Here’s a look at how AP’s general news coverage is shaping up for select stories. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s complete coverage of North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and Delaware, and the rest of the world, visit Coverage Plan at newsroom.ap.org
Questions about coverage plans are welcome and should be directed to 919-510-8937, 202-641-9660, 410-837-8315, 804-643-6646 or metro@ap.org. Mid-South Assistant News Director Jonathan Drew can be reached at 919-510-8937 or jdrew@ap.org.
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This information is not for publication or broadcast, and these coverage plans are subject to change. Expected stories may not develop, or late-breaking and more newsworthy events may take precedence. Coverage Plan will keep you up to date. All times are Eastern unless specified otherwise.
NORTH CAROLINA
VIRUS OUTBREAK-COOPER
RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper says he’ll keep to a lower public profile this week after testing positive for COVID-19. The Democratic governor tweeted that he tested positive on Monday. He described the case as mild and that he was feeling fine. The 66-year-old Cooper says he’ll work remotely for the rest of the week and wants to be “out and about by the weekend.” Cooper also tested positive for COVID-19 in June 2022. Last week, Cooper attended the National Governors Association annual meeting in Atlantic City, New Jersey. SENT: 110 words, photo.
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SOUTH CAROLINA
MURDAUGH-BOAT CRASH
COLUMBIA, S.C. — The family of a teen killed in a boat crash that prosecutors said begin the financial downfall of double murderer Alex Murdaugh has reached a $15 million deal to settle a lawsuit against a convenience store chain that sold his son alcohol while under age. Sunday’s deal came after a judge refused to allow the Parker’s Kitchen chain to be separated from Murdaugh in a civil trial next month over 19-year-old Mallory Beach’s death in 2019. Murdaugh is currently serving a life sentence without parole for killing his wife and the son involved in the 2019 drunken boat crash at their home two years later. By Jeffrey Collins. SENT: 720 words, photo.
EAST COAST WEATHER
WASHINGTON CROSSING, Pa. — Crews in suburban Philadelphia on Monday intensified the search for a missing 9-month-old boy and his 2-year-old sister, swept away after weekend rains swelled the banks of a creek while they were driving to a barbecue with their family. Upper Makefield Township Fire Chief Tim Brewer said Monday the effort would be a “massive undertaking” and that 100 search crew and numerous drones would be looking for the siblings along the creek that drains into the Delaware River in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Brewer says the children are part of a Charleston, South Carolina, family visiting relatives and friends and were driving when they got caught in a flash flood Saturday. By Maryclaire Dale. SENT: 710 words, photos, video, audio.
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VIRGINIA
REPUBLICANS-FBI
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Kevin McCarthy suggested recently he might block the FBI from relocating its downtown headquarters to a new facility planned for the suburbs of Washington. It was more than idle thinking about an office renovation. The Republican speaker is elevating a once-fringe conservative proposal to upend the FBI. Conservatives are angry at the FBI in the aftermath of the Justice Department’s indictment of Donald Trump over classified documents and the prosecution of his allies, including some of the nearly 1,000 people charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Some Republicans want to move the FBI to Alabama. McCarthy prefers to spread its operations to the states. By Lisa Mascaro. SENT: 1,100 words, photos.
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MARYLAND/DELAWARE
BRITAIN KEVIN SPACEY TRIAL
LONDON — Elton John has testified for the defense at Kevin Spacey’s sexual assault trial as the actor’s lawyer attempted to discredit a man who claimed Spacey aggressively grabbed his crotch in a car on the way to the singer’s house. John appeared remotely from Monaco on Monday. One of the alleged victims accused Spacey of assaulting him in 2004 or 2005. Spacey testified that Spacey only attended the annual gala he held at his Windsor home once — in 2001. John’s husband, David Furnish, earlier gave similar testimony. Spacey has pleaded not guilty to a dozen charges that include sexual and indecent assault counts. By Brian Melley. SENT: 810 words, photos, audio.
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SPORTS
BBO–DODGERS-ORIOLES
BALTIMORE — The Orioles bring an eight-game winning streak into this showdown with the NL West-leading Dodgers. By Baseball Writer Noah Trister. UPCOMING: 600 words, photos. Game starts at 7:05 p.m. ET.
BBN–NATIONALS-CUBS
CHICAGO — Dansby Swanson and the Chicago Cubs meet Lane Thomas and the Washington Nationals. UPCOMING: 600 words, photos. By Matt Carlson.
CAR–NASCAR-NEW HAMPSHIRE
LOUDON, N.H. — Christopher Bell starts on the pole for the rain-postponed NASCAR Cup race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. By Dan Gelston. UPCOMING. 700 words. Race starts at noon. AP Photos.
