Phillip Phillips is the new 'American Idol'

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Phillip Phillips, a bluesy Georgia guitar man, was crowned the new "American Idol" on Wednesday after defeating teenager Jessica Sanchez in record viewer voting. He was the fifth male "Idol" winner in a row.

Phillips, 21, a pawn shop worker from Leesburg, Ga., looked stunned when host Ryan Seacrest announced his name, then wordlessly accepted a hug from Sanchez and congratulations from his fellow finalists.

He dissolved into tears as he sang "Home," the song that may be his first single.

Phillips retained his humble, self-effacing demeanor to the end, and beyond.

"I have no idea why I won, man," he said in his backstage dressing room. "I guess some people liked the music that I was doing. I'm just lucky. ... I was just doing my thing each week."

He received the winning share of the record-high 132 million votes cast after Tuesday's final showdown with high school student Sanchez, 16, of Chula Vista, Calif. The vote count was not announced, typical for the contest.

His victory extended the "American Idol" winning streak for men to five consecutive seasons. The last female to win, and the last non-white, was Jordin Sparks in 2007.

Phillips has more in common with the last four winners than gender. Like them, he is a young Caucasian guitar player, also known to "Idol" watchers as WGWGs — white guys with guitars.

Last year's winner was Scotty McCreery, preceded by Lee DeWyze, Kris Allen and David Cook.

Sanchez, who is of Filipino and Latino heritage, took a measured view of the outcome, one that she said had solely to do with music.

"I don't blame it on anything," she said backstage. "Phillip has his fans, and I have mine. We're totally two different people. Our genres are completely different.

"He's more like the indie, alternative rock kinda guy, and I'm more urban R&B pop. ... It's just the number of our fans," she said, adding that she expected to be the runner-up.

"In the moment, I told him, 'You're gonna win this.' I was smiling at him the whole time. I was ready to just give him a big hug, and that's what I did when they announced it."

Sparks, 22, was among the guest stars who helped fill out the two-hour finale show, among them Rihanna, Neil Diamond, Reba McEntire, Chaka Khan and John Fogarty. "American Idol" judges Steven Tyler, with his band Aerosmith, and Jennifer Lopez also performed, but it was Sanchez and Jennifer Holliday who stood out with a powerhouse duet on "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going."

Besides music, there was a marriage proposal for the season 11 finale: Former contestants Ace Young and Diana DeGarmo got engaged on stage.

Young, 31, a season five finalist, told Seacrest that he and DeGarmo, 24, had just moved in together. Then Young got down on one knee and popped the question to her.

"I love you to death. You're my best friend," Young said in his proposal, which included a jarring credit for the jeweler who made the engagement ring he was offering (which, given Fox's heavy soft drink and car sponsor product placement, wasn't so off-key).

DeGarmo, a runner-up in season three, tearfully accepted, her head bobbing up and down.

But the point of the finale, saved for the final minutes and the highest possible ratings, was anointing the newest Idol and winner of a record contract.

During the three-song showdown Tuesday between Phillips and Sanchez, the show's judges praised his performance across the board. Sanchez was faulted for a lackluster rendition of her third song, "Change Nothing."

Although some critics dismissed Phillips as a Dave Matthews clone, viewers embraced him for his humility, his on-camera mugging and his memorable acoustic covers of songs like Usher's "U Got It Bad." In weekly tallies, Phillips never fell among the low vote-getters.

On Tuesday, he earned consistently high marks from the show's judges, while Sanchez faltered on "Change Nothing," the song that could serve as her first release.

The teenager agreed with panelists Randy Jackson, Lopez and Tyler, saying she should have gone more "urban" with her song choice.

Phillips had better luck with the slow-tempo, acoustic tune "Home," which the judges said recalled artists like Fleet Foxes, Paul Simon and Mumford and Sons. At one point during Phillips' final performance, the pawn shop worker was accompanied by a marching band.

It was a hit with the panel. Jackson, beaming, exclaimed: "I love the song. I love you. I love the production. I love the marching band. Everything about that was perfect."

Last year's contest between McCreery and runner-up Lauren Alaina drew more than 122 million votes, the record that was broken Wednesday.

http://news.yahoo.com/phillip-phillips-american-idol-021334067.html

It's Jessica Sanchez vs Phillip Phillips!

