Miami photographer sentenced to 10 years in child-porn case

A Miami-area photographer who secretly videotaped children while they changed clothes in his home studio was sentenced in federal court Friday to 10 years in prison.

Diego Tobias Matrajt, 37, pleaded guilty in September to distribution and possession of child pornography.

Last February, Matrajt distributed 10 images of child pornography to an undercover agent by using a peer-to-peer file sharing program, according to court records.

In April, FBI agents did a search of his home and computers, uncovering 26 video images of boys and girls changing clothes alone in a guest bedroom with their genitalia exposed, records show.

Matrajt admitted surreptitiously video recording children under the age of 12 as they changed clothes in the guest bedroom during photo shoots.

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Riveting Details Emerge from CT School Rampage

As morning turned to afternoon on Friday, further details continued to emerge from Newtown, CT, a tight-knit community shaken by a massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School that took the lives of innocent students and teachers, in addition to the gunman, reportedly identified as Adam Lanza.

RELATED: President Fights Tears as He Addresses Nation

As President Barack Obama touched on in his tear-jerking press conference, this is not the first time the nation has witnessed a tragedy of this kind. The recent mass shooting at an Aurora, CO movie theater is just one instance of such violence. Columbine High School and Virginia Tech also resonate as prime examples.

Hollywood's biggest stars were quick to react to the news on Twitter and made an outcry for stricter gun control regulations.

Watch the video for ET's complete coverage of today's biggest headline.

RELATED: Celebs Tweet Reactions to CT School Shooting

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Hillary Clinton faints, sustains concussion

WASHINGTON — The State Department says Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who skipped an overseas trip this past week because of a stomach virus, sustained a concussion after fainting.

She's now recovering at home and being monitored by doctors.

An aide, Philippe Reines, says Clinton will work from home next week, at the recommendation of doctors.

Congressional aides do not expect her to testify as scheduled at congressional hearings on Thursday into the Sept. 11 attack against a U.S. diplomatic outpost in Benghazi, Libya, that killed four Americans, including the U.S. ambassador.

AFP/Getty Images

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last week.

The aides spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to publicly discuss Clinton's status.

The department says Clinton was dehydrated because of the virus and that she fainted, causing the concussion. No further details were immediately available.

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Miami in spotlight at AVCC, other entrepreneurship events

Entrepreneurs from around the world took the stage during this packed week of entrepreneurship events in Miami: Florida International University’s Americas Venture Capital Conference (known as AVCC), HackDay, Wayra’s Global DemoDay and Endeavor’s International Selection Panel.

The events, all part of the first Innovate MIA week, also put the spotlight on Miami as it continues to try to develop into a technology hub for the Americas.

“While I like art, I absolutely love what is happening today... The time has come to become a tech hub in Miami,” said Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez, who kicked off the venture capital conference on Thursday. He told the audience of 450 investors and entrepreneurs about the county’s $1 million investment in the Launch Pad Tech Accelerator in downtown Miami.

“I have no doubt that this gathering today will produce new ideas and new business ventures that will put our community on a fast track to becoming a center for innovative, tech-driven entrepreneurship,” Gimenez said.

Brad Feld, an early-stage investor and a founder of TechStars, cautioned that won’t happen overnight. Building a startup community can take five, 10, even 15 years, and those leading the effort, who should be entrepreneurs themselves, need to take the long-term view, he told the audience via video. “You can create very powerful entrepreneurial ecosystems in any city... I’ve spent some time in Miami, I think you are off to a great start.”

Throughout the two-day AVCC at the JW Brickell Marriott, as well as the Endeavor and Wayra events, entrepreneurs from around the world pitched their companies, hoping to persuade investors to part with some of their green.

And in some cases, the entrepreneurs could win money, too. During the venture capital conference, 29 companies —including eight from South Florida such as itMD, which connects doctors, patients and imaging facilities to facilitate easy access of records — competed for more than $50,000 in cash and prizes through short “elevator’’ pitches. Each took questions from the judges, then demoed their products or services in the conference “Hot Zone,” a room adjoining the ballroom. Some companies like oLyfe, a platform to organize what people share online, are hoping to raise funds for expansion into Latin America. Others like Ideame, a trilingual crowdfunding platform, were laser focused on pan-Latin American opportunities.

Winning the grand prize of $15,000 in cash and art was Trapezoid Digital Security of Miami, which provides hardware-based security solutions for enterprise and cloud environments. Fotopigeon of Tampa, a photo-sharing and printing service targeting the military and prison niches, scored two prizes.

The conference offered opportunities to hear formal presentations on current trends — among them the surge of start-ups in Brazil; the importance of mobile apps and overheated company valuations — and informal opportunities to connect with fellow entrepreneurs.

Speakers included Gaston Legorburu of SapientNitro, Albert Santalo of CareCloud and Juan Diego Calle of .Co Internet, all South Florida entrepreneurs. Jerry Haar, executive director of FIU’s Pino Global Entrepreneurship Center, which produced the conference with a host of sponsors, said the organizers worked hard to make the conference relevant to both the local and Latin American audience, with panels on funding and recruiting for startups, for instance.

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Miami-Dade elections group to discuss potential changes to state law

An advisory group poring over Miami-Dade elections problems will hold its second meeting Friday, this time to focus on what changes to request from state lawmakers.

County Mayor Carlos Gimenez, who convened the group, and his appointed elections supervisor, Penelope Townsley, already asked Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner — the state’s chief elections officer — on Tuesday to make several recommendations to Gov. Rick Scott to tweak elections laws.

But the 13-member advisory group might choose to make additional suggestions. And while the meeting with Detzner was more informal, the Miami-Dade group plans to make its requests in writing, and incorporate them into the county’s annual package of policies to lobby for in Tallahassee. County commissioners are scheduled to vote on the legislative package Tuesday.

The 2013 state legislative proposals drafted by the elections department include allowing early-voting sites in more locations — a request Miami-Dade has been making since 2006. State law currently limits the sites to elections offices, city halls and libraries.

The department also plans to ask legislators to reinstate 14 days of early voting. Scott, a Republican, signed a law passed by the GOP-led Legislature last year reducing the number of days to eight, while keeping the total number of hours offered on the books — 96 — the same.

The law also guaranteed one Sunday of early voting, but prohibited voting the Sunday before Election Day. African-American churches with large numbers of Democratic voters had traditionally used that day to bring “souls to the polls.”

About 90,000 fewer Miami-Dade voters cast early ballots in 2012 compared to 2008, according to the department.

The third request proposed by the department would limit the number of words printed on state constitutional amendments on the ballot, keeping them to the same length as county charter amendments. The county caps its ballot measures at 75 words; this year, one of the constitutional amendments took up a full page in Miami-Dade, where ballots are printed in English, Spanish and Creole. The 2012 presidential ballot ran 10 to 12 pages long, depending on the voter’s location, compared to four to six pages in 2008.

Federal law requires that ballots be available in other languages for minorities whose population meets a certain threshold.

In a letter she sent to the mayor last month, U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson, D-Miami Gardens, recommended that the county print separate ballots in each of the three languages. “Printing all three languages creates the false impression that the ballot is excessively long,” she wrote. It is unclear how that proposal would work.

She also made other requests, including that the county support extending early voting.

Gimenez replied Thursday that most of Wilson’s recommendations “are in line with what we are proposing.”

In addition, the Miami-Dade elections department would like more time to count absentee ballots, which have become an increasingly popular voting method. State law currently allows tallying to begin 15 days prior to Election Day.

Other requests include:

• Remove political party executive committeeman and committeewoman races from the primary ballot in presidential election years, and require the parties to pay for those elections. This change would shorten the ballot, reduce the number of different ballots printed in the county, and save money.

• Do away with the term “absentee ballot” and replace it with “vote by mail.” The mayor has endorsed this change, saying absentee voting is a misnomer because Florida no longer requires that voters provide a reason — such as being ill or out of town — for voting by mail.

• Require that community development district elections be carried out only by mail. This change would shorten the ballot and reduce the number of different ballots. Community development districts are special taxing districts of 1,100 acres or more.

The advisory group will meet at 9 a.m. on the 18th floor of the Stephen P. Clark Government Center, 111 NW First St.

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Monica Potter Emmy Performance Parenthood Christmas Episode

Every week, ETonline selects a scene that is so magical, it demands watching, and re-watching, from fans and non-fans alike. This week, that honor goes to Parenthood!