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LOCALIZATION
MASS KILLINGS DATABASE-LOCALIZE IT: An analysis by The Associated Press, USA Today and Northeastern University involved tracking all mass killings in the country since 2006 and compiling the results into a database, which is available for your reporting use. Find the latest Localize It guides.
SUPREME COURT-ETHICS-LOCALIZE IT: Records obtained by The Associated Press show that Supreme Court justices attended publicly funded events at colleges and universities that allowed the schools to put the justices in the room with influential donors, including some whose industries have had interests before the court. The AP’s investigation also found that justices lent the prestige of their position to partisan activity and advanced personal interests such as book sales. The court says ethical guidelines were followed. We provide a list of institutions included in AP’s published reporting and tips for pursuing reporting and record requests for visits by justices in your area. Find the latest Localize It guides.
With:
Audio Localize It guide PART ONE
Audio Localize It guide PART TWO
WORLD CUP-LOCALIZE IT: America’s star-studded women’s World Cup team has community ties from coast to coast. We list them for you and include players with U.S. ties from some other teams as well. We also point you to local club resources for potential watch parties and other events and link to AP’s planned coverage. Find the latest Localize It guides.
LOCALIZE IT-LEFT BEHIND LEAD: Many cities have been excavating and revealing lead pipes as they do work on water mains, then reburying them, an investigation by the Associated Press has found. The practice has been common. But the city of Detroit, which went through bankruptcy, shows that cities didn’t have to make a choice that risks lead poisoning for another generation of young children. Detroit decided to dig up all of its lead pipes. Some cities say there are financial or social obstacles to removing all lead pipes, and that some homeowners don’t want city workers on their property. But people who study lead poisoning, which can deprive children of cognitive abilities, call the practice of leaving them in the ground immoral. We offer details on lead pipes per state and tips for finding out the status of lead pipe removal in your community. Find the latest Localize It guides.
DISUNITED METHODISTS-LOCALIZE IT: More than 6,000 United Methodist congregations — a fifth of the U.S. total — have received permission to leave the denomination, according to the latest tally in a long-running schism over theology and the role of LGBTQ persons. Most of those departures, which began with a trickle in 2019, occurred this year during a just-completed round of meetings of the denomination’s regional governing bodies. Many of the departing congregations are joining the new, more conservative Global Methodist Church. We offer details on congregations that are leaving and tips for localizing the story. Find the latest Localize It guides.
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VIDEO
Search underway for missing children swept away in flash flood
California’s Death Valley sizzles during brutal heat wave
Freight train derails in Montgomery County, PA
Freed rabbits take hold in Florida neighborhood
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AUDIO
10 years since bankruptcy, Detroit’s finances are better but city workers and retirees feel burned
Cost for base F-150 Lightning electric vehicle falls below $50,000 as Ford cuts prices substantially
Heavy rains swamp Northeast again as flash flooding claims at least 5 lives in Pennsylvania
Judge in Trump documents case under the spotlight as arguments near
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U.S. STORIES
TRUMP-CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS — A month after former President Donald Trump was charged with mishandling classified documents, the judge presiding over the case is set to take on a more visible role as she weighs competing requests on a trial date and hears arguments this week on a procedural, but potentially crucial, area of the law. A pretrial conference Tuesday to discuss procedures for handling classified information will represent the first courtroom arguments in the case before U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon since Trump was indicted five weeks ago. SENT: 960 words, photos.
ELECTION 2024-TURNING POINT — When student activists assembled in Florida last year for Turning Point Action’s annual summit, many were torn, wrestling with whether former President Donald Trump or Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was the Republican Party’s best hope for 2024. One year later, there is no more doubt. Instead, attendees booed at even the suggestion of a contested primary and heckled several of the long-shot challengers who decided to show up. UPCOMING: 1,200 words, photos by 3 p.m.
EAST COAST WEATHER — Crews in suburban Philadelphia on Monday intensified the search for a missing 9-month-old boy and his 2-year-old sister, swept away after weekend rains swelled the banks of a creek while they were driving to a barbecue with their family. Upper Makefield Township Fire Chief Tim Brewer said Monday the effort would be a “massive undertaking” and that 100 search crew and numerous drones would be looking for the siblings along the creek that drains into the Delaware River in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. SENT: 560 words, video, photos.
MED-ALZHEIMER’S DRUG — New research shows another experimental Alzheimer’s drug can modestly slow patients’ inevitable worsening. Patients given monthly infusions of Eli Lilly and Co.’s donanemab declined about four to seven months more slowly than those given dummy infusions in a large study. If U.S. regulators approve, the drug would be only the second Alzheimer’s treatment convincingly shown to delay the mind-robbing disease — after rival Leqembi. Both drugs pose a serious safety concern — brain swelling and bleeding. SENT: 700 words, photo.
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