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It is true that Ms. Kardashian, along with her sisters Kourtney and Khloé, and their mother, Kris Jenner, command a branding empire that includes fashion boutiques, fitness videos, credit cards, a best-selling fragrance, skin care products and a self tanner. Ms. Kardashian herself has represented many other products in advertisements, including some that a reasonable person might consider to be sending mixed messages. In one ad she promotes QuickTrim weight-loss products; in another, Carl’s Jr. While it is not unusual for celebrities who are famous for being famous to aggressively capitalize on their exposure, Ms. Kardashian, who made her debut on the public stage in the form of a sex tape, stands out for the fact that she is generally still regarded in a positive light by many consumers.

 Mr. Passikoff, the president of Brand Keys, a New York research company that monitors consumer perception of brands, noted that Ms. Kardashian is currently tied with Snooki at the top of its celebrity loyalty index, a survey that gauges consumer engagement with celebrities. Kourtney and Khloé Kardashian also figure in the top seven.

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 “There was a time when Paris Hilton topped that list, when she was the most famous person for being nothing we had ever seen,” Mr. Passikoff said. (Ms. Hilton is now in third place.) Interestingly, he noted, many consumers associate Ms. Kardashian with entrepreneurship, far more so than other celebrities.

 Outside Bebe, though, a more complicated picture emerged as to what draws all these young people to Ms. Kardashian. Most of them had heard about the event on Twitter, and most said they saw something inspiring in her example. But what does she represent?

 “The average girl,” said Julie Sunday, 22, from Scranton, Pa., who recently left a job doing accounting work for a political media buying company in Washington.

 “She represents fashion,” said Wendy Sosa, 22, a waitress from the Bronx. “I like the way she dresses.”

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 “She has an ethnic sex appeal,” said Sarah Harooni, 26, a paralegal from Queens. “I like how she created a franchise with her sisters. That opens a lot of opportunities for women who have a spark of beauty and want to shine. She reminds me of Sophia Loren.”

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 “She stands out from every other celebrity in the world,” said Emma Brodel, 21, a journalism student from Queensland, Australia. “She is natural and curvaceous. There are too many thin celebrities out there who make women feel they are overweight.”

 Ms. Kardashian, who is 30, is unfailingly polite when discussing her brand, one that was largely created through her public exposure since 2007 on the E! reality show “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.” She does not talk about fashion and image as most designers and celebrity designers do, with platitudes about quality and authenticity, but rather as a person who seems wholly content to allow consumers to project upon her whatever image they wish.

 “I really do believe I am a brand for my fans,” she said.

 She does not talk about design in terms of cut or craft, either, but of Twitter and Facebook, of blogs and text messages. When fans ask her what she is wearing or what lip gloss she uses, she answers them and then creates products in the vein of what they like. When she was deciding on a color for her Kim Kardashian perfume bottle, she asked her followers on Twitter whether they preferred a hot pink or a light pink. (It was light pink, by far.) “Twitter is the most amazing focus group out there,” she said.

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 But ultimately, what Ms. Kardashian and her sisters create and sell are products based on their own image, and not much of it is particularly distinctive from the standard uniforms of Southern California nightclubs. At Bebe, the best-selling item has been a slinky one-shoulder dress for $98. At QVC, one of the most popular items on its Web site has been a slinky one-shoulder dress for $49.75. Both collections have leggings that can be worn with cute printed tunics. All of her jewelry collections have a slightly vintage feel and strong influences of Armenian design, reflecting Ms. Kardashian’s familial roots.

 “I try to find inspiration from what is on the runway,” Ms. Kardashian said. “But I think hoops are a staple. Whether or not they are in, we always get compliments on them.”

 The Bebe jewelry, priced from $24 to $98, includes Lucite hoops accented with gold flakes and gold hoops trimmed with what look like tiny jewels, which Ms. Kardashian wore to her store appearance Tuesday.

 “We make the kind of clothes we like to wear,” she said. “We give answers to the questions our customers are asking. I think that’s why we’ve been successful.” ||||| It Would Be Bad Business for Kim Kardashian to Get Married Now

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 Sorry Kris! We just don't think it is a great idea for

 While Kim is the undeniable kingpin of the Kardashian empire, she is also a cog in a well-oiled machine that uses the show 'Keeping up With the Kardashians' to sell a slew of consumer products -- from shoes to perfume, weight loss aids to bathing suits.

 The trifecta of Kardashian sisters -- Kim, Kourtney and Khloe -- assault and delight consumer sensibilities weekly on their reality show and from the pages of celebrity news magazines. The brilliance of their marketing is that they each appeal to a different demographic of consumer.

 The Kardashian klan (had to do that) is utilizing some skillful product differentiation to appeal to various groups of women. Sorry Kris! We just don't think it is a great idea for Kim Kardashian to walk down the aisle too soon. Secretly, the savvy momager business lady in Kris Jenner must agree.While Kim is the undeniable kingpin of the Kardashian empire, she is also a cog in a well-oiled machine that uses the show 'Keeping up With the Kardashians' to sell a slew of consumer products -- from shoes to perfume, weight loss aids to bathing suits.The trifecta of Kardashian sisters -- Kim, Kourtney and Khloe -- assault and delight consumer sensibilities weekly on their reality show and from the pages of celebrity news magazines. The brilliance of their marketing is that they each appeal to a different demographic of consumer.The Kardashian klan (had to do that) is utilizing some skillful product differentiation to appeal to various groups of women.

 Khloe is the newlywed! She markets to all those married ladies who fretted about losing weight before they walked down the aisle and are now looking for new ways to make their husbands happy and keep them interested.Kourtney plays two roles. She is the new mommy! Yay! Everyone loves hearing stories about the baby, and with mommy bloggers growing in influence in the consumer market, she is perfectly positioned to sell them all sorts of Kardashian goods.But Kourtney is also the one with the crappy boyfriend. Every time Scott pops a collar, throws a tantrum and comes home at 4AM, frustrated girlfriends everywhere give Kourt a virtual high five ... and then buy some QuickTrim.And finally we have Kim. What is Kim besides hot? She's single AND SHE HATES IT. Last week, Kim appeared on the cover of PEOPLE magazine with the cover line: "I thought I'd be married by now."Inside, she told the mag: "If you were to ask me in high school where I would be at 30, I would have said I'd be a housewife with four kids."Fortunately for Kim, the single businesswoman is a pretty big niche. Her PEOPLE declaration made single women between 25 and 35 everywhere say, "Yes, I thought I would be married by now too. Thank you Kim. Now I relate to you, and where can I buy your perfume?" Or something along those lines."It's not only appealing for the Kardashians to appeal to a broader set of demographics, but they do so in the context of a family unit, which allows them to differentiate themselves further. It also makes them more relatable to audiences in the context of friends and family," explains Nelson Gayton, executive director of the Center for Management of Enterprise in Media, Entertainment & Sports at UCLA's Anderson School of Management. "The life experiences of each woman create a rooting interest in the family that perpetuates interest in each one of them, thereby growing their audience for their core brand."These ladies (with some help from Kris) know exactly what they're doing. If Kim gets hitched, we fully expect Kourtney to ditch Scott and move into her sister's single shoes, followed in short order by a Khloe pregnancy announcement. They're evil marketing geniuses through and through. Now, where can I get that perfume? |||||

– Kim Kardashian is nothing if not polarizing. A New York Times profile acknowledges that for every person who hates her (her fans are "classless, tasteless, and clueless sheep," says one) there are many more who will follow her on Twitter, wear her clothes, buy products she's endorsed, and even compare her to Sophia Loren (yes, really). "You would have had to be living in a cave in Nepal to have not been exposed in one way or another to the celebrity ilk of Kim Kardashian," says one branding expert. Perhaps shockingly to some, Kardashian—whose empire includes fashion and jewelry lines, boutiques, fitness videos, credit cards, and cosmetics—actually tops the celebrity loyalty index at one research company, meaning consumers view her quite positively. (Even more shockingly, she's tied for the top spot with Snooki.) Consumers associate Kardashian with entrepreneurship, the branding expert says. And Kardashian seems to revel in her role: "I really do believe I am a brand for my fans," she says. (Click here to read why it would be bad for business if Kim were to get hitched.)


They were certain voters would fill Parliament with extreme political factions making it tough to form a new government, much less keep one together.

 They feared the election would reshape Britain's global role, having ripple effects around the world.

 But Britons have bedeviled expectations. There will be no changing horses in mid-stream.

 Prime Minister David Cameron is poised to retain his office at 10 Downing.

 What does the UK election results mean for the rest of the world?

 It means stable global markets ... for now

 Markets love political steadiness. And it showed Friday. The British pound was rising versus all major global currencies and the U.K.'s main stock market index jumped by 2% in early trading.