NBC's complex family drama has long been TV's most cathardic hour, but thanks to the ace crafting of Kristina's breast cancer storyline and Monica Potter's Emmy-caliber performance, the tears have been flowing this season like never before.

Considering the promos for this Tuesday's episode had the waterworks all cued up, I shouldn't have been surprised by how heavily the tears flowed throughout the final thirty minutes, but that underscores what's been so wonderful about Parenthood since day one: it continually surprises with the emotional depths it's capable of reaching.

VIDEO - Last Week's Must (Re)Watch Moment: Glee

This week's moment du jour was the origin of all my feelings: Kristina's taped message to her children; Haddie, Max and Nora.

RELATED - Monica Potter On Her Personal Connection to Kristina

Seeing Kristina, a woman who has always been so completely dedicated to ensuring the best for her family, accept that she might die before all her hard work comes to fruition was one of the most heartbreaking realizations Parenthood has ever featured. The staging of the scene (the audience and her husband simultaneously experienced Kristina's message) made the moment all the more profound, and reminded me that Monica Potter isn't the only actor delivering award-worthy work week in and week out.

RELATED - Joy Bryant Previews Jasmine's Journey

Spouses of cancer patients often are forced to sublimate their emotions in order to take charge of the situation; becoming the caretaker their partner and children need most in this time of unimaginable grief. Peter Krause has been masterful at subtly revealing the well of emotions beneath Adam's steely exterior, so when his flood gates open (as they did this week in the presence of his father, Zeke), every tear lands with the power of a tidal wave.

Why Parenthood continues to be ignored by the major awarding organizations is one of life's cruelest mysteries. Thankfully fans will continue to win as long as NBC keeps TV's most marvelous family on the air!

Parenthood airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. on NBC.

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North Korea celebrates rocket launch, Kim Jong Un smokes a cig

PYONGYANG, North Korea — A triumphant North Korea staged a mass rally of soldiers and civilians Friday to glorify the country's young ruler, who took a big gamble this week in sending a satellite into orbit in defiance of international warnings.

Wednesday's rocket launch came just eight months after a similar attempt ended in an embarrassing public failure, and just under a year after Kim Jong Un inherited power following his father's death.

The surprising success of the launch may have earned Kim global condemnation, but at home the gamble paid off, at least in the short term. To his people, it made the 20-something Kim appear powerful, capable and determined in the face of foreign adversaries.

EPA

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un watching the North's long-range rocket enter orbit at the Sohae Space Center in Cholsan, North Korea.

Tens of thousands of North Koreans, packed into snowy Kim Il Sung Square, clenched their fists in a unified show of resolve as a military band tooted horns and pounded on drums.

Huge red banners positioned in the square called on North Koreans to defend Kim Jong Un with their lives. They also paid homage to Kim Jong Un's father, Kim Jong Il, and his grandfather, North Korean founder Kim Il Sung.

Pyongyang says the rocket put a crop and weather monitoring satellite into orbit. Much of the rest of the world sees it as a thinly disguised test of banned long-range missile technology. It could bring a fresh round of U.N. sanctions that would increase his country's international isolation. At the same time, the success of the launch could strengthen North Korea's military, the only entity that poses a potential threat to Kim's rule.

The launch's success, 14 years after North Korea's first attempt, shows more than a little of the gambling spirit in the third Kim to rule North Korea since it became a country in 1948.

"North Korean officials will long be touting Kim Jong Un as a gutsy leader" who commanded the rocket launch despite being new to the job and young, said Kim Byung-ro, a North Korea specialist at Seoul National University in South Korea.

The propaganda machinery churned into action early Friday, with state media detailing how Kim Jong Un issued the order to fire off the rocket just days after scientists fretted over technical issues, ignoring the chorus of warnings from Washington to Moscow against a move likely to invite more sanctions.

Top officials followed Kim in shrugging off international condemnation.

Workers' Party Secretary Kim Ki Nam told the crowd, bundled up against a winter chill in the heart of the capital, that "hostile forces" had dubbed the launch a missile test. He rejected the claim and called on North Koreans to stand their ground against the "cunning" critics.

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Wynwood co-working center funded by Knight Foundation, angel investors

The LAB Miami announced Thursday it will open a 10,000-square-foot co-working center in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and local angel investors are investing $650,000.

As Miami’s startup community continues to grow, The LAB Miami said its “work-learn campus” will offer an in-house mentor network that will include investors and serial entrepreneurs, said Wifredo Fernandez, co-founder of The LAB Miami with Danny Lafuente and Elisa Rodriguez-Vila.

The LAB Miami, now in a 720-square-foot space in the same neighborhood, turned a Goldman building at 400 NW 26th Street into an artsy, modern space that can support 300 members, including tech startups, programmers, designers, investors, nonprofits, artists and academics.

In addition to offering space to work, the new co-working space plans to offer courses and workshops in business and technology — including a startup school and code school — as well as art, design and education, Fernandez said. It will be a welcoming space for traveling Latin Americans, too. “We want this to be a community center for entrepreneurs,” said Fernandez, explaining that the mix of activities and workshops will be structured by the needs of the LAB’s members.

While the Knight Foundation’s Miami office has sponsored many entrepreneurship events in the past four months, this is the foundation’s largest investment announced so far in its efforts to help accelerate entrepreneurship in Miami, said the Knight Foundation’s Miami program director, Matt Haggman. The Knight Foundation’s Miami office, which made accelerating entrepreneurship one of its key areas of focus this year, is investing $250,000 with the rest of the funding coming from a group of investors lead by Marco Giberti, Faquiry Diaz-Cala, Boris Hirmas Said and Daniel Echavarria.

“This is an important part of our strategy,” said Haggman. “Entrepreneurs need places to gather, connect and learn.”

The LAB Miami has already hosted several events, including HackDay and Wayra DemoDay earlier this week, and the co-working space plans to open for membership in January.

Co-working space will start at $200 a month to use the communal tables, and private offices that will accommodate up to six are also available. The LAB will also offer “Connect” memberships for $40 a month, which allows members who do not need co-working space to participate in events. In addition, there will be phone booths, classrooms, flexible meeting spaces, a lounge area, a kitchen, a “pop-up shop” for local fashion, art or technology products, a shower for those who bike to work and an outside garden with native landscaping.

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Computer antivirus guro John McAfee denies being interviewed by IRS and FBI

John McAfee, the controversial guru of computer antivirus software, denied Thursday in Miami Beach that he has been interviewed by Internal Revenue Service and FBI agents after arriving the previous night following deportation from Guatemala.

"The only people who talked to me when I left the plane were the Customs and Border Protection," he said. "When the plane stopped, they called me by my name and there was a large group of people who looked like police and asked them, 'Am I in trouble?' And they said 'No sir, we are here to help’."

McAfee appeared Thursday morning in Miami Beach and issued broad statements to dozens of journalists who surrounded him at the exit of the Beacon Hotel.

He said he was tired and wanted breakfast, but added that his most immeditate concern was to ask the State Department for visas for two women whom he identified only as Samantha, his girlfriend, and Amy, which he described as "my friend."

"If any of you have friends in the State Department, or if someone in the State Department is listening to this, I need help getting visas for these two young women who also fled from Belize," McAfee said.

He added that both are legally in Guatemala, but that he wanted to bring them to the United States because they cannot return to Belize.

His next step, he said, was breakfast because, "I've been eating only Guatemalan food in jail for a week, which I hate to describe, and therefore what I want want to eat is bacon and eggs."

The millionaire businessman had fled to Guatemala on Dec. 3 from Belize, his country of residence, where he was wanted for questioning in the murder of one of his neighbors, Gregory Faull, a U.S. citizen.

Presumably, McAfee decided to reside in Belize for many years, considered a tax haven, to avoid paying U.S. taxes.

However, the businessman said Thursday, he was happy to be back in his country.

"I feel wonderful to be here," he said. "As many of you know, I have not only been running for five weeks, but for 10, with Samantha. The whole story has not been told yet."

Anyone who wants to know everything that happened, he said, should go to the website WhoisMcAfee.com, where the details are laid out.

"It takes at least a day to read it all," he said.

He also denied that federal authorities may have given him preferential treatment upon his arrival in the country, but gave no details.

"I did not receive any special treatment, they just helped me find a safe place," he said.

McAfee said no one has contacted him since his arrival Wednesday night, and the last thing he heard was that the police in Belize wanted "desperately" to convince the government of Guatemala to return him there.

