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| Argentine poet, political critic Gelman dies in Mexico Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 07:53 PM PST  Juan Gelman, the celebrated Argentine poet and fierce critic of the South American nation's "dirty war" against leftists, died Tuesday in Mexico City, Mexico's national art council said. Gelman, who was born in Buenos Aires but lived in the Mexican capital for more than 20 years, died after being hospitalized, the council said in a statement. The poet and political analyst's writings won some of the highest awards given to Spanish writers, including the lifetime achievement Miguel de Cervantes Prize. One of Gelman's own sons was kidnapped and murdered during the so-called "dirty war." (Reporting by Miguel Gutierrez; Full Story | Top |
| Investor Khosla: '60 Minutes' cleantech segment full of errors Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 07:19 PM PST  Venture capitalist Vinod Khosla on Tuesday issued a harsh rebuke to "60 Minutes" a week after the news magazine TV show broadcast a report saying that Silicon Valley and Washington have little to show for their investments in clean technology. In an open letter to both "60 Minutes" and its network, CBS, Khosla said a January 5 segment for which he was interviewed "grossly misrepresented the state of the sustainable energy industry." The letter, which was posted on the website of Khosla's Menlo Park, California firm, Khosla Ventures, went on to list what he called "numerous" reporting errors in "60 Minutes." A spokesman for "60 Minutes" responded saying, "While we respect Mr Khosla's views, we are not in agreement with the points he makes about our story." "We began and ended the piece with him, and devoted time to his ideas and to one of the companies he backs." The news magazine's segment on investments in advanced energy, sometimes known as cleantech, characterized Khosla-funded biofuels maker Kior Inc as "riddled with delays." It quoted a biofuels specialist, Robert Rapier, as saying Khosla "overpromised and under-delivered" on his investments. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. senators slam 'glamorization' of e-cigarettes at Golden Globes Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 05:28 PM PST  A group of U.S. senators is taking the Golden Globes to task for showing celebrities puffing on electronic cigarettes at this year's awards show, complaining such depictions glamorize smoking. "The Golden Globes celebrates entertainers who are an influence on young fans," the four Democratic senators wrote on Tuesday. "We ask the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and NBC Universal to take actions to ensure that future broadcasts of the Golden Globes do not intentionally feature images of e-cigarettes." "Such action would help to avoid the glamorization of smoking and protect the health of young fans," said the letter signed by Dick Durbin of Illinois, Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Edward Markey of Massachusetts." The Golden Globes ceremony that aired on Comcast Corp-owned NBC on Sunday night showed actor Leonardo DiCaprio smoking an e-cigarette during the broadcast, as well as nominee Julia Louis-Dreyfus puffing on one as part of an opening skit. Full Story | Top |
| Dogged on disarmament, actor Michael Douglas earns UNICEF award Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 05:09 PM PST  By Mary Milliken BEVERLY HILLS, California (Reuters) - Oscar-winning actor Michael Douglas says his main philanthropic cause - nuclear disarmament - is not exactly the kind of "touchy-feely" issue that celebrities and their fans covet, and it can be awfully frustrating when it comes to progress. It's one, however, he has stuck with for years as a United Nations Messenger of Peace since 1998, and for that persistence he will be recognized on Tuesday night with the Danny Kaye Humanitarian Peace Award from the U.S. fund for UNICEF, the U.N. branch for children. "I was born in 1944, one year before the first bomb went off, and I hope in my lifetime to see the elimination of the weapons," Douglas told Reuters ahead of UNICEF's Beverly Hills ball, with childhood friend Dena Kaye, the only daughter of the late comic actor and UNICEF's first ambassador, by his side. That he is being honored with the Danny Kaye award is especially meaningful, he said, because he knew Kaye as a child, admired his impact on children and can still recite rhymes from his films. Full Story | Top |
