ADVISORY CNN Wire Outlook

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Supervising News Editor Lateef Mungin -- 404-827-1401

UPCOMING

Syria-Civil-War (will update)

The main road connecting the Syrian capital of Damascus with the city's airport was open, but no flights were operating Friday, according to an opposition group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Belize-McAfee-Interview (tentative, efforting)

CNN has secured a rare on camera interview with John McAfee since the internet antivirus pioneer went on the run from police in Belize who are seeking to question him in relation to a murder of a neighbor earlier this month. He told CNN's Martin Savidge from a safe house that he is innocent of the murder of American expatriate Gregory Faull, who was found shot to death in his own home.

Egypt-Protests monitoring

Whether a draft constitution approved by an assembly will move Egypt toward being a freer and more open society is still in question, experts sayThe assembly early Friday approved dozens of amendments as delegates worked through the night to cobble together the draft. Citizens will vote in two weeks to determine the constitution's future.

PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED STORIES

INTERNATIONAL

Egypt-Protests

Whether a draft constitution approved by an assembly will move Egypt toward being a freer and more open society is still in question, experts say.

Egypt-unrest-explainer

Q & A: What's driving Egypt's unrest?

Syria-Civil-War

TECH-Facebook-removes-sex-offender-page

A convicted sex offender won a landmark legal ruling Friday that ordered Facebook to take down a page set up to monitor pedophiles in Northern Ireland.

Ireland-Abortion-Controversy

The husband of a woman who died after reportedly being refused an abortion in Ireland said Friday he will not cooperate with an inquiry into her death.

Cuba-Phone-Call-Tax-Cut

The Cuban government on Friday reduced its expensive telephone rates between the island and the United States. The government is scrapping a 10% tax it imposed on calls between the two countries in 2000, it announced. The largest population of Cubans outside the island resides in the United States, and calls between the two countries typically top $3 a minute.

U.S.A.

US-Powerball-Winners

"I think we're going to have a pretty good Christmas," Cindy Hill joked Friday, just minutes after a Missouri lottery official announced that Hill and her family had won half of the record $587.5 million Powerball jackpot.

MONEY-powerball-lottery-tax

The winners of the biggest Powerball lottery in history aren't the only ones celebrating. The IRS has hit a jackpot of its own, with millions of dollars in taxes potentially coming its way.

Minnesota-Powerball-Gas-Pump

The next time Minnesota drivers looking to play the Powerball lottery pay at the pump, the pump might pay them back. The Minnesota State Lottery has launched a pilot program to allow customers to purchase lottery tickets while they fill up their cars. This week's winning tickets for the $587.5 million Powerball jackpot were purchased at convenience stores, but Ed Van Petten, director of the Minnesota State Lottery, said sales of lottery tickets at gas pumps have been brisk.

US-Severe-Weather

A vicious mix of wind, rain and snow that has deluged the Pacific Northwest since Tuesday isn't letting up, spurring the National Weather Service to issue an array of cautionary guidance.

US-Supreme-Court-Marriage

The Supreme Court took no action Friday on a pending series of appeals over the divisive issue of same-sex marriage.

US-Harvard-Kinky-Sex-Club

Call it Fifty Shades of Crimson, if you will. The august flagship of the Ivy League, Harvard University, approved Friday a student group devoted to kinky sex called Harvard College Munch, a university spokesman said.

US-Manning-WikiLeaks

Prosecutors tried to establish Friday that Army private Bradley Manning -- charged in the largest leak of classified material in U.S. history -- missed multiple opportunities to complain about the mistreatment he's alleging he suffered in military custody.

Florida-Explosives-Plot

Two Florida brothers originally from Pakistan were indicted Friday, accused of plotting to use an explosive device and conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists. Raees Alam Qazi, 20, and Sheheryar Alam Qazi, 30, were arrested by FBI agents in Fort Lauderdale on Thursday. The indictment does not provide specific details about what the men may have been targeting, saying only they conspired to use a "weapon of mass destruction" against people and property in the United States.

Wyoming-Deaths

A man fatally injured one person, then burst into a Wyoming college class Friday morning to kill another person and, ultimately, himself, police said.

California-Tennis-Beating-Murder

New evidence has persuaded Los Angeles County prosecutors to drop murder charges against a U.S. Open tennis umpire. Lois Goodman, 70, had been accused of bludgeoning her 80-year-old husband, Alan, with a coffee mug, and then fatally stabbing him with the broken mug's shards at their California home in April.

Arizona-Social-Security-Building-Explosion

Authorities arrested a man during a traffic stop Friday in connection with an explosion at the Social Security office in Casa Grande, Arizona, a law enforcement official said.

MED-fda-generic-lipitor

The Food and Drug Administration advised patients Friday to keep taking a popular cholesterol drug even though it might contain specks of glass, reversing advice it gave just a day ago.

TRAVEL-new-york-tourism-sandy

The crowd of festival goers at a holiday market in New York City's Columbus Circle Friday seemed to support the message city tourism officials have been spreading far and wide: The Big Apple is open for business and welcoming its usual influx of holiday visitors. Superstorm Sandy's wrath a month ago will cost New York state $41 billion, according to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, but tourists have largely been unfazed by the storm, which caused very little damage to Midtown Manhattan, the hub of the city's magical holiday attractions.

