AP News Digest 2 p.m.
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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AP POLL-VIRUS OUTBREAK-GOVERNMENT RESPONSE — As worries about the coronavirus outbreak continue to rise, Americans give high marks to their state and local governments for how they are handling the outbreak but voice criticism of the federal government and President Donald Trump, according to a new poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. By Julie Pace and Hannah Fingerhut. UPCOMING: 816 words by 2 p.m., photos, graphic, video.
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-NATIONAL SHUTDOWN — Even as he warns Americans will face a grim few weeks with tens of thousands likely killed by the new coronavirus, President Donald Trump continues to resist issuing a national stay-at-home order to stem the spread of the virus. By Aamer Madhani. SENT: 585 words. UPCOMING: 900 words, by 5 p.m., photos, video. WITH: VIRUS OUTBREAK-SHUTDOWNS-Q&A — A look at states and federal government powers in emergencies like the coronavirus outbreak. SENT: 850 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK — New York authorities rushed to bring in an army of medical volunteers Wednesday as the statewide death toll from the coronavirus surged past 1,900 and the wail of ambulances in the otherwise eerily quiet streets of the big city became the heartbreaking soundtrack of the crisis. By Michael R. Sisak, Angela Charlton and Mark Sherman. SENT: 1,275 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-SPREAD WITHOUT SYMPTOMS — More evidence is emerging that coronavirus infections are being spread by people who have no clear symptoms, complicating efforts to gain control of the pandemic. By Mike Stobbe. UPCOMING: 500 words by 3 p.m.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-MAKING RENT — It's the first of the month, and everybody knows the rent's due. For millions of Americans, Wednesday is the first time the landlord is knocking on the door since the coronavirus outbreak turned the economy upside down. By Jeffrey Collins. SENT: 2,000 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-NURSING HOMES — Nursing homes across the country went into lockdown this month with mandatory measures to protect their frail, elderly residents from coronavirus, but a wave of deadly outbreaks nearly every day since suggests the steps that included a ban on visits and daily health screenings of staffers either came too late or were not rigorous enough. Recent outbreaks in West Virginia, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee and Louisiana highlight perhaps the biggest gap: Screenings of doctors, nurses, aides and other workers do not involve actual testing but the taking of temperatures or asking health questions that still allow infected, asymptomatic people to slip through. By Jim Mustian, Bernard Condon and Candice Choi. UPCOMING 1,100 words, photos by 3 p.m.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-RURAL HOSPITALS — The coronavirus pandemic couldn't come at a worse time for rural communities across the U.S. that have lost their hospitals. Nearly 200 small-town hospitals have closed nationwide since 2005, often forcing residents to drive much farther for health care. Last year was the worst yet for shutdowns, and officials say hundreds more rural hospitals are endangered by the pandemic. SENT: 1.050 words, photos.
Find more all-format coverage on the Virus Outbreak featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
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MORE ON VIRUS OUTBREAK
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-CHINA-THE NUMBERS — Every few days brings another grim milestone in the coronavirus outbreak. First Italy and Spain surpassed China in reported deaths. Then, this week, the U.S. and France did. But did they really? Skepticism about China's numbers has swirled throughout the crisis, fueled by official efforts to quash bad news in the early days and a general distrust of the government. Long lines of people waiting to collect the ashes of loved ones at funeral homes last week revived the debate. SENT: 1,375 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK DIARY-UNFAMILIAR WAR — I’ve seen the streets of Beirut empty before, during wars when the shells were falling and under curfews after various bouts of fighting. But it is the silence that is getting to me. On the streets, at the supermarket, and even as people stand in line (one meter apart) outside banks and grocery stores, no one speaks. It seems like every single person is wearing a mask and gloves, even those inside their cars, driving alone. SENT: 650 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-FEDERAL PRISONS — The federal Bureau of Prisons is locking inmates in their cells at all of its facilities for 14 days in order to stop the spread of coronavirus, as a focus shifts to a federal prison complex in Louisiana, where two inmates have died and nearly 20 others are hospitalized. UPCOMING: 750 words by 4 p.m., photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-GERMANY — Germany has seen a steady rise in the number of new coronavirus infections, but so far deaths have been low compared to many of its European neighbors. Labs were quick to ramp up their testing capacity. That quick work, coupled with the country's large number of ICU beds and its early implementation of social distancing measures, could be behind Germany's relatively low death toll. SENT: 1,070 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-RUSSIA-FAKE NEWS — Russian authorities have declared war on what they are calling “fake news” about the coronavirus. The crusade began about a month ago, when Russia was reporting only a few cases, prompting speculation from some critics that authorities might be underreporting the scale of the outbreak. Now lawmakers have approved fines of up to $25,000 and prison terms of up to five years for individuals who spread what is deemed to be false information. SENT: 1,060 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ONE GOOD THING-COLUMBIA — Colombian restaurateur Emiliano Moscoso recently launched a program called “Solidarity Menu” to feed people in need during the coronavirus outbreak. Moscoso’s project works with delivery-start up “Rappi,” so that people can order food online that his employees prepare and deliver for free to families in poor neighborhoods of Bogota. SENT: 575 words, photos, video.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ASIAN AMERICANS MOBILIZING — From the World War II detention of Japanese Americans to the 1982 slaying of Chinese American Vincent Chin, serving as national scapegoats isn't a new scenario for Asian Americans. But this time, Asian Americans have the internet and social media to quickly galvanize as racially motivated attacks in the COVID-19 era continue at an alarming rate. Across Asian America, there is a collective feeling of urgency to not just drown out bigotry but apathy. UPCOMING: 900 words, photos by 3 p.m.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-BRITAIN-HELP-ON-THE-WAY — Britain is in the process of mobilizing around 750,000 volunteers to help vulnerable people after the government ordered a nationwide lockdown to slow the spread of COVID-19. SENT: 650 words, photos.
