AP News Digest 3:50 a.m.
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NEW/DEVELOPING
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NOBEL-LITERATURE — The Nobel Prize for Literature is set to be awarded after several years of controversy and scandal for the world’s pre-eminent literary accolade. SENT: 280 words. UPCOMING: Announcement at 7 a.m., photos, video.
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ONLY ON AP
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VIRUS-OUTBREAK-UKRAINE — Coronavirus infections in Ukraine began surging in late summer, and the ripples are hitting towns like Stebnyk in the western part of the country. The chief doctor at the only hospital in the town of 20,000 people is watching the rise with alarm and anguish. The hospital is supposed to hold 100 patients but is treating 106 patients with COVID-19. Ukraine imposed a tight lockdown in March, slowing the number of cases, but they started rising again and the government closed the borders at the end of August. By Mstyslav Chernov and Yuras Karmanau. SENT: 920 words, photos.
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TOP STORIES
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ELECTION 2020-DEBATE — Vice President Mike Pence and Democratic challenger Kamala Harris trad barbs through plexiglass shields in a debate dominated by the coronavirus pandemic. Harris says President Donald Trump’s handling of the pandemic is “the greatest failure of any presidential administration”; Pence says Trump has constantly put the American people first. By Steve Peoples, Kathleen Ronayne, Michelle L. Price and Jill Colvin. SENT: 940 words, photos, video. With ELECTION 2020-DEBATE-FACT CHECK — Misstatements on the coronavirus, Russia, the economy and more; ELECTION 2020-DEBATE-TAKEAWAYS — A more civil debate; ELECTION 2020-DEBATE-THE SCENE — Plexiglass takes the stage.
Find more coverage on the 2020 U.S. Elections featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
HOMELAND SECURITY-IMMIGRATION POLITICS — The Department of Homeland Security has rolled out a series of immigration measures in recent days. The agency is helping to revive an issue that was at the heart of Trump’s successful 2016 campaign, but largely on the back burner in the current one. By Ben Fox and Elliot Spagat. SENT: 920 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-TRUMP — Trump is crediting an experimental drug treatment with helping his recovery from COVID-19 and suggesting his diagnosis could be a “blessing in disguise” for the nation’s battle against the pandemic. But there is no way for the president or his doctors to know whether the drug had any effect. By Aamer Madhani, Jill Colvin and Matthew Perrone. SENT: 1,280 words, photos, video.
Find more coverage of Trump and the virus in AP Newsroom.
TROPICAL-WEATHER — For the sixth time in the Atlantic hurricane season, people in Louisiana are once more fleeing the state’s barrier islands and sailing boats to safe harbor while emergency officials ramp up command centers and consider ordering evacuations. The storm being watched is Hurricane Delta, the 25th named storm of the Atlantic’s unprecedented hurricane season. Forecasts placed most of Louisiana within Delta’s path, with the latest landfall forecast for Friday. By Stacey Plaisance and Rebecca Santana. SENT: 1,050 words, photos. With TROPICAL-WEATHER-THE-LATEST.
PAKISTAN-FRANCE-ASSAILANT — Ali Hassan was only 15 when he left Pakistan to be smuggled to Europe, following the path of his older brother and many other young men from his home country dreaming of a better life. Nearly three years later, Hassan is today in a Paris jail after allegedly attacking and seriously wounding two people with a meat cleaver. Before the Sept. 25 attack, he proclaimed in a video he was seeking vengeance after the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo published caricatures of Islam’s Prophet Muhammad. By Kathy Gannon. SENT: 1,210 words, photos.
WHALES OF NEW YORK — If you’re young and hungry, the place to go is New York City — even if you weigh 25 tons and have a blowhole. Whale watch captains and scientists around America’s most populous city say recent years have seen a tremendous surge in the number of whales observed in the waters around the Big Apple. Many of the whales are juvenile humpbacks, and scientists say they’re drawn to New York by an abundance of the small fish they love to eat. By Patrick Whittle and Ted Shaffrey. SENT: 660 words, photos, video.
