"When a Nobel Prize Isn't Enough." With a sharply-worded rebuke of the congressional GOP, Nobel Prize-winning economist Peter Diamond has announced he is withdrawing as a candidate for the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors due to GOP obstructionism. Republican Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, a leading critic of Diamond's appointment, welcomes the announcement and raises a predictable call for a candidate "capable of garnering bipartisan support in the Senate."
posted by saulgoodman on Jun 6, 2011 - 86 comments

In February, AOL acquired the Huffington Post for $315 million. (Previously) The formation of The Huffington Post Media Group was announced, to integrate content for a new combined, claimed audience of "117 Million Americans and 270 Million Globally." Then, AOL fired 200 US employees (leaving many sites without editorial staff) and began restructuring. Today, they announced that 30 brands, including popular site Slashfood, will be closed or folded into existing Huffington Post sections. [more inside]
posted by zarq on Mar 23, 2011 - 54 comments

Poland has declared a state of emergency, after the infamous bronze sign reading "Arbeit Macht Frei" at former Konzentrationslager (concentration camp) Auschwitz was stolen yesterday. [more inside]
posted by zarq on Dec 18, 2009 - 170 comments

Fox News's bent on the news is well known, but recently the White House has begun actively excluding the network, including skipping Fox's Chris Wallace on a recent round of Sunday morning news shows. “We simply decided to stop abiding by the fiction ... that Fox is a traditional news organization.” says White House Depty Communications Director Pfeiffer (as has Press Secretary Gibbs and others). The responses range from concern about an attempt to control the media to a feeling that it's about time. Is it just about Fox's anti-Obama pundits, or is it also about Fox's consistent errors and misinformed viewership? Or is the White House attempting containment so that Fox's ratings-gold style and ideas don't take over the rest of the press?
posted by ADoubtfulTrout on Oct 23, 2009 - 285 comments

US News reports that in a new tell-all book, Tom Ridge admits manipulating terror threat levels for political motives. In the forthcoming book, Ridge reportedly acknowledges for the first time that he was pushed to raise the security alert on the eve of President Bush's re-election, something he "saw as politically motivated and worth resigning over." But as The Atlantic points out, Ridge apparently gave in to the White House demands anyway, resigning only after the election. Huffington Post also provides additional discussion on this developing story.
posted by saulgoodman on Aug 20, 2009 - 139 comments

Saddam's Confessions - Given Saddam Hussein's central place in the American Consciousness over the last couple decades and particularly in recent years, I found 60 minutes' interview with FBI interrogator George Piro pretty fascinating.
posted by kliuless on Jan 27, 2008 - 24 comments

Newser is a crazy NewsFilter site.
posted by chunking express on Aug 2, 2007 - 45 comments

Don't Bomb Us. In response to credible reports that Bush wanted to bomb al-Jazeera's HQ in allied Qatar (discussed here and here on MeFi), Al Jazeera staffers start their own English-language blog. Their site contains remembrances of their fallen colleagues, firsthand accounts of US attacks on their offices, links to relevant reports on the controversy, Flickr photosets of protests calling for an official investigation, and al Jazeera's code of ethics. Also, a quick note to Tony Blair: " P.S. Thanks for talking Mr. Bush out of bombing our offices!" Not surprisingly, their blog is generating some comments.
posted by edverb on Nov 26, 2005 - 117 comments

In 2001 America destroyed the Kabul offices of al-Jazeera with two smartbombs; officials said it was an accident. In 2003 America destroyed the Baghdad offices of al-Jazeera with missiles; officials said it was an accident. Now, two British civil servants are on trial for leaking a memo revealing that Bush intended to bomb al-Jazeera... at their headquarters in allied Qatar.
posted by Pretty_Generic on Nov 22, 2005 - 155 comments

News Filter: Senate in closed session. Looks like Senate is now in close session, after Harry Reid invoked Rule 21 and asked for an investigation into the lead-up to the war. Does it sound like a major deal or is it political maneuvering?
posted by TNLNYC on Nov 1, 2005 - 126 comments

Memeorandum goes live "offers a set of pages, each page highlighting the best contributions from a different community of writers, recognizing new sources as soon as the community does, and in a form conveying ongoing conversations." There is also tech.memeorandum. Via Read/Write and Scoble...also, previously noted here as a previous version...
posted by tpl1212 on Sep 13, 2005 - 5 comments

BBC correspondent Matt Wells lays it down straight
posted by Pretty_Generic on Sep 3, 2005 - 21 comments

Half-hanged Harding; Women of Pleasure; the Rape Master General; Haemorrhoides, Hernia, Bad Teeth and Other Ailments; the Rabbit Woman; Sew-Gelder Tries to Spay His Wife; Getting Rid of Bedbugs, and other Early Eighteenth Century Newspaper Reports.
posted by madamjujujive on Jul 18, 2005 - 14 comments

After the theft of a Dalek from a UK tourist attraction, its "kidnappers" have delivered a ransom note - and its severed plunger.
posted by Mwongozi on Jun 9, 2005 - 23 comments

Magnitude 8.2 earthquake off Indonesia Tsunami warning bulletins are posted here.
posted by Mwongozi on Mar 28, 2005 - 75 comments

France surrenders
posted by damn yankee on Oct 29, 2002 - 14 comments

CNN gets Chung. Beefs up roster. Their continued battle with Fox News heats up with their hiring of Connie Chung. All this sounds a lot more exciting than it really is.
posted by lostbyanecho on Jan 23, 2002 - 15 comments

Alzheimer’s vaccine looks promising? Yes, this is another news item. I could say I posted this to discuss the ethics of research on animals, or humans for that matter. Or whether pharmaceuticals should be leading the way when it comes to developing vaccines and cures. But honestly, I just wanted an excuse to ask if you think Dale Schenk, the head researcher for the Alzheimer's vaccine, looks more like John Denver or Tim Allen.
posted by EatenByAGrue on Jul 27, 2001 - 11 comments