AP News Digest 6:30 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.
—————————
NEW/DEVELOPING
—————————-
Adds VIRUS OUTBREAK-VACCINE PREPAREDNESS, ELECTION 2020-KENNEDY LEGACY, VIRUS OUTBREAK-EVICTIONS, VIRUS OUTBREAK-ITALY, ELECTION 2020-POSTAL SERVICE, ELECTION 2020-SEPT 11, UNITED-STATES-WHO, SMALL NUCLEAR REACTOR APPROVAL, RACIAL INJUSTICE-COUPLE ARRESTED, DRAFTKINGS-MICHAEL JORDAN, SEASON PRIMER.
-------------------
ONLY ON AP
-------------------
MIGRANTS CROSS ATLANTIC — Migrants and asylum-seekers are increasingly crossing a treacherous part of the Atlantic Ocean to reach the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago near West Africa, in what has become one of the most dangerous migration routes to European territory. By Renata Brito. SENT: 1,430 words, photos, video, graphic. Abridged version also available.
-------------------
-------------------
VIRUS OUTBREAK-VACCINE PREPAREDNESS — The federal government has told states to prepare for a coronavirus vaccine to be ready to distribute by Nov. 1. The timeline raises concern among public health experts about an “October surprise” — a vaccine approval driven by political considerations ahead of a presidential election, rather than science. By Michelle R. Smith. SENT: 650 words, photos.
ELECTION 2020-BIDEN — Joe Biden calls the struggle to reopen U.S. schools amid the coronavirus a “national emergency” and accuses President Donald Trump of ignoring the issue as he stokes unrest in Wisconsin and elsewhere. By Bill Barrow and Will Weissert. SENT: 1,160 words, photos, video. With ELECTION 2020-TRUMP — President Trump delivers a V-J Day speech in North Carolina, trumpeting American strength. SENT: 470 words, photos, video; ELECTION 2020-DEBATES — Representatives from Fox News, C-SPAN and NBC will moderate the debates between Trump and Biden. SENT: 290 words, photos; ELECTION 2020-BIDEN FUNDRAISING — Biden raised $364 million for his election effort in August. SENT: 580 words, photo.
Find more coverage on the 2020 U.S. Elections featured topic page on APNewsroom.
FINANCIAL-MARKETS — The Dow surges more than 450 points and other indexes hit new highs as the stock market notches its best day in nearly two months. Speculation that Congress and the White House will reach an agreement on a coronavirus relief package and optimism that a vaccine will become available put traders in a buying mood. By Alex Veiga and Damian J. Troise. SENT: 550 words, photos.
US WWII SURRENDER-75TH ANNIVERSARY — Dozens of veterans from across the United States will be watching the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II on a screen from their homes instead of in person in Hawaii’s Pearl Harbor. The commemoration was originally planned to be a blockbuster event with parades through Waikiki, movie premiers, gala dinners and thousands of people gathered to honor the veterans. Then came the coronavirus. By Caleb Jones. SENT: 580 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK — Mental health therapists’ caseloads are bulging. Waiting lists for appointments are growing. And anxiety and depression are rising among Americans amid the coronavirus crisis, research suggests. In the latest study to suggest an uptick, half of U.S. adults surveyed reported at least some signs of depression. By Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner. SENT: 905 words, photos.
ELECTION 2020-KENNEDY LEGACY — Sixty years after JFK’s election as president, some are wondering if the days of “Camelot” are over after U.S. Rep. Joe Kennedy lll’s failed attempt to oust incumbent U.S. Sen. Edward Markey in Tuesday’s state Democratic primary. The loss marks the first time a member of the political dynasty has come up short in a race for Congress in Massachusetts. By Steve LeBlanc. SENT: 900 words, photos.
--------------------------------------------
WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
--------------------------------------------
GERMANY-RUSSIA-NAVALNY — Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was poisoned with the same type of Soviet-era nerve agent that British authorities identified in a 2018 attack on a former Russian spy, the German government says. SENT: 920 words, photos.
BUDGET DEFICIT — The federal budget deficit is projected to hit a record $3.3 trillion as huge government expenditures to fight the coronavirus and to prop up the economy have added more than $2 trillion to the federal ledger. SENT: 680 words, photo.
PELOSI-SALON — Nancy Pelosi says she takes responsibility for trusting the word of a San Francisco hair salon that it was OK to come in for a solo visit — even though the city still does not allow indoor beauty services because of the pandemic. SENT: 380 words, photos.
UNITED STATES-IRAQ-MEDAL OF HONOR — A U.S. Army Ranger will receive the Medal of Honor for actions during a daring 2015 raid in Iraq that rescued about 70 hostages who were set to be executed by ISIS militants. SENT: 930 words, photos.
AUSTRALIA-BIG CROCODILE — Wildlife rangers have trapped a 14 1/2-foot saltwater crocodile at a tourist destination in Australia’s Northern Territory, the biggest caught in the area in years. SENT: 200 words, photo.
TV TIGER KING — Carole Baskin, the reality TV star who became a pop culture sensation with the docuseries “Tiger King,” is joining “Dancing With the Stars.” SENT: 200 words, photos.