"That was the main reason they took me to the plane and sent me here," said McAfee, who said thought Guatemalan authorities refused to return him to Belize due to border disputes between the two countries."They have had an unofficial state of war," he said.

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Review: PlayStation icons join in ‘Battle Royale’

The holiday season is a good time to catch up with old friends. If you’re an Xbox fan, you’re probably getting reacquainted with galactic warrior Master Chief in his new adventure, “Halo 4.” If you’re a Nintendophile, you’re probably frolicking with Mario on your new Wii U.

Sony, meanwhile, has expanded its holiday guest list to invite nearly two decades worth of characters to mix it up in “PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale” (for the PlayStation 3, $ 59.99; Vita, $ 39.99). Fans of the original PlayStation can welcome back old pals like Sir Daniel Fortesque of “MediEvil” and the title character of “Parappa the Rapper.” Younger gamers who have only known the PS3 will be happy to see Nathan Drake from “Uncharted” and Cole MacGrath from “Infamous.” Turn them loose in an assortment of game-inspired arenas and you’ve got chaos.

It’s not an original idea: Nintendo has been pitting its lovable characters against each other since 1999′s “Super Smash Bros.” As you’d expect, “All-Stars” lets up to four players choose their favorite personalities and pound on each other until one is left standing.

The technique is a change from most fighting games. Most of the time, kicking or punching your opponent doesn’t do much damage. Instead, each blow adds to an attack meter; build up enough energy and you can unleash three levels of truly deadly moves. There’s a little more strategy, but most players won’t find it too complicated.

The solo campaign is awfully skimpy, but “All-Stars” makes for a lively party when you have a few friends over. Two-and-a-half stars out of four.

— Sony’s burlap-clad goofball Sackboy is part of the “All-Stars” lineup, but he takes center stage in “LittleBigPlanet Karting” ($ 59.99).

Yes, it’s a go-kart racer — a genre that has already made room for Mario, Donkey Kong and Sonic the Hedgehog — but Sony freshens it up by giving you the ability to build your own racetracks and share them online. By exploring the game’s built-in courses, you can find hundreds of elements to add to your own, and they all share the homespun “arts-and-crafts” aesthetic of the original “LittleBigPlanet.”

Unfortunately, “LBP Karting” also revives the weird, floaty physics of its parent. That worked fine in the two-dimensional fantasy world of “LBP,” but it’s annoying when you’re behind the wheel. The tracks are filled with the power-ups, obstacles and gravity-defying leaps you’d expect in a kart racer, but the vehicles themselves feel sluggish and unresponsive. Two stars.

—Insomniac Games’ popular “lombax”-robot buddies are celebrating their 10th anniversary, both in “All-Stars” and their own “Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault” ($ 19.99). The latter game, however, is a big disappointment, stripping away most of what made the team so endearing.

It’s a “base defense” game, meaning you’re plopped down on a planet and then have to protect your turf from waves of invading enemies. That eliminates the exploration and discovery that made most of the “R&C” games so absorbing, replacing it with a tiresome cycle of building fortifications, having them destroyed, then rebuilding them. Instead of the comedy that was once this series’ trademark, you get drudgery. One star.

___

Follow Lou Kesten on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lkesten

Gaming News Headlines – Yahoo! News

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Stars React To Their Golden Globe Nominations

The 70th Annual Golden Globe nominations were announced this morning from Hollywood, recognizing the best in film and television. From Nicole Kidman to Tim Burton, read on below for the stars' reactions to their big honors!

Leonardo DiCaprio, nominated for Best Supporting Actor, Django Unchained:
"I'm truly honored to be nominated by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association today. Django Unchained was a remarkable experience and I consider myself lucky to work with Quentin and the entire cast on the film. I'm particularly proud to be named alongside my fellow Django nominees."

Daniel Day-Lewis, nominated for Best Actor - Drama, Lincoln:
"Just so happy to have a really good reason to stop Christmas shopping for a day. Opening a bottle immediately to celebrate my Golden Globe nomination for Homeland. I'm thrilled that Claire and Mandy were also nominated for their performances, and look forward to celebrating with the whole cast in Los Angeles in January. Thank you HFPA!"

Taylor Swift, nominated for Best Original Song, Safe & Sound for The Hunger Games:
"What an amazing and unexpected present! I'm blown away by my first-ever Golden Globe nomination, and so honored to be nominated with T Bone Burnett and The Civil Wars. Writing music for The Hunger Games was a labor of love -- I was a fan of the stories and the characters, and we all wanted the music to have an authenticity that matched the tone of the movie and the emotions expressed in the book. This is a huge honor, and I'm really excited and so flattered. THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association!"

Nicole Kidman, nominated for Best Supporting Actress, The Paperboy and Best Actress Mini-Series or TV Movie, Hemingway & Gellhorn:
"As an actor you look for roles that are rich, complicated, and that stretch you and this year I was blessed to find two. To have the chance to play them was a gift in itself and to then be acknowledged this way is icing on the cake. Thank you to the Hollywood Foreign Press!"

Related: 2013 Golden Globes -- And the Nominees Are ...

Keith Urban, nominated for Best Original Song , For You for Act of Valor:
"The most rewarding gift for me as a songwriter is knowing that the song has somehow made a connection. I've been fortunate and moved to hear first hand how it has impacted others' lives. For that, and for this nomination, I'm so very grateful and honored. To wake up to this news, as well as to Nic's two nominations, is absolutely beautiful. What a way to start the day!!!!!"

Sofia Vergara, nominated for Best Supporting Actor, Modern Family:
"This is such an exciting week! I'm so grateful to the Hollywood Foreign Press for this nomination. There's no one more fun to play then 'Gloria' and I feel lucky every day I get to be on set with my "Modern Family." I'm so happy for Eric and of course the rest of my cast for our nomination."

Tim Burton, nominated for Best Animated Feature, Frankenweenie:
"I'm thrilled to be recognized by the HFPA. Frankenweenie is a very personal project for me and the nomination goes as much to the animators who labored frame by frame to bring this film to life."

Clive Owen, nominated for Best Actor, Mini-Series or TV Movie, Hemingway & Gellhorn:
"I'd like to say a big thank you to The Hollywood Foreign Press. I am really thrilled as this recognition is for a piece of work I'm very proud of and had such a good time on."

Amy Adams, nominated for Best Supporting Actress, The Master:
"Thank you to the Hollywood Foreign Press for this nomination. I’m so appreciative to have been part of Paul Thomas Anderson’s extraordinary film and to have had the opportunity to star alongside such respected actors as Philip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix who were nothing short of brilliant in their performances."

Bradley Cooper, nominated for Best Actor, Silver Linings Playbook:
"To see this film recognized by the HFPA is huge for us. And for me, personally, to be in a room with Bill Murray, Daniel Day-Lewis? Forget about it!," Cooper tells The Hollywood Reporter. "We released the film in limited theaters, so it's all been about word of mouth in a very positive way. These nominations bode well for more people being able to see it. At all these screenings and Q&As, so many people say they are very affected by it; that the family feels real and relatable…that's all [director] David O. Russell. That's the film he set out to make. A movie about real people."

Jessica Chastain, nominated for Best Actress - Drama, Zero Dark Thirty:
"Zero Dark Thirty is a film that I am extremely proud of and it's a tremendous honor to be recognized by the HFPA. I am so thankful for this nomination. I am elated to see our fearless producer Megan Ellison, our brilliant director Kathryn Bigelow, our wonderful screenwriter Mark Boal and this extraordinary film being honored today. I'm so proud and honored to play this exceptional woman."

Ewan McGregor, nominated for Best Actor, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen:
"Thank you to the Hollywood Foreign Press for this nomination. It's wonderful that our movie left its mark. Emily Blunt is such a talent and a joy to work with, and I'm so happy the HFPA recognized her performance, as well as our film. I look forward to the Golden Globes, as they are always fun and send my congratulations to all those who believed and participated in Lasse's vision."

Emily Blunt, nominated for Best Actress, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen:
"I'm so incredibly thankful to the Hollywood Foreign Press for recognizing our little movie that could. Ewan and the entire cast and crew could not be more deserving of this honor, and I'm thrilled that I'm able to share this moment among such a fantastic group of nominees."

Jack Black, nominated for Best Actor - Comedy or Musical, Bernie:
"Ok...I'm only doing Richard Linklater movies from now on. I'm so proud of our little engine that could. Thank you HFPA!"