LOS ANGELES (AP) — "American Idol" finalist Joshua Ledet won't be belting it out on this season's final showdown.

The booming 20-year-old vocal powerhouse from Westlake, La., was revealed Thursday to have received the fewest viewer votes on the Fox talent contest, leaving bluesy 21-year-old crooner Phillip Phillips of Leesburg, Ga., and sassy 16-year-old budding divaJessica Sanchez of San Diego to compete for the show's record deal grand prize on next week's finale.

"I just feel that we're all winners at this point," Ledet said before his eviction. "If I end up not making it and my friends make it, I'll be voting for both of them."

Ledet had been one of the judges' favorite finalists, earning more than a dozen standing ovations from the panel for his renditions of such songs as James Brown's "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" andBruno Mars' "Runaway Baby." However, the gospel singer wasn't able to win over enough voters. He twice appeared as a low vote getter before Thursday's dismissal.

"Idol" host Ryan Seacrest said 90 million viewer votes were cast this week.

Phillips and Sanchez, who sometimes performs as her alter ego "Bebe Chez," will face off Tuesday, with the 11th season "Idol" champion crowned on Wednesday. Phillips has never found himself at the bottom of the voting spectrum, while Sanchez was due to be eliminated during the finals' sixth round, but the judges used their one-time-only power to rescue her from elimination.

___

Fox is a unit of News Corp.

Manny Pacquiao denounces anti-gay allegations

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Manny Pacquiao says he loves and supports gays and lesbians, even though he does not approve of gay marriage.

The world champion boxer and Filipino congressman has been criticized ever since he was quoted in an interview on the examiner.com website saying he opposed President Barack Obama's support for gay marriage.

Pacquiao said Wednesday in an interview with The Associated Press that he doesn't support gay marriage because of his Roman Catholic beliefs. But he said he has gay friends and relatives, and supports their rights.

"I'm not against the gay people," Pacquiao said. "I'm not condemning them. ... I have a cousin (who is) gay. I have relatives (who are) gay. I have a lot of friends (who are) gay, so I'm not condemning gays. What I said is I'm not in favor of same-sex marriage. That's the one thing I said to the guy.

"I told (the reporter) I'm against same-sex marriage," Pacquiao added. "He said, 'Why?' I said, 'It's the law of God.' That's all I said."

The examiner.com story contained a Bible passage from Leviticus calling for the death of "a man (who) lies with a man," and Pacquiao said many readers erroneously believed he had quoted that verse.

He said he had not, and the writer later clarified in a follow-up post that he had included the verse himself.

"My favorite verse in the Bible is 'Love one another,' and 'Love your neighbor as you love yourself,'" Pacquiao said. "It's in the Bible: Do not judge. I'm not judging."

Pacquiao was banned from a popular Hollywood shopping mall after the article was publicized Tuesday, and an online petition encouraging sponsor Nike Inc. to drop Pacquiao received 4,868 signatures before it was suspended Wednesday morning. The petition site, change.org, posted a note saying that the author of the original article had clarified that Pacquiao didn't cite the Bible passage.

Pacquiao spoke to the AP next to his pool at his comfortable Los Angeles home, where thecongressman lives while training for fights at Freddie Roach's Wild Card Gym in Hollywood. The champion had the day off from training, spending the morning in medical exams before a big lunch and some relaxation.

Although Pacquiao is experiencing a newfound passion for his religion and has socially conservative views in line with many Filipinos' beliefs, he was eager to clear his name after a 24-hour avalanche of criticism over the belief that the eight-division world champion boxer had denounced gay rights and even supported the killing of gay people.

Although he opposes same-sex marriage, Pacquiao declined to weigh in on civil unions, the internationally popular alternative, saying he didn't know enough about the concept to form an opinion.

"It's hard to give a correct answer to what's the right situation," he said.

The expansive Los Angeles mall known as The Grove, where the syndicated entertainment-news show "Extra" films its episodes, wouldn't allow Pacquiao to film a segment on its premises, worrying that an appearance by the boxer could be disruptive. Host Mario Lopez, an avid boxing fan, instead filmed an interview with Pacquiao at the fighter's home.

