On Saturday, Bay of Pigs invasion veterans mark 50 years since their release




















In the days before Christmas 50 years ago this weekend, 1,113 Bay of Pigs fighters captured by Fidel Castro’s forces and imprisoned for 20 months were finally released to a heroes’ welcome in Miami.

The first planeload of POWs arrived at Homestead Air Force Base on Dec. 23, 1962. Gaunt and betrayed by the John F. Kennedy administration, members of the proud Brigade 2506 were bused to Miami’s Dinner Key Auditorium, where waiting relatives engulfed them with hugs at a massive reunion that made front-page news. Five days later, JFK and his wife Jackie would be at the Orange Bowl to welcome them, too.

On Saturday, the 50th anniversary of those pivotal days will be observed as surviving brigade members — now in their 70s and 80s — hold a and 11 a.m. Mass and reunion at the Bay of Pigs Museum in Little Havana.





The release of the men was the one bright spot in the disastrous April 1961 CIA-backed invasion to overthrow the two-year old Castro government. Yet the fighters’ return also sent the somber message that exiles would not reclaim Cuba. The Cuban Missile Crisis that October had set the course of U.S.-Cuba relations until today.

Back then, it was sinking in: The Cuban exile community was in Miami to stay.

A defeated Jose Andreu, now 76, the first brigade member to sign up for the invasion, was among those who arrived home that bittersweet day.

“My wife to-be was there to meet me, along with my sister and my father,” Andreu said. “I remember a lot of hugging and crying.”

Among the young people waiting at the auditorium that day in 1962 was a teen-aged Ninoska Perez Castellon, there with her family to welcome her brothers and uncle, all brigade members.

“I remember being in that packed auditorium ... I can truly say as a child I viewed those men as my first heroes. I still do,” said Perez-Castellon, who grew up to become one of Miami’s most influential radio personalities.

Perez and her family still have black-and-white snapshots of the joyful reunion, showing her late grandmother proudly hugging her son.

The behind-the-scenes negotiations that finally led to the release of the brigadistas 50 years ago this week were the stuff of Hollywood movies. They involved months of haggling with Castro by everyone from a former first lady to a high-profile diplomatic negotiator who led the group that finally succeeded — a group of the prisoners’ mothers, wives and fathers who made up the Cuban Families Committee.

Their effort resulted in a now-forgotten 7,857 exodus of Cuban refugees, many relatives of the brigadistas, who arrived in cargo ships at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale from December 1962 to July 1963.

Two women in the committee played key roles — one in Cuba, motivated by a mother’s love; the other in Miami, seeking to free her husband.

Havana socialite, Berta Barreto, whose oldest son, Alberto Oms Barreto, had been captured during the invasion, made the initial contact with Castro and promised that the ransom he had set for the men would be paid. Years later, her second son, Pablo Perez-Cisneros Barreto, wrote the definitive book on the negotiations called After the Bay of Pigs, soon to be published in Spanish. “What my mother and the others managed to do, with no experience in high-level negotiating, was extraordinary,” Perez-Cisneros Barreto said.





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Massive PC, Console Game Discounts Ring in Holiday Season






Black Friday, the day right after Thanksgiving, is normally the day associated with electronics sales. And while the proponents of “Cyber Monday” and “Small Business Saturday” have tried to get in on the action, it’s still common knowledge that Thanksgiving weekend is the best time to upgrade your PC or console game arsenal. Right?


Not according to online game retailers. Discounts of up to 80 percent off a game’s retail price are taking place across the web, especially in online stores which offer games in the form of digital downloads (which cost nothing to make extra copies of). Here’s a look at just a few of the sales going on right now, for Windows and Linux PCs, Macs, game consoles, and mobile devices.






Steam (Windows, Linux, Mac)


The annual Steam Holiday Sale is under way, and it’s not just blowing hot air. Complete collections of every Steam game from publishers including Valve are on sale for around the price of one retail title, and individual games can be bought from each bundle for only a few dollars. Each day new sales are available, and most of them are massive, percentage-wise. They’re tied to a personal Steam account (which will always be linked to the original name they were created with), but can be bought as gifts for others.


Also check out: Amazon.com’s PC download sales, many of which are fulfilled through Steam and are discounted about as much. Amazon’s lineup also includes many casual games, of the “$ 10 store discount rack” variety.


Humble Indie Bundle 7 (Windows, Linux, Mac)


The Humble Bundle crew has been offering cross-platform, name-your-own-price bundles of indie games for several years now, and their seventh numbered offering is timed right for the holiday season. Bundles are giftable, the games can be played on Steam, and you can choose how much of your purchase price goes to game developers and how much goes to select charities.


PlayStation Network (PS3, PSP, Vita)


Console gamers aren’t being left out. The PSN Holiday Essentials sale is putting “more than 40 titles” on sale over the next three weeks, with a new selection available every week and even lower prices available to PlayStation Plus members.


Also check out: The Xbox Live Countdown to 2013 sale, with a “Daily Deal” every day until the end of the year.


Other sales


Game publishers SEGA and Square-Enix are discounting many of their most popular titles. SEGA’s holiday sale includes PSN, Xbox Live, Android and iOS titles, with most of its mobile games selling for $ 0.99. Meanwhile, the Square-Enix Winter of Mobile sale page lists huge discounts on iPhone and iPad games, while Android Police blogger Jeremiah Rice has put together a list of which Square-Enix Android games are on sale.


Jared Spurbeck is an open-source software enthusiast, who uses an Android phone and an Ubuntu laptop PC. He has been writing about technology and electronics since 2008.
Linux/Open Source News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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Buzzmakers: New X Factor and Miss Universe Winners

What had ET readers buzzing this week?

1. 'The X Factor' Crowns A Winner!

And the $5 million recording contract goes to…

Tate Stevens! The 37-year-old country crooner beat out runner-up 13-year-old Carly Rose Sonenclar for the top prize Thursday night. 35 million votes were cast Wednesday to determine victory for L.A. Reid's mentee.

Near tears, the Raymore, Missouri native thanked his fans for their overwhelming support.

"This is the best day of my life," said an emotional Stevens.

Girl group Fifth Harmony, mentored by Simon Cowell, placed third in the competition. Earlier in the night, the holiday themed finale saw performances by One Direction and Pitbull.

Auditions for an all-new season of The X Factor USA have already begun online. In-person auditions will start on March 6, 2013 in Los Angeles.

The celebrity judging panel has yet to be announced, but L.A. Reid has already taken himself out of the running. Spears has expressed interest in returning to the show for season three, but nothing has been confirmed.

2. Miss Universe 2012 Crowned

Beauties from 89 countries strutted their stuff Wednesday night in pursuit of the Miss Universe crown, but only one woman would earn the coveted title.

In the end a panel of ten celebrity judges, including Cee Lo Green and U.S. Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings, appointed Miss USA Olivia Culpo the winner.

The 20-year-old Rhode Island native beat out Miss Brazil (Gabriela Markus) Miss Philippines (Janine Tugonon), Miss Mexico (Irene SofĂ­a Esser Quintero), and Miss Australia (Renae Ayris) for the distinction.

