AP News Digest 3:10 a.m.
Columbia Basin Herald | UPDATED 6 years, 5 months AGO
Here are the AP’s latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All times EDT. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s coverage, visit Coverage Plan at https://newsroom.ap.org.
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ONLY ON AP
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-SPAIN’S MOST VULNERABLE -- The coronavirus pandemic has heightened the fragility of the elderly of Barcelona’s working class Poble Sec neighborhood. It has stripped away the safety nets that kept them fed and healthy, and exposed them to a daily threat of infection that they know will likely kill them.For two weeks, an Associated Press photographer accompanied Barcelona’s visiting health care workers and emergency medical personnel as they tended to Spain’s home-bound elderly, who have borne the heaviest toll in the pandemic here and around the globe. By Emilio Morenatti. 660 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-BACK TO BATTLE -- The coronavirus has infected so many doctors, nurses and other health workers that some are now returning from their sick beds and heading back to the front lines. Health workers who have recovered from COVID-19 hope that they are now armed with some degree of immunity. By John Leicester. 870 words, photos, video.
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VIRUS OUTBREAK — People around the world have begun celebrating Good Friday and Easter from the safety of their homes while rare divisions surfaced in Japan over how to tackle the growing coronavirus outbreak there. Politicians and public health officials have warned that the hard-won gains against the pandemic must not be jeopardized by relaxing social distancing over the holiday weekend. By Nick Perry and Marina Villeneuve. SENT: 1,080 words, photos. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-THE LATEST.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-PUBLIC TRANSIT — People who must continue working during the coronavirus pandemic are performing a quiet calculus each day as they try to stay safe while commuting. They let trains that look too crowded pass by. If they decide to board, they search for emptier cars to ride in. They say the requirement to keep at least 6 feet away from other people is nearly impossible in the New York City subway system. Despite the hardships, transit officials say they’re working harder than ever to protect riders and their own workers as well. By Tom Hays and Marshall Ritzel. SENT: 890 words, photos.
Find more all-format coverage on the Virus Outbreak featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
ELECTION 2020-BIDEN-VP SEARCH — Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden expects to name a vice presidential vetting committee next week. He has already committed to picking a woman as his running mate, and he must consider the demands of a diverse party. By Bill Barrow. SENT: 990 words, photos.
ELECTION 2020-VOTING — As President Donald Trump rails against voting by mail, many members of his own political party are embracing it to keep their voters safe during the coronavirus outbreak. Republican state officials in Iowa, Ohio and West Virginia have all taken steps to ease access to mail-in ballots. By Nicholas Riccardi. SENT: 980 words, photo. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-ELECTIONS — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wants to bolster mail-in voting and take other steps to make balloting easier this November. SENT: 650 words, photo.
Find more coverage on the 2020 U.S. Elections featured topic page on APNewsroom.
OIL-MARKETS — OPEC says a proposed cut to oil production “is conditional on the consent of Mexico” after a marathon teleconference ended without a decision. The statement from OPEC confirmed figures earlier offered by Saudi Arabia. The proposal calls for a 10 million barrels per day cut until July, then an 8 million barrels per day cut through the end of the year. Beginning in 2021, a 6 million barrels per day cut will last for 16 months. By Jon Gambrell. SENT: 720 words, photo.
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MORE ON VIRUS OUTBREAK
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-CONGRESS — President Donald Trump’s new coronavirus aid request has gotten tied up in congressional politics. Democrats refused to rubber stamp Trump’s proposal for $250 billion more to boost small businesses, demanding modifications along with an additional $250 billion for health care providers and states. Republicans wouldn’t go along. SENT: 820 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-SCHOOL MEALS — Schools that feed millions of children from low-income families across the U.S. promised to keep providing meals during the coronavirus pandemic. But cities big and small quickly ran into problems when food workers, teachers and volunteers became infected or were too scared to report for duty. SENT: 820 words, photos, video.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-MEDICAL SUPPLIES — With the federal stockpile drained of protective gear, states are turning to each other, private industries and anyone who can donate in a desperate bid to get respirators, gloves and other supplies to doctors, nurses and other front-line workers. SENT: 940 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-LIVES LOST-WAR VETERANS — In the final months of his life, Bill Chambers was no longer able to walk, but he found peace in motion. Three times a week, his oldest daughter, Patty Cooper, would meet him at the adult family home where he lived with four other World War II veterans, load him into her Volvo SUV, and take him on long drives through the evergreen forests, farmlands and suburbs east of Seattle. He knew the roads well. In about 30 years working for the county, he built most of them. The 97-year-old died on March 14 after contracting COVID-19. SENT: 780 words, photos.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-UN-SECURITY COUNCIL — Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warns the U.N. Security Council that the coronavirus pandemic is threatening international peace and security — “potentially leading to an increase in social unrest and violence that would greatly undermine our ability to fight the disease.” SENT: 780 words, photo.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-THE-HOWLING — From California to New York, some Americans are taking a moment each night at 8 o’clock to howl as a way of thanking the health care workers and first responders who are fighting the coronavirus pandemic. The nightly howl is an American twist on the balcony applause and singing for besieged health care workers in Italy and Spain. SENT: 760 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CALIFORNIA — California saw its first daily decrease in intensive care hospitalizations during the coronavirus outbreak, a key indicator of how many health care workers and medical supplies the state needs, Gov. Gavin Newsom says. SENT: 660 words photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ONE GOOD THING-DOC ADOPTION — More than 10,000 people have responded to an Israeli woman’s Facebook plea to help overworked health-care professionals on the frontline of the country’s battle against the coronavirus pandemic. An army of volunteers is doing their grocery shopping, delivering home-cooked meals, babysitting for children and even walking pets. The “Adopt A Doc” venture mirrors the kinds of grassroots efforts the country is known for providing its soldiers during times of war and conflict. SENT: 550 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-UN-POOR COUNTRIES — More than 60 U.N. agencies and international organizations urged governments on Thursday to take immediate steps to address the unfolding global recession and financial crisis wrought by the coronavirus pandemic, especially in the world’s poorest countries. SENT: 540 words, photo.