MacReporter: September 2009

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

FCC to take another look at Janet Jackson case

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission said on Tuesday the agency will review the incident involving a fleeting glimpse of pop singer Janet Jackson's breast during the 2004 American football championship.

Jackson's right breast was exposed to almost 90 million TV viewers for a fraction of a second during the live 2004 Super Bowl football halftime show in what fellow pop singer Justin Timberlake later called a "wardrobe malfunction."

Lawmakers and regulators were outraged and vowed a crackdown on broadcast indecency.

In May, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered a lower court to reconsider a ruling that struck down a $550,000 fine against CBS Corp television stations for airing the incident.

The order sent the case back to a federal appeals court in Philadelphia for further review in light of the Supreme Court's ruling that upheld a U.S. government policy that subjects broadcasters to fines for airing a single expletive blurted out on a live television show.

The appeals court ruled in favor of CBS, saying that the FCC acted "arbitrarily and capriciously" in issuing the fine for a fleeting image of nudity.

In a filing on Tuesday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, the FCC asked the court to allow the agency to review whether CBS was reckless by failing to use a video delay technology, reasserting that CBS used a video delay for the 2004 Grammy Awards only seven days after the Super Bowl.

"The evidence in this case strongly suggests that CBS had access to video delay technology at the time of the 2004 Super Bowl," the FCC said in the court document.

CBS could not be reached for comment.

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Barrymore wheels into directing with `Whip It'

Drew Barrymore chose a real balancing act for her directing debut. She does it on wheels, directing and acting alongside "Juno" co-star Ellen Page in "Whip It," a rowdy tale of roller-derby women.

Barrymore had never put on skates before shooting the movie, spending a month alongside castmates learning the ropes in a roller-derby boot camp.

Her training as a director has been going on for years, since she began producing movies in the 1990s, her credits including her "Charlie's Angels" adventures and her Adam Sandler romance "50 First Dates."

Once they acquired the rights to roller-derby player Shauna Cross' book "Whip It," Barrymore and producing partner Nancy Juvonen began casting about for a director. Before long, Barrymore realized this was the one she had to direct herself.

"I've been producing for 15 years, and it's all been preparing for the big test. I really care so much about what I do, and I love filmmaking so much. I love every detail and every aspect of it," Barrymore, 34, said in an interview at the Toronto International Film Festival, where "Whip It" premiered in advance of its Oct. 2 theatrical release.

"I think slow and steady wins the race, too. I didn't need to direct when I was 21. I wanted to produce and learn about the filmmaking process and understand every element going into it, so that by the time I did direct, I was as knowledgeable and well-prepared as possible."

"Whip It" stars Page as Texas teen Bliss Cavendar, who follows the path of her mom (Marcia Gay Harden), a former beauty queen overseeing her daughter's rise on the pageant circuit.

On a whim, Bliss tries out for a cellar-dweller roller-derby team, discovering she's a natural skater and soon leading her squad on an underdog quest for the local league championship. Kristen Wiig, singer Eve, stuntwoman Zoe Bell and Barrymore co-star as some of Page's teammates, with Juliette Lewis cast as her nemesis, the star of the league's top team.

Barrymore proudly notes she cast Page before production began on "Juno," the 2007 Toronto festival hit that shot her to stardom, becoming a $100 million smash and earning her a best-actress Academy Award nomination.

Page, 22, said she has looked up to Barrymore since her early teens, admiring her for the strong women she has presented on screen as both an actor and producer.

"She's maintained such a sense of identity, she's never let herself be pigeonholed, she's never worried about what people think," Page said. "Every single person has wanted a piece of her whole life, yet she still maintains this groundedness and kindness that is really remarkable."

A scion of one of Hollywood's great acting dynasties, including her grandfather John Barrymore and his siblings Lionel and Ethel, Barrymore has been a star since early childhood, when she debuted in the sci-fi tale "Altered States" and later became a screen darling with the blockbuster "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial."

While Barrymore was not necessarily looking to act in her own directing debut, she took on a supporting role so she could bond with her cast as they tripped and stumbled through their derby training.

