Estimated read time: 11-12 minutes
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Good morning! Here's a look at how AP's general news coverage is shaping up today. Some plans are subject to change; see the 2 p.m. News Digest for updates. You can find our contact info at the bottom of this advisory.
HIGHLIGHTING:
Among today's coverage highlights as we see them at 10:15 a.m. EST:
-- MALAYSIA-PLANE (sent; developing)
-- MALAYSIA-PLANE-HANDLING A DISASTER (sent)
-- PISTORIUS TRIAL (sent)
-- ARMY GENERAL-SEX CHARGES (sent; developing)
-- MILITARY SEX ASSAULTS (sent; developing)
-- HEALTH OVERHAUL-UNINSURED (sent; developing)
-- EYES ON SPIES (sent; developing)
-- CONN SCHOOL SHOOTING-FATHER (sent)
-- PUBLIC TRANSIT TRIPS (sent; developing)
-- NATURAL GAS-PROMISE (upcoming)
-- IDITAROD (sent; developing; finish expected today)
-- BLACK TWITTER (sent)
-- TV-El REY-RODRIGUEZ (upcoming)
-- E-CIG NATION (upcoming)
PHOTOS: INDIA-TIBETAN UPRISING (sent; with text); E-CIG NATION (upcoming; with text)
Here are details of those stories, plus others we have in the works for today and notable pieces that we sent in the past 10 hours (all times EDT):
WORLD
MALAYSIA-PLANE - Dozens of ships and aircraft fail to find any piece of the missing Boeing 777 jet that vanished more than two days ago above waters south of Vietnam as investigators pursue "every angle" to explain its disappearance, including hijacking, Malaysia's civil aviation chief says. SENT: 940 words, photos. UPCOMING: Developing on a number of fronts: search for the plane; cause of crash or whatever happened; passengers with stolen passports; luggage that was offloaded just before plane took off, among others. CHINA-HANDLING DISASTER - Malaysia Airlines' lack of early word on missing plane angers many Beijing relatives. SENT: 1,040 words, photos.
PISTORIUS-TRIAL - Oscar Pistorius vomited in the dock at his murder trial Monday as he heard graphic details of the injuries sustained by the girlfriend he fatally shot. The testimony was not broadcast or reported live on Twitter by journalists because of its explicit content under an order from Judge Thokozile Masipa. However, journalists were allowed to report the testimony without directly quoting the witness. SENT: 720 words, photos.
UKRAINE - Mikhail Khodorkovsky, once Russia's most famous prisoner, delivers a speech to university students in Kiev in a bid to show the Ukrainians "another Russia," which does not support President Vladimir Putin's military intervention in Crimea. SENT: 200 words.
AFGHANISTAN-ELECTIONS - The Taliban warn Afghans against taking part in the upcoming presidential election and order their fighters to "use all force" possible to disrupt the vote while also instructing clerics to spread the word that the polling is an "American conspiracy." SENT: 600 words, photos.
SYRIA- Greek Orthodox nuns freed after being held hostage by al-Qaida-linked Syrian rebels arrived in Damascus Monday morning, ending their four-month ordeal, Syrian state media reported. SENT: 470 words, photos.
CUBA-OBIT-MELBA HERNANDEZ - Melba Hernandez, who helped Fidel Castro launch his revolutionary battle with a failed 1953 attack on a military barracks and was later named a "heroine of the Cuban Revolution," has died. She was 92. SENT: 130 words. UPCOMING: Developing.
INDIA-TIBETAN UPRISING - Young Tibetans are leading the fight to free their homeland from Chinese rule, the leader of the community's government-in-exile said on Monday's 55th anniversary of an uprising that led to a bloody crackdown and drove the Dalai Lama to flee into India. SENT: 560 words, photos.
NEPAL-TIBETAN PROTEST - Police broke up a small Tibetan protest in Nepal's capital and detained the protesters on Monday's anniversary of a failed 1959 uprising against Chinese rule in Tibet. SENT: 310 words, photos.
UN-CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC — A U.N. investigation of human rights abuses in Central African Republic has launched in a bid to head off possible genocide. SENT: 270 words, photos.
JAPAN-NUCLEAR - The radioactive water that has accumulated at Japan's crippled nuclear power plant remains the biggest problem hampering the cleanup process three years after the disaster. SENT: 720 words, photos.
JAPAN-SEX SLAVES - Japan said Monday it is not planning to change its 1993 apology over a system of forced prostitution for its military during World War II, but will continue to re-examine a study on which it was based. SENT: 270 words.
GERMANY-NSA SURVEILLANCE - Germany has dismissed a claim by NSA leaker Edward Snowden that it bowed to U.S. demands to water down legal protection for German citizens. SENT: 120 words. UPCOMING: Developing.
