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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ONLY ON AP
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-MASK SHORTAGES — White House officials say the United States has all the medical supplies needed to battle COVID-19, but health care workers, hospital officials and even the FDA say that’s not the case. Shortfalls of medical N95 respirators and other protective gear started in March, and the American Medical Association’s president says the tremendous pressure on the supply chain continues today. By Martha Mendoza, Juliet Linderman, Thomas Peipert and Irena Hwang. SENT: 2,070 words, photos. An abridged version of 1,000 words is also available.
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CALIFORNIA-WILDFIRES — A Northern California wildfire threatened thousands of homes after winds whipped it into a monster that incinerated houses in a small mountain community and killed at least three people. Several other people have been critically burned and hundreds, if not thousands, of homes and other buildings are believed to have been damaged or destroyed by the fire in the foothills of the northern Sierra Nevada, authorities said. SENT: 900 words, photos. By Terence Chea and Brian Melley. SENT: 965 words, photos. WITH: WILDFIRES-PHOTO GALLERY -- AP PHOTOS: Wildfires race through dry, windy California. SENT: 125 words, photos. WITH: PACIFIC NORTHWEST-WILDFIRES -- Numerous wildfires burned in Oregon’s forested valleys and along the coast, destroying hundreds of homes and causing mass evacuations. SENT: 925 words, photos. WITH: WILDFIRES-RAPID SPREAD — Fire experts say California is seeing more extreme fire behavior driven by drought and warming temperatures that can spread flames far more rapidly. SENT: 1,000 words, photos.
ELECTION 2020-WILDFIRES — For President Trump, the historic wildfires ravaging Democratic strongholds on the West Coast present another crisis at a time when he can ill afford one. For Joe Biden, the spreading fires are a reminder that he doesn’t support the Green New Deal, the grand plan tackling climate change, pushed by the liberal wing of the Democratic Party. That’s left both campaigns largely avoiding substantive talk about the unfolding catastrophe. By Aamer Madhani and Kathleen Ronayne. UPCOMING: 800 words by 4 p.m., photo.
ELECTION 2020-TRUMP — President Trump tries to move past revelations that he was determined to play down the threat of the coronavirus as he heads for a rally in battleground Michigan. But the president faces growing pushback from state leaders concerned that Trump’s rallies are growing in size and flouting public health guidelines. By Jill Colvin. UPCOMING: 700 words by 4 p.m., developing from 7 p.m. remarks, 890 words by 7:30 p.m., photos, video.
SEPT-11-ANNIVERSARY — In a year when the coronavirus pandemic has reshaped countless American rituals, even the commemoration of 9/11 could not escape unchanged. The 19th anniversary of the terror attacks will be marked by dueling ceremonies at the Sept. 11 memorial plaza and a corner near the World Trade Center, reflecting a divide over the memorial’s decision to suspend a cherished tradition of relatives reading victims’ names in person. By Jennifer Peltz. SENT: 1,000 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits was unchanged last week at 884,000, a sign that layoffs are stuck at a historically high level six months after the viral pandemic flattened the economy. The latest figure released by the Labor Department still far exceeds the number who sought benefits in any week on record before this year. By Christopher Rubager. SENT: 825 words, photos.
Find more coverage on the Virus Outbreak on the featured topic page in AP Newsroom and below.
VIRUS OUTBREAK — The kickoff of the NFL season with 17,000 fans in the stadium illustrates on a global stage the nation’s determination to resume its most popular sport in the middle of a pandemic that has already killed nearly 200,000 Americans. By Carla K. Johnson, Astrid Galvan and Heather Hollingsworth. 800 words, photos. WITH: FBN-TEXANS CHIEFS — The Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs play the Houston Texans in the opening game of an NFL season that promises to be unlike any before it. By Dave Skretta. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos. Game starts 8:20 p.m. WITH: CHIEFS-FANS-NATIVE-IMAGERY — Kansas City Chiefs fans return to Arrowhead Stadium for the first time after their team’s Super Bowl championship to new rules amid a renewed national discussion about racist imagery in professional sports. SENT: 725 words, photos.
