AP News Digest 2 p.m.
Here are the AP’s latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All Times EST. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s coverage, visit Coverage Plan at https://newsroom.ap.org.
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CHINA-TESTING KITS — Secrecy and cronyism crippled China’s testing capacity in the early days of the outbreak, an Associated Press investigation has found. The China CDC selected three companies with close ties to CDC officials to make the first coronavirus test kits – even as they withheld critical information about the virus from other scientists. As a result, other laboratories couldn’t test for the pathogen, allowing it to spread undetected through Wuhan for weeks. After the city was locked down, medical staff grappled with critical shortages of test kits, and many were faulty, hampering patient access to care. By Dake Kang. SENT: 3,750 words, photos, 1,300-word abridged version.
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-US SURGE — The U.S. recorded over 3,100 COVID-19 deaths in a single day, obliterating the record set last spring, while the number of Americans in the hospital with the virus has eclipsed 100,000 for the first time and new cases have begun topping 200,000 a day. By Sam Metz. SENT: 725 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK — Getting a COVID-19 vaccine to the right people could change the course of the pandemic in the United States. But who are the right people? As the decision looms for President-elect Joe Biden’s incoming administration, a new analysis argues for targeting the first vaccines to the same low-income Black, Hispanic and Native American households that have disproportionately suffered from the coronavirus. But no one has committed to the idea. By Carla. K. Johnson and Nicky Forster. SENT: 790 words, photos. WITH: VIRUS OUTBREAK-PRESIDENTS —Three former presidents say they’d be willing to publicly take a coronavirus vaccine, once one becomes available, to encourage all Americans to get inoculated. SENT: 625 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CONGRESS — The No. 2 House Democrat tells colleagues the chamber won’t adjourn for the year without delivering at least some measure of COVID-19 relief, as Democrats show greater flexibility over a bipartisan bill after losses in last month’s elections. But difficult and unresolved issues dog the long-stalled effort. By Andrew Taylor. SENT: 885 words. UPCOMING: Developing, 890 words by 5 p.m., photos.
BORDER WALL — President-elect Joe Biden will face immediate pressure to fulfill his pledge to stop border wall construction. But he will confront a series of tough choices left behind by President Donald Trump, who’s ramped up construction in his final weeks. More than two dozen projects are underway, and contracts are signed with at least five construction companies, totaling $7 billion. By Nomaan Merchant and John L. Mone. SENT: 1,015 words, photos.
BIDEN-LOSING CANDIDATES — In politics, there can sometimes be an upside to losing. President-elect Joe Biden is eyeing several Democrats who lost congressional races last month as candidates for key positions in his administration. By Thomas Beaumont. SENT: 1,060 words, photos. With BIDEN-THE LATEST, developing.
ELECTION 2020-GEORGIA-MAIL-BALLOTS — Republican officials in Georgia are floating additional requirements for the state’s vote-by-mail process — despite no evidence of systemic fraud. The push also comes after scathing criticism from President Trump about how officials handled the November election. A record number of absentee ballots helped deliver a narrow presidential victory for Democrat Joe Biden in the state. Both Gov. Brian Kemp and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger have expressed support for requiring a photo ID for absentee voting. The idea is also backed by several members of the state legislature. By Ben Nadler and Kate Brumback. SENT: 825 words, photos.
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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
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CALIFORNIA MONOLITH — Days after the discovery and swift disappearance of two shining metal monoliths spotted half a world away from each other, another towering structure has popped up, this time at the pinnacle of a trail in Southern California. SENT: 450 words, photos.
TIGER KING-CAT BITE —Officials say a volunteer was bitten and seriously injured by a tiger at Carole Baskin’s Big Cat Rescue sanctuary near Tampa, Florida. SENT: 445 words, photos.
G HERBO FRAUD CHARGE — Chicago rapper G Herbo, his promoter and several associates have been charged with a scheme to use stolen credit card information to pay for trips on private jets, exotic car rentals, luxury vacation rentals and designer puppies from Michigan. SENT: 435 words.
TEXAS LAWMAKER-PLANE OFF RUNWAY — Officials say no one was seriously hurt after a private plane carrying Texas state Rep. Dade Phelan skidded off a runway while trying to land during a rainstorm. SENT: 185 words, photo.
GIVING TUESDAY — Donations on Giving Tuesday, an 8-year-old campaign to get people to give money to charities, rose 25% from last year, organizers said. SENT: 180 words.