"It was one more thing on my plate that I kind of didn't need as a director, because you've got so much going on, the training and the derby and skating on wheels and directing on top of all of that," Barrymore said. "But I thought it was invaluable to the process as far as creating that trust and relationship and chemistry with the girls."

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Kate Winslet, Michelle Obama make People's best-dressed

British actress Kate Winslet lead the pack of People magazine's 10 best-dressed women of 2009, with U.S. first lady Michelle Obama chosen for "best accessible glamour."

Although the list, released Wednesday, does not have numerical ranking, Winslet, 33, who won an Oscar in February for playing a dour Nazi in "The Reader," was deemed to be the best-dressed woman on the red carpet on 2009 "with her unique brand of sexy sophistication, modern Hollywood glamour and those enviable curves."

People named Reese Witherspoon as having the "best short dresses," "High School Musical" actress Vanessa Hudgens as best hippie chic, and Freida Pinto, the Indian star of Oscar-winning movie "Slumdog Millionaire," for having the best use of color.

Brad Pitt, "Twilight" actor Robert Pattinson, and Bradley Cooper of "The Hangover" and "Nip/Tuck" fame were among the best-dressed men of the year. People said their attention to details like a scarf, pin or skinny tie "took their looks beyond basic."

Teen country singer Taylor Swift was dubbed "best sparkle."

The annual best- and worst-dressed double issue, on newsstands Friday, also acknowledged the impact on fashion of the Emmy-award winning TV series "Mad Men," set in the 1960s, whose cigarette pants and sheath dresses have inspired new designs by Michael Kors and Tory Burch.

The People magazine special issue also looked at some of the fashion flops of 2009. Former "American Idol" judge Paula Abdul and actress Renee Zellweger were cited as having the worst red carpet dresses.

Singer Jessica Simpson's January appearance in unflattering high-waisted "mom jeans," which triggering a heated debate about weight issues in Hollywood, was among the "most memorable moments of the year," People said.

People's choice of the Top 10 Best-Dressed Women of 2009 are:

Kate Winslet - Best Red Carpet

Vanessa Hudgens - Best Hippie Chic

Reese Witherspoon - Best Short Dresses

Cameron Diaz - Best Jeans

Michelle Obama - Best Accessible Glamour

Freida Pinto - Best Use of Color

Taylor Swift - Best Sparkle

Nicole Richie - Best Maternity

Beyonce - Best Street Chic

Kim Kardashian - Best Bikinis

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Paul McCartney voted Americans' favorite Beatle

Paul McCartney topped a poll of Americans' favorite Beatles, but nearly a quarter of those surveyed said they didn't like the British rock group.

And 3 percent of the 4,837 American adults questioned in the survey said they didn't know the Fab Four's music well enough to make a decision.

Nearly 30 percent of Americans questioned in the poll selected McCartney, compared to 16 percent who chose John Lennon, 10 percent for George Harrison and 9 percent for Ringo Starr.

"Americans over 30 and those over 65 love Paul," said John Zogby, the CEO of Zogby International which conducted the survey.

"It must be the crazy love songs and 'Yesterday'. Interestingly, John is the main answer for people who never go to church," he added.

The Beatles, arguably the most successful band ever, are enjoying a resurgence in sales as fans scramble for the group's reissues.

The Beatles sold 626,000 albums during the week ended September 13, according to tracking firm Nielsen SoundScan, nearly as much as as their total. until last week, for this year.

"Abbey Road" and "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" were among the best sellers.

The Walt Disney Co has also said it would remake the band's 1968 animated movie "Yellow Submarine" in 3-D.

Zogby attributed McCartney's popularity to his looks, his longevity and the fact that he is still making music.

The 22 percent of people who said they didn't like the Beatles' music could be "group that would say no to everything," he added.

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Beyonce sued by Abercrombie & Fitch over fragrance

Fierce is the battle against a pop diva's perfume.

