AP News Digest 2 p.m.
Here are the AP’s latest coverage plans, 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-PAKISTAN-LATEST EPIDEMIC — For millions of people who live in poor and troubled regions of the world, the novel coronavirus is only the latest epidemic. They already face a plethora of infectious diseases made worse by chronic poverty that leads to malnutrition and violence that disrupts vaccination campaigns. By Kathy Gannon. SENT: 1,630 words, photos. An abridged version of 1,050 words is available.
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AMERICA PROTESTS-CONGRESS — Philonise Floyd challenges Congress to “stop the pain” so that his brother George wouldn’t be just “another name” on a growing list of those killed during interactions with police. By Lisa Mascaro. SENT: 980 words. UPCOMING: Developing, 950 words by 4 p.m., photos, video. WITH: AMERICA PROTESTS-CONGRESS-BROTHER’S TESTIMONY — Prepared text of the testimony of Philonise Floyd, a brother of George Floyd, before the House Judiciary Committee. SENT: 680 words, photo.
AMERICA PROTESTS-CONGRESS-TIM SCOTT — Senate Republicans have handed the task of writing a police reform bill to their lone black member, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, as they seek a response to the protests roiling the country since George Floyd’s death. Addressing critics from the black community who say he’s agreed to be a “token” for Republicans, Scott says: “Let me get this straight...you DON’T want the person who has faced racial profiling by police, been pulled over dozens of times, or been speaking out for YEARS drafting this?” By Laurie Kellman. UPCOMING: 850 words by 5 p.m., photos.
AMERICA PROTESTS-FLOYD PROFILE — In the Houston housing project where he grew up, George Floyd was respected as a man who spoke from hard, but hardly extraordinary, experience. He had nothing remotely like the stature he has gained in death, embraced as a universal symbol of the need to overhaul policing and held up as a heroic everyman. But the reality of his 46 years on Earth, including sharp edges and setbacks Floyd himself acknowledged, was both much fuller and more complicated. He was the star athlete who went to prison, the proud son of a tough neighborhood who decided the only way forward was to leave it behind. By Luis Andres Henao, Nomaan Merchant, Juan Lozano and Adam Geller. SENT: 1,815 words, photos. Eds: An abridged version of 985 words is also available.
For full coverage on America Protests in AP Newsroom.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-MULTIPLE DEATHS — For all the crippling pain the loss of a loved one to the coronavirus can deliver, some families are being dealt it in multiples. Around the world, couples, siblings, parents and children are dying in the pandemic, leaving some with the unimaginable grief of burying multiple relatives. No data on the number of families affected by more than one death has emerged, but the ease with which the virus is transmitted, particularly among those in close quarters, has allowed the trend to proliferate. By Matt Sedensky and Rebecca Santana. SENT: 630 words, photos.
ELECTION-2020 POLL PROBLEMS — Coronavirus infections sidelined some poll workers and scared away others. The virus threat shifted training for new recruits online rather than in person. When Election Day arrived, many fumbled with election machines — voter check-in tablets, voting touchscreens and ballot scanners — that were brand new to both election workers and voters. The result: another national embarrassment for Georgia that once again called into question the state’s ability to hold fair and efficient elections. By Russ Bynum and Kate Brumback. UPCOMING: 900 words, photos by 5 p.m.
TRUMP-RUSSIA PROBE — A former federal judge appointed to review the Justice Department’s motion to dismiss criminal charges against Michael Flynn says the government’s request should be denied because there is “clear evidence of a gross abuse of prosecutorial power” to benefit a political ally of President Donald Trump. By Colleen Long and Michael Balsamo. SENT: 380 words. UPCOMING: Developing, 750 words by 4 p.m., photos.
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GEORGE FLOYD-MINNEAPOLIS POLICE --The Minneapolis Police Department will withdraw from police union contract negotiations, Chief Medaria Arradondo said as he announced the first steps in what he said would be transformational reforms to the agency in the wake of George Floyd’s death. SENT: 650 words, photos. WITH: GEORGE FLOYD-MINNESOTA LEGISLATURE -- The death of George Floyd is sparking calls for the Minnesota Legislature to remove racial inequities from the criminal justice system. SENT: 675 words, photos.
AMERICA PROTESTS-OTHER CASES — While protesters have been galvanized around the world by the death of George Floyd, there are other stories alongside his. Some are years-old wounds; others happened within days of Floyd’s death. Some made national headlines. Others that reverberated mainly through their own communities. A look at a few of them, by state. SENT: 880 words, photos.
