILINGS: Newly disclosed details of the millions of dollars flowing into political groups are highlighting not just the scale of donations from corporation and unions but also the secrecy surrounding “super PACs” seeking to influence the presidential race. Some of the money came from well-established concerns, like Alpha Natural Resources, one of the country’s largest coal companies, which is backing Republican-aligned American Crossroads, or from the Service Employees International Union, a powerful union allied with Democrats, according to filings with the Federal Election Commission.
I, LBN: Monroe L, an LBN E-Lert reader from Manchester, England.
I DARE YOU: Visit the LBN *Extra* Blog, click here.
TIMES OF LONDON ACCUSED OF HACKING: The hacking inquiry has spread to a new Rupert Murdoch-owned paper: The Times of London, the well-respected broadsheet. Labor legislator Tom Watson, who has led the inquiry into hacking at the News of the World, says police are investigating email hacking at the Times. The paper has admitted that a former reporter tried to intercept emails in 2009 in an attempt to reveal an anonymous policeman blogger.
ANNOUNCING THE 22ND ANNUAL NIGHT OF 100 STARS BLACK TIE DINNER VIEWING GALA: On Oscar Sunday, February 26th, the Beverly Hills Hotel’s Crystal Ballroom will once again provide the venue for the arrival of approximately 150-200 film and TV stars who will attend the hottest celebrity Awards party in town, with even bigger names than last year.
AMERICAN AIRLINES TO CUT 13,000 JOBS: As LBN E-Lert reported days ago, American Airlines announced they are laying off 13,000 workers from their staff of 88,000. The cuts hit maintenance and ground crews especially hard. The company and its unions still have to negotiate over the plan, but management can have bankruptcy court impose the changes if they can’t come to an agreement. Union officials expressed dismay at the cuts.
MAN FINDS $3B WWII TREASURE: The Port Nicholson, a British merchant ship, has been stuck on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean for 70 years. But now treasure hunter Greg Brooks says he’s found not only the vessel but also the roughly $3 billion worth of platinum that sank with it when a German U-boat attacked it, killing six people on board. The British government says Brooks is overhyping the find, because its initial research is showing that the ship was carrying mostly machinery, but Brooks counters that a U.S. Treasury Department document shows the platinum was on board and on its way to pay the Soviet Union for war supplies.
MUHAMMAD ALI’S TRAINER DIES: Angelo Dundee, one of boxing’s most legendary trainers who trained Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Leonard, died at the age of 90 of natural causes. He was hired as Ali’s trainer and cornerman in 1960, when Ali was still called Cassius Clay, and stuck with him through his fights with George Foreman and Joe Frazier, and he stepped in to stop the fight Ali lost to Larry Holmes.
LBN-INVESTIGATES: Figures on government spending and debt (last six digits are eliminated). The government’s fiscal year runs Oct. 1 through Sept. 30.
ACROSS THE UNIVERSE: Brazil is just one of the 25 foreign countries with daily LBN E-Lert readers.
LBN-MEDIA INSIDER: ***The New York Times’s fourth-quarter profit declined 12.2% as rising subscription and digital advertising revenue could not offset the continued drop-off in print ads. The Times said it plans to sell an additional part of its stake in the owner of the Boston Red Sox ***Los Angeles Times exec John O’Loughlin has become the latest high-ranking official to leave the Tribune newspaper. O’Loughlin, who served as executive VP of advertising and chief revenue officer, is leaving to become president of Hearst’s Houston Chronicle. ***This morning the Today Show featured media expert and author Michael Levine predicting that Demi Moore will recover from her recent crisis and be stronger than ever. ***A lack of chemistry is already plaguing CNN’s new morning show “Early Start” as it attempts to gain footing one month after the launch. Hosts Ashleigh Banfield and Zoraida Sambolin “have expressed frustration about the schizophrenic nature of the show,” a source said. Another source said they just don’t gel — Banfield talks too much, Sambolin doesn’t say enough.
BE AN LBN CORRESPONDENT: Send us your celebrity sightings. E-mail: LBNElert@TimeWire.net
WHO READ THE LBN E-LERT? Hollywood power-brokers Ed Lozzi and Norby Walters along with 474,000 other “influencers” in all 50 states and in 11 different time zones.
LBN-INVESTIGATES: Only 148 people have successfully climbed both Mount Everest and the world’s second-highest mountain, K2, as of the end of 2010.
LBN-HOLLYWOOD INSIDER: ***Al Pacino, Christopher Walken and Alan Arkin will star in Stand Up Guys, an action comedy being directed by Fisher Stevens, who won an Oscar for producing The Cove.
LBN-SPORTS INSIDER: ***NBC is charging 17% more for a 30-second Super Bowl ad this Sunday than Fox charged when it had the game last year. NBC is charging double the amount that a spot cost 14 years ago. Super Bowl ad spots “could easily hit the $7 million mark within the next decade.” ***Tom Brady may be the quarterback in the family, but his wife is the one throwing Hail Marys. In a sappy e-mail, supermodel Gisele Bundchen implored friends and family yesterday to pray hard for her pretty-boy hubby to win Sunday’s Super Bowl against the Giants. “I feel Tommy really needs our prayer, our support and love at this time,” Bundchen wrote in the message sent out to Brady-clan insiders.
LBN-TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (George Halas, “Papa Bear” 1895): Halas was a pioneering football player, coach, and owner of one of the 11 original teams in the American Professional Football Association (APFA), the Decatur Staleys. Founded in 1920, the APFA went on to become the National Football League (NFL) in 1922—the same year Halas moved his team to Chicago and renamed it the Bears. Under his leadership, the Chicago Bears won seven NFL championships.
LBN-COMMENTARY By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF: The most embarrassing moments to watch this political season have occurred as Mitt Romney has pretended to be an angry, fire-breathing true conservative. The evidence suggests that in his soul he’s a moderate pragmatist, but he has flip-flopped like a frantic fish in hopes of hiding his reasonableness. Newt Gingrich, Romney’s main rival for the Republican presidential nomination, is denouncing Romney with one of the ugliest slurs in the Republican lexicon: a Massachusetts moderate. Other moderate Republicans are savaged as RINOs — Republicans in name only — as if they emerged from an ugly mutant strain.
