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Newser Story Index from February, 2009

Welcome to the Newser Story Index. Here you find stories written by Newser writers and editors, assembled with supporting photos and videos from the files of the news story.

Octuplet Mom: 'I'm OK, the Babies Are Good'
Us Weekly | Feb 13, 2009 4:28 PM CST
(Newser) - Nadya Suleman became a national sensation this week, receiving death threats and a getting the business end of critical interview with her own mother, but she says she’s doing just fine. "I'm OK, and the babies are good," she told Us Weekly reporters today outside her home. "I'm going to see the babies. I have lots to do."...
NASCAR Needs to Rev Up
Time | Feb 13, 2009 4:18 PM CST
(Newser) - The US auto industry is teetering on the brink of destruction—and NASCAR isn't too far behind it. The Daytona 500, NASCAR’s Super Bowl, takes place Sunday, but business is stalling, leaving the costly sport looking for a lift, Sean Gregory and Steve Goldberg write in Time . “We need to get back a little beating and banging, a little...
Banks Halt Foreclosures Ahead of Obama Plan
Washington Post | Feb 13, 2009 4:04 PM CST
(Newser) - Major US banks agreed today to halt foreclosure proceedings against homeowners until the White House foreclosure prevention plan is in place, the Washington Post reports. Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, and Bank of America will suspend foreclosures until early March, when the foreclosure plan is expected to be operational. President Obama is expected...
Sykes to Roast Obama at Press Dinner
Associated Press | Feb 13, 2009 3:49 PM CST
(Newser) - Wanda Sykes has been tapped to roast Barack Obama at this year’s White House Correspondents' Dinner on May 9. The lesbian comic will likely skewer the President’s anti-gay-marriage stance, but she has some skeletons of her own, the Los Angeles Times reports. After hearing about the engagement, “I made sure my taxes were paid,”...
Hockey Team to Host 'Don't Be Like Mike' Night
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | Feb 13, 2009 3:39 PM CST
(Newser) - A Milwaukee hockey team will host a “Don’t Be Like Mike” night next week to discourage fans from following Michael Phelps’ dubious example, the Journal Sentinel reports. Graduates of the DARE program—as well anyone named Michael, Phelps, Mary Jane, Cheech, Chong, or Weed—will get a $2 ticket. The Milwaukee Admirals...
Dow Ends Bad Week Down 82
Wall Street Journal | Feb 13, 2009 3:23 PM CST
(Newser) - Stocks fell today after treading water for most of the session, the Wall Street Journal reports. Financials fell, but a rise in energy stocks spurred by a $3.53 gain in the price of oil buoyed indices somewhat. The House passage of the stimulus plan seemed to have little effect on markets. The Dow lost 82.35 points to close at 7,850.41. The Nasdaq...
Strapped Networks Air Ads for Booze, Sex in Prime Time
Los Angeles Times | Feb 13, 2009 3:21 PM CST
(Newser) - The airwaves are getting a lot more mature. On Sunday, 15 cities saw an Absolut Vodka ad during the Grammy Awards, the first time in years that a liquor commercial has run in prime time on a network-owned station. Other ads not suitable for innocent ears (K-Y Jelly, anyone?) are surfacing elsewhere in prime time for one reason: With the recession in...
Falcons Move to Trade Vick
Atlanta Journal-Constitution | Feb 13, 2009 3:13 PM CST
(Newser) - The Falcons are looking to trade Michael Vick, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. His contract runs through 2013 and includes a base salary of $9 million, sweetened with a $6.43 million 2009 bonus. But with Vick in prison on dogfighting charges and rookie Matt Ryan having led the team to the playoffs in 2008, Atlanta is looking to dump the...
Blackwater Ditches Name, Attempts to Change Image
Associated Press | Feb 13, 2009 2:58 PM CST
(Newser) - Private security firm Blackwater Worldwide is hoping to shed some of the controversy that has dogged it since its bloody tenure in Iraq by renaming itself Xe (pronounced “Zee”), the AP reports. Besides the name change, the firm has altered the focus of its business from contracting out private security to running training facilities and...
