Italy's Monti to discuss "sacrifices" with parties (Reuters)

ROME (Reuters) ? Prime Minister-designate Mario Monti meets the leaders of Italy's biggest two parties on Tuesday to discuss the "many sacrifices" needed to reverse a collapse in market confidence that is driving an ever deepening euro zone debt crisis.

Global equity markets and the euro slid Monday on doubts Monti and Greece's new leader would take the tough steps needed, and a report said the situation in triple-A rated euro zone power France should be "ringing euro zone alarm bells."

Greece's new technocrat Prime Minister Lucas Papademos said late Monday that Greece had no choice but to remain inside the euro zone, telling lawmakers reforms were the only way to mitigate painful austerity measures which had deepened the recession.

But conservatives on whom he must rely for support demanded pro-growth policies and rejected talk of further austerity measures, fueling fears of a Greek default that may force Athens out of the 17-nation euro currency group and trigger a euro zone debt meltdown.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel caught the mood of crisis with a stark warning Monday that Europe could be living through its "toughest hour since World War Two." She told her CDU party she feared Europe would fail if the euro failed and vowed to do anything to stop this from happening.

Monti will pursue his efforts Tuesday to secure enough support from Italy's feuding politicians to allow his cabinet of experts to speed up delivery of painful reforms of pensions, labor markets and business regulation needed to put Italy's finances on a sustainable footing.

Italy has to refinance some 200 billion euros ($273 billion) of bonds by the end of April, a daunting prospect given it was forced Monday to pay a euro-lifetime record yield of 6.3 percent to sell five-year bonds to wary investors.

The auction, and the release of figures showing industrial production slumped by 2 percent in the euro zone in September, raised the spectre of recession and provided a gloomy backdrop to Monti's consultations with the heads of smaller parties.

"Monti spoke about a significant program with many sacrifices," Francesco Nucara, a lawmaker from one of the myriad tiny parliamentary groups involved in the talks, said after meeting the prime minister-designate.

Monti, a respected former European commissioner, was due Tuesday to meet leaders of the two largest parties of the center-right and the center-left, unions, and representatives of women and youth groups.

Monti, who is expected to seek a confidence vote by Friday, told a news conference that he aimed to serve until scheduled elections in 2013, not just until reforms had been pushed through.

Far-reaching reforms are seen as crucial if Italy is to end years of stagnant growth, trim a debt mountain equal to 120 percent of gross domestic product and avoid the sort of crisis that forced bailouts of Greece, Ireland and Portugal.

With the very survival of the 17-state currency zone in its current form now at risk, EU governments have until a summit on December 9 to come up with the outlines of a bolder and more convincing strategy, with some form of massive, visible financial backing.

Prospects are uncertain as the German government, the Bundesbank and hardliners in the European Central Bank have blocked key policy options.

These include issuing common euro zone bonds, mutualising the euro zone's debt stock, letting the ECB create money to fight the crisis, or having it act as lender of last resort, directly or via the euro zone rescue fund.

The urgency of resolving the persistent crisis was underscored by a report by the Lisbon Council, which said France's inability to make rapid adjustments to its economy was a serious concern and should be of acute concern for the euro zone.

"Among the six euro zone countries with a AAA rating, France achieves by far the lowest ranking in the study's fundamental health check," the Brussels-based think-tank found in the 75-page report, called the Euro Plus Monitor.

"The results are too mediocre for a country that wants to safeguard its place in the top league... Alarm bells should be ringing for France.

RIGHT SAYS "NO MORE CUTS"

In Greece, incoming premier Lucas Papademos, who must win a confidence vote Wednesday before meeting euro zone finance ministers in Brussels Thursday, told lawmakers that Greece had no option but to remain within the euro zone.

Austerity measures had deepened Greece's recession but reforms -- including widening the tax base and fighting rampant tax evasion -- could mitigate the problem, said Papademos, who oversaw Greece's entry to the euro zone in 2002.