 "It averts the risk of a tilt towards leftist policies under a Labour government relying on (Scottish National Party) support," Berenberg chief economist Holger Schmieding said.

 Cameron is credited for Britain's recovery from recession: The U.K. enjoyed the fastest growth of any major developed economy last year, and unemployment has fallen rapidly.

 "There is one elephant in the room and that is the EU referendum," said Tim Besley, professor of economics at the London School of Economics.

 JUST WATCHED Britain's election night from #BigRedBus Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Britain's election night from #BigRedBus 02:45

 It means the possibility of an exit from the EU

 Who hasn't heard the term "Grexit?"

 It refers to the possibility of Greece getting out of the Euro as a result of its disastrous economy. That could take a wrecking ball to Europe's financial markets, worst-case analyses have said. Europe's economy could hit the skids, and the U.S. economy would follow.

 Now, with Conservatives, also called Tories, gaining even more power in the UK, enters the possibility of a "Brexit." Even though Britain does not use the Euro, it would be a much, much bigger wrecking ball.

 Prime Minister Cameron has promised the country a referendum in 2017 on whether to stay in the European Union or to exit out of it.

 "It's hugely risky," said British political analyst Robert Hazell.

 Cameron has a reputation as a moderate conservative, but much like Republicans in the United States, he has his own version of the Tea Party.

 Ultraconservatives want out of the European Union, Hazell said. "I'm sure that Cameron would like Britain to remain within the EU, but the rebels will hold his feet to the fire."

 The referendum will happen, he believes, and the results would be unpredictable.

 It means fears of a fractured country

 Speaking of referendums, many Scots want to split from Britain and tried to with a vote last year. It failed, but the sentiments showed up big in Friday's vote.

 The Scottish National Party swelled from a cottage party to the third largest elected power in parliament. "The Scottish lion has roared this morning across the country," said former SNP leader Alex Salmond.

 Scots have traditionally found their political home in Britain in the center-left Labour Party, which took huge losses in the vote, as Scots looked for a voice of their own.

 JUST WATCHED SNP surges to Scottish landslide Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH SNP surges to Scottish landslide 00:10

 There have been rumblings in the British press that a big win for the SNP could lead to yet another referendum in 2016.

 Many Scots also don't like the Conservative sentiments against the EU, where they'd like to stay.

 In an extreme scenario, Britain could leave the European Union, triggering Scotland to leave Britain, and join the EU.

 "This means that we would have a dis-united Kingdom in an EU which will keep the same number of member states," said former Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, "but of course with Scotland replacing the UK somewhat diminishing overall integration."

 It could make the European Union more of a jigsaw puzzle.

 It means clamping down on immigration

 Immigrants from strife-torn nations have looked to Europe, including the U.K. for a second chance at life. But the Cameron government has made them feel less welcome in recent years.

 Indeed, the Conservatives campaigned on control immigration and capping welfare.

 Among its platforms, "Introducing a new citizen test with British values at its heart."

 Conservatives have been pushed further to the right by another party, the UK Independence Party, or UKIP, which is anti-immigration and unfriendly towards Islam.

 UKIP picked up electoral gains, which will not make them a power in parliament but may get their voices heard more by Conservatives afraid of losing to them in the next election.

 "Although people will portray this as as a great Conservative victory -- and against the expectations it is -- Cameron's problems now are only just beginning because, if he's only got a very small majority, he's going to be in hock to the extreme right wing of his party," said Professor Robert Hazell, of University College London.

 This right wing includes 10 to 20 "repeat rebels" who could cause Cameron major headaches, he said.

 It means diminishing influence globally

 There was a time when the United States had an influential ally in Britain. But lately, Britain hasn't been pulling its weight. It's increasingly taken a back seat to Germany, where Chancellor Angela Merkel has emerged as the go-to European leader in tending to world affairs.

 British leaders have hardly said a word as the EU struggles to keep financially-strapped Greece afloat. They've left that to Merkel. Ditto when it comes to acting as the intermediary between Kiev and Moscow over Ukraine. Merkel's taken the lead on that as well.

 Don't expect that to change.

 During the campaign, Cameron and his opponents talked incessantly about domestic policy. Foreign policy? Not so much. ||||| Democratic Unionist Party leader Peter Robinson, center, celebrates with his general election candidates Nigel Dodds, left, Gavin Robinson, 2nd right, and Jeffrey Donaldson, front right, after they were... (Associated Press)

 LONDON (AP) — 12:20 p.m. (1120 GMT; 7:20 a.m. EDT)

 Ed Miliband, the leader of Britain's Labour Party, says he will step down after a worse-than-expected result in the election.

 The party lost dozens of seats to the separatist Scottish National Party, which took almost all of the 59 seats in Scotland.

 Speaking to party members who cheered in support, Miliband said Friday he wanted to resign straight away so that the party can rebuild itself.

 With 641 of 650 seats counted, Labour has 229 seats, finishing well below the 258 seats secured five years ago by former leader and ex-Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

 ___

 11:45 a.m. (1045 GMT; 6:45 a.m. EDT)

 Nick Clegg has resigned as leader of Britain's Liberal Democrats after a disastrous result for his party in the election.

 Clegg said he must take responsibility for the party's losses, which he described as much more crushing that he expected.

 The Liberal Democrats, the Conservatives' junior coalition partner, lost most of the seats they held in Parliament. Many of their most senior and experienced politicians lost their seats.

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 11:40 a.m. (1040 GMT; 6:40 a.m. EDT)

 Nigel Farage has resigned as leader of the populist U.K. Independence Party after failed to win a seat in the U.K. parliamentary election.

 Farage, who had earlier promised to resign if he lost, told activists "I'm a man of my word."

 But he raised the prospect he would consider running again in the future.

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 11:30 a.m. (1030 GMT; 6:30 a.m. EDT)

 British Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservatives have secured enough seats to form a majority government.

 Results from Thursday's election show that the Conservatives won at least 324 of the House of Commons' 650 seats, enough to form a slim majority government.

 The Conservatives are ahead of their main rival, the Labour Party, which lost dozens of seats to the separatist Scottish National Party.

 The win makes Cameron the first Conservative prime minister to win a second term since Margaret Thatcher.

 Cameron stopped just short of declaring overall victory earlier Friday, saying he hoped to govern "one nation, one United Kingdom" if he was fortunate enough to continue as prime minister.

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 10:40 a.m. (0940 GMT; 5:40 a.m. EDT)

 The United Kingdom Independence Party leader, Nigel Farage, has lost his bid to win a seat in Parliament and could resign despite his right-wing party's surge to third in the popular vote nationwide.

 Farage finished second to Conservative Party candidate Craig Mackinlay, a former UKIP activist, in the South Thanet constituency east of London as results were announced Friday.

 Before the result, Farage had pledged to quit as UKIP leader if he failed to win the seat. He decried the British electoral system's use of winner-takes-all constituencies. UKIP received nearly 3.8 million votes, but finished second or third in dozens of districts.

 Farage said before the result: "The system is bust. You've got a first-past-the-post system where we clearly become the third party in Britain but get hardly any seats."

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 9:25 a.m. (0825 GMT; 4:25 a.m. EDT)

 With Prime Minister David Cameron on the brink of a majority for another five years of Conservative government in the U.K, markets seemed buoyed by prospect of avoiding weeks of political wrangling for power.

 Mark Dampier, head of investment research at Hargreaves Lansdown stockbrokers, says that "business as usual might be the order of the day from this election result.

 But markets are likely to be concerned over the next two years about the prospect of a referendum on whether or not to leave the European Union.

 HSBC economists Simon Wells and Liz Martins say a referendum on EU membership by end-2017 now seems much more likely.

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 8:55 a.m. (0755 GMT; 3:55 a.m. EDT)

 Prime Minister David Cameron's office says he is going to Buckingham Palace later Friday to see Queen Elizabeth II.

 Downing Street says that will take place at 12:30p.m. (1130 GMT).

 He is expected to tell her that he has enough support in Parliament to form a government.

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 8:45 a.m. (0745 GMT; 3:45 a.m. EDT)

 Another big Labour figure has fallen in U.K. national elections, as the party's Treasury spokesman, Ed Balls, lost his seat in northern England to the Conservatives by 422 votes.

 Had Labour won, Balls would have been finance minister.

 He said that "any personal disappointment I have at this result is as nothing as compared to the sense of sorrow I have at the result Labour has achieved ... and the sense of concern I have about the future."

 Balls said Britain faces "five years where questions will arise about the future of our union, about whether we can stay as a member of the European Union and fight for jobs and investment, whether we can make sure we secure our National Health Service at a time when public spending is cut."

