Addresses weight loss
Rancic speaks out about her weight-loss critics:
I think the best thing to do, honestly, is not even talk about it. You know? As long as you know the truth, that’s all that matters.
Lifts suspension
NASCAR lifts its suspension of Busch, although he will remain on NASCAR probation. He is eligible for the Chase for the Sprint Cup. After missing the first three races of the season, Busch will return to the No. 41 car at Phoenix International Raceway.
We appreciate the steps Kurt Busch has made while following NASCAR’s process for reinstatement. He has taken this path seriously, which allowed him to return to our race team.
As we stated last week, the elimination of the possibility of criminal charges removed a significant impediment to Kurt Busch’s return to full status as a NASCAR member. We therefore have decided to move him to indefinite probation and waive the Chase requirement. He has fully complied with our reinstatement program during his suspension and the health care expert who conducted his evaluation recommended his immediate return.
Stores offline
The Company’s iTunes and App stores are offline for more than eight hours due to a DNS (doman name service) error. During this time customers worldwide are not able to buy or download items. Service for the iBooks Store also was interrupted. A timeline on Apple’s page said the outage started before 5 a.m. Access issues for users of iCloud Mail and other cloud services lasted about four hours, according to the timeline.
We apologize to our customers experiencing problems with iTunes and other services this morning. The cause was an internal DNS error at Apple. We’re working to make all of the services available to customers as soon as possible, and we thank everyone for their patience.
‘I don’t think it’s that serious’
May comments on Clarkson’s suspension:
No, I think he has been involved in a bit if a dust up, but I don’t think it’s that serious.
Asked if he supports Clarkson:
In many ways no, I have said many times before the man is a knob, but I quite like him. It’s all getting a bit ridiculous.
Journalists job losses warning
While speaking at the Digital Media Strategies conference, a gathering of more than 400 CEOs and senior leaders from the media industry, Highfield warns that the number of full-time journalists working across the group’s local titles will fall from its current figure of about 1,000. He says Johnston Press is aiming to increase the proportion of its revenue from digital advertising to about 23% in 2015, up from 17% in the current financial year, and that the group is headed towards a point at which digital ad revenue is growing four times faster than print declines.
The economics of this business means we will end up with fewer full-time journalists on our books. What you end up with is a much more fluid model with contributors producing a larger percentage of the newspaper. That’s not something we can duck. The economics of the digital world are going to mean our businesses can grow, not just survive but grow, but we need to go about things in a different way. It doesn’t mean the front of the book or the quality of editorial oversight will be diminished.
Wall of Shame to stop outside defecation
West Bengal’s Nadia district uses a ‘wall of shame’ to stop villagers from attending nature’s call in the open fields. Names and photographs of those who defecate in the open are pasted on a village wall. The district, which has a population of 5.2 million, strives to achieve the target of 100 per cent open defecation-free status by 2019.
This is being done to attach a sense of stigma and shame for those defecating in the open. We have constructed around 95 per cent toilets so far but this is not enough as people who have been going out in the open (to defecate) since generations cannot be expected to use toilets suddenly. Once they start using toilets their names would be restored.
Defends private email use
In a press conference Clinton says she used a private e-mail account to conduct State Department business for “convenience”. She says she has released more than 27,500 emails (from a total of 62,320) that involved official government e-mail addresses, such as those addressed to .gov addresses, names of government officials and Clinton’s staff, but also for terms including “Benghazi” and “Libya.” 31,830 e-mails were deemed personal and deleted. She said she did not discuss classified information on her personal e-mail.
I opted for convenience to use my personal email account, which was allowed by the State Department, because I thought it would be easier to carry just one device for my work and for my personal emails instead of two…Looking back it would have been better to use separate phones and two separate e-mail accounts. I thought one (mobile) device would be simpler. Obviously, it hasn’t worked out that way…I have no doubt we have done exactly what we should have done.
Clinton said she “chose not to keep” personal e-mails:
No one wants their personal e-mails made public and I think most people understand that and respect that privacy.
When asked about the impact of the controversy on whether she will run for President:
I trust the American people to make their decisions about political and public matters and I feel that I’ve taken unprecedented steps to provide these work-related emails, they’re going to be in the public domain, and Americans will find that interesting and I look forward to having that discussion.
Top Gear postponed
BBC postpones three remaining episodes of season 22 of the series after suspension of host Jeremy Clarkson for punching a male producer. Statement from the corporation:
Following a fracas with a BBC producer, Jeremy Clarkson has been suspended pending an investigation. No one else has been suspended. Top Gear will not be broadcast this Sunday. The BBC will be making no further comment at this time.
Announces departure from team
In a blog post, Smith announces that he will not be playing for the Ravens in 2015.
Although I may no longer be a member of the Baltimore Ravens, at heart, I will always be a Raven. What we accomplished together is timeless…This isn’t a goodbye because I will still be around, and Baltimore will continue to be my home in the offseason and when my career is done. I’m on to the next chapter of my life and football career, but I will see you guys later…I literally dreamed of playing for the Baltimore Ravens, not just because it is a great organization with an amazing fan base, but because of the foundation of the team and the principles that the men who run it stand by and for.
Calls for changing tables in mens’ restrooms
Kutcher says mens’ restrooms need changing tables for when dads bring their children along with them.
There are NEVER diaper changing stations in mens public restrooms. The first public men’s room that I go into that has one gets a free shout out on my FB page! #BeTheChange
Adds Muslim holidays to school calendars
De Blasio adds Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha to the school calendars of all New York City public schools. The schools will close for these holidays.
