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Australian inquiry recommends new journalistic watchdog
Thu,1 Mar 2012 06:32 PM PST
Reuters - CANBERRA (Reuters) - An Australian media inquiry report released on Friday recommended a new body to set and enforce journalistic standards. The independent report, released by the Australian government, called for a "News Media Council" to set media standards and handle complaints made by the public. Australian media is among the world's most concentrated, with Rupert Murdoch's News Ltd controlling some 70 percent of the country's newspaper ownership. ... Full Story | Top |
Federal judge in Montana criticized over racist Obama
Thu,1 Mar 2012 05:58 PM PST
Reuters - A federal judge in Montana who used official court email to circulate a racist joke about President Barack Obama has acknowledged the indiscretion and initiated a misconduct complaint against himself, court officials said on Thursday. Full Story | Top |
World can replace oil lost to Iran sanctions: U.S.
Thu,1 Mar 2012 05:42 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Global oil producers appear to have enough spare capacity to make up for Iranian exports curtailed by tough new sanctions, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu said on Thursday. Chu said it was important that sanctions be used to crimp Iranian oil sales to ensure Tehran does not develop nuclear weapons, despite the release of an Energy Information Administration report this week that showed supplies are tight. ... Full Story | Top |
Obama taps New York donors despite Wall Street ire
Thu,1 Mar 2012 05:09 PM PST
Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - President Barack Obama returned to New York on Thursday for a series of high-end fundraising events, tapping Wall Street donors whose generosity has been strained by U.S. financial reforms that many bankers oppose. Facing the multi-million dollar election warchests of his Republican rivals, Obama has raised $136 million so far in the 2012 presidential race, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. But only $2.3 million has so far come from the securities and investment industry, versus the $7. ... Full Story | Top |
Loss of Arctic sea ice may lead to mercury deposits: NASA study
Thu,1 Mar 2012 05:08 PM PST
Reuters - LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Significant declines in perennial Arctic sea ice over the past decade may be intensifying a chemical reaction that leads to deposits of toxic mercury, a NASA-led study showed on Thursday. The study found that thick, perennial Arctic sea ice was being replaced by a thinner and saltier ice that releases bromine into the air when it interacts with sunlight and cold, said Son Nghiem, a NASA researcher at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena. ... Full Story | Top |
Obama, Republicans spar over gasoline prices
Thu,1 Mar 2012 05:01 PM PST
Reuters -  NASHUA, New Hampshire (Reuters) - Facing intensifying election-year attacks over rising gasoline prices, President Barack Obama sought to shift the spotlight onto oil and gas companies on Thursday by pushing for the repeal of U.S. tax breaks that benefit the industry. Obama's speech in New Hampshire, in the backyard of leading Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney, was part of a White House strategy to blunt a bid by Republicans to blame a spike in energy prices on the president's energy policies. ...
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Pennsylvania judge may approve Harrisburg recovery plan
Thu,1 Mar 2012 04:57 PM PST
Reuters - HARRISBURG (Reuters) - Following a day-long hearing filled with unexpected emotion and court theatrics, a Pennsylvania judge said she is "inclined" to approve the first part of a recovery plan for the financially hobbled City of Harrisburg. Pennsylvania's capital, with a population of about 50,000, is mired in $326 million in debt due to the expensive retrofits and repairs of its troubled trash incinerator. After an attempt to file municipal bankruptcy was rejected last year in federal court, a state-appointed receiver, David Unkovic, was tasked with developing a turnaround plan for the city. ... Full Story | Top |
Conservative activist Andrew Breitbart dead at 43
Thu,1 Mar 2012 04:45 PM PST
Reuters -  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Conservative activist Andrew Breitbart, an influential voice in Republican circles known for his online media attacks on liberals, died unexpectedly of natural causes in Los Angeles early on Thursday, his family said. He was 43. Breitbart, the founder of a news website named after himself, was walking late on Wednesday near his Los Angeles home when he collapsed, said his father-in-law, actor Orson Bean. "He collapsed on the sidewalk and the paramedics were there very quickly and they couldn't revive him," Bean told Reuters in a phone interview. ...
