AP News Digest 7 a.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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VIRUS OUTBREAK-GLOBAL — A combined 25,000 new confirmed coronavirus cases in four U.S. states are fueling a surge as the country heads into the July Fourth holiday weekend. Arizona, California, Florida and Texas reported the figures Thursday. All but 10 U.S. states are showing an increase of confirmed cases over the last 14 days, according to data compiled by the COVID Tracking Project. By Jake Coyle and Terry Spencer. SENT: 1,170 words, photos. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-THE LATEST.
TRUMP-RUSHMORE — President Donald Trump will begin his Independence Day weekend with a patriotic display of fireworks at Mount Rushmore before a crowd of thousands. But controversy over coronavirus precautions, protests from Native American groups and concerns over wildfires from the fireworks will also greet the president. By Stephen Groves. SENT: 640 words, photos. UPCOMING: Updates throughout the day; events begin around 10 p.m.
RACIAL INJUSTICE-SELMA BRIDGE — Residents in the landmark civil rights city of Selma, Alabama, are among the critics of a bid to rename the historic bridge where voting rights marchers were beaten in 1965. Online petitions have circulated for years to rename the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma for Congressman John Lewis. Pettus was a white supremacist, and Lewis was beaten on the bridge 55 years ago. But some of the people who marched with Lewis don’t like the idea of renaming the bridge for him, and Lewis once co-authored an article that opposed renaming the bridge. By Jay Reeves. SENT: 1,020 words, photos, video.
Find more coverage of Racial Injustice in AP Newsroom.
GUN CONFRONTATION-MICHIGAN — A white couple has been arrested after at least one handgun was pulled on a Black woman and her daughters during a videotaped confrontation in a restaurant parking lot in Michigan. By Corey Williams. SENT: 510 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-SOUTH AFRICA-SURGE — The nurse started crying when describing her work at a Johannesburg hospital: The ward for coronavirus patients is full, so new arrivals are sent to the general ward, where they wait days for test results. Already 20 of her colleagues have tested positive. By Andrew Meldrum. SENT: 1,050 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-JERSEY SHORE — As coronavirus-related restrictions are eased and temperatures climb, people are flocking back to the Jersey Shore. And with the July Fourth holiday weekend upon us, that’s making some people nervous, particularly given the large crowds that have surfaced at some popular shore spots recently and poor compliance with mandated measures to help slow the spread of the virus. By Wayne Parry. SENT: 730 words, photos. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-JERSEY SHORE-GLANCE.
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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-BRITAIN-PUBS REOPENING — Pub managers will have to be resourceful when they and other parts of the hospitality industry in England open their doors to customers for the first time since March 20, provided they meet COVID-19 safety requirements. SENT: 940 words, photos.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-BRITAIN — The British government says it is scrapping a 14-day quarantine rule for arrivals from about 60 countries deemed “lower risk” for the coronavirus, including France, Spain, Germany and Italy — but not the United States, the world’s worst-hit country from COVID-19. SENT: 410 words, photo.
ISRAEL-EMIRATES — A state-linked technology company in the United Arab Emirates signs a partnership with two major Israeli defense firms to research ways of combating the coronavirus pandemic. SENT: 460 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ASIA — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un urges officials to maintain alertness against the coronavirus, warning that complacency risked “unimaginable and irretrievable crisis,” state media says. SENT: 750 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-PARAGUAY — As nearby nations grapple with uncontrolled spread of the novel coronavirus, the poor, landlocked nation of Paraguay appears to be controlling the disease, with just a few thousand confirmed cases and a few dozen deaths. SENT: 460 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ELECTION LAWSUIT — The U.S. Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision blocks a lower court ruling allowing curbside voting in Alabama and waiving some absentee ballot requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic. SENT: 530 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-FEDERAL JAIL — A Manhattan federal lockup failed to implement common-sense measures to protect prisoners after a COVID-19 outbreak infected dozens of inmates at the facility, a judge says. SENT: 500 words, photo.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-CALIFORNIA — Californians should wear masks and skip Fourth of July family gatherings, Gov. Gavin Newsom pleaded as the state’s coronavirus tally surged. SENT: 900 words, photos.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-TRAVEL — The government is recommending that travelers wear face coverings during air travel and says airlines should consider limiting capacity on planes to promote social distancing. SENT: 570 words, photos.
Find more coverage of the Virus Outbreak in AP Newsroom.
A separate wire advisory has moved detailing the AP's complete coronavirus coverage.
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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
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REDSKINS-FEDEX — Sponsor FedEx asks NFL’s Redskins to change their name. SENT: 280 words, photo.
NFL-RACIAL JUSTICE — AP Source: NFL to play Black anthem before national anthem. SENT: 300 words, photo.
DENMARK-LITTLE MERMAID — Denmark: Statue of Little Mermaid vandalized again. SENT: 210 words, photos.