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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-CONGRESS — Senate Democrats scuttled a scaled-back GOP coronavirus rescue package, saying the measure shortchanged too many pressing needs as the pandemic continues its assault on the country. The mostly party-line vote capped weeks of wrangling over a fifth relief bill that all sides say they want but are unable to deliver. By Andrew Taylor. SENT: 714 words. UPCOMING: Developing from afternoon vote, 800 words by 5 p.m., photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-BRITAIN -- Health experts have expressed strong skepticism about the British government’s ambitious plans to carry out millions of coronavirus tests daily in a bid to help people resume normal lives in the absence of a vaccine. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he wanted to roll out much simpler, faster mass testing “in the near future” to identify people who don’t have the virus so that they can “behave in a more normal way in the knowledge they can’t infect anyone else.” SENT: 525 words, photos.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-ISRAEL-POLITICAL-PANDEMIC — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long cultivated a symbiotic relationship with the country’s ultra-Orthodox parties, doling out generous subsidies and leaving their insular way of life unperturbed in exchange for ironclad backing that has helped crown him Israel’s longest serving leader. Now, with the coronavirus pandemic raging and the Jewish High Holidays approaching, Netanyahu finds himself caught between his ultra-Orthodox partners and the need to drive down surging infection rates. SENT: 1,010 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ASIA — India reported another record spike of 95,735 new coronavirus infections in the past 24 hours as the virus spreads beyond its major cities. SENT: 570 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CHILE-LIFE IN DEATH’S WAKE -- Red-eyed from crying, José Collantes Navarro couldn’t contain himself and crumpled against the wall as he watched his partner being buried at the Catholic Cemetery in Chile’s capital. She had lost the fight against the new coronavirus, while he had survived. For many pandemic survivors and those who lost loved ones, like the 36-year-old Collantes, their lives are never the same. SENT: 765 words, photos.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-ONE-GOOD-THING-NEPAL-HEALTH-WORKERS — At one of the largest hospitals in Nepal, a pharmacist and taxi driver have teamed up to feed COVID-19 patients, doctors, nurses and health workers. SENT: 500 words, photos.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-VIRAL-QUESTIONS-EMPLOYERS — Employers are generally not required to tell workers when someone in the workplace has tested positive for the coronavirus. SENT: 280 words, graphic.
A separate wire advisory has been sent outlining AP's complete coronavirus coverage.
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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
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FUNERAL HOME WOMAN-ALIVE — Emergency medical technicians and paramedics who were present when a Detroit-area woman was declared dead, only to be determined alive at a funeral home, are suing to stop their licenses from being suspended. SENT: 335 words.
TENNESSEE TIGER SEARCH — Authorities are searching for a tiger in east Tennessee. The Knox County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on social media that a deputy spotted the animal at an industrial park. SENT: 105 words.
CHINA AMBASSADOR-TWITTER — China’s embassy in Britain is demanding that Twitter investigate after its ambassador’s official account liked a pornographic tweet. SENT: 230 words, photos.
MUSIC-BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN — Bruce Springsteen will release a new rock album that he recorded in his New Jersey home studio with the E Street Band. SENT: 125 words, photo.
MEDIA MSNBC-HUNT — MSNBC is giving Washington correspondent Kasie Hunt a pre-morning coffee shift on weekdays and expanding its weekend lineup to have more live hours of news. SENT: 250 words.
CENTURY 21-BANKRUPTCY — Century 21 Stores — a destination for bargain hunters looking for fat deals on designer dresses and shoes for nearly 60 years — files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and winds down its business. SENT: 300 words, photos.
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ELECTION 2020-RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE — A whistleblower’s allegation that he was pressured to suppress intelligence about Russian election interference is one in a series of similar accounts from former Trump administration officials, underscoring lingering sensitivity within the White House about the Kremlin’s role in 2016 and raising questions about the willingness to acknowledge the seriousness of the threat this year. UPCOMING: 840 words by 4 p.m., photo.
ELECTION 2020-UKRAINE LAWMAKER — The Trump administration has imposed sanctions on a Russian-linked Ukrainian lawmaker for interfering in the upcoming U.S. presidential election by releasing edited audio recordings intended to denigrate Democrat Joe Biden. SENT: 420 words, photo.
ELECTION-2020-WISCONSIN — Wisconsin Democrats feel confident they have learned the lessons from President Trump’s narrow 2016 victory and are poised to use the next two months to deliver a win for Joe Biden in the key swing state. But Republicans believe the president’s “law and order” message is resonating in Wisconsin in the wake of shootings and protests in Kenosha. UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 4 p.m.
TRUMP-MAIL VOTING-NEVADA — Less than eight weeks before the Nov. 3 elections, President Donald Trump’s campaign is urging a federal judge in Las Vegas to block a new state law and prevent mail-in ballots from going to all active Nevada voters amid the coronavirus pandemic. SENT: 500 words, photo.
MILITARY KIDS-SEXUAL ASSAULT — An independent federal review is faulting the Department of Defense for how it has responded when children on military bases sexually assault each other. SENT: 890 words, photo.
Find more coverage on the 2020 U.S. Elections featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
A separate wire advisory has moved outlining today’s AP election coverage.