SALVADOR-ELECTIONS - El Salvador's too-close-to-call presidential runoff election raises competing claims of victory from a former fighter for leftist guerrillas and the once long-ruling conservative party that fought a civil war from 1980 to 1992. SENT: 590 words, photos.
COLOMBIA-ELECTIONS - Former President Alvaro Uribe is back in elected office, and his winning of a Senate seat could potentially complicate efforts by Colombia's government to make peace with leftist rebels. SENT: 240 words, photos.
ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS - Israeli guards shot and killed a Jordanian judge on Monday who the Israelis said tried to grab a rifle from a soldier at the border crossing between the West Bank and Jordan. SENT: 410 words.
FRANCE-SECRET RECORDINGS- Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his singer-songwriter wife are asking a judge for an emergency injunction barring publication of private conversations secretly recorded by a former aide. SENT: 130 words. UPCOMING: 600 words, photos after court hearing scheduled for 9 a.m.
VATICAN-KOREA- Pope Francis will make his first trip to Asia in August, visiting South Korea to participate in a Catholic youth festival, preside over a beatification ceremony for 124 Korean martyrs and bring a message of peace to the war-divided peninsula, officials said. SENT: 280 words, photo.
WASHINGTON
EYES ON SPIES - U.S. intelligence officials are planning a sweeping system of electronic monitoring that would tap into government, financial and other databases to scan the behavior of many of the 5 million federal employees with secret clearances, current and former officials told the AP. SENT: 1,300 words, photos, graphic. UPCOMING: Developing with new angles.
MILITARY SEXUAL ASSAULTS - After narrowly defeating legislation to strip military commanders of their authority to prosecute sexual assault cases, the Senate turns to an alternative to do away with the "good soldier" defense that takes a defendant's military record into account. UPCOMING: 600 words by 4 p.m., with updates from evening vote. 750 words by 7 p.m., photo.
HEALTH OVERHAUL-UNINSURED - With just three weeks left to sign up, a major survey tracking the rollout finds that the uninsured rate keeps going down. SENT: 600 words, photo.
BILLIONAIRE POLITICS - Facing withering criticism on "Obamacare," Democratic Senate candidates are gambling they can turn voters against two billionaire brothers funding the attacks, even if few Americans would recognize them on the street. UPCOMING: 700 words by 5 p.m., photo.
SENATE ALL-NIGHTER - Showing that Democrats can drone through the night as well as Republicans Rand Paul and Ted Cruz, three of them plan to hold the Senate in a pajama-less all-night talkathon about climate change, a topic their leaders dare not bring to a vote in an election year. UPCOMING: 700 words by 6 p.m. , with updates from 9 p.m. session, 750 words by 10 p.m., photo.
SUPREME COURT-BREAST CANCER BRACELETS - The Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from a Pennsylvania school district that wants to prevent students from wearing "I (heart) Boobies!" bracelets to promote breast cancer awareness among young people. SENT: 130 words.
US
ARMY GENERAL SEX CHARGES - Defense lawyers for an Army general facing sexual assault charges have their chance Monday to cross-examine the female captain at the center of the closely-watched case. SENT: 130 words, photos. UPCOMING: 800 words by 7 p.m.
BLARNEY BLOWOUT-ARRESTS - The chaos at the University of Massachusetts over the weekend during a pre-St. Patrick's Day celebration brought renewed attention to an old problem affecting colleges nationwide: how to deal with alcohol-fueled revelers during the March festivities. SENT: 680 words, photos.
BOSTON MARATHON-SECURITY — Federal, state and local officials outline more details about plans for security and crowd control at this year's Boston Marathon. SENT: 130 words. UPCOMING: 11:30 a.m. news conference, then 500 words by 2 p.m.
BOSTON MARATHON-SUSPECT'S FRIENDS - Lawyers for three friends of Boston Marathon suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev are due in court Monday to update a judge on evidence turned over by prosecutors. SENT: 130 words. UPCOMING: Developing from hearing.
CONN. SCHOOL SHOOTING - The father of Connecticut school shooter Adam Lanza says in his first public comments about the massacre that what his son did couldn't "get any more evil" and he wishes his son hadn't been born. SENT: 640 words.
CALIFORNIA EARTHQUAKE - Powerful earthquake strikes off Northern California coast, but no reports of significant damage. SENT: 300 words, graphic.
BIN LADEN SPOKESMAN - Shoe-bomb witness set to testify from London at New York terrorism trial of bin Laden son-in-law. SENT: 400 words, photos. UPCOMING: Will be updated from Monday's testimony.