Peanut Corp. Files for Bankruptcy
Lynchburg News Advance | Feb 13, 2009 2:53 PM CST
(Newser) - The latest victim of the nationwide salmonella outbreak is the Peanut Corporation of America, which filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy today, the Lynchburg News & Advance reports. “Given the events of the past month, including the broad-based recalls, the company has no alternative but to cease operations,” a lawyer for the scandal-plagued...
In Sticky Situations, Recession's an Easy Out
New York Times | Feb 13, 2009 2:43 PM CST
(Newser) - Think of all the commitments you would love to back out of. Chances are, you can use the economy as an excuse to set you free, reports the New York Times . Reaping the social benefits of recession is big with everyone from the mom who didn't want to confront her subpar nanny to the man who wasn't ready to propose—"It’s providing a...
'Real-Life Gossip Girl ' Heads to Bravo
Broadcasting & Cable | Feb 13, 2009 2:32 PM CST
(Newser) - Bravo is making a reality show focused on New York private school students that insiders are calling a “real-life Gossip Girl ,” Broadcasting & Cable reports. The show will employ the format used in webisodes the network produced featuring kids from its hit The Real Housewives of Orange County . Many networks, including CBS and...
Carrier, Plane Had Clean Safety Record
Houston Chronicle | Feb 13, 2009 2:19 PM CST
(Newser) - The operator of the commuter flight that crashed near Buffalo and killed 50 people hadn’t had any major accidents on passenger flights in its 18-year history, the Houston Chronicle reports. Nor does the model of plane that crashed, the Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 turboprops, have a record of trouble. Colgan Air's only incident with a passenger flight...
Please, Jason, Stay Dead
Rotten Tomatoes | Feb 13, 2009 2:06 PM CST
(Newser) - The new Friday the 13th “remake” is “about the best Friday the 13th movie you could hope for,” writes Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times. “It has a lot of scary and gruesome killings. If that's what you want to find out, you can stop reading.” Still here? Then you’re probably wondering why someone made...
House Passes Stimulus Bill
Associated Press | Feb 13, 2009 1:53 PM CST
(Newser) - The House today passed the $787 billion stimulus bill, once again without a single Republican vote, the AP reports. Eight Democrats also opposed the bill, which will make its way to the Senate later today. The victory belongs to President Obama, who says the package will save or create 3.5 million jobs. Republicans say the measure is light on tax cuts...
Mira Sorvino Preggo With No. 3
Us Weekly | Feb 13, 2009 1:48 PM CST
(Newser) - Mira Sorvino is expecting her third child with hubby Christopher Backus, Us Magazine reports. "We are overjoyed at the thought of welcoming a new addition to the family," Sorvino said. "We don't go out much. And we just love our children and we love each other. And we have a good life. You know, we're sort of normal people living in...
Pay for Soup, Enjoy Insects, Mold Free
New York Times | Feb 13, 2009 1:33 PM CST
(Newser) - If you're eating, stop reading now: The FDA's rules on foreign matter in food products are a veritable entomology lesson. Maggots, fly eggs, rodent droppings, grit, mold, burlap, cigarette butts, and parasites are all OK with the agency in limited quantities, writes EJ Levy in the New York Tim es , adding, "These harmless hazards are a...
Axelrod to Rove: Be Quiet
Washington Post | Feb 13, 2009 1:22 PM CST
(Newser) - If Karl Rove’s so smart, how come his party’s the one locked out of power? That’s what top White House adviser David Axelrod seemed to ask in an interview with the Washington Post . Dismissing Rove’s criticisms of Obama’s stimulus plan as “intramural stuff,” Axelrod said, “The last thing that I think...
How Does Diddy Chill Out After a Long Day?
Daily Mirror (UK) | Feb 13, 2009 1:10 PM CST
(Newser) - When you've got as much on your plate as rapper/fashion designer/actor/producer/entrepreneur Diddy, you've got to find a way to relax. Other high-profile celebs advocate techniques ranging from yoga to meditation and beyond, but Diddy opts for rear rubs, the Mirror reports. The renaissance man told E!, "Most people get foot massages but I get...
Ginsburg Cancer Has Not Spread
Associated Press | Feb 13, 2009 12:59 PM CST
(AP) - Ruth Bader Ginsburg's cancer was found at the earliest stage and has not spread beyond her pancreas, the Supreme Court said today. The 75-year-old associate justice returned home to Washington after being released from the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. Doctors removed Ginsburg's spleen and a portion of her pancreas during...