But New Democracy leader Antonis Samaras said he would not vote for new austerity measures. Spending cuts and tax rises agreed with foreign lenders should be changed in favor of economic growth.

"I agree with the goals to cut government spending ... to reduce debt, to erase the deficit, to make structural changes. I do not agree with whatever stunts growth," he told party MPs.

Inspectors for Greece's international lenders, known as the troika, were due to meet Papademos's administration after the confidence vote, but an EU official said the visit might not happened until the end of the week.

Most Greeks hailed Papademos's appointment, but thousands of people angry at more than a year of austerity are expected to rally Thursday, the anniversary of a 1973 student uprising that helped to bring down a 1967-1974 military junta.

(Additional reporting by Luke Baker in Brussels; Writing by Jon Boyle; Editing by Michael Roddy)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111115/bs_nm/us_eurozone

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At its last 2011 home football game, Penn State remembers child sex abuse victims (The Christian Science Monitor)

(UPDATE: The Associated Press reports that capping the worst week in school history, No. 12 Penn State couldn't overcome a 17-point deficit and was stopped short on a 4th-and-1 late in a 17-14 loss Saturday to No. 19 Nebraska.)

Unrest at Penn State University over the firing of a collegiate-football icon appears to have yielded to a concern for the victims of alleged pedophile and former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky, whose arrest Nov. 5 also toppled Penn State University's legendary coach Joe Paterno.

A candlelight vigil on campus Friday night in support of the victims, drawing thousands of students and alumni, and the brisk sale of blue T-shirts in advance of today's final home game for the Nittany Lions were aimed at offsetting images earlier in the week of unruly crowds torching a TV van and toppling street lamps in State College, Pa., in protest of Mr. Paterno's dismissal.

Yet even as students strove to express their collective support for the victims, others were emphasizing the critical role individuals play in promptly reporting instances of sex abuse with children.

During halftime at Friday's "Carrier Classic" collegiate basketball game aboard the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson at the US Navy's base at Coronado Island in San Diego Bay, President Obama noted that "it's a good time for the entire country to do some soul-searching?. You can't just rely on bureaucracy and systems in these kinds of situations. People have to step forward ? we don't leave it to somebody else to take responsibility."

Even then, however, the system can break down.

The grand jury report that led to Mr. Sandusky's indictment, as well as the arrest of two university officials for failing to report to police what they had been told about one of the incidents, describes the testimony of one victim whose mother did report the incident to university police.

The encounter occurred in 1998, according to the report. At the time, the county district attorney declined to press criminal charges, the report said, while one of two State College detectives investigating the incident essentially issued a warning to Sandusky.

Today's game takes place in an atmosphere of heightened security. The university reported that it had received a bomb threat overnight involving the football stadium. Repeated checks by local police have found no explosives.

And assistant coach Mike McQueary, who testified to the grand jury that he witnessed one incident in 2002 involving Sandusky and a young boy in the showers at the university's football facility, was put on administrative leave and under protective custody Friday after receiving threats for not immediately reporting the incident to police, although a day or so later he did report the incident to Paterno.

While Penn State's team battles Nebraska on the football field Saturday, analysts who specialize in sports law are examining the potential legal battles Paterno and the university could face.

State Attorney General Linda Kelly has been quoted as saying that her team won't charge the former head coach with failing to report the allegations of child sexual abuse Mr. McQueary presented to him.

But in a blog post earlier this week at Sports Illustrated's SI.com, Michael McMann, who heads the Sports Law Institute at the University of Vermont, noted that Paterno could still be vulnerable to several other criminal charges, including perjury, obstruction of justice, or concealing evidence.

In addition, adds CBS Radio's legal-issues analyst Andrew Cohen, Paterno and the university remain vulnerable to civil suits. Because the Fifth Amendment's right to remain silent applies only to criminal cases, any civil suits that may emerge from the scandal could tell a more fulsome story than a criminal trial would about how the university handled reports of Sandusky's alleged behavior.