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LEBANON — A huge fire broke out at the Port of Beirut, sending up a thick column of black smoke and raising new panic among traumatized residents after last month’s catastrophic blast at the same site killed nearly 200 people. It was unclear what caused the blaze. SENT: 500 words, photos.
BREXIT — The European Union says a planned British law would constitute a serious violation of the Brexit agreement and must be withdrawn by end of the month. The 27-nation bloc made the announcement after top European Union and British officials held an emergency meeting in London over Britain’s plan to break part of the Brexit divorce agreement, a move the EU says would demolish any goodwill to reach a trade deal. SENT: 700 words, photos.
GREECE-MIGRANT CAMP BLAZE — The Greek government says thousands of migrants left homeless after fires gutted a sprawling refugee camp on the island of Lesbos will not be allowed to travel to mainland Greece. SENT: 550 words, photos.
BRAZIL FIRES-JAGUARS — Wildfire has infiltrated a Brazilian state park known for its population of jaguars, as firefighters, environmentalists and ranchers in the world’s largest tropical wetlands region struggle to smother record blazes. SENT: 1,020 words, graphic.
BELGIUM-CONGO-LUMUMBA'S TOOTH — Authorities in Belgium say they will soon give relatives the only remains left of Congolese political icon Patrice Lumumba: a single tooth. SENT: 660 words, photos.
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GEORGE FLOYD INVESTIGATION — An attorney for one of four former Minneapolis officers charged in George Floyd’s death is highlighting Floyd’s past crimes and history of drug use, calling him an ex-con and “evident danger to the community.” Another is seizing on Floyd’s medical issues and addiction, saying he likely died from fentanyl, not a knee on his neck. SENT: 990 words, photos.
2020-CENSUS — Even though a federal judge ordered the U.S. Census Bureau to halt winding down the 2020 census for the time being, supervisors in at least one California office have been instructed to make plans for laying off census takers, according to an email obtained by The Associated Press. SENT: 630 words, photos.
JFK-FEARS FOR CHEERS — Researchers at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston have discovered a cache of letters objecting to JFK’s embrace of cocktails at the White House. They say Americans began writing to JFK shortly after he took over in January 1961 from President Dwight D. Eisenhower, and served liquor at his first public reception. SENT: 445 words, photos.
COLLEGE ADMISSIONS-BRIBERY -- After a slew of guilty pleas, just 15 of the nearly 60 charged in the college admissions bribery scheme that rocked the U.S. educational system are still fighting the charges. SENT: 800 words, photos.
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HEALTH & SCIENCE
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LA NINA - La Nina, which often means a busier Atlantic hurricane season, a drier Southwest, and perhaps a more fire-prone California — has popped up in the Pacific Ocean. UPCOMING: 500 words, photos by 6 p.m.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-VACCINE — A drugmaker says it halted a coronavirus vaccine study because a woman who received the experimental shot developed severe neurological symptoms. SENT: 360 words, photo.
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FINANCIAL-MARKETS — U.S. stocks were swinging between gains and losses, as Wall Street turns mixed following a week of sudden, jarring shifts. SENT: 785 words, photos, developing.
TWITTER-ELECTIONS — Twitter says it will label or remove misleading claims that try to undermine public confidence in elections. SENT: 340 words.
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BRITAIN-OBIT-DIANA RIGG -- Actress Diana Rigg, who became a 1960s style icon as secret agent Emma Peel in TV series “The Avengers,” has died at age 82. Rigg also starred in the spy thriller “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” as the only woman ever to marry James Bond. SENT: 500 words, photos.
FILM-DIVERSITY REPORT — As Hollywood searches for a response to the reckoning brought on by the death of George Floyd and the Academy Awards move to make Oscar nominees more inclusive, a new study captures how the film industry has improved in diversity and how it still lags. SENT: 880 words, photos.
TV-COASTAL ELITES — Playwright Paul Rudnick has mixed politics and humor for the HBO film “Coast Elites,” a collection of five monologues starring Bette Midler, Sarah Paulson, Issa Rae, Dan Levy and Kaitlyn Dever. SENT: 825 words, photos.
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SPORTS
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FBN--DAK-ZEKE-YEAR 5 -- Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott have been starters together since their opener as rookies with the Dallas Cowboys in 2016. Plenty of highs and lows later, they’re still trying to lead a proud franchise where it hasn’t been in 25 years: the Super Bowl. UPCOMING: 700 words, photos by 7 p.m.
TEN-US OPEN — Serena Williams tries to reach her fifth final at the last seven Grand Slam tournaments, playing in the U.S. Open semifinals. First women’s semifinal starts at 7 p.m. UPCOMING: 750 words, photos.
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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.