Friday, June 10, 2016

Madagascar: On the hunt for sharks


Everything Wrong With Madagascar In 12 Minutes Or Less

Mozambique Channel,Madagascar - Driven by the collapse of local fisheries, increasing weather extremes and poverty, as well as the opportunity to earn money by selling shark fins and sea cucumbers to the Chinese market, thefishermen of southwest Madagascar have been leavingtheir homes in increasing numbers and migrating greater distances to places where they can still find productive fishinggrounds.

In the year 2015, natural disasters displaced nearly 19.2 million people, more than twice the number who became refugees due to conflicts and wars.

An increasing number of people are forced from their homes by environmental change - drought, cyclones, rising sea levels and collapsing natural environments that can no longer sustain them.By 2050 they will number anything from 50 million to 200 million because of global climate change.

The fishermen travel to the most remote parts of Madagascars west coast. Often living far offshore on tiny islands in the Mozambique Channel, they eke out a living in places with no potable water or food and no access to hospitals or schools.

READ MORE: The endangered lifeline of Madagascar"s sharks

Even in these remote seas, industrial, big-scale fishingundermines the marine ecosystem. And although they have fished in the waters for generations, the fishermen of Madagascar have no formal claim to the seas they depend on for a livelihood. The establishment of protected marine areas furtherclose off vital fishing grounds to them.

Blue Ventures, a marine conservation NGO, and the traditional fishermen are working with the Madagascar government to create a network of community-managed marine areas. By giving traditional fishermen management rights over their fisheries and protecting them from over-exploitation by outsiders, they hope to restore the fisheries.

Source: http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/inpictures/2016/06/madagascar-hunt-sharks-160608054336332.html

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Hillary Clinton and Elizabeth Warren Huddle for 66 Minutes


Elizabeth Warren DESTROYS Donald Trump During ACS Convention

Sen. Elizabeth Warren huddled with Hillary Clinton at the presumptive Democratic nominee"s Washington, D.C., home this morning, the day after the Massachusetts Democrat endorsed Clinton"s bid for the White House.

Warren"s visit to Clinton"s home lasted 66 minutes. As she departed, the Massachusetts Democrat ignored shouted questions from the media about what the two discussed in their meeting.

In announcing her support for Clinton during an interview with MSNBC"s Rachel Maddow Thursday night, Warren said she"s "ready to get into this fight" to support Clinton and take on Donald Trump. The endorsement came after Warren had remained neutral throughout the Democratic Party primary.

Warren"s support could be significant to Clinton as she looks to appeal to Bernie Sanders constituency, even as the Vermont senator has yet to exit the race. Warren, like Sanders, is considered a rising star in the Democratic Party for her advocacy on economic equality issues and taking on Wall Street.

Warren has been seen as a possible vice presidential candidate for Clinton. Asked about the speculation Thursday night, Warren said, "no," she had not heard from Clinton or her campaign about whether she is under consideration for the position and added that she loves her Senate job.

On Tuesday night, during an exclusive interview with ABC News shortly before giving her acceptance speech, Clinton praised Warren and didn"t rule out the prospect of having her on the ticket.

"I"m not going to get into vice presidential choices, Clinton said, but I have the highest regard for Senator Warren.

Source: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/hillary-clinton-elizabeth-warren-huddle-66-minutes/story?id%3D39756833

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Earthquake today news: Strong tremors felt in Delhi, other north Indian regions


EARTHQUAKE 6.4 HIT TAIWAN TODAY FEBRUARY 5, 2016

New Delhi: Strong tremors were felt across north India including Jammu, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and New Delhi after a powerful earthquake hit off the remote northern region of Afghanistan on Sunday afternoon.

According to USGS reports, the earthquake was measured 6.6 on the Richter scale and its epicenter was in the Hindukush mountain range, 282 km northeast of Kabul in Afghanistan.

The tremors occurred at 3:58 pm and were felt across north India, including Delhi, Chandigarh, Srinagar and in Kabul and Islamabad. People ran out of their houses and assembled in open areas.

There was no report of any loss of any loss of life or damage to property.

Meanwhile, Delhi metro was stopped temporarily as a precautionary measure after the strong tremors were felt.

Further details awaited.

Source: http://zeenews.india.com/news/india/6-6-magnitude-earthquake-hits-delhi-other-north-indian-regions-today_1874503.html

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"Warcraft" Sets China Record For Biggest Thursday Ever; Crushes $90M+ In 2 Days


WARCRAFT Movie Trailer (2016)

UPDATE, THURSDAY, 8:42 AM PT: Day two of Warcrafts China invasion came on strong with a current range of $44.5M-$46.5M (292M-305M rmb). That gives the Legendary/Universal fantasy actioner the biggest Thursday box office of all time in the Middle Kingdom, splashing past the record set by The Mermaid (249M rmb) earlier this year. That film went on to become the highest grosser ever in the market at a USD exchange of $527M. Averaging out todays dollar range, the Duncan Jones-helmed Warcraft drops just 1% from Wednesday; if the high-end holds, it grows by 1%. Todays play which saw Warcraft dominate 81% of all turnstile spins gives the feature adaptation of Blizzard Entertainments video game a mainland China total of $90.6M-$92.2M (595M-605M rmb) and counting. The rest of international is at $78M through Wednesday.

