AFP, NEW YORK: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that only a political solution will end the war in Afghanistan as she voiced hope for splitting off rank-and-file Taliban from Al-Qaeda extremists.
In a speech at the Asia Society in New York on Friday, Clinton reaffirmed US plans to start reducing troops in July and complete the drawdown by the end of 2014 as Afghans take charge of their war-torn country.
Clinton said the surge in US-led troops over the past year was part of a strategy to "split the weakened Taliban off from Al-Qaeda and reconcile those who will renounce violence and accept the Afghan constitution."
"I know there are some on Capitol Hill and elsewhere who question whether we need anything more than guns, bombs and troops to achieve our goals in Afghanistan," Clinton said.
"As our commanders on the ground will be the first to say, that is a short-sighted and ultimately self-defeating view. We will never kill enough insurgents to end this war outright," Clinton said.
The relationship between Al-Qaeda and the Taliban has long been a source of contention within US policy circles.
After the September 11 attacks, president George W. Bush's administration described the two groups as virtually indistinguishable. US troops, now led by General David Petraeus, have focused on taking the fight to the Taliban.
But key civilian leaders under President Barack Obama have put a focus on political reconciliation, arguing that many rank-and-file Taliban are simply seeking a livelihood and can be co-opted.
Petraeus, who has sought time for the military strategy, is widely expected to step down in the medium-term, although the Pentagon denied a recent British newspaper report that he has decided to leave this year.
Clinton said that the Taliban faced a similar choice as in 2001, when the United States toppled the hardline Islamic regime for hosting Al-Qaeda leaders who planned the September 11 attacks on New York and Washington.
"Today, the escalating pressure of our military campaign is sharpening a similar decision for the Taliban: break ties with Al-Qaeda, renounce violence and abide by the Afghan constitution and you can rejoin Afghan society.
"Refuse and you will continue to face the consequences of being tied to Al-Qaeda as an enemy of the international community," Clinton said.
"They cannot wait us out. They cannot defeat us. And they cannot escape this choice."
Clinton acknowledged that reconciliation with the Taliban may sound "distasteful, even unimaginable." She pledged to keep up pressure to safeguard the rights of women, which were severely curtailed by the Taliban regime.
"Diplomacy would be easy if we only had to talk to our friends. But that is not how one makes peace," Clinton said.
Clinton was delivering an inaugural lecture in memory of hard-charging US diplomat Richard Holbrooke, who served as Washington's special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan and was a leading advocate for a political settlement.
Holbrooke, a former chair of the Asia Society, died suddenly on December 13 of a torn aorta. He was 69.
Clinton announced the appointment of Holbrooke's successor: Marc Grossman, a retired career diplomat who has served in Pakistan and Turkey and rose to the top position of undersecretary of state for political affairs.
Grossman will face major challenges including a crisis with Pakistan over its detention of a US government employee accused of shooting two Pakistanis -- an issue Clinton did not mention in her wide-ranging speech.
Clinton said it was "no secret that we have not always seen eye-to-eye with Pakistan." Al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters are largely holed up in the lawless northwest of Pakistan, whose government is allied with the United States.
"Pressure from the Pakistani side will help push the Taliban towards the negotiating table and away from Al-Qaeda," she said.
But Clinton warned Congress against cutting from the billions of dollars in civilian assistance for Afghanistan and Pakistan.
"I certainly appreciate the tight budget environment we find ourselves in. But the fact is that these civilian operations are crucial to our national security," she said.
Obama condemns violence in Bahrain, Libya, Yemen
AFP, WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama personally appealed to the King of Bahrain for restraint and condemned violence by the US-allied government against protesters in the latest Middle East flashpoint.
The US president also condemned violence against anti-government demonstrations in Yemen, which offers important cooperation in the US anti-terror fight, and by the government in long-time US foe Libya.
Obama's call to King Hamad bin Issa al-Khalifa came on a day when Washington was again torn between support for a regional ally and the aspirations of protesters seeking what Obama sees as universal political rights.
Obama warned in the call to Bahrain's King that the United States believed the stability of the Western-leaning Gulf kingdom which houses the headquarters of the US Fifth Fleet depended on a process of meaningful political reform.
"President Obama spoke with King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa of Bahrain this evening to discuss the ongoing situation in Bahrain," a White House statement said.
The US leader "reiterated his condemnation of the violence used against peaceful protesters, and strongly urged the government of Bahrain to show restraint, and to hold those responsible for the violence accountable," the statement said.
"As a longstanding partner of Bahrain, the president said that the United States believes that the stability of Bahrain depends upon respect for the universal rights of the people of Bahrain, and a process of meaningful reform that is responsive to the aspirations of all Bahrainis."
Obama's telephone conversation with the king came after several days of bloodshed in Bahrain after government forces stormed a square in the capital Manama and ejected protesters demanding political reform.
Earlier, in a statement issued as he flew to an event in the Pacific northwest state of Oregon, Obama said he was "deeply concerned" by reports of violence in Bahrain, Libya and Yemen.
"The United States condemns the use of violence by governments against peaceful protesters in those countries and wherever else it may occur," the statement said.
"We express our condolences to the family and friends of those who have been killed during the demonstrations," said Obama who was getting extra briefings on Friday on the regional turmoil.
"The United States urges the governments of Bahrain, Libya and Yemen to show restraint in responding to peaceful protests and to respect the rights of their people," Obama said, just a week after the ouster of president Hosni Mubarak in Egypt.
The administration has argued that each nation feeling the lash of revolt in the Middle East is different, but said it will speak out everywhere in favor of the universal values of peaceful protest and free assembly.
The wave of unrest is testing the underpinnings of US policy, which for decades has seen Washington side with rulers who kept a lid on dissent but provided relative geopolitical stability.
Disquiet about events in the Gulf, and US links to the violence also started to bubble up on Capitol Hill.
Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy asked the State Department to look into whether a law which prohibits aid to foreign security forces that violate human rights could be invoked against Bahrain.
"To a watching world, the vicious and orchestrated attacks on civilian protesters and journalists in Bahrain, Libya, Iran and elsewhere in the region are repugnant," Leahy said.
In its 2011 budget request, the Obama administration asked Congress to provide over 20 million dollars in military, non-proliferation and anti-terrorism aid to the kingdom of Bahrain.
In Libya, a "day of anger" by opposition groups against Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi cost at least 28 lives, according to local sources.
In Bahrain, there was another bloodbath, as security forces opened fire on anti-regime protesters in the capital on Friday, wounding dozens, a day after four people were killed and some 200 wounded.
Reports said up to 55 people were wounded in Friday's protests.
There was also a new outburst of violence in Yemen, where the government is a vital ally in the US anti-terror campaign.
The US president also condemned violence against anti-government demonstrations in Yemen, which offers important cooperation in the US anti-terror fight, and by the government in long-time US foe Libya.
Obama's call to King Hamad bin Issa al-Khalifa came on a day when Washington was again torn between support for a regional ally and the aspirations of protesters seeking what Obama sees as universal political rights.
Obama warned in the call to Bahrain's King that the United States believed the stability of the Western-leaning Gulf kingdom which houses the headquarters of the US Fifth Fleet depended on a process of meaningful political reform.
"President Obama spoke with King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa of Bahrain this evening to discuss the ongoing situation in Bahrain," a White House statement said.
The US leader "reiterated his condemnation of the violence used against peaceful protesters, and strongly urged the government of Bahrain to show restraint, and to hold those responsible for the violence accountable," the statement said.
"As a longstanding partner of Bahrain, the president said that the United States believes that the stability of Bahrain depends upon respect for the universal rights of the people of Bahrain, and a process of meaningful reform that is responsive to the aspirations of all Bahrainis."
Obama's telephone conversation with the king came after several days of bloodshed in Bahrain after government forces stormed a square in the capital Manama and ejected protesters demanding political reform.
Earlier, in a statement issued as he flew to an event in the Pacific northwest state of Oregon, Obama said he was "deeply concerned" by reports of violence in Bahrain, Libya and Yemen.
"The United States condemns the use of violence by governments against peaceful protesters in those countries and wherever else it may occur," the statement said.
"We express our condolences to the family and friends of those who have been killed during the demonstrations," said Obama who was getting extra briefings on Friday on the regional turmoil.
"The United States urges the governments of Bahrain, Libya and Yemen to show restraint in responding to peaceful protests and to respect the rights of their people," Obama said, just a week after the ouster of president Hosni Mubarak in Egypt.
The administration has argued that each nation feeling the lash of revolt in the Middle East is different, but said it will speak out everywhere in favor of the universal values of peaceful protest and free assembly.
The wave of unrest is testing the underpinnings of US policy, which for decades has seen Washington side with rulers who kept a lid on dissent but provided relative geopolitical stability.
Disquiet about events in the Gulf, and US links to the violence also started to bubble up on Capitol Hill.
Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy asked the State Department to look into whether a law which prohibits aid to foreign security forces that violate human rights could be invoked against Bahrain.
"To a watching world, the vicious and orchestrated attacks on civilian protesters and journalists in Bahrain, Libya, Iran and elsewhere in the region are repugnant," Leahy said.
In its 2011 budget request, the Obama administration asked Congress to provide over 20 million dollars in military, non-proliferation and anti-terrorism aid to the kingdom of Bahrain.
In Libya, a "day of anger" by opposition groups against Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi cost at least 28 lives, according to local sources.
In Bahrain, there was another bloodbath, as security forces opened fire on anti-regime protesters in the capital on Friday, wounding dozens, a day after four people were killed and some 200 wounded.
Reports said up to 55 people were wounded in Friday's protests.
There was also a new outburst of violence in Yemen, where the government is a vital ally in the US anti-terror campaign.
Grenade kills two Yemen protesters, toll hits 10
AFP, SANA: Anti-regime protesters in the volatile Yemen city of Taez were blasted in a hand grenade attack Friday leaving two dead, while fierce clashes in the southern city of Aden killed four, witnesses said.
Clashes also broke out in the capital Sanaa in which four anti-regime demonstrators were injured, according to witnesses and journalists, who were also beaten.
The grenade attack came as hundreds of protesters took to central Taez after the weekly Muslim prayers to demand President Ali Abdullah Saleh's ouster, in protests that have been raging in the city for the past week.
A local official told AFP the grenade was lobbed at protesters from a speeding car with government number plates. Two people were in the car "but we will not identify their political affiliation," he said.
Medics in Aden, meanwhile, said four demonstrators were shot dead as police fired on protests in several areas of the southern port city, which has borne the brunt of the violence that has left 10 people dead since Sunday.
At least 27 were wounded in Friday's clashes, a medical official in the southern city told AFP.
A witness said that police opened fire at demonstrators who set tyres on fire in a street in Omar al-Mukhtar, killing one of the protesters, Mohammed Munir Khan.
Earlier, three people were shot dead when police fired on protesters in Al-Saada, Khor Maksar and Sheikh Othman districts, as hundreds of people took to the streets around the city to demand Saleh step down.
A local official told AFP that the mayor of Aden, Adnan al-Jafri, handed in his resignation Friday in "protest at the deteriorating security in the city."
In the capital Sanaa, the scene of a sixth straight day of demonstrations, at least four anti-regime protesters were wounded in an attack by Saleh partisans, witnesses said.
Several journalists were severely beaten by supporters of the ruling General People's Congress (GPC) who attacked the demonstration using batons and axes, an AFP correspondent reported.
Thousands of demonstrators, mostly students, had gathered following the weekly Muslim prayers in a main street of Sanaa. "People want to overthrow the regime," they chanted.
Saleh's supporters numbered in the hundreds, aided by security agents in plainclothes.
Students have tried for the past week to hold a protest march toward the presidential palace but been intercepted each day by stone-throwing regime supporters armed with batons.
US President Barack Obama on Friday condemned the use of force against protesters in Yemen, Bahrain and Libya after government forces brutally sought to crush the latest wave of Middle East violence.
"I am deeply concerned by reports of violence in Bahrain, Libya and Yemen," he said in a statement.
"The United States condemns the use of violence by governments against peaceful protesters in those countries and wherever else it may occur."
"The United States urges the governments of Bahrain, Libya and Yemen to show restraint in responding to peaceful protests and to respect the rights of their people," Obama said.
In Sanaa, protests have becoming increasingly violent, despite Saleh -- elected to a seven-year-term in September 2006 -- urging dialogue on forming a government of national unity.
Amnesty International on Friday issued a fresh condemnation of the violence.
"Yemeni authorities seem to be stepping up their crackdown on protesters and we are gravely concerned that if that continues, the death toll will inevitably rise," it said in a statement.
Clashes also broke out in the capital Sanaa in which four anti-regime demonstrators were injured, according to witnesses and journalists, who were also beaten.
The grenade attack came as hundreds of protesters took to central Taez after the weekly Muslim prayers to demand President Ali Abdullah Saleh's ouster, in protests that have been raging in the city for the past week.
A local official told AFP the grenade was lobbed at protesters from a speeding car with government number plates. Two people were in the car "but we will not identify their political affiliation," he said.
Medics in Aden, meanwhile, said four demonstrators were shot dead as police fired on protests in several areas of the southern port city, which has borne the brunt of the violence that has left 10 people dead since Sunday.
At least 27 were wounded in Friday's clashes, a medical official in the southern city told AFP.
A witness said that police opened fire at demonstrators who set tyres on fire in a street in Omar al-Mukhtar, killing one of the protesters, Mohammed Munir Khan.
Earlier, three people were shot dead when police fired on protesters in Al-Saada, Khor Maksar and Sheikh Othman districts, as hundreds of people took to the streets around the city to demand Saleh step down.
A local official told AFP that the mayor of Aden, Adnan al-Jafri, handed in his resignation Friday in "protest at the deteriorating security in the city."
