As Conn. story unfolds, media struggle with facts

The scope and senselessness of the Newtown, Conn., school shooting challenged journalists' ability to do much more than lend, or impose, their presence on the scene.Pressed with the awful urgency of the story, television, along with other media, fell prey to reporting "facts" that were often in conflict or wrong.How many people were killed?...

Chicano rock pioneers Los Lobos marking 40 years

They are seen as the progenitors of Chicano rock 'n' roll, the first band that had the boldness, and some might even say the naiveté, to fuse punk rock with Mexican folk tunes. It was a group called Los Lobos that had the unusual idea of putting an accordion, a saxophone and something called a bajo sexto alongside drums and Fender Stratocaster...

School shooting postpones Cruise premiere in Pa.

The U.S. premiere of the Tom Cruise action movie "Jack Reacher" is being postponed following the deadly Connecticut school shooting. Paramount Pictures says "out of honor and respect for the families of the victims" the premiere won't take place Saturday in Pittsburgh, where "Jack Reacher" was filmed. The premiere would've been Cruise's...

Owner of Rivera plane being investigated by DEA

The company that owns a luxury jet that crashed and killed Latin music star Jenni Rivera is under investigation by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and the agency seized two of its planes earlier this year as part of the ongoing probe. DEA spokeswoman Lisa Webb Johnson confirmed Thursday the planes owned by Las Vegas-based Starwood...

Amanda Bynes enters settlement in hit - and - run case

Actress Amanda Bynes has resolved a misdemeanor hit-and-run case after entering into a civil settlement with other drivers. Court records show Bynes entered a civil compromise to end the case and her attorney informed a Los Angeles court on Thursday. Bynes was charged with leaving the scene of accidents in April and August without providing...

Final celebrity burglary defendant enters plea

The final defendant in a group charged with burglarizing celebrities' homes pleaded no contest Friday to receiving a jacket stolen from Paris Hilton. Courtney Leigh Ames entered the plea and is expected to be sentenced on Feb. 1 to three years of supervised probation and 60 days of community service. Prosecutors dropped felony residential...

Man arrested at Tenn. home tied to Taylor Swift

A man took a bus from Wisconsin to Nashville, climbed a fence at a home linked to singer Taylor Swift on Friday and told police he was there to surprise a woman on her birthday, authorities said. He is jailed on a trespassing charge. The singer, who is overseas, turned 23 Thursday. Court documents show 24-year-old Jacob Nicholas Kulke,...

'Casablanca' piano sells in NY for more than $600K

The piano used for the song "As Times Goes By" in the classic 1942 film "Casablanca" has fetched more than $600,000 at auction. The 58-key upright was sold to an unidentified buyer for $602,500 at Sotheby's New York on Friday. Its pre-sale estimate was up to $1.2 million. It was offered by a Japanese collector on the film's 70th anniversary. The...

Common brings awareness to help free Peltier

When Harry Belafonte asked Common to participate in a benefit concert in support of freeing Native American activist Leonard Peltier, who is serving two life sentences for the 1975 execution-style deaths of two FBI agents, he did some research before giving his answer.  "I did my own due diligence," Common said in a telephone interview...

From 'Sherlock' to 'Star Trek' for Cumberbatch

Benedict Cumberbatch has had a busy 24 hours. The British actor was nominated for a Golden Globe, chased by the paparazzi in London and unveiled the first nine minutes of the new "Star Trek" movie Friday. At a special IMAX presentation of the footage in London, Cumberbatch's menacing character John Harrison was introduced at the beginning...