Culpo follows in the footsteps of Miss Angola, Leila Lopes, who earned the crown in 2011.

The two-hour show was broadcast live from Las Vegas with musical acts One Direction and Train lending their talents to the annual extravaganza.

3. Exclusive: Arsenio on His Late Night TV Return

Break out the Woof! Woof! fist pump: Arsenio Hall is coming back to late night TV in the Fall of 2013 after a 17-year break from the game, and only ET is behind the scenes with the timeless talk show host as he shoots his first-ever promo for The Arsenio Hall Show!

"[This is] the first time America will see anything on television about the show," says Arsenio. "Instead of a commercial where I do something like say, 'I'm baaaaack' -- and everybody's, 'Ugh' -- they've come up with a real, unique, creative angle that -- actually, I looked at dailies, and it scared me. I looked at the dailies and I frightened myself."

The trailer-length promo from CBS Television Distribution pays homage to horror movies and begins airing today on all Arsenio Hall Show affiliate stations, kicking off the campaign for the new late night syndicated talk show that will be seen all across the country next year.

"I'm real excited about this; so many things have changed in pop culture since I left the air," says Arsenio about his return to late night. "I can't wait."

The Arsenio Hall Show premieres on 9/9/13. Look for much more with Arsenio between now and then, only on ET!

4. Claire Danes Gives Birth

It's a boy!

Homeland star Claire Danes and her husband Hugh Dancy welcomed their very first child together on Monday, December 17, her rep confirms to People Magazine.

The proud parents named their bouncing baby boy Cyrus Michael Christopher Dancy.

Danes, 33, wed Dancy, 37, in 2009 after two years of dating.

5. President Obama is Time's Person of the Year

For 2012, Time Magazine has selected President Barack Obama as their Person of the Year.

"For finding and forging a new majority, for turning weakness into opportunity and for seeking, amid great adversity, to create a more perfect union, Barack Obama is Time's 2012 Person of the Year," Time's Managing Editor Richzard Stengel explained.

He also cited both of the president's re-elections, snagging over 50 percent of the popular vote, as one reason he received this honor.

This is the second year Time has tapped Obama as their Person of the Year -- he previously was selected in 2008 for becoming the first black president of the United States.

Time previously named the eight finalists for 2012's Person of the Year. They included: Bill and Hillary Clinton, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Malala Yousafzai (the Pakistani girl who was shot by the Taliban for her crusade for better girls' education), Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer, Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi and the three scientists who discovered the Higgs Boson particle.

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Time’s up for holiday shopping procrastinators




















Last minute shoppers like Josette Tyne are in luck this year.

With a long weekend before Christmas, retailers want to make it easier for procrastinators to finish their gift buying. Macy’s for the first time is keeping all its stores open around the clock from Friday until Sunday at midnight. Toys “R” Us and Walmart Supercenters will be open non-stop until Christmas Eve.

Even those retailers skipping the all nighter still have added extended hours often as late as 11 pm or midnight. Coupled with a flurry of last minute promotions, they hope to lure shoppers, many of whom have been largely sitting on the sidelines since Black Friday.





Tyne, 33, just starting her shopping this week at Aventura Mall, armed with a list of about two dozen people and the presents they wanted. The list would have been longer if the Fort Lauderdale resident hadn’t limited it to the kids in her family.

“I’ll probably be shopping every day from now till Sunday,” said Tyne, as she wheeled the youngest of her three boys around H&M in a stroller before heading on to Game Stop, Urban Outfitters and BCBG. “Whatever catches my eye. Luckily the kids usually like everything I get. I’m the awesome Auntie.”

A Consumer Reports Poll released earlier this week found that with just five shopping days left until Christmas, a whopping 68 percent of shoppers — a projected 132 million Americans — have yet to finish their holiday shopping.

With an early Thanksgiving leaving an extra week until Christmas and a long weekend before Tuesday’s holiday, shoppers have felt little need to rush. They also haven’t found December deals to be quite as compelling as the November sales.

Based on disappointing sales trends earlier this month, ShopperTrak said Wednesday it was cutting its holiday sales forecast. The company, which counts foot traffic and its own proprietary sales numbers from 40,000 retail outlets across the country, now expects a 2.5 percent sales increase to $257.7 billion, down from the 3.3 percent growth it initially predicted. The National Retail Federation is sticking with its prediction of a 4.1 percent sales increase.

Online sales trends are more encouraging, up 13 percent to $35 billion from Nov. 1 through Dec. 16, according to comScore, an online research firm. But that pace is below the forecast of 17 percent for the season.

“It’s coming down to the wire,” said David Bassuk, managing director and co-head of the retail practice at AlixPartners, a global consulting firm. “It’s going to require retailers to be more aggressive with their promotions than they were hoping heading into the weekend.”

While the economy is certainly in a better position than it was during the recession, many consumers still feel uneasy this year about their financial future. Some are worried about the U.S. job market and others fear the stalemate between Congress and the White House over federal “fiscal cliff’’ that could lead to tax increases and less disposable income for shoppers.

That was the case for Latonya Jones, on the hunt for bargains at Aventura Mall, coupon-loaded iPad in hand.

“I wasn’t going to buy anything this year, because I wanted to save money,” said Jones, 39, of Miami Gardens, who was shopping with her daughter Richelle, 12, this week in Macy’s. “But then I changed my mind.”





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Staten Island man killed in early-morning house fire

A Staten Island man was killed when an early-morning fire swept through his home, police and relatives said.

Jameek Champagne, 23, died in the third-floor attic of the home on Osgood Avenue in Clifton. His brother and grandfather escaped the blaze uninjured.

A neighbor reported the blaze after seeing flames erupt from the house at about 5:40 a.m. He banged on the door in a frantic effort to awaken its residents.

The fire was extinguished about an hour after it started, according to an FDNY spokesman. Fire marshals are investigating what caused it.

About ten cars full of grief-stricken relatives and friends came to the scene to mourn Champagne. His devastated girlfriend said that the two had a newborn girl and a 1-year-old boy.




G.N.Miller/New York Post



The Staten Island house after it was damaged by the fire



“We’re just trying to find out how this happened,” Champagne's uncle said, weeping.

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Stand Your Ground motion denied in Janepsy Carballo case




















It will be up to a jury to decide if Janepsy Carballo was justified in the killing of the man she said killed her husband.

The Stand Your Ground motion filed by her defense was denied on Friday, based largely on Carballo’s inadvertent confession to a confidential informant who was wearing a police wire to investigate an unrelated drug charge at the pain management clinic where she worked.

Miami circuit court judge Beth Bloom said the tape of that conversation and the circumstances of the shooting “belied the claims” of forced entry and self-defense.





In 2008, Carballo shot Ilan Nissim six times in the back and arm one month after her husband and toddler son were shot in front of her house. Her son survived; her husband did not. Nissim was a suspect in the murder.

The controversial 2005 Stand Your Ground law eliminated a citizen’s duty to retreat when using lethal force to meet a threat of harm. The law also allowed judges greater leeway to dismiss a charge based on a self-defense claim.

The law came under scrutiny earlier this year when police initially declined to charge a self-proclaimed neighborhood watchman in the killing of Trayvon Martin in Sanford.