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WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
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BACKYARD MARATHON — Being stuck at home didn't stop a British man from running an outdoor marathon. SENT: 180 words.
TEXAS TOILET PAPER CRASH — Officials say a tractor-trailer hauling toilet paper crashed and caught fire near Dallas. SENT: 125 words, video.
MUSIC DRAKE AND OPRAH — Lil Yachty, DaBaby and Drake's new rap song “Oprah's Bank Account" is one of Oprah's favorite things. SENT: 235 words.
INDIANAPOLIS-BOY SHOOTING — Indianapolis police say an 8-year-old boy died after he was struck by stray gunfire when shots were fired into a house. SENT: 140 words.
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-HOW TO SPEND $2 TRILLION — President Trump hopes to shovel $2.2 trillion into the U.S. economy over the next few weeks -- which means putting his political fate in the hands of banks, profit-minded businesses and the government bureaucrats he has frequently derided. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 5 p.m.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CONGRESS STOCKS — Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler and her husband recently purchased as much as $415,000 in stock in DuPont de Nemours, a chemical company that manufactures protective equipment in high demand due to the coronavirus pandemic. It’s just the latest financial transaction by Loeffler and her husband to draw scrutiny. By Brian Slodysko and Mary Clare Jalonick. UPCOMING: 600 words by 4 p.m., photos.
ELECTION 2020-CONVENTIONS —Democrats and Republicans are looking at whether they will still be able to hold their summer conventions if the coronavirus makes it harder for people to gather in large groups. By Bill Barrow. UPCOMING: 500 words by 5 p.m., photos.
In a new episode of the “Ground Game” podcast, Washington Bureau Chief @jpaceDC checks in with @AP reporters @apwillweissert and @BillBarrowAP to learn more about the Democrats’ virtual campaigns during this time of social distancing. https://bit.ly/3dKYL2G
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2020-CENSUS — Census Day — the date used to reference where a person lives for the once-a-decade count — arrived with a nation almost paralyzed by the spread of the novel coronavirus. But census officials vowed the job would be completed by its year-end deadline. SENT: 920 words, photos.
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-HEZBOLLAH NEW BATTLE — In the streets of Beirut's southern suburbs, Hezbollah paramedics and volunteers on trucks and on foot sprayed disinfectants on shops and buildings. At a hospital where it once treated its wounded fighters, the group's medical staff set up beds for a center to deal with coronavirus patients. Hezbollah says it is turning the organizational might it once deployed to fight Israel or in the civil war in neighboring Syria to battle the spread of the virus pandemic in Lebanon. SENT: 825 words, photos.
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HEALTH & SCIENCE
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VIRUS OUTBREAK- ADDICTION— The coronavirus pandemic is testing the resilience of millions who struggle with drug and alcohol addiction and threatening America’s progress against the opioid crisis. UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 5 p.m.
MED-CONTAMINATED DRUGS-HEARTBURN — U.S. health regulators are telling drugmakers to immediately pull their popular heartburn drugs off the market after determining that a contamination issue with the medications poses a greater risk than previously thought. SENT: 325 words.
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FINANCIAL-MARKETS — U.S. stocks joined a worldwide downdraft as more signs piled up of the economic and physical pain being caused by the coronavirus outbreak. SENT: 965 words, photos, developing. WITH: ECONOMY-MANUFACTURING — American manufacturing slide in March, dragged down by economic fallout from the coronavirus outbreak. SENT: 335 words.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-JOB MARKET — As a wave of job losses tears through the U.S. economy, a key question has emerged: How long will the layoffs last? The answer will help determine the depth and duration of a recession that has likely begun and is destined to worsen in the months ahead. By Christopher Rugaber. UPCOMING: 900 words by 3 p.m.
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MUSIC BRANDY CLARK — Brandy Clark wrote about the breakup of a 15-year relationship for her new album “Your Life is a Record.” But the country singer-songwriter also decided to “take the handcuffs off" and try musical styles outside the genre. Clark said the doors to country radio didn't open for her despite writing award-winning hits for Kacey Musgraves and having Grammy-nominated country albums of her own. SENT: 639 words, photos.
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TEN-VIRUS-OUTBREAK WIMBLEDON CANCELED — Wimbledon was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, the first time since World War II that the oldest Grand Slam tennis tournament won't be played. SENT: 795 words, photos.
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