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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-SPECIAL EDUCATION — The pandemic is threatening to wipe out the educational progress made by many of the nation’s 7 million students with disabilities. That’s according to advocates, who say the extended months of learning from home and erratic attempts to reopen schools are deepening a crisis that began with the switch to distance learning in March. SENT: 940 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ARGENTINA COLLAPSING CAFES — Buenos Aires has long had a thriving cafe scene and its many historic cafes and bars are officially recognized as “cafes notables” for their contribution to the capital’s culture. But they are struggling to survive what their owners say is their worst crisis ever caused by the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown measures following a long, deep recession. SENT: 650 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-SANTA CLAUS — Portraying Santa Claus in the Coronavirus Age requires many precautions. Being over 60 and chunky might make for a perfect Santa, but could also signal the kinds of underlying physical conditions that lead to serious complications from the virus. SENT: 1,010 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-VACCINE PHISHING — IBM security researchers say they have detected a cyberespionage effort that used targeted phishing emails to try to collect vital information associated with a U.N. initiative for distributing coronavirus vaccine to developing countries. IBM says the precise and careful targeting suggests a nation-state is behind the campaign. SENT: 700 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-TURKEY — Turkey’s health minister has announced a plan to start using an experimental Chinese COVID-19 vaccine later this month amid a surge in infections and deaths. SENT: 660 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-AIRPLANE ARREST — A couple was arrested at a Hawaii airport for traveling on a flight from California despite knowing they were infected with COVID-19, authorities said. SENT: 295 words.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ASIA — Hundreds of thousands of masked students in South Korea, including 35 confirmed COVID-19 patients, have taken the highly competitive university entrance exam despite a viral resurgence that forced authorities to toughen social distancing rules. SENT: 300 words, photos.
FACEBOOK-VACCINE MISINFORMATION — Facebook said it will start removing false claims about COVID-19 vaccines, in its latest move to counter a tide of coronavirus-related online misinformation. SENT: 280 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-VIRAL QUESTIONS-BUTTONS — It’s hard to verify whether “self-cleaning” elevator buttons really work, but scientists say it would be difficult to catch the virus from such surfaces anyway. SENT: 220 words, photos.
Find more coverage on the Virus Outbreak on the featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
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HOUSE DEMOCRATS — Democrats pick Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney to lead their campaign organization into the 2022 elections, choosing a lawmaker from a Trump-friendly district over a top House Hispanic after last month’s voting dealt them unexpected losses and left them divided over the reasons. SENT: 269 words. UPCOMING: Developing, 540 words by 4 p.m., photos.
ELECTION 2020-NEW YORK SECRECY — Policies favoring secrecy over transparency have meant that New Yorkers will be among the last Americans to learn the final vote tallies in the election that ended one month ago. UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 3 p.m.
ELECTION 2020-WISCONSIN — The Wisconsin Supreme Court refused to hear President Trump’s lawsuit attempting to overturn his loss to Democrat Joe Biden in the battleground state, saying the case must first wind its way through lower courts. SENT: 520 words.
TRUMP-INAUGURATION — President Trump’s daughter and senior White House adviser says she was deposed for more than five hours by attorneys alleging that the president’s 2017 inauguration committee misused donor funds — an inquiry Ivanka Trump claimed is a “waste of taxpayer dollars.” SENT: 353 words, photos.
TRUMP-LOU HOLTZ — President Donald Trump awards the nation’s highest civilian honor to former college football coach and political ally Lou Holtz. SENT: 435 words. UPCOMING: 550 words by 4 p.m., photos.
BIDEN-HARRIS-CHIEF OF STAFF — Vice President-elect Kamala Harris has named Tina Flournoy, a veteran Democratic strategist and aide to the Clintons, as her chief of staff. SENT: 388 words, photo.
CYBER MISSION-ESTONIA — In a modern twist on old-fashioned war games, the U.S. military dispatched cyber fighters to Estonia this fall to help the small Baltic nation search out and block potential cyber threats from Russia. SENT: 700 words, photos.
SUPREME COURT-CORONAVIRUS RESTRICTIONS — The Supreme Court has ordered a lower federal court to reexamine California restrictions on indoor religious services in areas hard hit by the coronavirus in light of the justices’ recent ruling in favor of churches and synagogues in New York. SENT: 150 words, photo.
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IRAQ-US-EXPLAINING THE DRAWDOWN — The planned withdrawal of 500 American forces from Iraq by mid-January, leaving 2,500 in place, is unlikely to have an immediate impact on Iraqi forces’ ability to combat remnants of the Islamic State group. But Iraq still relies heavily on foreign military support, including intelligence gathering, aviation and logistical assistance. A wider pullback could set the stage for a resurgence of the extremist group. SENT: 980 words, photos.
AZERBAIJAN-ARMENIA — Azerbaijan said Thursday it lost nearly 2,800 soldiers in 44 days of fighting with Armenian forces over the separatist territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, the first time it has disclosed its military casualties. SENT: 400 words, photos.
BRITAIN-EXPLOSION — British police say four people have died following an explosion at a waste water treatment plant near the southwest England city of Bristol. SENT: 350 words, photos.
BREXIT — Much like a broken record, Brexit trade talks are rumored to be poised for success on the cusp of a deadline, only to face the same old fundamental differences on fishing rights, legal oversight and fair competition that have dogged the European Union and Britain for months. SENT: 735 words, photos.
ETHIOPIA-MILITARY CONFRONTATION — Sudanese forces say Ethiopian forces have blocked people fleeing Ethiopia’s embattled Tigray region from crossing into Sudan at the busiest border crossing point for refugees. SENT: 790 words, photos.
US-IRAQ — The U.S. is withdrawing some staff from its embassy in Baghdad, Iraqi and U.S. officials said, temporarily reducing personnel amid regional security concerns. SENT: 450 words, photos.
