There's No Place Like Home! | Andrews Fabulous Travel Blog

In Buenos Aires we go directly to the port and board a cruise ship. For the next thirty five days we will be cruising up the East coast of South America, into the Amazon and out again and then through the Caribbean Islands and ending up in Fort Lauderdale

We are sailing on the Seabourn Sojourn, a smaller ship with just 440 passengers. This is a step up for us. Seabourn is a high end cruise line and has been rated as the world?s best small ship cruise line by Travel and Leisure every year since 2006. One thing you should know about Seabourn, before I start on my stories is that alcohol is free (or at least included in the price of the cruise.)

Our first day at sea and it doesn?t take long to see why Seabourn is so highly rated.

I go out to the pool where the chaises are lined up with such precision they remind me of a platoon of sailors.

I choose a comfortable looking sailor to sit on (sorry, couldn?t resist that) and settle in for the afternoon. There are rather fabulous chaises for two that I could have chosen

and although the Fabulosity Meter is strongly suggesting that I settle into one of these, I resist when I see what other people look like in them

Even before I can settle on to my chaise of choice a nice young man in crisp black shorts, a tan polo shirt and a white cap, approaches me holding a small tray. For one terrible moment I think he is going to chirp ?Cigarettes, Cigarillos?, but instead he proffers a small, expensive array of suntan creams and indicates that I can select one ? at no charge.

I apply the sun tan and settle back, listening to the Fabulosity Meter chirping happily in the background. The next intrusion, albeit it a welcome one, is from another young man, dressed much as the last, asking whether I would like a glass of champagne or a glass of water. I forgive him. It is my first day on board and he has no idea what a silly question that is. I accept the champagne.

Glass in hand, I reach for my book and my reading glasses. Immediately a voice from behind asks if I would like to have my spectacles cleaned. This is not an offer that has been made often in my life so somewhat surprised, I turn to see where the voice is coming from. I find myself looking up into the eyes of a dashingly handsome Latin man in his late twenties. His smile shows off a perfect row of gleamingly white teeth that I am sure could be donated to a piano factory on his death. He is dressed exactly the same as the last two men, but on him the uniform has a completely different effect. He looks as if he has stepped off the beach at Copacabana. I want to tell him that he can clean anything he wants, but instead I find myself mumbling something about this being just my first glass of champagne and I am still quite capable of cleaning my glasses.

However, he persists.

I do find persistence in a handsome young man an attractive quality, don?t you? While I am still trying to put a sentence together, he gently removes the glasses from my hand, sprays them with something that smells a lot nicer than windex and then proceeds to polish them for some time, periodically holding them up to check for any smears that he may have missed. He even cleans the arms of the glasses. I sigh, wishing that I was wearing the glasses at the time. They are the cleanest pair of glasses I have ever worn. He smiles that smile, and says to just let him know when they need cleaning again.

The Fabulosity Meter is going crazy.

It is at least thirty minutes before the next person comes by. This time it is a young lady with a tray of ice cold flannels, inviting me to chose one so that I can wipe the beads of perspiration off my face. I do this and then discreetly smear the flannel all over my glasses, hoping that the young man will suddenly appear to clean them again.

I wait for that voice to come from behind, but nothing. I even casually wave my glasses in the air hoping that it might attract him, but he has clearly moved on, ending our relationship before it has even begun.

I can no longer read my book because my glasses are so dirty. As I am deciding on my next diversion one more young man comes to my chaise. This one is offering a skewer of melon cubes. Each cube cut to exactly the same size as the next and each from a different coloured melon. There are four cubes in all with a grape at the end. The entire thing has been sat in a fridge for a couple of hours chilling to the perfect temperature for a hot sunny day.

It has taken 66 years, but finally I think I have found a place I could call home!

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Source: http://andrewsfabuloustravelblog.me/2013/03/12/theres-no-place-like-home/

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Preservation of Venezuelan leader's body not easy

No one lives forever ? nor do they last forever. At least not without a lot of tuneups.

As much as it may seem like the bodies of famous world leaders such as Vladimir Ilyich Lenin and Mao Zedong have been preserved for all eternity, their enduring physical presence is simply an illusion aided by science.

Only the Venezuelan officials who have promised to preserve Hugo Chavez and display his body "for eternity" inside a glass tomb know exactly how they're going to do it.

But if they were to follow procedures that are used in the United States, the technique might be rather simple: repeat embalming.