------------------------------------------------------
MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK
-------------------------------------------------------
PUBLIC HEALTH-VACCINE — When and if there's a coronovirus vaccine, public health departments say they currently lack the staff, money and tools to distribute, administer and track doses to some 330 million people. SENT: 2,000 words, photos. Abridged version also available.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-TREATMENTS — New studies confirm that multiple types of steroids improve survival for severely ill COVID-19 patients. By Chief Medical Writer Marilynn Marchione. SENT: 520 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-EVICTIONS — Housing advocates say the Trump administration’s surprise national moratorium on evictions only delays an inevitable wave of homelessness. SENT: 980 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-FDA SHAKEUP — A second Trump administration appointee at the Food and Drug Administration is ousted in the wake of the agency’s botched announcement about an experimental therapy for COVID-19. SENT: 600 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-PERU-DEATH RITES — In Peru, virus erodes centuries-old burial traditions. SENT: 520 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ITALY — Former Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi tests positive for COVID. SENT: 260 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-SMALL BUSINESS-DIPPING INTO SAVINGS — Business owners tap into savings to withstand pandemic. SENT: 900 words, photos.
A separate wire advisory has moved outlining our complete coronavirus coverage.
Find more all-format coverage on the Virus Outbreak featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
----------------------———————-
----------------------————————-
ELECTION 2020-POSTAL SERVICE — The House Oversight Committee subpoenas Postmaster General Louis DeJoy for records about widespread delays to mail delivery. A spokesman for the Postal Service says the agency will comply. SENT: 850 words, photo.
ELECTION 2020-SEPT 11 — Both President Trump and Joe Biden will commemorate the 19th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks in rural Pennsylvania, where one of the hijacked planes crashed in a field. SENT: 320 words, photo.
ELECTION 2020-ERNST-CORONAVIRUS — Echoing a discredited conspiracy theory, vulnerable Republican Sen. Joni Ernst questions whether government statistics on coronavirus infections and deaths have been inflated. SENT: 550 words, photo.
UNITED-STATES-WHO — The Trump administration says it won’t pay more than $60 million in dues it owes to the World Health Organization and will use the money instead to pay down assessments it owes to the United Nations. SENT: 530 words, photo.
UNITED STATES-INTERNATIONAL COURT — The Trump administration imposes sanctions on the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court and one of her top aides for continuing to investigate war crimes allegations against Americans. By Diplomatic Writer Matthew Lee. SENT: 780 words, photos.
—————————
—————————
SMALL NUCLEAR REACTOR APPROVAL — U.S. officials for the first time approve a design for a small commercial nuclear reactor, and a Utah energy cooperative wants to build 12 of them in Idaho. SENT: 610 words.
CHICAGO VIOLENCE-SQUAD CAR SHOOTING — Relatives of a man fatally shot by Chicago police after gunshots were fired at an unmarked police car don’t believe he fired those shots and want to see police body camera footage. SENT: 340 words, photos.
RACIAL INJUSTICE-COUPLE ARRESTED — Two Black Florida men say they were threatened with guns by a white couple, and are questioning whether justice will be served. SENT: 640 words, photo.
COLLEGE ADMISSIONS-BRIBERY — Another wealthy parent is charged with trying to bribe his child’s way into an elite university as a fake athletic recruit. SENT: 450 words, photos.
------------------------—
------------------------—
EMIRATES-ISRAEL — Saudi Arabia announces that flights to and from the United Arab Emirates “from all countries” will now be able to use its airspace — a statement apparently allowing flyovers by Israel following a deal to normalize UAE-Israel relations. SENT: 720 words, photos.
ZIMBABWE-ELEPHANTS DYING — A spokesman for Zimbabwe’s national parks says the number of elephants dying in the country’s west from a suspected bacterial infection has risen to 22 and more deaths are expected. SENT: 480 words, photos.
——————————————
HEALTH/SCIENCE
——————————————
SUDAN-POLIO-OUTBREAK — The World Health Organization says a polio outbreak in Sudan is linked to an ongoing vaccine-sparked epidemic in Chad. By Medical Writer Maria Cheng. SENT: 430 words, photo.
BLACK HOLES — Astrophysicists detect the signal from a long-ago violent collision of two black holes that created a new one of a size that has never been seen before. By Science Writer Seth Borenstein. SENT: 670 words, photos.
————————————-
—————————————
DRAFTKINGS-MICHAEL JORDAN — DraftKings jumps 8% after announcing that basketball legend Michael Jordan will take an ownership stake in the company. SENT: 350 words, photos.
————————————-
————————————-
KIDS BLACK PANTHER — In their driveways or in their bedrooms, young fans of “Black Panther” star Chadwick Boseman pay their respects with lots of Wakanda salutes and mock funerals attended by action figures. SENT: 950 words, photos.
--------—
----------
SEASON PRIMER — A most overused coaching cliche has never been so relevant as college football embarks on its season of COVID-19: Take it one day at a time. With so much uncertainty, trying to figure how this will go is impossible. By College Football Writer Ralph D. Russo. SENT: 990 words, photos.
--------------------------
HOW TO REACH US
--------------------------
At the Nerve Center, Mike Stewart can be reached at 800-845-8450 (ext. 1600). For photos, 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.