In the capital Sanaa, the scene of a sixth straight day of demonstrations, at least four anti-regime protesters were wounded in an attack by Saleh partisans, witnesses said.
Several journalists were severely beaten by supporters of the ruling General People's Congress (GPC) who attacked the demonstration using batons and axes, an AFP correspondent reported.
Thousands of demonstrators, mostly students, had gathered following the weekly Muslim prayers in a main street of Sanaa. "People want to overthrow the regime," they chanted.
Saleh's supporters numbered in the hundreds, aided by security agents in plainclothes.
Students have tried for the past week to hold a protest march toward the presidential palace but been intercepted each day by stone-throwing regime supporters armed with batons.
US President Barack Obama on Friday condemned the use of force against protesters in Yemen, Bahrain and Libya after government forces brutally sought to crush the latest wave of Middle East violence.
"I am deeply concerned by reports of violence in Bahrain, Libya and Yemen," he said in a statement.
"The United States condemns the use of violence by governments against peaceful protesters in those countries and wherever else it may occur."
"The United States urges the governments of Bahrain, Libya and Yemen to show restraint in responding to peaceful protests and to respect the rights of their people," Obama said.
In Sanaa, protests have becoming increasingly violent, despite Saleh -- elected to a seven-year-term in September 2006 -- urging dialogue on forming a government of national unity.
Amnesty International on Friday issued a fresh condemnation of the violence.
"Yemeni authorities seem to be stepping up their crackdown on protesters and we are gravely concerned that if that continues, the death toll will inevitably rise," it said in a statement.
Algeria protesters to stage new anti-regime rally
AFP, ALGIERS: Algerian protestors are due to hold a new anti-government rally Saturday in the heart of the capital, a week after 2,000 demonstrators braved 30,000 riot police at the same venue.
On Friday, police were already out in force around May 1 Square, the site of last week's rally and where the next one is set to begin.
Both have been organized by National Coordination for Change and Democracy (CNCD), a month-old umbrella group made up of the political opposition, the Algerian human rights league and trade unions.
Another anti-government protest is scheduled to start an hour earlier in the Mediterranean city of Oran, where -- contrary to a week ago -- local officials changed course and authorised it.
Foreign Minister Mourad Medelci said Algerian authorities did not receive a formal request to authorise the protest in Algiers, where demonstrations have long been banned.
"To my knowledge there was no request to march," Medelci said, speaking in Madrid.
"Perhaps there was a will to do so but we are an administration which functions in a transparent manner and we respond when we are solicited."
Meanwhile, posters against the demonstration sprouted on the walls of the capital on Friday night.
"Don't march on my tranquility and my freedom," one said.
Another, unsigned, appealed to residents of May 1 Square to fly an Algerian flag from their balconies "as a sign of love for their country."
A group of youngsters there said they were clueless about the possible author.
"It's certainly the people in power," one said.
Algerian demonstrators have been emboldened by fellow anti-government protesters in neighbouring Tunisia and in Egypt that ousted the leaders of both north African countries.
Criticism of the government has widened to include a senior former leader of the Algerian regime, Abdelhamid Mehri, who called for sweeping political changes in the north African country in an open letter to President Abdelaziz Bouteflika Thursday.
Mehri, a onetime secretary general of the ruling National Liberation Front and government minister, accused the regime of being "incapable of solving the thorny problems of our country...and even less so of preparing efficiently for the challenges of the future, which are even more arduous and serious."
The CNCD wants the immediate end of Bouteflika's regime, citing the same problems of high unemployment, housing and soaring costs that inspired the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt.
Those grievances also triggered early January riots in Algeria that left five dead and more than 800 injured.
A protest called by the opposition Rally for Culture and Democracy (RCD) in Algiers on January 22 also left many injured as police blocked a march on parliament.
Like their counterparts in Tunisia and Egypt, the protesters have used Facebook and text messages to spread their call for change.
For its part, the Algerian government has recently announced a series of conciliatory measures including lifting the country's 19-year state of emergency by the end of February.
Bouteflika has also called on state-owned broadcasting companies to offer coverage of officially authorised political parties and organisations -- a key demand of the opposition -- and acted to curb price rises.
But the CNCD says these steps are not enough.
In power since 1999, Bouteflika, who turns 74 next month, was reelected in 2004 and again in 2009 after revising the constitution to allow for an indefinite number of terms.
On Friday, police were already out in force around May 1 Square, the site of last week's rally and where the next one is set to begin.
Both have been organized by National Coordination for Change and Democracy (CNCD), a month-old umbrella group made up of the political opposition, the Algerian human rights league and trade unions.
Another anti-government protest is scheduled to start an hour earlier in the Mediterranean city of Oran, where -- contrary to a week ago -- local officials changed course and authorised it.
Foreign Minister Mourad Medelci said Algerian authorities did not receive a formal request to authorise the protest in Algiers, where demonstrations have long been banned.
"To my knowledge there was no request to march," Medelci said, speaking in Madrid.
"Perhaps there was a will to do so but we are an administration which functions in a transparent manner and we respond when we are solicited."
Meanwhile, posters against the demonstration sprouted on the walls of the capital on Friday night.
"Don't march on my tranquility and my freedom," one said.
Another, unsigned, appealed to residents of May 1 Square to fly an Algerian flag from their balconies "as a sign of love for their country."
A group of youngsters there said they were clueless about the possible author.
"It's certainly the people in power," one said.
Algerian demonstrators have been emboldened by fellow anti-government protesters in neighbouring Tunisia and in Egypt that ousted the leaders of both north African countries.
Criticism of the government has widened to include a senior former leader of the Algerian regime, Abdelhamid Mehri, who called for sweeping political changes in the north African country in an open letter to President Abdelaziz Bouteflika Thursday.
Mehri, a onetime secretary general of the ruling National Liberation Front and government minister, accused the regime of being "incapable of solving the thorny problems of our country...and even less so of preparing efficiently for the challenges of the future, which are even more arduous and serious."
The CNCD wants the immediate end of Bouteflika's regime, citing the same problems of high unemployment, housing and soaring costs that inspired the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt.
Those grievances also triggered early January riots in Algeria that left five dead and more than 800 injured.
A protest called by the opposition Rally for Culture and Democracy (RCD) in Algiers on January 22 also left many injured as police blocked a march on parliament.
Like their counterparts in Tunisia and Egypt, the protesters have used Facebook and text messages to spread their call for change.
For its part, the Algerian government has recently announced a series of conciliatory measures including lifting the country's 19-year state of emergency by the end of February.
Bouteflika has also called on state-owned broadcasting companies to offer coverage of officially authorised political parties and organisations -- a key demand of the opposition -- and acted to curb price rises.
But the CNCD says these steps are not enough.
In power since 1999, Bouteflika, who turns 74 next month, was reelected in 2004 and again in 2009 after revising the constitution to allow for an indefinite number of terms.
Tension mounts over Uganda poll outcome
AFP, KAMPALA: Ugandan poll officials scrambled to tally votes Saturday after a relatively calm election gave way to tensions with both incumbent leader Yoweri Museveni and his main rival predicting victory.
Museveni, who has ruled the east African country for 25 years, was confident before Friday's polls that his achievements in ensuring economic stability and security would result in a landslide win.
His main challenger, Kizza Besigye, cried foul even before the election got underway and has vowed to release his own results if there was any suspicion of fraud.
"If we keep getting results, we'll keep on working through the night," electoral commission secretary Sam Rawkwoojo told AFP, as he supervised tallying in the national stadium's conference centre.
He said that close to six hours after polling stations closed reporting officers from more than 100 districts had yet to hand in their results.
Kampala, whose bars usually burst with revellers on Friday nights, was eerily quiet as the country awaited the early results.
"It has been a very peaceful and successful election. Out of the 117 districts in the country, we have reports of violences in only 10 districts," police spokeswoman Judith Nabakooba told reporters.
The only major incidents reported were a ruling party supporter beaten to death in western Uganda and a journalist hospitalised with a gunshot wound in the country's east.
Polling kicked off late in some parts of Kampala, which voted against Museveni in the 2006 elections, prompting opposition claims that the president was trying to cheat his way to re-election.
Besigye's Inter-party Cooperation (IPC) opposition coalition nevertheless stopped short of dismissing Friday's ballot as invalid when polling closed and said it was compiling irregularities.
IPC spokeswoman Margaret Wokuri said Besigye's massive deployment of vote 'protectors' charged with monitoring fraud around the country was partly effective, but underscored that they met with "a lot of intimidation."
Some 14 million voters, out of a total population of just under 33 million, chose their next president and their members of parliament.
If re-elected, Museveni, 66, will extend his 25-year-old rule by five years and join Libya's Moamer Kadhafi and Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe, among others, in a club of African leaders who have ruled more than 30 years.
But a looming feud over the results has fueled fears of yet another post-election crisis on the continent, and one that would rock a key Western ally bordering several regional hotspots.
Opponents of Museveni have warned Uganda was ripe for the kind of uprising currently sweeping the Arab world, a suggestion Museveni has dismissed.
The terms "Tunisia", "Egypt" and "Dictator" were nonetheless on a list of potentially explosive terms the Uganda Communications Commission said it had instructed telecom operators to block in text messages.
Museveni has campaigned on his success in ridding the country of the Lord's Resistance Army's brutal rebellion and the prospect of an oil windfall in his next term.
While he has been criticised over anti-gay campaigns and human rights, Museveni has won praise for sending 4,000 Ugandans to battle Al Qaeda-linked rebels in Somalia when no Western country was willing to send its own soldiers.
Museveni has also brought stability to a country whose recent history was marked by coups and the brutal rule of Idi Amin Dada.
Museveni, who has ruled the east African country for 25 years, was confident before Friday's polls that his achievements in ensuring economic stability and security would result in a landslide win.
His main challenger, Kizza Besigye, cried foul even before the election got underway and has vowed to release his own results if there was any suspicion of fraud.
"If we keep getting results, we'll keep on working through the night," electoral commission secretary Sam Rawkwoojo told AFP, as he supervised tallying in the national stadium's conference centre.
He said that close to six hours after polling stations closed reporting officers from more than 100 districts had yet to hand in their results.
Kampala, whose bars usually burst with revellers on Friday nights, was eerily quiet as the country awaited the early results.
"It has been a very peaceful and successful election. Out of the 117 districts in the country, we have reports of violences in only 10 districts," police spokeswoman Judith Nabakooba told reporters.
The only major incidents reported were a ruling party supporter beaten to death in western Uganda and a journalist hospitalised with a gunshot wound in the country's east.
Polling kicked off late in some parts of Kampala, which voted against Museveni in the 2006 elections, prompting opposition claims that the president was trying to cheat his way to re-election.
Besigye's Inter-party Cooperation (IPC) opposition coalition nevertheless stopped short of dismissing Friday's ballot as invalid when polling closed and said it was compiling irregularities.
IPC spokeswoman Margaret Wokuri said Besigye's massive deployment of vote 'protectors' charged with monitoring fraud around the country was partly effective, but underscored that they met with "a lot of intimidation."
Some 14 million voters, out of a total population of just under 33 million, chose their next president and their members of parliament.
If re-elected, Museveni, 66, will extend his 25-year-old rule by five years and join Libya's Moamer Kadhafi and Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe, among others, in a club of African leaders who have ruled more than 30 years.
But a looming feud over the results has fueled fears of yet another post-election crisis on the continent, and one that would rock a key Western ally bordering several regional hotspots.
Opponents of Museveni have warned Uganda was ripe for the kind of uprising currently sweeping the Arab world, a suggestion Museveni has dismissed.
The terms "Tunisia", "Egypt" and "Dictator" were nonetheless on a list of potentially explosive terms the Uganda Communications Commission said it had instructed telecom operators to block in text messages.
Museveni has campaigned on his success in ridding the country of the Lord's Resistance Army's brutal rebellion and the prospect of an oil windfall in his next term.
While he has been criticised over anti-gay campaigns and human rights, Museveni has won praise for sending 4,000 Ugandans to battle Al Qaeda-linked rebels in Somalia when no Western country was willing to send its own soldiers.
Museveni has also brought stability to a country whose recent history was marked by coups and the brutal rule of Idi Amin Dada.
US vetoes UN resolution on Israeli settlements
AFP, UNITED NATIONS: The United States vetoed an Arab-sponsored UN resolution branding Israeli settlements illegal, prompting angry Palestinians to vow to re-evaluate the entire Middle East peace process.
The Obama administration cast its first veto in the United Nations Security Council after intense diplomacy failed to convince Palestinians to accept a non-binding compromise statement condemning Jewish settlement activity.
The row dealt a further blow to Washington's already struggling bid to forge a Palestinian state this year and risked further estranging US ties with Arab leaders already tetchy at its response to unrest sweeping the Middle East.
US ambassador to the UN Susan Rice said Washington was "regrettably" blocking the draft resolution and warned Israeli should not interpret the move as backing for settlement building in east Jerusalem and the West Bank.
But she said the United States -- one of five permanent Security Council members with veto power -- did not believe the United Nations was the best place to seek to resolve the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
"This draft resolution risks hardening the positions of both sides," Rice said. "It could encourage the parties to stay out of negotiations."
Later, in a conference call with reporters, Rice added "We reject in the stongest terms the legitimacy of the continued Israeli settlement activity."
But Yasser Abed Rabbo, secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), said the US veto was "unfortunate and affects the credibility of the American administration."
As a result, the Palestinians will "re-evaluate the entire process of negotiations" towards peace in the Middle East, he said.
The resolution, sponsored by 130 countries, reaffirmed "that the Israeli settlements established in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, are illegal and constitute a major obstacle to the achievement of a just, lasting and comprehensive peace."