"The first thing to remember about embalming as we do it in the U.S. is that it is designed to delay the natural deterioration of the body; it's not forever," said Vernie Fountain, a licensed embalmer and owner and founder of the Fountain National Academy of Professional Embalming Skills in Springfield, Missouri.

So what does that mean exactly? You might want to put down your sandwich before you read on.

In the U.S., most embalmers use a machine that injects fluid laced with chemicals, principally formaldehyde, into an artery of the body, while the majority of the blood is emptied from a vein. Often a chemical known as a humectant is added, which "helps to fill out the body, some of the hollow spaces, and adds a degree of moisture," Fountain said.

While he stressed that he has no personal knowledge about the condition of Chavez's body at the time of his death or when it was or will be embalmed, Fountain said one possible method of preserving his corpse is to follow the embalming process with a periodic injection of humectant or something similar to keep moisture in the tissues. Makeup also helps to cover areas that have gone brown with dehydration.

Just to be safe, Venezuelan officials could take an extra precautionary step and make a face mask, using Chavez's real face to form a mold that could be placed over the flesh in the future "and keep it looking more like he did when he died," Fountain said.

The process of embalming a body for a few days or many years is essentially the same, note Fountain and Camilo Jaramillo, a Colombian embalmer and alumnus of the American Academy McAllister Institute of Funeral Service.

"The difference when one wants to preserve a body for a long time is that the doctors apply more-concentrated amounts of the chemicals," Jaramillo said. "It is a much slower process and must be done very carefully. ... Indefinite preservation really doesn't exist. ... It requires periodic maintenance. ... But no embalming stops decomposition; it only slows it," he said.

The time it takes a body to deteriorate varies on the health and weight of the deceased and other environmental factors, including whether the body was refrigerated immediately after death. Regardless, the key is to embalm as soon as possible after death.

Ideally, a body would be embalmed "the very day or next morning, rather than three or five or six days down the road," Fountain said. "But it's not impossible. I have embalmed bodies that have been refrigerated for six months."

Confronted with such a never-ending and unsavory task, why do countries such as Russia, China, Vietnam, and now Venezuela, go to such lengths to preserve their leaders' remains?

"The decision to embalm Chavez is an attempt to include him in a pantheon of communist deities," said Nina Tumarkin, a professor of history at Wellesley College and the author of "Lenin Lives! The Lenin Cult in Soviet Russia."

"It's a throwback to Soviet, communist times, and it might seem obsolete, but it might be the only pantheon where he belongs. Better to belong to the wrong club than none at all."

Other socialist or communist leaders embalmed after dying include Russian dictator Josef Stalin, though his body was later removed, and North Korea's father-and-son leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il. But it was the famous display of Soviet founder Lenin in Moscow's Red Square in 1924 that inspired the custom among left-leaning leaders.

And then there was Evita, the actress who married then-President Juan Domingo Peron and went on to claim a following of millions for her role in securing labor benefits for the working class, founding hospitals and helping women get the vote.

When she died young from uterine cancer in 1952, the military leaders who overthrew her husband in 1955 were so worried about a death cult that they took desperate measures to hide the body.

For two decades, the corpse was secretly moved around Argentina and then buried in an unmarked grave in Italy. Meanwhile several wax and fiberglass decoy corpses were sent out around the world. The real corpse remained in Rome until it was delivered to Peron's home in 1971 while he was in exile in Spain.

Now it rests in her family's crypt in the opulent Recoleta cemetery, a major tourist spot.

Lenin's embalming process, still seen to this day as one of the finest examples of its kind, was presented to the world as a feat for Soviet science in its quest to preserve a body in such perfection.

But the idea was probably forced upon government officials, who may have feared another bloody revolution after they saw the massive crowds that showed up to say goodbye to Lenin.

More than 3 million people braved the biting winter cold just to catch a glimpse of the body.

Permanently staving off decomposition is no easy job.

When Chinese communist leader Mao Zedong died in 1976, the Chinese medical specialists tasked with preserving his corpse for permanent display were at a loss. In the middle of a rift with the Soviet Union, they couldn't ask the Russians for the formula used on Lenin, according to a memoir by Mao's doctor. Vietnam, which had embalmed Ho Chi Minh, rebuffed them, too, the doctor wrote.

