Daft Punk lead Grammy Award winners
French dance duo Daft Punk have taken top honours at the Grammy Awards, winning five prizes including album and record of the year.
Hip-hop duo Macklemore and Lewis picked up four awards - best new artist plus best rap album, song and performance.
Justin Timberlake won three, while New Zealand teenager Lorde took two including song of the year for Royals.
Sir Paul McCartney was among the other double winners and also reunited with his Beatles bandmate Ringo Starr.
The ceremony is known for its heavyweight on-stage collaborations and this year's show was opened by Jay-Z and his wife Beyonce.
Madonna joined Macklemore and Lewis to perform their anti-homophobia anthem Same Love as more than 30 couples took part in a mass wedding.
Other highlights included Daft Punk, Nile Rodgers and Pharrell Williams being joined by Stevie Wonder to perform their smash hit Get Lucky.
As well as performing, Sir Paul McCartney picked up the trophies for best music film and best rock song for Cut Me Some Slack, a collaboration with the surviving members of Nirvana.
It beat The Rolling Stones' Doom And Gloom, from their 50th anniversary album GRRR!, as well as tracks by veteran metal band Black Sabbath, stadium rockers Muse and US singer-guitarist Gary Clark Jr.
Black Sabbath did scoop best metal performance, while Led Zeppelin won best rock album for their live recording Celebration Day.
Other British nominees included Ed Sheeran and James Blake, who were both up for best new artist, but lost out to Macklemore and Lewis.
Rapper Macklemore and producer Ryan Lewis, who found fame after self-releasing their album The Heist, were up for a total of seven awards, including album of the year and song of the year for Same Love.
"I want to say we made this album without a record label, we made it independently and we appreciate all the support," Macklemore told the audience.
Seventeen-year-old Lorde's debut hit Royals earned her song of the year and best pop solo performance after enjoying global success last year.
Jay-Z started the night with the most nominations, up for awards including best rap song and best rap album.
Rapper Kendrick Lamar, hitmaker Pharrell Williams and pop superstar Justin Timberlake were among the other acts with seven nominations.
Many of the 82 winners were named at a preliminary ceremony before the main televised event. They included Adele's James Bond theme Skyfall, which won the prize for best song written for visual media.
Calvin Harris was up for best dance/electronica album for 18 Months and best dance recording for Sweet Nothing with Florence and the Machine's Florence Welch, but lost out on both.
UK acts Duke Dumont and Disclosure were also unsuccessful nominees in the dance categories.
KEY GRAMMY WINNERS
Album of the year - Random Access Memories, Daft Punk
Record of the year - Get Lucky, Daft Punk feat Pharrell Williams & Nile Rodgers
Song of the year - Royals, Lorde
Best country album - Same Trailer Different Park, Kacey Musgraves
Best pop vocal album - Unorthodox Jukebox, Bruno Mars
Best rap/sung collaboration - Holy Grail, Jay Z featuring Justin Timberlake
Best rock song - Cut Me Some Slack, Sir Paul McCartney with Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic and Pat Smear
Best pop duo/group performance - Get Lucky, Daft Punk feat Pharrell Williams & Nile Rodgers
Best new artist - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
Best rock album - Celebration Day, Led Zeppelin
Best alternative album - Modern Vampires Of The City, Vampire Weekend
Best music film - Live Kisses, Sir Paul McCartney
Best music video - Suit and Tie, Justin Timberlake
Best R&B album - Girl On Fire, Alicia Keys
Best R&B song - Pusher Love Girl, Justin Timberlake
Best rap album - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis,The Heist
Best rap song - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Thrift Shop
Best rap performance - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Thrift Shop
Best dance/electronica album - Daft Punk, Random Access Memories
Source-BBC
2014 Oscars: The nominees' list
Thor" star Chris Hemsworth joined Cheryl Boone Isaacs, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, on Thursday to announce the nominees for the 2014 Academy Awards.
The Academy Awards will air live on ABC on March 2, starting at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.