It also reiterated "its demand that Israel, the occupying power, immediately and completely ceases all settlement activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory."
Washington, although saying it views settlement activity as illegitimate, has stopped short of declaring it "illegal" saying that doing so could add further complications to future final status peace talks.
The Palestinians balked at the US compromise despite intense diplomacy by President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
The row came at some political as well as diplomatic cost to the administration as it took incoming fire from bi-partisan lawmakers who support Israel for even offering a compromise solution.
Fourteen of the 15 Security Council members voted in favor of the resolution but the US veto effectively killed the move.
Israel reacted to the veto by calling for a resumption of direct talks with the Palestinians.
And Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that "Israel deeply appreciates the decision by President Obama to veto the Security Council resolution."
"Israel remains committed to pursuing comprehensive peace with all our neighbors, including the Palestinians," it said.
"We seek a solution that will reconcile the Palestinians' legitimate aspirations for statehood with Israel's need for security and recognition."
The last round of peace talks broke down late last year after the expiry of an Israeli settlement building moratorium.
Palestinian leaders say peace talks are impossible with construction taking place which they say undermines the territorial integrity of their future state.
The United States has traditionally used its veto power in the Security Council, a body Israel deems as deeply biased, to shield the Jewish state from censure.
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on Friday turned down a request by Obama to withdraw the motion for condemnation and settle instead for a council statement calling for an Israeli settlement freeze.
One senior Palestinian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP the offer, made in an hour-long phone call late Thursday from Obama, was accompanied by veiled threats of "repercussions" if it were refused.
Rice had proposed a three-fold package of incentives for Palestinians: a non-binding Security Council statement condemning settlement activity, a visit by a UN Security Council delegation to the region and a Mideast Quartet statement referring to 1967 borders in reference to a Palestinian state.
The Obama administration cast its first veto in the United Nations Security Council after intense diplomacy failed to convince Palestinians to accept a non-binding compromise statement condemning Jewish settlement activity.
The row dealt a further blow to Washington's already struggling bid to forge a Palestinian state this year and risked further estranging US ties with Arab leaders already tetchy at its response to unrest sweeping the Middle East.
US ambassador to the UN Susan Rice said Washington was "regrettably" blocking the draft resolution and warned Israeli should not interpret the move as backing for settlement building in east Jerusalem and the West Bank.
But she said the United States -- one of five permanent Security Council members with veto power -- did not believe the United Nations was the best place to seek to resolve the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
"This draft resolution risks hardening the positions of both sides," Rice said. "It could encourage the parties to stay out of negotiations."
Later, in a conference call with reporters, Rice added "We reject in the stongest terms the legitimacy of the continued Israeli settlement activity."
But Yasser Abed Rabbo, secretary general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), said the US veto was "unfortunate and affects the credibility of the American administration."
As a result, the Palestinians will "re-evaluate the entire process of negotiations" towards peace in the Middle East, he said.
The resolution, sponsored by 130 countries, reaffirmed "that the Israeli settlements established in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, are illegal and constitute a major obstacle to the achievement of a just, lasting and comprehensive peace."
It also reiterated "its demand that Israel, the occupying power, immediately and completely ceases all settlement activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory."
Washington, although saying it views settlement activity as illegitimate, has stopped short of declaring it "illegal" saying that doing so could add further complications to future final status peace talks.
The Palestinians balked at the US compromise despite intense diplomacy by President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
The row came at some political as well as diplomatic cost to the administration as it took incoming fire from bi-partisan lawmakers who support Israel for even offering a compromise solution.
Fourteen of the 15 Security Council members voted in favor of the resolution but the US veto effectively killed the move.
Israel reacted to the veto by calling for a resumption of direct talks with the Palestinians.
And Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that "Israel deeply appreciates the decision by President Obama to veto the Security Council resolution."
"Israel remains committed to pursuing comprehensive peace with all our neighbors, including the Palestinians," it said.
"We seek a solution that will reconcile the Palestinians' legitimate aspirations for statehood with Israel's need for security and recognition."
The last round of peace talks broke down late last year after the expiry of an Israeli settlement building moratorium.
Palestinian leaders say peace talks are impossible with construction taking place which they say undermines the territorial integrity of their future state.
The United States has traditionally used its veto power in the Security Council, a body Israel deems as deeply biased, to shield the Jewish state from censure.
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on Friday turned down a request by Obama to withdraw the motion for condemnation and settle instead for a council statement calling for an Israeli settlement freeze.
One senior Palestinian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP the offer, made in an hour-long phone call late Thursday from Obama, was accompanied by veiled threats of "repercussions" if it were refused.
Rice had proposed a three-fold package of incentives for Palestinians: a non-binding Security Council statement condemning settlement activity, a visit by a UN Security Council delegation to the region and a Mideast Quartet statement referring to 1967 borders in reference to a Palestinian state.
Kadhafi loyalists vow to crush protests
AFP, TRIPOLI: Moamer Kadhafi's regime vowed to crush any challenge to the Libyan strongman after an opposition "day of anger" turned into a bloodbath and two policemen were reported hanged by protesters.
According to a toll compiled by AFP from different local sources, at least 41 people have lost their lives since demonstrations first erupted on Tuesday.
That toll does not include two policemen who were killed on Friday.
Oea newspaper, which is close to Kadhafi's son Seif al-Islam, said they were lynched after being captured in the eastern city of Al-Baida.
Security forces were deployed around Al-Baida on Friday, a source close to the authorities told AFP, following Internet reports that protesters had seized control of the city.
"Security forces were deployed heavily around the city and control all roads in and out, as well as the airport," the source said, declining to be named.
Oea also reported that 20 people were buried in Libya's second city of Benghazi on Friday after being killed in protests. A previous toll supplied by a medical source in the city was 14 dead.
Demonstrators also set fire to the headquarters of a local radio station in Benghazi after the building's guards withdrew, witnesses and a security source told AFP.
Seven people were killed in protests in Derna, east of Benghazi, Oea reported.
London-based Amnesty International gave a different death toll, saying it had "learned that at least 46 people had been shot dead by security forces in the last 72 hours."
Sarah Leah Whitson of US-based Human Rights Watch said: "The security forces' vicious attacks on peaceful demonstrators lay bare the reality of Moamer Kadhafi's brutality when faced with any internal dissent."
Earlier, the Revolutionary Committees, which are the backbone of Kadhafi's regime, issued a stark warning.
"The response of the people and the Revolutionary Forces to any adventure by these small groups will be sharp and violent," the Revolutionary Committees said on the website of their newspaper, Azzahf Al-Akhdar (Green March).
"The power of the people, the Jamahiriya (government by the masses), the Revolution and the leader are all red lines, and anyone who tries to cross or approach them will be committing suicide and playing with fire."
Several thousand mourners on Friday went straight from weekly prayers to funerals for the Benghazi dead, witnesses told AFP, with one reporting that 13 victims were buried in the city's Hawari cemetery.
In Al-Baida, a well-informed Libyan source told AFP 14 civilians had been killed since Wednesday, including both protesters and members of the Revolutionary Committees.
In another sign of growing disorder, about 1,000 inmates broke out of a prison in Benghazi, Quryna newspaper reported on its website, and four convicts were killed by security forces when they tried to flee another prison outside Tripoli, a security services source said.
The overall reported toll does not include the four prisoners.
Kadhafi, 68, is the longest-serving leader in the Arab world, but his oil-producing North African nation is sandwiched between Tunisia and Egypt, whose long-time leaders have been toppled by popular uprisings.
Computer users in Tripoli reported that from early Friday evening it was impossible to access the popular Facebook site, and connections to other Internet sites were either very slow or not possible.
Opponents of his regime had used Facebook to call for a national "day of anger" and Kadhafi sought to counter its impact with his own pro-regime rally in the heart of the capital Tripoli.
US President Barack Obama on Friday condemned the use of violence against peaceful protesters in Libya, Bahrain and Yemen.
"The United States condemns the use of violence by governments against peaceful protesters in those countries and wherever it may occur," he said in a statement.
Britain, France and the European Union have called for restraint by the authorities in Libya.
France said on Friday it had suspended authorisation of exports of security equipment to both Libya and Bahrain.
And Britain stopped the export of some security equipment to Bahrain and Libya because of the risk it might be used to suppress anti-regime protests, the foreign office said.
Britain's foreign office warned nationals against all but essential travel to parts of eastern Libya including the cities of Benghazi, Al-Baida, Derna, Ajdabiya, Al-Marj and Tobruk, all in the east of the North African state.
According to a toll compiled by AFP from different local sources, at least 41 people have lost their lives since demonstrations first erupted on Tuesday.
That toll does not include two policemen who were killed on Friday.
Oea newspaper, which is close to Kadhafi's son Seif al-Islam, said they were lynched after being captured in the eastern city of Al-Baida.
Security forces were deployed around Al-Baida on Friday, a source close to the authorities told AFP, following Internet reports that protesters had seized control of the city.
"Security forces were deployed heavily around the city and control all roads in and out, as well as the airport," the source said, declining to be named.
Oea also reported that 20 people were buried in Libya's second city of Benghazi on Friday after being killed in protests. A previous toll supplied by a medical source in the city was 14 dead.
Demonstrators also set fire to the headquarters of a local radio station in Benghazi after the building's guards withdrew, witnesses and a security source told AFP.
Seven people were killed in protests in Derna, east of Benghazi, Oea reported.
London-based Amnesty International gave a different death toll, saying it had "learned that at least 46 people had been shot dead by security forces in the last 72 hours."
Sarah Leah Whitson of US-based Human Rights Watch said: "The security forces' vicious attacks on peaceful demonstrators lay bare the reality of Moamer Kadhafi's brutality when faced with any internal dissent."
Earlier, the Revolutionary Committees, which are the backbone of Kadhafi's regime, issued a stark warning.
"The response of the people and the Revolutionary Forces to any adventure by these small groups will be sharp and violent," the Revolutionary Committees said on the website of their newspaper, Azzahf Al-Akhdar (Green March).
"The power of the people, the Jamahiriya (government by the masses), the Revolution and the leader are all red lines, and anyone who tries to cross or approach them will be committing suicide and playing with fire."
Several thousand mourners on Friday went straight from weekly prayers to funerals for the Benghazi dead, witnesses told AFP, with one reporting that 13 victims were buried in the city's Hawari cemetery.
In Al-Baida, a well-informed Libyan source told AFP 14 civilians had been killed since Wednesday, including both protesters and members of the Revolutionary Committees.
In another sign of growing disorder, about 1,000 inmates broke out of a prison in Benghazi, Quryna newspaper reported on its website, and four convicts were killed by security forces when they tried to flee another prison outside Tripoli, a security services source said.
The overall reported toll does not include the four prisoners.
Kadhafi, 68, is the longest-serving leader in the Arab world, but his oil-producing North African nation is sandwiched between Tunisia and Egypt, whose long-time leaders have been toppled by popular uprisings.
Computer users in Tripoli reported that from early Friday evening it was impossible to access the popular Facebook site, and connections to other Internet sites were either very slow or not possible.
Opponents of his regime had used Facebook to call for a national "day of anger" and Kadhafi sought to counter its impact with his own pro-regime rally in the heart of the capital Tripoli.
US President Barack Obama on Friday condemned the use of violence against peaceful protesters in Libya, Bahrain and Yemen.
"The United States condemns the use of violence by governments against peaceful protesters in those countries and wherever it may occur," he said in a statement.
Britain, France and the European Union have called for restraint by the authorities in Libya.
France said on Friday it had suspended authorisation of exports of security equipment to both Libya and Bahrain.
And Britain stopped the export of some security equipment to Bahrain and Libya because of the risk it might be used to suppress anti-regime protests, the foreign office said.
Britain's foreign office warned nationals against all but essential travel to parts of eastern Libya including the cities of Benghazi, Al-Baida, Derna, Ajdabiya, Al-Marj and Tobruk, all in the east of the North African state.
Bahrain heir pledges talks after brutal crackdown
AFP, MANAMA: Bahrain's crown prince has vowed to hold a national dialogue, after security forces opened fire on anti-regime protesters in the capital amid reports that up to 55 people had been wounded.
The brutal crackdown, which followed an army pledge to restore order through "strict measures" after a deadly police raid, led the United States and Britain to ask nationals to avoid all but essential travel to the Gulf kingdom.
Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa promised to open a sweeping national dialogue once calm returns, and soon afterwards King Hamad formally announced that he had assigned his heir to start those discussions.
US President Barack Obama condemned the violence in a phone conversation with the king, a key regional ally of Washington.
Obama said "the stability of Bahrain depends upon respect for the universal rights of the people of Bahrain, and a process of meaningful reform that is responsive to the aspirations of all Bahrainis," according to a White House statement.
Bahrain is of vital strategic importance to Washington because the US Navy's Fifth Fleet is based there and some 40 percent of the world's oil passes through the Gulf.
The prospect of a prolonged crisis raises fears of a potential flashpoint between Iran and its Gulf Arab rivals, if the Islamic republic attempts to capitalise on the protest led by the disaffected Shiite majority.
Iran "condemned the violent confrontation" and asked the Bahraini government to show self-restraint.
Hardliners in predominantly Shiite Iran have often expressed kinship and support for Bahrain's Shiites. The royal family are Sunnis.
Marchers had been trying to reach Pearl Square, the epicentre of pro-democracy protests that have shaken the Gulf island state, when the forces opened fire.
Witnesses said the gunfire was targeting them near Salmaniya hospital, about two kilometres (one mile) to the south.
"In total, 55 wounded, including four badly hurt, have been admitted to Salmaniya hospital," said Shiite opposition MP Abdel Jalil Khalil Ibrahim.