In the end, the Chinese doctors used a formula found in a Western journal in a medical library in Beijing. They added extra doses of formaldehyde to boost the preservative effect. "The results were shocking. Mao's face was round as a ball, and his neck was now the width of his head," Li Zhisui wrote in The Private Life of Chairman Mao, published outside China 18 years after Mao's death. The team managed to restore Mao to a more normal appearance with hours of careful massage and makeup, he said, but, just in case, a wax copy of the body was readied as a stand-in.

___

Luis Andres Henao reported this story from Santiago, Chile, and Lisa J. Adams reported from Mexico City. Associated Press writer Charles Hutzler contributed to this report from Beijing.

___

Luis Andres Henao on Twitter: https://twitter.com/LuisAndresHenao

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/preservation-venezuelan-leaders-body-not-easy-182652093.html

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Early Childhood Conference focus on 'Heart of Learning' - Hawaii 24/7

MEDIA RELEASE

Positive relationships with significant adults are a strong determining factor in a child?s future success. This concept is the theme for the Sixth Annual Hawaii Island Early Childhood Conference, set for April 19-20 at the Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort & Spa.

The conference is open to anyone who works in or has an interest in the field of early childhood education.

Organized by Baby STEPS to Stronger Big Island Families, this year?s conference will feature two keynote speakers who will focus on the value and lasting effect educators can have in the lives of children.

On Friday, April 19, Dr. Steven Choy will present on ?Healthy Brains? Healthy Children; Healthy Children?Healthy World.? His message focuses on how educators can help develop healthy brains and help children to cope with an ever changing world.

The evening includes a light buffet.

On Saturday, April 20, in addition to 10 different thematic workshops, Mervlyn Kitashima will give a talk titled, ?No More ?Children at Risk?: ?Children at Promise?.?

Kitashima, a participant in Emmy Werner?s groundbreaking ?Kauai?s Longitudinal Study on Resilience,? will share a personal account of the factors that contributed to her ability to overcome the odds. The emphasis will be on possibilities, potential and promise for every child.

?Last year we convened close to 400 teachers, preschool directors, home-based family care providers, and elementary school principals from around the state, as well as state and county staff, on the Kohala Coast for the conference.? said Angela Thomas, team leader for the Baby STEPS program.

The conference is a much anticipated event, she says, as it provides networking and professional development opportunities for early childhood professionals.

Cost to attend the Friday evening event is $50; cost for the all-day Saturday session ? which includes continental breakfast and lunch ? is $75.

There is an early registration deadline of March 15. After that date, both sessions go up to $60 and $85 respectively.

For further information, call Gail Judd at 987-8710, email athomas@babystepshawaii.org or gcjudd@babystepshawaii.org.

The Waikoloa Beach Marriott is offering a special conference room rate. For information visit: resweb.passkey.com/go/HIECC201?

Baby STEPS to Stronger Big Island Families, a program of Friends of the Future, is an initiative created by individuals and organizations committed to helping all keiki on Hawaii Island to be healthy, happy and to thrive by supporting families, strengthening practitioners and engaging communities.

? Find out more:
www.BabySTEPSHawaii.org

Source: http://www.hawaii247.com/2013/03/11/early-childhood-conference-focus-on-heart-of-learning/

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With Users In Over 83 Countries, Social Discovery Platform At The Pool Wants To Be The Anti-Facebook

At The Pool, the Los Angeles-based social discovery platform, is today rolling out a big re-design that sees the startup becoming laser-focused on creating the "anti-Facebook" social network for young people. In its February 10-K report, Facebook said that it is at risk of losing young users to other services that are similar to or act "as a substitute for Facebook."

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/IXdsF3Bn9W4/

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Video: NFL Draft preview: Top five WRs

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Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/21134540/vp/51090966#51090966

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Column: Streaks are nice, championships are better (Providence Journal)

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Sri Lanka cardinal hews to tradition in papal race

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) ? In one of his first appointments as pope, Benedict XVI picked a Sri Lankan archbishop to return to the Vatican for a top post overseeing the church's liturgy and rites.

The choice of Malcolm Ranjith in 2005 rewarded a strong voice of tradition ? so rigid that some critics regard it even as backward-looking. And it came as the church increasingly grappled with a critical question for the future: How much innovation can be allowed to cater to developing world congregations with fast-growing flocks?

Ranjith faced a clash of priorities ? guarding tradition versus pressure to reform. And in the debate he came mostly on the side of doing things the old way. But he was also guided by diplomatic finesse honed as a Vatican envoy nurturing sensitive relations between mostly Muslim Indonesia and the breakaway nation of predominantly Catholic East Timor.