Earth, Sky Celebrate Kim Jong-Il's B-day
Telegraph (UK) | Feb 13, 2009 12:50 PM CST
(Newser) - Temperatures in North Korea are warmer than normal, willow catkins are in bloom, and the moon is sporting a halo—all thanks to Kim Jong-Il. A Korean news agency says “that even the nature and the sky unfolded such mysterious ecstasy in celebration of the birthday” of the North Korean leader, who turns 67 next week, the Telegraph...
The International : Good Timing, Bad Film
Rotten Tomatoes | Feb 13, 2009 12:37 PM CST
(Newser) - A thriller about evil banks, The International got its timing right. Too bad, then, that it’s not a better film. The film “almost seems like a Monty Python spoof on spy-game thrillers in which the phrase ‘secret agent’ is constantly replaced by 'banker,'" writes Joe Neumaier in the New York Daily News . Sample line:...
Guess Who's Taking On the Apple Store?
Financial Times (UK) | Feb 13, 2009 12:25 PM CST
(Newser) - Microsoft has hired a former Wal-Mart exec to help the company open a chain of retail stores—a new strategy in its battle with Apple. The move is the latest sign of upheaval at Redmond, reports the Financial Times , and represents a change in approach. "To open their own stores is a big about-face," said one analyst, who thought Microsoft...
It's Friday the 13th: What Do Celebs Fear?
New York Post | Feb 13, 2009 12:14 PM CST
(Newser) - Friday the 13th is a good time to delve into the scary world of celebrity fears—and they run the gamut from the average (Johnny Depp is afraid of clowns) to the bizarre (Roseanne fears letting anyone touch her toes). More from the list, compiled by New York Post columnist Cindy Adams: Stephen King: bugs Clay Aiken: housecats ...
States Seek to Restrict Employer Credit Checks
USA Today | Feb 13, 2009 12:00 PM CST
(Newser) - Several states and Obama administration officials are seeking restrictions on employers that unfairly screen out job applicants using credit checks, USA Today reports. Spiking unemployment and mortgage foreclosures brought on by the financial crisis have hurt many, and lawmakers say trustworthy people are being shut out of good jobs. Some 43% of...
Knox Speaks Up About Vibrator
Telegraph (UK) | Feb 13, 2009 11:49 AM CST
(Newser) - Amanda Knox spoke in court today for the first time since her trial began, both to declare her innocence and to set the record straight about her vibrator. A witness had said Kercher was chagrined that Knox kept the sex toy in a transparent bag in plain view. “It was a joke,” Knox explained in fluent Italian. “It was pink and shaped...
Addiction Led to Smoker's Death: Jury
Miami Herald | Feb 13, 2009 11:38 AM CST
(Newser) - Addiction to cigarettes caused chain smoker Stuart Hess’ death from lung cancer, a Florida jury ruled yesterday, paving the way for his widow to receive damages from Phillip Morris. The case is the first of 8,000 to spin out of a landmark 1994 class-action suit. That case's $145 billion award was overturned in 2006, and though the Hess verdict...
Baby-Faced Dad Is Just 13
Sun (UK) | Feb 13, 2009 11:27 AM CST
(Newser) - Thirteen-year-old Alfie Patten, who, with his baby face, could pass for eight, became a father on Monday, the Sun reports. The 4-foot-tall Brit—who did not know how much diapers cost but said, "I think it’s a lot"—was not sure how he and girlfriend Chantelle Steadman, 15, would care for their daughter. "I don’t...
Stimulus in the Bag, Obama Rethinks Strategy
Politico | Feb 13, 2009 11:15 AM CST
(Newser) - President Obama got his way, more or less, on the stimulus, but the process demonstrated Congress' abiding disinterest in bipartisanship. For future big-ticket items—and there are a lot of them—the president will take a tougher approach, Mike Allen and Jonathan Martin write for Politico. Chief of staff Rahm Emanuel offers a preview: “He...
'The Whole Sky Was Lit Up Orange'
CNN | Feb 13, 2009 11:05 AM CST
(Newser) - The twin turboprop plane crash outside Buffalo that killed 50 was a “direct hit” on a house 7 miles from Buffalo’s international airport, CNN reports. "I was able to see the underbelly of the plane," said one witness. "It was only about 75 feet above me when it crossed the road, and it was literally within seconds of...