Among them was a man who was clinically dead after being hit in the head by a bullet, Ibrahim said.
In contrast, state television said seven people had been slightly hurt and that most had been treated and released.
Another opposition MP, Ali al-Aswad, accused the army of doing the shooting. Initially, witnesses had said it was the police.
"The army fired live bullets at more than one thousand people who wanted to reach the Pearl" Square, Aswad said.
This was the first demonstration since police stormed the square before dawn on Thursday, killing four people and wounding around 200.
Following that raid, which was widely condemned abroad, troops were deployed in Manama, and the defence ministry warned that the army would "take all strict and preventive measures to restore security and public order."
In a television interview, Prince Salman said "our dialogue must take place in a climate of total calm," adding that "no issue can be excluded from that dialogue."
"What is happening today in Bahrain is not acceptable... We have reached a dangerous stage that necessitates that each of us acknowledges the responsibilities... Bahrain today is divided."
In a statement read on state television, King Hamad charged Prince Salman with starting a "dialogue with all sides and groups in the kingdom with no exceptions."
The statement made no mention of the latest violence.
Earlier, angry Shiites in the nearby villages of Sitra and Karzakan buried the four people killed on Thursday.
Thousands of mourners chanted slogans calling for the ouster of the Sunni al-Khalifa dynasty's regime, and sang songs urging unity between the Shiite majority and Sunni compatriots.
They shouted "people want to overthrow the regime" -- the slogan used by protesters across the Arab world inspired by uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt that brought down the strongmen of those two Western-backed countries.
A large banner carried in front of the funeral procession of victim Ali Mumen condemned concerns by Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone that next month's Bahrain Grand Prix would be affected by the political upheavals.
"Mr Ecclestone, are our lives a price for your Formula One?" it asked, in English.
Meanwhile, hundreds of pro-regime demonstrators marched in Manama after Friday prayers, denouncing the opposition and pledging allegiance to the king.
Britain revoked 44 licences for the export of security equipment to Bahrain because of the risk it might be used to suppress anti-regime protests, the foreign office said.
France also suspended exports of security equipment.
The brutal crackdown, which followed an army pledge to restore order through "strict measures" after a deadly police raid, led the United States and Britain to ask nationals to avoid all but essential travel to the Gulf kingdom.
Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa promised to open a sweeping national dialogue once calm returns, and soon afterwards King Hamad formally announced that he had assigned his heir to start those discussions.
US President Barack Obama condemned the violence in a phone conversation with the king, a key regional ally of Washington.
Obama said "the stability of Bahrain depends upon respect for the universal rights of the people of Bahrain, and a process of meaningful reform that is responsive to the aspirations of all Bahrainis," according to a White House statement.
Bahrain is of vital strategic importance to Washington because the US Navy's Fifth Fleet is based there and some 40 percent of the world's oil passes through the Gulf.
The prospect of a prolonged crisis raises fears of a potential flashpoint between Iran and its Gulf Arab rivals, if the Islamic republic attempts to capitalise on the protest led by the disaffected Shiite majority.
Iran "condemned the violent confrontation" and asked the Bahraini government to show self-restraint.
Hardliners in predominantly Shiite Iran have often expressed kinship and support for Bahrain's Shiites. The royal family are Sunnis.
Marchers had been trying to reach Pearl Square, the epicentre of pro-democracy protests that have shaken the Gulf island state, when the forces opened fire.
Witnesses said the gunfire was targeting them near Salmaniya hospital, about two kilometres (one mile) to the south.
"In total, 55 wounded, including four badly hurt, have been admitted to Salmaniya hospital," said Shiite opposition MP Abdel Jalil Khalil Ibrahim.
Among them was a man who was clinically dead after being hit in the head by a bullet, Ibrahim said.
In contrast, state television said seven people had been slightly hurt and that most had been treated and released.
Another opposition MP, Ali al-Aswad, accused the army of doing the shooting. Initially, witnesses had said it was the police.
"The army fired live bullets at more than one thousand people who wanted to reach the Pearl" Square, Aswad said.
This was the first demonstration since police stormed the square before dawn on Thursday, killing four people and wounding around 200.
Following that raid, which was widely condemned abroad, troops were deployed in Manama, and the defence ministry warned that the army would "take all strict and preventive measures to restore security and public order."
In a television interview, Prince Salman said "our dialogue must take place in a climate of total calm," adding that "no issue can be excluded from that dialogue."
"What is happening today in Bahrain is not acceptable... We have reached a dangerous stage that necessitates that each of us acknowledges the responsibilities... Bahrain today is divided."
In a statement read on state television, King Hamad charged Prince Salman with starting a "dialogue with all sides and groups in the kingdom with no exceptions."
The statement made no mention of the latest violence.
Earlier, angry Shiites in the nearby villages of Sitra and Karzakan buried the four people killed on Thursday.
Thousands of mourners chanted slogans calling for the ouster of the Sunni al-Khalifa dynasty's regime, and sang songs urging unity between the Shiite majority and Sunni compatriots.
They shouted "people want to overthrow the regime" -- the slogan used by protesters across the Arab world inspired by uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt that brought down the strongmen of those two Western-backed countries.
A large banner carried in front of the funeral procession of victim Ali Mumen condemned concerns by Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone that next month's Bahrain Grand Prix would be affected by the political upheavals.
"Mr Ecclestone, are our lives a price for your Formula One?" it asked, in English.
Meanwhile, hundreds of pro-regime demonstrators marched in Manama after Friday prayers, denouncing the opposition and pledging allegiance to the king.
Britain revoked 44 licences for the export of security equipment to Bahrain because of the risk it might be used to suppress anti-regime protests, the foreign office said.
France also suspended exports of security equipment.
TV reporter taken off air at Riviera after caddie encounter
Reuters, PACIFIC PALISADES, California: The American cable television network broadcasting the Northern Trust Open has removed one of its reporters from this week's coverage following a confrontation with a player's caddie.
According to Golf Channel, reporter Jim Gray was pulled off the assignment because of the way he reacted to the two-stroke penalty imposed on American Dustin Johnson during Thursday's opening round.
Johnson was penalized after arriving late for his teeoff time at Riviera Country Club and later told reporters his caddie Bobby Brown had given him the wrong information.
According to Brown, Gray asked Johnson as the player was walking to the 14th tee to explain why he had been late for his scheduled start. At the end of the round, Brown scolded Gray for speaking to a player out on the course during competition.
"Our aim is to provide the best possible golf coverage for our viewers. Anything else is a disservice," Golf Channel spokesman Dan Higgins said in a statement Friday.
"In order not to provide further distraction, we've decided to remove Jim from this particular assignment."
Johnson, a four-times winner on the PGA Tour who triumphed twice on the U.S. circuit last year, ended up with a two-over-par 73 in the opening round.
According to Golf Channel, reporter Jim Gray was pulled off the assignment because of the way he reacted to the two-stroke penalty imposed on American Dustin Johnson during Thursday's opening round.
Johnson was penalized after arriving late for his teeoff time at Riviera Country Club and later told reporters his caddie Bobby Brown had given him the wrong information.
According to Brown, Gray asked Johnson as the player was walking to the 14th tee to explain why he had been late for his scheduled start. At the end of the round, Brown scolded Gray for speaking to a player out on the course during competition.
"Our aim is to provide the best possible golf coverage for our viewers. Anything else is a disservice," Golf Channel spokesman Dan Higgins said in a statement Friday.
"In order not to provide further distraction, we've decided to remove Jim from this particular assignment."
Johnson, a four-times winner on the PGA Tour who triumphed twice on the U.S. circuit last year, ended up with a two-over-par 73 in the opening round.
Detroit orchestra musicians mull contract offer
Reuters, DETROIT: Negotiators for striking Detroit Symphony Orchestra musicians recommended rejection of a final management contract offer that they said would cut their compensation by more than a quarter.
Members of the orchestra, who have been on strike since October, met for two hours on Thursday to comb the final offer, said violinist and committee member Joe Goldman.
"We've been around the top 10 among American orchestras for the last 40 years," Goldman said. "This would put us around 20th ... in terms of annual scale wages."
A final vote is due Saturday.
Orchestra management and the 80 musicians have been tussling over issues of pay and how much of the orchestra's time should be devoted to community outreach.
The contract put forth by management this week also includes higher medical insurance costs, Goldman said. For example, deductibles will jump from $250 for a single person to over $3,000.
The lower pay and higher medical costs will make it far more difficult for the orchestra to attract the best talent, the union said. A representative for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra could not be immediately reached.
If the union rejects the contract, they hope to go back to the negotiating table with management and hammer out an agreement, Goldman said. He declined to detail what the union has proposed, but said their plan also includes a deep pay cut, although not as dramatic as the cuts proposed by management.
Musicians have not been paid by the orchestra during the strike. They are paid $300 a week from the union's strike fund and some are playing in other orchestras. Under the old contract, musicians were paid $2,020 a week on average.
Two musicians have accepted offers from other orchestras, Goldman said.
Members of the orchestra, who have been on strike since October, met for two hours on Thursday to comb the final offer, said violinist and committee member Joe Goldman.
"We've been around the top 10 among American orchestras for the last 40 years," Goldman said. "This would put us around 20th ... in terms of annual scale wages."
A final vote is due Saturday.
Orchestra management and the 80 musicians have been tussling over issues of pay and how much of the orchestra's time should be devoted to community outreach.
The contract put forth by management this week also includes higher medical insurance costs, Goldman said. For example, deductibles will jump from $250 for a single person to over $3,000.
The lower pay and higher medical costs will make it far more difficult for the orchestra to attract the best talent, the union said. A representative for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra could not be immediately reached.
If the union rejects the contract, they hope to go back to the negotiating table with management and hammer out an agreement, Goldman said. He declined to detail what the union has proposed, but said their plan also includes a deep pay cut, although not as dramatic as the cuts proposed by management.
Musicians have not been paid by the orchestra during the strike. They are paid $300 a week from the union's strike fund and some are playing in other orchestras. Under the old contract, musicians were paid $2,020 a week on average.
Two musicians have accepted offers from other orchestras, Goldman said.
Larry King says CNN successor was 'oversold'
AFP, LONDON: Former veteran CNN talk show host Larry King said Friday that his successor, British journalist Piers Morgan, had been "oversold" to television audiences in the United States.
King bowed out in December after 25 years as host of "Larry King Live" and the Atlanta-based news network launched a huge advertising campaign to publicise Morgan's debut the following month.
"I think they might have been better off starting quietly," King told the BBC.
King, 77, said he had not watched many episodes of the show and that Morgan, whose first guest was chat show legend Oprah Winfrey, seemed a "fine broadcaster".
But he added: "I think one of the problems they did was over sell it. He was going to be dangerous, he was going to be water cooler talk."
"He's good but not that dangerous. I think they might have been better off starting quietly and that's not Piers's fault, or maybe it is, I'm not inside anymore," said King.
"He's certainly not bad. He's certainly an acceptable host. He asks good questions, maybe he interrupts a little too much at times. I think he may have been oversold."
Winfrey told Morgan "You're good" during the interview but US critics have given him mixed reviews.
King bowed out in December after 25 years as host of "Larry King Live" and the Atlanta-based news network launched a huge advertising campaign to publicise Morgan's debut the following month.
"I think they might have been better off starting quietly," King told the BBC.
King, 77, said he had not watched many episodes of the show and that Morgan, whose first guest was chat show legend Oprah Winfrey, seemed a "fine broadcaster".
But he added: "I think one of the problems they did was over sell it. He was going to be dangerous, he was going to be water cooler talk."
"He's good but not that dangerous. I think they might have been better off starting quietly and that's not Piers's fault, or maybe it is, I'm not inside anymore," said King.
"He's certainly not bad. He's certainly an acceptable host. He asks good questions, maybe he interrupts a little too much at times. I think he may have been oversold."
Winfrey told Morgan "You're good" during the interview but US critics have given him mixed reviews.
Anna Nicole, the opera: She aims to sleaze
AP, LONDON: Why write an opera about the sordid life and death of Anna Nicole Smith? That question doubtless leaped to the minds of many when they heard the Royal Opera had commissioned such a work.
And sad to say, despite the expenditure of considerable talent and money — and a splendid performance by Eva-Maria Westbroek in the title role — the question remains unanswered following the world premiere of "Anna Nicole" at Covent Garden on Thursday night.
For anyone who may have forgotten, Smith was a single mother from small-town Texas who, thanks to breast enhancement surgery, became a Playboy celebrity and married an oil tycoon 63 years her senior. Her claim on his fortune was disputed by his heirs, and in 2007 — after giving birth (on pay-per-view TV) and seeing her 20-year-old son die of an overdose in her hospital room — she herself, grossly overweight, died of a drug overdose at age 39.
To be sure, Smith's willingness to go to any lengths to lift herself out of poverty and her lifelong obsession with publicity have a lurid quality that seems almost mythic. That's apparently what attracted librettist Richard Thomas and composer Mark-Anthony Turnage when they were looking for a subject for an opera.
But it's not enough to put the spectacle of her life on stage in a chronological narrative, dressed up with satiric jabs at obvious targets and occasional attempts to indict society at large for enabling Anna's career. We may feel pity for her, along with disgust, but those are not responses that redeem the tawdry spectacle of her life. In this retelling of her story, it's hard to empathize with her, much less imagine her as a figure of tragedy.
Thomas has written a sometimes-clever, sometimes-sophomoric libretto very much in the vein of his popular hit, "Jerry Springer: The Opera."
A typical sample is Anna's introductory line: "I want to blow you all — a kiss." (These are also her final words before being zipped into a body bag at the end.)