Ranjith, who in 2010 was named Sri Lanka's second cardinal in history, now is being mentioned among the possible successors to Benedict if the conclave looks beyond Europe to acknowledge the shifting "southern" demographics of the church.

___

EDITOR'S NOTE: As the Roman Catholic Church prepares to elect a successor to Pope Benedict XVI, The Associated Press is profiling key cardinals seen as "papabili" ? contenders to the throne. In the secretive world of the Vatican, there is no way to know who is in the running, and history has yielded plenty of surprises. But these are the names that have come up time and again in speculation. Today: Malcolm Ranjith.

___

Although there are many strikes against a Ranjith candidacy ? Sri Lanka, for example, has just 1.3 million Catholics, less than half the population of Rome ? the rising influence of the developing world helps keep the idea alive.

The other Asian papal prospect, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, has much more star power as the head prelate in the heavily Catholic Philippines. Yet to his advantage, Ranjith, at 65, is a decade older than Tagle, has Vatican experience and is seen as very much an ideological protege of Benedict. All of this could attract the attention of papal electors seeking both the bold statement of a non-European pope and the safety of someone not likely to challenge church orthodoxy.

"The Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith's leadership quality is fantastic, excellent, and very specially the sermons," said Vijitha Ariyaratna, who works at a Colombo church. "The homilies are down to earth, they are simplified. I really admire him."

Ranjith, however, has also earned detractors for his strong affinity for traditions in worship, such as the Latin Mass, that others have left behind.

In 2009, he banned lay deacons from preaching in the Colombo archdiocese and required that Holy Communion only be offered to those kneeling and the communion wafer placed directly on their tongue ? a style that has been abandoned by many parishes in the West.

Ranjith also forbade priests from introducing elements from other religions into the Mass, which is increasingly common as the church in some areas looks to pay homage to indigenous or majority faiths through gestures such as music or dress.

He faces further questions for comments that appear sympathetic to late ultraconservative Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who split from Rome over interpretation of reforms from the 1962-5 Second Vatican Council, known as Vatican II, which revolutionized the church's relations with Jews and allowed for the celebration of Mass in languages other than Latin. In 1988, the Vatican excommunicated Lefebvre and four of his bishops after he consecrated them without papal consent.

The Vatican is now engaged in talks with a Lefebvre-founded breakaway group, the Society of St. Pius X, on whether to return to papal control.

Ranjith was born to a large family in central Sri Lanka and was ordained by Pope Paul VI at St. Peter's Basilica in 1975. After further studies in Rome and Jerusalem, he was appointed an auxiliary bishop of Colombo and later appointed first bishop of the newly created diocese of Ratnapura, a central region known for gem mining.

In 1985, he founded the Colombo archdiocese's social service arm, which focused on helping the poor and marginalized. He also staked out a reputation as a strict adherent to church traditions.

Ranjith led a commission in the 1990s that denounced the views of Sri Lankan theologian Tissa Balasuriya, claiming he supported reforms such as the ordination of women. Ranjith was backed by then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, later to become Benedict XVI. Balasuriya was temporarily excommunicated and died in January.

Ranjith went on to become the Vatican ambassador, or nuncio, to Indonesia and East Timor ? a delicate role especially given rising pressures in the region on non-Muslims by Islamic extremists. He also became a front-line emissary for Catholic assistance after the December 2004 tsunami.

The newly named Benedict brought Ranjith back to the Vatican as the No. 2 in the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, which oversees issues on the liturgy. He was appointed archbishop of Colombo in 2009 and was thrust into another mediation role: Efforts to end a quarter-century civil war between the government, controlled by the majority Sinhalese ethnic group, and the now-defeated Tamil Tiger rebels.

At the end of the war in 2009, he was a leading voice urging the government to quickly resettle civilians held in military-run camps. He also appeared before the country's Reconciliation Commission with suggestions to promote harmony between the Sinhalese and minority Tamil communities.

"He is a very balanced pastor, a shepherd," said the Rev. Benedict Joseph, spokesman for the Colombo archdiocese. "He always tried to closer and closer to the people."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/sri-lanka-cardinal-hews-tradition-papal-race-111019772.html

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7 Amazing Manuka Honey Health Facts

For many years, honey has been used for a vast array of ailments in various countries. Treatment involving honey is known as Apitherapy and heals the body in a natural way with natural ingredients. ?Pure Manuka Honey is sourced from New Zealand but is readily available from online health stores such as Green Bay Harvest.