Carballo will go to trial in April facing murder charges.

This article will be updated as more information becomes available.





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RIM shares dive as fee changes catch market off guard






(Reuters) – Shares of BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd dropped 20 percent on Friday on fears that a new fee structure for its high-margin services segment could put pressure on the business that has set the company apart from its competitors.


The shares were still more than 80 percent above the year’s low, which was hit in September. They started to rally in November as investors began to bet that RIM’s long-awaited new BlackBerry 10 phones, to be launched in January, would turn the company around.






The services segment has long been RIM’s most profitable and accounts for about a third of total revenue. Some analysts said there was a risk that the fee changes could endanger its service ecosystem and leave the Canadian company as just another handset maker.


The fee changes, which RIM announced on Thursday after the close, overshadowed stronger-than-expected quarterly results. The company said the new pricing structure would be introduced with the BlackBerry 10 launch, expected on January 30.


RIM said some subscribers would continue to pay for enhanced services such as advanced security. But under the new structure, some other services would account for less revenue, or even none at all.


Chief Executive Thorsten Heins tried to reassure investors in a television interview with CNBC on Friday, saying RIM’s “service revenue isn’t going away”.


He added: “We’re not stopping. We’re not halting. We’re transitioning.”


Since taking over at RIM in January, Heins has focused on shrinking the company and getting it ready to introduce its new BB10 devices, which RIM says will help it claw back ground it has lost to competitors such as Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics.


But the news of the new services pricing strategy came as a shock to markets, and some analysts cut their price targets on RIM stock.


RIM will not be able to sustain profitability by relying on its hardware business alone, said National Bank Financial analyst Kris Thompson, whom Thomson Reuters StarMine has rated the top RIM analyst based on the accuracy of his estimates of the company’s earnings.


Thompson downgraded RIM’s stock to “underperform” from “sector perform” and cut his price target to $ 10 from $ 15.


Forrester Research analyst Charles Golvin said the move was likely about stabilizing market share: “At the moment, they need to stem the bleeding.”


He said the tiered pricing might line up better with RIM’s subscriber base as it expands in emerging economies.


RIM’s Nasdaq-listed shares were down 19.8 percent at $ 11.32 on Friday afternoon. The stock was down 19.6 percent to C$ 11.21 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.


COUNTDOWN TO LAUNCH


The success of the BB10 will be crucial to the future of RIM, which on Thursday posted its first-ever decline in total subscribers. Heins said on CNBC that the company expected to ship millions of the new devices.


He cautioned that this will require heavy investment, which will reduce RIM’s cash position in its fourth and first quarters from $ 2.9 billion in its fiscal third quarter. He said, however, it would not go below $ 2 billion.


Still, doubts remain about whether RIM can pull off the transformation. Needham analyst Charlie Wolf said the BB10 would have to look meaningfully superior to its competitors for RIM to stage a comeback.


Canaccord Genuity analyst Michael Walkley said it was highly unlikely that the market would support RIM’s new mobile computing ecosystem, and he remained skeptical about the company’s ability to survive on its own.


“We believe RIM will eventually need to sell the company,” said Walkley, who cut his price target on RIM shares to $ 9 from $ 10.


Baird Equity Research analysts said BB10 faced a daunting uphill battle against products from Apple, as well as those using Google Inc’s Android operating system, and, increasingly, phones with Microsoft Corp’s Windows 8 operating system.


Baird maintained its “underperform” rating on the stock, while Paradigm Capital downgraded the shares to “hold” from “buy” on uncertainty around the services revenue model.


“RIM has gone from having one major aspect of uncertainty – BlackBerry 10 adoption – to two, given an uncertain floor on services revenue,” William Blair analyst Anil Doradla said.


RIM will have to discount BB10 devices significantly to maintain demand, Bernstein analyst Pierre Ferragu said.


The BlackBerry, however, still offers the security features that helped it build its reputation with big business and government, a selling point with some key customers.


Credit Suisse maintained its “neutral” rating on the stock, but not because it expected BB10 to be a big success.


“Only the potential for an outright sale of the company or a breakup keeps us at a neutral,” Credit Suisse analysts said.


Separately on Friday, ailing Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia said it had settled its patent dispute with RIM in return for payments. Nokia did not disclose detailed terms, but said the deal included a one-time payment to be booked in the fourth quarter, as well as ongoing fees, all to be paid by RIM. [ID:nL5E8NL22K]


($ 1=$ 0.98 Canadian)


(Reporting by Chandni Doulatramani in Bangalore and Allison Martell in Toronto. Additional reporting by Sinead Carew in New York; Editing by Ted Kerr, Dale Hudson, Janet Guttsman,; Lisa Von Ahn and Peter Galloway)


Wireless News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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The Words Exclusive DVD Bonus Features Clip

Bradley Cooper has built his career on playing men stuck between a rock and a hard place -- from The Hangover to Limitless, audiences simply adore watching the actor wriggle out of sticky situations.


RELATED - Bradley Cooper Talks The Words


The Words
promises to elate his fans once again as Cooper plays Rory Jansen, a struggling writer who finally achieves literary success after publishing what is called The Next Great American Novel. The only catch? He didn't write it.

When the original author surfaces, Jansen is forced to confront his choices and decide whether it's more important to keep up the lie or come clean. Throughout it all, one person is by his side: Dora (played by Zoe Saldana). 


VIDEO - Zoe Saldana's Avatar Sequel update

ETonline is pleased to present an exclusive clip off the DVD, where Cooper and Saldana talk about this epic cinematic love story. 

The Words will be released on December 24, click here to pre-order.

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BMG Rights to nab music label Mute








They just can’t get enough! Music publishing firm BMG Rights is said to have snapped up the British music label, Mute, which houses eighties act “Depeche Mode” and “Erasure.”

Mute is being sold as part of a package of divestments by Universal Music Group, as it looks to finalize its deal to acquire EMI’s recorded music business.

Mute looks to be BMG Rights’ first recorded music asset. The KKR-Bertelsmann owned music publishing company just bagged the Rosetta collection of music rights being sold by Sony/ATV. Rosetta also held mostly eighties hits.





Getty



Depeche Mode





Mute is said to be valued at around $10 million. BMG is still in the running for Universal’s other assets which include Parlophone. Mute was acquired by EMI in 2002 for $37 million (or GBP 23 million)

A rep for Universal declined comment. A rep for BMG couldn’t immediately be reached.










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After its sale to South Beach neighbors, Raleigh brand to grow




















The Raleigh hotel, an Art Deco gem famous for its curlicue black-framed pool, has sold to new owners with plans to turn the hotel into a national brand.

But before Raleigh siblings pop up in locales around the country, new owners David Edelstein and Sam Nazarian will pour $2-$5 million into the 1940 property at 1775 Collins Ave.

They certainly have experience in that area. Edelstein developed and owns W South Beach, about four blocks north of the Raleigh. And Nazarian, who is based in Los Angeles, opened the SLS Hotel South Beach just south of the Raleigh on the same block earlier this year.





Brilla Group is the seller. The all-in price for the hotel, a parking lot nearby and the brand was $55 million, Edelstein said.





