Newser Story Index from June, 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.
DA's 'Smear' Should Nix Conviction: 'Rockefeller'
Boston Globe
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Jun 26, 2009 2:45 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Lawyers for Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter—aka Clark Rockefeller—want his conviction overturned because the jury was unfairly prejudiced against their client, the Boston Globe reports. Rockefeller was found guilty of kidnapping his daughter. The lawyers say the prosecution “eviscerated” their insanity defense during closing...
Jackson Traffic Threatened to Break Internet
Ars Technica
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Jun 26, 2009 2:32 PM CDT
(Newser) -
The surge in Internet traffic yesterday as Michael Jackson fans searched for information about his death had a deep impact on the Web, Ars Technica reports. Sites as diverse as Twitter and the iTunes Store slowed to a crawl, but perhaps the most profound effect was on Google. The search engine interpreted the high volume as a cyberattack and went into...
Vijay Offered $500K for Bail of Pal Stanford
CNBC
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Jun 26, 2009 2:23 PM CDT
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Vijay Singh is sticking by embattled buddy and alleged swindler R. Allen Stanford. The star golfer, who's been sporting the Stanford Companies logo even though he no longer gets paid to do so, offered to put up $500,000 of the billionaire’s bail, reports CNBC. He was denied the honor because he is not a US citizen.
Stimulus Boosts Americans' Incomes
Financial Times (UK)
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Jun 26, 2009 2:11 PM CDT
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Incomes in the US got a big boost from federal stimulus dollars in May, the Commerce Department reported today. But weary consumers stashed most of that lucre away, sending the savings rate to a 16-year high. “Households are reverting to a more sustainable spending path vis-à-vis income,” one economist told the Financial Times .
911 Call: Jackson Wasn't Breathing
Associated Press
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Jun 26, 2009 1:59 PM CDT
(AP) -
An emergency caller from Michael Jackson's home yesterday said he wasn't breathing or responding to efforts to revive him. The Los Angeles Fire Department released the audio of the 911 call today. The caller reported that Jackson—whose name he didn't use—was on a bed, wasn't breathing, and wasn't responding to resuscitation efforts. The...
NBA Draft: Fashion Victors and Victims
Yahoo
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Jun 26, 2009 1:44 PM CDT
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Women get excited over dresses at the Oscars. J.E. Skeets of Yahoo Sports gets excited about suits at the NBA draft. Here are his picks for the best- and worst-dressed players at last night's big event: Best Dressed: Brandon Jennings—"What's not to like?" Worst Dressed: Hasheem Thabeet wasn’t a disaster,...
Top 10 Moments in Life, Career
Time
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Jun 26, 2009 1:31 PM CDT
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As legions mourn the King of Pop, Time rounds up the 10 defining moments of his life and career: The Jackson 5 bursts onto the scene in 1968, and its first single, “I Want You Back,” makes it to No. 1. The release of Thriller in 1982 makes Michael Jackson, in the words of Time , "the biggest thing since the Beatles.”...
Rush: Blame Obama for AWOL Sanford
Huffington Post
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Jun 26, 2009 1:25 PM CDT
(Newser) -
Rush Limbaugh has a novel theory about why Mark Sanford left the US: He was sick of the way the country’s being run. The South Carolina governor's disappearance, it seems, was President Obama’s fault, the Huffington Post reports. “This is almost like: I don't give a damn! Country's going to hell in a handbasket. I just want out of...
Flying-Phobic Comic Takes to the Air
Boston Globe
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Jun 26, 2009 1:15 PM CDT
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The best way to get over fear of flying? If you’re comedian Mark Malkoff, living on a plane for 30 days. Malkoff—who once lived in an Ikea store for a week—embarked upon his journey this month, but it wasn’t all for the sake of therapy. He’s also flogging AirTran’s new in-flight Wi-Fi by keeping followers up to date...
China Won't Allow Hummer Sale: Report
BBC
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Jun 26, 2009 1:05 PM CDT
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Beijing will halt GM’s sale of the Hummer brand to a Chinese machinery firm over pollution concerns, according to Chinese state radio. The purchase would run counter to the government’s goal of reducing pollution caused by manufacturing, the BBC reports. The Chinese firm shrugged off the report. “The fact that it is from an article...