Honey has been used by itself for ages to increase energy and bolster the immune system and to treat skin disorders. Honey has been used to cure yeast infections, athletes foot symptoms and cuts and burns. This is because of its great antibacterial properties. It also has anti-inflammatory components that work on ailments such as arthritis pain, as well.

Although honey is a great healer, and it tastes good besides, it does have a down side. The hydrogen peroxide in honey is the antibacterial component, which is low enough to avoid causing any damage. Hydrogen peroxide can be destroyed easily by light, water, heat or body serums. That is the case with regular honey.

Manuka honey is different, however, because it is stable and does not lose its antibacterial properties. The phytochemical factor that protects it, known as Unique Manuka Factor, or UMF, is unique in Active Manuka honey. This makes Manuka honey a more effective and stronger antiviral and antibacterial.

New Zealand is the only place where the Leptospermum Scoparium grows, the Manuka bush, and this is the origin of all active Manuka honey. The bees collect nectar only from the flowers on the Manuka bush, making it a mono-floral honey. The antibacterial activity of Manuka honey carries a grade between 5 and 25, with the higher number meaning it has stronger antibacterial properties.The grades represent potency with the lower grades having identical medicinal properties as higher grades but not in the same strength.

Because of the effectiveness and strength of active Manuka honey, buying the active kind guarantees the quality of the UMF. Also, buying the better quality means that it can be used sparingly and still provide the same results. The Active Manuka honey is very powerful for healing a variety of conditions because of its superior anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antiviral, antimicrobial, antiseptic, and antioxidant components. It also has more amino acids, minerals and vitamins than regular honey.

Manuka honey is safe for anyone to use because it has no known side effects. For anyone who does not like honey, the benefits are still available in the form of honey capsules, found in most health food stores.

The following is a list of 7 uses among the vast array of disorders and ailments that can be treated with Active Manuka honey:-

1. Energy booster

If you are feeling lethargic or tired, honey is known as an energy booster. The instant surge of energy comes from the glucose in honey and after the initial surge; the fructose gives longer lasting energy as it is slowly absorbed.

2. Colds and Sore Throats

If you have a sore throat, the antibacterial and antiviral properties of Manuka Honey will bring relief. Take a teaspoon at night and one in the morning to keep sore throat and cold suffering at bay. Throughout the day, add Manuka honey to boiling water with a bit of lemon juice and sip it slowly.

3. Burns, Wounds and Cuts

Active Manuka honey is an ideal ointment for healing wounds, grazes, cuts, pressure sores and many other skin disorders naturally and quickly because of its antibacterial properties. There is also proof that Manuka honey combats MRSA, and it is now used by the NHS.

In New Zealand, natives of the area have been using the same method for many years and experiencing Manuka honey health. It has also been used to help the skin when cancer is present or to sooth wounds and burns from radiation. It does not cure cancer, but it can relieve the skin irritation and may help to prevent skin cancer.

4. Digestive System

Manuka honey is ideal for preventing the heartburn and indigestion so many people suffer from because of a bad diet of fat and grease. It has also been known to cure ulcers, acid-reflux, upset stomachs and gastritis. It can also help in cases of diarrhea and IBS, irritable bowel syndrome. Just one teaspoon morning and night of 15 or 20 strength UMF is recommended.

5. Fungal Infections

Fungal infections are often hard to get rid of, and they look unsightly, such as athlete?s foot. A natural way to conquer them is by applying active Manuka honey on the affected skin area.

6. Diabetics

Studies have shown Manuka honey is safer for diabetics to use than sugar, because of its fructose content. It is a safer option because the fructose causes a slower rise in blood sugar. Before adding honey to their diets, diabetics should always consult their doctor or physician just to make sure it will not interfere with any other medicines being taken.

7. Dermatitis and Eczema

Skin conditions such as rashes, psoriasis, eczema, acne, cold sores and insect bites have all responded to the use of Manuka honey because of its antibacterial properties. It can be applied to the skin, eaten or sipped in a drink made with boiling water and lemon.

The following is a partial list of ailments that have been known to respond to the use of Manuka honey:

Internal Uses:

External Uses:

It goes without saying that at one time or another in our lives we are all going to experience at least one of the illnesses and problems listed above.