Abercrombie & Fitch, the apparel chain known for its racy marketing and casual look, has sued Beyonce Knowles to try and stop the singer from launching a new line of fragrances.

In a federal lawsuit filed on Tuesday in Columbus, Ohio, Abercrombie claims a fragrance under the singer's "Sasha Fierce" label "poses a likelihood of confusion" with the retailer's own "Fierce" brand.

In English vernacular "fierce" means "cool" or "fabulous."

Media reports say Knowles, the former Destiny's Child frontwoman whose hits include "Single Ladies," "Crazy in Love" and "If I Were a Boy," plans to start selling a fragrance in early 2010 in partnership with perfumers Coty Inc.

Abercrombie said such confusion could deprive it of control over a trademark it has used since 2002, and perhaps cost it sales. The lawsuit seeks to halt potential trademark infringement, unfair competition and deceptive trade practices.

But on Wednesday, Coty executives said they do not intend to name the fragrance after Beyonce's alter-ego -- Sasha Fierce -- and hence it would pose no threat to Abercrombie's product.

"The terms Fierce and Sasha Fierce are not being used as names of a Beyonce fragrance," read a statement from Coty.

A publicist for Knowles, Alan Nierob, confirmed that.

Best known for clothing sold to teens and college-age adults, New Albany, Ohio-based Abercrombie said it has sold more than $190 million worth of fragrance under the Fierce name, and expects $64 million of sales in 2009.

Abercrombie sells Fierce at more than 350 retail stores and on its website, typically for $40 to $70 in bottles featuring a young man's muscular, nude torso. The fragrance is sprayed throughout stores via a scent machine or by store employees.

"A&F's intent is that all garments that leave the store have the FIERCE scent attached to them," the complaint said.

The company markets Fierce as a men's cologne whose "fresh citrus aroma" and "warm musky subtleness" will "naturally draw her curiosity because of its seductive nature."

Abercrombie may have heard that a competing Knowles fragrance was in the works "but it turned out to be wrong," said Jed Wakefield, chair of the trademark litigation group at Fenwick & West, who had no inside knowledge of the case.

"There are cases where a trademark owner learns about plans by a junior user to start use and they rush into court to get an injunction before it starts," Wakefield said. "That's not uncommon in trademark litigation where there has been pre-release publicity or the like."

WHO IS MORE FIERCE?

Knowles, often known solely by her first name, is one of the world's best-known singers, after having risen to fame as lead singer of the group Destiny's Child.

Last November, her album "I am ... Sasha Fierce" debuted at No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart. On Sunday, the song "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" from that album won the Video of the Year award at the MTV Video Music Awards.

"Single Ladies" bounced back into the spotlight during the recent MTV Video Music Awards, when singer Kanye West bounded onto stage in the middle of an acceptance speech by Taylor Swift, interrupting the singer to say that Beyonce's "Single Ladies" was "one of the best videos of all time."

The case is Abercrombie & Fitch Co v. Knowles, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio (Columbus), No. 09-807.
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Baucus outlines health plan without GOP support