In the End, Abuse Charges Eclipsed Career
New York Daily News
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Jun 26, 2009 12:56 PM CDT
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Michael Jackson’s reputation will forever be tainted by the numerous allegations of child molestation levied against him, the New York Daily News reports. Jackson was never convicted of any crime, but he did settle out of court on two occasions, once for $20 million. A Jackson attorney said the singer settled because he didn’t like “courtrooms...
'I'm Terribly Sorry, But David Gregory Had a Fit'
New York Post
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Jun 26, 2009 12:44 PM CDT
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The highbrow news shows are seeing a little soap-opera drama—and a good old-fashioned hissy fit: MSNBC's Joe Scarborough had to cancel an appearance on George Stephanopoulos' This Week on ABC, reports the New York Post . "I'm terribly sorry," he told Stephanopoulos, "but David Gregory had a fit." Gregory hosts NBC's Meet...
Diddy May Hawk Guinness, Too
Advertising Age
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Jun 26, 2009 12:28 PM CDT
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Diddy may be mixing beer with his vodka soon. Rapper-pitchman-entrepreneur Sean Combs is in talks to help market Guinness and Red Stripe, sources tell Advertising Age . Combs has already worked with Diageo, the British company behind the brews, on its Ciroc vodka brand. If the deal goes through, Combs would buck a hip-hop artist trend of endorsing...
Live With It: Retirement Must Shrink
Economist
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Jun 26, 2009 12:13 PM CDT
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With people living longer and having fewer children in developed countries, the population is aging even as the workforce shrinks. And with retirement ages in the 60s, retirees are living longer on pensions. Those demographic shifts make a policy shift inevitable: we’re all going to have to work longer, the Economist contends. The retirement...
Forget Thriller : Off the Wall Was His Best
Chicago Sun-Times
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Jun 26, 2009 12:12 PM CDT
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It’s no exaggeration to say that Michael Jackson “made a more profound impact in the arenas of soul, R&B and dance-pop than any other singer or songwriter in history,” writes Jim DeRogatis in the Chicago Sun-Times . But while many fans reach for Thriller , “widely considered the best-selling disc of all time,” DeRogatis...
Rihanna, Chris Want to Get Closer
New York Daily News
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Jun 26, 2009 11:58 AM CDT
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Rihanna doesn’t want any protection from Chris Brown—the pair think the court’s no-contact clause is “unnecessary and ridiculous,” a source tells the New York Daily News , adding that even though “they aren't looking to hook back up,” they’re “solid” now as friends. Elsewhere: Director...
Sri Lanka Arrests Astrologer Who 'Sees' Ouster of Prez
BBC
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Jun 26, 2009 11:44 AM CDT
(Newser) -
He really should have seen this coming. A popular astrologer in Sri Lanka has been arrested after predicting the ouster of the president, the BBC reports. Police took Chandrasiri Bandara into custody this week after he foresaw a bad moon rising for Mahinda Rajapaksa and told opposition leaders they'd be taking over in September—on the 9th,...
London Art Market Feels a Chill
Wall Street Journal
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Jun 26, 2009 11:31 AM CDT
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London became the hottest art market in the world last year, eclipsing New York, but the recession is putting the squeeze on auction houses, the Wall Street Journal reports. Last year’s influx of foreign money has dried up, and sellers are keeping a firm hold on their most desirable pieces. Not only are the auction houses’ offerings...
Cops Can't Find Jackson's Doctor
TMZ
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Jun 26, 2009 11:17 AM CDT
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Michael Jackson's doctor has apparently gone AWOL, TMZ reports. Authorities want to interview him but can't find him, sources say. Cops towed his BMW from Jackson's house last night. One source says the doctor gave Jackson an injection, possibly of the morphine-like drug Demerol, before he died. The LA coroner, meanwhile, has begun Jackson's...