The best medicine anyone can take is one that is entirely natural and Manuka honey definitely falls under this category. So, before you go rushing off to your doctor and get him to prescribe some drug or wonder tablet for you, why not give Active Manuka Honey a try?

Featured images:

<a href=?https://plus.google.com/117282266165327484489?rel=author?>Lee Hill</a>?is head of content at IPIM he regularly blogs on health and fitness issues and when not at his computer he can usually be found out running or cycling.

Source: http://beautifulandlovely.com/7-amazing-manuka-honey-health-facts/

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DNA suggests dogs were tamed 33,000 years ago

Ovodov et al. / PLOS ONE

The skull of a 33,000-year-old canid was found in a cave in the Altai Mountains of southern Siberia.

By Stephanie Pappas
LiveScience

A canine skull found in the Altai Mountains of Siberia is more closely related to modern domestic dogs than to wolves, a new DNA analysis reveals.

The findings could indicate that dogs were domesticated around 33,000 years ago. The point at which wolves made the transition to man's best friend is hotly contested, though dogs were well-established in human societies by about 10,000 years ago. Dogs and humans were buried together in Germany about 14,000 years ago, a strong hint of domestication, but genetic studies have pinpointed the origin of dog domestication in both China and the Middle East.

The Altai specimen, a well-preserved skull, represents one of the two oldest possible domestic dogs ever found. Another possible domestic dog fossil, dated to approximately 36,000 years ago, was found in Goyet Cave in Belgium.

---

Anatomical examinations of these skulls suggest they are more doglike than wolflike. To confirm, researchers from the Russian Academy of Sciences and their colleagues drilled a tiny amount of bone from the Altai dog's incisor and jaw, and analyzed its DNA. They conducted all of the work in an isolated lab and used extra precautions to prevent contamination, as ancient DNA is extremely fragile.

The researchers then compared the genetic sequences from the Altai specimen with sequences from 72 modern dogs of 70 different breeds, 30 wolves, four coyotes and 35 prehistoric canid species from the Americas. [10 Breeds: What Your Dog Says About You]

They found that the Altai canid is more closely related to modern domestic dogs than to modern wolves, as its skull shape had previously suggested. That means that the Altai canid was an ancient dog, not an ancient wolf ? though it had likely diverged from the wolf line relatively recently, the researchers report Wednesday?in the journal PLOS ONE.

If the Altai dog was really domesticated, it would push back the origin of today's house pets more than 15,000 years and move the earliest domestication out of the Middle East or East Asia, as previous studies have suggested. However, the analysis was limited to only a portion of the genome, the researchers wrote.

"Additional discoveries of ancient doglike remains are essential for further narrowing the time and region of origin for the domestic dog," they said.

Follow Stephanie Pappas @sipappas. Follow LiveScience on Twitter @livescience, Facebook?or Google+. Original article on LiveScience.com.?

Authors of "Ancient DNA Analysis Affirms the Canid From Altai as a Primitive Dog" include Anna Druzhkova, Olaf Thalmann, Vladimir A. Trifonov, Jennifer A. Leonard, Nadezhda V. Vorobieva, Nikolai D. Ovodov, Alexander S. Graphodatsky and Robert K. Wayne.

Copyright 2013 LiveScience. All rights reserved.

?

Source: http://science.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/06/17216114-dna-from-fossil-suggests-dogs-were-domesticated-33000-years-ago?lite

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New Fox sports network to debut in August

Regis Philbin, right, jokes with Terry Bradshaw during a news conference about Fox's new sports network in New York, Tuesday, March 5, 2013. Philbin will host a weekday sports talk show for the network's new channel Fox Sports 1. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Regis Philbin, right, jokes with Terry Bradshaw during a news conference about Fox's new sports network in New York, Tuesday, March 5, 2013. Philbin will host a weekday sports talk show for the network's new channel Fox Sports 1. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Regis Philbin, left, jokes with Michael Strahan during a news conference about the new Fox sports network in New York, Tuesday, March 5, 2013. Philbin will host a weekday sports talk show for the network's new channel Fox Sports 1. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

NEW YORK (AP) ? Fox proved television was ready for a fourth major network, and Fox News took on CNN.

The company wants to remind everyone of its record as it challenges ESPN with Fox Sports 1, a 24-hour sports cable network set to launch Aug. 17.

"We're coming in trying to take on the establishment," Fox Sports executive vice president Bill Wanger said Tuesday in announcing the venture. "It's no different than Fox News or Fox Broadcasting back in the '80s. We're going to have to scratch and claw our way all the way to the top."