Paterno reportedly has retained prominent Washington, D.C., attorney Sedwick Sollers.

In a blog post for theatlantic.com, Mr. Cohen writes, "If Paterno and Penn State are sued for monetary damages, all of the relevant actors will be required to answer questions in sworn depositions and then later at trial."

Questions from attorneys during those processes, he concludes, would make any questions from the media look mild in comparison.

Donations for two child-abuse prevention organizations were being accepted at the stadium gates Saturday, the Associated Press reports, and a sign on the scoreboard let fans know how they could continue to help.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/parenting/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20111112/ts_csm/423920

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First Look: Pixar forges new princess with 'Brave' (AP)

LOS ANGELES ? The newest princess from The Walt Disney Co. is more interested in shooting arrows and hunting bears than attending balls and finding Prince Charming. Merida, the spunky curly-haired Scottish heroine from the upcoming Pixar Animation Studios adventure "Brave," is breaking new ground as the archery-loving protagonist of the Oscar-winning studio's first fairytale.

"She's your anti-princess," said "Brave" co-director Mark Andrews. "She isn't your typical princess. She doesn't wear nice clothes except in a couple of scenes when her strict mom, Queen Elinor, makes her do it for special functions. She's an active and action-oriented person. She wants to get out in the outdoors of the Highlands, escaping from castle life and exploring the woods."

"Brave," scheduled for release June 22, 2012, is set in medieval Scotland and features the voices of "Boardwalk Empire" actress Kelly Macdonald as Princess Merida, Emma Thompson as Queen Elinor, Billy Connolly as her one-legged father, King Fergus, as well as Craig Ferguson, Kevin McKidd and Robbie Coltrane as the kingdom's noblemen.

Despite being the first Pixar film to focus on a female heroine, Andrews said "Brave" will be less about girl power and more about the oppositional relationship between mother Elinor and daughter Merida, likening the defiant red-haired princess to a scrutinized teenager who is forced to attend the same high school where her mother serves as the principal.

In the film's full-length trailer, out Tuesday, Merida's father tells of the 12-foot-tall beast with razor-sharp claws, a face scarred with a dead eye and "hide littered with the weapons of fallen warriors," that chomped off his leg while the rebellious Merida transverses a lush forest, ascends a mountain and lands a bull's eye at a tournament.

The role of Merida in "Brave" marks the first animated film part for Macdonald, a Scottish actress who has appeared in such movies as "Gosford Park" and "Finding Neverland." She acknowledged being struck by the significance of playing Disney royalty during a visit to Disneyland earlier this year as she watched Disney princesses gallivanting during the afternoon parade.

"I just thought, `My goodness! There's eventually going to be a Merida doing her thing up there,'" said Macdonald. "The people that they cast to be the characters and wear the costumes at Disneyland have to do the accent, so somebody at Disneyland is going to be doing me. Some American girl will have to do my accent. It kind of blows my mind, really."

Other imagery teased in the new trailer includes Merida encountering mystical blue-hued wisps and the gnarly bear that took her father's leg. Andrews said despite the 3-D film's darker tone and visual style compared with past Pixar movies like "Toy Story" and "Cars," "Brave" won't be "missing any of the comedy or entertainment you usually associate with Pixar."

___

Online:

http://disney.go.com/brave

___

AP Entertainment Writer Derrik J. Lang can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/derrikjlang/.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/movies/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111114/ap_en_mo/us_film_brave_first_look

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Bears dominate Stafford, Lions, 37-13

Chicago Bears safety Major Wright (27) intercepts a pass in front of intended receiver Detroit Lions tight end Tony Scheffler (85) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011, in Chicago. Wright ran the ball in for a touchdown. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Chicago Bears safety Major Wright (27) intercepts a pass in front of intended receiver Detroit Lions tight end Tony Scheffler (85) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011, in Chicago. Wright ran the ball in for a touchdown. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Chicago Bears wide receiver Devin Hester (23) runs into the end zone on an 82-yard punt return for a touchdown in the first half of an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler (6) loses his helmet as he is sacked by Detroit Lions defenders Ndamukong Suh (90), DeAndre Levy (54), and Cliff Avril (92) in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

