AP News Digest 6:25 p.m.
Here are the AP's latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All times EDT. For up-to-the minute information on AP's coverage, visit Coverage Plan at https://newsroom.ap.org.
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NEW & DEVELOPING
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Adds: VIRUS OUTBREAK-CANADA-US, VIRUS OUTBREAK-THE-WEEK-THAT-WAS.
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VIRUS OUTBREAK — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said China is facilitating the shipment of 1,000 ventilators to his state, as he continues to shop for more of the lifesaving devices ahead of a growing number of coronavirus patients who will need them. The number of people infected in the U.S. has exceeded 300,000, with the death toll climbing past 8,000. By Jennifer Peltz, Amy Forliti and David Rising. SENT: 1,300 words, photos. WITH: VIRUS OUTBREAK-WASHINGTON — President Trump says the U.S. is heading into what could be its “toughest” weeks as coronavirus cases rise nationwide. The number of people infected in the U.S. has exceeded 300,000, with the death toll climbing past 8,000. SENT: 750 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-COMPETING FOR SUPPLIES — Shady middlemen, phantom shipments, prices soaring by the hour, goods flown in on a private plane. What sounds like an organized-crime thriller is now the new reality for governors desperately trying to find the medical equipment their states need in the throes of a pandemic. With the federal stockpile dwindling fast, and the Trump administration limiting access to what’s left, state leaders are going to extraordinary measures on their own to secure face masks, ventilators, gloves and other equipment essential to fighting the outbreak. By Brian White. SENT: 1,070 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-MAIL VOTING -- As Wisconsin struggles to hold its primary Tuesday, President Donald Trump and Democrats are bickering over how to provide voters with safe and secure access to a ballot during the coronavirus pandemic that could affect the general election in November. Trump is pushing back against the expansion of mail balloting, claiming it would encourage fraud and lead to so many people voting that the GOP could not win. Democrats say any moves to protect public health while ensuring voting access enhances democracy. By Kevin Freking, Colleen Long and Nicholas Riccardi. SENT: 850 words, photos. WITH: VIRUS OUTBREAK-WISCONSIN ELECTION — Wisconsin Republicans say they’re asking the U.S. Supreme Court to block extended absentee voting in Tuesday’s primary. SENT: 510 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-MOURNING — No one stands in line to embrace the widow and share memories of her husband of 50 years. No rows of family and friends file toward the flag-draped coffin to pay their last respects. No symphony of sniffles is heard across the room as the minister gives a final prayer. Instead, a handful of people are scattered across one chapel row as if they’re strangers, not blood. White roses are pinned to empty chairs, representing those who couldn’t be there. An iPad on a tripod livestreams the service for people stuck at home across state lines. By Sarah Blake Morgan. SENT: 790 words, photos, video.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CROWDED MORGUES — There are the new dead. And then there are the bodies waiting in overcrowded mortuaries to be buried as cities struggle to meet demand and families wrestle with rules on social distancing that make the usual funeral rituals impossible. By Clauida Lauer and Jessica Gresko. SENT: 1,040 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK- ECUADOR THE STIGMA — Even as Ecuador’s coronavirus “patient zero” agonized in intensive care, strangers began tearing her reputation apart online. Bella Lamilla’s name and photos of her, unconscious and intubated, circulated on social media where some accused her of being irresponsible and not caring whether she infected others. Family members say that’s baseless and almost as hurtful as the virus itself. Lamilla is an example of how for patients and loved ones, coronavirus can come with stigma and re-victimization. By Christine Armario. SENT: 1,450 words, photos, 880-word abridged version. This story is this week's Sunday Spotlight.
Find more all-format coverage on the Virus Outbreak featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
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MORE ON VIRUS OUTBREAK
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-HOSPITAL LAYOFFS — Tens of thousands of medical workers across the United States are suddenly out of work as operating rooms and doctor’s offices go dark, casualties of urgent calls to prioritize coronavirus patients at overwhelmed hospitals and of the economic waves the crisis is churning. SENT: 1,130 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CHRISTIAN HOLY WEEK — For Pope Francis at the Vatican, and for Christians worldwide from churches large and small, this will be an Easter like none other: The joyous message of Christ’s resurrection will be delivered to empty pews. SENT: 1,000 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CLOSING CHURCHES — Despite state and local limits on public gatherings, some houses of worship have persisted in holding in-person services -- a matter of religious freedom, they say, as the nation approached its fourth Sunday battling the coronavirus pandemic. SENT: 930 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-A GENTLER GOTHAM? — New Yorkers are taking a more tentative tack now that the city has become a hot zone for the coronavirus pandemic. There’s no pushing forward in lines, no irritably dodging slow pedestrians, no swearing at cabs for cutting into crosswalks. Moms with strollers are leaving wide berths for texting teens and slow-moving seniors. Supermarket shoppers are awkwardly sidestepping each other, trying their best to keep six feet away. Under threat amid a global outbreak, New Yorkers have become downright polite. Invading someone else’s personal space? Fuggedaboutit. SENT: 880 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-MILITARY RECRUITING -- As the country turns increasingly to the military for help during the coronavirus pandemic, America’s armed services are finding it harder to bring in new recruits. Most enlistment stations are closed. Recruiters working from home are seeking new prospects almost exclusively on social media sites. SENT: 960 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-NATURAL DISASTERS — The virus outbreak is compromising the ability of nations to prepare for natural disasters and deal with the aftermath. Every year, the world contends with devastating typhoons, wildfires, tsunamis and earthquakes. That dynamic doesn’t change just because the globe also happens to be fighting a pandemic. But many nations prone to natural disasters appear to have done little to prepare for a dual disaster. By Nick Perry. SENT: 970 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ASIAN AMERICANS MOBILIZING — Asian Americans are using social media to organize and fight back against racially motivated attacks during the coronavirus pandemic. A string of racist run-ins in the last two weeks has given rise to hashtags and online forums to report hate. FBI predicts attacks will increase as infections grow. SENT: 1,030 words, photos, video.