Sanford's Wife: His Career, His Problem
CNN
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Jun 26, 2009 11:05 AM CDT
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Jenny Sanford doesn’t much care what political fate befalls her cheating husband, CNN reports. “His career is not a concern of mine,” South Carolina's first lady told reporters as she left the family’s vacation home. “He’s going to have to worry about that. I’m worried about my family and the character of my...
Critics Blast Congress for Lack of Staff Diversity
The Hill
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Jun 26, 2009 10:52 AM CDT
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Congressional staffs are so overwhelmingly white that Capitol Hill needs its own version of the NFL rule requiring teams hiring a head coach to interview at least one person of color, critics tell the Hill. Frustrated staffers, lobbyists, and aides point out that even though more minorities are being elected, just two Senate chiefs of staff aren’t...
TMZ Scoops World on Jackson Death
Chicago Tribune
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Jun 26, 2009 10:41 AM CDT
(Newser) -
TMZ left its more savory rivals in the dust yesterday, reporting Michael Jackson’s cardiac arrest and death before any other media outlet, the Chicago Tribune reports. The AOL gossip website reported Jackson’s death at 2:44 local time, less than 20 minutes after the singer expired. But many outlets were so leery of citing the paparazzi-fueled...
Facebook Adds Twitter-esque Public Posts
Wired
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Jun 26, 2009 10:30 AM CDT
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In a clear challenge to Twitter, Facebook is testing a system that allows users to publish updates for all the world to see, Wired reports. The new feature technically allows users to restrict their content, allowing, for example, only family to see this photo or only certain friends to see that video. But the default option is to send content...
With Icons' Deaths, Gen X Grows Up
Associated Press
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Jun 26, 2009 10:20 AM CDT
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Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson were icons to many, but especially to the impressionable members of Generation X. “These people were on our lunchboxes,” notes one post-boomer. “This is the moment when Generation X realizes they're grown up." “Cynical” and “disaffected,” Gen X is an “oddity,”...
Dems Get in Shouting and (Alleged) Shoving Match
The Hill
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Jun 26, 2009 10:09 AM CDT
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A pair of House Democrats had a less-than-decorous exchange on the floor yesterday, the Hill reports. With the chamber clearing out after a series of votes, Appropriations chair David Obey and Maxine Waters began screaming at each other over an earmark for a school bearing Waters' name. “You’re out of line!” Waters cried. “You’re...
Jacko Leaves Pile of Debt
Reuters
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Jun 26, 2009 10:00 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Michael Jackson died deep in debt, Reuters reports: Wall Street Journal sources put the figure at $500 million earlier this month. The entertainer and his managers had hoped a planned concert series this summer would refill his coffers. Still, Jackson’s copyrights to his songs and his stake in the Beatles’ catalog are said to be worth...
Retailers Slash Selection in Response to Recession
Wall Street Journal
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Jun 26, 2009 9:51 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A fundamental shift is going on in the consumer product world as retailers decide that less is more, the Wall Street Journal reports. Big national retailers are expected to slash selection by at least 15%, analysts say. Gone will be 30% of Kroger’s cereals, 20 of the 24 tape measures Wal-Mart sells, and so on. It’s a big curveball for...
Why Farrah Wore a One-Piece
Newsday
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Jun 26, 2009 9:39 AM CDT
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Farrah Fawcett's role in Charlie’s Angels made her a TV star, but her 1976 pin-up poster made her an icon. Newsday reveals how the image, which preceded the show by a year, came about. Fawcett, who was supposed to be photographed in a bikini, wore the copper one-piece instead because it concealed a scar. She styled her tousled hair herself,...
Obit Writers Agree: He Was Peter Pan
New York Times
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Jun 26, 2009 9:37 AM CDT
(Newser) -
It's no secret that Michael Jackson, onetime owner of Neverland, loved Peter Pan, and the reference provided legions of obituary and tribute writers with a theme: New York Times : "For his legions of fans, he was the Peter Pan of pop music: the little boy who refused to grow up." Los Angeles Times : "As a child star, he...
Cafés Squeezed as France Turns to Le Sandwich
Washington Post
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Jun 26, 2009 9:31 AM CDT
(Newser) -
France used to be the home of the three-hour lunch, complete with wine, cheese, and maybe some spirits to push indolent workers through the rest of their day. But times have changed, and so have eating habits—these days, reports the Washington Post , the French are scarfing down sandwiches in front of computers just like their American cousins....