Binge Now: Chocolate Prices May Spike
Wall Street Journal | Feb 13, 2009 10:52 AM CST
(Newser) - Soaring cocoa prices have left chocolate makers wondering how far they can hike prices without souring business, the Wall Street Journal reports. Crop woes in Africa have kept cocoa pricey despite the global commodities slump. Chocolate companies are mostly holding prices steady for now but many are expected to fatten their slim profit margins after...
Single App Nets $600K in Month
Wired | Feb 13, 2009 10:42 AM CST
(Newser) - With more than 20,000 iPhone apps available, it seems inevitable that most would make peanuts. But Ethan Nicholas’ tank artillery game, iShoot, raked in $600,000 in one month——$37,000 on its best day—proving the gold rush is on in the App Store, Wired reports. The store provides a platform for selling and distributing software,...
Clinton Heads to China in Sign of New Direction
Wall Street Journal | Feb 13, 2009 10:30 AM CST
(Newser) - As a presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton asserted that America's relationship with China was the country's most critical. Now as secretary of state, Clinton is moving to make China a priority—on Sunday, she is scuppering tradition by visiting Asia, not Europe, on her first trip abroad. As the Wall Street Journal reports, the focus on China...
LiLo's Mom Has Tax Trouble
TMZ | Feb 13, 2009 10:20 AM CST
(Newser) - Dina Lohan is a busy woman, what with all those kids to pimp out. Too busy to pay her taxes, apparently—she owes Nassau County, NY, $11,485.74 in back taxes, TMZ reports. If LiLo and Ali's infamous mother doesn't pony up, her tax lien will go up for auction next week. The purchaser can collect 10% interest off the reality TV "star."...
Women's Workforce Equality Comes at a Price
Boston Globe | Feb 13, 2009 10:09 AM CST
(Newser) - At long last, women hold more than 49% of American jobs in this country, and 50% is in reach. But hold the confetti, writes Ellen Goodman of the Boston Globe . It's happening "because men are losing their jobs even faster than women." Last year, men took home eight of every 10 pink slips, jacking their unemployment rate to 7.6%, compared...
GOP Hardliners Change Tune on Gregg
Politico | Feb 13, 2009 9:57 AM CST
(Newser) - Judd Gregg said the right bipartisan things, but to a Republican Party in need of a boost, his withdrawal as nominee for commerce secretary feels like an act of defiance against the administration, reports Politico. When his decision was announced in a party meeting, attendees broke into applause. "Sen. Gregg has shown the American people the...
Cramer Changes Course: Have Faith in Geithner
New York | Feb 13, 2009 9:46 AM CST
(Newser) - Geithner’s got it, James Cramer writes in New York —much to his own surprise. Cramer notes that he's railed against the Treasury chief for months, but he's now come around just as others have abandoned him. “The press, the pols, the Wall Streeters—they are all dumping their golden boy just when he’s figured out how to...
Honest Abe for Commerce? Obama Pokes Fun at Trouble
Chicago Tribune | Feb 13, 2009 9:39 AM CST
(Newser) - President Obama poked a little fun at himself and his own Cabinet-appointee travails last night during a tribute to Abe Lincoln in Illinois, notes the Chicago Tribune . Obama drew a long round of laughter when he described Lincoln's pre-presidential days as a Springfield lawyer, "his feet on a cluttered desk, perhaps wondering if someone was...
Food Spending Turns Anorexic
Wall Street Journal | Feb 13, 2009 9:36 AM CST
(Newser) - Americans have trimmed their food spending sharply, hitting restaurants, food retailers, and brand-name food producers squarely in the gut, the Wall Street Journal reports. In the last quarter of 2008, spending on food plunged an inflation-adjusted 3.7% from the previous quarter, the steepest decline since the government began keeping tabs 62 years...
Mexico City Mayor Gives Free Viagra to Elderly
New York Times | Feb 13, 2009 9:24 AM CST
(Newser) - Mexico City’s sexagenarians are getting their groove on, and it’s all thanks to Mayor Marcelo Ebrard, the New York Times reports. With July's elections looming, Ebrard has rolled out a swathe of unconventional programs to improve the city’s quality of life, none more talked about than a program that doles out free Viagra to poor...