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 8:35 a.m. (0735 GMT; 3:35 a.m. EDT)

 British voters are reacting with surprise as they wake to the news that Prime Minister David Cameron may headed toward a Parliamentary majority. Polls have been showing a virtual dead heat in the race, and many expected weeks of wrangling over who would be in power.

 Account manager Nicky Kelly-Lord, 38, is among those startled by the result. "I thought it would be closer," she says.

 But some, like project manager Jonathan Heeley, 42, thought of it as inevitable that a country dealing with the wake of the 2008 financial crisis would be anxious to keep the economic recovery going. Heeley says, "the country's rebuilding itself and people want to stay with that, that's my opinion."

 ___

 7:55 a.m. (0655 GMT, 2:55 a.m. EDT)

 All night, famous political faces and household names in Britain had to stand on stages at vote counting centers to hear they had lost their seats in Parliament.

 Douglas Alexander, who directed the opposition Labour's campaign and would have been Britain's foreign secretary if they had won, was defeated by a 20-year-old student from the Scottish National Party.

 The Liberal Democrats suffered the worst, as almost their entire top team — many of them government ministers — was felled. Casualties included Business Secretary Vince Cable, chief secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander, Energy Secretary Ed Davey and high-profile lawmakers Lynne Featherstone and Simon Hughes.

 "This has been a terrible night for our party all over," Cable said. "But I am absolutely sure that we are going to bounce back."

 Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg kept his own seat but was meeting with colleagues Friday to figure out whether he will resign.

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 7:45 a.m. (0645 GMT, 2:45 a.m. EDT)

 All seats in Scotland have been counted in Britain's latest vote, making clear the scale of the landslide by the Scottish National Party, which captured 56 of the region's 59 seats.

 That was a gain of 50 seats over the nationalists' previous six seats in the 650-seat House of Commons.

 The opposition Labour Party lost 40 seats in Scotland. The result left the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats with just one seat each in Scotland.

 ___

 7:20 a.m. (0620 GMT, 2:20 a.m. EDT)

 With 568 of 650 constituencies reporting results Friday morning in Britain's parliamentary election, the Conservatives were leading with 269 seats, according to election officials.

 The opposition Labour Party has won 214 seats and the Scottish National Party 55. Eight seats have gone to the Democratic Unionists in Northern Ireland and to the Liberal Democrats, and the U.K. Independence Party has earned one seat. Thirteen seats went to other smaller parties.

 An exit poll has predicted that the Conservatives will be the top party in Thursday's vote and the chief pollster says the Conservatives may even capture a majority of the 650 seats in the House of Commons.

 ___

 7 a.m. (0600 GMT, 2 a.m. EDT)

 With 508 of 650 constituencies reporting results Friday morning in Britain's parliamentary election, the Conservatives were leading with 222 seats, according to election officials.

 The opposition Labour Party has won 203 seats and the Scottish National Party 55. Eight seats have gone to the Democratic Unionists in Northern Ireland, while the Liberal Democrats won six seats and the U.K. Independence Party earned one. Thirteen seats went to other smaller parties.

 An exit poll has predicted that the Conservatives will be the top party in Thursday's vote, winning 316 of the 650 seats in the House of Commons.

 ___

 6:40 a.m. (0540 GMT, 1:40 a.m. EDT)

 Labour leader Ed Miliband has acknowledged that his party is facing likely defeat in Britain's general election.

 He says "This has clearly been a very disappointing and difficult night for the Labour Party."

 Miliband won his own Doncaster North seat, but Labour looks set to win fewer than the 256 seats it held before the election. It has been all but wiped out in Scotland, a former stronghold, as voters defected in droves to the Scottish National Party.

 Miliband said "we haven't made the gains that we'd wanted in England and Wales and in Scotland we have seen a surge of nationalism overwhelm our party."

 He said whoever is prime minister in the next government would face the challenge of uniting Britain after a divisive campaign.

 ___

 6:25 a.m. (0525 GMT, 1:25 a.m. EDT)

 George Galloway, one of Britain's most colorful and controversial figures, has lost his Bradford West seat to the Labour Party.

 Galloway, an outspoken critic of Israel and the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, won the seat from Labour in a 2012 special election. But some locals accused the left-wing firebrand — who once saluted Saddam Hussein and has appeared on a reality-TV show pretending to be a cat — of spending little time in Bradford, which has a large Muslim population.

 The candidate from the tiny Respect Party lost by a wide margin to Labour's Naz Shah after a bitter campaign in the northern England city. Shah is a political newcomer who has overcome childhood poverty, a teenage forced marriage and the imprisonment of her mother for killing an abusive partner.

 Shah had urged voters to reject Galloway because "we do not need a one-man Messiah to tell us how to come and fix up Bradford."

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 6:15 a.m. (0515 GMT, 1:15 a.m. EDT)

 Prime Minister David Cameron has easily won his Witney seat in southern England, and stopped just short for declaring overall election victory for his Conservatives.

 He told voters "this is clearly a very strong night for the Conservative Party."

 Results seem to support an exit poll's prediction the Tories will be the biggest seat in the House of Commons and may even win a majority of seats.

 A Conservative-led government would face a divided Britain, with the pro-independence Scottish National Party holding almost all the seats north of the border. Cameron has vowed to counter the rise of Scottish nationalism with more powers for Scotland and Wales within the United Kingdom.

 He says "I want my party, and I hope a government that I would like to lead, to reclaim a mantle that we should never have lost — the mantle of one nation, one United Kingdom."

 ___

 5:40 a.m. (0440 GMT, 12:40 a.m. EDT)

 Liberal Democrat Party leader Nick Clegg managed to hang on to his seat in Parliament when results were announced Friday morning, but admitted that his party had suffered a terrible string of setbacks in Britain's general election.

 The party that had been the junior partner in a Conservative-led government lost most of its seats. An exit poll suggested it would win perhaps 10 of the 650 seats in the House of Commons — down from 56 — and several major party figures were ousted by voters.

 After his own win, a woeful Clegg said "It is now painfully clear this has been a cruel and punishing night for the Liberal Democrats." Clegg, who has served as the U.K.'s deputy prime minister for the last five years, hinted that he would be discussing his party leadership with colleges later Friday.

 ___

 5 a.m. (0400 GMT, midnight EDT)

 He's back. London Mayor Boris Johnson has once again won a seat in parliament, this time representing voters in the Uxbridge and Ruislip South district, as Conservative Party candidates did much better than expected in Britain's election.

 The shaggy-haired mayor, seen as a possible future Conservative Party leader, had previously represented Henley.

 "The people of Britain, after a long and exhausting campaign, have finally spoken," he said early Friday. "They have decisively rejected any attempt to take this country back to the 1970s. They want us to go forward with the sensible, moderate policies that have led to a sustained economic recovery."

 Johnson will do both jobs until voters choose a new London mayor in 2016. ||||| Forget Vince Cable. Forget, if you can, Ed Balls (and I know that’s hard, because what a joyous result that was). Expel from your mind the image of Nick Clegg crying into his cornflakes this morning while texting his old pals in the Euro-oligarchy to see if they will give him a new plush job that involves no contact with pesky plebs. For last night there was an even bigger loser than those guys. Russell Brand. Or ‘Rusty Rockets’, as his politics-packed Twitterfeed has it. Rusty being the operative word, for now we know that the much-hyped ability of slebs like Brand to sway public sentiment is in a serious state of decomposition.

 This election has just done to Brand what the last election did to Clegg: exposed that his powers of persuasion over the little people are nothing more than a Guardianista fantasy. In 2010 every liberal was banging on about Cleggmania and saying Nick was the Obama of Britain. (Obama should have sued.) Then the election results came in and revealed that Clegg’s Lib Dems actually lost seats – 57, down from 61 in 2005 (and now, of course, his party is wiped out).

 This time round, leftish observers talked up the ‘Brand effect’, the possibility that Rusty’s reversal on not voting and his interview with and endorsement of Miliband might help swing the election. ‘The Tories should be worried’, declared the Guardian. Yeah, not so much. If Brand had any effect – and he didn’t – it was only to damn Labour even more than it was already damned.

 The bigging-up of Brand’s intervention in the election was seat-shiftingly embarrassing. ‘He has nearly 10 million Twitter followers… he is listened to by hundreds of thousands of disillusioned Britons… Russell Brand matters’, said Owen Jones, clearly viewing Brand as a kind of priestly figure with a mystical hold over that inscrutable blob (us lot) that politicians can’t connect with. In another piece, Jones said ‘Miliband’s best route to young voters is Russell Brand’, not stopping to think that it might be super-weird that the leader of the alleged party of working people can only speak to the youth via a floppy-haired 40-year-old tabloid filler who hasn’t made a decent gag since 2008.