LBN-COMMENTARY By COURTNEY LOVE: The strange thing is, while the crack screwed me up in a lot of ways, it improved me in certain others. I’ve never been good with numbers, but when I was on crack I could do math really, really well. I became a fucking whiz at calculus.
LBN-COMMENTARY By JENNIFER GARNER (Actress): Kids should never have to experience any kind of poverty in this country — neither the more hopeful kind my mom experienced during the dustbowl depression, nor the kind the kids in West Virginia and Yucca face today. Let’s make nearly one in four in poverty become none in four.
LBN-A DIFFERENT VIEW:
LBN-OVERHEARD: ***MSNBC anchors Lawrence O’Donnell and Tamron Hall have a romance spicing up off set. The single “Last Word” host, 60, has been quietly dating the pretty midday anchor and rising star at the network for months. The duo have kept their relationship low-profile in the studio but have been spotted canoodling at downtown haunts. O’Donnell, a “West Wing” producer who has a daughter with ex-wife Kathryn Harrold, was linked to actress Kerry Washington in 2008.
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Wednesday • February 1, 2012
GALLUP STATE NUMBERS PREDICT HUGE OBAMA LOSS:
Gallup released their annual state-by-state presidential approval numbers yesterday, and the results should have 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue very worried. If President Obama carries only those states where he had a net positive approval rating in 2011 (e.g. Michigan where he is up 48 percent to 44 percent), Obama would lose the 2012 election to the Republican nominee 323 electoral votes to 215.
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Wednesday • February 1, 2012
DON CORNELIUS, ‘SOUL TRAIN’ HOST, FOUND DEAD OF GUNSHOT WOUND: Don Cornelius, the creator and longtime host of “Soul Train,” was found dead this morning of a gunshot wound. Cornelius was found at his Sherman Oaks home at 4 a.m. by officers responding to a reported shooting. The Los Angeles Times, citing sources, said the gunshot wound appeared to be self-inflicted.
ROMNEY WINS BIG IN FLORIDA PRIMARY, REGAINING MOMENTUM: Mitt Romney rolled to victory in the Florida primary on Tuesday, dispatching an insurgent threat from Newt Gingrich and reclaiming his dominant position as he urged Republicans to rally behind his quest to capture the party’s presidential nomination. The triumph by Mr. Romney offered a forceful response to the concerns that were raised about his candidacy only 10 days ago after a stinging loss to Mr. Gingrich in the South Carolina primary. It stripped Mr. Gingrich of his momentum and raised questions about his effort to persuade Republicans of his viability.
BREAST CANCER SURGERY RULES ARE CALLED UNCLEAR: Nearly half of women who had lumpectomies for breast cancer had second operations they may not have needed because surgeons have been unable to agree on guidelines for the most common operation for breast cancer, a new study finds. It also hints that some women who might benefit from further surgery may be missing out on it. Rates of repeat surgery can vary widely by doctor, from zero percent to 70 percent, according to the study. The additional operations are done when pathology reports on tumor specimens suggest that the first operation may have left behind some cancer cells. But surgeons differ when it comes to interpreting those reports.
ROMNEY HAS RAISED OVER $20 MILLION: The Romney campaign will proceed through the rest of the primary process with a rather large amount of loot in hand. According to a campaign finance report, the frontrunner raised about $24.3 million between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31. That’s almost 10 times what Newt Gingrich reportedly raised, and it doesn’t even include the $24 million his super PAC, ‘Restore Our Future’ has raised. Barack Obama finished last year having raised $82 million in available cash, but with $3 million in debt.
FACEBOOK PREPARES $5B IPO: There may be a lot more Facebook millionaires soon. The social media company is expected to submit paperwork to regulators for a $5 billion initial public offering, one of the largest U.S. market debuts in history. (Google’s IPO was $2 billion.) According to IFR, Morgan Stanley will arrange the IPO with the help of Goldman Sachs, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays Capital. and JP Morgan. The IPO process wouldn’t be finalized until May, so pricing could change.
US ALCOHOL SALES RISE 2.7 PERCENT IN 2011: A strong uptick in the sales of booze last year is painting one of the surest signs yet of a return to the pre-recession boom days, according to new data. US shipments of scotch, vodka, rum and other spirits in 2011 increased 2.7 percent over the previous year — the strongest increase in five years, according to industry data.
LBN-COMMENTARY By CARLOS SANTANA: Read more at the LBN *Extra* Blog, click here.
HOMEOWNERSHIP RATES FALL TO 66% AS DOWNTURN NEARS A BOTTOM: The U.S. Census Bureau reported Tuesday that the nation’s homeownership rate fell to 66% in the fourth quarter, continuing a seven-year drop from a fourth-quarter peak of 69.2% in 2004. At the same time, U.S. home prices fell 1.3% in November from October and were 3.7% below 2010 levels, the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index indicates.
AMERICAN MUSLIMS DON’T WANT SHARIAH, ACCORDING TO STUDY BY UNIVERSITY OF WINDSOR: North American Muslims are more than satisfied with the secular legal system and do not want a set of parallel courts for Islamic law, according to a new study of U.S. and Canadian Muslims by a Washington-based think tank. The study, by University of Windsor law professor Judy Macfarlane for the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding, would seem to refute critics’ claims that American Muslims want to impose Shariah, or Islamic law.