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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
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ELECTION 2020-DEBATE-THE FLY — A fly on Vice President Pence’s head generates buzz. SENT: 340 words, photos.
PEOPLE-MORGAN WALLEN — Morgan Wallen dropped as “SNL” performer after breaking COVID rules. SENT: 120 words, photo.
CALIFORNIA-FORMER-CONGRESSWOMAN-HACK — “Former staff" claim abuse by ex-Rep. Hill in Twitter hack. SENT: 400 words, photo.
BRAZIL-NEYMAR-CYBERCRIME — Rio judge ends Neymar’s cybercrime probe linked to rape case. SENT: 280 words, photos.
AUSTRALIA-CIRCLING SHARK — Drone video shows Australian surfer’s close call with shark. SENT: 380 words.
THAILAND-THAI AIRWAYS — Thai Airways ensures grounded flying fans can still take off. SENT: 640 words, photos.
HONG KONG-SCROLL AUCTION — Ancient Chinese scroll sells for $41.8 million in Hong Kong. SENT: 210 words, photo.
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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK
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VIRUS-OUTBREAK-SRI-LANKA — Authorities in Sri Lanka close key government offices and further expanded a curfew to contain a surging coronavirus outbreak. SENT: 200 words, photos. With VIRUS-OUTBREAK-THE-LATEST.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-NEW-YORK — Anger and resentment flare in New York City neighborhoods facing new coronavirus shutdowns, with some residents saying the state is unfairly targeting Orthodox Jewish communities as it tries to stamp out hot spots before they spread. SENT: 980 words, photos.
Find more coverage on the Virus Outbreak on the featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
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WASHINGTON/POLITICS
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ELECTION-SECURITY-MAIL-BALLOT-MIXUPS — Several high-profile cases of voters getting incorrect blank absentee ballots in the mail are raising questions about how often such mix-ups occur and whether they could affect this year’s presidential election. By Technology Writer Frank Bajak. SENT: 640 words, photos.
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NATIONAL
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COLLEGE-STUDENT-KILLED — A tech worker pleaded guilty to strangling a Utah college student whose disappearance over a year ago sparked a search that ended with the discovery of her charred remains in his backyard. SENT: 630 words, photos.
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INTERNATIONAL
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MYANMAR-ROHINGYA — The de facto detention of 130,000 ethnic Rohingya in squalid camps in Myanmar amounts to a form of apartheid, a human rights group alleges in urging the world to pressure Aung San Suu Kyi’s government to free them. SENT: 480 words, photos.
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BUSINESS/TECH
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FACEBOOK-ELECTION-PREP — Facebook says it’s readied new safeguards for the 2020 U.S. elections that have it better prepared to deal with candidates who prematurely declare victory or contest official results and the possibility of voter intimidation by alleged — and potentially armed — “poll watchers.” By Technology Writer Barbara Ortutay. SENT: 390 words, photo.
FINANCIAL-MARKETS — Asian shares were mostly higher on optimism U.S. stimulus may be coming after all, as Trump appeared to reverse his earlier decision to halt talks on another economic rescue effort. By Business Writer Yuri Kageyama. SENT: 600 words, photos.
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SPORTS
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ELECTION 2020-NBA — Udonis Haslem of the Miami Heat is honest about it: Elections simply have not been overly important to him — until now. By Basketball Writer Tim Reynolds. SENT: 990 words, photos.
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ENTERTAINMENT
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RACIAL-INJUSTICE-SESAME-STREET — In the wake of the national reckoning on race, “Sesame Street” is teaching children to stand up against racism. By Entertainment Writer Mark Kennedy. SENT: 510 words.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-MEDIA — Medical experts at news organizations have been asked to assess Trump’s condition before millions of people without being able to examine him or see a complete medical chart. By Media Writer David Bauder. SENT: 950 words, photos.
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