 A friend of mine lives opposite Russell Brand and snapped this picture of Ed Milliband leaving his house…urm pic.twitter.com/kHGVWFbpVZ

 — Elisa Misu Solaris (@ElisaMisu) April 27, 2015

 Elsewhere, commentators hailed Brand as the man who has ‘access to voters politicians can’t reach’. Brand was treated as a celeb conduit, a connector of the political class with the plebs, someone who could actually turn things around. ‘The Tories should be worried.’ People seriously said that.

 We can laugh at it all now, and we should – in fact, it’s important that we do. Because it turns out that Brand’s ability to get people lining up behind Miliband was pure bluster. This calls into question, not only the impact of Russell’s silly, increasingly David Icke-like ‘Trews’ videos, but also the whole modern trend for shoving celebs into the political limelight in the desperate hope that they might get the lazy little people interested and engaged in political stuff.

 Hilariously, the very same people who accuse the Murdoch papers of brainwashing their readers into voting for the Tories – such undiluted snobbery – believed that a celeb with a webcam and a lively Twitter presence could simply click his fingers and get the hordes voting Labour. But he couldn’t. And it isn’t hard to see why. It’s because people aren’t idiots. They want substance, seriousness, not finger-wagging gags about EVIL TORIES and instructions to ‘save Britain’ by giving the nod to Ed.

 Brandmania ultimately spoke to the gaping, chasm-like disconnection of the Labour movement, the liberal elite and the Twitterati from ordinary people. Incapable of speaking directly to the masses, they had to employ a sleb to try to do it on their behalf. Their reliance on Rusty revealed their own lack of any serious message, or any means of communicating it to the people. And now they are dumbfounded by the election results, utterly unable to comprehend why their favoured party did so badly. ‘But we had RUSSELL BRAND on our side!’ It’s amazing – they’re like medieval kings, staring in bemusement at the throng, wondering why it refuses to heed the messages of their long-haired missionary. ||||| BRUSSELS (AP) — One huge election victory under his belt, David Cameron now heads into another fundamental campaign for Britain with renewed vigor: should his island nation remain in the European Union if there is no reform within the next two years.

 Even if groundbreaking changes to the way the EU works are unlikely to be achieved within the two-year timeframe for a British referendum, many believe there is a groundswell for just enough changes to keep Britain in.

 Syad Kamall, leader of the Conservative group in the EU parliament, said Friday that Cameron "clearly has a mandate to pursue" drastic EU reform,

 EPP Christian Democrat leader Manfred Weber says that "Europeans must also start thinking about whether it is time" for EU reform to accommodate Britain. ||||| British Prime Minister David Cameron is on the cusp of returning to office after Thursday's election. Returns show his Conservative Party close to winning a majority of parliament. (May 8) AP

 An exit poll that predicts the Conservative Party led by Prime Minister David Cameron will win 316 seats in Parliament is projected onto BBC Broadcasting House in London on May 7, 2015. (Photo: Jack Taylor, AFP/Getty Images)

 LONDON — Despite dire polls for the Conservative Party — Tories — throughout the campaign and even with a turn to favor opposition Labour in the last few days, Tory party insiders have maintained a steely optimism about Thursday night's parliamentary vote in Britain.

 The Tories would come out on top because the election was about the economy, and on that issue there was no doubt: Voters trusted them more than the Labour Party. And the polls, they felt, were wrong because, historically, the British don't like to admit that they might vote Tory, with its reputation as the "mean" party.

 But by 10 p.m., when the exit polls were released — with the nation quite literally on the edge of its seat, gathered at election parties everywhere — the Tories appeared to be proved right. Rather than the best-case predictions by many pollsters and observers of 276 seats for the Tories, they would likely get 316 of the 326 needed for an absolute majority. Not over the top, but in easy sight of putting together a governing coalition.

 Disbelief was, among all non-Tories, the singular immediate response.

 Spokespeople for the devastated Labour Party, which exit polls put at 239 seats, simply refused to accept the results, continuing to argue with flabbergasted expressions that somehow magically when the actual results came in, they would find the 50 seats they would need to block another Tory government.

 The other big losers were the Liberal Democrats, the current coalition partner in the Tory-led government. They were equally ravaged by a fall from 57 seats to a projected 10, looking wide-eyed and incredulous on live television. Such a large drop might mean that much of the party's leadership, possibly including Nick Clegg, the deputy prime minister, would be wiped away.

 Even the other big winner, according to the projections, the Scottish National Party (SNP), which looked like it might take all of Labour's seats in Scotland and advancing from 6 to 58 seats in all, said it was skeptical of such an overwhelming victory.

 But the numbers for both the Tory's and SNP were so large, and the numbers for Labour and the Lib Dems so bleak and depressing, that even a correction in the exit polls was unlikely to change the clear and extraordinary direction of the results.

 British Prime Minister and Conservative leader David Cameron, left, departs from a polling station after voting with his wife Samantha, at the village of Spelsbury in Oxfordshire on May 7, 2015. (Photo: Andy Rain, EPA)

 David Cameron's Tories were in a position not only to form a new coalition and working majority, but to do so with very little horse-trading. The centrist Lib Dems had hoped that even if they lost seats they would be king makers in what was expected to be a close split between Labour and the Tories. Now, practically speaking, they would have no place to go except to follow the Tories, and they would have no leverage with which to negotiate a favorable place in a new coalition.

 In fact, at 316 seats, the Tories could easily turn to the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), with its eight projected seats to reach the voting majority of 323 (Sinn Féin, another Irish party, has five seats, but, in protest, doesn't sit).

 It is not just the Tories unexpected strength that appears now to recast U.K. politics, but it is also Labour's weakness. If the election projections hold, Labour's leader, Ed Miliband, will likely resign or be forced out by the end of the week.

 It is also the rise of the SNP, likely more determined, more militant and far larger than anyone imagined it might ever be, that would become perhaps the central issue in British politics. Nothing more clearly represents the divide and enmity between England and Scotland than a strong Tory showing and an even more dramatic SNP sweep.

 It might be argued that the Cameron government's campaign last year to defeat the referendum for Scottish independence helped propel the popularity of the SNP, which in turn undermined the Labour Party's traditional strength in Scotland, thereby helping to insure the Tory victory.

 It was supposed to be Labour that would make a Devil's bargain with the SNP and, likely, face new calls for Scottish independence.

 But now it seems that, with his new governing majority expected to be in place soon, Cameron will be the one who is going to have to deal with an ever-greater empowered and recalcitrant Scotland.

 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1Ri4WuS |||||

Write a summary.

– The Conservative Party swept to power today in Britain's Parliamentary elections, winning a wholly unexpected and resounding victory and bringing the election to a much-quicker-than-expected conclusion. Polls ahead of Election Day showed Conservatives locked in a tight race with the opposition Labour Party, raising the possibility of days or weeks of negotiations to form a government. Instead, the party won an outright majority, taking 326 of 650 seats. But as Prime Minister David Cameron returns to 10 Downing Street in a stronger position than before, a trio of big names are out: Labour Party leader Ed Miliband, Nick Clegg of the Liberal Democrats, and Independence Party leader Nigel Farage have resigned in the election's wake. More: Line of the night, from Cameron: "I want my party, and I hope a government that I would like to lead, to reclaim a mantle that we should never have lost—the mantle of one nation, one United Kingdom." CNN runs down the implications of the Conservative Party win. Two big ones: Expect to start reading the word "Brexit" much more often, with Cameron having vowed to hold a 2017 referendum on whether the UK should remain a part of the EU. And could Scotland leave Britain? CNN presents the possibility, noting that the Scottish National Party's victory was a staggering one, with it taking 56 out of the 59 UK parliamentary seats in Scotland. CNN points to "rumblings in the British press" that such an SNP victory could spur yet another referendum, this one in 2016, on a split. The view from Michael Wolff: "It might be argued that the Cameron government's campaign last year to defeat the referendum for Scottish independence helped propel the popularity of the SNP, which in turn undermined the Labour Party's traditional strength in Scotland, thereby helping to [ensure] the Tory victory," he writes in USA Today. Interesting side-reading: The biggest loser of the night? Russell Brand. Among the night's most fascinating victors: Mhairi Black, who becomes the UK's youngest lawmaker since 1667.


Write a summary based on this article:

The seed for Wide00014 was:

 - Slash pages from every domain on the web:

 -- a ranking of all URLs that have more than one incoming inter-domain link (rank was determined by number of incoming links using Wide00012 inter domain links)

 -- up to a maximum of 100 most highly ranked URLs per domain

 - Top ranked pages (up to a max of 100) from every linked-to domain using the Wide00012 inter-domain navigational link graph ||||| Too much vitamin B12 may promote acne, according to a new study.

