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Jalesa Hall

Rodney King pleads guilty to reckless driving

Rodney King will be placed on probation and complete sobriety program for his arrest in July.

Rodney King, whose 1992 beating after the Los Angeles riots left the nation in awe, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor reckless driving on Monday.

King was arrested last summer in Moreno Valley after being suspected of driving while under the influence.

Due to a plea agreement, King received a sentence of 20 days home detention and was required to wear an ankle bracelet. Though the two counts of driving under the influence were dropped, King had to pay $500, complete a nine-month sobriety education program and landed three years probation, according to John Hall, spokesperson for the Riverside County district attorney.

King was not present during the hearing.

King was pulled over by a traffic officer, last July, around 60 miles southeast of Los Angeles. King later told CNN that he had been under the influence of  medical marijuana but not of alcohol. 

Riverside County prosecutors said that King’s blood alcohol level read a 0.06 percent, below California’s legal 0.08 limit.

Hall said, “He was driving while intoxicated and found to have a measurable amount of alcohol in his system. However, we believe we would have been unable to prove beyond a reasonable doubt to a jury that his blood-alcohol content was 0.08 percent or higher.”

King’s beating by the Los Angeles police officers after a traffic stop was captured by a local resident and broadcast over the news. King was left with skull fractures and brain and kidney damage. The four officers responsible were indicted. Their trials led to three acquittals and one mistrial that would result in a three-day riot in Los Angeles.

King was on parole when the beating happened and since then has had several run-ins with the law. In 1996, he went to jail for a hit-and-run involving his wife and in 2004, he pleaded guilty to reckless driving and driving while under the influence of a controlled substance.

This past March, he was caught driving without a license.

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North Korea agrees to moratorium

North Korea has decided to allow nuclear inspectors to check locations in exchange for aid.

North Korea has agreed to stop nuclear tests, uranium enrichment and permits check from nuclear inspectors, according to Reuters.

The decision is followed by talks between the United States and North Korea that were held in Beijing last week.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said,” These are concrete measures that we consider a positive first step toward complete and verifiable denuclearization of the Korean peninsula in a peaceful manner.”

Though, previous deals with North Korea have been backed out of, analysts feel that these moves show a change with the country. 

A U.S. official said “the move “unlocked’ a step in the right direction but that it would take persistence to follow through.

The official continued with, ‘We believe that it’s important to translate this initial sign of Pyongyang’s seriousness of purpose into substantive and meaningful negotiations on denuclearization that get at the entirety of the North’s nuclear program.”

Because of this decision, the State Department will be sending an around 240,000 metric-ton food aid package with the possibility for more aid if necessary.

This agreement will also allow nuclear inspectors from the U.N.’s International Atomic Energy Agency to visit their nuclear complex to check the moratorium on uranium enrichment had been enforced.

North Korea’s official KCNA news agency released a statement:
“The DPRK, upon request by the U.S. and with a view to maintaining positive atmosphere for the DPRK- U.S. high-level talks, agreed to a moratorium on nuclear tests, long-range missile launches, and uranium enrichment activity at Yongbyon and allow the IAEA to monitor the moratorium on uranium enrichment while productive dialogues continue.”

North Korea’s official name is the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea or DPRK.
 

Netflix's focus is shifting from films to TV shows

After losing several STARZ films this week, Netflix had made plans to concentrate on their TV show streaming service.

Netflix has decided to make the move to being an internet streaming service for television shows and not feature films.

Netflix’s three and half-year-old deal with Starz ends on Wednesday, and viewers will see movies like “Scarface” and “Toy Story 3” disappear from their service.

More than half of the viewing on Netflix involves a television series, according to Yahoo.

Rumors began floating around almost a year ago about the deal not being renewed, but by then, Netflix had began accumulating older television series.

Richard Greenfield, an analyst at BTIG Research says, “Given the significant increase in TV viewing, it’s not the catastrophic event that everyone thought it would be a year ago.”