Hayden Panettiere, nominated for Best Supporting Actress, Nashville:
"I'm the epitome of surprise and shocked!," Panettiere tells The Hollywood Reporter. "I didn't know whether to ball hysterically or jump up and down on the bed so I decided to do both. I feel like I'm going through the same struggles as Juliette: she wants to be respected in her craft, she knows how people perceive her and what they think she's capable of but she knows capable of more and I feel like I've been fighting the same battle and it's paid off. I'm so flattered and humbled."

Judi Dench, nominated for Best Actress - Comedy or Musical, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel:
"This is lovely news…Having had such a glorious time in India, I’m so happy for John Madden and Graham Broadbent and delighted to be included in such a wonderful group of fellow actors.”

Glenn Close, nominated for Best Actress - Drama, Damages:
"Damages was one of the greatest adventures of my career. I am deeply grateful to The Hollywood Foreign Press for their recognition of my work in our final season. I represent our entire Damages team in thanking them for their support over the past five years. Patty Hewes was the inspiration of a brilliant team of writers, honed by her interactions with a remarkable roster of guest stars. I couldn’t have had a better partner in the exquisite Rose Byrne. The relationship of Patty Hewes and Ellen Parsons is unique storytelling. Their journey resulted in what I think is a great modern American tragedy that will stand the test of time."

Max Greenfield, nominated for Best Supporting Actor, New Girl:
"I got the phone call at 5:30 in the morning, and now the house is awake -- including my daughter, who is never up this early. She has demanded Dora The Explorer, so that is happening," Greenfield tells The Hollywood Reporter. "This is amazing, though. There was an email going around when it happened with my manager and my agent and a bunch of people, and my only response was 'Does this mean I'm as good of an actor as [fellow nominee] Ed Harris?' I can literally tell you what movie theater and where exactly I was sitting when I saw Pollock."

Lena Dunham, nominated for Best Actress - Comedy or Musical and Best Series - Musical or Comedy, Girls:
"This is an incredible honor and the most wonderful ending to an amazing year. Thank you to the Hollywood Foreign Press. I'm thrilled to share this with our amazing cast and crew."

Marion Cotillard, nominated for Best Actress - Drama, Rust and Bone: "Today makes for a really a great day. The Hollywood Foreign Press, who reach so many readers across the globe, have greatly recognized French cinema this year, with the inclusion of nominations for Rust and Bone. Working with Jacques Audiard, was an extraordinary experience, and the journey of the characters he creates and cinematically guides, is a special thing – as an actor and a moviegoer. This nomination is truly unique for me, because I also share it with Rachel Weisz, Jessica Chastain, Helen Mirren and Naomi Watts, women who I respect as people and as talents who provide great inspiration to other actresses."

Rachel Weisz, nominated for Best Actress - Drama, Deep Blue Sea:
"I am deeply grateful for this nomination, and in particular, for the HFPA's recognition of the hard work and passion that Terence Davies brought to this wonderful British indie. I am thrilled that this nomination might allow his beautiful work to reach a larger audience."

Alan Arkin, nominated for Best Supporting Actor, Argo:
"I am deeply grateful for this honor and particularly moved in being in the company of Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Tommy Lee Jones who I deeply admire. I am also thrilled that Ben is getting the attention he so much deserves, as is Argo."

Matt LeBlanc, nominated for Best Actor - Comedy or Musical, Best Series - Comedy or Musical, Episodes:
"It's an incredible honor to be nominated again for a show that I am so proud to be a part of. And I am thrilled that the show has been recognized as well because everyone involved works so hard. Thank you Hollywood Foreign Press."

Quentin Tarantino, nominated for Best Picture - Drama, Best Director and Best Screenplay, Django Unchained:
"It's very gratifying to get this many nominations from the HFPA for a film I worked so hard on and am so passionate about. I look forward to having fun at the Golden Globes with my cast mates and fellow nominees."

Steve Buscemi, nominated for Best Actor - Drama, Boardwalk Empire:
"I'm so grateful to be able to play Nucky, it never gets old."

Jeff Daniels, nominated for Best Actor, Drama and Best Series, Drama, The Newsroom:
"To me, being honored with a Golden Globe Nomination means even more because it's for THE NEWSROOM."

Sigourney Weaver, nominated for Best Actress, Political Animals:
"What a great day for all of us on Political Animals! My heartfelt thanks to all the members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for this significant recognition of everyone's work. I am especially delighted for Greg Berlanti and USA. I am blown away personally to be nominated for my work as the beguiling and indomitable Elaine Barish Hammond. Hooray and thank you so much!"

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, nominated for Best Actress - Comedy or Musical, Veep:
"The reason that I do this job is to serve, not to receive accolades and trophies. That said, I'm freakin' stoked. God bless America and the Hollywood Foreign Press, specifically."

Don Cheadle, nominated for Best Actor - Comedy or Musical, House of Lies:
"I'm over the moon for the nom. This is a great show and a great cast and this is a recognition of all of us... But mostly me."

Mandy Patinkin, nominated for Best Supporting Actress, Homeland:
"I am thrilled to be a part of this company. Working on HOMELAND has been one of the joys of my life. We have such gifted writers - I have to pinch myself every day that I get to be a part of this company. Still - the real big news we are all waiting for is Claire's baby. When I get that call, the fireworks will really start."

Aaron Sorkin, nominated for Best Series - Drama, The Newsroom:
"The cast, crew and staff of The Newsroom are humbled to be in such elite company and we look forward to dramatizing this nomination a year and a half from now." 

Kathryn Bigelow, nominated for Best Director and Best Picture - Drama, Zero Dark Thirty:
"It's an honor, sincerely, and very humbling to be singled out this way by the HFPA. We're grateful, and encouraged by their support, especially since our film has such a diverse, international cast, and as the HFPA represent so many countries across the globe. And a big congratulations to the amazing Jessica Chastain and my producing partner and screenwriter Mark Boal."

Wes Anderson, nominated for Best Picture - Comedy or Musical, Moonrise Kingdom:
"I received this news by text message on the fast train to Berlin. The Hollywood Foreign Press has brightened a bleak snowy day in Germany for me. I could not be more pleased on behalf of our gang."

John Hawkes, nominated for Best Actor - Drama, The Sessions:
"I'm so honored by these nominations and excited that the film is receiving this recognition."

Homeland co-creator Howard Gordon, nominated for Best Drama Series:
"It's a been a great year for television and to be recognized by the HFPA in the company of such extraordinary nominees is an incredible thrill. We're grateful to all the other shows on television for raising the standards each year and to everyone involved with Homeland – from the cast and crew to Showtime and Fox 21 for their hard work, creativity and support."

Director Rich Moore, nominated for Best Animated Feature, Wreck-It Ralph:
"Wreck-It Ralph was a labor of love for our entire team at Walt Disney Animation. We are so proud of the hard work that went into making this film, and to see it be recognized with a nomination from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association is truly an honor for all of us."

Director Mark Andrews, nominated for Best Animated Feature, Brave:
"The adventure of Brave began in Scotland, where the mystery and majesty of the land fueled our imaginations. From haggis to highland games, creating this film truly changed our fate. On behalf of everyone at Pixar, we would like to thank the Hollywood Foreign Press for the incredible honor of this nomination."

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NY, NJ, CT governors urge Congress to make storm aid decision before holidays

ALBANY — The governors of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut are putting out a strong message to Congress: Don't leave for the holidays until you decide on aid for states battered by Superstorm Sandy.

Govs. Chris Christie, Andrew Cuomo and Dannel Malloy say no region or state should have stand have to alone after a disaster. They say Congress hasn't acted in seven weeks following Sandy, taking longer to provide aid than in previous disasters such as Hurricane Katrina.

President Barack Obama a week ago proposed $60.4 billion for the states, about three-quarters of what they requested.

Now it's in the hands of Congress, which is already in a budget battle to avoid tax hikes and spending cuts on Jan. 1.

The governors made their case in an opinion piece in Thursday's Washington Post.

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Wynwood co-working center funded by Knight Foundation, angel investors

The LAB Miami announced Thursday it will open a 10,000-square-foot co-working center in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and local angel investors are investing $650,000.

As Miami’s startup community continues to grow, The LAB Miami said its “work-learn campus” will offer an in-house mentor network that will include investors and serial entrepreneurs, said Wifredo Fernandez, co-founder of The LAB Miami with Danny Lafuente and Elisa Rodriguez-Vila.