AMERICA PROTEST-NATION’S CAPITAL — Demonstrators and others move to preserve signs and other artifacts protesting racial injustice that have been posted on a chain link fence surrounding the White House. UPCOMING: 800 words by 4:30 p.m., photos, video.
AMERICA PROTESTS-VATICAN — George Floyd’s killing at the hands of a white police officer in Minneapolis and the global protests that followed might normally have drawn a muted diplomatic response from the Vatican. But from Pope Francis on down, the Vatican has instead mounted an intensive response. Experts say the message in a U.S. election year suggests that Francis wants to convey a clear statement about where American Catholics should stand ahead of Trump’s bid for a second term in November. SENT: 1,100 words, photos.
GLOBAL PROTESTS-MEANS TO WHAT END? — The protests that left much of the world in a haze of tear gas last year were slowed by a pandemic – until the death of George Floyd sparked a global uprising against police brutality and racial inequality. From Hong Kong to Khartoum, Baghdad to Beirut, Gaza to Paris and Caracas to Santiago, people took to the streets in 2019 for the pursuits of freedom, sovereignty or simply a life less shackled by hardship while few prospered. It seemed as if the streets were agitated everywhere but the United States. SENT: 1,090 words, photos.
AMERICA PROTESTS-CONFEDERATE MONUMENTS — Protesters in Portsmouth, Virginia, covered a Confederate monument in the city with trash bags and sheets, several hours after the city’s council members had a meeting to figure out ways to relocate it. SENT: 350 words, photos.
AMERICA PROTESTS-FLOYD REENACTMENT — A corrections officer who participated in a counterprotest to a Black Lives Matter demonstration in New Jersey in which people reenacted the death of George Floyd was suspended after the video was widely shared on social media. SENT: 430 words, photos.
A separate wire advisory has been sent detailing the AP's complete coverage of the protests.
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-RELIEF-LEFT OUT -- Unfilled potholes, uncollected trash, un-mowed grass and, most significantly, fewer cops on the street are some of what the city of Allentown, Pennsylvania, says it’s facing unless Washington helps it plug a multimillion-dollar budget hole left by the pandemic. Allentown is one of thousands of smaller cities and counties across the U.S. that were cut off from direct aid in the $2 trillion coronavirus relief package. They’re now pleading for a massive cash infusion from the federal government to help stave off financial calamity. SENT: 1,265 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-BLACK BELT — Residents of America’s Black Belt are depending on each other to weather the coronavirus pandemic, which is complicating an already-tough life in the impoverished region. In Alabama, a community foundation is giving away 100,000 face masks while coordinating food giveaways. A small church is providing donated milk to anyone who needs it. And volunteers loaded vehicles with food in the historic civil rights town of Selma. SENT: 800 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-GLOBAL — The world faces the worst global recession in nearly a century, a key economic body warned, while in Europe, restrictions to fight the spread of coronavirus portend a bleak summer tourism season even as more nations announced plans to welcome visitors again. SENT: 985 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-IMMIGRATION DETENTION — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement says it has expanded COVID-19 testing among people held at its detention facilities following criticism of its response to the outbreak. SENT: 500 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-MIGRANT CHILDREN — A federal judge has temporarily stopped President Donald Trump’s administration from expelling a teenager to Honduras under a policy enacted during the coronavirus pandemic that didn’t give the teen the chance under federal law to stay in the United States. SENT: 510 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-WHOOPING CRANES —The COVID-19 pandemic is drastically cutting the number of young whooping cranes to be released this fall to boost flocks of the world’s rarest cranes. Zoos and other places where the endangered birds are bred have reduced staffs and use of two techniques to increase chick numbers. One is artificial insemination. The other is having people in baggy costumes raise chicks to keep the birds from viewing humans as their parents. SENT: 750 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ONE GOOD THING-EMIRATES -- It’s sweltering hot and late afternoon in Dubai when Feby Dela Peña arrives with 200 free meals of rice, fried fish and boiled eggs. The mother of three is unemployed herself, but when she saw people lining up for free meals one night outside her building two weeks ago she decided to use whatever money her family had to help out the countless numbers of Filipinos and others who’ve lost jobs amid the coronavirus. SENT: 675 words, photos.