Some television shows new to Netflix include “Mad Men and Lost,” television shows Netflix executives call “26-hour movies.”

Netflix’s next project is creating original shows to compete with HBO- but further distance themselves from companies like Hulu and Amazon.

Reed Hasting, Netflix’s CEO, told business students in Manhattan last week that the company would attempt to create a couple of dozen original series in the next few years; though, he did not specify dates. The company had previously mentioned five series of that nature would be out by the end of 2013.

‘Lilyhammer,” a show from Norway about a New York gangster attempting to start his life over in Norway premiered on Netflix earlier this month, and a revival of “Arrested Development” will be coming out next year.

While the disappearance of these films has some worried, Greenfield says, “The cocktail party conversation in the media world is, the content’s terrible, and yet the average subscriber is devouring over an hour a day, every single day. Obviously they don’t think it’s horrible.”

Netflix has secured the rights to “The Artist,” the best-picture Oscar winner at this year’s Academy Awards and should be available in less than six months.

Though Netflix would not say just how much of the total viewing was made up of television shows, Greenfield suspects the number is 80 percent.

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Derrick Williams's performance helps earn the Minnesota Timberwolves a W against the Clippers

Sub Derrick Williams scored 27 points in Tuesday’s game, helping his team beat the Clippers.

Forward Derrick Williams showed All-Star potential in Tuesday’s game against the Clippers.
Williams scored 27 points, leading the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 109-97 win.

The Clippers’ Chris Paul said about the game, “When you get it going like that, it’s close your eyes and throw the ball in the hoop. They made open shots and they made tough shots. When you put that combination together, it’s not good for the other team.”

William had 13 points in the fourth quarter, made all four of his 3-point shots and all five of his free throws, according to the Chicago Sun Times.

Fellow sub and forward Michael Beasley said, “We were knocking down open shots, taking what the defense gave us and just letting the ball flow.”

While the Clippers’ had the lead for the first, second and third quarter, player Blake Griffin admits that the Clippers’ had trouble shooting.
“Michael Beasley and Derrick Williams hit tough shots and they hit a lot in a row. We couldn’t get our shots.”

Williams said about his performance, “I was picking my spots and knocking down open shots. Kevein didn’t have one of his best nights, so people had to step up. That’s the good thing about our team. Even though Kevin’s the All-Star, we have a lot of other people who can do great things. And when he’s struggling, people have to come off the bench and pick him up.”

Recently, we have seen a surge in bench players stepping up including Jeremy Lin.

The Timberwolves will be playing the L.A. Lakers Wednesday and the Phoenix Suns on Thursday.

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UK Opera Singer Katherine Jenkins joins "Dancing with the Stars"

Katherine Jenkins, who will be on this season of Dancing with the Stars, has announced that her concert in Afghanistan is postponed.

Opera singer Katherine Jenkins will be a competitor on the next season of Dancing with the Stars. Her dancing partner will be “Dancing with the Stars” pro Mark Ballas.

Jenkins recently had to cancel a concert for soldiers stationed in Afghanistan, according to the Huffington Post. The star had originally planned to perform in 2010, but her performance was canceled after her plane was grounded due to weather conditions.

In November, Jenkins was able to perform for soliders returning from Afghanistan, but has yet to re-schedule the trip there. Now, the trip is looking more and more unlikely to happen soon, due to Jenkins’ role on the 14th season of “Dancing with the Stars.”

Jenkins twitted on Tuesday:
“Sadly we tried again (to get to Afghanistan) but its not going to happen. So sorry not to make it out to you but we really REALLY tried!”

Jenkins’ career high-lights include selling the most opera albums in the UK in 2004, which prompted Universal to offer her a six-record pact worth more than $1.5 million, according to Radar Online and having seven  studio albums, two compilations and 11 singles.

