Newsman’s disappearance largely kept secret

NEW YORK (AP) — NBC was able to keep the abduction of chief Middle East correspondent Richard Engel in Syria largely a secret until he escaped late Monday because it persuaded some of this country’s most prominent news organizations to hold back on the story.Otherwise, the disappearance of Engel — probably the most high-profile international television reporter on a U.S. network — would have been...

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Attackers in Pakistan Kill Anti-Polio Workers

Rizwan Tabassum/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesA Pakistani mother mourned her daughter, who was killed on Tuesday in an attack on health workers participating in a drive to eradicate polio from Pakistan. ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Gunmen shot dead five female health workers who were immunizing children against polio on Tuesday, causing the Pakistani government to suspend vaccinations in two cities...

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Girl, 13, gets Hasbro to make gender-neutral Easy-Bake oven

McKenna Pope, the 13-year-old girl who petitioned toy maker Hasbro for an Easy-Bake oven suitable for both girls and boys, will...

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Cosmo the God Hijacks Twitter Account of Hateful 'Church'

The 15-year-old hacker known as Cosmo the God was behind the takeover of a Westboro Baptist Church member’s Twitter feed, a source with direct knowledge of the attack confirmed to Wired on Monday.Cosmo gained access to the @DearShirley Twitter account via an e-mail account, and from there was able to leverage control of the Twitter feed itself, according to the source, who spoke on condition...

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Amazon adds episodes of alt-comedy show “UnCabaret”

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – Amazon Instant Video has added four exclusive episodes of “UnCabaret,” an alt-comedy showcase for the likes of Margaret Cho and Andy Dick, to its Prime Instant Video service.The show was created and hosted by comedian and entertainer Beth Lapides and features performances by such comedy stars as Sandra Bernhard, Garfunkle and Oates, Greg Fitzsimmons and Rob Delaney. Instead...

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Philippine Lawmakers Pass Reproductive Health Bill

MANILA — After a ferocious national debate that pitted family members against one another, and some faithful Catholics against their church, the Philippine Congress passed legislation on Monday to help the country’s poorest women gain access to birth control. Jay Directo/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesSupporters of a landmark reproductive health bill celebrated as the Philippine Congress...

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Sasol Betting Big on Gas-to-Liquid Plant in U.S.

OryxThe Oryx natural gas processing plant in Qatar, where Sasol is converting natural gas to diesel fuel. RAS LAFFAN INDUSTRIAL CITY, Qatar — The compact assembly of towers, tubes and tanks that make up the Oryx natural gas processing plant is almost lost in a vast petrochemical complex that rises here like a hazy mirage from a vast ocean of sand. A blog about energy and the environment. ...

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‘Hobbit’ bests ‘Rings’ with $84.8 million opening

NEW YORK (AP) — Peter Jackson‘s “The Hobbit” led the box office with a haul of $ 84.8 million, a record-setting opening better than the three previous “Lord of the Rings” films.The Warner Bros. Middle Earth epic was the biggest December opening ever, surpassing Will Smith’s “I Am Legend,” which opened with $ 77.2 million in 2007, according to studio estimates Sunday. “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey”...

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Mislabeled Foods Find Their Way to Diners’ Tables

ATLANTA — The menu offered fried catfish. But Freddie Washington, a pastor in Tuscaloosa, Ala., who sometimes eats out five nights a week and was raised on Gulf Coast seafood, was served tilapia. Dustin Chambers for The New York TimesConsumers are misled most frequently when they buy fish, investigators say, because diners have such limited knowledge about seafood.  ...

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Disruptions: Disruptions: Instagram Testimony Doesn't Add Up

On a late August morning, Kevin Systrom, chief executive of Instagram, took an oath before testifying at a hearing of the California Corporations Department, which sought to determine if Facebook’s acquisition of the photo sharing service was in the best interest of Instagram investors. Facebook requested the hearing as a way to speed up the approval of its acquisition.When asked if his company had...

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