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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
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MERMAID CITY-DISSOLVED — A Florida city known for its mermaid shows now sleeps with the fishes. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation dissolving the city of Weeki Wachee. SENT: 150 words.
CROSSFIT-CEO RESIGNS — The founder and CEO of CrossFit is stepping down after his tweet about George Floyd sparked a social media backlash and a wave of affiliated gyms cut ties with the company. SENT: 615 words, photo.
PLANE CRASH-LOUISIANA -- A Louisiana woman was surprising her husband with breakfast when a plane hit her vehicle, causing it to flip several times and catch fire, according to a lawsuit filed over the December crash. SENT: 250 words.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-HUNTSMAN -- Republican Utah gubernatorial candidate and former ambassador Jon Huntsman Jr. says he has tested positive for COVID-19. SENT: 500 words, photos.
STARBUCKS-VIRUS — Starbucks expects to lose more than $3 billion in revenue in its fiscal third quarter due to the new coronavirus. SENT: 425 words, photos.
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STATE DEPARTMENT-WATCHDOG — The independent State Department watchdog fired by President Donald Trump last month says top department officials tried to bully him and dissuade his office from conducting a review of a multi-billion dollar arms sale to Saudi Arabia. By Matthew Lee. SENT: 670 words, photo.
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VIRGINIA PAROLE CONTROVERSY -- A man who served decades in prison for the killing of a Richmond police officer and whose parole grant sparked a still-ongoing investigation by Virginia’s government watchdog agency has been released from prison. Virginia Parole Board chair Tonya Chapman confirmed Vincent Martin’s release Wednesday. Martin, who was serving a life sentence for the 1979 killing of Richmond patrolman Michael P. Connors, had been scheduled to be paroled May 11, but his release was halted at the last minute. State officials said a temporary hold had been placed due to an ongoing administrative investigation by the Office of the State Inspector General into the Virginia Parole Board. SENT: 600 words, photos.
MISSING KIDS-IDAHO — Prosecutors charged an Idaho man with destroying or concealing two sets of human remains after police said they uncovered bodies at his home while searching for evidence in the case of his wife’s two missing children. SENT: 450 words, photos.
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FEDERAL RESERVE — The Federal Reserve says it will keep buying bonds to hold down longer-term borrowing rates and foresees no rate hike through 2022. By Christopher Rugaber and Martin Crutsinger. UPCOMING: 130 words after statement release at 2 p.m., then updated with Powell remarks. WITH: FINANCIAL-MARKETS — U.S. stock indexes are mostly lower. SENT: 850 words, photos, developing.
MALL DEAL-SCRAPPED — The nation’s largest owner of malls is backing out of a $3.6 billion deal to buy a major rival as the coronavirus pandemic shakes the retail economy. It is the second major retail deal that was signed just before the pandemic hit the U.S. to crumble. The sale of Victoria’s Secret to a private equity group fell apart Last month. SENT: 450 words, photo.
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HBO MAX-GONE WITH THE WIND — HBO Max has temporarily removed “Gone With the Wind” from its streaming library in order to add historical context to the 1939 film long criticized for romanticizing slavery and the Civil War-era South. Protests in the wake of George Floyd’s death have forced entertainment companies to grapple with the appropriateness of both current and past productions. On Tuesday, the Paramount Network dropped the long-running reality series “Cops” after 33 seasons. The BBC also removed episodes of “Little Britain,” a comedy series that featured a character in blackface, from its streaming service. By Film Writer Jake Coyle. SENT: 375 words, photos.
MUSIC GRAMMY-CHANGES — The Recording Academy is making changes to several Grammy Awards categories, including the often-debated best new artist title, and having nomination review committee members sign disclosure forms to prevent conflicts of interest. SENT: 665 words, photos.
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BBO—BASEBALL DRAFT - The Detroit Tigers lead off the Major League Baseball draft for the second time in three years with Arizona State first baseman Spencer Torkelson and Vanderbilt third baseman Austin Martin among the favorites to be selected No. 1 overall. This year’s draft will be uniquely shorter than ever, with only five rounds over two nights instead of 40 rounds over three days because of the coronavirus pandemic. By Dennis Waszak Jr. UPCOMING: 850 words, photos. Draft begins at 7 p.m.
GLF—COLONIAL — The PGA Tour ends 90 days without golf when it returns Thursday at Colonial with a stacked field. Still to be determined is whether it can be a safe return even without spectators. By Golf Writer Doug Ferguson. UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 6 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, Phil Holm (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.