WASHINGTON – His calls for compromise rebuffed by Republicans, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Finance Committee unveiled sweeping legislation Wednesday to remake the nation's costly health care system largely along the lines outlined by President Barack Obama. Sen. Max Baucus' proposal, months in the making, drew quick criticism from liberals who said his vision was too cramped and from Republicans who deemed it overly expansive. Yet whatever its fate, its mere release marked a critical turning point in Congress' long and tumultuous debate over Obama's top domestic priority. The Finance Committee is to meet next week to vote on the plan, and after combining it with another panel's bill, Majority Leader Harry Reid intends to begin debate on the Senate floor late this month or early October. Across the Capitol, Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been waiting to see Baucus' health care prescription before advancing companion legislation toward a vote by the House. "We cannot let this opportunity pass," Baucus, D-Mont., said as he outlined a $856 billion plan designed to protect millions who have unreliable insurance or no coverage at all, at the same time restraining the explosive growth of medical costs. Congressional budget experts estimated the proposal would reduce the ranks of the uninsured by 29 million over a decade. They also predicted the plan would trim federal deficits by $49 billion over the same period and suggested savings in the range of hundreds of billions of dollars might result for the decade that follows. Many of the bill's major provisions would be delayed until 2013, after the next presidential election. But the impact of one of the key concessions Baucus made in a so-far-unsuccessful search for Republican support — allowing cooperatives, rather than the federal government, to sell insurance in competition with private industry — was judged harshly. "They seem unlikely to establish a significant market presence in many areas of the country," wrote Douglas W. Elmendorf, head of the Congressional Budget Office. Supporters claim the co-ops would compete effectively with private companies and help hold down the cost of insurance, but CBO's assessment is likely to re-energize advocates of direct government competition. White House press secretary Robert Gibbs called the overall legislation an "important building block" that "gets us closer to comprehensive health care reform." Reid, too, described it as "another important piece to the puzzle" on the road to health care legislation. Pelosi said that while the bill would do less than House legislation to make coverage more affordable, its emergence "will move this historic debate forward." Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, who has labored to keep his rank and file united in opposition, called it a partisan proposal that "cuts Medicare by nearly a half-trillion dollars and puts massive new tax burdens on families and small businesses, to create yet another thousand-page, trillion-dollar government program. Only in Washington would anyone think that makes sense, especially in this economy." Baucus' legislation reflected nearly a year of preparation by the 67-year-old Montanan, a partially successful attempt to gain support from outside interest groups, and months of painstaking private negotiations with two other Democrats and three Republicans on the Finance Committee. With White House backing, the nation's drug makers and hospitals have agreed to defray part of the expense of the eventual bill, and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America is underwriting a television advertising campaign at a cost of tens of millions in favor of health care legislation. The AARP generally supports the effort as well, despite the cuts in planned Medicare spending, and even opposition from the insurance industry has been somewhat muted. Even so, the private negotiations involving Republican Sens. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, Mike Enzi of Wyoming and Olympia Snowe of Maine came up short, at least for the time being. Baucus told reporters he expected he would gain bipartisan backing before the bill emerges from committee, probably next week, an evident reference to Snowe. "This is a first step in the process," Snowe said in a written statement, and she promised to continue to work with Baucus and Democrats on drafting a bipartisan bill. The other Democrats in the talks were Kent Conrad of North Dakota and Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico. Like other proposals in circulation, Baucus' plan would require insurance companies to sell coverage to all seeking it, without exclusions for pre-existing medical conditions or prohibitively expensive premiums. The legislation would create so-called insurance exchanges in the states where companies could sell policies that meet criteria set by the government, with federal subsidies available for lower-income individuals and families who would otherwise be unable to afford coverage. Any policy offered for sale in the exchanges would have to cover preventive and primary care as well as dental, prescription drug, mental health and vision services. In general, consumer copays on preventive coverage would be banned. Additionally the plan envisions cutting a coverage gap in Medicare prescription drug program in half over a decade, although not as deeply as Obama called for in last week's prime-time speech. To hold down costs, Baucus included only one year of a 10-year, $230 billion increase in doctor fees under Medicare. The legislation calls for a new tax on high-cost insurance plans, a series of fees and taxes on insurance companies, the pharmaceutical industry and other health care providers, and penalties assessed on people who refuse to purchase coverage or large companies that refuse to offer it to their employees. Planned Medicare spending would be cut by roughly $500 billion over a decade, with about one-quarter of that money coming from private plans sold as an alternative to traditional government coverage. The House bill calls for far deeper cuts in the alternative program, to the point that industry officials say it could disappear. Among Baucus' critics were liberals in the House and labor leaders who have been among Obama's strongest supporters. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who has long been involved in health care issues, said the proposal doesn't go far enough to control costs or guarantee a greater choice among health plans for consumers. Chuck Loveless, the director of legislation at the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, said, "Chairman Baucus has made what I would characterize as a herculean effort to produce this, but we think that the cost has been too high, and we want to see major changes." In the House, Rep. Anthony Weiner of New York, who favors a government-run program, said, "I think I speak for many members of Congress in saying that the Senate proposal simply will not pass muster in the House of Representatives and fails on very basic levels to satisfy the objectives of the president and the citizens of the United States of America." Like authors of competing bills in the House and in the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Baucus worked his way through numerous controversial issues. Unlike them, though, his reflected a desire to seek bipartisanship. Thus, the bill includes provisions to keep illegal immigrants from obtaining health coverage through the new insurance exchanges. The bill also would prevent federal funds from being used to pay for abortions except in cases of rape, incest or if the life of the mother would be endangered. It would leave in place state laws that protect health care workers who refuse to participate in abortion coverage.