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Republicans introduce softer cyber security bill
Thu,1 Mar 2012 04:41 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Eight top Republicans introduced a cybersecurity bill on Thursday aimed at stopping an overarching, bipartisan measure proposed earlier this month in order to better protect critical infrastructure. The measure, introduced by the top Republicans on eight committees, would require federal contractors to inform the government about cyber threats and make it easier for government regulators and corporations to communicate about threats. "We believe that ensuring our nation's cybersecurity is critical. ... Full Story | Top |
Exclusive: DOJ casts wide net with mortgage subpoenas
Thu,1 Mar 2012 04:36 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. Justice Department inquiry into the packaging and sale of home loans by the biggest U.S. banks casts a wide net and appears to significantly overlap with other enforcement efforts, according to people who have viewed subpoenas sent to the firms. The civil subpoenas that were sent in January ask for documents related to every offering between 2006 and 2008, including bonds backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, three people familiar with the matter said. An older investigation by the U.S. ...
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Senate rejects Republican birth control challenge
Thu,1 Mar 2012 04:20 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Senate narrowly backed a key plank of President Barack Obama's healthcare law on Thursday by rejecting a sweeping Republican measure that would have allowed employers to opt out of birth control coverage and other services on moral grounds. Senators voted 51-48 to set aside a measure proposed by Republican Roy Blunt that would have exempted employers like Catholic hospitals, universities and charities from an Obama healthcare provision that requires most employers to offer free insurance coverage for women's contraceptives. ... Full Story | Top |
Greek man shoots two, takes hostages over layoff
Thu,1 Mar 2012 04:16 PM PST
Reuters -  ATHENS (Reuters) - An unemployed man shot and wounded his former boss and one other worker and took another two hostage at a small factory in Greece in protest at losing his job, police said on Thursday. He later released the hostages and turned himself over to police after officers surrounded the factory in northern Greece. Police said the man, a 61-year-old father of two who was laid off about seven months ago, did not harm his captives. ...
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Microsoft hires ex-FTC Google expert as lobbyist
Thu,1 Mar 2012 04:09 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp hired as one of its lobbyists a former Federal Trade Commission lawyer who had access to "thousands" of confidential Google Inc documents, according to a source close to the situation. The software maker took on Randall Long, who led the FTC's investigation into Google's acquisition of AdMob, to be a lobbyist in its Washington office, according to both Google and Microsoft. The hiring, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, is the latest salvo in Microsoft's ongoing battle with Google for dominance of the high-tech world. ... Full Story | Top |
Ann Romney adds personal touch to Mitt's campaign
Thu,1 Mar 2012 04:02 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Ann Romney gets it. She is aware that her husband, Republican presidential front-runner Mitt Romney, has an image problem. Critics say he often seems stiff and reserved on the campaign trail, and has difficulty connecting with voters. That isn't a problem for Ann Romney. She is warm, composed, approachable and careful with her words. The mother of five and grandmother of 16 also has become the behind-the-scenes glue in Mitt Romney's well-organized campaign -- a trusted adviser who keeps a close eye on the news coverage about him and casts him as a personable family man. ...
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Edwards campaign finance trial set for April
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:59 PM PST
Reuters - GREENSBORO, North Carolina (Reuters) - A federal campaign finance case against former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards will go to trial in April, U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles said on Thursday. The trial previously was delayed due to a "serious" medical condition cited by Edwards. Jury selection is set to begin in Greensboro, North Carolina, on April 12, and the evidence presentation will start on April 23. Eagles said she expects the trial to last about six weeks. ... Full Story | Top |
Maryland legalizes same-sex marriage; challenge looms
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:58 PM PST
Reuters - ANNAPOLIS, Maryland (Reuters) - Maryland became the eighth state in the nation to legalize same-sex marriage on Thursday, just as opponents were ramping up efforts to repeal the new law at the ballot box. At a ceremony in the state capitol building, Governor Martin O'Malley signed into law the measure he has vigorously advocated, surrounded by a cheering crowd of legislators and gay-marriage supporters. "If there's a thread that unites us all, it's the thread of human dignity," the Democratic governor said. ... Full Story | Top |
EU argues over balance between austerity, growth
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:44 PM PST
Reuters -  BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union leaders argued on Thursday over the right balance between budget austerity and reviving lost growth at the first summit for two years in which the euro zone debt crisis did not eclipse all else. After their finance ministers gave provisional approval to a second bailout for Greece, and a flood of cheap European Central Bank funds calmed bond markets, the 27 leaders used the breathing space to focus on structural economic reforms and other ways to combat record unemployment. ...