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CRUISE SHIPS — Another cruise ship with coronavirus victims on board, including two fatalities, is docking in Florida. SENT: 480 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-LIVES LOST-DETROIT — Laneeka Barksdale, who died at 47 from coronavirus, was the mother of four children, including a 7-year-old. Family remembered her as a free spirit who was selfless, to the point that she didn’t want her sister to drive her to the hospital because of exposure risk. SENT: 540 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-PUERTO RICO — The suspected mismanagement of essential supplies during Hurricane Maria has turned out to be a boon for Puerto Rico, where officials have found a cache of personal protective equipment. SENT: 320 words.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-SEEKING FOOD-PHOTO GALLERY — Amid the coronavirus lockdown in France, charity workers are preparing more than a thousand meals a day for migrants and the homeless on the half-abandoned grounds of a former Paris hospital whose patron saint was devoted to the poor. SENT: 310 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CHINA-COMMEMORATING VICTIMS — With air raid sirens wailing and flags at half-staff, China held a three-minute nationwide moment of reflection to honor those who have died in the coronavirus outbreak. SENT: 490 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CANADA-US — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says that Canada won’t bring retaliatory or punitive measures against the United States after the Trump administration announced it would prevent the export of N95 protective masks. SENT: 360 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-THE-WEEK-THAT-WAS — This past week, New York got worse — far worse. In New York City, as morgue space ran out, people started wondering where the bodies will go and the funeral industry struggled to keep up. On the streets of a city accustomed to the exact opposite of social distancing, New Yorkers found a new, gentler reality. SENT: 1,600 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ONE GOOD THING-CHORUS — More than 100 people from across the United States and other parts of the world sing together every Sunday at the Corona Community Chorus. The virtual singing group meets on Zoom. SENT: 520 words, photos, video.
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WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
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KENNEDY TOWNSEND-MISSING RELATIVES — Divers and boats are back searching in the Chesapeake Bay for the bodies of the daughter and a grandson of former Maryland Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend after they didn’t return from a canoe ride. SENT: 320 words, photos.
JOSEPH LOWERY FUNERAL — The funeral for the Rev. Joseph E. Lowery was small out of concerns about the coronavirus. SENT: 240 words, photos.
PEOPLE-SELENA GOMEZ — Selena Gomez reveals bipolar diagnosis to Miley Cyrus. SENT: 210 words, photo.
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FACT CHECK-WEEK -- Is he a wartime president or a backup point man? President Trump seems to go back and forth on that, or both ways at once, in responding to the coronavirus pandemic that takes more lives by the hour. By Hope Yen and Calvin Woodward. SENT: 2,250 words, photos. Find AP Fact Checks at http://apne.ws/2kbx8bd
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BRITAIN-LABOUR PARTY — Britain’s main opposition Labour Party has elected lawyer and lawmaker Keir Starmer as its new leader, after a contest thrown into turmoil by the coronavirus outbreak. SENT: 720 words, photos.
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MORMON CONFERENCE — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ twice-annual conference kicked off without anyone attending in person and top leaders sitting some 6 feet apart inside an empty room as the faith takes precautions against the spread of the coronavirus. SENT: 460 words, photos.
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FRANCE KNIFE ATTACK —A man wielding a knife attacked residents of a French town while they ventured out to shop amid a coronavirus lockdown, killing two people and wounding eight others, authorities said. They said they are investigating whether it was an act of terrorism. SENT: 470 words, photos.
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-UNEMPLOYMENT OVERLOAD — Americans are seeking unemployment benefits at unprecedented levels due to the coronavirus, but many are finding more frustration than relief. State websites and phone lines across the country have been overwhelmed with applicants — causing sites to crash, phone lines to ring busy and much-needed payments to be delayed. While many states are doing their best to respond — adding staff, updating technology and streamlining the process — it’s tough to keep up with the pace of demand. By Sarah Skidmore Sell. SENT: 850 words, photo.
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BKN--HALL OF FAME —Less than three months after his fatal helicopter crash, Kobe Bryant is elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame. Also part of the nine-member 2020 class are Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Rudy Tomjanovich and Tamika Catchings. By Basketball Writer Tim Reynolds. SENT: 700 words, photos.
BBO--MLB-GRASS MAY BE GREENER — This was supposed to be baseball’s earliest start. A mild winter has helped the fields at many ballparks often battered by brutal cold. Now the grass has even more time to grow with no games to play. SENT: 750 words, photos.
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HOW TO REACH US
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