LBN-NOTICED: ***Old friends and former partners, music publicist extraordinaire Mitchell Schneider and media expert and author Michael Levine having dinner last night at the Mulholland Grille in Bel Air. ***Dinner and dancing – that’s what was on the agenda for Jessica Alba and husband Cash Warren – and they kept interesting company for their date night out. The new parents enjoyed a private meal at Mr. C Beverly Hills along with an eclectic array of people. Joining them: Jeremy Piven, Tara Reid, Elisabetta Canalis and Joe Jonas. ***Composer Philip Glass celebrated his 75th birthday with music and arts royalty at Le Poisson Rouge in NYC on Sunday. ***Anderson Cooper and Benjamin Maisani having a “tense” brunch at La Lanterna di Vittorio in NYC, where “Anderson was on his BlackBerry the whole time.” ***Liz Hurley shooting “Gossip Girl” at Kiki de Montparnasse in the Village in NYC.
LBN-THINK AGAIN:
RUSSIA THREATENS U.N. VETO: As expected, debate in the United Nations over how to stop the bloodshed in Syria is running into a Russian wall. Moscow’s envoy to the European Union says his country will veto the current resolution unless it explicitly rules out a military intervention. The British foreign secretary and his French counterpart said the resolution as is could not be used to justify military intervention.
CONTROLLER: STATE TO RUN OUT OF CASH IN MARCH WITHOUT ACTION: California will run out of cash by early March if the state does not take swift action to find $3.3 billion through payment delays and borrowing, according to a letter state Controller John Chiang sent to state lawmakers today.The announcement is surprising since lawmakers previously believed the state had enough cash to last through the fiscal year that ends in June.
PFIZER RECALLS BIRTH-CONTROL PILLS: Birth-control users, beware: Pfizer, the world’s leading drug company, recalled 1 million packs of birth-control pills in the U.S. after discovering that they might not prevent pregnancy. The company recalled 14 lots of three different generic brands—Lo/Ovral-28, Norgestrel, and Ethinyl Estradiol—after an investigation found some packs might contain incorrect daily dosages. In a statement on Thursday, the company said that the pills posed no health risks to women but nonetheless urged consumers to “begin using a non-hormonal form of contraception immediately.”
NYSE AND DEUTSCHE BORSE WON’T MERGE: It looks like The New York Stock Exchange won’t be joining forces with Deutsche Borse after all. The two exchanges are in talks to call off their merger after European antitrust regulators said the deal would result in a monopoly in the European financial derivatives. The regulator said the exchanges would have to sell off major parts of their business if they wanted to merge, which the companies refused to do.
SCIENTISTS LISTEN IN ON THOUGHTS: Scientists at University of California, Berkeley, have found a way to reconstruct words someone hears based on their brain waves, a breakthrough that could someday help patients stuck in a coma. By mapping brain activity when a patient heard a certain word, the Berkeley team was able to later determine what word a patient was thinking of. They were even able to reconstruct some of the words using a computer model that suggested what the brain waves meant. “From a prosthetic view, people who have speech disorders … could possibly have a prosthetic device when they can’t speak but they can imagine what they want to say,” said one of the researchers, though such a tool is a long way off.
PHIL JACKSON WRITING MEMOIR OF HIS COACHING YEARS: The former Lakers coach is writing “Eleven Rings” with Hugh Delehanty, the co-author of Jackson’s previous bestseller, “Sacred Hoops.” Penguin Press announced this week it has acquired Jackson’s new memoir for tentative publication in 2013. Jackson was represented in the deal by Jennifer Rudolph Walsh of the William Morris Endeavor agency, Publishers Weekly says. The title comes from the 11 championships Jackson won as a coach with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Chicago Bulls. He retired after last season.
PRINCE WILLIAM DEPLOYS TO FALKLANDS: Prince William shouldn’t expect a royal welcome when he arrives in the Falklands. The Duke of Cambridge is on his way to the islands, where he’ll serve for six weeks as a helicopter pilot. But Argentina is not pleased, especially as the deployment comes on the eve of the 30th anniversary of the war over the islands.
LBN-MEDIA INSIDER: ***David Letterman will celebrate 30 years as a late-night television host on Wednesday, though without much fanfare. There has been little media attention paid to the anniversary, and no prime-time special, or even a special celebration, planned by CBS. ***New Yorker editor David Remnick said his long-form publication continues to invest in web staff and digital-exclusive content. But he still sees the digital extensions as complementary to the core print product, not a replacement — at least not anytime soon. ***Some 25 writers “are about to be terminated” at the Los Angeles Times, according to recently fired pressman Ed Padgett. A Times spokesperson declined to comment on the claim. Padgett was let go in late 2011 after working at the Tribune newspaper for nearly 40 years.
LBN-BUSINESS INSIDER: ***Fort Worth-based American Airlines may cut between 10,000 and 15,000 jobs across the company.
WHO READS THE LBN E-LERT? Hollywood mogul Peter Guber along with 474,000 other “influencers” in all 50 states and in 11 different time zones.
LBN-INVESTIGATES: The lowest point on earth is called Challenger Deep, located at the bottom of the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean – nearly 36,000 feet (about 6.8 miles) below sea level.
LBN-MUSIC INSIDER: ***Adele will perform during the Grammy Awards’ Feb. 12 telecast on CBS, marking her first time singing live in five months.
LBN-HOLLYWOOD INSIDER: ***Instinctive has partnered with Das Imperium Management to establish an international talent agency network. The Berlin-based film finance, production and development outfit opened Instinctive Management LA under Jeremy Loethen in the US last year representing on screen talent as well as above the line creative. ***Sony has named Kazuo Hirai as CEO, replacing Howard Stringer, effective April 1. Stringer will become chairman. Hirai, with backgrounds in the music and gaming industries, will head a company whose stock slid by more than half since Stringer took the helm in 2005. ***Conan O’Brien will headline a family-friendly benefit for the Geffen Playhouse Story Pirates Play/Write program. Others taking part include the actor/comedians Nick Offerman, best known now as Ron Swanson on “Parks & Recreation,” and Patton Oswalt, recently in “Young Adult” with Charlize Theron. The benefit is March 9.