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Europe on right path, still fragile: ECB's Draghi
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:44 PM PST
Reuters - BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Central Bank is "reasonably satisfied" with its offer of half a trillion euros of cheap funds to lenders and Europe is on a fragile path to recovery, in a much healthier position than three months ago, ECB President Mario Draghi said on Thursday. "We are reasonably satisfied with our LTRO operation," Draghi said a day after the Frankfurt-based bank provided 530 billion euros to 800 banks under its special three-year loans programme to help avoid a credit freeze. ... Full Story | Top |
No EU leeway offered on Spain's deficit
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:44 PM PST
Reuters - BRUSSELS/MADRID (Reuters) - Spain will get no leeway on its budget targets before May, Spanish Economy Minister Luis De Guindos said on Thursday, but Madrid could opt for defiance when it presents the backbone of its 2012 plan on Friday. Spain has hovered on the fringes of the euro zone crisis as investors worry that its economy, enfeebled by the bursting of a property bubble, puts it at risk of following Greece, Ireland and neighbouring Portugal in seeking a bailout. ... Full Story | Top |
Serbia closer to EU status after years of conflict
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:28 PM PST
Reuters - BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union made Serbia a candidate for membership on Thursday in an attempt to promote better government in the western Balkans as the region struggles to emerge from the wars of the 1990s. EU leaders took the decision at a summit in Brussels, launching a potentially lengthy process to bring the former Yugoslav republic into the bloc. It marks a turnaround for Serbia, once seen as the pariah of Balkans for its central role in wars that followed the collapse of Yugoslavia under the leadership of Slobodan Milosevic. ... Full Story | Top |
Romney's tax cuts would blow big hole in budget: report
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:19 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney's plan to dramatically cut U.S. tax rates would dig a $3.4 trillion budget hole that would need to be filled by closing some major tax breaks, a think tank estimated. A campaign spokeswoman for Romney, who is hoping to win his party's race to challenge President Barack Obama in November, said the think tank's analysis is misleading and incomplete. ... Full Story | Top |
Obama, Republicans spar over gasoline prices
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:15 PM PST
Reuters -  NASHUA, New Hampshire (Reuters) - Facing intensifying election-year attacks over rising gasoline prices, President Barack Obama sought to shift the spotlight onto oil and gas companies on Thursday by pushing for the repeal of U.S. tax breaks that benefit the industry. Obama's speech in New Hampshire, in the backyard of leading Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney, was part of a White House strategy to blunt a campaign by Republicans to blame a spike in energy prices on the president's energy policies. ...