 The study found that, in the presence of vitamin B12, the skin bacteria that are commonly linked to acne start pumping out inflammatory molecules known to promote pimples.

 In the study, scientists investigated the differences between skin bacteria from people prone to acne and bacteria from people with clear-skinned faces. The researchers looked at the bacteria's gene expression, hoping to figure out why Propionibacterium acnes, which is the most common skin microbe, causes pimples in some people but not in others.

 They found that vitamin B12 changed the gene expression of the skin bacteria, which could have led to acne-promoting inflammation.

 In humans, vitamin B12 plays roles in metabolism, red blood cell formation and the maintenance of the central nervous system. It's commonly found in multivitamins, but the new research could raise questions about whether people with acne should take vitamin B12 supplements.

 "I think there's a link" between vitamin B12 and acne, said Huiying Li, a co-author of the new study and an assistant professor of pharmacology at UCLA's David Geffen School of Medicine. Her team found a molecular pathway that could explain the link in their study, but it will need to be confirmed by future research."There's still a lot to be studied in order to really understand if B12 causes acne," she said.

 Looking for a mechanism

 By looking at the gene expression patterns, Li's team first found that the pathway that produces vitamin B12 was significantly altered in the skin bacteria of people with acne, compared with the skin bacteria of people without acne. This finding raised Li's suspicions about B12's role in acne, she said. Prior studies citing an association between these two elements confirmed the possibility of a link — research dating back to the 1950s has suggested that vitamin B12 supplements could contribute to some people's acne.

 Li's research team then looked at the skin bacterium in pimple-free people who received a vitamin B12 injection. The researchers confirmed that the B12 supplement repressed the expression of genes in P. acnes involved in synthesizing the vitamin. In fact, the expression of those genes was lowered to levels similar to those of acne patients. [4 Common Skin Woes, and How to Fix Them]

 A week after receiving the vitamin B12 injection, one of the 10 participants broke out in pimples. That person's P. acnes gene-expression pattern also changed, the researchers found. Before the B12 injection, it was similar to those of the other healthy participants, but 14 days after the vitamin B12 shot, it looked much more like an acne patient's pattern.

 The researchers also did experiments on P. acnes growing in lab dishes.They found that when they added vitamin B12 to the bacteria, the microbes started producing compounds called porphyrins, which promote inflammation in acne. Inflammation is a key step in the later stages of acne development, Li said.

 Together, the new findings suggest that when too much B12 is present, the bacteria have changes in their gene expression that suppress further synthesis of the vitamin. These bacteria switch to producing porphyrins, the researchers explained, and in some people, this uptick in inflammatory compounds may contribute to acne.

 "We think the pathway we studied could potentially explain part of acne's pathogenesis," Li said.

 Hang on to those vitamins

 But although the study found a possible link, it did not prove that too much vitamin B12 definitely causes or worsens acne.

 "The data and hypothesis are very intriguing, but much additional investigation is required to determine if this is a real cause-and-effect phenomenon," said Josh Miller, a professor of nutritional sciences at Rutgers University who was not involved with the study.

 In addition, although the new findings suggest that B12 supplements may promote inflammation, other studies have suggested the opposite — that vitamin B12 has anti-inflammatory properties, Miller said.

 "Proof of a causative effect of B12 supplements on acne development will require randomized control trials with enough subjects to see a significant effect, if one exists," he told Live Science.

 Li also cautioned that it's way too early to suggest that people dealing with acne should stop taking multivitamins with B12. Most of the studies that have found an increase in acne with vitamin B12 involved large doses of the vitamin, given by injections, she pointed out.

 "This study does present some compelling evidence suggesting that supplementation with B12 can cause or exacerbate acne in a subset of individuals," said Dr. Whitney Bowe, clinical assistant professor of dermatology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. "However, we don't have enough evidence at this point to broadly recommend that all acne patients try to avoid vitamin B12 supplements or foods rich in vitamin B12."

 Beyond zits

 The aim of the research was to better understand how humans, and the microbes that live on their bodies, interact to cause disease, Li said. A deeper understanding of microbial-disease pathways could lead to more targeted treatments, the researchers wrote in their study, published today (June 24) in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

 "The study shows that "what we eat or drink can impact the health of our skin by affecting the microbes that live on our skin," Bowe said. "We have 10 bacterial cells for every one human cell in our body. The more we learn about these bacteria, the more we are realizing the major impact they have on our health and well-being."

 Follow Jennifer Abbasi on Twitter. Follow us @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. ||||| A vitamin found in meats and dairy products may be linked to acne, a study published today in Science Translational Medicine suggests. Vitamin B12 alters how the genes of facial bacteria behave — a change that in turn promotes inflammation, which has been linked to pimples in the past. The finding could eventually help create new drugs that can keep acne away. But it’s still very early, so the researchers warn against making any drastic changes to your diet or habits for now.

 "It has been reported several times that people who take B12 develop acne."

 People sometimes take B12 as a supplement to improve memory or combat anemia. But "it has been reported several times that people who take B12 develop acne," says Huiying Li, a molecular pharmacologist at the University of California-Los Angeles and a co-author of the study. "So it’s exciting that we found that the potential link between B12 and acne is through the skin bacteria."

 More than 80 percent of teenagers and young adults have to deal with acne, often on a regular basis. It can go away on its own, but it can also lead to some pretty bad scarring — not to mention some big dips in self-esteem. Unfortunately, researchers don’t know nearly as much about this particular skin condition as one might expect. Scientists have shown that the production of sebum — the oily, waxy stuff your skin makes — and a disorder of the cells that line the inside of hair follicles are both involved in acne development, but the role of bacteria in those pimples we all dread still holds some mysteries.

 That's why Li and her team of researchers decided to look into B12. Since the 1950s, a number of studies have linked the vitamin to acne, but that association was largely anecdotal, Li says. And the researchers had suspected that the vitamin might have an effect on skin bacteria, most notably Propionibacterium acnes. Now, Li and her team think they may have figured out how B12 acts on P. acnes, thanks to experiments her team performed on bacteria taken from a small number of people.

 The study revealed that humans taking B12 end up with high levels of the vitamin in their skin. As a result, P. acnes senses these higher levels and lowers its own production of B12, which it uses to carry out its everyday bacteria-like activities. This causes an imbalance that prompts P. acnes to produce more porphyrins, a related molecule. And unfortunately porphyrins are linked to inflammation — a pretty important factor in the development of severe acne.

 "The main message is that skin bacteria are important."

 Thus, it seems likely that for some people, taking B12 causes inflammation in the skin, which leads to acne. That last step in this pimply chain of events has yet to be demonstrated, however. Doing so will take a bit more time, Li says.

 "The main message is that skin bacteria are important," Li says. They're contributing members of our skin's society, and they like to do things in a certain manner. But until other researchers confirm the link between B12 and acne in a larger number of people, dermatologists won’t really be able to make any clinical recommendations one way or the other, she says. Still, just knowing about the ways in which we can affect the organisms that live on our skin is pretty fun. "I don't want people to misinterpret the results by not taking B12," Li says — this is all about the bacteria. ||||| It is an essential nutrient that helps the brain, nerves and blood work properly and which is found in meat, fish, eggs, dairy products and Marmite.

 But it turns out that vitamin B12 could be causing acne, the skin disorder that results in spots, pimples and blackheads, scientists have found.

 A new study has found that the vitamin changes the way bacteria behave on the skin of susceptible people.

 Vegan diets could be the key to getting rid of spots, because B12 is mostly found in animal products. But be warned: not getting enough of the vitamin can lead to fatigue and a lack of energy.

 The discovery could lead to new treatments for the distressing skin disorder, and shed light on why some people who take vitamin B12 supplements come out in spots.

 While it was already known that taking the vitamin pills can result in acne flare-ups, no-one knew exactly why.

 The new study solved the mystery by showing that the vitamin alters the metabolic activity of the skin bug responsible for acne, Propionibacterium acnes.

 This causes the bacteria to secrete an inflammatory compound that in turn triggers pimples.

 But the effect is not the same for everyone - some people are more vulnerable than others due to the complex interaction of bacteria and host.

 Researchers led by Dr Huiyang Li, from the University of California, Los Angeles, write in the journal Science Translational Medicine: "Our findings suggest a new bacterial pathogenesis pathway in acne and provide one molecular explanation for the long-standing clinical observation that vitamin B12 supplementation leads to acne development in a subset of individuals.

 The paper adds that “interactions between the host and the skin … play essential roles in disease development”.

 The research involved testing 10 volunteers who were all given vitamin B12 supplements. Within a week, just one of them broke out in spots.

 To investigate what had happened the researchers collected bacterial samples from the participants' noses using deep-cleansing pore strips.