Chicago Bears cornerback Tim Jennings (26) is seen on the ground after recovering a fumble by Detroit Lions wide receiver Nate Burleson (13) in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011, in Chicago. Bears teammates safety Chris Conte (47) and Major Wright (27) celebrate with Jennings. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Detroit Lions head coach Jim Schwartz walks along the sidelines in the first half of an NFL football game against the Chicago Bears, Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

(AP) ? The Chicago Bears understand where they were and can appreciate how far they've come.

Charles Tillman and Major Wright returned interceptions for touchdowns early in the third quarter, and Chicago picked off Matthew Stafford four times to beat the Detroit Lions 37-13 in a heated game on Sunday.

"We're getting better," Brian Urlacher said. "No doubt about that. We're not done yet. We've still got a long way to go. But we're going the right direction, that's for sure."

Beating Detroit was another big step.

The four interceptions by Stafford matched his season total entering the game and helped knock the Lions (6-3) into a second-place tie with the Bears in the NFC North. Stafford was also involved in a skirmish that led to an ejection of Chicago's D.J. Moore early in the fourth quarter.

By then, the Bears (6-3) had locked up their fourth straight win thanks to a dominant defense and another punt return for a touchdown by Devin Hester, who ran one back 82 yards. That extended his NFL record for punt-return TDs to 12 and combined kick-return touchdowns to 17.

Julius Peppers and Tim Jennings forced turnovers on Detroit's first two possessions, leading to a touchdown and field goal by Chicago. Wright and Tillman returned interceptions for touchdowns on the Lions' first two possessions of the second half to put game out of reach.

In between turnover binges, Hester caused his usual havoc before leaving with an undisclosed illness.

For a guy who was listed as questionable with a sprained left ankle, Hester sure looked good while he was in the game. He had already set up a field goal by Robbie Gould in the opening seconds of the second quarter with a 29-yard punt return before his long TD return along the left sideline, giving the Bears a 20-0 lead.

The idea that the Bears would be tied with the Lions seemed far-fetched after their 24-13 Monday night loss at Ford Field last month, but the teams have gone in different directions since.

"We had a lot riding on this game," Smith said. "NFC division game at home we just couldn't afford another loss. We've gotten better and better each week."

Detroit has dropped three of four after winning its first five, and this one was brutal ? particularly for Stafford and Calvin Johnson.

Johnson had 81 yards on seven catches with Tillman locking him down.

Stafford, playing with a fractured finger in his right hand, completed 33 of 63 passes for 329 yards, and any shot the Lions had at a comeback ended when Wright and Tillman picked him off early in the third.

Wright returned his interception 24 yards and Tillman ran his back 44 yards for TDs that made it 34-6, sending the Lions to their first road loss after they won their first four away from Ford Field.

Stafford said the finger wasn't really a factor, but the strong wind was.

"Wind was blowing the ball around, and they had a tough time throwing it and we had a tough time throwing it," he said.

Things really got chippy early in the fourth quarter after Stafford threw his third interception. Jennings picked him off and got shoved hard out of bounds by Nate Burleson. While that unfolded, Stafford grabbed Moore by the helmet and threw him to the ground, setting off a confrontation involving players from both teams that ultimately led to Moore's ejection.

"When you are going after my livelihood, my neck, and you're trying to hurt me, I just can't let that go," Moore said.

Stafford said he wasn't trying to injure Moore.

"He kind of blocked me and I was just trying to get him off me best I knew how," Stafford said. "And I guess he didn't like the way I did it. He wanted to ask me about it."

There was also some tension earlier in the game.

Jay Cutler had his helmet ripped off by Ndamukong Suh after a run, and he got slammed to the ground by Nick Fairley on a late hit in the third quarter.