PUBLIC TRANSIT TRIPS - Americans are boarding public buses, trains and subways in greater numbers than any time since the suburbs began booming. SENT: 300 words. With PUBLIC TRANSIT TRIPS-LIST. UPCOMING: Developing with new angles.
PIT BULLS-RETHINKING BANS - The image makeover has prompted many states to pass new laws that forbid communities from banning specific breeds. And it illustrates the power and persistence of dog-advocacy groups. UPCOMING: 900 words by noon, photos.
LOUD MUSIC KILLING - The attorneys for Michael Dunn argue that a judge should delay his sentencing on three attempted murder convictions until he can be retried on charges that he murdered 17-year-old Jordan Davis after an argument over loud music. UPCOMING: Developing from 10:30 a.m. hearing. 600 words by 2 p.m., photos.
GAY MARRIAGE-METHODISTS — Announcement in White Plains, N.Y., of settlement in between the Methodist church and the Rev. Thomas Ogletree for officiating at the same-sex wedding of his son in 2012. UPCOMING: 11 a.m. news conference, then 350 words by noon.
HEALTH
NEW JOINTS (HOLD FOR RELEASE, 1:01 a.m.) - It's not just grandma with a new hip and your uncle with a new knee. More than 2 of every 100 Americans now have an artificial joint, doctors are reporting. Among those over 50, it's even more common: 5 percent have replaced a knee and more than 2 percent, a hip. UPCOMING: HOLD FOR RELEASE, 1:01 a.m. (CQ); 800 words, photos, video.
SCIENCE
SMART ELEPHANTS (HOLD FOR RELEASE, 3 p.m.) - Wild elephants can distinguish between human languages and they can tell whether a voice comes from a man, woman or boy. Scientists say this is an advanced thinking skill that other animals haven't shown. UPCOMING: HOLD FOR RELEASE, 3 p.m.; 600 words, photos.
BUSINESS
NATURAL GAS-PROMISES - The nation is ready to start taking advantage of its enormous new reserves of natural gas, but one harsh winter has raised concerns about whether the gas will actually show up. UPCOMING: 900 words by 1 p.m.
JAPAN-CONSTRUCTION CRUNCH - As Japan's over-stretched construction industry begins gearing up to build venues and revamp aging infrastructure for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, shortages of skilled carpenters and heavy equipment operators, cement and other materials are frustrating residents and local officials. SENT: 1,000 words, photos.
SPORTS
IDITAROD - As mushers battle it out for the lead in the last stages of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, the town famous for the finish line is getting ready for the teams to come in. SENT: 400 words, photos, video. UPCOMING: 600 words updated throughout the day.
AP PHOTOS-IDITAROD - A look at 5 memorable finishes to the 1,000-mile cross-Alaska race over the years. SENT: 150 words, photos.
IDITAROD-5 THINGS - In the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, there's always a heart-pounding thrill at the finish line in Nome, a rollicking frontier city on Alaska's western coast. By Rachel D'Oro. SENT: 600 words.
POP CULTURE/LIFESTYLES
E-CIG NATION — On the edge of Soho, The Henley Vaporium is an intimate hipster hangout with overstuffed chairs, exposed brick, friendly counter help — but no booze. Instead, the proprietors are peddling e-cigarettes to "vapers" in a growing movement that now includes celebrity fans and YouTube gurus, online forums and vapefests around the world. SENT: 1,390 words, photos.
BLACK TWITTER - What is Black Twitter? It's simply a small - but powerful - corner of social media where tweeters serve up an unabashedly black spin on life, 140 characters at a time. SENT: 1,000 words, photos.
ENTERTAINMENT
TV-El REY-RODRIGUEZ - Now TV could be rocked by another game changer. Say hello to filmmaker Robert Rodriguez, who, down in Texas at his aptly named Troublemaker Studios, is ready to rewrite more rules with his new cable network, El Rey. UPCOMING: 800 words by 10 a.m., photos.
INTERNATIONAL THEATER FESTIVAL - The Kennedy Center is opening an extensive international theater festival featuring productions from around the world and exhibits about costume design, puppetry and other elements. UPCOMING: 450 words by 3 p.m., photos.
MUSIC-MIRANDA LAMBERT - The good news? Miranda Lambert has completed her much-anticipated, though somewhat overdue, fifth album. SENT: 400 words, photos.
HOW TO REACH US
At the Nerve Center, Amir Bibawy, Rob Jagodzinski and Rich Somma can be reached at 800-845-8450 (ext. 1600). For photos, Dan Goodman, ext. 1900. For graphics and interactives, ext. 7636. Expanded AP content can be obtained from http://www.apexchange.com. For access to AP Exchange and other technical issues, contact apcustomersupport@ap.org or call 877-836-9477.
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