Best picture
"12 Years a Slave"
"The Wolf of Wall Street"
"Captain Phillips"
"Her"
"American Hustle"
"Gravity"
"Dallas Buyers Club"
"Nebraska"
"Philomena"
Best director
Steve McQueen -- "12 Years a Slave"
David O. Russell -- "American Hustle"
Alfonso Cuaron -- "Gravity"
Alexander Payne -- "Nebraska"
Martin Scorsese -- "The Wolf of Wall Street"
Best actor
Bruce Dern -- "Nebraska"
Chiwetel Ejiofor -- "12 Years a Slave"
Matthew McConaughey -- "Dallas Buyers Club"
Leonardo DiCaprio -- "The Wolf of Wall Street"
Christian Bale -- "American Hustle"
Best actress
Amy Adams -- "American Hustle"
Cate Blanchett -- "Blue Jasmine"
Judi Dench -- "Philomena"
Sandra Bullock -- "Gravity"
Meryl Streep -- "August: Osage County"
Best supporting actor
Barkhad Abdi -- "Captain Phillips"
Bradley Cooper -- "American Hustle"
Jonah Hill -- "The Wolf of Wall Street"
Jared Leto -- "Dallas Buyers Club"
Michael Fassbender -- "12 Years a Slave"
Best supporting actress
Jennifer Lawrence -- "American Hustle"
Lupita Nyong'o -- "12 Years a Slave"
June Squibb -- "Nebraska"
Julia Roberts -- "August: Osage County"
Sally Hawkins -- "Blue Jasmine"
Best original screenplay
"American Hustle" -- David O. Russell and Eric Warren Singer
"Blue Jasmine" -- Woody Allen
"Her" -- Spike Jonze
"Nebraska" -- Bob Nelson
"Dallas Buyers Club" -- Craig Borten and Melisa Wallack
Best adapted screenplay
"12 Years a Slave" -- John Ridley
"Before Midnight" -- Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke and Richard Linklater
"The Wolf of Wall Street" -- Terence Winter
"Captain Phillips" -- Billy Ray
"Philomena" -- Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope
Best animated feature
"The Wind Rises"
"Frozen"
"Despicable Me 2"
"Ernest & Celestine"
"The Croods"
Best foreign feature
"The Hunt" (Denmark)
"The Broken Circle Breakdown" (Belgium)
"The Great Beauty" (Italy)
"Omar" (Palestinian territories)
"The Missing Picture" (Cambodia)
Best music (original song)
"Frozen": "Let it Go" -- Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez
"Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom": "Ordinary Love" -- U2, Paul Hewson
"Her": "The Moon Song" -- Karen O, Spike Jonze
"Despicable Me 2": "Happy" -- Pharrell Williams
"Alone Yet Not Alone": "Alone Yet Not Alone" -- Bruce Broughton, Dennis Spiegel
Best music (original score)
"Gravity" -- Steven Price
"Philomena" -- Alexandre Desplat
"The Book Thief" -- John Williams
"Saving Mr. Banks" -- Thomas Newman
"Her" -- William Butler and Owen Pallett
Best cinematography
"Gravity" -- Emmanuel Lubezki
"Inside Llewyn Davis" -- Bruno Delbonnel
"Nebraska" -- Phedon Papamichael
"Prisoners" -- Roger Deakins
"The Grandmaster" -- Phillippe Le Sourd
Best costume design
"The Great Gatsby" -- Catherine Martin
"12 Years a Slave" -- Patricia Norris
"The Grandmaster" -- William Chang Suk Ping
"American Hustle" -- Michael Wilkinson
"The Invisible Woman" -- Michael O'Connor
Best documentary feature
"The Act of Killing"
"20 Feet From Stardom"
"The Square"
"Cutie and the Boxer"
"Dirty Wars"
Best film editing
"Gravity" -- Alfonso Cuaron, Mark Sanger
"12 Years a Slave"-- Joe Walker
"Captain Phillips" -- Christopher Rouse
"American Hustle" -- Jay Cassidy, Crispin Struthers and Alan Baumgarten
"Dallas Buyers Club" -- John Mac McMurphy and Martin Pensa
Best makeup and hairstyling
"The Lone Ranger" -- Joel Harlow and Gloria Pasqua-Casny
"Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa" -- Stephen Prouty
"Dallas Buyers Club" -- Adruitha Lee and Robin Mathews
Best production design
"12 Years a Slave" -- Adam Stockhausen and Alice Baker
"The Great Gatsby" -- Catherine Martin and Beverley Dunn
"American Hustle" -- Judy Becker and Heather Loeffler
"Gravity" -- Andy Nicholson, Rosie Goodwin and Joanne Woollard
"Her" -- K.K. Barrett and Gene Serdena
Best visual effects
"Gravity"
"The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug"
"Star Trek Into Darkness"
"Iron Man 3"
"The Lone Ranger"
Best sound mixing
"Gravity"
"Captain Phillips"
"Lone Survivor"
"Inside Llewyn Davis"
"The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug"
Best sound editing
"Gravity"
"All Is Lost"
"Captain Phillips"
"Lone Survivor"
"The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug"
Best short film, live action
"Aquel No Era Yo (That Wasn't Me)"
"Avant Que De Tout Perdre (Just Before Losing Everything)"
"Helium"
"Pitaako Mun Kaikki Hoitaa? (Do I Have to Take Care of Everything?)"