Jenkins will be joining celebrities like Melissa Gilbert of “Little House on the Prairie,” The View’s Sherri Shepherd, singer Gavin DeGraw and Gladys Knight.

Dancing with the Stars season premieres Monday, March 19 on ABC 8/7c. 

Will Adele perform at 2012 Olympic Games?

After announcing that the theme of the closing ceremony would be a combination of British music, the possibility of Adele performing seems high.

Though the process is still going on, Britain is still picking who will perform at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Olympics, and it has been announced that it will be all British performers anyone “from Elgar to Adele.”

The people behind the ceremony announced on Thursday that the theme will be “A Symphony of British Music,” and will feature well-known and new artists performing iconic British songs, according to MSNBC.

Film and theater director Stephen Daldry said “It is, in a sense, the soundtrack of our lives.” Daldry is the executive producer of the Olympic and Paralympic opening and closing ceremonies.

The London Symphony Orchestra will be providing the musical backing for the Aug. 12 show.

Music director David Arnold said announced that all the performers would be British and said, “We go from-without saying we’ve booked anyone- Elgar to Adele.”

Though the team behind the ceremony has been careful not to release any names, rumors about The Rolling Stone, Paul McCartney and even the Spice Girls have been floating around.

Adele, one of the most popular British sensations of the moment, has had her sophomore album “21” on the charts for a year. She recently won 6 Grammys and 2 trophies at the Brit music awards.

However, as with the other performers, no official word on if Adele will make an appearance.

The designer behind the ceremony, Es Devlin has created sets for Kanye West, Jay Z and Lady Gaga tours.
Devlin says that the show will features 3,500 volunteers who will perform and hundreds of schoolchildren.

The ceremony will also include a Carnival- style section brought by the host of the 2016 Olympic Games, Rio de Janeiro.

Bill Maher donates to Pro-Obama Super PAC

Announced during his comedy show, CrazyStupidPolitics, Bill Maher will donate $1 million to Priorities USA Action.

Bill Maher has announced that he will be donating $1 million to Priorities USA Action, a pro-Obama Super PAC.

The comedian made this announcement during a recent standup comedy show and said:
“My surprise tonight is I would like to tonight announce a donation to the Obama Super PAC-which has the very unfortunate tongue twister names ‘Priority(sic) USA Action’. I know, it was named by Borat. But tonight I would like to give that PAC one million dollars.”

The concert was unique in the fact that it was the first stand-up comedy concert to be streamed live online. Hosted in San Jose, California, Yahoo! Streamed the concert live.

Tweeting after the show, Maher made a comment about the announcement of his donation being a surprise to the Yahoo! Organizers.
“Thank u everybody who’s hit me up after the show, and a great San Jose audience. Obama donation was a surprise to Yahoo too fyi!”

Maher has been far from shy about his thoughts on the 2012 Presidential race. He told Anderson Cooper that other than Ron Paul, the GOP candidates running have “horrible society killing ideas about America.”

He then went on to say, “The rest of those people are, of course, selling their souls to the corporate interests who back them. They all act like god created the world in January of 2009, and then Barack Obama completely screwed it up.”

When asked about who he thought was going to win the Republican nomination, Maher said “My money is still on Mitt Romney. And I think he’s going to get the nomination and then I think Obama is going to beat him like a runaway sister wife, yes I do.”

Maher’s donation will significantly boost the Super PAC, who only rose a little over $58,000 in January, according to the Federal Election Commission.

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Jason Alexander responds to Mitt Romney's reference

In the GOP debate this week, Romeny made a reference to Jason Alexander’s character on Seinfeld.

Jason Alexander, who popularized the character “George Costanza,” from Seinfeld is responding to Mitt Romney’s reference to the character during a GOP debate in Mesa, Arizona on Wednesday.

As Romney began talking, audience members started to clap. Romney said, “As George Costanza would say, when they’re applauding, stop.”