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-CRUISE-SHIPS — A crew member who was hospitalized for days after two ill-fated cruise ships with coronavirus patients were finally allowed to dock in Florida has died, officials say. SENT: 540 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-MEXICO-HOME CARE — The Mexico City government is sending out teams to help the home-bound and the homeless during the shutdown declared to combat the coronavirus, officials say. SENT: 490 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-SURPRISE BILLING — Hospitals taking money from the $2 trillion stimulus bill will have to agree not to send “surprise” medical bills to patients treated for COVID-19, the White House says. SENT: 470 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ABORTION — A federal judge has ordered that Texas abortion clinics may continue to perform abortions in some cases, either those using medication or those involving patients for whom delays would pose an essential ban. SENT: 310 words, photos.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-MIDEAST — Yemen’s internationally recognized government announces the first confirmed case of coronavirus in the war-torn country, stoking fears that an outbreak could devastate an already crippled health care system. SENT: 230 words.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-BRAZIL-COPACABANA HOTEL — Rio de Janeiro’s stately Copacabana Palace hotel will close its doors for the first time since its inauguration 96 years ago as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The huge building facing the storied Copacabana Beach is among the Brazilian city’s few five-star hotels. SENT: 190 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-TRUMP-TESTING — The White House tests journalists for COVID-19 before its daily press briefing. SENT: 160 words, photos.
A separate wire advisory has also been sent detailing AP’s complete coronavirus coverage.
GROUND GAME — AP’s coronavirus podcast, “Ground Game: Inside the Outbreak,” today is an interview with three AP reporters who worked on “24 Hours: The Fight for New York,” a multi-format package following 10 New Yorkers as they negotiate life in a city utterly transformed by the virus. Listen to the podcast after 3 p.m. at https://appodcasts.com/category/ground-game/. Embed code is available on AP Coverage Plan.
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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-TV-SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE — ‘Saturday Night Live’ to air show, observe social distancing. SENT: 160 words, photo.
OBIT-GAY RIGHTS PIONEER — Civil rights pioneer and face of gay marriage Phyllis Lyon dies at 95. SENT: 570 words, photos.
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-MCCONNELL-POLIO — As the coronavirus pandemic unfolds, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell flashes back to an earlier crisis that gripped the nation, and his own life, when he was a boy. He was stricken with polio. By Congressional Correspondent Lisa Mascaro. SENT: 970 words, photos.
TRUMP-RUSSIA PROBE — Attorney General William Barr tells Fox News he believes the Russia investigation that shadowed President Donald Trump for nearly two years was started without any basis and was intended to “sabotage the presidency.” SENT: 650 words, photos.
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OBIT-GAY RIGHTS PIONEER — Gay rights pioneer Phyllis Lyon, who with her longtime partner was among the first same-sex couples to marry in California when it became legal to do so in 2008, has died at her San Francisco home. She was 95. SENT: 570 words, photos.
CLERGY-ABUSE-NEW-ORLEANS-SAINTS — Hundreds of emails detailing the New Orleans Saints’ efforts to conduct damage control for the area’s Roman Catholic archdiocese amid its clergy sexual abuse crisis should remain shielded from the public, a court official recommends. SENT: 340 words, photos.
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FINANCIAL MARKETS — Asian shares are steady in quiet Good Friday trading after Wall Street closed out its best week in 45 years thanks to the Federal Reserve’s titanic effort to support the economy through the coronavirus crisis. By Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach. SENT: 640 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-BENEFITS-STILL WAITING — Even as nearly 17 million Americans have sought unemployment benefits in the past three weeks — a record high, by far — millions of people appear to be falling through the cracks. They can’t get through jammed phone systems or finish their applications on overloaded websites. Or they’re confused about whether or how to apply. By Economics Writer Christopher Rugaber. SENT: 1,010 words, photos.
EUROPE-ECONOMY — Governments from the 19 countries that use the euro overcame sharp differences to agree on measures that could provide more than a half-trillion euros ($550 billion) for companies, workers and health systems to cushion the economic impact of the virus outbreak. By Business Writer David McHugh. SENT: 620 words, photos.
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TIM DAHLBERG-NO GOLF — Before Nevada’s governor decided this week to close golf courses, the idea of people playing golf during the pandemic was already being debated on social media. So on the day the Masters was supposed to open, golf courses around the Silver State were being closed. The same thing was happening in New York and across the country. Golf is good, but it’s not essential. By Sports Columnist Tim Dahlberg. SENT: 740 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-SPORTS-FAMILY REUNIONS — Few vocations require more missed time with loved ones than big league and major college sports. Elite athletes and coaches enjoy privileges and rewards, but family time is one part of life that can’t be priced out. The COVID-19 pandemic that put sports on pause has given them time with loved ones. By Dave Campbell. SENT: 750 words, photos .
EISEN-NBCSN — NBC Sports Network announces that “The Rich Eisen Show” will air on the channel beginning Monday at 1 p.m. EDT. That will be the last two hours of the show, which begins at noon on a network of national radio affiliates, including Sirius/XM, as well as on PodcastOne. By Sports Writer Joe Reedy. SENT: 240 words, photos.
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