And a few plays before Jennings' interception, Chicago's Lance Briggs had a hard hit on Johnson.

"It wasn't clean and it wasn't quiet," Cutler said. "I know that. That's just how it is."

Those incidents aside, there was little drama in this one.

The Bears pulled out an easy win even though Matt Forte and Cutler did not have big games.

Forte scored the game's first touchdown on a 6-yard run but finished with 64 yards ? 40 of them on one run.

Cutler was consistently under pressure while throwing for 123 yards, but for one game it didn't matter.

Notes: Smith said LG Chris Williams was undergoing surgery Sunday after leaving the game with a wrist injury. ... Tillman tied Mike Brown and Bennie McRae for the club record with his fourth career interception return for a touchdown. He has 28 interceptions and ranks fourth on the Bears' all-time list. ... Peppers had an 11-yard sack on third down at the six that forced Detroit to kick a field goal in the second quarter. ... The Lions had won six straight road games dating back to last season.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2011-11-13-Lions-Bears/id-48c49388c53e48419b2d1e8ae3051f77

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Oscar's tumultuous week ends with Governors Awards (AP)

LOS ANGELES ? After a tumultuous week that saw the departure and replacement of the Oscar show's host and producer, the film academy enjoyed a night of good vibes Saturday at its third annual Governors Awards. You might even say the force was with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Armed storm troopers ensured guests were in their seats and paying attention as Darth Vader opened the evening honoring James Earl Jones, Oprah Winfrey and makeup artist Dick Smith. Under Vader's helmet was academy president Tom Sherak, who welcomed the audience of industry insiders with, "How was your week?"

Over the past week, Oscar producer Brett Ratner and host Eddie Murphy resigned and were replaced with producer Brian Grazer and host Billy Crystal.

Saturday's untelevised Governors Awards, though, couldn't have been smoother, as Jones, Smith and Winfrey accepted Oscar statuettes in front of a starry crowd that included John Travolta, Alec Baldwin, Woody Harrelson, Sharon Stone, Seth Rogen, Sidney Poitier and Tyler Perry, among others.

Jones, who famously voiced Vader, accepted his award by video from London's Wyndham Theater, where he is starring in "Driving Miss Daisy" with Vanessa Redgrave. Baldwin and Glenn Close feted the actor before Sir Ben Kingsley presented him with his Oscar onstage in London.

Close called Jones "a world treasure" and Kingsley said the 80-year-old actor is "always so damn good."

A beaming Jones said receiving an Oscar in such a fashion is "an actor's wet dream."

"I'm deeply honored, mighty grateful and just plain gobsmacked," he said.

Smith, the groundbreaking makeup artist who counts "The Exorcist" and "The Godfather" among his credits, was lauded for his long career and his generosity in sharing the secrets of his craft. Writer-directors J.J. Abrams, Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro saluted the 91-year old.

Abrams, creator of TV's "Lost" and "Fringe," said Smith "was the Beatles to me" and told of how he wrote a fan letter to the makeup artist and received an "old but clean" tongue from "The Exorcist" in return.

Smith said being honored by the academy was "an incredible joy, one of the greatest I've ever had in my whole life."

"I have loved being a makeup artist so much," he said, "but ... to have so much kindness given to me all at once is just too much. I am so grateful."

Winfrey was introduced by Quincy Jones, Travolta, Maria Shriver, producer Larry Gordon and a student she'd never met but whose education she funded.

Travolta said "the academy got it right" when it chose the media mogul to receive its Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, calling her "the most wonderful person in the world, the most magical person in the world and the most powerful person in the world."

Winfrey cried and nuzzled into boyfriend Stedman Graham as Shriver and the others spoke of her generosity, which includes providing scholarships for 65,000 students.

She said receiving an Oscar for philanthropy is "unimaginable" given her humble beginnings in Mississippi.

"It's impossible for you to even know what this journey has meant," Winfrey said.