"The Voorman Problem"
Best short film, animated
"Feral"
"Get a Horse!"
"Mr. Hublot"
"Possessions"
"Room on the Broom"
Best documentary short
"CaveDigger"
"Facing Fear"
"Karama Has No Walls"
"The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life"
"Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall"
Source-Cnn
Whiplash celebrates double win at Sundance
Drummer drama Whiplash has won the grand jury prize and the audience award at US film festival Sundance.
The opening night film, about an obsessive jazz drummer, has now been bought by Sony Picture Classics, which will bring it to a wider audience.
Rich Hill, about a group of teenagers living in a deprived area of rural America, won the documentary prize.
Sundance is the US's leading indie film festival, backed by Robert Redford's institute of the same name.
Whiplash's writer and director, Damien Chazelle, won the US fiction short film grand jury prize last year at Sundance for his original short version of Whiplash.
The 28-year-old then expanded his short to make it into a feature film for this year's festival.
"I remember my first time here was with a short, and the whole reason we made a short was because of my experiences as a drummer," Chazelle said.
"No-one wanted to finance the film because no-one wants to make a film about a jazz drummer - surprising," he jokily added.
Rich Hill co-director Tracy Droz Tragos dedicated the win to the film's subjects.
"This is a small film but it's got a big heart and we dedicate it to the families of Rich Hill, Missouri, and the families in this film: the three boys and their families who were so brave and so lovely to let us into their lives and to trust us and reveal some stuff that was so tough."
The US documentary audience award went to Alive Inside: A Story of Music & Memory, which explores the effect of music on elderly patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease.
The annual film festival, now in its 30th year, opened on 16 January in Park City, Utah, and will close on Sunday.
Other awards given out on Saturday included the short film audience prize, sponsored by YouTube and based on the number of online hits each entry had. This year's prize went to Chapel Perilous, a comedy about a man who is visited by a salesman with nothing to sell.
Previous Sundance winners include 2010's Winter's Bone and 2012's Beasts of the Southern Wild, which both went on to garner Oscar nominations.
AG in crime talks with UK, Canada officials
Britain and Canada are lending assistance to T&T in its war on crime, endorsing, among other things, legislative measures for implementation of the death penalty, an increase in the number of criminal offences that can be tried without a jury and to allow witnesses to testify via video link, or anonymously. Following meetings with representatives of Britain and Canada, Attorney General Anand Ramlogan promised to bring a progressive legislative agenda for 2014 with heavy emphasis on crime-fighting measures.
Crime and improving the criminal justice system were on the agenda when British High Commissioner Arthur Snell and Canadian High Commissioner Gerard Latulippe met Ramlogan to discuss several matters of mutual interest, the AG’s Office said. They were accompanied by the director of the Crown Prosecution Service, International Division, Patrick Stevens; specialist prosecutor for the International Division from London, Andrew Stephens; and criminal justice adviser to T&T, Moira Mac David.
A release from the AG’s Office said: “The meeting focused on measures to improve the criminal justice system and the administration of justice. A wide range of issues were discussed, including the detection of crime, crime scene investigation, the use of technology in the fight against crime using CCTV cameras, digitalised recording of police statements, the abolition of jury trials and anonymous witnesses.”
Ramlogan said legislation which targets problems in the criminal justice system will be tabled in Parliament, including abolition of preliminary inquiries and the giving of evidence via video link or anonymously using one-way screens. He promised to continue the close relationship with the British and Canadian governments to ensure the fight against crime is successful and an efficient, modern and improved criminal justice system becomes a reality.
Source-GuardianMedia
Kamla on US cocaine bust: We had a hand
Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar says this country was able to make the $644 million cocaine bust with the help of allies. The drugs left T&T in juice cans seized in Norfolk, Virginia, last month.
Persad-Bissessar, who spoke on the issue when she arrived at the National Academy for the Performing Arts (Napa) in Port-of-Spain, for the launch of a National Week of Prayer, yesterday, said she was “fortified” when SM Jaleel was able to show the cans were counterfeit. SM Jaleel pointed out that the shade of green on the labels of the cans in which the cocaine was shipped was different to their cans. The prime minister declined comment on the actual investigation of the cocaine bust.