We’re here today to make good on a promise to our Muslim brothers and sisters that a holiday of supreme importance to the Muslim community will be recognized in our school calendar so that children can honor the holiday without missing school…We are committed to having a school calendar that reflects and honors the extraordinary diversity of our students.
Won’t play
Allen announces that he won’t play this season. He will reassess his options next season.
Over the past several months, I have taken a lot of time to deliberate what is best for me. I’ve ultimately decided that I will not play this NBA season. I’m going to take the remainder of this season, as well as the upcoming off-season, to reassess my situation, spend time with my family and determine if I will play in the 2015-16 season.
Launches exploratory panel
During an interview on Fox News, Carson says he is launching an exploratory panel to determine if there is enough support to make it feasible for him to run for president. He says he has already hired around twelve people to conduct focus groups and polling. The committee will be based in Alexandria, VA.
We are officially launching our exploratory committee. That means we have put in motion the staffing and the mechanism to explore to see whether me running for President in 2016 is a viable thing…We have tremendous popular support. The money will be there if the people want me to do this.
Publicizes referee calls
For the remainder of the season and throughout the playoffs, the NBA will release play-by-play reports of all referee calls and relevant no-calls in the final minutes of close games. Each play is reviewed by a senior basketball operations manager or senior referee manager. The reports will include grades for each play and whether or not the call was correct. The NBA’s Mike Bantom:
We tried to come up with a system that would allow us to provide some insight into our process and set a criteria that would allow us to be more standardized and more consistent…I think this is a solution that puts them [referees] in a much better light, doesn’t hide the fact that they are human and will make mistakes, but also points out the fact that the overwhelming majority of the calls that they get correct.
First transplant ‘possible in two years’
Canavero says the first full-body transplant could take place within two years. He plans to announce the project at the annual conference of the American Academy of Neurological and Orthopaedic Surgeons (AANOS) in Annapolis, Maryland, in June.
The procedure involves cooling the recipient’s head and the donor body to extend the time their cells can survive without oxygen. The tissue around the neck is dissected and the major blood vessels are linked using tiny tubes, before the spinal cords of each person are cut. The recipient’s head is then moved onto the donor body and the two ends of the spinal cord – which resemble two densely packed bundles of spaghetti – are fused together. To achieve this, Canavero intends to flush the area with a chemical called polyethylene glycol, which encourages the fat in cell membranes to mesh. The muscles and blood supply would be sutured and the recipient kept in a coma for three or four weeks to prevent movement. Implanted electrodes would provide regular electrical stimulation to the spinal cord. When the recipient wakes up, Canavero predicts they would be able to move and feel their face and would speak with the same voice. He says that physiotherapy would enable the person to walk within a year.
I think we are now at a point when the technical aspects are all feasible…This is why I first spoke about the idea two years ago, to get people talking about it. If society doesn’t want it, I won’t do it. But if people don’t want it in the US or Europe, that doesn’t mean it won’t be done somewhere else. I’m trying to go about this the right way, but before going to the moon, you want to make sure people will follow you.
Apology response
Zendaya accepts Rancic’s apology on Twitter:
Giuliana, I appreciate your apology and I’m glad it was a learning experience for you and for the network. I hope that others negatively affected by her words can also find it in their hearts to accept her apology as well.
Vatican statement
The Vatican issues a statement regarding Francis’ comments about ‘Mexicanization’. Rev. Federico Lombardi:
The pope intended only to emphasize the seriousness of the phenomenon of the drug trafficking that afflicts Mexico and other countries in Latin America. It is precisely this importance that has made the fight against drug trafficking a priority for the government.
Twitter rant suspension
ESPN suspends Olbermann for one week following his Twitter exchange with Penn State students regarding a story about a Penn State charity event that raised more than $13 million to help support children fighting pediatric cancer. Olbermann later apologizes for his posts via Twitter. ESPN:
It was completely inappropriate and does not reflect the views of ESPN. We have discussed it with Keith, who recognizes he was wrong. ESPN and Keith have agreed that he will not host his show for the remainder of this week and will return on Monday. The annual tradition of THON [the fundraising event] and the efforts of the students of Penn State to fight pediatric cancer should be applauded.
@lisaadeleon …Pitiful
— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) February 23, 2015
.@dave_seidel No, Son. I said PSU students were pitiful. Had nothing to do with fundraising #AlsoPSUReadingComprehensionAppearsToBeWeak
— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) February 23, 2015
.@dave_seidel Again – get your $ back – you didn't learn how to read. PSU students are pitiful because they're PSU students – period.
— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) February 23, 2015
I apologize for the PSU tweets. I was stupid and childish and way less mature than the students there who did such a great fundraising job.
— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) February 24, 2015
No federal charges
The Justice Department says its independent investigation finds “insufficient evidence” to charge Zimmerman with federal civil rights violations in the shooting death of Martin. Attorney General Holder says the evidence did not meet the high standard for a federal hate crime prosecution. The decision closes the federal investigation.
This young man’s premature death necessitates that we continue the dialogue and be unafraid of confronting the issues and tensions his passing brought to the surface. We, as a nation, must take concrete steps to ensure that such incidents do not occur in the future.
The Martin family says they are “disappointed” by the decision.
Lawsuit response
Purina responds to the class action lawsuit that alleges Purina’s Beneful brand dry dog food causes illness and death to dogs. Keith Schopp, Purina’s vice president of corporate public relations:
We believe the lawsuit is without merit and we intend to vigorously defend ourselves. Beneful is a high-quality nutritious food enjoyed by millions of dogs each year and there are no product quality issues with Beneful.