Ignore the Internet: Ford, Goldblum Not Dead
New York Daily News
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Jun 26, 2009 9:22 AM CDT
(Newser) -
In the wake of Farrah Fawcett’s and Michael Jackson’s deaths yesterday, someone got carried away and reported the demise of Harrison Ford and Jeff Goldblum, too. Turns out those news bulletins were the work of Internet pranksters, reports the New York Daily News . “Reports that Jeff Goldblum has passed away are completely untrue,”...
Court: Defendants Can Question Crime Lab
SCOTUSblog
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Jun 26, 2009 9:08 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A 5-4 Supreme Court ruling yesterday gives defendants the chance to face authors of crime lab reports in their cases. Prosecutors who want to use lab testing undertaken for a given case will be required to bring its authors to court, where the defense can confront them. The ruling shows “a heavy dose of skepticism that crime lab reports are so...
Sister's Keeper a 'Shameless Weepy'
Rotten Tomatoes
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Jun 26, 2009 8:53 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Cancer melodrama My Sister's Keeper makes every effort possible to tug at the heartstrings, say critics, leaving some people touched and others feeling like they've been run through an industrial tear-extraction machine. AO Scott, New York Times : Keeper "takes on a very tough subject," and has "two pretty tough characters...
Obama Needs to Toughen Up on Health Care: Krugman
New York Times
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Jun 26, 2009 8:40 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Barack Obama loves to talk about his post-partisan approach to politics, finding common ground on domestic policy and bringing Republicans into his fold. But on many issues Obama "searches for common ground where none exists," New York Times columnist Paul Krugman writes, and the resulting bills are far too weak. That's what happened with...
ET Nails 'Exclusive' Last Photo
Entertainment Tonight
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Jun 26, 2009 8:19 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The last picture of Michael Jackson—on a stretcher, being worked on by paramedics— came out last night, courtesy of Entertainment Tonight , which slapped a huge logo on it and called it an exclusive, even though it was instantly all over TV and the web. More coverage of the King of Pop’s death: TMZ has video of a tour group...
Hathaway Stuns in Twelfth Night Under the Stars
New York Times
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Jun 26, 2009 8:08 AM CDT
(Newser) -
New York theater critics are giving raves to this summer's free outdoor production of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night , starring Anne Hathaway. For Charles Isherwood of the New York Times , Hathaway has "the unmistakable glow of a natural star" and invests the shipwrecked Viola with "a bright humor that feel spontaneous and unforced."...
Greedy Farmers Battle Climate Bill That Benefits Them
Washington Post
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Jun 26, 2009 7:49 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Farmers are among those facing the highest risk from global warming—storms, droughts and swarms of insect pests are coming their way—yet “true to form,” they’re not interested in backing a bill to fight it without reaping even more government cash, sputters Steven Pearlstein in the Washington Post . What he calls "the...
Fleeing Doc Tells of Neda's End
BBC
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Jun 26, 2009 7:38 AM CDT
(Newser) -
A doctor who has fled Iran said murdered protester Neda Agha-Soltan died less than a minute after she was shot on the streets of Tehran as a bullet seemed to "explode" in her chest, reports the BBC. "I saw blood gushing out of Neda's chest. She was in a shocked situation, just looking at her chest," said Dr. Arash Hejazi. "We...
Iran Cleric: Execute the 'Rioters'
Reuters
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Jun 26, 2009 7:32 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Iran’s Guardian Council today called the election the “healthiest since the revolution,” and one of its members suggested executing the “rioters” protesting it, Reuters reports. “I want the judiciary to punish leading rioters firmly and without showing any mercy,” Ahmad Khatami told worshipers at Tehran University,...
Obama Needs Shorter To-Do List: Noonan
Wall Street Journal
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Jun 26, 2009 7:22 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Confidence in Barack Obama is fading fast for many reasons, but above all it’s because he's not tending to "The Sentence,” writes Peggy Noonan in the Wall Street Journal. Clare Boothe Luce once said that all great leaders are summed up by a sentence. “He preserved the union and freed the slaves,” for example. Obama is...