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Miami-Dade animal shelters reduce adoption fees for the holidays




















To make sure that every animal at the shelter gets a home for the holidays, Miami-Dade Animal Services, the Humane Society of Greater Miami Adopt-a-Pet and The Cat Network are offering deep discounts on adoption fees through Dec. 31. Hundreds of cats, dogs, kittens and puppies are available, as are adoption gift certificates, so that the recipient can select the perfect pet.

Adopters get a free photo with their new animals.

Miami-Dade County Animal Services, 7401 NW 74th St., in Medley, is open seven days a week through the end of the year, except for Christmas Day when it is closed. Hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m., except for Dec. 24 and Dec. 31, when hours are 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Call 3-1-1 or visit miamidade.gov/animals for more information.





For information about hours and fees at the Humane Society, visit humansocietymiami.org or call 305-696-0800. The Soffer and Fine Shelter is located at 16101 W. Dixie Hwy., North Miami Beach.

For information about Cat Network, which holds adoption events at PetSmart stores, visit thecatnetwork.org.





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Acer will beat Google to market with its own $99 tablet









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Downton Abbey Cast Talk Shirley MacLaine

On January 6, Shirley MacLaine comes to Downton Abbey when the Oscar-winner joins the cast as Lady Cora's mother, Martha Levinson. And today, the cast stopped by Anderson Live to reveal what it was like working alongside another (props to original H.B.I.C. Dame Maggie Smith) living legend!


PHOTOS - Inside Downton Abbey Season Three

"We didn't know what to expect because this is a Hollywood legend," said Jim Carter, who plays Mr. Carson. "She just rolled up her sleeves and was one of the gang instantly, absolutely instantly. She was one of the gang but with much better quality of gossip."

Cooper also asked about Highclere Castle (which stands in as Downton Abbey) and found out that the owners are still very much living there. "It is lived in by the Carnarvon family," Hugh Bonneville (who plays Lord Grantham) said, adding, "So it's a little bit of life mirroring art, so it's a bit spooky some times."


RELATED - Is Maggie Smith Leaving Downton?

Julian Fellowes, who created Downton Abbey, knows the family and Elizabeth McGovern (who plays Lady Cora) says that Julian has "deemed many of the stories from the family."

But one story you couldn't make up involved the Egyptian exhibit Highclere castle was hosting during production of season three -- one that MacLaine, who has been very vocal about her past life experiences, felt was incredibly inaccurate.

Carter recalls, "At Highclere Castle, there is a big Egypt exhibition because Grandfather Carnarvon would discover King Tutankhamun's tomb in Egypt and Shirley went to visit it and thought a lot of it wasn't particularly authentic because she had lived there. She slept with Tutankhamun and she remembered it very well."


Anderson Live
airs daily and Downton Abbey premieres January 6 at 9 p.m. on PBS.

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'Scammers' steal from Sandy Hook victim Noah Pozner's family: uncle








NEWTOWN, Conn. — The family of Noah Pozner was mourning the 6-year-old, killed in the Newtown school massacre, when outrage compounded their sorrow.

Someone they didn't know was soliciting donations in Noah's memory, claiming that they'd send any cards, packages and money collected to his parents and siblings. An official-looking website had been set up, with Noah's name as the address, even including petitions on gun control.

Noah's uncle, Alexis Haller, called on law enforcement authorities to seek out "these despicable people."

"These scammers," he said, "are stealing from the families of victims of this horrible tragedy."





AP



Six-year-old Sandy Hook victim Noah Pozner.





It's a problem as familiar as it is disturbing. Tragedy strikes — be it a natural disaster, a gunman's rampage or a terrorist attack — and scam artists move in.

It happened after 9/11. It happened after Columbine. It happened after Hurricane Katrina. And after this summer's movie theater shooting in Aurora, Colo.

Sometimes fraud takes the form of bogus charities asking for donations that never get sent to victims. Natural disasters bring another dimension: Scammers try to get government relief money they're not eligible for.

"It's abominable," said Ken Berger, president and CEO of Charity Navigator, which evaluates the performance of charities. "It's just the lowest kind of thievery."

Noah Pozner's relatives found out about one bogus solicitation when a friend received an email asking for money for the family. Poorly punctuated, it gave details about Noah, his funeral and his family. It directed people to send donations to an address in the Bronx, one that the Pozners had never heard of.

It listed a New York City phone number to text with questions about how to donate. When a reporter texted that number Wednesday, a reply came advising the donation go to the United Way.

The Pozner family had the noahpozner.com website transferred to its ownership. Victoria Haller, Noah's aunt, emailed the person who had originally registered the name. The person, who went by the name Jason Martin, wrote back that he'd meant "to somehow honor Noah and help promote a safer gun culture. I had no ill intentions I assure you."

Alexis Haller said the experience "should serve as a warning signal to other victims' families. We urge people to watch out for these frauds on social media sites."

Consumer groups, state attorneys general and law enforcement authorities call for caution about unsolicited requests for donations, by phone or email. They tell people to be wary of callers who don't want to answer questions about their organization, who won't take "no" for an answer, or who convey what seems to be an unreasonable sense of urgency.










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Miami-Dade existing home sales, prices up again




















Resales of Miami-Dade county homes are red hot.

Sales of existing homes rose 23 percent in Miami-Dade in November from a year earlier, even as the inventory of residential property on the market remained tight, the Miami Association of Realtors said.

The median price of an existing condominium in Miami-Dade surged 31.7 percent to $158,000 in November from a year earlier, while the median price of a single-family home jumped 15.9 percent to $195,000.





Median home prices in Miami-Dade have marched higher for 12 consecutive months, buttressing views that the recovery in Miami-Dade’s beleaguered housing market is on solid footing.

“It appears the Miami real estate market will set another record in 2012, exceeding sales levels at the height of the boom in 2005 and during the all-time record in 2011,” Martha Pomares, chairman of the Miami Association of Realtors, said in a statement. “Considering the shortage of housing inventory available, it is remarkable that sales remain this strong. This record demand coupled with extremely limited supply is driving strong and consistent price appreciation.”

Cash continued to drive residential sales in Miami-Dade in November, accounting for 63 percent of transactions.

The inventory of previously owned homes inched up 1 percent to 11,862 units in November from October, but that represented a 19 percent decline from November 2011.

Distressed sales comprised 43.4 percent of all residential transactions in Miami-Dade in November, down from 56 percent a year earlier and 47.4 percent the prior month.

Properties are selling faster in Miami-Dade, too. The median days on the market was 43 fro single-family homes and 51 for condominiums. A more typical period is 90 to 120 days, the Miami Realtors said.

For all of Florida, sales of existing single-family home also continued to improve in November, rising 24.4 percent from a year earlier and median prices rose 11.2 percent. Statewide condominium sales rose 18.3 percent year over year with the median price of a condominium soaring 23.1 percent to $112,000.





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New poll: Many Florida voters say they wouldn’t re-elect Scott as governor




















Gov. Rick Scott continues to suffer from poor approval ratings despite an improving economy and lowering unemployment, and a majority of voters say they wouldn’t vote to re-elect him, a new poll shows.