The LAB Miami, now in a 720-square-foot space in the same neighborhood, turned a Goldman building at 400 NW 26th Street into an artsy, modern space that can support 300 members, including tech startups, programmers, designers, investors, nonprofits, artists and academics.

In addition to offering space to work, the new co-working space plans to offer courses and workshops in business and technology — including a startup school and code school — as well as art, design and education, Fernandez said. It will be a welcoming space for traveling Latin Americans, too. “We want this to be a community center for entrepreneurs,” said Fernandez, explaining that the mix of activities and workshops will be structured by the needs of the LAB’s members.

While the Knight Foundation’s Miami office has sponsored many entrepreneurship events in the past four months, this is the foundation’s largest investment announced so far in its efforts to help accelerate entrepreneurship in Miami, said the Knight Foundation’s Miami program director, Matt Haggman. The Knight Foundation’s Miami office, which made accelerating entrepreneurship one of its key areas of focus this year, is investing $250,000 with the rest of the funding coming from a group of investors lead by Marco Giberti, Faquiry Diaz-Cala, Boris Hirmas Said and Daniel Echavarria.

“This is an important part of our strategy,” said Haggman. “Entrepreneurs need places to gather, connect and learn.”

The LAB Miami has already hosted several events, including HackDay and Wayra DemoDay earlier this week, and the co-working space plans to open for membership in January.

Co-working space will start at $200 a month to use the communal tables, and private offices that will accommodate up to six are also available. The LAB will also offer “Connect” memberships for $40 a month, which allows members who do not need co-working space to participate in events. In addition, there will be phone booths, classrooms, flexible meeting spaces, a lounge area, a kitchen, a “pop-up shop” for local fashion, art or technology products, a shower for those who bike to work and an outside garden with native landscaping.

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Top state and local elections officials meet in Broward to talk about improving voting process

If Broward Supervisor of Elections Brenda Snipes had one word to summarize what she needs to reduce long voting lines in the future it would be “flexibility.”

That was the message Snipes delivered to Secretary of State Ken Detzner at a meeting on Wednesday morning. Several state legislators and election officials from Broward and the state as well as Broward Democratic chairman Mitch Ceasar attended the meeting held at the county’s Voting Equipment Center in Lauderhill.

The meeting was part of Detzner’s 5-county tour of counties that he said “underperformed” in the November election. Detzner visited Miami-Dade Tuesday — the other counties are Palm Beach, St. Lucie and Lee. He kicked off his tour in Hillsborough Monday as a benchmark county.

Broward used 17 early voting sites in November and “the space in all but three of those sites are inadequate...,” Snipes said. “We as supervisors of elections in large districts, knowing our districts, need to have the flexibility to make these adjustments.”

State law limits early voting sites to libraries and city halls, but not all such government facilities have enough space to accommodate thousands of voters and the necessary machines, Snipes told Detzner.

If Broward could choose some larger sites, than extra machines would help, she said.

Sites should be able to handle 400 to 500 voters per hour, but one site could only handle an average of about 153 an hour, her staff reported.

Noting the high volume, Detzner said: “You can’t process enough people per hour, if you can’t you are going to have long lines.”

Detzner said that he has heard a consistent message from counties that they want flexibility in terms of early voting sites.

“People talk about one size doesn’t fit all,” he said.

Detzner asked Snipes about the number of days and hours she would like to see for early voting. Snipes said that she preferred the 14 days allowed before the Legislature passed H.B. 1355 in 2011 that limited it to eight days.

“I like the 14 days, and I like Sunday before the election,” Snipes said. She mentioned that African-American churches in the past organized “Souls to the Polls” to encourage church-goers to go to early voting after church on the Sunday before election day. But that day of early voting was eliminated by the Legislature. She also said some voters prefer that day simply because they “wait until the last minute.”

“When you have something and take it away it creates issues,” Snipes said. “My preference would be to have 14 days.”

But Snipes said if she had the full two weeks and more flexibility in terms of sites, she could accommodate early voting in a 10 hour day rather than 12 hours. In reality, that still can mean longer than a 10-hour day because voters in line at closing time still get the opportunity to vote.

On Tuesday, Detzner met with Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez and Elections Supervisor Penelope Townsley. They asked Detzner to relay three requests to Tallahassee to try to fix last month’s elections woes:

Extend the number of early-voting days. Allow early-voting sites to open at locations other than public libraries and city halls. And cap the number of words in state constitutional amendments on the ballot.

They told him those changes to state law could help prevent some of the embarrassing problems that plagued the Nov. 6 presidential election, in which some Miami-Dade voters waited in line for seven hours and wrangled with a 10- to 12-page ballot.

“We can’t have any more ‘one-size-fits-all’ elections,” Gimenez said.

Separately, Gimenez has convened a local advisory group to make its own recommendations to the county and the state. The group, which is still awaiting the elections department’s after-action report, meets for the second time Friday.

Detzner, who praised Gimenez’s advisory committee, would not commit to any recommendations.

“We’re not here to find blame,” Detzner said. “We’re here to find solutions.”

He called giving counties flexibility on early-voting sites and hours a “universal theme,” and also recounted that other counties, in addition to Miami-Dade, reported problems with the post office delivering absentee ballots late.

And he agreed with Miami-Dade officials that fixes that might work for South Florida may not work elsewhere.

“The challenges in a large urban area like this are very different,” he said.

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Facebook revises privacy controls in effort to make them more accessible, comprehensible

SAN FRANCISCO – Facebook is trying to make its privacy controls easier to find and understand in an effort to turn the world’s largest social network into a more discreet place.

The fine-tuning announced Wednesday will include several revisions that will start rolling out to Facebook Inc.‘s more than 1 billion users in the next few weeks.

The biggest change will be a new “privacy shortcuts” section that will appear as a tiny lock on the right-hand side at the top of people’s news feeds. This feature offers a drop-down box where users will be able to get answers to common questions such as “Who can see my stuff?”

Other updates will include a tool that will enable individuals to review all the publicly available pictures identifying them on Facebook.

Social Media News Headlines – Yahoo! News

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Vampire Diaries O Come All Ye Faithful Exclusive Photo

With only one episode to go in 2012, The Vampire Diaries pulls out all the stops with Thursday's mid-season finale, O Come All Ye Faithful.

And while the show has given fans countless reasons to be joyous this year (Elena as a vampire, the return of Caroline & Stefan's friendship, a beefed up role for Matt), the citizens of Mystic Falls have continued to face death, destruction and diddling sired vampires. OK, that last one is also a reason for fan celebration.

VIDEO - Gabby Douglas Interviews Nina Dobrev

This ETonline exclusive behind-the-scenes photo from Thursday's episode shows Elena and Professor Shane facing off with an ax-wielding Damon on the dock of her parent's lake house. Along with Bonnie, the three have traveled there to try and help Jeremy conquer some dangerous inner demons. Like those pesky Hunter spirits that make him want to kill his sister.

But that plan gets thrown for a loop when Professor Shane reveals a piece of ancient history that leaves them all speechless.

RELATED - Julie Plec Talks Season 4 End Game

Jaws will also be dropping once Klaus learns some shocking information that leads to chaos and violence on the streets of Mystic Falls, coating their Winter Wonderland-themed party with blood. Although why that town continues to throw events is beyond me since every single one ends with someone dying.

Check out a sneak peek of O Come All Ye Faithful below and tune in to The Vampire Diaries mid-season finale Thursday at 8 p.m. on The CW.

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B'klyn cops probing stolen Jesus statue as hate crime

A religious statue was snatched from a Brooklyn church -- and cops are investigating it as a hate crime, police said.

A thief ripped a statue of the sacred heart of Jesus in Williamsburg at the Saints Peter and Paul church on South 3rd Street near Berry Street about 4:10 a.m. Wednesday, according to the rectory and cops.

The Hate Crimes Task Force is investigating the heist, poring over surveillance video from the church.

The statue shows Jesus pointing at his heart, the church said. It has been a part of the rectory for twelve years.

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The first wave of Windows 8 PCs

We’ve been benchmarking and field-testing new Windows 8 systems, including all-in-one desktops, traditional clamshell laptops and convertible laptops with displays that flip or twist around to form tabletlike devices.

Dell XPS One 27

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent)

The good: Boasts the highest-display resolution among Windows 8 all-in-ones, and at an aggressive price.