The film passed the 500M rmb milestone at 4:46 PM local time this afternoon which is believed also to be a record. Only two other films have ever passed that benchmark in their first two days of release: The Mermaid in February, and Universals own Furious 7 last April. Based on current numbers, this is the first time in history that a film has exceeded 600M rmb in two days. Prior to the Azerothians, the two-day record was held by the F7 crew with 586M rmb.

Warcrafts performance out of the gate is stunning, but not necessarily a huge surprise in this market where advance ticket sales were through the roof. The game has a long history in China where fantasy is big even the local title for World of Warcraft translates to World of Magical Beasts and the move to get it on screens during a key holiday was a prescient play. Its also got a lot of local muscle behind it in the form of Legendary owner Wanda (which also owns 18% of PROC screens) and the films Chinese equity and brand partners. Weekend projections are steadily rising from the mooted high-end of $150M

PREVIOUS, WEDNESDAY 9:16 AM PT: Warcraft blasted out of the gate today in China with $46M(302M rmb) at the box office as of 10 PM local time. The Legendary Pictures/Universal Pictures adaptation of the popular video game franchise set a record for the best first-day box office for a non-weekend release in the Middle Kingdom. The previous title holder was Avengers: Age Of Ultron with $28.3M (185.86 rmb).

The midnight screenings, which began Tuesday, posted $7.6M (49.78M rmb), falling just shy of Furious 7s record which was set last year with $7.9M (52.47M rmb). In Imax, however, the Orcs bit down on a record for midnights with $1.38M (9.03M rmb). Including Imaxmidnights, Warcraft posted $5.33M (35M rmb) for the full opening day, hitting a new milestone for the format. That tops F7s $4.7M (31M rmb) from last April. Overall advance Imaxticket sales also bested all previous comers with $8.2M (53.8M rmb).

Opening estimates on Warcrafts five-day launch, which comes during a holiday period, have been hovering between 800M rmb and 1B rmb which would put the range at $122M-$152M. It now looks more than likely that the citizens of Azeroth blow past the high end of those industry projections kids are off and the Dragon Boat Festival begins tomorrow.

The Duncan Jones-helmed feature also sets a new milestone for the widest release ever in the Middle Kingdom, playing on an unprecedented 67.5% of all screens. The previous record holder for widest release was Universals own F7 last year. It bowed on 62.8% of screens and went on to final at $391M, becoming the biggest Hollywood title ever in China.

Wanda now owns Legendary, and its exhibition circuit has 18% of the 39K Middle Kingdom screens. That relationship clearly is helping here, while others booked Warcraft with gusto in the market which has a long history and love for the games.

Legendarys local release partners are China Film Group and Huaxia. Warcraft has four Chinese equity partners: Tencent, CFG, Huayi and Taihe. Universal is understood to be in for about 25%-30% of the full reported $160M budget and will reap the benefits of all releases as part of the overall pie. After beginning international rollout on May 25, and with strong plays in Russia and Germany, the current estimated overseas cume is $121M.

The film is set for domestic release Friday with projections of about $25M for the weekend. If Warcraft continues its magical ride as expected in China, it kicks off the Legendary/Wanda relationship in a big way. It also potentially sends a signal that films which have great uptake internationally and especially in China may not need rely on North America quite so much.

Source: http://deadline.com/2016/06/warcraft-china-record-opening-box-office-imax-results-1201769124/

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Thursday, June 9, 2016

May ratings: WFTV wins, WKMG gains, NBA scores


LeBron Scores a Career-High 61! Watch Every Made Field Goal!

In the May TV ratings for Orlando, WFTV-Channel 9 was the big winner, WKMG-Channel 6 was the main gainer, and the NBA made a major splash in prime time.

Retiring WFTV anchor Bob Opsahl, whose last newscast was 6 p.m. Wednesday, went out a ratings winner. He and Martha Sugalski were the leaders from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in total viewers as well as the 25-to-54 age group for the month.

In news ratings, 25-to-54 is the most important for advertisers. At 6 p.m., WFTV averaged 19,496 viewers in the age group. WKMG drew 13,978, WESH-Channel 2 pulled in 13,015 and WOFL-Channel 35 attracted 5,333. (The Sentinel has a content-sharing agreement with WOFL.)

But WKMG had an encouraging story to tell for the ratings period that ended Wednesday. The CBS affiliate"s 6 p.m. rating for 25-to-54 viewers was up 43 percent from last year while WFTV was off 44 percent, WESH was down 31 percent and WOFL drooped 20 percent. WKMG also grew from 4 to 6 p.m. while other stations were down.

WFTV won the age group in early morning, at noon, from 4 to 6:30 p.m. and at 11 p.m. WOFL was the winner at 10 p.m. and offered the most-watched local news from 7 to 9 a.m., when ABC"s "Good Morning America" and NBC"s "Today" were the leaders.