| Time Warner Cable executives 'failed,' Charter says in push for deal Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 04:55 PM PST  Charter Communications unleashed a verbal attack on Time Warner Cable on Tuesday, saying the cable operator's executives had "failed" as Charter tried to rally investors to accept its bid. Charter's top executives slammed Time Warner Cable for having the industry's lowest customer satisfaction and "negative momentum." Charter argues that Time Warner Cable is better off in its hands because its management can spearhead a turnaround of its larger rival. Executives from the No. 4 cable operator made these comments on a conference call a day after it launched a bid for Time Warner Cable at $132.50 per share, consisting of around $83 per share in cash and its own stock. The deal, valued at $37.3 billion, was rejected by Time Warner Cable's board for being "grossly inadequate." Charter has been trying for six months to strike a deal to buy Time Warner Cable and sway its shareholders after three of its offers have been rebuffed. Full Story | Top |
| Police raid Justin Bieber's home, arrest man for drugs Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 03:39 PM PST  By Eric Kelsey LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A police search of teen pop star Justin Bieber's California home on Tuesday in a vandalism case linked to the singer, resulted in the arrest of a man after drugs were found in the house, the Los Angeles County Sheriff said. Detectives raided Bieber's home at about 8 a.m. after the "Boyfriend" singer was accused of pelting his neighbor's home with eggs in an incident on January 9. Bieber, 19, was detained at his Calabasas home, about 30 miles northwest of Los Angeles while a dozen deputies searched for evidence. "He has not been arrested nor has been exonerated," Sheriff's Lt. David Thompson said at a news conference in nearby Malibu following the search. Full Story | Top |
| Axel Springer, others interested in Forbes: report Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 03:09 PM PST  (Reuters) - Forbes Media, the company known for its namesake magazine and ranking the world's richest people, has caught the attention of six different companies including Germany's Axel Springer, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. Other interested companies, the Journal said, include Chinese investment company Fosun International; Spice Global, an investment conglomerate based in Singapore; Full Story | Top |
| Charter touts benefits of offer for Time Warner Cable Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 01:34 PM PST  Charter Communications expects annual synergies of $500 million and other benefits such as tax savings from its proposed acquisition of Time Warner Cable, the company said in an investor presentation posted on its website Tuesday. The No. 4 cable operator is trying to strike a deal to buy Time Warner Cable and sway its shareholders after three of its offers have been rebuffed. On Monday, Charter took its approach public and proposed paying $132.50 per share, consisting of around $83 per share in cash and its own stock, in a deal valued at $37.3 billion that Time Warner Cable's board rejected. The combined company would have to take on $20.5 billion in new debt, or $72.16 per share, which would bring it to a leverage ratio of 4.8 times to five times. Full Story | Top |
| Franco-German energy firm seen focused on renewables: sources Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 12:20 PM PST A French-German joint initiative in the energy sector announced by President Francois Hollande is likely to focus on renewable energy but is not aimed at forging alliances between major utilities firms, political and industrial sources said. Hollande surprised markets on Tuesday with a reference to the creation of a Franco-German joint venture energy company modeled on European aviation group Airbus, but sources told Reuters that French state-controlled utility EDF and German energy major E.ON had not been consulted about a major cooperation initiative. "The idea is to make a big French-German company for the energy transition." The announcement was one of an avalanche of new-sounding proposals put out by Hollande, determined to seize back the news agenda from allegations that he is having an affair with an actress. A French government source told Reuters that Hollande wants concrete proposals for cooperation in the renewable energy sector at joint French-German cabinet meeting scheduled for a February 19. Full Story | Top |
| French president's White House trip still on despite reported affair Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 12:13 PM PST French President Francois Hollande's state visit to the United States is still on schedule despite the reported problems that have erupted in Hollande's personal life. Hollande is scheduled to have talks with President Barack Obama and attend a state dinner on February 11. White House spokesman Jay Carney referred questions to the French government as to who Hollande would bring with him. Full Story | Top |