The bad: A new adjustable display support arm is welcome, but stops short of reclining a full 90 degrees.

The cost: $1,999.99 to $2,099

The bottom line: Updated with a touch screen, a new stand and up-to-date components, the Dell XPS One 27 leads the inaugural class of Windows 8 PCs.

HP Envy TouchSmart Ultrabook 4

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 (Very good)

The good: An attractive ultrabook with a respectable mix of components for its price, a responsive touch screen and a backlit keyboard.

The bad: It isn’t very configurable, so you can’t make it too much more powerful than it already is. It’s on the heavy side for an “ultrabook” (if you consider 4.5 pounds heavy). Its touch pad is jumpy at default settings.

The cost: $799.99 to $974.98

The bottom line: The HP Envy TouchSmart Ultrabook 4 is a good gateway to the Windows 8 experience with a responsive touch screen in a traditional laptop body.

Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 13

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 (Excellent)

The good: Looks as good as any 13-inch ultrabook, with the added attraction of a 360-degree screen and a laptop body that can fold into a tent, stand or slate.

The bad: Tablet mode leaves the keyboard exposed, and the Yoga 13 costs more than standard ultrabooks with similar components.

The cost: $1,099

The bottom line: The Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 13 is a convertible touch-screen laptop/tablet that most importantly doesn’t compromise the traditional laptop experience.

Microsoft Surface RT

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 (Very good)

The good: Interface is innovative, elegant, powerful, and versatile. The tablet feels strong and well-built, includes Office 2013 and offers rich video and music services. Its keyboard cover accessories are the best ways to type on a tablet, period.

The bad: The tablet has sluggish performance, its Windows Store is a ghost town, Metro requires some practice to get the hang of and the desktop interface feels clunky and useless.

The cost: $499 to $599

The bottom line: If you’re an early adopter willing to forget everything you know about navigating a computer, the Surface tablet could replace your laptop. Everyone else: wait for more apps.

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Captured on camera: Driver who hit Miami motorcycle officer lied about second driver

A driver who struck a Miami police motorcycle officer leading a funeral motorcade on Monday lied when he said he first swerved to miss another driver, who then fled.

How was the deception caught? Red-light camera footage of the accident, Miami police said on Tuesday.

The accident sent Officer Juancarlos Erigoyen to the hospital with an injured shoulder.

After the noon-time crash, Hector Ramirez, 49, of Miami, said he struck the officer with his pick-up avoiding a collision with another northbound vehicle at the intersection of West Flagler Street and 37th Avenue.

Ramirez told police the vehicle was driven by a elderly person in “a sky blue or light gray colored, four-door vehicle.”

Miami police began a search for the hit-and-run driver.

But the video showed the driver didn’t exist. Ramirez sideswiped the officer when he tried to make an illegal left turn onto Flagler Street. At the time, the officer was riding on the median ahead of the funeral procession, readying to stop traffic on Flagler.

“The footage captured the defendant’s vehicle, and others around him, stopped in traffic due to a red light...the defendant’s vehicle is seen crossing a double solid yellow line and into the path of Officer Erigoyen as he escorted the funeral procession,” police said in a news release.

Ramirez has been cited for failure to yield to an emergency vehicle.

He also faces criminal charges for providing false information in a crash report.

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James Van Der Beek on 'Dancing with the Stars' on 'Don't Trust the B in Apartment 23'

James Van Der Beek has yet to take on Dancing with the Stars in real life but he gets an opportunity to do so while playing a caricature version of himself on Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23.

"The real me has never done 'Dancing with the Stars' but that doesn't mean the 'Apartment 23' me can't do it," Van Der Beek said of the upcoming episode. "The 'Apartment 23' version of me a kind of an attention whore...He gets offered 'Dancing with the Stars' and immediately he takes it incredibly seriously."

VIDEO: James Van Der Beek Loves His BJ's

The former Dawson's Creek star revealed that it took him about two months to perfect the dance moves with a professional choreographer. As Van Der Beek displays in the clip shown in the video, he has some impressive dance moves, and while he doesn't have the time to compete on the real Dancing, he doesn't rule out the possibility of joining the show in the future.

"I'm pretty busy right now, but we'll see. It could be fun," the 35-year-old actor said. "I have been asked [before]; I've always been too busy working...I've talked to people who've done it [and] they said it's the craziest thing they've ever done, but it looks like it would be fun."

RELATED: James Van Der Beek Welcomes Baby Boy

Competing against Van Der Beek in the faux Dancing with the Stars is Dean Cain, who is paired with real-life Dancing professional Karina Smirnoff, whom Van Der Beek said he like to dance with if selected for the show.

"I think both James and Dean are doing amazing," Smirnoff said. "The cha-cha is a hard dance...James is doing a lot of hip action that I did not see on 'Dawson's Creek.'"

"James is so funny in this show and he's so good in his dance," Cain added. "When we're sitting here watching him and reacting like he's fantastic, he really is fantastic. It's something to see. I got to take my hat off [to him]."

VIDEO: Karina Smirnoff Rips Open William Levy's Shirt

Check out the video for a preview and watch the full Dancing with the Stars episode of Don' Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 tonight at 9:30 on ABC.

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Midtown killer seen moment before gunning down victim in broad daylight

DCPI

Victim Brandon Woodard, inset, is seen on his phone moments before his killer, on the left and pulling his gun from his pocket, shoots him in broad daylight.

He stepped out this car with murder on his mind.

The NYPD just released this chilling photo, showing a gunman about the execute a Midtown pedestrian.

Los Angeles resident Brandon Lincoln Woodard had no idea he was about to be murdered by this man in the black hooded sweatshirt, walking behind him on 58th Street.

SEE A MAP OF HOW THE MURDER WENT DOWN

Cops also released security video of Woodard's killer arriving at the crime scene about 10 minutes earlier. The gunman could be seen exiting the passenger side door of his Lincoln sedan getaway car on 58th Street.

He then nonchalantly donned the hood of his black sweatshirt in preparation for the kill.

Woodard, 31, was blasted in he back of his dead, at close range, with one round from a silver semiautomatic, according to police.

Woodard's killer is believed to be bald and might have had a beard, when he carried out the seemingly planned hit on 58th between Seventh Avenue and Broadway at about 2 p.m. .

The shooter disappeared as if he were “a ghost,’’ one witness said.

After fleeing, the gunman coolly hopped into a waiting light-colored Lincoln sedan, with a getaway driver behind the wheel.

The car headed east but initially was caught in traffic and stopped at a red light at the intersection.

But both coldblooded riders didn’t panic and stayed inside the car — just feet from Woodard’s body — before turning down Seventh Avenue and disappearing.

“There was no rush,” NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said of Woodard’s killer. “He just walked up, shot him and walked away.”

A police source said the shooting was “definitely a hit, an assassination.”

Investigators are probing a possible connection to drug dealing.

Woodard was charged with cocaine possession in California last June and has prior arrests for robbery, petty theft and leaving the scene of an accident.

Police are also exploring to what extent Woodard — who once claimed he was roughed up by bodyguards working for R&B superstar Usher — had ties to the music industry, law-enforcement sources said.

Woodard, who was wearing a black suit, was dead on arrival at Roosevelt Hospital.

David Mirambeau, 29, a UPS worker delivering packages, said the sound of the gunshot reverberated down the street.

David McGlynn

Police investigate the scene where a man was executed on West 58th St.

“I just heard a gunshot. It was loud. There was blood all over his face,” he said of Woodard. “He was gasping for air. He was still alive.”

Mirambeau said several cellphones and an iPod lay near the man’s body.

Witnesses ran to a firehouse at 215 W. 58th St. to say a man had been shot.

“I ran over to the Fire Department, banged on the door, and they came out immediately,” said Benny Harris, 44.

“Within minutes, they were cutting the guy’s clothes off,” he said.

“We didn’t see the perp,” Harris added. “We all ran over there, and nobody was around. He must’ve been a ghost.”

A single shell casing was recovered, police said.

Relatives poured into the Woodard family home in LA to pay condolences, but declined to comment.

“Brandon was a wonderful man — kind heart, smart, good person,” said family friend Chrissy Roussel, who added that Woodard was attending Whittier Law School in California and was visiting friends in New York.

Woodward’s father, J. Lincoln Woodard, 72, said, “It was a shock.”

The victim worked at United International Mortgage, an LA firm founded by his mother, Sandra McBeth-Reynolds.