“The matter is under investigation and very sensitive and it would be inappropriate to comment,” she said, although she said that every nation would have issues with narco-trafficking. She said her government is working with Customs and Excise and the relevant ministries to deal with the scourge of illegal drugs in the country.
She said the installation of two port scanners, purchased through grant funding at a cost of $25 million each, has begun. The scanners arrived in T&T on December 26, 2013. Two others are expected to arrive in June. Persad-Bissessar referred to an article in the Sunday Guardian which stated that the Mexican drug cartel’s strategy was to use the Caribbean to move drugs, not only to West Africa and Europe, but also to the eastern seaboard of the US and Canada.
“It has been known for a long time this country is a trans-shipment point for drugs,” Persad-Bissessar said
University of the West Indies (UWI) criminology lecturer Daurius Figueira said the cocaine bust suggests that T&T has been infiltrated by the Mexican drug cartel. He said: “That shipment has all the hallmarks of a Mexican drug cartel operation. Its fingerprints are all over it. That is the wake-up call for T&T. The Mexican cartels have already infiltrated the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, the Eastern Caribbean, Belize, Bahamas, Turks and Caicos islands, US Virgin Islands. It’s T&T’s time now, and Jamaica’s turn is next.”
Persad-Bissessar said she supported National Security Minister Gary Griffith’s gag order on the matter until the situation is locked down. “With such sensitive matters, information should be released only on a need-to-know basis. I think it (the gag order) is a good strategy,” Persad-Bissessar said. Griffith said investigations into the bust are ongoing and said he had informed all investigators, local and abroad, that information was to be released only on a need-to-know basis. He said not even Government ministers need to know.
Griffith said local intelligence is working closely with the US Drug Enforcement Administration on the matter. Persad-Bissessar, who will attend the Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States tomorrow, said she plans to raise the issues of narco-trafficking trade and regional security at that meeting.
Last month, US Customs and Border Protection officers discovered the 732 pounds of cocaine concealed in cans of fruit juice in a 20-foot container during an inspection. The shipment was destined for New York.
Source-GuardianMedia
Joseph slams WICB silence
Former West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) vice president Clarvis Joseph has labelled the WICB’s “no comment” approach to the draft presented by the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Finance & Commercial Affairs committee as cowardly.
Joseph was quoted in the Antigua Observer as saying that there are wide implications for the development of cricket in the region and the WICB’s silence on the issue has done it no favour.
“We have lost the leadership role that we used to play in ICC by adopting the cowardly attitude of not making it public. There are very wide implications for the development of cricket and that is all I would say at this time because I really don’t want to get involved for obvious reasons that you would appreciate,” Joseph said.
“But I find it disgusting that we are not prepared to stand up and declare out of hand and talk about it when we should have gone to the meeting and that is nonsense.
“There is too much investment by government and the people in the Caribbean in the development of cricket. We have been let down in terms of the standard of the players but that is no excuse to adopt a cowardly attitude,” he added.
The proposal, if adopted, gives control of Test cricket to England, India and Australia and also includes the formation of a two-tier structure of Test cricket, with those three nations immune from relegation.
Joseph, who said he has seen the draft in its entirety, warns that the motive of the proposal hinges largely on finances.
“My knowledge suggests that the members of the West Indies Cricket Board have not been presented with the full report but have been presented with a power point presentation of the report and if you read the full report, there is nothing to do with cricket,” the former VP said.
“It has everything to do with money and distribution of revenue and if you look at it from a purely cricket perspective, the proposal has no merit.
“It is not today that England has sought to dominate the decision-making in ICC and if you go back as far as when Alan Weir was president, the ECC requested a veto on ICC matters as far as that,” he added.
WICB has reserved comment on the draft proposal until they have made a presentation to the ICC at its Board meeting scheduled for Dubai, United Arab Emirates, next Tuesday and Wednesday.
Source-GuardianMedia
Rafael Nadal refuses to quit Australian Open final
World number one Rafael Nadal said he would hate to quit a Grand Slam final despite the back injury that derailed his Australian Open hopes.
Nadal lost 6-3 6-2 3-6 6-3 to Stanislas Wawrinka, ending his bid for a second Australian and 14th Grand Slam title.
The Spaniard, 27, had been hoping to become only the third man to win all four major titles at least twice.