Appearing in "The Color Purple" was "one of the greatest experiences of my life," she said, When Quincy Jones tapped her for the role of Sofia ? for which she earned an Oscar nod for supporting actress ? he changed the course of her career.

"I'd like to do more films, but to receive the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award means more to me than any film, any acclaim, even an Oscar, because what it says is you all get it," Winfrey said. "What this really means is that you all understand that what I've been trying to do, what I've been trying to say all these years, (which) is that all of us can make a difference through the life that we live."

Winfrey said she plans to keep her new Oscar front and center on her desk.

"For me this Oscar will represent love from all of you," she said. "I thank you for your vote of love and I will use it to increase the open space in my heart to continue to do the great and good work that we all have come to do."

The film academy launched its Governors Awards three years ago to pay tribute to winners of honorary Oscars ? prizes previously presented during the Academy Awards telecast. Governors from its 15 branches chose Saturday's winners.

Highlights from the event will be available online at Oscars.org and included in the Academy Awards telecast in February.

___

Online:

www.oscars.org

___

AP Entertainment Writer Sandy Cohen can be reached at www.twitter.com/APSandy.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/celebrity/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111113/ap_on_en_ot/us_oscars_governors_awards

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Toy gun waved by child mistaken for weapon

(AP) ? Police responded in force to a report of someone waving a gun in the back of a minivan near Chino, but the culprit turned out to be a child with a toy weapon.

The Los Angeles Times (http://lat.ms/ufnjFV ) says a concerned motorist called authorities Friday afternoon and deputies pulled the vehicle over at about on State Route 71, with a half dozen squad cars converging on the scene.

Sheriff's Sgt. R. Causey says the motorist thought it was a real gun, but deputies could tell it was a toy.

There were two adults and two children in the vehicle.

No arrests were made.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/apdefault/aa9398e6757a46fa93ed5dea7bd3729e/Article_2011-11-12-Toy%20Gun/id-794726e18d794f49ac53d284cda3ffaa

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CBS panned for debate performance (Politico)

The first broadcast network presidential debate this year, which ended its national telecast and switched to a choppy livestream feed two-thirds of the way through the event, produced a storm of complaints from viewers across the country and two of the candidates on the no-frills debate stage in Spartanburg, S.C.

CBS?s foreign policy debate, co-sponsored by National Journal, offered unusually detailed discussion of policy and a format that was free of many of the literal bells and whistles of more slickly-produced face-offs. But the confusing format ? the televised portion for most of the nation ended after an hour and viewers were expected to go to the Internet to see the final 30 minutes ? led to widespread frustration among those following the debate.

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A network spokeswoman, Sonya McNair, said its livestream had been overwhelmed by an unexpectedly large audience, and brushed off complaints. The final half-hour had been added, she said, for the benefit of South Carolina viewers.

?We weren?t programming it for reporters in Washington D.C.,? she said, even as it emerged that ? in an unusual breakdown between network and affiliates ? none of the four CBS stations in the state actually carried the last half hour.

CBS took an equally sharp line toward the candidates who complained about a lack of attention during the debate. Ron Paul?s campaign chairman, Jesse Benton, said the network ?should be ashamed? of the little time it gave Paul, given his solid poll numbers and military service. And Rep. Michele Bachmann produced a pre-debate email from newly minted CBS political director John Dickerson, mistakenly sent to a Bachmann staffer indicating that Bachmann is ?nearly off the charts,? ?not going to be getting many questions,? and probably wouldn?t be even be worth inviting to a post-debate webcast.

?Bachmann is at 4 percent in the polls and has been for a while. Other candidates aren?t,? Dickerson responded. ?I sent an email based on that.?

CBS?s McNair also cited the poll numbers, adding, ?It was a candid exchange about the reality of the circumstances.?