Pacquiao chuckled at the knowledge that his words — even words he said he didn't say — carry more weight than those of an average athlete because of his political aspirations.

"With great power comes great responsibility, so that's my responsibility, to handle everything," Pacquiao said. "This has happened before. You have to explain and understand. It's a lot more fun to train (for a fight)."

Pacquiao is the Philippines' most famous person and one of the world's most popular athletes. The eight-division world champion is a movie star, singer, pitchman and congressman, representing the Sarangani province in the Philippines' House of Representatives since May 2010.

He has won 16 consecutive fights since March 2005, beating Oscar De La Hoya, Juan Manuel Marquez, Miguel Cotto, Shane Mosley and Antonio Margarito. He will defend his WBO welterweight title against Timothy Bradley on June 9 in Las Vegas.

Pacquiao has embraced Catholicism in recent months after marital trouble with his wife, Jinkee. Although he has always attended Mass before his fights, the boxer has taken up frequent Bible study, and he traveled from the Philippines to the U.S. in the company of a spiritual adviser and pastor, Jeric Soriano, now a regular presence in Pacquiao's life in Los Angeles and the Philippines.

"It's difficult sometimes, but God gave me a talent," Pacquiao said. "He gave me a wisdom and a knowledge."

Although Pacquiao has some conservative social views, he also has ties to progressive American politicians, including Nevada Sen. Harry Reid. The boxer campaigned for the Democratic majority leader during his tough re-election victory over Sharron Angle in 2010.

Pacquiao also visited Obama at the White House last year, discussing basketball and boxing. The fighter says he enjoyed meeting Obama, but didn't share his views on same-sex marriage.

Pacquiao is the fourth of six children born into poverty in the Philippines, and he has four children of his own with his wife. He has spoken out against birth control during his political career, affirming his Roman Catholic faith.

Floyd Mayweather Jr., Pacquiao's only rival for pound-for-pound supremacy in boxing, took to Twitter on Wednesday to tout his own beliefs.

"I stand behind President Obama & support gay marriage," Mayweather tweeted. "I'm an American citizen & I believe people should live their life the way they want."

http://news.yahoo.com/manny-pacquiao-denounces-anti-gay-allegations-232816864--box.html

LeBron James Wins 3rd MVP Award, Acceptance Speech Shows His Growth

On Saturday afternoon, LeBron James was presented with his third MVP award in four years.

He might not have the championships yet, but he has proven three times over that he is the best player in this league of brilliant players. The championships will almost certainly come eventually, though. 

When James was awarded his third Most Valuable Player award in the eighth year of his NBA career, the topic of conversation wasn't about his body of work; it was about the hardware he can't stop thinking about. The accomplishment that remains unchecked on his to-do list. 

James is thankful for his MVP award, but he'd like a championship, please.

In a departure from the usual confident but reserved responses, James spoke openly about his burning desire to get a ring. 

He didn't mince words, either.

Via the Associated Press, here's how James wrapped up his speech:

"Heat nation, we have a bigger goal," James said. "This is very overwhelming to me as an individual award. But this is not the award I want, ultimately. I want that championship. That's all that matters to me."

After seven seasons of James being calm and collected, he has let down the barriers and gotten real over the course of this season. Whether it was disappointed tweets after failing to come up in the final moments of a big game or sitting down with Sports Illustrated to talk about the pain and disappointment that came along with being denied the championship by the Mavericks last season, James has stopped trying to pretend he's so powerful that the criticisms don't hurt, stopped acting like he's above the frustrations that come from failing to accomplish your goals.

Since last June, James has started to allow us to see him the way his friends, family and teammates see him: as the best basketball player that this league has, but also as a young man who desperately wants to win and will continue to work and train harder and to play smarter until he has hardware for his hands to match the MVP trophies that he keeps earning.

James also got extremely personal in talking about what drives him each and every day, taking his time to get the words out without letting his emotions get the best of him.

"I see my two sons, I do what I do and I try to perform at the highest level every night, and a big part of the reason is those guys. I don't want to let them down," James said, pausing for a brief moment as he looked at fiancée Savannah Brinson and his sons. "Secondly, my teammates, like I said. The reason I'm up here today is because of those guys. If those guys don't sacrifice what they sacrifice every single night...I wouldn't be up here."