| France to cut 50 billion euros in spending in 2015-17: Hollande Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 11:34 AM PST French President Francois Hollande said on Tuesday he would cut public spending by 50 billion euros ($68 billion) in 2015-17 and ease the tax burden on companies by phasing out hefty family welfare payroll charges. "In 2014, this year, we will save 15 billion (euros)," Hollande told a news conference at the Elysee presidential palace. This has never been done before." The savings would be achieved by a thorough review of all public spending, including the operations of local authorities, though France's social welfare model would be preserved. "France must not only regain growth in 2014, but growth that is as strong as possible," he said. Full Story | Top |
| Hollande stonewalls on private life to make reform pitch Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 11:34 AM PST  By Mark John PARIS (Reuters) - President Francois Hollande brushed away questions about an alleged affair with an actress on Tuesday and unveiled moves to ease company taxes, cut labor charges and trim France's high public spending to revive a stagnant economy. He called for France and Germany to harmonize corporate taxation and create a joint venture to manage the transition to renewable energy, modeled on European plane giant Airbus. With over 500 journalists packed into the Elysee Palace ballroom for a New Year news conference, the Socialist leader, deeply unpopular with voters, made no mention of controversy about his private life in a 30-minute introductory speech and defiantly stonewalled on the subject for the next two hours. His official partner, Valerie Trierweiler, is in hospital recovering from shock after a celebrity magazine published pictures of what it said was Hollande wearing a motorcycle helmet visiting actress Julie Gayet for nocturnal trysts. Full Story | Top |
| Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr added to Grammy Awards performers Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 11:12 AM PST  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Former Beatles Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr will each perform at the Grammy Awards this month where the pair will accept a lifetime achievement award on behalf of the Fab Four, organizers said on Tuesday. McCartney, 71, and Starr, 73, will be joined by R&B singer John Legend, hip-hop duo Macklemore & Ryan Lewis as well as country singers Taylor Swift, Kacey Musgraves and Keith Urban as performers during the 56th Grammy Awards, the Recording Academy said. ... Full Story | Top |
| Charter takes rejected Time Warner Cable bid to investors Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 11:02 AM PST  By Liana B. Baker and Nicola Leske NEW YORK (Reuters) - Charter Communications Inc on Monday formally offered to acquire larger rival Time Warner Cable for $37.3 billion, sparking what is likely to be a contentious battle for control of the No. 2 U.S. cable operator. Charter, the No. 4 cable operator, proposed paying $132.50 per share - barely higher than where Time Warner Cable shares closed on Monday - consisting of around $83 per share in cash and its own stock. Malone's Liberty Media Corp owns 27 percent of Charter. Time Warner Cable shareholders would get 45 percent ownership in the combined company. Full Story | Top |
| Murder by candlelight at London's new Jacobean theatre Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 10:42 AM PST  By Ben Hirschler LONDON (Reuters) - London has a new theatre lit entirely by candles, transporting audiences back 400 years to the kind of performances seen on winter nights in Shakespeare's time. Constructed mainly of oak, the building sits alongside the established open-air Globe theatre on the south bank of the Thames - but it offers a very different experience by replicating an indoor playhouse of the early 17th century. While the Globe's thatched amphitheatre is breezy and holds more than 1,500 people, the new Sam Wanamaker Playhouse - named after the American actor and director who came up with the idea for both venues - is intimate, with just 340 seats. Stepping inside is like entering an antique marquetry box, with the flickering candlelight illuminating woodwork and a painted ceiling that make a fine setting for the inward-looking psychological dramas of the Jacobean period. Full Story | Top |
| British phone-hacking trial shown footage of alleged Brooks' cover-up Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 10:40 AM PST  By Michael Holden LONDON (Reuters) - The trial of Rebekah Brooks, who ran Rupert Murdoch's British newspaper arm, was shown film footage on Tuesday of what the prosecution alleges was her husband's attempt to hide evidence from police investigating accusations of phone-hacking. The day Brooks was first quizzed by police, and before her home was searched, prosecutors say her husband, racehorse trainer Charlie Brooks, hid a laptop and a bag behind a bin in an underground parking lot of their plush London apartment block where it was picked up by the Brooks's security team. After the police completed a search, the security team returned with a bag and left it in the car park. News International, the British newspaper division of Murdoch's News Corp, became engulfed in the police inquiry in 2011 after it was alleged journalists had hacked the phone of a murdered schoolgirl amongst others. Full Story | Top |