Additional reporting by Chuck Bennett, Matthew McNulty and Jamie Schram in New York and Genevieve Wong in Los Angeles

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Diageo moving office to Coral Gables

Diageo will move its Miami office to Coral Gables in the fall of 2013.

The world’s leading spirits company will move from its current office at Blue Lagoon when its lease ends and relocate to 396 Alhambra Circle in Coral Gables.

Diageo has 175 people based in its Miami office, the majority of whom work for the Latin American and Caribbean region that is headquartered in Miami. The company has signed a 10-year lease in Coral Gables at 296 Alhambra, which is owned by Agave Holdings. The 32,527 square foot office has received LEED Silver and Gold certification.

“The new office is an important hub for not only Diageo North America, but also serves as the gateway to Latin America and our successful – and growing – business there,” said Randy Millian, Diageo President, Latin America and Caribbean. “We are excited to join the Coral Gables community.”

With the completion of the Diageo lease, the 282,000-square-foot Coral Gables office building is now 65 percent lease just one year after its opening. Diageo will join a roster of existing tenants that includes HBO Latin America, Millicom International Services, law firm Richman Greer, Banco Pichincha and CitiBank

“The addition of Diageo strengthens 396 Alhambra’s standing as the Class A address of choice for major multinational users in the Coral Gables market,” said Danet Linares, executive vice president at Blanca Commercial Real Estate, which represented Agave in the transaction.

“Diageo’s decision to relocate to Coral Gables reaffirms that the area is a vibrant business center for the greater Miami area,” said Jose Antonio Perez Helguera, managing director for Agave Holdings.

Danet Linares and Andres del Corral of Blanca Commercial Real Estate represented 396 Alhambra in the transaction, while Joe Garvey of CLW Real Estate Group represented Diageo.

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Report on Dozier School raises new questions about deaths

About100 boys may have died between 1900 and 1960 at a controversial youth prison in the Florida Panhandle, including seven boys who perished following escape attempts, according to a new report that raises troubling questions about the now-shuttered Dozier School for Boys.

As state juvenile justice administrators seek to sell the Dozier property in rural Marianna, researchers with the University of South Florida conducted an exhaustive archeological and historical analysis of the site in an effort to locate the burial grounds of children. In a 114-page report released Monday morning, researchers conclude that a minimum of 98 children died at Dozier between 1911 and 1973.

The largest burial ground is on the north side of the prison camp, next to a garbage dump on what for years was called Dozier’s “colored” section. Though the cemetery holds 31 graves marked with PVC pipe crosses, the report said the markers do not correspond to the actual interments, and it is likely that more than 31 children are buried there.

Dozier, which opened as the Florida State Reform School on Jan. 1, 1900, remained in continuous operations until June 30, 2011, when the state Department of Juvenile Justice shut it down amid a years-long controversy over the physical and sexual abuse of children.

In the fall of 2008, a dozen middle-aged men from throughout the state came forward and said they were raped or mercilessly beaten — or both — at the Marianna campus. The “White House Boys” — as some of the men dubbed themselves after the squat white-washed cottage where they were whipped, sometimes 100 times or more — have since spawned at least two books and a movement to extract some type of compensation from the Florida Legislature.

In October 2008, about a half-dozen of the men returned to Dozier. There, DJJ administrators, along with staff working there at the time, dedicated a plaque outside the building and planted a young crepe myrtle tree alongside the now decrepit White House building. Some of the men sobbed as they toured the inside of the cottage, where they described brutal beatings to a small gathering of reporters.

Records at Dozier that were reviewed by the university show that 54 children people were buried on the school grounds, and 31 were shipped elsewhere for burial. School administrators did not record the burial location for 22 other children.

Prison records suggest administrators may have minimized the number of deaths that occurred there in reports to the state — especially when it came to white children.

Biennial reports to state lawmakers early in the 20th century “often listed fewer deaths than what is listed in the school ledgers,” the report said. In a July 1926 report, for example, the school superintendent told lawmakers that four children had died in 1925 and 1926 — all of them black youths. But school ledgers showed six children had died during that time, including two white boys.

One of the boys whose death was not listed in 1926 was a child named Thomas Curry, a white boy who, a death certificate says, died of blunt trauma to his head. Records said Curry died away from the prison campus after he escaped.

Records suggest boys who escaped from the North Florida prison often met a violent death: two boys who escaped died of blunt trauma, and two died of gunshot wounds to the head or chest. Two children died in collisions involving cars; one was listed as having been “run over by [an] automobile.”

Even in death, the black children at Dozier received unequal treatment: African-American children were three times more likely to be buried in an unspecified location than were their white peers, the report said.

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RIM teases BlackBerry 10 launch with image of first BB10 smartphone

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Beyonce Inks $50 Million Deal With Pepsi

Pepsi is back in business with Beyonce Knowles, and it only cost them $50 million!

The Super Bowl XLVII half-time headliner, 31, will be featured in a new Pepsi commercial and several appearances for the brand, The New York Times reports, but in addition, the company will also be involved in a few of Beyonce's creative projects.

Pepsi will promote Queen B's tour next year as well as the release of her new album in 2013.

RELATED PIC: Beyonce to Perform at Super Bowl Half-Time Show

This isn't the first time Beyonce and Pepsi have worked together. Check out the pop princess' 2003 commercial, below:

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'Batman shooter' asked for notebook days after theater massacre

CENTENNIAL, Colo. - Authorities say that attorneys for the Colorado movie shooting suspect called the University of Colorado four days after the attack and asked the school return a package that James Holmes had sent to his psychiatrist.

CU Police Chief Douglas Abraham said the call alerted them to the presence of the unopened package in the campus mail room. He made the disclosure during a hearing Monday.

Holmes was silent during the hearing. He is charged with killing 12 people and injuring 58 others in a crowded theater in July.

AFP/Getty Images

James Holmes

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AutoNation: Back in the fast lane with expansion, higher sales

• AutoNation’s announcement December 4 that it was acquiring six auto stores in Texas, its second most important market after Florida, forms part of the company’s national growth strategy.

• AutoNation operates in 15 states and, according to CEO Mike Jackson, prefers to build its brand network in existing markets rather than expand to new markets. It grows either by acquisitions or by obtaining new franchises from manufacturers. Some recent acquisitions:

• The purchase of Audi, Chrysler, Dodge Ram, Jeep, Porsche and Volkswagen dealerships in the Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth markets, announced December 4, is projected to increase the company’s revenue by about $575 million per year in the Lone Star State, which accounted for 20 percent of revenue last year. The outlets are expected to sell about 14,000 new and used autos this year.

• In early 2011, AutoNation bought a Toyota dealership in Fort Myers with annual sales of $135 million.

• In 2006, the company made its largest purchase prior to the December acquisition: a Mercedes-Benz store in Pompano Beach that had annual revenues of $230 million.

Source: AutoNation

South Florida auto dealers

Despite an agonizingly slow economic recovery, the country’s largest auto retailer, Fort Lauderdale-based AutoNation, is thriving again as demand for vehicles expands.

The company, one of Florida’s largest, is posting increasingly strong profits and revenues. Just last week, in a sign of confidence, Autonation announced a major acquisition — buying six large auto stores in Texas — that will add about 700 employees to its national payroll of 19,400.

In announcing the deal Tuesday, which is expected to provide AutoNation with $575 million in additional revenues next year, the company’s CEO and chairman, Mike Jackson, expressed optimism about the prospects for continued growth in vehicle sales.

“You want to know what I’m thinking, look at what I do,” Jackson told viewers on CNBC’s Squawk Box program.

No information was released on the cost of the transactions, but in recent years auto dealerships sometimes sold for three to five times revenue, which would represent a significant investment for the company.

Tough times

To be sure, AutoNation has struggled through some tough times. It was battered by the Great Recession, which depressed sales and pushed the company into a $1.2 billion loss four years ago. As sales began to improve in 2010 and 2011, it was blindsided by a shortage of Japanese-made cars last year after the earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 shut down Japanese manufacturers of some essential components.

Since then, however, AutoNation has rebounded. Unit sales, revenues and profits all performed well in the first three quarters of this year, and the company expects new vehicle sales to continue their recovery nationwide, rising to the mid-14 million units this year, up from about 12.7 million in 2011. In the third quarter of 2012, AutoNation’s new car unit sales grew by 21 percent over the same period in 2011, doing better than an estimated 15 percent increase industry wide. November’s sales of new vehicles increased by 21 percent over November 2011 .