The poll found, among other things, that many voters are crediting the Obama administration with an improving economy, rather than Scott.

A Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday showed Florida voters disapprove by 45-36 percent of the job Scott is doing, and 52 percent said he doesn’t deserve a second term, compared to just 30 percent who told pollsters Scott should be re-elected.





The poll also found that 55 percent of voters — including 53 percent of Republicans — say they’d like another Republican to challenge Scott for the GOP nomination in 2014.

Republican voters do give Scott a positive 63-19 percent job approval rating, however, and GOP voters say by a 55-26 percent margin that he deserves a second term.

“Obviously, the governor has almost two years to go until the election and anything is possible, but he faces a herculean task in changing public opinion to his favor,” said Quinnipiac pollster Peter Brown.

Scott, who has struggled with negative approval ratings since being elected in 2010, plans to seek re-election next year. The only declared candidate challenging him is Democratic former state Sen. Nan Rich. Former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist, who is now a Democrat, is considering a run, and Democrat Alex Sink, who narrowly lost to Scott in 2010, is thought to be mulling a rematch.

Crist, who was governor as a Republican from 2007 to 2011 and lost a bid as an independent in 2010 for the U.S. Senate, has a 47 percent favorable rating and 33 percent unfavorable mark among all voters, according to the Quinnipiac poll. His favorability among Democrats is 65 percent and among independents is 48 percent, but only 28 percent of Republicans have a favorable view of Crist, compared to 56 percent who have an unfavorable view.

Crist on Wednesday said he has no timetable for deciding whether to run for governor. Of Scott’s poor rating he said, “I would attribute the downturn to this voting issue,” meaning the election law Scott signed that is still controversial.

Asked what factors he would use to decide, he said: “I love my state and my heart bleeds for the people of Florida right now. I think we can do better with education in our state, with the environment in our state. …”

Sink overall is viewed favorably by just 27 percent of voters and unfavorably by 14 percent, but 57 percent of respondents didn’t have an opinion.

Among four other possible Democratic challengers the poll asked about — Rich, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, former Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio and South Florida businessman and former lawmaker Jack Seiler — none has a favorability score of more than 17 percent and the overwhelming number of respondents said they didn’t know enough about them to have an opinion.

The only other Republican the pollsters tested was Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, thought by many to be a likely candidate for governor in the future. But 80 percent of voters don’t have an opinion currently about Putnam, a longtime former Congressman and former state legislator.

Respondents said they dislike Scott’s policies by 52 percent to 32 percent, though nearly half of voters say they’re at least somewhat satisfied with the way things are going in Florida — the highest so far during Scott’s term. The poll didn’t ask specifically what policies voters don’t like.

Scott has staked his success on creating jobs, and has been able to boast about a falling unemployment rate for several months. Florida’s jobless rate fell in October to 8.5 percent, its lowest level since December 2008, and non-farm employment has grown for more than 27 straight months. When Scott got elected, unemployment in the state was at 12 percent, so he has made good to some degree on his main promise of getting people back to work.

Pollsters found, however, that many voters are crediting the Obama administration with the improving economy. Twenty-seven percent of respondents said the president deserves “a lot” of the credit for the improving economy, to just 16 percent who think Scott deserves “a lot” of the credit. Similarly, though, those voters who believe the economy is getting worse, overwhelmingly blame Obama rather than Scott.

The poll also found a 52-30 percent approval rating for U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, a Republican, and a 51-31 percent approval rating for U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, a Democrat. The Legislature, generically, is seen negatively by 44 percent of respondents with just 35 percent approving of lawmakers on the whole.

The poll included 1,261 registered voters and was taken Dec. 11-17. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.8 percentage points.





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Wii U finally gets Nintendo’s TVii service on December 20th






After a month-long delay, Nintendo (NTDOY) will launch its Nintendo TVii service for the Wii U on December 20th in the U.S. and Canada. Nintendo TVii is the company’s take on organizing all of the various video streaming and DVR services a user might subscribe to and then displaying them in an easy-to-navigate touchscreen-based interface on the Wii U GamePad. With Nintendo TVii, Nintendo hopes to make content discovery an easier task, rather than a chore. At the same time, Nintendo TVii will offer new “second-screen” experiences (similar to Xbox SmartGlass) with built-in social sharing options to Facebook (FB), Twitter and the Wii U console’s Miiverse.


[More from BGR: BlackBerry 10 browser smokes iOS 6 and Windows Phone 8 in comparison test [video]]






[More from BGR: LG’s woeful comeback attempt]


Nintendo TVii will support Amazon (AMZN) Instant Video, Hulu Plus and cable and satellite providers on Thursday, but Netflix (NFLX) and TiVo (TIVO) support won’t hit the U.S. until “early 2013.” Nintendo didn’t state when TVii support for the latter two will hit Canada.


For the consumer’s sake, we hope the download for Nintendo TVii doesn’t take as long as past system updates.


Nintendo’s press release follows below.



Nintendo Makes TV Smart and Social – Nintendo TVii Launches Dec. 20


New Wii U Service Gives Every Member of the Family His or Her Own Personalized, Easy-to-Use Second-Screen Viewing Experience


REDMOND, Wash.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The company that changed how we play is about to change how we watch. On Dec. 20, Nintendo will introduce Nintendo TVii, a free, integrated service for the recently launched Wii U console that combines what you watch and how you watch into one seamless, second-screen experience on the revolutionary new Wii U GamePad controller.


The rapid increase in both the quality and availability of video entertainment content – hundreds of satellite and cable channels, a seemingly endless amount of video-on-demand options – has made finding something to watch a complex and occasionally frustrating process. The solution to this problem is coming from perhaps an unexpected place: a video game console.


“After Dec. 20, you’ll never look at your TV the same way again,” said Nintendo of America President and COO Reggie Fils-Aime. “Wii U owners have already experienced the transformative effect that the GamePad has on game play and social interaction. Nintendo TVii shows how the integrated second screen of the GamePad can also transform and enhance the TV viewing experience. Welcome to the new world of TVii.”


Nintendo TVii maximizes Wii U owners’ current cable, satellite and video-on-demand services by pulling all of their available content sources – such as a Comcast cable package or Hulu Plus subscription – into one place. This empowers Wii U owners to focus on whatthey want to watch and not how they want to watch. And once users find the show, sporting event or movie they want, they press an icon and Nintendo TVii does the rest.


In addition to greatly simplifying finding and watching video content, Nintendo TVii also includes a series of social features that enable Wii U owners to share experiences and exciting moments with friends as they are happening on live TV. People can engage with others by commenting and sharing on Miiverse, Facebook and Twitter. Or they can comment, post or tweet about an incredible touchdown, a remarkable performance or a shocking plot twist, all using the personal screen of the Wii U GamePad.


Nintendo TVii requires no additional equipment and can be enjoyed with very little setup, demonstrating what’s possible when the second screen is truly integrated with the TV. Wii U owners can also discover more information about what they’re watching by easily accessing information on the GamePad via an Internet connection, including cast details, movie reviews from Rotten Tomatoes and sports data such as live stats and scores.