LBN-BOOK NEWS: ***Barnes & Noble will no longer sell in its stores any books published by Amazon.com, saying the web retailer had “undermined the industry” by trying to sign exclusive agreements with publishers, agents and authors. The move is likely to exacerbate tensions between the two. ***Actor and comedian Richard Belzer’s biography of Jerry Lewis, in which Belzer pays homage to the last great giant of showbiz, from Lewis’s early years performing with Dean Martin, their film career as a duo at Paramount, their eventual split, Lewis’s technical genius and innovation in filmmaking, and his association with the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s telethon; revered by directors and comedians alike, Belzer will tell Lewis’ whole story for the first time, through archival material and one-on-one conversations with Lewis, edited by Ben Schafer at Perseus for Weinstein Books, actually acquired a year ago by Judy Hottensen (now at Grove Atlantic), by David Vigliano of Vigliano Associates (World English).
LBN-COMMENTARY By CHUCK OJEDA (Sports Writer): Do any sequels live up to the original? Best Picture winning Godfather II should immediately come to mind and thankfully Super Bowl 46 follows similar criteria. Both sequels maintained their leading men while making wise casting choices to further a new interesting plotline. That means the Robert De Niro of New England is tightend Rob Gronkowski who morphs the wide-out passing game that Tom Brady dominated with in 2007. However, New York is running with the same story by focusing on defense with the NFC’s best pass rush. Thankfully this matchup appears closer to the Godfather sequel than Hangover II.
LBN-COMMENTARY By PAUL STEINBERG: Asperger syndrome and Aspies — the affectionate name that people diagnosed with Asperger syndrome call themselves — seem to be everywhere. Considered to be at the high-functioning end of the autism spectrum, Asperger syndrome has become more loosely defined in the past 20 years, by both the mental health profession and by lay people, and in many instances is now synonymous with social and interpersonal disabilities. But people with social disabilities are not necessarily autistic, and giving them diagnoses on the autism spectrum often does a real disservice. An expert task force appointed by the American Psychiatric Association is now looking into the possibility of changing the way we diagnose Asperger. True autism reflects major problems with receptive language (the ability to comprehend sounds and words) and with expressive language. Pitch and tone of voice in autism are off-kilter. Language delays are common, and syntactic development is compromised; in addition, there can be repetitive motor movements.
LBN-COMMENTARY By JULIANNE MOORE (Actress): Valentine’s Day has become a major children’s holiday, and is for them, about friendship. So if we parents have to buy Valentines anyway, why not send the money to children and schools less fortunate than our own?
LBN-COMMENTARY By THOMAS SOWELL: California has a huge state debt and Washington has a huge national debt. But that does not discourage either Governor Jerry Brown or President Barack Obama from wanting to launch a very costly high-speed rail system. Most of us might be a little skittish about spending money if we were teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. But the beauty of politics is that it is all other people’s money, including among those other people generations yet unborn.
LBN-COMMENTARY By JOHN STOSSEL: With an election approaching and at least some Americans upset about irresponsible spending, the president has finally expressed a political interest in cutting something. He says the Pentagon will spend “only” $525 billion next year. That’s slightly less than the current $531 billion. A cut is good, but this will barely dent the deficit. We could save much more if America assumed a military policy designed for defense rather than policing the world.
LBN-TODAY’S BIRTHDAY, William Clark Gable (1901): Despite having such large ears that some doubted he could become a romantic lead, Gable had a rugged masculinity and lighthearted charm that proved popular with audiences. The actor debuted on Broadway in 1928 and went to Hollywood in 1930. There he starred in Mutiny on the Bounty, Gone with the Wind, and It Happened One Night, for which he won an Academy Award.
LBN-A DIFFERENT VIEW:
LBN-OVERHEARD: ***Never shy about flaunting her bikini body onscreen and off, Demi Moore had long been regarded as Hollywood’s most age-defying beauty. But as the actress approaches her 50th birthday – and her marriage to Ashton Kutcher, 33, began to crumble – several sources say that the 49-year-old star battled deep feelings of insecurity. In fact, sources say the star was barely eating and partying wildly before her drug-fueled breakdown. ***Scarlett Johansson’s new mystery man is 38-year old advertising executive Nate Naylor, whom she’s been dating for about six months
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Tuesday • January 31, 2012
OFFICIALS: IRAN WILLING TO ATTACK U.S.: U.S. intelligence officials said in a report Tuesday that Iran is increasingly willing to attack on U.S. soil in response to American threats. National intelligence director James Clapper said that an alleged Iranian plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador in Washington was evidence of a new boldness in response to U.S. actions that Iran believes undermine its security. The assessment, part of an annual overview of America’s most serious security concerns, is another strain in the tense relationship between Washington and Iran at a time when many suspect Israel may be planning a preemptive attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities with tacit U.S. support.
2012 DEFICIT TO TOP $1 TRILLION: It’s still a big gap, but it’s slowly shrinking. The Congressional Budget Office said Tuesday that the annual federal deficit will hit $1 trillion in 2012, making that the fourth year in a row. But the shortfall will be the smallest since 2009, when the government began spending more to help drive the economy out of recession. The 2012 deficit is currently projected at $1.1 trillion, down from $1.4 trillion the previous three years.The CBO predicted that the deficit would fall sharply in 2013 as the Bush tax cuts expire and deep cuts to the Pentagon take effect.
ROMNEY HAS EARLY LEAD: Mitt Romney held a sizable lead among early voters in Florida’s high-stakes, winner-take-all primary on Tuesday. The polls opened at 7 a.m. Tuesday, but at least 632,000 voters cast their ballots early. Gingrich was trailing by at least 60,000 votes before the polls even opened, according to analysis by early voting surveys. “This election isn’t going to be pretty for Newt Gingrich,” according to political consultant Randy Nielson, who said Gingrich could be trailing by as many as 75,000 votes already. Nielson said Gingrich is losing in every region except north Florida, but he did not have enough of a lead there to make up the difference. Gingrich remained defiant Tuesday morning, appearing on Fox and Friends saying that Romney is throwing “wild punches” in a “desperate bid” to win the presidency.