Even as a Kid, Michael Changed the Game
Washington Post
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Jun 26, 2009 6:53 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Michael Jackson took Hollywood with Ben in 1972, at a time when few black Americans had shaped the industry. “Little Michael landed upon the mindset of film-hungry black America when its citizenry was starved for identity on the big screen,” writes Wil Haygood in the Washington Post. The black community took him under its wing, and took...
Anti-Porn Curbs Mask Chinese Crackdown on Dissent
New York Times
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Jun 26, 2009 6:39 AM CDT
(Newser) -
The Chinese government ramped up restrictions on Internet use yesterday, sharply curtailing access to medical research on sexual health. It's the latest escalation in what Beijing calls an anti-pornography campaign that will culminate in new filtering software, called the Green Dam, that will be installed on all new computers from next week. But China...
Tax Deal Derailed DC Train Upgrade
Wall Street Journal
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Jun 26, 2009 6:17 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Safer cars might have saved lives in Monday's DC train crash, but a tax-dodge deal made with a bank prevented the transit authority from replacing aging stock until 2014, the Wall Street Journal reports. The National Transportation Safety Board urged the authority years ago to either replace its older cars or add safety features, but the authority...
Secret Envoy Paves Way for Burma Visit by UN Chief
Associated Press
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Jun 26, 2009 5:54 AM CDT
(AP) -
A UN special envoy began a secret trip to Burma today to pave the way for a possible visit by Ban Ki-moon, the secretary general, that would be politically delicate because of the continuing trial of imprisoned opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Human rights groups are urging Ban not to visit now, fearing that the junta could exploit his trip, but...
Mousavi's Options Shrink as Crackdown Hardens
New York Times
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Jun 26, 2009 5:45 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Two weeks after Iran's allegedly rigged presidential election, the regime's clampdown has hardened and left opponents of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei with few avenues for protest. The New York Times reports that shouts of "God is great" and "Death to the dictator" continue to echo at night in Tehran, but open...
Jacko's Death Could Cost Comeback Promoter Millions
Billboard
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Jun 26, 2009 5:05 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Michael Jackson's death will be either "horrible or really horrible" for the promoters who set up his 50-concert comeback, depending on how watertight their insurance is, industry insiders tell Billboard . AEG Live has already paid out an estimated $30 million in production costs, as well as a $10 million bonus to Jackson, and now faces...
Honduras Plunges Into Crisis
Wall Street Journal
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Jun 26, 2009 4:36 AM CDT
(Newser) -
An escalating political crisis in Honduras is threatening to turn violent, the Wall Street Journal reports. President Manuel Zelaya fired the nation's army chief after he refused to allow the military to distribute ballots for a referendum on changing the constitution to let the leftist leader serve a second term. Hundreds of troops have been deployed...
Perez Claimed Jackson 'Faked' Death Collapse
Gawker
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Jun 26, 2009 4:12 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Perez Hilton screwed up again yesterday when the gossip blogger claimed Michael Jackson's trip to the hospital was a "stunt" like when he collapsed getting ready for his 1995 HBO special. "We are dubious!" Hilton breathlessly posted. He later yanked the post, reports Gawker, who saved it for all to see.
Stars Tweet Jacko Condolences
Time
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Jun 26, 2009 3:46 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Twitter nearly came to a standstill yesterday as huge numbers of users logged on to share their thoughts on Michael Jackson's death, Time reports. Many celebrities were among those offering their condolences. MC Hammer: "I will be mourning my friend, brother, mentor and inspiration. He gave me and my family hope. I would never have been...
Threatened Hamsters Land France in Court
Telegraph (UK)
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Jun 26, 2009 3:27 AM CDT
(Newser) -
Indifference to the great hamster of Alsace has landed France in hot water with the European Union, the Telegraph reports. Fewer than 200 of the distinctive black-bellied rodents remain. EU officials, charging that France has refused all attempts to protect the tiny animal, are taking the nation to Europe's highest court in a bid to force France...