Nintendo TVii launches in the United States and Canada on Dec. 20. At launch, the service will support cable and satellite providers in both regions, as well as direct integration with Amazon Instant Video and Hulu Plus subscriptions in the United States. Further integration with Netflix subscriptions and TiVo are expected in early 2013 in the United States. Wii U owners with a Netflix subscription can still access the Netflix application from the Wii U system’s main menu and enjoy their favorite content accordingly.


All elements of the Nintendo TVii service are included in the purchase price of the Wii U system. Users will define which services they currently subscribe to – including the channel lineup in their cable package and video-on-demand service subscriptions – as part of the setup process.


Nintendo TVii observes the Wii U system parental controls, and additional options specific to the Nintendo TVii features can be chosen in the Nintendo TVii settings. Every member of the family can create a different viewing profile. For more information about this and other features, visit http://www.nintendo.com/wiiu.



This article was originally published by BGR


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Victoria Beckham to Launch Online Shopping Site

Victoria Beckham, who's become a style icon thanks to her celebrity favorite clothing line, is taking her fashion career to the next level. The 38-year-old mother of four is set to launch her own e-commerce website next spring.

The site will sell her accessories, eyewear, denim, her Victoria Beckham collection as well as its sister label Victoria, Victoria Beckham.

Video: Tom & Katie's Friends -- Whose Side Are They On?

"My new website has been in the making for a very long time," Beckham says via The Telegraph. "It was so important that the concept, tone and look of it were true to me and my aesthetic and that the shopping experience was the very best that it could be for my customer. The site will be ever evolving, featuring never seen before insights into my world through the medium of film. I'm incredibly excited with what I have created and the unique access to the brand I am now able to offer."

Victoriabeckham.com will also have "unprecedented access to the designer's ideas and creative process", as well as personal picks by the former Spice Girl.

Related: Victoria Beckham Gushes Over Her 'Beautiful Baby Girl'

The news comes on the heel of her 10-year-old son Romeo Beckham making his own fashion headlines this week when he was announced as the new face of Burberry's Spring/Summer 2013 campaign. According to The Daily Mail, the second eldest Beckham son was hand-picked by the label's Chief Creative Officer, Christopher Bailey.

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South Florida startup .CO Internet to star in Super Bowl lineup




















.CO Internet, the fast-growing Miami company behind the .CO domain name, will be featured in a 2013 Super Bowl commercial, through a partnership with leading Web hosting and domain name provider Go Daddy, the companies said Wednesday.

The 30-second spot is set to feature Go Daddy Girl Danica Patrick. The story will revolve around how easy it is to create your own business online and use the Internet to grow it quickly. “We get to share our message with more than a hundred million people,” said Juan Diego Calle, founder and CEO of .CO Internet. “We’re going to inspire people to seize the moment – to actually launch their big ideas online.” The commercial is being shot in Los Angeles in early January and was developed by Deutsch. Costs were not disclosed.

This will be the third year for the Go Daddy-.CO partnership. Last year’s "Body Paint" Super Bowl ad drove significant traffic, the companies said. In 2011, .comedienne Joan Rivers was revealed as the "surprise" new Go Daddy .CO Girl, triggering a 466 percent increase in domain name registrations within 15 minutes of airing. There are now more than 1.4 million .CO domain names.








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Miami-Dade commissioner proposes six gun-control measures for Congress, Legislature




















Miami-Dade Commissioner Barbara Jordan made a late addition to Tuesday’s board meeting: six gun-control proposals, following last week’s mass shooting in Connecticut.

Jordan, a Democrat in a non-partisan post, sponsored six resolutions urging Congress and the Florida Legislature to take a variety of steps, ranging from reinstating a federal assault-weapons ban to allowing the county to keep a registry of privately owned guns.

Separately, Mayor Carlos Gimenez, a Republican, said he and Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho are planning a joint effort to examine security in the Miami-Dade school district.





“It’s very difficult to guard against a madman who is willing to die at the end,” Gimenez acknowledged. “We want to make sure we do whatever we can at our facilities.”

Commissioner Esteban “Steve” Bovo said the issue is particularly important as Miami-Dade prepares to rebuild schools, following a bond issue voters approved last month.

“A lot of our older schools are wide open,” he said.

Commissioners are scheduled to take up Jordan’s measures later Tuesday.

Jordan’s six proposals urge:

• the state to increase criminal penalties for people who use certain assault-weapon ammunition when they commit certain felonies;

• Congress and the state to require someone purchasing ammunition, other than law-enforcement officers and members of the military, to provide a driver’s license or other picture ID;

• the state to increase the minimum mandatory prison sentence to 25 years from 15 years for people who have certain semiautomatic assault weapons in their possession when they commit certain felonies;

• Congress to close a “loophole” allowing gun-show sales to avoid background checks of gun purchasers, and the state to require those types of gun sales to require a background check;

• the state to allow local governments to register privately owned guns; and

• the state and Congress to ban possession or sale of gun magazines with more than 10 rounds of ammunition.





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Inside Hailee Steinfeld's Sweet Sixteen

Oscar-nominated actress Hailee Steinfeld recently celebrated her sweet 16 with pals like Victoria Justice and Willow Smith, and ET is taking you inside the fun-filled Sally Hansen and vitaminwater-sponsored bash.

"It's my sweet 16, I'm so excited -- I'm so happy," a giddy Hailee said. "You know, to be honest, I've been away from home for a long time, so to just have all my friends and family here together in one night is all I could ask for."

Video: Matt Damon Admires Hailee Steinfeld

The always fashionable star -- who was the face of Miu Miu at just 14 years old -- was clad in a checkered Louis Vuitton romper and ankle-strap heels on her big night, which was attended by the who's who of young Hollywood including Lucy Hale, Willow and Jaden Smith and Twilight's Booboo Stewart and MacKenzie Foy.

Inside the big party, which included vitaminwater mocktails and manicures, Victoria revealed her previously unknown shared modeling past with the birthday girl.

Pics: Hailee Steinfeld Models for Miu Miu

"We actually modeled together for a Guess shoot when we were like, really little," she smiled. "So I'm really happy for her. This is a huge milestone ... I think she's awesome and really talented."

Check out the video for Victoria's update on her new music and tour, as well as Willow's birthday wishes for Hailee!

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Pipeline Brickell, a new co-working space, reaches 70% occupancy




















Pipeline Brickell, the shared workspace at 1101 Brickell Avenue that opened last month, announced it has reached 70 percent occupancy and is now home to dozens of startups, established companies and professionals. Company founders Todd Oretsky and Philippe Houdard said members of the 14,000-square-foot high-design co-working center include The Founder’s Institute, the world's largest startup accelerator; Pininfarina, an Italian-based design firm with clients including Ferrari and Maserati; Virgin Unite, a non-profit foundation founded by Richard Branson for the venture capital conglomerate Virgin Group; LearnerNation, a provider of interactive learning tools; and GuestBooker, a New York-based firm that specializes in booking high-profile talent on national TV networks. Pipeline, one of a wave of co-working spaces already opened or planned for Miami, also offers its members classes, workshops and networking events and has been hosting programs for community organizations.