In a more serious, but not necessarily more persuasive vein, Thomas has Anna exclaim near the end: "Oh, America, you dirty whore. I gave you everything but you wanted more.
Turnage, a respected composer of two previous operas, has set Thomas's words to a tuneful, percussive score that is highly accessible on first hearing. His orchestration includes a role for jazz trio — a bass guitar, guitar and drums — that helps blur the lines between "serious" music and a more popular sound. Antonio Pappano, the Royal Opera's music director, conducts with seeming mastery.
There are some striking lyrical moments, as when Anna sings an aria of delight after receiving her new breasts (before the resulting back pain has led to her painkiller addiction.) And there's a lovely ensemble to conclude Act 1 as Anna and her billionaire husband, J. Howard Marshall II, stand atop a wedding cake while distorted strains of Mendelssohn play and various characters express their thoughts.
There's also a gorgeous, melancholy interlude midway through Act 2, marking the passage of 10 years as a curtain covered with double cheeseburgers shows Anna's figure giving way to the obesity of later years.
Westbroek, a Dutch soprano much admired in the standard repertory of Wagner, Verdi and Puccini, throws herself into the title role with all of her considerable assets. On stage for virtually the entire two-hour length of the opera, Westbroek sings with luminous tone and creates a plausible sex symbol with her blond hair and glamorous figure (before she has to put on a fat suit for the later scenes). There's also a disarming sincerity and eagerness to please about her that make the character more appealing than she might otherwise be.
Among the supporting cast, mezzo-soprano Susan Bickley makes a sympathetic figure as Anna's loyal but critical mother, Virgie ("My flesh, my blood, my embarrassment," she sings at one point). Tenor Alan Oke as Marshall makes a splendid entrance flying in from the wings in an over-sized armchair and revels with unabashed glee at buying Anna's sexual favors.
As Anna's surgeon, Doctor Yes, tenor Andrew Rees has fun with his aria describing the differences in cup sizes ("A is small, no use at all ... ." Dominic Rowntree, as Anna's grown-up son, Daniel, doesn't get to sing until after he's dead. Then he has a brief aria, the words of which consist of a list of all the drugs found in his system — Valium, Prozac and about 20 others.
The opera's most problematic character is Anna's lawyer-turned-boyfriend, Howard K. Stern. Portrayed by baritone Gerald Finley, he makes brief appearances in Act 1 but without much purpose.
Even in Act 2, the part seems underwritten — as if the creators couldn't quite decide whether to make him more villain or sorrowful witness to Anna's demise.
Director Richard Jones has given the work a lively, fast-moving production, especially in the first and vastly more entertaining half, which traces Anna's rise in jaunty, energetic fashion.
Though the Royal Opera warned of "extreme language, drug abuse and sexual content," there's little on stage to shock, some rough language aside. Even the sex act to which Anna's opening lines teasingly refer takes place with the chorus tactfully concealing her and Marshall from view.
There are five more performances through March 4, all of them sold out.
And sad to say, despite the expenditure of considerable talent and money — and a splendid performance by Eva-Maria Westbroek in the title role — the question remains unanswered following the world premiere of "Anna Nicole" at Covent Garden on Thursday night.
For anyone who may have forgotten, Smith was a single mother from small-town Texas who, thanks to breast enhancement surgery, became a Playboy celebrity and married an oil tycoon 63 years her senior. Her claim on his fortune was disputed by his heirs, and in 2007 — after giving birth (on pay-per-view TV) and seeing her 20-year-old son die of an overdose in her hospital room — she herself, grossly overweight, died of a drug overdose at age 39.
To be sure, Smith's willingness to go to any lengths to lift herself out of poverty and her lifelong obsession with publicity have a lurid quality that seems almost mythic. That's apparently what attracted librettist Richard Thomas and composer Mark-Anthony Turnage when they were looking for a subject for an opera.
But it's not enough to put the spectacle of her life on stage in a chronological narrative, dressed up with satiric jabs at obvious targets and occasional attempts to indict society at large for enabling Anna's career. We may feel pity for her, along with disgust, but those are not responses that redeem the tawdry spectacle of her life. In this retelling of her story, it's hard to empathize with her, much less imagine her as a figure of tragedy.
Thomas has written a sometimes-clever, sometimes-sophomoric libretto very much in the vein of his popular hit, "Jerry Springer: The Opera."
A typical sample is Anna's introductory line: "I want to blow you all — a kiss." (These are also her final words before being zipped into a body bag at the end.)
In a more serious, but not necessarily more persuasive vein, Thomas has Anna exclaim near the end: "Oh, America, you dirty whore. I gave you everything but you wanted more.
Turnage, a respected composer of two previous operas, has set Thomas's words to a tuneful, percussive score that is highly accessible on first hearing. His orchestration includes a role for jazz trio — a bass guitar, guitar and drums — that helps blur the lines between "serious" music and a more popular sound. Antonio Pappano, the Royal Opera's music director, conducts with seeming mastery.
There are some striking lyrical moments, as when Anna sings an aria of delight after receiving her new breasts (before the resulting back pain has led to her painkiller addiction.) And there's a lovely ensemble to conclude Act 1 as Anna and her billionaire husband, J. Howard Marshall II, stand atop a wedding cake while distorted strains of Mendelssohn play and various characters express their thoughts.
There's also a gorgeous, melancholy interlude midway through Act 2, marking the passage of 10 years as a curtain covered with double cheeseburgers shows Anna's figure giving way to the obesity of later years.
Westbroek, a Dutch soprano much admired in the standard repertory of Wagner, Verdi and Puccini, throws herself into the title role with all of her considerable assets. On stage for virtually the entire two-hour length of the opera, Westbroek sings with luminous tone and creates a plausible sex symbol with her blond hair and glamorous figure (before she has to put on a fat suit for the later scenes). There's also a disarming sincerity and eagerness to please about her that make the character more appealing than she might otherwise be.
Among the supporting cast, mezzo-soprano Susan Bickley makes a sympathetic figure as Anna's loyal but critical mother, Virgie ("My flesh, my blood, my embarrassment," she sings at one point). Tenor Alan Oke as Marshall makes a splendid entrance flying in from the wings in an over-sized armchair and revels with unabashed glee at buying Anna's sexual favors.
As Anna's surgeon, Doctor Yes, tenor Andrew Rees has fun with his aria describing the differences in cup sizes ("A is small, no use at all ... ." Dominic Rowntree, as Anna's grown-up son, Daniel, doesn't get to sing until after he's dead. Then he has a brief aria, the words of which consist of a list of all the drugs found in his system — Valium, Prozac and about 20 others.
The opera's most problematic character is Anna's lawyer-turned-boyfriend, Howard K. Stern. Portrayed by baritone Gerald Finley, he makes brief appearances in Act 1 but without much purpose.
Even in Act 2, the part seems underwritten — as if the creators couldn't quite decide whether to make him more villain or sorrowful witness to Anna's demise.
Director Richard Jones has given the work a lively, fast-moving production, especially in the first and vastly more entertaining half, which traces Anna's rise in jaunty, energetic fashion.
Though the Royal Opera warned of "extreme language, drug abuse and sexual content," there's little on stage to shock, some rough language aside. Even the sex act to which Anna's opening lines teasingly refer takes place with the chorus tactfully concealing her and Marshall from view.
There are five more performances through March 4, all of them sold out.
Oscar could be coronation for composer Desplat
AP, NEW YORK: In a film where sound is central, Alexandre Desplat's score to "The King's Speech" enters subtly.
A simple melody slinks in, a soft, demure line of hopeful piano notes, fittingly repetitive, like the stuttering speech of the film's main character, George VI (Colin Firth).
"You have to respect the silence," says Desplat, speaking from London where he's working on the score to "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2." "It's quite a challenge to be able to come in in such a delicate way that you're not noticed. I think great scores have to be noticed, but they're wrong when you hear the music come in."
The score, partly recorded with a vintage microphone of George VI's, has earned Desplat his fourth Academy Award nomination. He's regarded as the front-runner in the category ahead of the Feb. 27 Oscars.
A win would be something of a belated coronation for Desplat. Though it wasn't until 2003 that he broke through to Hollywood, the 49-year-old Frenchman has already established himself as one of the most sought after composers in movies.
His scores are remarkably varied, veering from grandly epic to minimalist and intimate, from 80-piece orchestras to lone whistling. He's worked with Stephen Frears, Roman Polanski, David Fincher, Wes Anderson and Jacques Audiard.
"The sound of the music and the images, to me, is something intangible and magical," says Desplat. "I try to sneak into the film with the music, so that it belongs to the film totally."
The son of a French father and Greek mother who met in the U.S. but raised him in France, Desplat was classically trained on piano from age 5. He also became proficient on the flute and trumpet.
He was a young cinephile. At age 6, he recalls being struck by Alex North's score to "Spartacus."
"I never dreamed of writing for concert or opera," says Desplat. "I always dreamed, if I was a composer, to write music for films."
He was particularly moved by scores by Nino Rota, Bernard Herrmann, fellow Frenchman Maurice Jarre ("Lawrence of Arabia") and John Williams, whose "Star Wars" score — its double album poured over — prompted a resolution in Desplat.
"I remember saying to my friends: `That's what I want to do,'" says Desplat.
He began scoring film and television around 1990, working mainly in France. Dialogue-heavy French films, Desplat says, didn't give him the room he craved. 2003's "Girl with a Pearl Earring" introduced him to Hollywood.
Jonathan Glazer's "Birth" (2004) bent yet more ears to Desplat, particularly its magnificent opening scene: An overhead shot of a jogger running through a snowy Central Park, who eventually collapses and dies. Paced by flute, Desplat's score is lush and stirring — somewhat like minimalist John Adams, a distinct influence on Desplat.
Anderson was blown away by the "Birth" score and sought out Desplat for his stop-motion animated "Fantastic Mr. Fox." Desplat's whimsical score has bluegrass influences and pieces like "Whack-Bat Majorette."
"Alexandre is a French movie star who happens to be one of the world's pre-eminent composers," Anderson said by e-mail. "I do not know if he can act. Also, I feel he may be the flute-playing equivalent of Jimi Hendrix, and he is a great whistler."
For Desplat, scoring a film is a deeply personal task. He holes himself away "like a monk" when writing, pushing himself into "a very obsessive trance." Watching footage from the film endlessly, inspiration can come from anything: the storyline, an actor's face, a camera angle, a lighting style.
"When I think I have found what the music should be, I can feel a vibration as I'm playing the music and watching at the same time," Desplat says. "If you change the music of `Vertigo,' I'm sure the vibration would go away."
For "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," a film in which the main character ages backward, he created musical palindromes. In "New Moon," he reflected Bella's indecision between her two suitors (Edward and Jacob) by blending their themes.
Chris Weitz has worked with Desplat on three very different films: "New Moon," the fantasy epic "The Golden Compass" and the upcoming illegal immigrant drama "A Better Life." He convenes with Desplat at his Montparnasse apartment in Paris, which includes a studio.
"It's kind of sinfully fun," says Weitz. "You're sitting around, every once in a while a cat will wander in and take a seat on the couch. You sit around and talk about the day and life and eat biscuits and sip coffee."
"You get the sense that you're both trying to improve the movie, rather than just knocking around notes," says Weitz.
Desplat was particularly challenged in scoring the much-anticipated "The Tree of Life" (out in May), by the rarely active Terrence Malick. On Malick's wishes, Desplat composed the score without seeing any of the footage, providing music to the director for several years.
It's all an incredible load for any composer, especially one as dedicated as Desplat.
"It's a very, very lucky moment and I don't want to stop that moment," says Desplat. "It's what I dreamed to do, and I want to keep the dream going."
A simple melody slinks in, a soft, demure line of hopeful piano notes, fittingly repetitive, like the stuttering speech of the film's main character, George VI (Colin Firth).
"You have to respect the silence," says Desplat, speaking from London where he's working on the score to "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2." "It's quite a challenge to be able to come in in such a delicate way that you're not noticed. I think great scores have to be noticed, but they're wrong when you hear the music come in."
The score, partly recorded with a vintage microphone of George VI's, has earned Desplat his fourth Academy Award nomination. He's regarded as the front-runner in the category ahead of the Feb. 27 Oscars.
A win would be something of a belated coronation for Desplat. Though it wasn't until 2003 that he broke through to Hollywood, the 49-year-old Frenchman has already established himself as one of the most sought after composers in movies.
His scores are remarkably varied, veering from grandly epic to minimalist and intimate, from 80-piece orchestras to lone whistling. He's worked with Stephen Frears, Roman Polanski, David Fincher, Wes Anderson and Jacques Audiard.
"The sound of the music and the images, to me, is something intangible and magical," says Desplat. "I try to sneak into the film with the music, so that it belongs to the film totally."
The son of a French father and Greek mother who met in the U.S. but raised him in France, Desplat was classically trained on piano from age 5. He also became proficient on the flute and trumpet.
He was a young cinephile. At age 6, he recalls being struck by Alex North's score to "Spartacus."
"I never dreamed of writing for concert or opera," says Desplat. "I always dreamed, if I was a composer, to write music for films."
He was particularly moved by scores by Nino Rota, Bernard Herrmann, fellow Frenchman Maurice Jarre ("Lawrence of Arabia") and John Williams, whose "Star Wars" score — its double album poured over — prompted a resolution in Desplat.
"I remember saying to my friends: `That's what I want to do,'" says Desplat.
He began scoring film and television around 1990, working mainly in France. Dialogue-heavy French films, Desplat says, didn't give him the room he craved. 2003's "Girl with a Pearl Earring" introduced him to Hollywood.