But CBS already navigates conservative distrust over Dan Rather?s botched report raising questions about George W. Bush?s National Guard service in 2004 and Katie Couric?s grilling of Sarah Palin in 2008 ? and Bachmann?s campaign manager said the candidate?s debate treatment flew in the face of assurances from CBS Vice President Chris Isham that the Bachmann would get a fair shot at the debate.

?They were really embarrassed,? said campaign manager Keith Nahigian. ?They said, ?we take it very seriously. We assure you you?ll be treated fairly.?

?We?re the only candidate that didn?t get a single follow-up question,? he said. ?It?s not their job to determine this stuff. It?s just outrageous.?

Paul and Bachmann may take some solace in the fact that many viewers didn?t see the full debate. While some West Coast stations carried the full 90 minutes, network executives said network affiliates in Washington, New York, and most other major East Coast markets switched to a re-run of a 2010 episode of the police procedural show NCIS, whose plot hinged on missing nuclear material.

And despite statements from moderators Scott Pelley of CBS and Major Garrett of National Journal , who said ?all CBS affiliates statewide will carry full 90 minutes,? the affiliates in all four South Carolina media markets switched away for the last half hour.

?WLTX is on the CBS network feed. The last 30 minutes was not offered to CBS stations. Not sure why Scott Pelley said we were,? Columbia?s WLTX said on its official Twitter feed.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/external/politico_rss/rss_politico_mostpop/http___www_politico_com_news_stories1111_68223_html/43586175/SIG=11m2jtl40/*http%3A//www.politico.com/news/stories/1111/68223.html

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Credibility fading, James Murdoch returns to UK

File - Chairman of News Corporation Rupert Murdoch, right, and his son James Murdoch, chief executive of News Corporation Europe and Asia arrive at his residence in central London, in this Sunday, July 10, 2011 file photo. A private investigator working for Rupert Murdoch's News of the World conducted surveillance on Prince William as well of dozens of politicians and celebrities, the BBC reported Tuesday Nov. 8 2011. The broadcaster said private eye Derek Webb spied on the prince in 2006 while William was in Gloucestershire, western England, where his father Prince Charles has a country home. (AP Photo / Sang Tan, file)

File - Chairman of News Corporation Rupert Murdoch, right, and his son James Murdoch, chief executive of News Corporation Europe and Asia arrive at his residence in central London, in this Sunday, July 10, 2011 file photo. A private investigator working for Rupert Murdoch's News of the World conducted surveillance on Prince William as well of dozens of politicians and celebrities, the BBC reported Tuesday Nov. 8 2011. The broadcaster said private eye Derek Webb spied on the prince in 2006 while William was in Gloucestershire, western England, where his father Prince Charles has a country home. (AP Photo / Sang Tan, file)

(AP) ? Contradicted by key former executives and challenged by his company's ex-lawyers, James Murdoch is expected back for a second grilling in Britain's Parliament Thursday over the phone hacking scandal that has shaken his father's media empire.

Although the senior News Corp. executive has long insisted he knew nothing of the culture of criminality whose exposure has been called "Britain's Watergate," mounting evidence suggests otherwise and one observer who follows the phone hacking scandal said Murdoch would be likely to have to make some kind of concession.

"What I expect to happen is that James will acknowledge that mistakes have been made, probably even apologize to the committee," said Paul Connew, a media commentator and former tabloid editor. He explained that Murdoch might acknowledge that "perhaps he wasn't as proactive as he should've been," although he warned that there was a limit to how far any mea culpa could go.

"What I think he won't do ? can't afford to do ? is accept that he deliberately misled Parliament," Connew said.

James Murdoch has repeatedly insisted that he was blind-sided by the scandal at what was once his company's most powerful tabloid.

Revelations that journalists routinely intercepted the voicemails of public figures, including celebrities, politicians, police, and even crime victims sent shock waves across the British establishment, forcing the closure of the News of the World and scuttling its parent company's multibillion pound (dollar) bid for full control of satellite broadcaster BSkyB.