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Utah boy brings gun to school, cites Newtown fears








KEARNS, Utah — Authorities say a Utah sixth-grader caught with a gun at school told administrators he brought the weapon to defend himself in case of an attack similar to the mass shooting last week in Newtown, Conn.

The Salt Lake Tribune reports that two classmates at West Kearns Elementary School reported the gun to a teacher toward the end of the school day Monday.

Granite School District spokesman Ben Horsley says the teacher "immediately apprehended the student," and police responded shortly after.

Horsley tells KSL-TV that an unloaded gun and ammunition were found in the 11-year-old's backpack. Authorities have not released the child's name.



Horsley says school police are investing reports that the boy pointed the gun at another child's head. He says such accounts haven't been confirmed.

Authorities say no one was injured.










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Narcy Novack gets life in prison for killing her hotel heir husband




















An epic family murder saga ended Monday when Narcy Novack, wife of Fontainebleau hotel heir Ben Novack Jr., was sentenced to life in prison.

Three years after she and her brother, Cristobal Veliz, planned and helped execute Ben Novack and his mother Bernice, the convicted killers, who had remained loyal to each other throughout the trial, made it clear their family ties would not extend to prison. Cristobal also was sentenced to life in prison Monday.

Each blamed the other for masterminding the murders, and their lawyers each asked the judge for leniency, claiming they were less culpable because the other sibling was pulling the strings.





But U.S. District Judge Kenneth M. Karas, was not swayed, calling the crimes “vile.” The former Hialeah stripper, 56, did not attend the sentencing, a move that Karas called “a final act of cowardice,’’ according to those in the courtroom.

Novack, who ordered the hitmen to cut out her husband’s eyes, will now see little more than the inside of a federal prison. She will spend her days in a yellow jumpsuit and sneakers and sleep on a jail cot. Known as a late riser, Novack will be forced up at the crack of dawn each day to do chores, like washing floors and peeling potatoes.

Her new life will be far cry from her jet-setting days drinking champagne and having servants to do her cooking and cleaning.

With her conviction, Narcy Novack loses all rights to the bounty she hoped to claim after the murders. While she was designated as the sole beneficiary of his estimated $10 million estate, under Florida’s Slayer Statute, she now forfeits all rights to his fortune and Karas also ordered that any of her own personal assets be seized.

Novack, and her brother, both natives of Ecuador, were convicted in June of plotting the July 12, 2009, killing of her husband, 53, son of the late Ben Novack Sr., who built Miami Beach’s storied Fontainebleau hotel. Narcy Novack believed that her husband was going to leave her for another woman and that she would be left with a fraction of his wealth.

Under Ben Novack Jr.’s will, his mother, had she lived, would have been appointed as curator of his estate and received $200,000 in cash plus $2,500 per month. Though Narcy Novack would receive the balance of her husband’s property and money, as curator, Bernice Novack, 86, would have exercised great control over the purse strings, and likely would have made life difficult for her daughter-in-law, whom she had once accused of trying to poison her.

Novack’s attorney, Howard Tanner, argued that his client should be sentenced to 27 years, instead of life, arguing that her brother planned her mother-in-law’s murder. As he did during trial, Veliz claimed that Narcy’s daughter, May Abad, planned the killings, an allegation that prosecutors had dismissed years ago.

In sentencing the siblings, Karas spoke about a letter he received from one of Bernice Novack’s neighbors, Doug Reynolds. Reynolds pointed out that if Novack received just 27 years, as her lawyer suggested, she would conceivably see freedom in her mid-80s, or about the same age Bernice Novack was when her life was taken from her. Karas agreed that it would be an injustice if Bernice Novack’s killers would be able to live out their lives in freedom when Bernice wasn’t able to.





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Massachusetts fines Morgan Stanley over Facebook research






BOSTON (Reuters) – Morgan Stanley, the lead underwriter for Facebook Inc’s initial public offering, will pay a $ 5 million fine to Massachusetts to settle charges that its bankers improperly influenced its research analysts when the Internet company went public.


Massachusetts’ top securities regulator, William Galvin, charged that Morgan Stanley improperly helped Facebook disclose sensitive financial information selectively, perpetuating what he calls “an unlevel playing field” between Wall Street and Main Street.






Morgan Stanley has been under criticism since the social media company went public in May for having revealed revised earnings and revenue forecasts to select clients on conference calls before the media company’s $ 16 billion initial public offering. A Morgan Stanley spokeswoman did not immediately return a call seeking comment.


Galvin, who has been aggressive in policing how research is distributed on Wall Street ever since investment banks reached a global settlement in 2003, said the bank violated that settlement. He fined Citigroup $ 2 million over similar charges in late October.


Massachusetts says that a senior Morgan Stanley banker helped a Facebook executive release new information and then guided the executive on how to speak with Wall Street analysts about it. The banker, Galvin’s office said, rehearsed with Facebook’s Treasurer and wrote the bulk of the script Facebook’s Treasurer used when calling the research analysts.


The banker “was not allowed to call research analysts himself, so he did everything he could to ensure research analysts received new revenue numbers which they then provided to institutional investors,” Galvin said in a statement.


Retail investors were not given any similar information, Galvin said, saying this case illustrates how institutional investors often have an edge over retail investors.


(Reporting By Svea Herbst-Bayliss with additional reporting by Suzanne Barlyn in New York; Editing by Theodore d’Afflisio)


Internet News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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Romeo Beckham Burberry Campaign

At only 10 years old, Romeo Beckham has been chosen as the new face of Burberry's Spring/Summer 2013 campaign, which just launched today.


VIDEO - Anna Nicole Smith's Daughter Takes Up Modeling

According to The Daily Mail, Beckham was hand-picked by the label's Chief Creative Officer, Christopher Bailey. "This season's campaign lights up with the infectious energy of an amazing young cast of old and new Burberry family," Bailey said "We had such fun shooting the campaign and I think that comes through in the images, which really reflect the upbeat spirit of the collection."


VIDEO - David Beckham's Sizzling Underwear Ad

Modeling obviously runs in the family, as his father David and mother Victoria have each posed for their fair share of fashion campaigns.

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Senator's daughter pleads guilty to harassment








The NYPD daughter of state Sen. Ruben Diaz -- sister of the Bronx Borough President -- pled guilty today to harassment for keying her ex-boyfriend’s car in August when he wanted to end the relationship.

Sgt. Damaris Diaz, 43, who has been with the Police Department since 1993, also agreed to pay fellow cop Edward Vasquez $841.14 for the damage and spend eight days in a domestic violence program.

“He’s (Vasquez) amendable to this resolution,” said Laura Millendorf, a Manhattan Assistant DA brought in by the Bronx DA to avoid any potential conflicts of interests given her relationship to the Albany pol and his son, Ruben Jr., the borough president.





Robert Kalfus



NYPD Sgt. Damaris Diaz





Damaris bombarded Vasquez with threatening text messages and telephone calls after the break-up culminating in the August 25 attack on his 2005 Honda Accord. She was arrested and charged with criminal mischief and aggravated harassment.

Damaris refused to comment after guilty plea before Bronx Supreme Court Justice William McGuire.

“We are happy this is over and Sgt Diaz is looking forward to getting back to work,” her lawyer Anthony DiFiore.