Jonathan Glazer's "Birth" (2004) bent yet more ears to Desplat, particularly its magnificent opening scene: An overhead shot of a jogger running through a snowy Central Park, who eventually collapses and dies. Paced by flute, Desplat's score is lush and stirring — somewhat like minimalist John Adams, a distinct influence on Desplat.
Anderson was blown away by the "Birth" score and sought out Desplat for his stop-motion animated "Fantastic Mr. Fox." Desplat's whimsical score has bluegrass influences and pieces like "Whack-Bat Majorette."
"Alexandre is a French movie star who happens to be one of the world's pre-eminent composers," Anderson said by e-mail. "I do not know if he can act. Also, I feel he may be the flute-playing equivalent of Jimi Hendrix, and he is a great whistler."
For Desplat, scoring a film is a deeply personal task. He holes himself away "like a monk" when writing, pushing himself into "a very obsessive trance." Watching footage from the film endlessly, inspiration can come from anything: the storyline, an actor's face, a camera angle, a lighting style.
"When I think I have found what the music should be, I can feel a vibration as I'm playing the music and watching at the same time," Desplat says. "If you change the music of `Vertigo,' I'm sure the vibration would go away."
For "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," a film in which the main character ages backward, he created musical palindromes. In "New Moon," he reflected Bella's indecision between her two suitors (Edward and Jacob) by blending their themes.
Chris Weitz has worked with Desplat on three very different films: "New Moon," the fantasy epic "The Golden Compass" and the upcoming illegal immigrant drama "A Better Life." He convenes with Desplat at his Montparnasse apartment in Paris, which includes a studio.
"It's kind of sinfully fun," says Weitz. "You're sitting around, every once in a while a cat will wander in and take a seat on the couch. You sit around and talk about the day and life and eat biscuits and sip coffee."
"You get the sense that you're both trying to improve the movie, rather than just knocking around notes," says Weitz.
Desplat was particularly challenged in scoring the much-anticipated "The Tree of Life" (out in May), by the rarely active Terrence Malick. On Malick's wishes, Desplat composed the score without seeing any of the footage, providing music to the director for several years.
It's all an incredible load for any composer, especially one as dedicated as Desplat.
"It's a very, very lucky moment and I don't want to stop that moment," says Desplat. "It's what I dreamed to do, and I want to keep the dream going."
Paparazzi lie in wait for prince's bride-to-be
Reuters, LONDON: When Kate Middleton said "yes" to Prince William's marriage proposal, she was not just agreeing to become the wife of a future British king.
She was also signing up to massive media intrusion in her private life and years of intense attention from paparazzi photographers.
The question she and her future husband will now be pondering is whether that attention can be managed or if they will suffer from the same insatiable press frenzy that ultimately led to the death of William's mother, Princess Diana.
"There's huge interest. William has become the star of the royal family that his mother was and Kate's an attractive girl, so from a paparazzi point of view she potentially means a lot of money," said Max Clifford, Britain's best-known publicist.
"And these days the paparazzi are anyone -- anyone with a camera, anyone with a mobile phone," he told Reuters.
The couple's wedding on April 29 comes almost 14 years after Diana was killed with her lover Dodi al-Fayed when their limousine crashed into the wall of a Paris tunnel as they tried to escape from a posse of chasing paparazzi.
A British inquest in 2008 concluded the actions of the photographers were partly to blame for the fatal accident.
So far William and Kate, who began dating while at university in Scotland, have been largely spared the level of scrutiny that Diana suffered, partly through media restraint and because of more robust action from the royal family itself.
MOBBED
However, Middleton was mobbed by photographers on her way to work on her 25th birthday in 2007 and later that year formally complained to Britain's media watchdog, the Press Complaints Commission (PCC), after one newspaper published a picture of her which she said was taken as the result of harassment.
William has also complained that photographers on motorbikes had aggressively followed them after leaving a nightclub, while Queen Elizabeth has written to editors about paparazzi intruding on the royal family's privacy.
The crucial factor for the future will be the attitude of newspaper and magazine editors. If they do not use or pay for paparazzi pictures, there will clearly be less incentive for photographers to hound the royal couple.
"The judgment that editors will make will be 'can we justify showing this photo, breaking this news story, with our readers?'" Clifford said.
"Is it going to put them off or make more of them want to buy the paper or magazine? And that's the most important thing to all newspaper editors."
He predicted the couple's easy ride would continue initially, because upsetting the popular newlyweds is likely to upset their readers too.
"As time goes by, if opportunities come along then of course the media will exploit her because it sells papers," he said.
"They will be looking to see if there's an angle there that obviously the more sensational, the more people will want to read it."
OUT OF TOUCH
Following Diana's death, the public turned against both the media and the royal family, regarding the latter as an aloof and out of touch institution which left Diana to suffer at the hands of a remorseless press.
Now, royal aides have developed a more intuitive, thoughtful, sensible, and workmanlike approach, experts say.
"What they've done is develop a kind of stick and carrot approach to the world media and in particular to the paparazzi, and they have warned the paparazzi off quite severely," royal biographer Christopher Wilson told Reuters.
"They have sensed certainly within the British media there's still this residual feeling of guilt about Diana and the way she was treated which means (the press) has very much more been prepared not to intrude too much and give them their space."
Bob Satchwell, Executive Director of Britain's Guild of Editors, said aides now accepted the public had an interest in and a right to know more than had been thought in the past.
A new code of practice brought in by the PCC in the wake of Diana's death which stated people were entitled to privacy was also taken very seriously, he added. Editors would now think hard before using the sort of pictures printed 20 years ago.
"That (the code) made a significant difference to the way papers looked at not just royal princesses or royal princes, it made a huge difference and took away most of the market for paparazzi in this country," he told Reuters.
"I think editors will think more than twice before they publish pictures which might be considered intrusive."
Middleton herself, at 29, is viewed as much older and wiser than Diana who emerged from obscurity as a 19-year-old to become Prince Charles's bride and front page news.
GROOMED
Having dated William for so long, Kate has been groomed for her future role, and the media spotlight will not be such a shock. She is expected to get far more advice and be under greater control, with her exposure kept to a minimum unless on official duties.
"Kate comes from a much more stable background -- she is already eight years older than Diana was when she got married and is, in every sense, more mature, well-grounded and comfortable in her own skin," said Claudia Joseph, author of "Kate: The Making of a Princess".
"You have to remember that she has been dating the prince since they were at university so has had some practice for the role. Kate may well be as glamorous as Diana but they are very different people and come from totally different backgrounds."
Clifford said Kate is never going to have the kind of freedom that Diana found that she had in some ways.
"Obviously Diana exploited that freedom to become the most photographed woman in the world and Kate won't have that opportunity," Clifford said. "The palace and all those around will have learned from what happened with Diana and they will be very, very guarded to make sure that doesn't happen again."
However, it is not just the notoriously aggressive British media that the couple will have to cope with.
"If you think the UK media is obsessed with celebrity you should look at European media and American media who go even wilder," said Satchwell.
"And they don't get the same feedback that the UK media gets about the activities of the paparazzi involving the royals."
Most predict that once the wedding is over, the paparazzi will resume normal service.
"I don't think they'll ever change. Everybody is competitive with everyone else and they want to get a better story and they're prepared to go further than the competition," Wilson said.
He said Middleton has been shrouded in secrecy for the last seven years with occasional opportunities for photographs, but when she becomes a public figure after her marriage to William on April 29 the light-handed approach may end.
"I think that a lot of self-restraint that has been exercised so far will probably start to drip away."
(Editing by Paul Casciato)
She was also signing up to massive media intrusion in her private life and years of intense attention from paparazzi photographers.
The question she and her future husband will now be pondering is whether that attention can be managed or if they will suffer from the same insatiable press frenzy that ultimately led to the death of William's mother, Princess Diana.
"There's huge interest. William has become the star of the royal family that his mother was and Kate's an attractive girl, so from a paparazzi point of view she potentially means a lot of money," said Max Clifford, Britain's best-known publicist.
"And these days the paparazzi are anyone -- anyone with a camera, anyone with a mobile phone," he told Reuters.
The couple's wedding on April 29 comes almost 14 years after Diana was killed with her lover Dodi al-Fayed when their limousine crashed into the wall of a Paris tunnel as they tried to escape from a posse of chasing paparazzi.
A British inquest in 2008 concluded the actions of the photographers were partly to blame for the fatal accident.
So far William and Kate, who began dating while at university in Scotland, have been largely spared the level of scrutiny that Diana suffered, partly through media restraint and because of more robust action from the royal family itself.
MOBBED
However, Middleton was mobbed by photographers on her way to work on her 25th birthday in 2007 and later that year formally complained to Britain's media watchdog, the Press Complaints Commission (PCC), after one newspaper published a picture of her which she said was taken as the result of harassment.
William has also complained that photographers on motorbikes had aggressively followed them after leaving a nightclub, while Queen Elizabeth has written to editors about paparazzi intruding on the royal family's privacy.
The crucial factor for the future will be the attitude of newspaper and magazine editors. If they do not use or pay for paparazzi pictures, there will clearly be less incentive for photographers to hound the royal couple.
"The judgment that editors will make will be 'can we justify showing this photo, breaking this news story, with our readers?'" Clifford said.
"Is it going to put them off or make more of them want to buy the paper or magazine? And that's the most important thing to all newspaper editors."
He predicted the couple's easy ride would continue initially, because upsetting the popular newlyweds is likely to upset their readers too.
"As time goes by, if opportunities come along then of course the media will exploit her because it sells papers," he said.
"They will be looking to see if there's an angle there that obviously the more sensational, the more people will want to read it."
OUT OF TOUCH
Following Diana's death, the public turned against both the media and the royal family, regarding the latter as an aloof and out of touch institution which left Diana to suffer at the hands of a remorseless press.
Now, royal aides have developed a more intuitive, thoughtful, sensible, and workmanlike approach, experts say.
"What they've done is develop a kind of stick and carrot approach to the world media and in particular to the paparazzi, and they have warned the paparazzi off quite severely," royal biographer Christopher Wilson told Reuters.
"They have sensed certainly within the British media there's still this residual feeling of guilt about Diana and the way she was treated which means (the press) has very much more been prepared not to intrude too much and give them their space."
Bob Satchwell, Executive Director of Britain's Guild of Editors, said aides now accepted the public had an interest in and a right to know more than had been thought in the past.
A new code of practice brought in by the PCC in the wake of Diana's death which stated people were entitled to privacy was also taken very seriously, he added. Editors would now think hard before using the sort of pictures printed 20 years ago.
"That (the code) made a significant difference to the way papers looked at not just royal princesses or royal princes, it made a huge difference and took away most of the market for paparazzi in this country," he told Reuters.
"I think editors will think more than twice before they publish pictures which might be considered intrusive."
Middleton herself, at 29, is viewed as much older and wiser than Diana who emerged from obscurity as a 19-year-old to become Prince Charles's bride and front page news.
GROOMED
Having dated William for so long, Kate has been groomed for her future role, and the media spotlight will not be such a shock. She is expected to get far more advice and be under greater control, with her exposure kept to a minimum unless on official duties.
"Kate comes from a much more stable background -- she is already eight years older than Diana was when she got married and is, in every sense, more mature, well-grounded and comfortable in her own skin," said Claudia Joseph, author of "Kate: The Making of a Princess".
"You have to remember that she has been dating the prince since they were at university so has had some practice for the role. Kate may well be as glamorous as Diana but they are very different people and come from totally different backgrounds."
Clifford said Kate is never going to have the kind of freedom that Diana found that she had in some ways.
"Obviously Diana exploited that freedom to become the most photographed woman in the world and Kate won't have that opportunity," Clifford said. "The palace and all those around will have learned from what happened with Diana and they will be very, very guarded to make sure that doesn't happen again."
However, it is not just the notoriously aggressive British media that the couple will have to cope with.
"If you think the UK media is obsessed with celebrity you should look at European media and American media who go even wilder," said Satchwell.
"And they don't get the same feedback that the UK media gets about the activities of the paparazzi involving the royals."
Most predict that once the wedding is over, the paparazzi will resume normal service.
"I don't think they'll ever change. Everybody is competitive with everyone else and they want to get a better story and they're prepared to go further than the competition," Wilson said.
He said Middleton has been shrouded in secrecy for the last seven years with occasional opportunities for photographs, but when she becomes a public figure after her marriage to William on April 29 the light-handed approach may end.
"I think that a lot of self-restraint that has been exercised so far will probably start to drip away."
(Editing by Paul Casciato)
Anna Nicole Smith: big in life, now big in opera
Reuters, LONDON: The tabloid life of Playboy centerfold Anna Nicole Smith, who bought big breasts, married an oil billionaire and gave birth on TV, has made it to the opera stage in London in a production true to operatic tradition.
Like her sexy operatic sisters Salome, Lulu and Manon, the Texan babe with the silicone monsters who becomes addicted to pain killers for consequent back troubles, dies just before the final curtain, of a drug overdose at age 39.
That's when the cheering of the sold-out opening night audience erupted for the Royal Opera House production of a two-hour opera by librettist Richard Thomas, of "Jerry Springer: The Opera" fame, and British composer Mark-Anthony Turnage.
The staging included a tour-de-force performance by Dutch soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek as Anna, wearing prosthetic breasts most of the time, and who is zipped up in a body bag as the lights go out.
"The way we look at it is Anna in this opera is a fabulous eccentric who fell on bad times," Thomas told Reuters Television before the Thursday night premiere of the first of six performances.
The run has been sold out for weeks and, given the risque material, has been the talk of the London music scene and even Britain's tabloids, which normally eschew opera.