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Monday, September 7, 2009

Dane teen Wozniacki ousts Kuznetsova; Oudin next

http://wordgeist.comMelanie Oudin won't be fighting on the Russian front anymore at the U.S. Open.

Mediterranean Diet Could Eliminate Prescriptions for New Type II Diabetics

http://mindandbodyscript.comA simple change in diet could mean the elimination of medications for Type II diabetics. When comparing the effects of two special diets for Type II diabetics, each combined with exercise, the Mediterranean low-carbohydrate diet came out on top, ahead of the low-fat diet.

Are Persons with Down Syndrome Protected Against Some Forms of Cancer?

Down syndrome (DS), or Trisomy 21, is defined by an extra copy of chromosome 21 in all cells. In humans there are normally 2
copies of each of 23 chromosomes for a total of 46 in each cell; in DS there are 47.

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Keeping Crohn’s Disease in Check

http://mindandbodyscript.com Crohn’s disease is a chronic inflammatory disease of the digestive system. The cause is unknown, and there is no medical cure. The disorder primarily is responsible for ulcerations in the small and large intestines, but can affect the digestive system from the mouth to the anus.

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CDC Releases First Statistics on Tourette’s Syndrome

http://mindandbodyscript.comThe first statistics regarding the number of diagnosed cases of Tourette’s syndrome (TS) based on a national U.S. sample has been released by the CDC. Findings show that 3 out of every 1,000 children, ranging in age from six to seventeen, suffer from the neurological disorder.

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Magic Quercetin—Radical New Energy Booster?

http://mindandbodyscript.comFree radicals have been in the news the last few years. These tiny cells float around your body and fuse with healthy cells, eventually killing them as well as decreasing our energy, damaging systems of cells, and possibly to decrease the brain’s mental abilities.

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American Spending on Alternative Medicine Continues to Skyrocket

http://mindandbodyscript.comAmerican consumers spent an estimated $34 billion on alternative medicine in 2007. In fact, alternative medicine accounts for over 11 percent of out-of-pocket spending on health care in the United States. This surprising information comes from the first national estimate of dollars spent on alternative medicine in over ten years.

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Getting Closer to an AIDS Vaccine

http://mindandbodyscript.comFor decades, scientists have vigorously searched for a cure for the AIDS virus. Recent research just may have uncovered a significant key to developing that long-awaited vaccine.

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The Availability of the New iPod touch Potentially Compromised

http://wordgeist.comAccording to one of our reliable source (however, it remains a rumor), Apple is facing problems with the production of the new iPod Touch. The issue would be linked to the new camera module.

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This Wednesday (September 9th) is Apple’s annual iPod event

http://wordgeist.comThis Wednesday (September 9th) is Apple’s annual iPod event, where they’re likely to refresh most or all of the iPod lineup like they’ve done at nearly every fall iPod event.

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Katy Perry Sparks Engagement Rumors

http://wordgeist.comKaty Perry kissed a girl and she liked it. But apparently she still likes kissing her boyfriend Travis McCoy more. Word on the block is that these two are officially engaged!

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Uma Thurman to Get Married at Kensington Palace

http://wordgeist.comUma Thurman is planning a really big princess style wedding to her super rich fiance, Arpad Busson. The couple will tie the knot sometime in June of next year. They have reportedly rented the Kensington Palace — the former home of Princess Diana for their wedding.

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