With James opening up, acknowledging his shortcomings last season, enduring the pain that came from failing to achieve 12 months ago, speaking to the assembled media about his family and then about his teammates—who truly seem to be another family of his—you see the strength that James has gained by working through the whirlwind that followed his decision to go to Miami.

With a stronger resolve and with his ultimate goal spoken aloud for all to hear, James is putting it all out there. He isn't trying to be anyone else, nor is he worried about how he will be received. He's realized none of that matters. He'll be judged and both loved and loathed whether he wins or loses. It's as though he's finally grasped the strength that comes along with accepting that the only people any of us ever really have to answer to are the people that we care about.

James is the league's MVP for the third time in eight years. Ask every teammate he's had over those past eight years and they would say he's been their MVP each of those years.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1181454-lebron-james-wins-third-mvp-award-acceptance-speech-shows-his-growth

Obama 'First Gay President'

In a gutsy move, Newsweek has released the cover of their next issue, on the cover of which they depict President Obama with a rainbow halo and the title of 'The First Gay President'.

The news-magazine, which hits stands today, is using the shock factor of labeling the straight, married, father-of-two President to draw attention to itself.

Tina Brown, who edits the magazine and its sister website The Daily Beast, is known for her love of controversial covers to help boost public interest and sales.

After Time magazine went with a cover shot of a young blonde mother breastfeeding her 3-year-old boy, Ms Brown is said to have taken it in stride, saying 'let the games begin!'

The article accompanying the cover was written by the news magazine's regular blogger, Andrew Sullivan, who is an openly gay self-titled conservative political pundit.

'When you step back a little and assess the record of Obama on gay rights, you see, in fact, that this was not an aberration. It was an inevitable culmination of three years of work,' Mr Sullivan said in a statement about the article.

'He had to discover his black identity and then reconcile it with his white family, just as gays discover their homosexual identity and then have to reconcile it with their heterosexual family,' he wrote, describing the similarities between Mr Obama and the gay community.

There was little doubt that Newsweek would be covering the President's historic announcement that he supports same-sex marriage after he had a sit-down television interview confirming what many already believed to be the case. 

This was, however, the first time that a sitting President had done so, and the magazine asserts that such a move was a calculated one that had been thoroughly planned. 

'It’s easy to write off President Obama’s announcement of his support for gay marriage as a political ploy during an election year. But don’t believe the cynics,' representatives from the news magazine told Politico in a statement about the article. 

President Obama's announcement came several days after Vice President Joe Biden said that he was 'absolutely comfortable with the fact that men marrying men, women marrying women and men and women marrying are entitled to the same exact rights, all the civil rights, all the civil liberties.'

Fan walks on court during Nuggets/Lakers game

In a strange scene toward the end of Sunday's Los Angeles Lakers Game 4 win over the Denver Nuggets, a misguided attendee decided to waltz onto the court just before halftime. According to local police and the Denver Post and Yahoo! Sports, 20-year-old Savannah McMillan-Christmas was immediately arrested for trespassing, released and will appear in court Monday. The woman, who nearly made it to the 3-point line from her courtside seat, apparently has some alleged history with the Denver Nuggets before. 

Kurt Schwartzkopf, chief marketing officer at the Pepsi Center said the woman did not appear intoxicated, but was disoriented. He said the woman was picked up and taken home by her mother.

Jackson said it was off-duty Denver officers at the game who cited McMillan and escorted her out. TNT reported that the woman had been banned from Pepsi Center in the past for stalking a former Nugget player. Yahoo Sports reported that she stalked Kenyon Martin when he was with the team.

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/fan-walks-court-during-nuggets-lakers-game-looking-032542465.html

Ring Kings Mayweather vs. Cotto

While the fight was closer than I expected, there's no need for a rematch after Floyd "Money" Mayweather's unanimous decision victory over Miguel Cotto.

Cotto had his moments against Mayweather, and he certainly gave the champ his most challenging fight in years. But after his surgical destruction of the bigger Cotto, Mayweather proved that he's simply on a different level.