Murdoch's company had long insisted that the practice had been limited to a single rogue journalist, royal editor Clive Goodman, who had been jailed for phone hacking several years earlier. But in dramatic testimony to parliamentarians on July 19, Murdoch acknowledged that had never been true.

"We ? the company ? had not been in full possession of the facts," Murdoch told lawmakers. He added that when he took over at News International, News Corp.'s British newspaper arm, "there was no reason at the time to believe that the issue of the voicemail interceptions was anything but a settled matter."

He and his father blamed others for the lapse, with Rupert Murdoch saying he'd been betrayed by those he trusted.

Lawmakers were immediately skeptical of James Murdoch's explanation, pointing to the fact that he personally signed off on a massive settlement for phone hacking victim Gordon Taylor, a prominent sports figure who was given hundreds of thousands of pounds in compensation in return for staying mum about the deal.

The junior Murdoch would have had a motive to keep Taylor quiet, they argued. Taylor's team had uncovered an email carrying transcripts of illegally intercepted voicemail messages written by a junior News of the World reporter and marked "for Neville," an apparent reference to senior journalist Neville Thurlbeck.

Because it implicated others, the document blew a hole through the claim that only a rogue reporter had been involved in phone hacking.

In a performance described as cool and lawyerly, Murdoch denied knowing anything about "for Neville" document when Taylor's case was settled.

But since July 19 the credibility of that denial has frayed under the weight of contradictory testimony from former executives and senior lawyers.

Former News International lawyer Jonathan Chapman said Murdoch wasn't telling the truth when he said he'd been kept in the dark by his underlings.

"Nobody kept Mr. James Murdoch or any other News International/News Corporation executives from being in full possession of the facts," Chapman wrote in a letter published on August 16.

Former News International lawyer Tom Crone and former News of the World Editor Colin Myler also said Murdoch wasn't telling the truth when he said he didn't know about the "for Neville" email.

"I told him about the document," Crone told lawmakers in a joint appearance with Myler on Sept. 6.

Murdoch's assertions have also been called into question by respected outside lawyers Julian Pike and Michael Silverleaf, who advised his company on the Taylor settlement.

On Oct. 19 Pike sensationally claimed that he'd known for years that the company had been lying to the public about the extent of the scandal. Silverleaf's evidence, drafted in June 2008 and made public last week, was even more damning. It warned News International that there was "overwhelming evidence" that some of its most senior journalists had been involved in illegal practices.

Murdoch has so far stuck to his guns, denying Myler and Crone's claims and insisting he'd been kept out of the loop. News Corp. declined comment on what the 38-year-old executive would say on Thursday.

The stakes are high: Investors have become increasingly restive as the scandal continues to spread. Murdoch's position as heir apparent to his father's company is under threat.

Connew expressed some sympathy with James Murdoch, noting that the fresh-faced TV executive had just taken over his father's U.K. newspaper business when the Taylor settlement was arranged.

"It's quite possible that people didn't actually level with James Murdoch," Connew said.

Still, Murdoch should expect a rough ride.

"He's under more pressure now than he's ever been," Connew said.

___

Online:

Media committee website: http://www.parliament.uk/cmscom

Raphael G. Satter can be reached at: http://twitter.com/razhael

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2011-11-09-EU-Britain-Phone-Hacking/id-a9bddd235120443097b3cc29d7e70df1

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HTC Rezound starts shipping early because you can't stop the Beats

When HTC took the wraps off the Rezound, it tipped us off to a November 14th launch for Verizon's Beats Audio-branded device. Now, it appears that those of you who jumped on the pre-order bandwagon are getting premature access to the red-and-black-tinged goods, with some units arriving as early as today. How'd this come about? Well, it seems a few eager beavers lucked out during the purchasing process, selecting overnight delivery and receiving the phones toute de suite. We can't promise you Big Red's still honoring this ordering quirk, but don't let that stop you from trying your luck. We have a feeling Dr. Dre would approve.

HTC Rezound starts shipping early because you can't stop the Beats originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 09 Nov 2011 19:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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