To do that, Fox executives are confident they have enough live events, with rights to college basketball and football, NASCAR, soccer and UFC fights. In its first year, the new network will broadcast nearly 5,000 hours of live competition and news.

Fox owns the rights to many Big 12, Pac-12 and Conference USA basketball and football games. Its soccer deals include UEFA Champions League and the men's and women's World Cups from 2015-22.

Starting in 2014, FS1 will start broadcasting Major League Baseball games, including part of the postseason. It will show some NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races as early as 2015, with other NASCAR events on the air from the start.

"We believe we've amassed enough live events and can package and put programming around it where we can have scale," Fox Sports co-President Randy Freer said. "We can have significance. We can be a major player in the market."

However, unlike ESPN's lineup, there's no NBA, no SEC football, no ACC basketball and, the biggest problem of all, no NFL games. On that last point, Wanger was quick to add: "Yet."

Still to be determined is whether the NFL sells some Thursday night games separately from its NFL Network package. If it does, everyone will try to buy a piece of the action.

That will be the case for any rights deals that come along soon; there aren't many, with long-term pacts now the norm. NBC and CBS already have their own cable sports networks, and Turner is also a factor. Fox Sports co-President Eric Shanks mentioned the NBA, Big Ten and U.S. Open tennis as appealing properties whose contracts expire in the next several years.

FS1 has two main challenges, he said. One is producing enough alluring live events to draw viewers, and he thinks the network is already in good shape to do that. The other is inertia: Fans accustomed to tuning to ESPN must be persuaded to switch to a different network.

"People need to over time feel like there's a channel number in their head that they can go to as an alternative to one of the more powerful sports channels out there," he said.

Will they watch nightly highlights on something other than "SportsCenter"? FS1 will try to find out with its own news show, which will look more like Fox's NFL pregame coverage than ESPN's cornerstone program.

"We like our position," ESPN spokesman Josh Krulewitz said. "We have always had vigorous competition so there is really nothing substantially new here. Others are, however, beginning to recognize what we have long known: The power of live sports, especially in light of technological advances, is substantial and brings tremendous value in today's entertainment landscape."

ESPN has eight cable networks that combine for almost 30,000 hours of live coverage.

FS1 will be converted from Speed, a motorsports network, and will be available in 90 million homes, compared with 98 million for ESPN and ESPN2.

And in what might seem odd for a company known for drawing a young audience, Regis Philbin will host a weekday sports talk show for the new network. The 81-year-old Philbin jokingly pretended to be hard of hearing when questions came up about this at the news conference.

Wanger noted that "Live! With Regis and Kelly" did well in younger demographics before Philbin left that show in late 2011.

"Regis has appeal from young to old," Wanger said. "That's why we want him."

Fox plans to use its "double box" format for showing commercials during live action for sports events. Kicking off the coverage on Aug. 17 will be a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race from Michigan and a UFC event in prime time.

Fox executives had talked about potentially launching a sports network for years. As DVRs made live events even more valuable, the timing was right once the company was able to line up enough broadcast rights. And not having a cable sports partner could have hurt the main Fox network in negotiations, Freer said. Fox has used cable channel FX in the past to show some sports.

The network wasn't ready to announce a deal with the new basketball conference formed by breakaway Big East schools, but Fox's executives were happy to talk up the ratings draw the league will provide. Freer called it an "iconic basketball brand" that will immediately be one of the top hoops conferences in the country.

"They're very historic, high-profile teams. The Georgetowns of the world and so on, St. John's, Villanova etc.," Wanger said. "It would be a coup if that deal did happen."

Fox is airing the 2014 Super Bowl in the New York area, a valuable opportunity to promote the new network. Its 22 regional channels also will offer regular chances to direct viewers to FS1.

A report by RBC Capital Markets analyst David Bank says that while FS1 may not match ESPN right away, it can thrive without doing so. Banks writes that a "modestly successful" venture would more than quadruple Fox's monthly subscriber fees from what Speed received, and increase ad revenue from $90 million to $460 million.

"It's going to take us a while, and we're aware of this fact," Fox Sports Chairman David Hill said. "We're not expecting to knock ESPN off in the first week or two. ... It's going to be a solid slog."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2013-03-06-Fox-Sports-Channel/id-8d7bb50c1b5f486eb09e436ef6908585

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