Mayweather's nose was bleeding throughout, but Cotto hardly inflicted enough damage to threaten Money's undefeated record. Mayweather's defense was excellent, as he rolled punches and absorbed most of the big blows with his shoulders.

Although it wasn't his finest counterpunching performance, Mayweather also landed the more staggering strikes in the fight.

After a strong ninth round for Cotto, Mayweather stepped his game up. He dominated the final rounds, landing swooping hooks and vicious uppercuts throughout. He was eventually awarded the decision 118-110, 117-111, 117-111.

It was a solid overall fight for Cotto, who was headed to the Boxing Hall of Fame regardless of what happened tonight. But as he was outclassed throughout, it became clear that he had no shot of beating Mayweather.

The only light middleweight or welterweight fighter in the world who can blemish Floyd's record is Manny Pacquiao, and due to the clash of egos on both sides, I doubt we'll ever see that fight.

One thing for sure, though, is that we don't need Mayweather-Cotto II.

It was a great fight, but we didn't learn anything new. All of our pre-fight assumptions proved to be correct. 

Yes, Miguel Cotto is one of the finest boxers in the world, and his place in history is secure. But is he capable of beating Floyd Mayweather? After tonight, the answer is clearly a resounding "no."

By Austin Green

http://bleacherreport.com

OKC Eliminates Dallas, Winning 103-97

Despite playing four of the closest games so far in the first round of the NBA playoffs, the Oklahoma City Thunder completed the series sweep, defeating the Dallas Mavericks, 103-97, in Game 4. The Thunder were eliminated by the eventual champion Mavs in last season's Western Conference Finals, but, despite winning the four games by an average of 8.5 points, Oklahoma City handled them in this first round series. It was the first time the Mavericks have ever been swept in a best-of-seven playoff series, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

James Harden was the absolute star of Game 4. He scored a career playoff high 29 points with five rebounds and five assists, and was really the Thunder's point guard and primary scoring option down the stretch. He hit the game-clinching bucket with 10 seconds left, blowing by a hapless Jason Kidd for a righty layup to put the Thunder up five. Kevin Durant scored 24 points and chipped in 11 rebounds, while Russell Westbrook was uncharacteristically quiet with 12 points.

Dirk Nowitzki did his best to at least help his team to one win in front of the home crowd with 34 points, but he was bizarrely ineffective in the final minutes, missing shots he hit with frightening regularity last year. Just like the Mavs swept the reigning champion Lakers out of last year's playoffs, the Thunder did the same to them, which OKC fans have to consider a good omen for a team with championship-or-bust type expectations. Kidd was the Mavericks' second-best offensive player with 16 points, seven rebounds and eight assists, but he was too old and too slow on defense to contend with Harden, which was the real difference in the game.


by Ethan Rothstein
http://www.sbnation.com

Bright purple crab discovered in Philippines

One of the newly discovered crab species, Insulamon palawanense, which is bright purple in color.

Four new species of crab that sport some wild colors have been discovered near the Philippine island of Palawan.

The newfound species are threatened by mining activities in the region, which is one of the world's major biodiversity hotspots, its discoverers said. About half of the species that live on Palawan are endemic, meaning they are found nowhere else.

Scientists at the Senckenberg Research Institute in Germany and De La Salle University in Manila found the four new species of Insulamon freshwater crab genus as part of their Aqua Palawana research program.

The reddish-purple crabs are the only varieties that are endemic to only one or a few islands; the sea keeps them from spreading further, as they depend on freshwater at all stages of their development. Having been completely separated from their relatives, they have developed their own separate species and genera over tens of thousands of years.

"We have proved that the only previously known type of Insulamon is restricted to the Calamian group of islands to the north of Palawan. The four newly discovered species live exclusively on the actual island of Palawan and make it a unique habitat," said study leader Hendrik Freitag of Senckenberg.

But the unique species are threatened by several mining projects that could damage or alter the crabs' habitat.

"The smaller the remaining natural habitat, the greater is the risk to endemic fauna and flora. Even minor environmental changes can lead to extinctions. It is all the more important to do research in this region and show that the biodiversity of these islands is unique and worth protecting," Freitag said in a statement.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/47158113/ns/technology_and_science-science/#.T6DLhbOh7mY