FACEBOOK-DISCRIMINATION-COMPLAINT — Black worker files discrimination complaint against Facebook. SENT: 360 words, photo.
PEOPLE-CHRISTINA RICCI — Actress Christina Ricci files for divorce from husband of seven years. SENT: 120 words, photo.
BOTSWANA-DEAD ELEPHANTS — Botswana investigates “mysterious deaths” of 275 elephants. SENT: 320 words, photos.
GERMANY-UPSKIRTING — Germany passes legislation to criminalize “upskirting.” SENT: 150 words.
GERMANY-MASKED MERKEL — Germany’s Merkel pictured wearing mask in public. SENT: 260 words, photos.
CANADA-TRUDEAU SECURITY — Police arrest armed man on the grounds where Trudeau lives. SENT: 210 words, photo.
SOUTH KOREA-GREEN ONION CHEX — Was new Chex flavor worth South Koreans’ 16-year wait? SENT: 520 words, photos.
OKLAHOMA-STUN GUN DEATH — Two Oklahoma police officers charged in death of man. SENT: 300 words, photos.
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UNITED STATES-RUSSIA-INTELLIGENCE-Q&A — The White House says President Donald Trump was never briefed on intelligence that Russia had put a bounty on U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan because there wasn’t corroborating evidence. But former intelligence officials say presidents are routinely informed about intelligence even when it’s not definitively confirmed. SENT: 1,050 words, photos.
ELECTION 2020-TRUMP-ECONOMY — As Republicans and Democrats fight to spin the most recent jobs report to their advantage, both sides face tremendous political risks on a defining issue heading into the presidential election. SENT: 880 words, photos, video.
Find more coverage of the 2020 U.S. Elections in AP Newsroom.
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INDIA-US-VISAS — When Trump signed an executive order suspending applications for H-1B and other high-skilled work visas from abroad, the move kept at least 1,000 Indians whose visas are tied to their jobs in the United States stranded in India. SENT: 820 words, photos.
FRANCE-POLITICS — French President Emmanuel Macron names Jean Castex, who coordinated France’s virus reopening strategy, as the country’s new prime minister. SENT: 500 words, photos.
MYANMAR-MINING ACCIDENT — Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi expresses sadness over a landslide at a jade mining site in the country’s north that took at least 166 lives, blaming the tragedy on joblessness. SENT: 540 words, photos.
TURKEY-KHASHOGGI KILLING — A Turkish court opens the trial in absentia of two former aides of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and 18 other Saudi nationals over the 2018 killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. SENT: 480 words, photos.
HONG KONG — Prominent Hong Kong democracy activist Nathan Law has left the city for an undisclosed location, he revealed on his Facebook page after testifying to a U.S. congressional hearing about a tough national security law China had imposed on the semi-autonomous territory. SENT: 590 words, photos. With BRITAIN-HONG KONG-ASYLUM U.K. grants asylum to ex-staffer at its Hong Kong consulate.
INDIA-CHINA STANDOFF — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi makes an unannounced visit to a military base in remote Ladakh region bordering China where the soldiers of the two countries have been facing off for nearly two months. SENT: 710 words, photos. With CHINA-INDIA — China sends warning to India amid border clash fallout (sent).
COLOMBIA-AMERICAN CAPTIVES — Three American defense contractors held for five years by leftist rebels in Colombia move closer to collecting on a $318 million judgment against their former captors after a U.S. Supreme Court justice rebuffs a last-minute appeal by a sanctioned Venezuelan businessman whose assets they seek to claim. SENT: 540 words, photo.
CROATIA-ELECTION — Croatia is holding a parliamentary election this weekend amid a coronavirus outbreak and with no clear winner in sight as none of the main contenders appears set to garner a majority of votes. SENT: 800 words, photos.
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MISSING SOLDIER-TEXAS — Federal and military investigators say Vanessa Guillen, a soldier missing since April, was killed by a fellow soldier stationed at the same Texas base. SENT: 820 words, photos.
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FINANCIAL-MARKETS — Shares are mixed in muted trading in Europe after a day of gains in Asia, where Shanghai’s benchmark jumped 2%. By Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach. SENT: 580 words, photos.
JAPAN-CARLOS-GHOSN-US-EXTRADITION — Tokyo prosecutors say that a request for extradition of two Americans arrested in the U.S. for allegedly helping Carlos Ghosn, the former chairman of Nissan, flee Japan while he was out on bail has been filed. By Business Writer Yuri Kageyama. SENT: 450 words, photo. With TURKEY-TRIAL-GHOSN — Turkey: pilots, others, on trial for helping Ghosn escape.
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FILM-SONGBIRD — The union that represents film actors told its members not to work on the upcoming pandemic thriller “Songbird,” saying the filmmakers have not been up-front about safety measures and had not signed the proper agreements for the movie that is among the first in production after coronavirus closures. SENT: 270 words, photo.
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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, Patrick D. Sison. (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.