ITALY ENDS SHIPWRECK SEARCH: The search for the missing aboard the wrecked Costa Concordia has come to an end, Italian officials said Tuesday. Italy’s Civil Protection Agency said the rescue had become too dangerous for the divers. In a statement, the agency said the relatives of the 16 people still missing have been informed of the decision. Seventeen bodies have been recovered since the ship ran aground on Jan. 13.
FOUR AL QAEDA MILITANTS KILLED IN YEMEN: U.S. airstrikes in Yemen killed four al Qaeda militants, including a man suspected of being involved in the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole, Yemeni officials said Tuesday. The officials said missiles struck a school and a car late Monday, and tribal officials said the militants were holding an important meeting at the school. A U.S. security official in Washington confirmed the attacks but would not comment on any of the specifics. Also on Tuesday, the top U.S. intelligence official said that the U.S. has been placing increased pressure on al Qaeda’s leadership in Pakistan, causing the terror cell to break apart into affiliates in North Africa, Iraq, and Yemen. The Yemeni affiliate has so far posed the greatest danger to the U.S., where militants have been able to take advantage of the political chaos.
CAR LANDS ON SLEEPING MAN: A 34-year-old Connecticut man woke up at 12:30 a.m. Tuesday with a car in his bed. A BMW on the run from police crashed through the wall of his bedroom in New Haven, trapping the man underneath for nearly an hour until he could be rescued. The man was taken to the hospital for second- and third-degree burns, and police are searching for the driver of the BMW, who fled the scene of the crash.
LBN-DRILLING TO THE TRUTH:
NO LINK BETWEEN OBESITY AND JUNK FOOD IN SCHOOLS: Read more at the LBN *Extra* Blog, click here.
MAGIC MUSHROOMS COULD BE KEY TO TREATING DEPRESSION: Studies of the effects of psilocybin, the active ingredient in psychedelic mushrooms, show that rather than increase brain activity, as was previously believed, the drug actually suppresses activity in areas of the brain associated with depression. Some antidepressants also target activity in these brain regions, leading researchers to wonder whether psilocybin could someday be used therapeutically to treat depression. The studies also show that psilocybin may relieve cluster headache symptoms by reducing blood flow in the hypothalamus.
LBN-INVESTIGATES: U.S. colleges with the most transfer students are University of Phoenix online campus (35,515); Excelsior College in Albany, NY (16,541); Arizona State University in Tempe, AZ (5,446); University of South Florida in Tampa, FL (4,623); and University of Central Florida in Orlando, FL (4,455).
LBN-MEET: Singer Diana Krall.
LBN-VIDEO LINK: WATCH: Is This Blake Griffin’s Most Amazing Dunk?
LBN-THINK AGAIN: Tyler Clementi, a gay Rutgers student, was electronically spied on by his roommate, Dharun Ravi, and Ravi’s friend Molly Wei. Clementi committed suicide by jumping from the George Washington Bridge.
LBN-MUSIC INSIDER: ***After appearing in well over one hundred major motion pictures, Davi has returned to his first love of singing by releasing, to critical acclaim, a preeminent album produced by Phil Ramone in celebrated tribute to Davi’s mentor, Frank Sinatra. In less than a month following its highly-anticipated global release, “Davi Sings Sinatra: On the Road to Romance,” secured a position of honor on Billboard’s Top 100 Traditional Jazz charts.
LBN-SPORTS INSIDER: ***The elite of politics and media in L.A. will be in attendance at the annual Super Bowl party held at the home of Dr. Gary Gitnick on Sunday.
LBN-NOTICED: ***Acclaimed director Diane Namm having dinner last night at Coast Restaurant in Shutter’s Hotel on the beach in Santa Monica. ***Four decades after Jim Morrison’s death, the Doors can still draw a crowd. Eternal fascination with the band delivered a full house to the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood for the Friday premiere of a documentary on the making of L.A. Woman, where keyboardist Ray Manzarek advised the audience during a Q&A: “If you’re interested in knowing what existence is all about, I highly recommend LSD.” The screening and DVD release of Mr. Mojo Risin’: The Story of L.A. Woman coincides with this week’s 40th anniversary CD reissue of the Doors’ final album with their meteoric frontman, who left for Paris immediately after the 1971 sessions and never returned. The new two-disc set includes alternate takes and one previously unreleased tune, “She Smells So Nice/Rock Me,” a raw, smoldering blues track discovered by album co-producer Bruce Botnick in the Doors archives.
LBN-SEE IT: Lana Del Rey’s music is theatrical, noncommittal, and better on recordings than in person.
LBN-COMMENTARY By CHUCK OJEDA (Sports writer): Today is media day, the opportunity for lucky news sources to catch that one controversial sound bite that press will spin into a gutsy prediction. In Super Bowl III it was Joe Namath who responded to a rowdy fan provoking the famous guarantee that the Jets would defeat the favored Baltimore Colts. That’s all reporters want to hear. Discussing the keys to victory with players is just a tactic to instigate a costly slip of the tongue. Players are here to give a good headline, not a bunch of jargon that any NFL fan can read off the stat sheet.
LBN-COMMENTARY By ZBIGNIEW BRZEZINSKI (Professor of American Foreign Policy): The world is now interactive and interdependent. It is also, for the first time, a world in which the problems of human survival have begun to overshadow more traditional international conflicts.
LBN-COMMENTARY By MARK HYMAN, MD (Practicing physician): I realized we had to decentralize health care and put patients and communities at the center of the solution empowering them to create health, not simply treat disease. I realized that if you were sick, the best place to create health might not be the doctor or clinic but your own community.
LBN-COMMENTARY By NATALIE MERCHANT (Singer): We were avid television watchers until 1973 or 1974. It was in the early days of cable where Showtime or HBO or whatever existed back then would allow you two weeks of free movie-watching. My mother came home and saw us watching an age-inappropriate film about Lenny Bruce — someone was naked and had overdosed on the floor — and she pulled the cable so hard she tore the sheet rock off the wall. She said, “Not my children!” And it was over — cold turkey. It was the best thing she did for me as a mother.