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Syria to let Red Cross into Homs rebel bastion
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:13 PM PST
Reuters - GENEVA (Reuters) - Syrian authorities will let Red Cross and Red Crescent aid workers enter the Baba Amro district of Homs Friday to deliver supplies and evacuate the sick and wounded, said an International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) spokesman. The move came as a three-week Syrian army siege of the neighborhood appeared to be ending Thursday with the withdrawal of rebel forces. ... Full Story | Top |
U.N. rights body condemns Syria over violations
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:13 PM PST
Reuters - GENEVA (Reuters) - The main United Nations human rights body condemned the government of President Bashar al-Assad on Thursday for violations in Syria that it said may amount to crimes against humanity, and called for a halt to attacks on civilians. The 47-member Geneva forum adopted a resolution brought by Gulf and Western countries with 37 states in favor and China, Cuba and Russia against. The U.S. human rights ambassador said these three countries "are on the wrong side of history. ... Full Story | Top |
Syria opposition chiefs at odds over military body
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:13 PM PST
Reuters - PARIS (Reuters) - The leaders of the political and armed wings of Syria's opposition appear to be at odds over the authority of a military council that was announced Thursday, underscoring divisions that are hampering efforts to lead an uprising. Syrian National Council (SNC) leader Burhan Ghalioun said his political opposition group had formed a military body to oversee and organize armed rebels within the country under a unified leadership. "The creation of the military council was agreed upon by all armed forces in Syria," he told a news conference in Paris on Thursday. ... Full Story | Top |
Most Syria rebels pull out of Baba Amro in Homs
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:13 PM PST
Reuters - BEIRUT (Reuters) - Most Syrian rebels pulled out of the besieged Baba Amro district of Homs on Thursday after more than three weeks of bombardment by President Bashar al-Assad's forces, activists in contact with the rebels said. They said a few fighters had remained behind to try to cover the "tactical withdrawal" of their comrades. (Reporting by Mariam Karouny) Full Story | Top |
Russia, China join U.N. council in Syria rebuke
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:13 PM PST
Reuters - UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Russia and China joined other U.N. Security Council members on Thursday in expressing "deep disappointment" at Syria's failure to allow the U.N. humanitarian aid chief Valerie Amos to visit the country and urged that she be allowed in immediately. The 15 nations on the council also said in a unanimously agreed statement that they "deplore the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation" in Syria, where the United Nations says security forces have killed more than 7,500 civilians during an 11-month government crackdown on pro-democracy protesters. ... Full Story | Top |
U.N. concerned Syria may have chemical weapons
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:13 PM PST
Reuters - UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon and the head of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons are concerned at the possibility that Syria may have chemical weapons, a U.N. spokesman said on Thursday. "On Syria, the Secretary-General and the Director-General noted with concern the reports on the possible existence of chemical weapons in the country," U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky told reporters. "Those concerns are entirely understandable." The top U.S. military officer, General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
French journalists evacuated from Syria to Lebanon
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:12 PM PST
Reuters -  BEIRUT (Reuters) - Two French journalists who were trapped in the besieged Syrian city of Homs were on Thursday evacuated to Lebanon, where the French government was preparing to fly them home. At the same time, videos posted on the Internet showed that American journalist Marie Colvin and French photographer Remi Ochlik were buried in Homs, where they were killed eight days ago in shelling that also that caught their two French colleagues. ...
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Iran religious, political hardliners face off in vote
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:09 PM PST
Reuters -  (Reuters) - Iran's ruling political and religious hardliners will face off in a parliamentary election on Friday, echoing a deepening rift in a conservative establishment grappling with economic sanctions over the country's disputed nuclear program. The election will by the first since the country's disputed presidential election in 2009, when bloody opposition and pro-democracy protests were stamped out by security forces. ...
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Conservative activist Andrew Breitbart dead at 43
Thu,1 Mar 2012 03:00 PM PST
Reuters -  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Conservative activist Andrew Breitbart, an influential voice in U.S. Republican politics known for his attacks on liberals and Democrats, died unexpectedly of natural causes in Los Angeles early on Thursday, his family said. He was 43. Breitbart was walking last night near his Los Angeles home when he collapsed, said his father-in-law, actor Orson Bean. "He collapsed on the sidewalk and the paramedics were there very quickly and they couldn't revive him," Bean told Reuters in a phone interview. ...
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Two U.S. soldiers killed at base in Afghanistan
Thu,1 Mar 2012 02:58 PM PST
Reuters - KABUL (Reuters) - Two U.S. soldiers were shot and killed on Thursday in an attack involving at least one Afghan believed to be a soldier and a civilian, Western and Afghan officials said, the second such incident in a week and one likely to deepen doubts about Afghanistan's security forces. The killings at a base in Kandahar in southern Afghanistan came after two senior U.S. officers were gunned down in the Afghan Interior Ministry on Saturday by what Afghan security officials say was a police intelligence official. ... Full Story | Top |
Factory growth cools, spending stagnant
Thu,1 Mar 2012 02:57 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. manufacturing cooled in February and consumer spending was flat for a third straight month in January, suggesting the economy lost more steam early this year than expected. "Things aren't so rosy in the garden and the consumer is still facing significant headwinds," said Ray Attrill, a currency strategist at BNP Paribas in New York. Other reports on Thursday were more upbeat, with new claims for jobless benefits last week hovering near four-year lows and retailers and automakers enjoying brisker February sales. ...
