-
Overnight Briefing & General Reality Check - Oct 7, 2015
October 7, 2015
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. -
Broadcast, cable and video news:
ABC Family is changing its name to Freeform starting in January.
Variety says the new network will be rebranded in order to appeal to the 14-to-34 age group, known as "Becomers" or "Generation Z."
Editor's note: in case you were wondering about the breakdown, here's how it looks:
--Boomers, 51-69
--Gen X, 35-50
--Millenials, 20-34
--Generation Z or "Becomers," 10-20
The network's president, TOM ASCHEIM, says "The most important question that young people ask themselves as they're going from high school to their thirties is, 'Who am I becoming?' So we call the life stage 'becoming' and the people going through it Becomers."Political Racket:
CT Democratic Senators RICHARD BLUMENTHAL and CHRIS MURPHY are set to roll out legislation this week that would block a gun from being sold without a background check. The two senators are expected to join with a handful of their Democratic colleagues to unveil Blumenthal's legislation on Wednesday that would close a "loophole" that allows a retailer to sell a gun without a background check after 72 hours.
And separately, Minority Leader HARRY REID told reporters earlier Tuesday that Senate Democrats would be rolling out a new gun control program on Thursday, though he declined to go into details, saying only that, "We're going to make sure this is inclusive, that all my caucus is involved in this, and we're not going to outline stuff here today." (Pacelli)Dino-mania:
Some big-time beginners luck for an undergraduate geology student at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln... CARISSA RAYMOND found a whole new species of dinosaur during her first-ever dig! Carissa was a sophomore just last year when she signed up to do field work with paleontologist ROSS SECORD in New Mexico's San Juan Basin. Three or 4 days into the fossil hunt, Carissa spotted a row of small black teeth protruding from the ground. She told the Lincoln Journal Star that at the time, "I knew it was different and big and had very interesting teeth. But I couldn't have told you it was something new." Here's how new it was... Tests on Raymond's fossil find led to the discovery of a whole new genus and species. The new species is named Kimbetopsalis simmonsae. (Bartha)
Top-10 most common murder weapons and methods in the US (number of people per year):
10. Drowning, 12
9. Narcotics, 42
7. (tie) Asphyxiation and Fire, 93 each
6. Strangulation, 110
5. Blunt objects, (hammers, clubs) 584
4. Personal weapons, (hands, fists, feet, etc) 788
3. Other weapons (could include motor vehicles), 925
2. Knives or cutting instruments, 1,795
1. Firearms (of which 6600 were handguns) 9,263
Editor's note: FBI stats are from 2011, most recent available. There were also eight deaths attributable to Poison.Grace notes from Vinny Marino:
JUSTIN BIEBER has revealed the title for his new album, in ink. No, not in a newspaper, on his body! He Instagrammed a photo yesterday of his latest tatt, which says "Purpose." Ok, Biebs took the photo in a mirror, so the image is backwards, but it clearly does say "purpose." Justin tattooed the named of his third album, "Believe" on his bod back in 2012, so this may be a tradition. If you're keeping track, this makes tattoo number 51 for the Bieber, and album number four, which is due out on November 13th. (Marino)
-
-