Alexander tweeted about the situation: “Thrilled Gov, Romney enjoys my old character. I enjoyed the character he used 2 b 2. If he’d embrace that again, he’d b a great candidate.”

The actor has in the past donated money to democratic causes, like the senator campaign for “Saturday Night Live,” alum Al Franken. However, there is no suggestion that Alexander is upset by Romney’s comment.

Romney referred to Alexander’s character previously at the Republican Jewish Coalition in Dec. of 2011 saying, “Remember the George Costanza line? When they’re laughing and applauding, you sit down.”

The irony of the comments is that the Republican presidential contender has mistakenly attributed the quote to Costanza, when it was actually said by Jerry Seinfeld.

In the episode, Romney is referring to: Constanza tells Seinfeld, “I lost them. I can usually come up with one good comment during the meeting but by the end it’s buried under a pile of gaffs and bad puns.”

Seinfeld replies with “Showmanship, George. When you hit that high note, you say goodnight and walk off.”

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Miami Dolphins fans wanted Peyton Manning

A website created by Miami Dolphins fans has made the proposal for Colt’s quarterback Peyton Manning to come to Miami.

Miami Dolphins fans are pressing for Peyton Manning, current quarterback of the Indianapolis Colts, to come be their quarterback.
A billboard put on the intersection of I-95 and I-595 in Fort Lauderdale has a picture of Manning holding a football and underneath him the words, “Manning to Miami.com” The campaign even put Manning in the Dolphins’ turquoise and orange.
The website’s goal:
Be part OF “the Movement” and Make History- BRING MANNING TO MIAMI- This site has been created to help influence Peyton Manning and the Miami Dolphins that “Manning to Miami” is a movement and marriage that the entire South Florida Community is behind. Tell family, friends(even enemies), tell co-workers, business associates to cast their vote and make a different in Bringing Manning to Miami.
The website list current sponsors and supporters, which as of now is the PhinNation and also includes the option to purchase a Manning to Miami t-shirt for $12.99.
In Billboard history, things have not always worked out like fans wanted them to. Tennessee Titans fans tried to bring Peyton Manning back to their state during Super Bowl XLVI. However, in Denver, the billboard created to make Tim Tebow starter worked out, at the expense of Brady Quinn though.
Several factors have to be considered though: Manning and owner Jim Irsay have yet to talk about his future with the Colts while his March 8 deadline for a $28 million bones is steadily approaching and Manning’s neck problems.
Manning missed the entire 2011 season after undergoing a surgery, but hopes to be cleared for the 2012 season.

Apple buys app Chomp

Apple has purchased the Chomp app for iOS, leaving the public with several questions.

Apple has decided to purchase the app-search service Chomp, according to eWeek.com

The app, which will be free, can help users find an app they would like, based on what an app’s function.

According to Bloomberg, Apple paid about $50 million for Chomp, though Apple would not answer any questions about the sale other than it took place.
A spokesperson told Bloomberg, “We buy smaller technology companies from time to time and generally don’t comment on our purpose or plans.”

Several inquires have been raised like whether Apple will keep the app in its entirety or conform it, and no word has been released as tohow this purchase will effect Chomp’s current relationship with Verizon Wireless, who uses the app to power its Android app searches.

Chomp will help customers naviagte the 550,000+ apps in the Apple store.

Data taken from January showed that Chomp’s top downloads Android apps included: Pandora, Go Launcher and MP3 Music Download Program- all free.
The top iOS apps were not the same- but still free to users. They included: Words with Friends Free, Temple Run, Facebook and Instagram.

According to eWeek.com, “86 percent of the search inquires used by Android devices in January were by the app function, versus 14 percent by the app’s name.” Nineteen percent of Apple iOS users searched for an app by name as oppose to the 81 percent by function.

This recent purchase will hardly breaks Apple’s pockets, given their cash flow is far from small.

Apple CEO Tim Cook told shareholders during an annual meeting on Feb.23 that Apple would be working on new products that will “blow your mind.”