INDIA FARMER-PROTESTS-PHOTO GALLERY — Instead of cars, the normally busy highway on the outskirts of New Delhi that connects most northern Indian towns to the capital is filled with tens of thousands of protesting farmers. SENT: 380 words, photos.
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POLICE SHOOTING-WISCONSIN-KENOSHA — A court commissioner has ruled that there is sufficient evidence to warrant a trial for an Illinois teenager accused of killing two men during an August protest in Wisconsin. SENT: 550 words, photos.
PEARL HARBOR ANNIVERSARY — The coronavirus pandemic is preventing Pearl Harbor survivors from attending an annual ceremony to remember those killed in the 1941 attack. The National Park Service and Navy also are closing the ceremony to the public and livestreaming it instead. SENT: 715 words, photos.
2020-CENSUS — The U.S. Census Bureau says the data irregularities that are putting in jeopardy a year-end deadline for turning in numbers used for divvying up congressional seats affect only a tiny percentage of the records and are being resolved as quickly as possible. SENT: 440 words, photo.
CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES — Powerful winds have pushed flames through Southern California canyons as an out-of-control wildfire burns near homes, forcing residents to flee. SENT: 760 words, photos.
OREGON BLACK TEEN KILLED —The killing of a black teenager by a white man has rocked Ashland, Oregon, forcing the liberal college town that hosts a Shakespeare festival to take a hard look at race relations. UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 4 p.m.
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CHINA MOON PROBE — A Chinese lunar probe lifted off from the moon with a cargo of lunar samples on the first stage of its return to Earth, the government space agency reported, on what is expected to be a breakthrough mission for the rising Asian space power. SENT: 425 words, photos.
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-AID LAPSES — Americans who struggled through 2020 could face more hardship in the year ahead as pandemic related payments and protections come to an end. Here’s what you should know about the changes ahead and how to cope. SENT: 1,000 words, photos.
OIL MARKETS — OPEC and a group of allied countries including Russia have agreed to increase their oil production by 500,000 barrels per day from January. SENT: 280 words, photo.
FINANCIAL-MARKETS —Stocks were inching further into record heights, as Wall Street continues to coast following its rocket ride on hopes for coming COVID-19 vaccines. SENT: 875 words, photos.
FEDERAL RESERVE-WALLER NOMINATION — The Senate on Thursday narrowly confirmed the nomination of Christopher Waller for the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, placing another of President Donald Trump’s picks on the Fed’s influential board after a string of high-profile rejections. SENT: 550 words, photo.
SWITZERLAND-NESTLE-CLIMATE — Nestle says it will spend $3.6 billion over five years to improve its climate footprint. SENT: 300 words.
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-THEATER-GREEN SHOOTS — Streaming one-man shows, outdoor musicals, radio plays and drive-in sing-alongs are some of the ways theater makers are defying COVID-19 by refusing to let it stop their art, often creating new hybrid forms. SENT: 1,320 words, photos, 930-word abridged version.
FILM-WARNER BROS-HBO MAX — In the most seismic shift by a Hollywood studio yet during the pandemic, Warner Bros. Pictures on Thursday announced that all of its 2021 film slate — including a new “Matrix” movie, “Godzilla vs. Kong” and the Lin-Manuel Miranda adaptation “In the Heights” — will stream on HBO Max at the same time they play in theaters. SENT: 340 words, photo.
TV-HOLIDAY SHOWS — Bring on the sentimental holiday romcoms, the chorus of Christmas music specials and the nostalgia of last century’s animated charmers: Mariah Carey, Dolly Parton and the Grinch will help light up TV holiday musical specials, movies and more. UPCOMING: 800 words by 5 p.m., photos.
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FBC--VIRUS OUTBREAK-COLLEGE SPORTS — No. 8 BYU and No. 14 Coastal Carolina put together a matchup of unbeaten teams a few days before kickoff. The pivot came after Coastal’s original opponent, No. 25 Liberty, had a virus outbreak. How did Cougars vs. Chanticleers happen so quickly? SENT: 250 words, photos. UPCOMING: 750 words, with photos, by 5 p.m.
FBC--BIG TEN-CRAZY YEAR — The Big Ten’s delayed, shortened season has been a week-to-week adventure. Between the cancellations, the unexpected fall of traditional contenders and Northwestern’s rise, pretty much anything goes. SENT: 800 words, photos.
FBN--HAPPY-GO-LUCKY CHIEFS - Kids have been drawing up plays in the playground dirt for as long as football has been played -- reverses, multiple laterals, tight ends throwing passes back to the quarterback. Sounds a bit like Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 7 p.m.
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HOW TO REACH US
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At the Nerve Center, Richard A. Somma can be reached at 800-845-8450 (ext. 1600). For photos, Courtney Dittmar (ext. 1900). For graphics and interactives, (ext. 7636). Expanded AP content can be obtained from http://newsroom.ap.org. For access to AP Newsroom and other technical issues, contact apcustomersupport(at)ap.org or call 877-836-9477.