 They discovered that excess B12 quenched the bacteria's own production of the vitamin, which had the effect of boosting levels of an inflammatory compound, porphyrin, released by the bugs. Porphyrin is known to drive the inflammatory skin response linked to acne.

 Read more Vitamin B12 may protect brain, says report

 The researchers added: "Future follow-up studies may potentially lead to the development of new therapeutics for this medically important disease."

 The study proves the link between B12 and skin bacteria - but that doesn't mean people should stop taking B12, the researchers stress.

 Vitamin B12 plays key roles in the normal functioning of the brain and nervous system, and red blood cell formation. Deficiency of the vitamin can lead to fatigue and lack of energy.

 Perhaps the solution is to adopt a strict vegan diet – just make sure you avoid a certain divisive spread made out of yeast extract.

 Additional reporting by Press Association |||||

– Nature giveth, and nature taketh away. The same vitamin credited with helping the brain and nervous system—B12—is now accused of contributing to acne, reports the Independent. A new UCLA study suggests a link, though researchers emphasized that more research needs to be done to confirm what's actually happening. Still, the findings "could raise questions about whether people with acne should take vitamin B12 supplements," observes Live Science. It seems that the vitamin changes the way skin bacteria behaves, which promotes inflammation, which in turn leads to pimples. Some people are more vulnerable than others. "This study does present some compelling evidence suggesting that supplementation with B12 can cause or exacerbate acne in a subset of individuals," says a co-author of the study. She emphasizes that the research shows correlation, not causation. While previous studies have linked the vitamin to acne flareups, this is the first to provide details on how it interacts on a molecular level with bacteria, especially Propionibacterium acnes. One upside of the research is that it might eventually lead to better acne medication, reports the Verge. (Kids may be getting too many vitamins in cereal.)


News article:

Copyright 2010 Andy Lyons / Getty Images

 Former skating champ Tonya Harding, who became notorious when her ex-husband allegedly hired a hit man to club her skating rival Nancy Kerrigan in the knee, is speaking out about Kerrigan's father's death and her brother's arrest.

 A rep for Tonya tells "The Insider": "Tonya feels very sad for Nancy and her family and extends her deepest sympathy and condolences to them. Tonya's beloved dad, Al Harding, passed away this past April, so she understands the grief Nancy and her family are feeling at this difficult time." ||||| The parents of Olympic ice princess Nancy Kerrigan sued her older brother in March 2008 in a desperate attempt to recover $105,000 they’d lost paying his mortgage, credit card bills and even buying food for his pets, court papers detail.

 In court papers, Daniel and Brenda Kerrigan claimed their son Mark Kerrigan - while serving a 2-year jail sentence on assault, drug and property destruction charges, and having been divorced by his wife Janet in 2007 over “cruel and abusive treatment” - agreed to reimburse the handout once his house in Wilmington sold, but “failed, refused and neglected to make full payment upon demand.” ||||| Nancy Kerrigan 'Really Struggling' after Father's Death

 or leave a comment of your own See what other readers have to say about this story –

 Reeling from the death of her father, Nancy Kerrigan still mustered the strength to show the class and courtesy for which she is known in the skating world.Paul Wylie, an Olympic silver medalist who also competed in the 1992 Albertville Olympics with Kerrigan, spoke with her by phone early Monday when he heard the news that Daniel Kerrigan, 70, died after an alleged assault by his troubled son, Mark."She was really struggling," Wylie tells PEOPLE. "But she called to thank me for calling."Kristi Yamaguchi, who also competed with Kerrigan in Albertville, offered her condolences by text mail, and Kerrigan responded, "Thank you...I appreciate all the support I've been getting."Authorities charged Mark Kerrigan with assaulting his father who died during an altercation at the family's Massachusetts home Jan. 24. A cause of death has not been determined, but Daniel Kerrigan's wife Brenda tells the Boston Herald he may have suffered a heart attack. At a Monday arraignment in the Boston suburb of Woburn, Mark Kerrigan pleaded not guilty to the charges and was held on $10,000 bail."I am so saddened for Nancy," Yamaguchi, the Olympic champion and winner of the sixth season of ABC's Dancing With the Stars, tells PEOPLE. "My heart goes out to Nancy and her family. "Yamaguchi, who performed in a cancer benefit with Kerrigan in November, says the tragedy has hit the skating community hard. "Nancy is part of our family and the loss of a parent is devastating. I always smile when I think of Dan because he was a lot of fun and he had such pride for his daughter and her accomplishments. That meant a lot to Nancy. He and Brenda were always there for her."Daniel Kerrigan, Wylie adds, was a father figure to all the skaters. "He and Brenda touched many skaters lives," he says. "One day he visited me at my apartment and said, 'That window needs fixing and if you do it this way, it'll save you $20 on your heating bill.' He was a fatherly like that. Dan was a great guy and a family man." |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– Mark Kerrigan—now charged with assault following the sudden death of his father—was sued by his parents over money in March 2008. Daniel and Brenda Kerrigan claimed to have loaned their son—who was in jail at the time on an assault charge—$105,000 for his mortgage and expenses ranging from credit card bills to cat food. He then “failed, refused and neglected to make full payment upon demand,” according to court papers; the parents' attorney said the issue was resolved that December. Mark pleaded not guilty to assaulting his father yesterday and is being held on bail, the Boston Herald adds. Meanwhile, fellow figure skaters are reaching out to Mark's sister, Nancy: Paul Wylie tells People that she's “really struggling," while Kristi Yamaguchi said Kerrigan texted her to thank her for the support. Even Tonya Harding, Nancy’s most infamous rival, released a statement telling the Insider she is “very sad for Nancy. She understands the grief Nancy and her family are feeling at this difficult time. ”


Here is a news article: Video of a fight that broke out in a holding cell at the Allen County Justice Center between a murder suspect and a witness in the case is shown during the trial of Markelus Carter.

 Carter is on trial for the 2009 murder of Kenneth Warrington.

 During the afternoon break on Wednesday, Carter was mistakenly placed in a holding cell with Steven Upham. The video shows Carter landing the first punch with Upham later putting Carter in a headlock and throwing a few punches followed by Carter biting Upham on the arm. Corrections officers break the fight up after about two minutes.

 Thursday morning Carter's lawyer Jon Paul Rion asked for a mistrial based on the fight. However, Judge Jeffrey Reed said the case would move forward and allowed the video to be shown to the jury.

 Upham was a block mate of Carter's at Allen Oakwood Correctional Institution. Upham testified that Carter told him details of the murder.

 On cross examination the defense pressed Upham on other ways he could have obtained information on the murder besides a direct conversation with Carter.

 Upham then admitted he spent a great deal of time in prison trying to find ways to get released early. However, he denied being promised any reduction in exchange for testimony in this case.

 Three guards were placed in the courtroom during Upham's testimony. The defense is expected to call other inmates to the stand to refute today's statements.

 Later in the day, the state continued building its case by calling lead detective Tim Clark to the stand. Clark's testimony will continue Friday morning. ||||| LIMA — The smile Markelus Carter had each day when he walked into the courtroom may have been knocked off his face by another inmate about to testify against him when the two were accidently placed in a holding cell together.

 Carter entered the courtroom Wednesday afternoon after the fight visibly shaken, with what appeared to be red marks on his face and no longer smiling. He didn’t even acknowledge his family or even try to talk to them as he previously had each day of his murder trial when he entered.

 Carter was involved in a fight with the inmate in a holding cell where the inmate from Allen Oakwood Correctional Facility was being held. A guard accidentally put Carter in a cell with the man during a break in the trial. Neither man was handcuffed.

 Sheriff Sam Crish said the guard erred and that is not standard operating procedure. Crish did not know why the mistake was made and said there would be an investigation.

 “The only thing I know is the two of them were put in a holding cell together,” Crish said. “An altercation broke out between the two and within minutes we were able to go in and break up the two.”

 Carter is charged with aggravated murder with a firearm and having a gun under a court sanction. He is charged in the Feb. 23, 2009, shooting death of Kenneth Warrington outside a home at 436 E. McKibben St. Prosecutors said Carter killed Warrington because Warrington was having an affair with his ex-girlfriend.

 Crish said the fight is recorded on video. He has not reviewed the recording but said he doesn’t believe the fight lasted more than two minutes.

 Crish said neither Carter nor the other inmate suffered serious injuries. “Minor” is how Crish described the injuries.

 Guards and at least once police officer, all older men in their 40s or 50s, sprinted as fast as they could through the courtroom, out the back door to the holding cell out of public view. The second floor that houses two common pleas courtrooms then was flooded with sheriff deputies and Crish.