The papers were particularly exercised about the prospect of fellatio being performed onstage as Anna attempts to wheedle a ranch from her octogenarian billionaire "paw paw," J. Howard Marshall, who died a little more than a year after they married.
A crowd that gathers blocks out all view while the act supposedly is performed, leaving everything to the imagination.
QUITE AN EYEFUL
The audience, however, got quite an eye and earful for its money. The tone was set with a special cerise-colored curtain topped with a gaudy cameo of Anna Nicole above the proscenium.
The production included an utterly believable re-creation of a lap-dancing club set in Smith's native Texas and a riotous, cocaine-fueled onstage party that featured a guest appearance by Led Zeppelin bass guitarist John Paul Jones, a long-time friend of the composer.
Jones turning up as part of a jazz trio gives only a small clue to the depth and breadth of Turnage's score for the 80-piece ROH orchestra, under the baton of conductor Antonio Pappano.
Turnage, 50 and writing his third opera, pulled from a huge range of styles, including a banjo-tinged tune reminiscent of Smith's native American south.
There also was a witty ensemble for the furious billionaire Marshall's offspring from previous marriages who inform Anna in no uncertain terms she's not getting a dime of his money to a reworking of Sly and the Family Stone's "We Are Family."
"Some people say, 'Why an opera?' and actually she's very much an opera figure," Turnage said.
"It needs that big treatment...as soon as I started working on this I felt this, I could see her singing, Anna Nicole singing. That was very important to me, that I could musicalise her."
The Royal Opera has been at pains to underscore that despite strong parallels to Smith's life, the production is not, as the company's press spokeswoman Ann Richards put it, a "bio-op."
This stance may in part be designed to ward off spillover from the endless legal battle that arose from Smith's efforts to claim part of Marshall's estate, and litigation initiated by the attorney Howard Stern, who was her partner at the end.
Larry Birkhead, the father of Smith's surviving child Dannielynn, told Reuters on Thursday her estate was considering legal options against the makers of the opera.
Thomas said there was "no intention to write a sort of defamatory-prone script," while Turnage said he'd gone out of his way to give Stern, sung with immense finesse by Canadian baritone Gerald Finley, "beautiful music."
The opera's ultimate message, though, is delivered by the woman who wanted to be Marilyn Monroe and instead wound up an overweight addict and laughing-stock of reality television.
"I want to blow you all, blow you all, a kiss," Anna sings near the opera's opening, and again at its tragic conclusion.
Like her sexy operatic sisters Salome, Lulu and Manon, the Texan babe with the silicone monsters who becomes addicted to pain killers for consequent back troubles, dies just before the final curtain, of a drug overdose at age 39.
That's when the cheering of the sold-out opening night audience erupted for the Royal Opera House production of a two-hour opera by librettist Richard Thomas, of "Jerry Springer: The Opera" fame, and British composer Mark-Anthony Turnage.
The staging included a tour-de-force performance by Dutch soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek as Anna, wearing prosthetic breasts most of the time, and who is zipped up in a body bag as the lights go out.
"The way we look at it is Anna in this opera is a fabulous eccentric who fell on bad times," Thomas told Reuters Television before the Thursday night premiere of the first of six performances.
The run has been sold out for weeks and, given the risque material, has been the talk of the London music scene and even Britain's tabloids, which normally eschew opera.
The papers were particularly exercised about the prospect of fellatio being performed onstage as Anna attempts to wheedle a ranch from her octogenarian billionaire "paw paw," J. Howard Marshall, who died a little more than a year after they married.
A crowd that gathers blocks out all view while the act supposedly is performed, leaving everything to the imagination.
QUITE AN EYEFUL
The audience, however, got quite an eye and earful for its money. The tone was set with a special cerise-colored curtain topped with a gaudy cameo of Anna Nicole above the proscenium.
The production included an utterly believable re-creation of a lap-dancing club set in Smith's native Texas and a riotous, cocaine-fueled onstage party that featured a guest appearance by Led Zeppelin bass guitarist John Paul Jones, a long-time friend of the composer.
Jones turning up as part of a jazz trio gives only a small clue to the depth and breadth of Turnage's score for the 80-piece ROH orchestra, under the baton of conductor Antonio Pappano.
Turnage, 50 and writing his third opera, pulled from a huge range of styles, including a banjo-tinged tune reminiscent of Smith's native American south.
There also was a witty ensemble for the furious billionaire Marshall's offspring from previous marriages who inform Anna in no uncertain terms she's not getting a dime of his money to a reworking of Sly and the Family Stone's "We Are Family."
"Some people say, 'Why an opera?' and actually she's very much an opera figure," Turnage said.
"It needs that big treatment...as soon as I started working on this I felt this, I could see her singing, Anna Nicole singing. That was very important to me, that I could musicalise her."
The Royal Opera has been at pains to underscore that despite strong parallels to Smith's life, the production is not, as the company's press spokeswoman Ann Richards put it, a "bio-op."
This stance may in part be designed to ward off spillover from the endless legal battle that arose from Smith's efforts to claim part of Marshall's estate, and litigation initiated by the attorney Howard Stern, who was her partner at the end.
Larry Birkhead, the father of Smith's surviving child Dannielynn, told Reuters on Thursday her estate was considering legal options against the makers of the opera.
Thomas said there was "no intention to write a sort of defamatory-prone script," while Turnage said he'd gone out of his way to give Stern, sung with immense finesse by Canadian baritone Gerald Finley, "beautiful music."
The opera's ultimate message, though, is delivered by the woman who wanted to be Marilyn Monroe and instead wound up an overweight addict and laughing-stock of reality television.
"I want to blow you all, blow you all, a kiss," Anna sings near the opera's opening, and again at its tragic conclusion.
Jackson's estate earned $310 million since death
AP, LOS ANGELES: Despite more than $310 million in earnings since his death, Michael Jackson's lavish spending habits still haunt his legacy and have required lawyers to create new deals and restructure old debts, court records show.
Jackson died more than $400 million in debt, and attorneys are still trying to resolve several pending lawsuits, according to documents filed Thursday by his estate.
The report also states Jackson's estate spent $159 million between the singer's June 2009 death and the end of 2010, with some of the money used for his funeral, burial and to buy the Jackson family's home in the San Fernando Valley north of Los Angeles.
According to the filing, many of Jackson's debts, including his interests in a music catalog that features works by The Beatles and other top-earning musicians, have been restructured.
While Jackson's attorneys have resolved numerous debts and lawsuits, several cases are still unresolved, including disputes over Jackson's "Thriller" music video.
Since soon after the pop singer's death at age 50, attorneys began working on deals to begin to restore luster to Jackson's legacy, which had been tarnished even though he was acquitted of child molestation charges.
Projects have included the release of "This Is It," a film using rehearsal footage from Jackson's planned series of comeback shows; new music and video games; and the rerelease of the singer's autobiography.
An audit of the singer's earnings for already released music is under way and could yield more profits, the filings state.
Experts say Jackson's estate earnings are likely to rival those of another music superstar, Elvis Presley.
Most of the earnings benefit Jackson's three young children and his mother, Katherine, who is their guardian. Renovations on her home, valued at more than $4.1 million, are ongoing.
A judge will review the financial report, which is the first complete accounting of the King of Pop's financial affairs after his death. That hearing is scheduled for May 5.
Jackson's estate attorneys say the judge should expect to retain oversight of the estate for at least another year after that.
Jackson died more than $400 million in debt, and attorneys are still trying to resolve several pending lawsuits, according to documents filed Thursday by his estate.
The report also states Jackson's estate spent $159 million between the singer's June 2009 death and the end of 2010, with some of the money used for his funeral, burial and to buy the Jackson family's home in the San Fernando Valley north of Los Angeles.
According to the filing, many of Jackson's debts, including his interests in a music catalog that features works by The Beatles and other top-earning musicians, have been restructured.
While Jackson's attorneys have resolved numerous debts and lawsuits, several cases are still unresolved, including disputes over Jackson's "Thriller" music video.
Since soon after the pop singer's death at age 50, attorneys began working on deals to begin to restore luster to Jackson's legacy, which had been tarnished even though he was acquitted of child molestation charges.
Projects have included the release of "This Is It," a film using rehearsal footage from Jackson's planned series of comeback shows; new music and video games; and the rerelease of the singer's autobiography.
An audit of the singer's earnings for already released music is under way and could yield more profits, the filings state.
Experts say Jackson's estate earnings are likely to rival those of another music superstar, Elvis Presley.
Most of the earnings benefit Jackson's three young children and his mother, Katherine, who is their guardian. Renovations on her home, valued at more than $4.1 million, are ongoing.
A judge will review the financial report, which is the first complete accounting of the King of Pop's financial affairs after his death. That hearing is scheduled for May 5.
Jackson's estate attorneys say the judge should expect to retain oversight of the estate for at least another year after that.
Cable networks plan flood of royal wedding shows
AP, NEW YORK: Television viewers will be able to see hours on hours of programming tied to this spring's royal wedding before Prince William and Kate Middleton even approach Westminster Abbey for their big day.
A Lifetime movie, a show that brings wedding fanatics from the U.S. over to London and a TLC special on hoarders of royal memorabilia are all in the works. These run-up shows are in addition to the anticipated exhaustive coverage of the April 29 wedding itself by news programs.
"It's wedding fever here," said Perry Simon, general manager of BBC Worldwide Americas. "All wedding, all the time."
There's no surprise that the American offshoot of the British Broadcasting Corp. would try to own the story in the weeks leading up to the nuptials. BBC America has already aired two specials, "William & Kate: Modern Monarchy" and "Modern Monarchy: Here and There," and will air them again.
The network is also working to acquire up to a half dozen other specials, including ones on Princess Diana, another on her two sons and one on royal lineage.
BBC America's biggest push will be for "Royally Mad," a two-part series led by "So You Think You Can Dance" host Cat Deeley, which premieres April 12. The show finds four royal wedding fanatics who have never been out of the U.S. and takes them to London to visit people and places that play a part in the wedding story.
"We wanted to do a combination of programming that took an affectionate look at the wedding but could also have a sense of humor," Simon said. He wants to examine what the event means from both the American and British perspectives.
Simon was working in NBC's entertainment department when William's father, Prince Charles, married Diana in 1981 and remembered the attention paid to the event.
"It took us all by surprise," he said. "We thought there would be some interest, but we had no idea how much interest there would be. These kinds of events are once-in-a-generation. The royal family is unique."
In the week leading up to the wedding, the TLC network will air a series of programs. One special will tell the story of India Hicks, who was one of Princess Diana's bridesmaids. She tells stories about what that day was like.
The special on extreme collecting of royal memorabilia is another highlight of TLC's programming plans. Archived footage and interviews with the royal family will be rolled out in separate shows.
Lifetime, known for its signature romantic movies, has commissioned "William & Kate." The movie chronicles their courtship, from the moment they met and when a friendship turned into romance, with the unique difficulties that go into dating a member of the royal family. Nico Evers-Swindell and Camilla Luddington portray the couple in the movie, which doesn't have an air date yet but will be seen in April.
The tiny Wedding Central network, an offshoot of WE that is seen in only 3.5 million homes, has ordered a documentary it boldly calls "William & Kate: The Wedding of the Century." The special, the first piece of original programming the network has made, will talk to designers, cake makers, wedding planners and experts to hear their vision of the day.
A Lifetime movie, a show that brings wedding fanatics from the U.S. over to London and a TLC special on hoarders of royal memorabilia are all in the works. These run-up shows are in addition to the anticipated exhaustive coverage of the April 29 wedding itself by news programs.
"It's wedding fever here," said Perry Simon, general manager of BBC Worldwide Americas. "All wedding, all the time."
There's no surprise that the American offshoot of the British Broadcasting Corp. would try to own the story in the weeks leading up to the nuptials. BBC America has already aired two specials, "William & Kate: Modern Monarchy" and "Modern Monarchy: Here and There," and will air them again.
The network is also working to acquire up to a half dozen other specials, including ones on Princess Diana, another on her two sons and one on royal lineage.
BBC America's biggest push will be for "Royally Mad," a two-part series led by "So You Think You Can Dance" host Cat Deeley, which premieres April 12. The show finds four royal wedding fanatics who have never been out of the U.S. and takes them to London to visit people and places that play a part in the wedding story.
"We wanted to do a combination of programming that took an affectionate look at the wedding but could also have a sense of humor," Simon said. He wants to examine what the event means from both the American and British perspectives.
Simon was working in NBC's entertainment department when William's father, Prince Charles, married Diana in 1981 and remembered the attention paid to the event.
"It took us all by surprise," he said. "We thought there would be some interest, but we had no idea how much interest there would be. These kinds of events are once-in-a-generation. The royal family is unique."
In the week leading up to the wedding, the TLC network will air a series of programs. One special will tell the story of India Hicks, who was one of Princess Diana's bridesmaids. She tells stories about what that day was like.
The special on extreme collecting of royal memorabilia is another highlight of TLC's programming plans. Archived footage and interviews with the royal family will be rolled out in separate shows.
Lifetime, known for its signature romantic movies, has commissioned "William & Kate." The movie chronicles their courtship, from the moment they met and when a friendship turned into romance, with the unique difficulties that go into dating a member of the royal family. Nico Evers-Swindell and Camilla Luddington portray the couple in the movie, which doesn't have an air date yet but will be seen in April.
The tiny Wedding Central network, an offshoot of WE that is seen in only 3.5 million homes, has ordered a documentary it boldly calls "William & Kate: The Wedding of the Century." The special, the first piece of original programming the network has made, will talk to designers, cake makers, wedding planners and experts to hear their vision of the day.
Michael Jackson estate earns $310 million in revenue
Reuters, LOS ANGELES: Michael Jackson's estate has generated $310 million in revenue from album sales, a film, merchandising and other products since the "Thriller" singer died in 2009, according to court papers filed on Thursday.