Suicide Bomber Kills 35 in Iraq
CNN | Feb 13, 2009 9:15 AM CST
(Newser) - A female suicide bomber killed at least 35 Iraqi pilgrims on the way to a religious festival today, reports CNN. Another 45 were wounded. The victims, mainly women and children, were in the town of Mussayib, about 40 miles south of Baghdad. Hundreds of thousands of Shia pilgrims are currently en route to Karbala for Arbaeen, a holy event for Shia Muslims....
Madonna Converts Jesus
Daily Mirror (UK) | Feb 13, 2009 9:03 AM CST
(Newser) - Madonna boytoy Jesus Luz, once a strict Catholic, is converting to Judaism. The Brazilian model, currently bewitched by the Kabbalah-practicing Material Girl, joined an online Kabbalah community and updated his website to reflect the change, the Mirror reports. But his “family are very traditional and quite religious so this news is sure to...
Stocks Tread Water
Wall Street Journal | Feb 13, 2009 8:49 AM CST
(Newser) - Stocks were mixed at the open today, as uncertainty over the government’s rescue plan continued to nettle investors, the Wall Street Journal reports. Stocks vacillated between gains and losses, with the Dow recently down 26 points, and the S&P and Nasdaq down about 4 points each. Among individual stocks, Abercrombie & Fitch was up 6.5%...
9/11 Widow Dies in Buffalo Crash
Buffalo News | Feb 13, 2009 8:47 AM CST
(Newser) - A woman aboard the ill-fated Continental Flight 3407 was the widow of a Buffalo man killed in the 9/11 attacks, the Buffalo News reports. As the co-chair of Voices of September 11, Beverly Eckert fought for a probe into pre-9/11 intelligence failures and pushed for a memorial to attack victims. She had been traveling to a celebration of what would...
DC Shrugs Off 'Miracle' in Iraq
Washington Post | Feb 13, 2009 8:41 AM CST
(Newser) - The US barely noticed the recent "small miracle" in the Middle East, writes Charles Krauthammer in the Washington Post : Iraq's peaceful elections. The nation "moved away from religious sectarianism toward more secular nationalism”—good news for the US, bad for Iran. Even though our policies made it possible, Washington...
America's Biggest Banks Are Zombies
New York Times | Feb 13, 2009 8:30 AM CST
(Newser) - In the corridors of Wall Street and Washington, a worrying consensus is growing: Some of the nation's largest banks are in fact insolvent. If banks reassessed the value of the complex mortgage-backed securities that taint their balance sheets, they would outweigh all assets on hand, writes Steve Lohr of the New York Times . For some experts, that...
Shopaholic Not So Addictive
Rotten Tomatoes | Feb 13, 2009 8:19 AM CST
(Newser) - Chick-lit flick Confessions of a Shopaholic is one victim the credit crisis should have claimed, say critics. Isla Fisher stars as a credit card addict who lands a job at a financial magazine, but her considerable comic gifts are wasted by a script that turns her into a "babbling ninny," Moira Macdonald writes in the Seattle Times .
Climate Change May Tank World's Fish Stocks
BBC | Feb 13, 2009 8:03 AM CST
(Newser) - The world's supplies of fish face major upheaval, scientists warn, as climate change forces species from shrimp to herring away from warming waters toward the poles. The BBC reports that in 40 years, American fishermen may see a 50% reduction in the population of Atlantic cod. "The impact of climate change on marine biodiversity and fisheries...
Eye Patch May Have Hidden Past Abuse: Police
Sun (UK) | Feb 13, 2009 7:50 AM CST
(Newser) - The eye patch Rihanna wore at last year's American Music Awards might have been more than a costume, the Sun reports. Rihanna started wearing the patch to cover her scratched cornea, and police are investigating whether Chris Brown caused the injury. “We’re talking to her friends and management, who say she’s appeared with mysterious...
Experian Cuts Access to Credit Scores
USA Today | Feb 13, 2009 7:37 AM CST
(Newser) - Knowing their credit rating will become one-third harder for consumers as of tomorrow, USA Today reports. Experian, one of the three major companies that calculates credit scores, has canceled its deal with the company that provides the info to consumers, meaning millions will lose access to Experian's version of the widely used FICO score.
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