LBN-A DIFFERENT VIEW:
LBN-OVERHEARD: ***Marie Osmond is threatening to divorce hubby Stephen Craig – again – if he doesn’t quit harping about her near “workaholic” ways, sources say. The super busy 52-year-old entertainer barely squeezed in a two-day honeymoon after the couple tied the knot for the second time last May, and insiders say she’s refused Stephen’s pleas to cut back her schedule – especially since she just signed to do a new talk show on the Hallmark channel.. “Marie works her life away and Stephen is sick of it,” an insider said. ***Paula Abdul got the ax from “X Factor”. It’s a stunning development, given that Simon Cowell personally recruited Paula after she was booted from “American Idol.” Sources also say Paula got the news from a lawyer connected with the show, and has yet to hear from Simon. ***A.J. Lamas — a reality show staple and son of Lorenzo Lamas — has been accused by his ex-girlfriend of breaking into her home and holding her at bay in the bathroom. Jessie Schulman filed legal docs asking for a restraining order, claiming she broke up with A.J. and moved on to a new relationship.
LBN-TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (Jack Roosevelt “Jackie” Robinson, 1919): Robinson, a vocal member of the Civil Rights movement, was the first African-American baseball player in the modern major leagues and the first African American to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. In 1949, he led the National League in both stolen bases and batting average and was named its most valuable player. In recognition of his accomplishments both on and off the field, Major League Baseball retired Robinson’s number in 1997. ***To celebrate more birthday, visit the LBN *Extra* Blog – click here.
LBN-QUOTE: “Action is the foundational key to all success.” -Pablo Picasso
Monday • January 30, 2012
JOE BIDEN ADVISED AGAINST THE OSAMA BIN LADEN RAID: Vice President Joe Biden confessed this weekend that he advised President Obama not to launch the mission that ultimately killed Osama bin Laden last spring.
During remarks at a Democratic congressional retreat this weekend, Biden explained that when it came time to make the final decision, he had some lingering uncertainties about whether the 9/11 mastermind was in the suspected compound in Pakistan.
When the president asked his top advisers for their final opinion on the mission, all of them were hesitant, except for the former CIA director, now Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, Biden said.“Every single person in that room hedged their bet except Leon Panetta. Leon said go. Everyone else said, 49, 51,” Biden said, as he offered the unsolicited details of the decision-making process.“He got to me. He said, ‘Joe, what do you think?’ And I said, ‘You know, I didn’t know we had so many economists around the table.’ I said, ‘We owe the man a direct answer. Mr. President, my suggestion is, don’t go. We have to do two more things to see if he’s there,’” Biden recalled.
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Tuesday • January 31, 2012
MITT ROMNEY WINS FLORIDA’S GOP PRIMARY: Mitt Romney beat out Newt Gingrich Tuesday, claiming 50 delegates in Florida’s winner-take-all Republican presidential primary.
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Monday • January 30, 2012
ROMNEY WIDENS LEAD: With one day before the Florida primary, Mitt Romney is rapidly putting distance between himself and Newt in the polls. A Reuters poll on Sunday showed Romney with a 12 point lead over Gingrich in the state, while three other polls show Romney ahead by 11 to 15 points. Gingrich continues to slam Romney at campaign stops, calling him a pro-abortion, pro-gun control, pro-tax increase moderate from Massachusetts,” but Romney is reportedly outspending Gingrich 5-to-1 in television ads, according to data a Democratic source showed Talking Points Memo. Meanwhile, Gov. Jeb Bush is standing on the sidelines, despite Romney aggressively courting him for an endorsement.
OCCUPY D.C. FACES EVICTION: Twelve people were arrested Sunday in New York in a march meant to show solidarity with Occupy Oakland, which turned violent Sunday when protesters stormed city hall. The group had announced an intention to occupy a vacant convention center as their new headquarters, but when police blocked the move they marched on city hall. Some protesters threw rocks, bottles, and flares at police, and stormed the line with large shields made from corrugated metal. Inside city hall, they smashed display cases and broke windows. Over in Washington, D.C., protesters have till noon today before police try to evict them. One protesters was shocked with a Taser and arrested yesterday.
IRAN OFFERS TO EXTEND INSPECTIONS: Iran has reportedly offered to allow United Nations nuclear inspectors to extend their three-day visit to the country beyond Tuesday, as Tehran seems to be trying to lower tensions with the West. Foreign Minister Ali Akba Salehi apparently said during a visit to Ethiopia that “we’ve always tried to put transparency as a principle” and that “the delegation has questions and the necessary answers will be given,” although European officials have said that Iran is making efforts to buy time while continuing to enrich uranium. Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency landed in Iran over the weekend and are expected to visit an underground enrichment site in a bunker near Qum.
ROMNEY MIGHT REMOVE NBC AD: Mitt Romney may be giving into NBC’s request that he remove an ad that uses footage of the network’s nightly news program. The candidate said he might consider removing the ad, which features anchor Tom Brokaw announcing, in 1997, that the House Ethics Committee would punish Speaker Newt Gingrich for ethics violations. But, he insisted on NBC’s Today show, “Obviously this was not something taken from hidden files. This was on the evening news. So it should hardly come as a revealing piece for people who watch it.” Brokaw has said that the ad made him “extremely uncomfortable” and that “I do not want my role as a journalist compromised for political gain by any campaign.”
SUDAN: 14 CHINESE FREED: Sudanese officials claimed Monday that the military has rescued 14 of 29 Chinese nationals who had been kidnapped by rebels in the south. The road workers were seized in South Kordofan Province Saturday, and that forces had “liberated” them. But Chinese embassy officials seemed to doubt the reports that they were freed, saying that all the workers were still missing. The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North had said that the workers were caught in the crossfire in a battle between them and the army. But Wang Zhiping, a senior executive at the Power Construction Corporation, which employed the workers, said the rebels had attacked them at their compound.