But prime time offered unusual wrinkles in May. WKMG, with CBS favorites like "NCIS" and "The Big Bang Theory," aired the most-watched schedule with all viewers. It was comfortably ahead of WESH with NBC ("The Voice") and WFTV with ABC ("Dancing With the Stars").

Yet the TV industry emphasizes reaching young adults, especially the 18-to-49 age group. For May, TNT ranked first in Central Florida"s young adults, thanks to NBA games. WFTV, bolstered by the Billboard Music Awards and "Modern Family," was second in young adults. It was followed by ESPN (more NBA), WKMG and WESH.

In 11 p.m. news, WFTV was the leader in the 25-to-54 age group but WKMG and WESH reached more viewers in all. With the 25-to-54 age group, WFTV averaged 19,308 viewers to WKMG"s 13,151 WESH"s 12,728 and WOFL"s 5,832. Yet all the stations were down, perhaps because of increased competition from cable.

WKMG is continuing to air a spot that it has the most-seen 11 p.m. news, and that is the case. In total viewers, WKMG averaged 66,487 viewers to WESH"s 62,672 and WFTV"s 58,017.

The most-seen local newscast overall was at 6 p.m., when WFTV averaged 126,034 total viewers. It was well ahead of WKMG"s 66,197, WESH"s 63,417 and WOFL"s 20,705. Greg Warmoth replaces Opsahl from 5 to 6:30 p.m. starting Thursday (today).

Source: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment/tv/tv-guy/os-may-ratings-wftv-wins-wkmg-gains-20160526-story.html

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Klay Thompson calls Timofey Mozgov "kinda dirty" after setting questionable pick


Postgame Warriors Talk - Klay Thompson 5.28.16

It looks like things might be getting testy between the Warriors and Cavaliers after Cleveland"s Game 3 blowout win Wednesday.

Late in the first quarter of the Cavs" 120-90 win, Cleveland big man Timofey Mozgov set a hard screen on Klay Thompson in the middle of the key. Thompson"s leg collided with Mozgov, sending the Warriors" All-Star guard to the floor.

Thompson stayed down for a few minutes and eventually went back to the locker room to have his leg checked. But Thompson felt this play was more than just an accidental collision.

"It seemed kinda dirty to me," Thompson said after the game. "To stick his knee out too, but you know what, that"s basketball."

Thompson finished with 10 points on 4 of 13 shooting from the field, including only 1 of 7 from deep. The Warriors will need a better effort from him and Steph Curry if they want to stay in control of this series.

Source: http://www.foxsports.com/nba/story/golden-state-warriors-klay-thompson-timofey-mozgov-kinda-dirty-questionable-pick-060816

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Scott Disick Jokes About Rumors Khloe Kardashian Is Having His Baby: "Fingers Crossed!"


Khloe Kardashian Reveals Family Secrets On Ellen
Scott Disick and Khloe Kardashian Credit: Chris Weeks/Getty Images

Well, that would make the Kardashian-Jenner family tree even more confusing! Scott Disick took to Instagram on Wednesday, June 8, to poke fun at a false tabloid rumor suggesting that Khlo Kardashian is pregnant and that he might be the father.

PHOTOS: Khloe Kardashian"s Body Evolution

The headline read, Khloes Big Announcement: Im Having a Baby! Whos the Daddy? with images of five potential men: Odell Beckham Jr., French Montana, James Harden, Lamar Odom and Disick.

The self-proclaimed Lord, 33, who shares three children with Khlos sister Kourtney, showed he has a great sense of humor about the ridiculous gossip when he posted the cover and captioned it, Got my fingers crossed!

PHOTOS: Kardashian Family Album

While the rest of the men named have been linked to the Strong Looks Better n***d author in the past, the idea that Disick and Khlo have a romantic relationship is pretty far-fetched. As her familys popular reality show,Keeping Up With the Kardashians, and several of its spinoffs have documented, the two have a close friendship but nothing more.

The reality star, 31, was linked to Beckham Jr. over Memorial Day weekend when they were spotted getting cozy at Disicks 33rd birthday bash and Drakes pool party, but a source told Us Weekly Khlo and the NFL star are just friends. Theyre not dating, a source previously told Us. They were just flirting at a party.

Khloe Kardashian"s Style Transformation

Khlo recently filed for divorce for the second time from estranged husband Odom, 36, after originally filing in December 2013. The divorce was never finalized and the KUWTK star withdrew the papers last October after the former basketball player overdosed at a Nevada brothel and was in critical condition. Since calling it quits, she has dated rapper French Montana and NBA star Harden.

Disick split with Kourtney last summer after nearly 10 years together, but they continue to coparent Mason, 6, Penelope, 3, and Reign, 17 months. They reunited earlier this week to take their two oldest kids to see The Little Mermaid in L.A.

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Source: http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/scott-disick-jokes-hes-having-a-baby-with-khloe-kardashian-w209497

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