 Crish did not name the inmate but just before that a sergeant from the prison testified an inmate Steven Upham, serving time for attempted murder, came to him with information about Carter’s case. A prosecutor previously said Carter confessed to an inmate at the prison saying he killed Warrington. Prosecutors would not say if Upham was the inmate Carter fought in the holding cell.

 Judge Jeffrey Reed told attorneys for both sides to return to court a half-hour before the jury Thursday to discuss the matter.

 The day began with drama, as well, when the judge refused to grant a mistrial after Carter’s attorney, Jon Rion, accused the prosecution of surprising him with evidence in direct violation of evidence-sharing rules. Prosecutor Terri Kohlrieser said she and prosecutor Tony Miller did share evidence, required by Ohio law, with Rion and no rules were violated.

 The allegations were over testimony about a MAC 10 firearm that Carter allegedly owned and prosecutors said could have been the murder weapon.

 Reed ruled no rules were intentionally violated but said he may grant a continuance in the trial when the defense’s case begins if Rion needs to call a firearms expert to examine fired bullets and casings found at the crime scene, and testify about MAC 10 style weapons.

 The jury also watched a videotaped meeting during which police were trying to interview Carter for a second time in the hours after the murder but Carter had his head down and appeared disoriented. He asked detectives for medicine for seizures. He was not questioned about the murder.

 Greg Sowinski | The Lima News This is a picture of murder defendant Markelus Carter after he was involved in a fight with an inmate about to testify against him Wednesday that happened when a guard accidentally put them in a cell together. https://www.limaohio.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/54/2015/09/web1_Carter-trial-afternoon-9-16-15-49-.jpg Greg Sowinski | The Lima News This is a picture of murder defendant Markelus Carter after he was involved in a fight with an inmate about to testify against him Wednesday that happened when a guard accidentally put them in a cell together.

 By Greg Sowinski gsowinski@civitasmedia.com

 Reach Greg Sowinski at 567-242-0464 or on Twitter @Lima_Sowinski.

 Reach Greg Sowinski at 567-242-0464 or on Twitter @Lima_Sowinski. |||||
A summary of this is?

– A pretty big oops in Lima, Ohio, this week: Markelus Carter is charged with murder, and during a break in his trial Wednesday, a guard accidentally put him in the same holding cell with another inmate who was set to testify against him. Neither man was handcuffed, and a fight broke out, but "within minutes we were able to go in and break up the two," the local sheriff says, adding that there will be an investigation into the misstep. Carter walked back into the courtroom "visibly shaken" and with red marks on his face, the Lima News reports; the sheriff described the injuries to both men as "minor." The judge wouldn't grant a mistrial, but allowed the jury to watch video of the fight, Your News Now reports; the witness testified the next day.


Article:
Moreover, the tight export quotas have caused world prices to soar, even while holding steady in China.

 Photo

 Officials in two departments of China’s General Administration of Customs in Beijing declined to comment on Thursday evening about the status of rare earth exports. The commerce ministry, which handles trade policy, also had no immediate comment.

 Although deposits of rare earths are found in various parts of the world, including the United States, China produces about 95 percent of the global supply of the minerals. That is largely because rare earth mining and processing can be so environmentally risky, creating toxic and even radioactive wastes, that other countries have tended to avoid or abandon production. Only recently have other nations begun scrambling to develop or expand their own mining capabilities.

 The Chinese shipments resumed Thursday morning only hours before Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton raised the embargo issue at a news conference in Honolulu, where she announced plans to visit China on Saturday to pursue the matter with Chinese officials.

 Mrs. Clinton spoke after meeting with Japan’s foreign minister, Seiji Maehara, and said that the suspension of shipments had been a “wake-up call” and that both countries would have to find alternative sources of rare earth materials.

 Because China is on the opposite side of the international dateline from Honolulu, it was already midday on Thursday in China by the time Mrs. Clinton spoke in Honolulu on Wednesday. Later, after the New York Times Web site reported that the embargo had been lifted, an administration official said the United States was still seeking clarification from China.

 In recent weeks, senior Chinese commerce ministry officials have insisted that they had not issued any regulations halting shipments. They have suggested at various times — implausibly, in the view of industry executives — that the halt resulted from a spontaneous and simultaneous decision by the country’s 32 authorized rare earth exporters not to make shipments, whether because of a deterioration in Sino-Japanese relations or a greater thoroughness on the part of customs inspectors.

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 Under this year’s quota — 30,300 metric tons of authorized shipments — only a few thousand metric tons remain to be exported in 2010. Meanwhile, annual demand outside China for raw rare earths approaches 50,000 tons, according to industry estimates.

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 The Chinese government assigns its quotas to the authorized exporters, who often trade those rights like commodities. As recently as 2008, the quota rights themselves had no market value. But lately, with rising demand, the value of the remaining quotas has soared to the point that the right to export a single ton of rare earths from China now sells for about $40,000, including special Chinese taxes .

 That is a sizable, additional cost for buyers of neodymium, a rare earth used to make lightweight, powerful magnets essential to technologies including giant wind turbines , gasoline- electric cars and Apple iPhones.

 Newsletter Sign Up Continue reading the main story Please verify you're not a robot by clicking the box. Invalid email address. Please re-enter. You must select a newsletter to subscribe to. Sign Up You will receive emails containing news content , updates and promotions from The New York Times. You may opt-out at any time. You agree to receive occasional updates and special offers for The New York Times's products and services. Thank you for subscribing. An error has occurred. Please try again later. View all New York Times newsletters.

 Neodymium sells for about $40,000 a metric ton in China, having recovered from a nose-dive during the global economic crisis. But it sells for twice that much outside the country because of the export restrictions, according to data from Metal Pages, a database service in London .

 The cost of quotas has become exorbitant for users of lanthanum, which is vital for the catalytic converters that clean the exhaust of conventional, gasoline-powered cars. It is mostly produced here in Baotou, a smoggy mining and steel city in China’s Inner Mongolia that is the capital of China’s rare earth industry. Lanthanum sells for less than $4,500 a ton in China, but up to 10 times that much outside China because of the export restrictions.

 Such price differences have created a big incentive for companies to move factories to China, and many already have.

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 China’s shipping embargo has caused much more distress in Japan than in the United States or Europe, and not just because Japan’s shipments were cut off much earlier. It is because Japan tends to be affected more than other industrial nations by the way China sets its rare earth export quotas.

 China’s quotas — and the shipping embargo — have involved only shipments in which the material has a rare earth content of about 50 percent or more. High-technology materials made from rare earths, like special magnetic powders for the clean energy and electronics industries, or polishing powders for the glass industry, are not subject to quotas and are inexpensively available.

 Because the United States and Europe mainly buy highly processed rare earth powders from China, the customs policy of blocking shipments of raw rare earths had a limited, mostly symbolic effect. Japan, in contrast, is the biggest importer of raw rare earths and tends to process them into industrial materials. So Japan is more dependent on the materials affected by China’s tightening quotas.

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 It was on Oct. 18 that the Chinese government broadened its halt in raw rare earths to include the United States and Europe. That step enabled customs officials to take the position that they were checking all rare earth shipments closely and were not singling out Japan.

 The move also occurred only hours after Zhang Guobao, the country’s top energy official, summoned foreign reporters in Beijing. There, he delivered a blistering denunciation of the Obama administration’s decision the previous Friday to begin investigating whether China’s clean energy policies violated the World Trade Organization ’s free trade rules. But the exact interaction between American policy decisions and Chinese customs enforcement actions is unclear.

 For China, the embargo on rare earth shipments has provided at least some geopolitical leverage. The halt was one of a series of measures that China took after Japan detained the captain of a Chinese fishing trawler that collided with two Japanese patrol boats; Japan later released the trawler’s captain.

 Japanese companies had been able to weather the embargo without any significant factory shutdowns because many Japanese companies had accumulated rare earth stockpiles in the last few years. Still, the interruption of shipments caused dismay and alarm in the Japanese business community and Japan’s government. ||||| Moreover, the tight export quotas have caused world prices to soar, even while holding steady in China.

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 Officials in two departments of China’s General Administration of Customs in Beijing declined to comment on Thursday evening about the status of rare earth exports. The commerce ministry, which handles trade policy, also had no immediate comment.

 Although deposits of rare earths are found in various parts of the world, including the United States, China produces about 95 percent of the global supply of the minerals. That is largely because rare earth mining and processing can be so environmentally risky, creating toxic and even radioactive wastes, that other countries have tended to avoid or abandon production. Only recently have other nations begun scrambling to develop or expand their own mining capabilities.

 The Chinese shipments resumed Thursday morning only hours before Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton raised the embargo issue at a news conference in Honolulu, where she announced plans to visit China on Saturday to pursue the matter with Chinese officials.