FRANZEN: E-BOOKS BAD FOR SOCIETY: First it was the iPhone, now it’s the e-book. Jonathan Franzen, the author of Freedom and The Corrections, launched a passionate defense of the printed book—and an attack on e-books—at the Hay Festival in Cartagena, Colombia. “The technology I like is the American paperback edition of Freedom. I can spill water on it, and it would still work! So it’s pretty good technology,” said Franzen. “And what’s more, it will work great 10 years from now. So no wonder the capitalists hate it. It’s a bad business model.” Wondering whether nonelectronic print will be around in 50 years, he said he fears that “it’s going to be very hard to make the world work if there’s no permanence like that. That kind of radical contingency is not compatible with a system of justice or responsible self-government.”
THE TRUE COST OF HIGH SCHOOL DROPOUTS: View the LBN *Extra* Blog, click here.
‘THE HELP,’ DUJARDIN WIN SAG AWARDS: The Oscars are getting closer. At the Screen Actors’ Guild Awards Sunday, The Help took home top honors for acting by an ensemble cast, Viola Davis won for best actress for The Help, and Jean Dujardin won best actor for The Artist. Octavia Spencer won yet another best supporting actress award for her role in The Help, while Christopher Plummer won best supporting actor for his work in Beginners. Modern Family took home the award for outstanding performance by an ensemble in a comedy series. Alec Baldwin won for best actor in a comedy series. Kate Winslet won for actress in a TV movie for her role in Mildred Pierce. Mary Tyler Moore is set to receive the 2012 Life Achievement Award, and Dick Van Dyke will present it to her.
SMART PEOPLE READ THE LBN E-LERT: Did you know that 23 professors from Harvard University read the LBN E-Lert each day? Smart people understand that information is power and the LBN E-Lert is a power-tool.
FDA MONITORED WHISTLEBLOWERS’ EMAILS: The Federal Drug Administration intercepted the private emails of nine employees and took screenshots of their desktops after the scientists raised concerns that the FDA was improperly approving dangerous cancer devices. In a suit filed this week, the scientists say they were then fired or harassed until they left. The scientists wrote a letter alleging to President Obama’s transition team in 2009, and also to Congress, alleging corruption in the FDA. The letter got some media attention, and the maker of one of the dubious devices complained to the FDA that business secrets had been revealed. Shortly afterward, court documents show, the FDA started monitoring their computer activity, and soon after that the scientists were pushed out. It’s not clear whether the monitoring itself is illegal, because FDA computers show a warning when users log on saying that they should have “no reasonable expectation of privacy.”
LBN-VIDEO LINK: Woody Allen on life
LBN-MEDIA INSIDER: ***Television networks are going to extreme lengths to land an interview with the Duchess of Cambridge’s sister, Pippa Middleton. Middleton splashed onto the international scene in April 2011 when she served as the maid of honor to her sister, Kate, when she wed Prince William. Since then, she has been the subject of significant press attention for her style, love life, social life, and more. Middleton, who works for her parents’ business as the blog editor of a party planning website, was named one of Barbara Walters‘ ‘Most Fascinating’ people of 2011. She also sealed a book deal worth more than $500,000 to author a book about party planning. With a big book deal comes a big network television interview.
LBN-BUSINESS INSIDER: ***Netflix Inc. regained its footing with subscribers in the fourth quarter, reversing some of the losses it suffered after it enraged customers last summer with a price increase and plans to separate its DVD-rental business. The online video company said Wednesday it added 610,000 U.S. subscribers in the period to end the year with 24.4 million domestic members. That’s still below the 24.59 million it had in last year’s the second quarter, before it jacked up the price of a popular plan by 60% and announced a since-canceled move to separate its DVD-rental business into a separate unit called Qwikster.
LBN-THINK AGAIN:
WHO READS THE LBN E-LERT? Radio General Manager Andy Ludlum along with 474,000 other “influencers” in all 50 states and 11 different time zones.
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LBN-COMMENTARY By CHUCK OJEDA (Sports Writer): There is one week in the year when an NFL injury report should be ignored and it begins today. Four different athletes playing in the Super Bowl on Sunday have reported injuries using the most vague status terms available, “Questionable” and “Probable.” These frightening words carry a lot of weight for fantasy football owners during the regular season, but leading up to the most anticipated sporing event of the year they are simply misleading jargon that attempts to misinform the opposition. NO ONE MISSES THE SUPERBOWL! Injury reports show no breaks so assume the game is happening at full strength.
LBN-THINK AGAIN:
LBN-NOTICED: ***Best-selling health author Nancy Deville bungee jumping in Monterrey, Mexico. ***Popular Rant columnist Ericka T. Bass leaving the chic Soho House private club in West Hollywood around midnight after having a few too many drinks.
LBN-A DIFFERENT VIEW:
LBN-THIS DAY IN HISTORY (January 30, 1948): Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the political and spiritual leader of the Indian independence movement, is assassinated in New Delhi by a Hindu fanatic.
LBN-QUOTE : “Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be.” -Thomas à Kempis
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Sunday • January 29, 2012
ROMNEY LEADS BY 15 POINTS: A new NBC/Marist poll shows that Mitt Romney might pull off a decisive win in the Florida GOP primary Tuesday. He leads Newt Gingrich by 15 points, 42 percent to 27 percent. Rick Santorum is third with 16 percent, followed by Ron Paul with 11 percent. About 4 percent said they were undecided. Romney outspent Gingrich 3–1 on television ads in Florida over the last week, and the former Massachusetts governor said he was confident of winning in Tuesday’s primary while turning his focus back on President Obama. “He’s detached from reality,” Romney said about the administration’s plan to cut the size of the military.
U.N. NUCLEAR TEAM LANDS IN IRAN: A team of nuclear inspectors from the U.N. watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency landed in Iran Sunday over allegations that the country was trying to develop nuclear weapons. The IAEA said the six-member team, which includes chief inspector Herman Nackaerts, will be there until Tuesday. Such a mission by a senior team is unusual, pointing to the seriousness of the concerns. The agency said in November that it could not verify whether the Iranian nuclear program was peaceful.