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Iran buys U.S. wheat despite nuclear tensions
Thu,1 Mar 2012 02:56 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Iran has made a rare purchase of U.S. wheat as it tries to build its food stockpiles amid tougher sanctions imposed by the United States and Europe. The U.S. Agriculture Department reported on Thursday that Iran bought 120,000 tons of U.S. wheat -- enough to fill two large cargo ships. While not illegal, the deal caught traders by surprise as tensions mount between the West and Iran on concerns the Islamic Republic was intent on developing a nuclear weapon. "It shocked me," said Jerod Leman, a broker with Wellington Commodities Corp. ... Full Story | Top |
Little support in Israel for solo strike on Iran: poll
Thu,1 Mar 2012 02:56 PM PST
Reuters - JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A wide majority of Israelis either oppose an Israeli strike on Iran or would favor an attack only if it was carried out with U.S. agreement, an opinion poll showed on Thursday. The survey by the University of Maryland and the Israeli Dahaf Institute was released before talks next week between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Barack Obama on Iran's nuclear program. ... Full Story | Top |
Key constituencies disillusioned as Iran votes
Thu,1 Mar 2012 02:56 PM PST
Reuters - TEHRAN (Reuters) - Like many members of Iran's paramilitary volunteer force, Mohammadreza Baqeri was a supporter of Iran's conservative president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Nearly three years after Ahmadinejad's disputed re-election, the 27-year-old blogger says he will not vote for Ahminadejad's camp in parliamentary elections on Friday. "I want new faces. I want a vocal parliament that can have an impact in the country," said Baqeri, a member of the Basij paramilitary force. "I want a parliament with young and ambitious lawmakers. ... Full Story | Top |
Global oil capacity enough for Iran sanctions: Chu
Thu,1 Mar 2012 02:56 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu said on Thursday that global oil producers appear to have enough spare capacity to make up for Iranian exports curtailed by tough new sanctions. Chu said it was important that sanctions be used to crimp Iranian oil sales to ensure Tehran does not develop nuclear weapons, despite the release of an Energy Information Administration report this week that showed supply tightness. "There is spare capacity and we believe -- we'll see -- but I think there is sufficient spare capacity," Chu told reporters on Capitol Hill. ... Full Story | Top |
U.S. underscores Egypt NGO concerns as staffers depart
Thu,1 Mar 2012 02:56 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Thursday expressed continued concern over Egypt's crackdown on pro-democracy groups following an Egyptian court order permitting the departure of American nongovernmental organization staffers who had been under a travel ban. "We are very pleased that the Egyptian courts have now lifted the travel ban on our NGO employees. The U.S. government has provided a plane to facilitate their departure and they have left the country. They are currently en route home," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said. ... Full Story | Top |
American activists fly out of Egypt, defusing row
Thu,1 Mar 2012 02:56 PM PST
Reuters -  CAIRO (Reuters) - U.S. pro-democracy activists flew out of Egypt on Thursday after the authorities lifted a travel ban, a move that is likely to defuse the worst row between Washington and Cairo in decades. Egyptian authorities had accused the campaigners, including the son of U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, of working for groups receiving illegal foreign funding and prevented them from leaving the country. U.S. officials said the case, as long as it was unresolved, jeopardized $1. ...
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Kodak to sell photo services website to Shutterfly
Thu,1 Mar 2012 02:47 PM PST
Reuters - (Reuters) - Eastman Kodak Co, which filed for bankruptcy protection in January, said it agreed to sell its on-line photo services business to "stalking horse" bidder Shutterfly Inc for $23.8 million. A "stalking horse" bid is used as a starting bid or minimally accepted offer that other interested bidders must surpass if they want to buy the company. Shutterfly shares rose 18 percent to $31.70 in extended trade, following the news. The stock had closed at $26.91 on Thursday on the Nasdaq. The company said it will transfer Kodak Gallery customer accounts and images in the U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
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