The big dealerships acquired sell Audi, Porsche, Volkswagen and Chrysler products in the Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth markets. They are expected to sell 14,000 new and used autos this year, and will add substantially to AutoNation’s future sales.

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State scraps plan to have private vendors make license tags

TALLAHASSEE --
Backing away from a possible court fight, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles announced Friday that it will halt its attempt to bid license tag services to private vendors.

Tax collectors — who distribute state tags — and two manufacturing groups tried to block the change by lobbying elected officials and filing legal action against the department.

Highway Safety Chief Julie Jones had wanted to save money by paying private companies $31.4 million over two years to make tags and distribute mail and online orders, but she abandoned the idea under pressure from Attorney General Pam Bondi and Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater, among others.

“We listened to what everyone had to say, considered questions that vendors posed and received information from our tax collector partners,” Jones said. “Based on the input, we have decided to withdraw [efforts to privatize].”

The decision will keep Florida out of administrative court, which is where it seemed headed Tuesday after department lawyers shut down tax collectors’ requests to retract its invitation to bidders.

Jones’ change of heart earned praise from Bondi, who said the department “did the right thing.”

Manufacturing company Avery Dennison and St. Petersburg-based PRIDE, a nonprofit organization that uses prisoners to manufacture tags, filed formal protests and met with state officials this week.

For them, the state’s decision may only be a temporary victory.

Stephen Hurm, an attorney for the state highway agency, told tax collectors Friday the department will not seek to privatize plate distribution but could reignite the push as early as January to bid out the manufacturing role.

The state may want to switch from raised tags to the more modern flat tags that are thought to be more legible for red light and toll cameras. PRIDE doesn’t have the equipment to make flat tags.

Hillsborough County Tax Collector Doug Belden says he will fight the state if it moves to exclude PRIDE.

“Why change a system that is working well and that customers enjoy? My job as an elected official is to provide the most friendly, capable customer service for the best price. We’re doing that,” said Belden, who criticized Jones for excluding tax collectors in her decisions.

Belden, along with PRIDE lobbyist Wilbur Brewton, argue that flat tags are no easier to read and are more expensive — which will result in more fees for motorists. The company may try to invest in new technology if that’s what it takes to continue working with the state, Brewton said.

“Is the equipment currently sitting in the plant to do it? No,” he said. “This could cause harm, but we would have to calculate that once we see the details.”

Jones hasn’t committed to any tag — flat or raised, she said. She just wants something legible and well-priced.

“We want to get the best product moving into the future in terms of technology, but at a cost that’s affordable,” Jones said. “This is going to be done in a cost-effective manner.”

The controversy over the tags is not expected to stall a planned redesign.

Floridians can continue to vote on four designs for a new state tag at Vote4FloridaTag.com. About 50,000 people have weighed in. The deadline is Dec. 14.

Brittany Alana Davis

can be reached at bdavis@tampabay.com .

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Software guru McAfee did not have heart attack: lawyer

GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) – Software pioneer John McAfee did not have a heart attack in Guatemala as originally thought, but is suffering from stress and hypertension, his lawyer Telesforo Guerra said on Thursday.

“He never had a heart attack. Nothing like that,” Guerra said in Guatemala City. “I’m not a doctor. I’m just telling you what the doctors told me. He was suffering from stress, hypertension and tachycardia (an abnormally rapid heartbeat).”

After being rushed to a hospital in an ambulance on Thursday, McAfee, 67, was later spirited out of the building out of sight of reporters and into a police patrol car, Guerra said.

McAfee, who is fighting deportation from Guatemala, was detained on Wednesday after crossing illegally into the country from neighboring Belize. Police in Belize want to question McAfee in connection with his neighbor’s murder.

Earlier, Guerra said McAfee had suffered two mild heart attacks in the morning.

(Reporting by Lomi Kriel; Editing by Stacey Joyce)

Internet News Headlines – Yahoo! News

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How They Pulled Off 'The Impossible'

The true story of the devastating 2004 tsunami that consumed the coast of Phuket, Thailand -- and how one family survived it -- is reenacted by Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor in The Impossible. Watch the video to go behind the scenes...

Video: Tsunami Survivor Petra Nemcova Reacts to Latest Disaster in Japan

In theaters December 21, The Impossible finds Naomi as Maria and Ewan as her husband Henry, who are enjoying their winter vacation in Thailand with their three sons. On the day after Christmas, their relaxing holiday in paradise becomes an exercise in terror and survival when their beachside hotel is pummeled by an extraordinary, unexpected tsunami.

Video: Watch the Trailer for 'The Impossible'

The Impossible tracks just what happens when this close family and tens of thousands of strangers must come together to grapple with the mayhem and aftermath of one of the worst natural catastrophes of our time.

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'Skyfall' narrowly tops weekend box office with estimated $11 million

LOS ANGELES — James Bond is in a box-office photo finish with Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny.

According to studio estimates Sunday, the Bond tale "Skyfall" took in $11 million to move back to No. 1 in its fifth weekend.

That puts it narrowly ahead of "Rise of the Guardians," the animated adventure of Santa, the Easter Bunny and other mythological heroes that pulled in $10.5 million.

The two movies inched ahead of "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 2," which had been tops for three-straight weekends. The "Twilight" finale earned $9.2 million, slipping into a tight race for No. 3 with "Lincoln," which was close behind with $9.1 million.

AP

Daniel Craig in a scene from "Skyfall"

The only new wide release, Gerard Butler's romantic comedy "Playing for Keeps," flopped with $6 million, coming in at No. 6.

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Events showcase Miami’s growth as tech center

One by one, representatives from six startup companies walked onto the wooden stage and presented their products or services to a full house of about 200 investors, mentors, and other supporters Thursday at Incubate Miami’s DemoDay in the loft-like Grand Central in downtown Miami. With a large screen behind them projecting their graphs and charts, they set out to persuade the funders in the room to part with some of their green and support the tech community.

Just 24 hours later, from an elaborate “dojo stage,” a drummer warmed up the crowd of several hundred before a “Council of Elders” entered the ring to share wisdom as the all-day free event opened. Called TekFight, part education, part inspiration, and part entertainment, the martial arts-inspired program challenged entrepreneurs to earn points to “belt up” throughout the day to meet with the “masters” of the tech community.

The two events, which kicked off Innovate MIA week, couldn’t be more different. But in their own ways, like a one-two punch, they exuded the spirit and energy growing in the startup community.

One of the goals of the TekFight event was to introduce young entrepreneurs and students to the tech community, because not everyone has found it yet and it’s hard to know where to start, said Saif Ishoof, the executive director of City Year Miami who co-founded TekFight as a personal project. And throughout the event, he and co-founder Jose Antonio Hernandez-Solaun, as well as Binsen J. Gonzalez and Jeff Goudie, wanted to find creative, engaging ways to offer participants access to some of the community’s most successful leaders.

That would include Alberto Dosal, chairman of CompuQuip Technologies; Albert Santalo, founder and CEO of CareCloud; Jorge Plasencia, chairman and CEO of Republica; Jaret Davis, co-managing shareholder of Greenberg Traurig; and more than two dozen other business and community leaders who shared their war stories and offered advice. Throughout the day, the event was live-streamed on the Web, a TekFight app created by local entrepreneur and UM student Tyler McIntyre kept everyone involved in the tournament and tweets were flying — with #TekFight trending No. 1 in the Miami area for parts of the day. “Next time Art Basel will know not to try to compete with TekFight,” Ishoof quipped.

‘Miami is a hotbed’

After a pair of Chinese dragons danced through the audience, Andre J. Gudger, director for the U.S. Department of Defense Office of Small Business Programs, entered the ring. “I’ve never experienced an event like this,” Gudger remarked. “Miami is a hotbed for technology but nobody knew it.”

Gudger shared humorous stories and practical advice on ways to get technology ideas heard at the highest levels of the federal government. “Every federal agency has a director over small business — find out who they are,” he said. He has had plenty of experience in the private sector: Gudger, who wrote his first computer program on his neighbor’s computer at the age of 12, took one of his former companies from one to 1,300 employees.

There were several rounds that pitted an entrepreneur against an investor, such as Richard Grundy, of the tech startup Flomio, vs. Jonathan Kislak, of Antares Capital, who asked Grundy, “why should I give you money?”

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