300 ARRESTED AT OCCUPY OAKLAND: Police arrested 300 people at Occupy Oakland in California Saturday, after demonstrators broke into City Hall and burned a U.S. flag, following a day of protests that saw officers fire tear gas to disperse rock- and bottle-throwing activists. Police continued to stand guard around City Hall to prevent any more protesters from entering the building, while fencing was torn down at a convention center following the most turbulent day since police raided the Occupy Oakland camp last November.
SANTORUM CANCELS APPEARANCES: Rick Santorum is canceling his campaign appearances in Florida and staying home in Philadelphia to be with this hospitalized 3-year-old daughter, Bella, with a rare genetic disorder. She has been hospitalized at Philadelphia Children’s Hospital, and suffers from Trisomy 18—children with the disorder rarely live past their first birthday. Santorum had been scheduled to appear on NBC’s Meet the Press and attend church in Miami. Campaign spokesperson Hogan Gidley said Saturday that the candidate hopes to return to Florida soon. Santorum is sending his 20-year-old daughter Elizabeth to Sarasota and Punta Gorda for campaign appearances on later Sunday.
YEMEN’S SALEH ARRIVES IN U.S.: Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh arrived in the United States Saturday night to receive medical treatment for injuries he suffered when his presidential palace was bombed in June. The Yemeni Foreign Press Office did not disclose his location, but Saleh had said he would seek treatment in New York. The president gave a farewell speech last week after he agreed to give up power in exchange for immunity, and promptly left the country, claiming he would return.
NINE DEAD IN FLORIDA CAR CRASHES: At least nine people were confirmed dead from a series of car crashes Saturday night in Florida due to smoke from a brush fire on Interstate 75. The highway was temporarily closed and the crashes, involving at least 14 vehicles happened overnight. Burned-out automobiles littered the freeway Sunday morning.
NBC ASKS ROMNEY TO PULL AD: NBC News is asking the Mitt Romney campaign to remove news footage from the network in the candidate’s new ad attacking Newt Gingrich, in which anchor Tom Brokaw reports on the former House speaker’s ethics violations in 1997. “I am extremely uncomfortable with the extended use of my personal image in this political ad,” Brokaw said. “I do not want my role as a journalist compromised for political gain by any campaign.” NBC’s lawyers have asked Romney to take out any reference to the network’s journalism in any other ads as well, but the campaign said it believes it falls under the fair-use doctrine and was reluctant to take the ad off.
DJOKOVIC WINS EPIC AUSTRALIAN OPEN: Five hours and 37 minutes. That’s how long the Australian Open final was between world No. 1 Novak Djokovic of Serbia and second-ranked Rafael Nadal of Spain. It was the longest final in a major in the Open era, with the previous longest Grand Slam final being 1988’s U.S. Open match between Mats Wilander and Ivan Lendl that clocked in at four hours and 54 minutes. Oh, and Djokovic was the winner, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5-7), 7-5. He’s now won three straight majors and five overall. Nadal, on the other hand, has now lost three straight major finals.
‘THE GREY’ TOPS BOX OFFICE: The relatively low-budget survival flick The Grey, starring Liam Neeson, nearly made all its money back on opening weekend. The movie was made for $25 million and grossed $20 million in its debut, way over expectations. So far, 2012 earnings are up 10 percent from the same period in 2011 as the box office picks up pace. Underworld: Awakening earned $12.5 million in its second weekend, beating the Katherine Heigl comedy One for the Money for second place.
WHO READS THE LBN E-LERT? Craig Black, founder of Blackstone Audio, along with 474,000 other “influencers” in all 50 states and 11 different time zones.
‘THE ARTIST’ WINS DIRECTORS GUILD AWARD: It’s yet another win for The Artist in yet another award that holds a pretty accurate prediction for the Oscars. The mostly silent film won the top honor at the Directors Guild of America Awards Saturday night. Only six times in 63 years did the winner of the guild awards not win the Oscar for best director. The Artist’s Michel Hazanavicius, a French filmmaker, has been mostly unknown until he won over many critics with his black-and-white crowd-pleaser.
NINE KILLED IN SYRIA CLASHES: At least nine people were killed when clashes erupted between the Syrian military and groups of Army defectors on the eastern edge of Damascus Sunday, as government forces sent more tanks rolling into the area. Fighting has intensified over the weekend, bringing the violence close to the capital city a day after the Arab League suspended operations for its observers. Nearly 100 people have been killed since a spike in violence that began Thursday.
SUDAN REBELS HOLD 29 CHINESE WORKERS: Sudanese rebels in the country’s South Kordofan state said Sunday they have captured 29 Chinese workers after a battle with government forces, though they claim they did not kidnap them and they are not hostages. “We are holding them for their own safety because the Army was trying to strike again,” a spokesman for the SPLM-N rebels said. South Kordofan borders the newly independent South Sudan, and the Sudanese Army has been fighting the rebels since June.
‘BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD’ WINS SUNDANCE: Beasts of the Southern Wild, an apocalyptic film starring an 8-year-old girl, won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah Saturday night. The film was directed and co-written by 29-year-old first-time filmmaker Benh Zeitlin, who shot the film on location in Louisiana. The House I Live In, a documentary about the war on drugs, won the top honor in its category.
STARS ATTEND FUNERAL FOR ETTA JAMES: Family, friends, and fans of Etta James attended her star-studded funeral at a church in Los Angeles on Saturday. Stevie Wonder performed with the church’s choir, while Christina Aguilera sang James’s signature song “At Last.” Al Sharpton gave the eulogy. Aguilera said of James, “Her raw tone and the passion she put forth on a record spoke to me at a very young age and has continued to influence and inspire me throughout my career.”
LBN-A DIFFERENT VIEW:
LBN-THIS DAY IN HISTORY: On January 29, 1936, the U.S. Baseball Hall of Fame elects its first members in Cooperstown, New York: Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Matthewson and Walter Johnson.
LBN-QUOTE OF THE DAY: “A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination.” -Nelson Mandela