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Child dies from injuries after being hit by car




















A 7-year-old struck by a vehicle in a Lauderhill neighborhood street Saturday night has died, police said on Sunday.

The child was struck at around 7 p.m. on the 5700 block of Northwest 27th Court.

No names have been released.





The driver has been identified only as a 20-year-old female.

The cause of the accident is still under investigation, said police spokesman Capt. Rick Rocco.

The child was transported to Broward Health Medical Center in critical condition immediately after the incident, police said.





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Viral Justice: Domestic Abuse Victim Calls Out Attacker on Facebook






Amber Taylor had been living in a Missouri motel with her boyfriend, Austin “Wildboi” McCauley, until this week, when he reportedly beat her unconscious with a baseball bat.


Two days later, the 23-year-old took a picture of herself recovering from her injuries and posted it to McCauley’s public Facebook page, calling him out for his abuse and prompting his arrest.






Since its posting online, the photo has accumulated almost 10,000 “Likes” and close to 1,000 comments. Its caption includes the sentence, “I’m not the only girl he’s done this to but I’m not scared anymore I’m going to speak up.”  


McCauley has since been arrested and charged with second-degree domestic assault.


MORE: Savannah Dietrich Calls Out Her Attackers, Sees Them Punished


In her interview with news station WDAF, Taylor explained she wanted to expose her boyfriend’s true nature to the people who thought they knew him best. “I just wanted his friends to actually see the true him,” she said.


The young mother reports that she’s not only received support from McCauley’s own friends, but also from people across the country. “I’m actually glad that I have people that are writing me and telling me they care. Because being with him, I didn’t get to have any friends.”


This isn’t the first time social media has provided an outlet for a victim in need of support. Earlier this year, 17-year-old Savannah Dietrich violated a court order when she announced the names of her two underage attackers on her public Twitter account. Though the maneuver had her facing contempt charges, Dietrich and her parents reported it was necessary to bring attention to what they characterized as the unfair nature of her trial.


Though public pressure on the court still didn’t result in the attackers receiving jail time, they were sentenced to harsher punishments than were originally conceived before Dietrich went public with their names. And in the melee, the teenager inadvertently rallied a nation’s support, serving as an example of how self-advocacy can facilitate healing.


That may be the take-away for Hillary Adams as well. The disabled daughter of Texas judge, William Adams, Hillary was the subject of her father’s relentless beatings and secretly videotaped one of those incidents. Seven years later, she posted the video online. Though Adams was already grown up and no longer living with her father, she claimed the posting had more to do with holding him personally accountable, even if the law wouldn’t.


Trauma sufferers often report that keeping abuse a secret is a move that backfires, creating a greater sense of personal shame, no matter how blameless they may be. But social media is an accessible avenue they can use to tell their stories, offering survivors the chance to shed their shame and reclaim their dignity.


Do you think social justice can really be achieved with social media? Would you use it to get justice? Let us know what you think in the Comments.


Related Stories on TakePart:


• Anna Breslaw’s 600-Word Sprint: The V-Word Dialogues


• Despite His ‘Legitimate Rape’ Fail, Todd Akin is Still a Senate Contender


• In U.S., a New Definition for Rape



A Bay Area native, Andri Antoniades previously worked as a fashion industry journalist and medical writer.  In addition to reporting the weekend news on TakePart, she volunteers as a webeditor for locally-based nonprofits and works as a freelance feature writer for TimeOutLA.com. Email Andri | @andritweets | TakePart.com


Social Media News Headlines – Yahoo! News


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Riveting Details Emerge from CT School Rampage

As morning turned to afternoon on Friday, further details continued to emerge from Newtown, CT, a tight-knit community shaken by a massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School that took the lives of innocent students and teachers, in addition to the gunman, reportedly identified as Adam Lanza.

RELATED: President Fights Tears as He Addresses Nation

As President Barack Obama touched on in his tear-jerking press conference, this is not the first time the nation has witnessed a tragedy of this kind. The recent mass shooting at an Aurora, CO movie theater is just one instance of such violence. Columbine High School and Virginia Tech also resonate as prime examples.

Hollywood's biggest stars were quick to react to the news on Twitter and made an outcry for stricter gun control regulations.

Watch the video for ET's complete coverage of today's biggest headline.

RELATED: Celebs Tweet Reactions to CT School Shooting

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Miami in spotlight at AVCC, other entrepreneurship events




















Entrepreneurs from around the world took the stage during this packed week of entrepreneurship events in Miami: Florida International University’s Americas Venture Capital Conference (known as AVCC), HackDay, Wayra’s Global DemoDay and Endeavor’s International Selection Panel.

The events, all part of the first Innovate MIA week, also put the spotlight on Miami as it continues to try to develop into a technology hub for the Americas.

“While I like art, I absolutely love what is happening today... The time has come to become a tech hub in Miami,” said Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez, who kicked off the venture capital conference on Thursday. He told the audience of 450 investors and entrepreneurs about the county’s $1 million investment in the Launch Pad Tech Accelerator in downtown Miami.





“I have no doubt that this gathering today will produce new ideas and new business ventures that will put our community on a fast track to becoming a center for innovative, tech-driven entrepreneurship,” Gimenez said.

Brad Feld, an early-stage investor and a founder of TechStars, cautioned that won’t happen overnight. Building a startup community can take five, 10, even 15 years, and those leading the effort, who should be entrepreneurs themselves, need to take the long-term view, he told the audience via video. “You can create very powerful entrepreneurial ecosystems in any city... I’ve spent some time in Miami, I think you are off to a great start.”

Throughout the two-day AVCC at the JW Brickell Marriott, as well as the Endeavor and Wayra events, entrepreneurs from around the world pitched their companies, hoping to persuade investors to part with some of their green.

And in some cases, the entrepreneurs could win money, too. During the venture capital conference, 29 companies —including eight from South Florida such as itMD, which connects doctors, patients and imaging facilities to facilitate easy access of records — competed for more than $50,000 in cash and prizes through short “elevator’’ pitches. Each took questions from the judges, then demoed their products or services in the conference “Hot Zone,” a room adjoining the ballroom. Some companies like oLyfe, a platform to organize what people share online, are hoping to raise funds for expansion into Latin America. Others like Ideame, a trilingual crowdfunding platform, were laser focused on pan-Latin American opportunities.

Winning the grand prize of $15,000 in cash and art was Trapezoid Digital Security of Miami, which provides hardware-based security solutions for enterprise and cloud environments. Fotopigeon of Tampa, a photo-sharing and printing service targeting the military and prison niches, scored two prizes.

The conference offered opportunities to hear formal presentations on current trends — among them the surge of start-ups in Brazil; the importance of mobile apps and overheated company valuations — and informal opportunities to connect with fellow entrepreneurs.

Speakers included Gaston Legorburu of SapientNitro, Albert Santalo of CareCloud and Juan Diego Calle of .Co Internet, all South Florida entrepreneurs. Jerry Haar, executive director of FIU’s Pino Global Entrepreneurship Center, which produced the conference with a host of sponsors, said the organizers worked hard to make the conference relevant to both the local and Latin American audience, with panels on funding and recruiting for startups, for instance.





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