"The last thing that I wanted to do was retire. No, I hate to do that, especially in a final," he said.
"At the same time, it's tough to see yourself during the whole year, working for a moment like this, and the moment arrives and you feel that you are not able to play at your best."
The Spaniard revealed that he had felt an issue with his back even before the match had started.
"Since the beginning I felt it a little bit, from the warm-up," he said. "At the end of the first set, I started to feel worse.
"Then at the beginning of the second was the key moment that I felt, during a serve in a bad movement, it was very stiff, very bad."
Nadal then left the court for a medical timeout, unaware of the exact nature of the problem.
Source-BBC
NSA 'engaged in industrial espionage' - Snowden
US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden has alleged the National Security Agency engaged in industrial espionage.
In an interview with Germany's ARD TV channel, the former NSA contractor said the agency would spy on big German companies that competed with US firms.
Mr Snowden, who was granted temporary asylum by Russia, also said he believed that US officials wanted to kill him.
His leaks caused outrage in Germany when it came to light Chancellor Angela Merkel's phone had been bugged.
After the row broke out last year, Mrs Merkel accused the US of an unacceptable breach of trust.
Last week President Barack Obama indicated to Germany's ZDF TV that US bugging of Mrs Merkel's mobile phone had been a mistake and would not happen again.
Mr Snowden's new allegation about industrial spying may make it harder to rebuild trans-Atlantic trust, the BBC's Stephen Evans reports from Berlin.
Referring to the German engineering company Siemens, Mr Snowden told ARD: "If there is information at Siemens that they [the NSA] think would be beneficial to the national interests, not the national security, of the United States, they will go after that information and they'll take it."
He also said he believed US agents want to kill him, referring to an article published by the Buzzfeed website in which intelligence operatives are quoted as saying they want to see him dead.
In August Russia granted Mr Snowden asylum for one year, after he leaked details of US electronic surveillance programmes.
The US has charged Mr Snowden with theft of government property, unauthorised communication of national defence information and wilful communication of classified communications intelligence.
Each of the charges carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence. Earlier this week he said he has "no chance" of a fair trial in the US and has no plans to return there.
Source-BBC
Japan reports record annual trade deficit
Japan has reported a record annual trade deficit after the weak yen pushed up the cost of energy imports.
Its deficit rose to 11.5 trillion yen ($112bn; £68bn) in 2013 - a 65% jump from a year ago.
Japan has seen its energy imports rise in recent years after it shut all of its nuclear reactors in the aftermath of the tsunami and earthquake in 2011.
But it is having to pay more for those imports after a series of aggressive policy moves weakened the yen sharply.
The Japanese currency fell more than 20% against the US dollar between January and December last year.
The latest trade data showed that while Japan's imports of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) rose 0.2% by volume in 2013 from the previous year - the value of those imports surged nearly 18%.
This is the third year in a row that Japan - traditionally known for the strength of its exports - has reported an annual trade deficit.
Japan, the world's third-largest economy, has seen its growth stagnate over the past two decades.
In an attempt to change that, policymakers have unveiled a series of aggressive moves over the past few months, including doubling the country's money supply.
The measures, led by Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, have come to be known as 'Abenomics'.
The steps have had a big impact on Japan's currency - which has fallen sharply against the US dollar.
A weak currency bodes well for Japan's exports - a key driver of its growth - making them cheaper for foreign buyers. A weak yen also boosts profits of exporters when they repatriate their overseas earnings back home.
The hope has been that a rise in exports, coupled with a jump in earnings of exporters, will aid Japan's economic recovery.
However, the weak currency has also made imports more expensive and affected the country's trade balance.
Source-BBC
Ukrainian Protesters Seize Justice Ministry
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Anti-government protesters have seized the Ukrainian justice ministry in Kyiv, after rejecting President Viktor Yanukovych's offer to name an opposition leader as prime minister.
Demonstrators used sandbags and garbage cans to build a barrier around the ministry Sunday.
President Yanukovych offered to name opposition leader Arseniy Yatsenyuk as prime minister, and former boxing champion Vitaly Klitschko as his deputy.
Yatsenyuk told a crowd that the opposition is "not afraid" of accepting more political responsibility. But he said Mr. Yanukovych still has to meet several demands. They include early elections, freedom for jailed protesters, and repealing anti-protest laws.
Marchers took to the streets in late November after Mr. Yanukovych backed out of a trade deal with the European Union in favor of closer ties to Russia.
Source-Voice of America