| Beanie Babies creator gets probation in tax evasion conviction Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 09:38 AM PST CHICAGO (Reuters) - Billionaire Beanie Babies creator Ty Warner will serve two years of probation that includes mentoring high school students following his guilty plea on a tax evasion charge, a federal judge ruled on Tuesday. Warner, 69, who pleaded guilty in October, said in Chicago federal court that it was the biggest mistake of his life before U.S. District Judge Charles Kocoras handed down the sentence. Prosecutors had sought a prison term for Warner. (Reporting by Mary Wisniewski; Writing by David Bailey; Editing by Cynthia Johnston) Full Story | Top |
| Dave Lee Travis first in court in trials over showbiz sex abuse Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 09:36 AM PST  By Belinda Goldsmith LONDON (Reuters) - The first in a list of ageing celebrities accused of sexually abusing young fans over many years went on trial on Tuesday in an investigation that has rocked confidence in the BBC, Britain's publicly funded broadcaster. One of Britain's best-known radio DJs in the 1970s and 1980s, Dave Lee Travis, who counted Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi among his fans, is facing 14 charges involving 11 women aged from 15 upwards that date from between 1976 and 2008. British-based Australian entertainer Rolf Harris also appeared in court on Tuesday where he pleaded not guilty to 12 counts of indecent assault, one allegedly involving a girl aged seven or eight. The charges stem from a police investigation launched after the 2011 death of one of the BBC's top TV presenters, Jimmy Savile, who turned out to have been a prolific sex predator over six decades. Full Story | Top |
| Ex-DJ first in court in UK trials over showbiz sex abuse Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 09:35 AM PST  By Belinda Goldsmith LONDON (Reuters) - The first in a list of ageing celebrities accused of sexually abusing young fans over many years went on trial on Tuesday in an investigation that has rocked confidence in the BBC, Britain's publicly funded broadcaster. One of Britain's best-known radio DJs in the 1970s and 1980s, Dave Lee Travis, who counted Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi among his fans, is facing 14 charges involving 11 women aged from 15 upwards that date from between 1976 and 2008. British-based Australian entertainer Rolf Harris also appeared in court on Tuesday where he pleaded not guilty to 12 counts of indecent assault, one allegedly involving a girl aged seven or eight. The charges stem from a police investigation launched after the 2011 death of one of the BBC's top TV presenters, Jimmy Savile, who turned out to have been a prolific sex predator over six decades. Full Story | Top |
| Two large Canadian newspaper publishers cut more staff Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 08:55 AM PST Two of Canada's largest newspaper publishers announced another round of layoffs on Monday, as the industry cuts costs to offset sharp declines in sales of print advertising. Postmedia Network Canada Corp, the owner of the National Post and a string of regional titles, and Toronto's Globe and Mail newspaper both announced cuts. Postmedia Network Canada said most of the 48 workers at a Calgary call center for its classified ads would leave the company in coming months after their jobs were outsourced to a U.S. company. The Globe and Mail said it was cutting 18 positions, nine of them in editorial, after failing to reduce costs enough via voluntary furloughs and previous layoffs. Full Story | Top |
| Canada's Shaw Communications posts profit, but loses more TV customers Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 06:28 AM PST  By Alastair Sharp TORONTO (Reuters) - Western Canada-focused Shaw Communications Inc posted a 4 percent rise in first-quarter profit on Tuesday, but it continued to lose customers in its main cable television business. The Calgary, Alberta-based cable company, which is facing tough competition for TV and Internet customers from telecom rival Telus Corp and a burgeoning threat from online alternatives such as Netflix Inc, said it lost 29,619 cable-TV subscribers and 9,323 satellite TV customers. "Our performance was driven by growth in our commercial business, discipline around customer acquisition, and strength in our Internet business," CEO Brad Shaw said in a statement. Full Story | Top |