TRAVEL-Flight-Attendants-OSHA

Flight attendants who have OSHA protections on the ground -- but lose them the minute they board a plane -- may soon retain those protections in the sky. In a move that may also benefit airline passengers, the Federal Aviation Administration and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced Friday they plan to share responsibility for the flight attendants' safety on aircraft. Flight attendants would, for the first time, be able to report workplace injuries and illnesses to OSHA, ending a 37-year era in which the FAA claimed sole jurisdiction for cabin safety.

TRAVEL-DC-Inauguration-Limousines

For the swarms of limousines headed to the Obama inauguration, the toll to enter Washington just got a lot cheaper. The District of Columbia Taxicab Commission on Friday scuttled plans to require each out-of-town limo to obtain a $500 permit, lowering it to $150.

POLITICS

POL-Fiscal-Cliff-Proposal

The White House and Congressional Republicans are squaring off in negotiations to avert the fiscal cliff, with each side accusing the other of blocking a deal. For the first time we're getting a look at what the White House is offering to break the stalemate. Republicans consider it an overreach. Democrats make clear it's a first offer, to get specific on the numbers.

POL-Fiscal-Cliff

Stumping for a deal to avoid automatic tax increases and spending cuts that will otherwise hit at year's end, President Barack Obama on Friday toured a Pennsylvania toy factory that's churning out would-be holiday gifts, warning of a "Scrooge" Christmas if Congress does not pass legislation extending tax cuts for 98% of Americans.

POL-Baucus-Fiscal-Cliff

While there is currently no plan for Congressional leaders to meet with the president, according to an official familiar with the situation, Democratic Sen. Max Baucus said the two sides should get to work on the fiscal cliff negotiations-and soon, before the U.S. enters "uncharted waters."

POL-Progressives-Pressure-Lawmakers

Two coalitions of progressive groups are trying to exert more pressure on lawmakers to protect the Bush-era tax cuts for the middle class as congressional leaders and the White House try to avert the fiscal cliff when all tax rates rise and major spending cuts are enacted at the beginning of next year.

POL-House-GOP-Immigration-Bill

The U.S. House approved Republican-backed immigration legislation on Friday that had previously fallen short in September, though Democrats described it as a piecemeal political move by Republicans after their poor election showing among non-white voters. House Democrats predicted it would fail in the Democratic-controlled Senate, partly due to White House opposition. The "STEM Jobs Act" would grant as many as 55,000 visas to non-citizens who complete some advanced degrees at U.S. universities in science, technology, engineering, and math.

POL-Boehner-Appoints-Woman

House Speaker John Boehner named Rep. Candice Miller of Michigan as the chairman of the House Administration Committee on Friday, three days after the Republican conference took heat for electing only males as committee heads.

POL-Rand-Paul-Middle-East

Sen. Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican, will travel to the Middle East in the new year, his spokeswoman confirmed to CNN on Friday.

MONEY

MONEY-stocks-markets

U.S. stocks went nowhere Friday as investors remain sidelined by political gridlock in Washington.

MONEY-european-bailout-downgrade

Another day, another European downgrade. Ratings agency Moody's announced a downgrade Friday of the continent's main bailout vehicle, the European Stability Mechanism, knocking it one notch from prized Aaa status to Aa1.

FEATURES AND COMMENTARY

ENT-Carrie-Underwood-to-star-in-NBC's-'The-Sound-of-Music'

Raindrops on roses, whiskers on kittens and Carrie Underwood as Maria? On Friday, NBC announced its plans to air a live broadcast of "The Sound of Music," starring Underwood as Maria, based on the original musical.

ENT-MTV's-'Buckwild'-to-premiere-January-3

With MTV's "Jersey Shore" coming to an end, the network is readying a new group of party animals to fill the void -- and the Thursday night time slot. "Buckwild," which follows a group of nine friends on their quest to entertain themselves in Sissonville, West Virginia, is set to premiere on January 3, according to MTV.

ENT-Clint-Eastwood's-daughter-named-Miss-Golden-Globe-2013

Looks like Clint Eastwood and Frances Fisher's daughter will join hosts Tina Fey and Amy Poehler on stage during the 2013 Golden Globes. Francesca Eastwood was named Miss Golden Globe by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association at an event on Thursday.

TECH-apparently-matter-thin-guys

Apparently This Matters: Chicks dig skinny guys

FEA-Pat-Robertson-Challenges-Creationism

Televangelist Pat Robertson challenged the idea that Earth is 6,000 years old this week, saying the man who many credit with conceiving the idea, former Archbishop of Ireland James Ussher, "wasn't inspired by the Lord when he said that it all took 6,000 years." The statement was in response to a question Robertson fielded Tuesday from a viewer on his Christian Broadcasting Network show "The 700 Club." In a submitted question, the viewer wrote that one of her biggest fears was that her children and husband would not go to heaven "because they question why the Bible could not explain the existence of dinosaurs."

FEA-Gay-Activists-Build-Faith-Outreach

After gay marriage successes, activists look to build on new faith outreach techniques.

FEA-Gauging-Purpose-Driven-Life-Impact

This month marks the 10th anniversary of the best-selling hardback book in American history: Rick Warren's "The Purpose Driven Life." We reached out to scholars, religion experts and Warren's wife, Kay, to ask about the book's impact after a decade. Here's what they told us:

US-High-school-football-Valdosta

When football loves you back: An author documents a season with the winningest high school football program in America.

COMMENTARY-martin-obama-rice-gop

Mr. President, show the GOP who's boss.