His estate's administrators have used $159 million to pay down the pop star's debt, which when Jackson died amounted to more than $400 million, court records show.
"Although there remain unresolved creditor claims, pending litigation and additional challenging business, tax and legal issues, and the estate is not yet in a condition to be closed, the executors have made substantial progress in reducing the estate's debt," the documents state.
The records, which were made public as part of the estate's probate proceedings, are the most detailed accounting yet of the finances of Jackson's estate from his death until December 31, 2010.
Beneficiaries of the estate are Jackson's children, his mother and various charities. Attorney John Branca and music executive John McClain were named administrators in a will the "Thriller" singer signed before he died in June 2009 from an overdose of drugs, most prominently the anesthetic propofol.
The singer's physician at the time, Dr. Conrad Murray, has been charged with involuntary manslaughter in the death and has pleaded not guilty.
Jackson's 1982 release "Thriller" remains the best selling album of all time. Industry players think his estate can generate cash for years to come, just as dead stars like Jimi Hendrix, John Lennon and Elvis Presley continue to rake in millions.
Among the projects making money for Jackson's estate are the new album "Michael," which contains previously unreleased songs, and the concert movie "This Is It," which compiled videotaped rehearsals for a series of comeback concerts in London. Various merchandising and licensing deals have also swelled the coffers. Jackson's recordings are released by Epic Records, a unit of Sony Corp.
Noteworthy costs included a $900,000 payment to Forest Lawn Memorial cemetery where Jackson's body is interred, and $35,000 in expenses listed as "costume for memorial."
Administrators paid $27.2 million in taxes, as well as $5.3 million for Jackson family members and properties he owned. They made $4 million in mortgage payments on his properties.
(Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Dean Goodman)
Congressman's brief bout of 'Bieber fever' cured
AP, HARTFORD, Conn: For a short time, they seemed so simpatico: the idealistic congressman, the teenage singing sensation, their shared disappointment in the U.S. health care system.
Now, though, Connecticut Democrat Christopher Murphy and Justin Bieber, the famously coiffed Pied Piper of love-struck girls worldwide, have parted ways philosophically over the Biebs' opposition to abortion.
Their split is less puzzling to some observers than the fact that Murphy, 37, a three-term U.S. representative, even invoked the pop star as a voice of authority in the first place.
No worries, Murphy said Friday: He doesn't have Bieber fever, nor is he taking public policy directives from pop culture.
He's just using Twitter and Facebook to stay connected with constituents and show them he's a regular guy, he said, "even one who is probably too plugged in to pop culture."
"I care deeply about public policy, but I'm not afraid to show that I also know something about things like sports and music, and yes, even Justin Bieber," Murphy said.
Like many of today's flare-and-fizzle connections, their one-sided bromance played out electronically with a few Twitter messages and hashtags, or short phrases and words used to categorize posts according to their topics.
Murphy, who authors his own tweets, wrote Thursday morning: "Bieber on health care" and added the hashtag, "(hash)mycaseofbieberfever," plus a link to Bieber's comments in a recent Rolling Stone interview.
The Canadian-born singer called the U.S. health care system "evil" for the medical debt it places on some patients. But in the same interview, Bieber also mentioned his opposition to abortion, which he considers to be "like killing a baby."
Less than an hour after his first tweet about Bieber's health care concerns, Murphy was back on Twitter. His chagrined comment: "Oh wait ... just heard what Biebs said about abortion. Ugh."
Thus ended the brief affinity, though it's unclear whether Bieber even knew about it, between launching a world tour, appearing at the recent Grammy Awards, guest-starring on "CSI" and promoting his new movie. A representative for him did not immediately respond to an e-mail Friday seeking comment.
The incident has been a source of amusement and a little eye-rolling among some observers.
Connecticut Republican Party Chairman Chris Healy admitted that, yes, politicians from both sides of the aisle often try to paint themselves as hip and attuned to pop culture.
But linking your political ideology to that of a 16-year-old singer whose fans, calling themselves the "Beliebers," swoon and scream at the sight of his face?
"Which voters are Chris Murphy trying to reach now, 14-year-old girls?" Healy asked. "It's amazing what some politicians will do to try to tell the public, 'Hey, I'm cool, I'm paying attention to the zeitgeist.' It's kind of funny how it blows up in your face."
Murphy's tweets prompted Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton, a Republican whose city is in the congressman's district, to post a few of his own: "I think I have Bieber fever," followed by, "Never mind, it's just an allergy . Phew. (hash)wasgettingreallynervous."
Murphy isn't worried about the jokes, nor has the incident changed his opinion on using Twitter — or following pop culture.
"I just think that people in government tend to take themselves too seriously, and social media is a way for me to show people that I'm just a regular guy," he said in a statement.
All the same, though, there won't be a Justin Bieber concert T-shirt in Murphy's dresser drawer anytime soon, nor is he likely to be humming verses of Bieber's hit "Baby" on his way to Capitol Hill.
After his "ugh" reaction on Twitter to Bieber's abortion stance, the congressman drove home his point with two more hash tags: "(hash)timetobequietagainjustin" and "(hash)bieberfevercured."
No word, though, on whether he's gaga for Lady Gaga.
Now, though, Connecticut Democrat Christopher Murphy and Justin Bieber, the famously coiffed Pied Piper of love-struck girls worldwide, have parted ways philosophically over the Biebs' opposition to abortion.
Their split is less puzzling to some observers than the fact that Murphy, 37, a three-term U.S. representative, even invoked the pop star as a voice of authority in the first place.
No worries, Murphy said Friday: He doesn't have Bieber fever, nor is he taking public policy directives from pop culture.
He's just using Twitter and Facebook to stay connected with constituents and show them he's a regular guy, he said, "even one who is probably too plugged in to pop culture."
"I care deeply about public policy, but I'm not afraid to show that I also know something about things like sports and music, and yes, even Justin Bieber," Murphy said.
Like many of today's flare-and-fizzle connections, their one-sided bromance played out electronically with a few Twitter messages and hashtags, or short phrases and words used to categorize posts according to their topics.
Murphy, who authors his own tweets, wrote Thursday morning: "Bieber on health care" and added the hashtag, "(hash)mycaseofbieberfever," plus a link to Bieber's comments in a recent Rolling Stone interview.
The Canadian-born singer called the U.S. health care system "evil" for the medical debt it places on some patients. But in the same interview, Bieber also mentioned his opposition to abortion, which he considers to be "like killing a baby."
Less than an hour after his first tweet about Bieber's health care concerns, Murphy was back on Twitter. His chagrined comment: "Oh wait ... just heard what Biebs said about abortion. Ugh."
Thus ended the brief affinity, though it's unclear whether Bieber even knew about it, between launching a world tour, appearing at the recent Grammy Awards, guest-starring on "CSI" and promoting his new movie. A representative for him did not immediately respond to an e-mail Friday seeking comment.
The incident has been a source of amusement and a little eye-rolling among some observers.
Connecticut Republican Party Chairman Chris Healy admitted that, yes, politicians from both sides of the aisle often try to paint themselves as hip and attuned to pop culture.
But linking your political ideology to that of a 16-year-old singer whose fans, calling themselves the "Beliebers," swoon and scream at the sight of his face?
"Which voters are Chris Murphy trying to reach now, 14-year-old girls?" Healy asked. "It's amazing what some politicians will do to try to tell the public, 'Hey, I'm cool, I'm paying attention to the zeitgeist.' It's kind of funny how it blows up in your face."
Murphy's tweets prompted Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton, a Republican whose city is in the congressman's district, to post a few of his own: "I think I have Bieber fever," followed by, "Never mind, it's just an allergy . Phew. (hash)wasgettingreallynervous."
Murphy isn't worried about the jokes, nor has the incident changed his opinion on using Twitter — or following pop culture.
"I just think that people in government tend to take themselves too seriously, and social media is a way for me to show people that I'm just a regular guy," he said in a statement.
All the same, though, there won't be a Justin Bieber concert T-shirt in Murphy's dresser drawer anytime soon, nor is he likely to be humming verses of Bieber's hit "Baby" on his way to Capitol Hill.
After his "ugh" reaction on Twitter to Bieber's abortion stance, the congressman drove home his point with two more hash tags: "(hash)timetobequietagainjustin" and "(hash)bieberfevercured."
No word, though, on whether he's gaga for Lady Gaga.
Details of dramatic changes for Oscars telecast
Reuters, LOS ANGELES: The Oscars are entering the world of virtual reality.
This year's Academy Awards telecast is taking a radical departure from past years. Producers of the February 27 show are abandoning the concept of a traditional set. Instead, they will rely on a series of "projections" to give the show a constantly changing look.
"Our design this year is actually going to reflect more content than you would usually expect of an awards show of this type," producer Don Mischer told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview with fellow producer Bruce Cohen in the Kodak Theater. "We're using our environment to take us to different places, different times, and it will change dramatically. The look will change from act to act."
Producers plan to take viewers on a trip through Hollywood history.
"We're doing six or seven scenic transitions during the show, but they are each sort of a different concept," Cohen explained. "In other words, one might be a scene from a film, one might be a more specific time in history, one might be a specific event, one might be a specific genre. The hope is that we briefly leave the Kodak in 2011 -- not literally, but metaphorically -- and take the audience, both in the room and on television, to a specific time and place."
Pressed for more detail, Cohen added, "This is the tenth anniversary of the best animated feature Oscar, so we go to an animated environment to present that Oscar -- actually two, animated feature and animated short -- but the reason we are there is to celebrate that this is the tenth anniversary of the best animated feature Oscar."
The transitions, Mischer explained, will not be long segments, but 30-45 second set-ups. "We are not going back to teach history, but to put the awards in context."
The design scheme grew out of the theme that the two producers devised once they began working on the show back in June. In an extensive review of past broadcasts, they were struck by the two-fold nature of the assignment. On the one hand, they have to come up with something new and different. On the other, they wanted to recognize the previous 82 years of Oscar history.
"Is there any way to approach the show where those two ideas are working together and not fighting each other with every single decision?" they asked themselves. The solution, they decided, was somehow to combine the old and the new.
To that end, they cast Anne Hathaway and James Franco -- two of the youngest hosts to ever front the Oscars -- as audience surrogates for the journey.
"Yes, they are famous, but they are on their way up," Cohen said of the two stars. "They are not untouchable, they are not unreachable. We hope they will offer a way in. So everyone come along, and we'll see through the eyes of these two up-and-coming stars."
The hosts' job, he said, will be "to take the audience on this journey of a show that will hopefully start in one place, and if it all goes according to plan, it will take you back to where we started at the end."
To realize that on stage visually, the producers have been working with production designer Steve Bass, who's previously worked with Mischer on such shows as the "62nd Primetime Emmy Awards" and "We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial."
While the production has moved into the Kodak to set up the show, it's been using the daytime hours to hang the physical scenery on which the projections will be displayed, and then during the night another team has been programing the projections. Working throughout this weekend, the goal is to have the whole system up-and-running by Monday.
(Editing by Zorianna Kit)
This year's Academy Awards telecast is taking a radical departure from past years. Producers of the February 27 show are abandoning the concept of a traditional set. Instead, they will rely on a series of "projections" to give the show a constantly changing look.
"Our design this year is actually going to reflect more content than you would usually expect of an awards show of this type," producer Don Mischer told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview with fellow producer Bruce Cohen in the Kodak Theater. "We're using our environment to take us to different places, different times, and it will change dramatically. The look will change from act to act."
Producers plan to take viewers on a trip through Hollywood history.
"We're doing six or seven scenic transitions during the show, but they are each sort of a different concept," Cohen explained. "In other words, one might be a scene from a film, one might be a more specific time in history, one might be a specific event, one might be a specific genre. The hope is that we briefly leave the Kodak in 2011 -- not literally, but metaphorically -- and take the audience, both in the room and on television, to a specific time and place."
Pressed for more detail, Cohen added, "This is the tenth anniversary of the best animated feature Oscar, so we go to an animated environment to present that Oscar -- actually two, animated feature and animated short -- but the reason we are there is to celebrate that this is the tenth anniversary of the best animated feature Oscar."
The transitions, Mischer explained, will not be long segments, but 30-45 second set-ups. "We are not going back to teach history, but to put the awards in context."
The design scheme grew out of the theme that the two producers devised once they began working on the show back in June. In an extensive review of past broadcasts, they were struck by the two-fold nature of the assignment. On the one hand, they have to come up with something new and different. On the other, they wanted to recognize the previous 82 years of Oscar history.
"Is there any way to approach the show where those two ideas are working together and not fighting each other with every single decision?" they asked themselves. The solution, they decided, was somehow to combine the old and the new.
To that end, they cast Anne Hathaway and James Franco -- two of the youngest hosts to ever front the Oscars -- as audience surrogates for the journey.
"Yes, they are famous, but they are on their way up," Cohen said of the two stars. "They are not untouchable, they are not unreachable. We hope they will offer a way in. So everyone come along, and we'll see through the eyes of these two up-and-coming stars."
The hosts' job, he said, will be "to take the audience on this journey of a show that will hopefully start in one place, and if it all goes according to plan, it will take you back to where we started at the end."
To realize that on stage visually, the producers have been working with production designer Steve Bass, who's previously worked with Mischer on such shows as the "62nd Primetime Emmy Awards" and "We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial."
While the production has moved into the Kodak to set up the show, it's been using the daytime hours to hang the physical scenery on which the projections will be displayed, and then during the night another team has been programing the projections. Working throughout this weekend, the goal is to have the whole system up-and-running by Monday.
(Editing by Zorianna Kit)
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