| Canada's Corus Entertainment profit triples Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 04:27 AM PST  (Reuters) - Canadian media company Corus Entertainment Inc's quarterly profit nearly tripled after the company gained from the recent acquisition of specialty television services. Profit rose to C$150.9 million ($138.9 million), or C$1.78 per share in the first quarter ended November 30, from C$52.16 million, or 62 Canadian cents per share, a year earlier. Net income included a non-cash gain of C$127.9 million from the remeasurement to fair value of Corus's 50 percent stake in Teletoon. Corus acquired the rest of Teletoon in September. Revenue rose 8 percent to C$226 million. ... Full Story | Top |
| Show me the Monet: Philippines seeks return of Marcos paintings Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 03:28 AM PST  By Manuel Mogato MANILA (Reuters) - The Philippines aims to recover three paintings, including one by French Impressionist Claude Monet, that a former aide of Imelda Marcos has been jailed in the United States for trying to sell. Vilma Bautista, 75, a one-time secretary to the powerful wife of former Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos, was on Monday sentenced to six years in a New York prison for a scheme to sell art that once belonged to the former first lady. Among the pieces that Bautista managed to sell was "Le Bassin aux Nympheas" by Monet, from his famed water-lily series, that netted $32 million. That one can't be recovered but the Philippines is determined to get back three unsold paintings that Bautista had in her possession: another Monet, "L'Eglise et La Seine a Vetheuil," Alfred Sisley's "Langland Bay" and Albert Marquet's "Le Cypres de Djenan Sidi Said". Full Story | Top |
| MTV showcases 2014 'Artists to Watch' across TV, digital platforms Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 03:04 AM PST  By Piya Sinha-Roy LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - MTV is harnessing its roots in the pop music world to showcase a crop of rising artists with its annual 'Artists to Watch' campaign, selecting acts from across the world to bring to its youth audience. British alt-pop band Bastille, Scottish electro-pop group Chvrches and girl group Fifth Harmony are three of 12 up-and-coming acts chosen by MTV as ones to watch. The 'Artists to Watch' program helps expose rising stars in the music world to MTV's target audience, and is an evolution of the network's early intentions to showcase artists making waves in the pop music zeitgeist. "Music videos are still an important part of a music experience, but it's not everything," Amy Doyle, MTV's executive vice president of music and talent programming, told Reuters. Full Story | Top |
| Sotheby's says disputed $8.2 million Chinese scroll is authentic Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 02:40 AM PST  By Adam Rose and Li Hui BEIJING (Reuters) - Sotheby's has rebutted claims that an $8.2 million Chinese calligraphic scroll it sold at auction in New York last year is a fake, defending its reputation as it seeks to gain a foothold in the fast-growing China art auction market. The New York-based auctioneer issued a 14-page document authenticating the work by Song dynasty politician-poet Su Shi, China's equivalent of one of Europe's Renaissance masters, which had been expected to fetch in excess of $300,000. The buyer, Chinese art collector and businessman Liu Yiqian, was quoted by Chinese media on Tuesday as saying he believed the work was real. Sotheby's rejected assertions carried in the state-owned China Cultural Relic News, and written by three Shanghai-based researchers, that the more than 900-year-old scroll was not by Su Shi, also known by the literary name Su Dongpo. Full Story | Top |
| EU probes licensing pacts between U.S. film studios, pay-TV firms Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014 01:17 AM PST  By Adrian Croft BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union opened an investigation into licensing agreements between major U.S. film studios and European pay-TV broadcasters on Monday, saying they may break EU anti-trust rules. The probe by the European Commission, the EU's anti-trust watchdog, will focus on agreements requiring films licensed by U.S. studios to be shown exclusively in the EU member state where each broadcaster operates via satellite and the Internet. The Commission, in principle, is against services being offered in one of the EU's 28 member states without people in other member states being able to access them. It will focus on agreements between studios including Twenty-First Century Fox, Warner Bros, Sony Pictures, NBCUniversal and Paramount Pictures and European pay-TV broadcasters such as Britain's BSkyB, France's Canal Plus, Germany's Sky Deutschland, Sky Italia of Italy and DTS, which operates under the Canal Plus brand in Spain. Full Story | Top |
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