 Mrs. Clinton spoke after meeting with Japan’s foreign minister, Seiji Maehara, and said that the suspension of shipments had been a “wake-up call” and that both countries would have to find alternative sources of rare earth materials.

 Because China is on the opposite side of the international dateline from Honolulu, it was already midday on Thursday in China by the time Mrs. Clinton spoke in Honolulu on Wednesday. Later, after the New York Times Web site reported that the embargo had been lifted, an administration official said the United States was still seeking clarification from China.

 In recent weeks, senior Chinese commerce ministry officials have insisted that they had not issued any regulations halting shipments. They have suggested at various times — implausibly, in the view of industry executives — that the halt resulted from a spontaneous and simultaneous decision by the country’s 32 authorized rare earth exporters not to make shipments, whether because of a deterioration in Sino-Japanese relations or a greater thoroughness on the part of customs inspectors.

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 Under this year’s quota — 30,300 metric tons of authorized shipments — only a few thousand metric tons remain to be exported in 2010. Meanwhile, annual demand outside China for raw rare earths approaches 50,000 tons, according to industry estimates.

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 The Chinese government assigns its quotas to the authorized exporters, who often trade those rights like commodities. As recently as 2008, the quota rights themselves had no market value. But lately, with rising demand, the value of the remaining quotas has soared to the point that the right to export a single ton of rare earths from China now sells for about $40,000, including special Chinese taxes .

 That is a sizable, additional cost for buyers of neodymium, a rare earth used to make lightweight, powerful magnets essential to technologies including giant wind turbines , gasoline- electric cars and Apple iPhones.

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 Neodymium sells for about $40,000 a metric ton in China, having recovered from a nose-dive during the global economic crisis. But it sells for twice that much outside the country because of the export restrictions, according to data from Metal Pages, a database service in London .

 The cost of quotas has become exorbitant for users of lanthanum, which is vital for the catalytic converters that clean the exhaust of conventional, gasoline-powered cars. It is mostly produced here in Baotou, a smoggy mining and steel city in China’s Inner Mongolia that is the capital of China’s rare earth industry. Lanthanum sells for less than $4,500 a ton in China, but up to 10 times that much outside China because of the export restrictions.

 Such price differences have created a big incentive for companies to move factories to China, and many already have.

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 China’s shipping embargo has caused much more distress in Japan than in the United States or Europe, and not just because Japan’s shipments were cut off much earlier. It is because Japan tends to be affected more than other industrial nations by the way China sets its rare earth export quotas.

 China’s quotas — and the shipping embargo — have involved only shipments in which the material has a rare earth content of about 50 percent or more. High-technology materials made from rare earths, like special magnetic powders for the clean energy and electronics industries, or polishing powders for the glass industry, are not subject to quotas and are inexpensively available.

 Because the United States and Europe mainly buy highly processed rare earth powders from China, the customs policy of blocking shipments of raw rare earths had a limited, mostly symbolic effect. Japan, in contrast, is the biggest importer of raw rare earths and tends to process them into industrial materials. So Japan is more dependent on the materials affected by China’s tightening quotas.

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 It was on Oct. 18 that the Chinese government broadened its halt in raw rare earths to include the United States and Europe. That step enabled customs officials to take the position that they were checking all rare earth shipments closely and were not singling out Japan.

 The move also occurred only hours after Zhang Guobao, the country’s top energy official, summoned foreign reporters in Beijing. There, he delivered a blistering denunciation of the Obama administration’s decision the previous Friday to begin investigating whether China’s clean energy policies violated the World Trade Organization ’s free trade rules. But the exact interaction between American policy decisions and Chinese customs enforcement actions is unclear.

 For China, the embargo on rare earth shipments has provided at least some geopolitical leverage. The halt was one of a series of measures that China took after Japan detained the captain of a Chinese fishing trawler that collided with two Japanese patrol boats; Japan later released the trawler’s captain.

 Japanese companies had been able to weather the embargo without any significant factory shutdowns because many Japanese companies had accumulated rare earth stockpiles in the last few years. Still, the interruption of shipments caused dismay and alarm in the Japanese business community and Japan’s government. |||||Summary:

– China has resumed its shipment of rare earth minerals to the United States, after cutting us off early last week, the New York Times reports. Shipments to Japan, which have been suspended since September due to disputes involving the arrest of Chinese fishermen, also resumed, though they are facing some delays. The decision came hours after an announcement by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that she would travel to China tomorrow to discuss the matter. She called the suspension a “wake-up call,” saying the US and Japan need to find alternate supplies of these materials. China, which produces 95% of the world's rare earth minerals, has repeatedly downgraded its export levels of these materials over the last five years; what it currently ships is well below world demand. Read the full article.


COOPERSBURG, Pa. (AP) — A 4-year-old cancer patient who was sent home for the holidays wanted to get gifts for the friends she left behind in a Philadelphia hospital.

 Now, her wish for 50 presents has ballooned to over 3,000 for patients at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

 Jillian Massey, of Coopersburg, was diagnosed with brain cancer in April and spent six months in the hospital. When she was sent home, she decided to give something back to her friends.

 An Amazon wish list was created to help her collect the gifts. Her mother's colleagues at a homebuilding company stepped in to help promote it, and the drive took off.

 Her mother, Janelle Massey, says they will deliver the toys on Monday.

 She says Jillian is so excited to bring some cheer to her friends. ||||| See more of Jillian Paige-You got this girl on Facebook |||||
What is a one-paragraph summary of the above article?

– After six months in the hospital being treated for brain cancer, 4-year-old Jillian Massey was sent home for the holidays. But she didn't forget the friends she'd made at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, and wanted to give 50 holiday presents to the children still there, the AP reports. Instead, more than 3,000 will be given out after Jillian's story, and the Amazon wish list she created, went viral. Many people donated gifts, and Jillian and her family will deliver them to the hospital Monday.


Here is a news article: Canceled: Cleveland Browns 'Perfect Season' Parade

 It has been a horrible season for the Cleveland Browns. If the team went 0-16, fans wanted to hold a perfect season parade. But the parade was canceled after the team won a game.

 DAVID GREENE, HOST:

 Good morning. I'm David Greene. It's just so easy to make fun of the Cleveland Browns - but not this time. It's been a horrible season, and if the Browns went 0-16, fans wanted to hold a perfect-season parade to begin at the Factory of Sadness, local comedian Mike Polk's nickname for the stadium. But the Browns won a game, so the parade's canceled. The $10,000 raised to organize it will be donated to the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, and the Browns are matching that with another 10,000 bucks. You're listening to MORNING EDITION.

 Copyright © 2016 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.

 NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by Verb8tm, Inc., an NPR contractor, and produced using a proprietary transcription process developed with NPR. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. ||||| CLEVELAND - The Cleveland Browns will be matching the donation from the 'Perfect Season Parade' to the Greater Cleveland Food Bank by donating $10,000.

 After the Browns scored their first win of the season on Christmas Eve, the parade was canceled and event organizers announced that the money would be given to feed those in need. Cleveland Pizza made a donation and the total rose to over $8,000.

 The food bank announced on Twitter Tuesday that the Browns were giving an additional $10,000 to match the donation.

 Thanks to the Browns fans who donated $10k+ to the Food Bank! The @Browns have announced they're MATCHING with an additional $10k! #give10 pic.twitter.com/u0iW96ibUQ — Greater CLE FoodBank (@CleFoodBank) December 27, 2016

 The GoFundMe was originally put in place to pay for security, restroom facilities and other necessities for the parade. The goal was to raise $1,999 but surpassed it quickly. |||||
A summary of this is?

– Cleveland Browns fans were looking forward to a "Perfect Season Parade," though that "perfect" season was meant to be perfectly winless, reports NPR. But then the players had to go and ruin everything by winning their Christmas Eve matchup against the San Diego Chargers 20-17, leaving more than $10,000 sitting in the GoFundMe account created to pay for parade security, insurance, and facilities. The event's organizers recovered the fumble by making a charitable decision: to donate the money instead to the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, News 5 reports, which added its own surprise note. "Thanks to the Browns fans who donated $10k+ to the Food Bank! The @Browns have announced they're MATCHING with an additional $10k!" the food bank tweeted on Tuesday, bringing the total received to $20,000. Not bad for a sad season's work. (That win also ended a hairy situation.)


Article:
She’s still pitching her book, still hoping someone will come out and see her when she shows up at a signing, but Bristol Palin isn’t able to pack 'em in the way she used to — if a recent classified ad on Craigslist was any measure.

 Bristol was in D.C. over the weekend along with her mother, Sarah, who spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference. Bristol’s book, “Not Afraid of Life: My Journey So Far,” came out in June last year and immediately slid off the radar after reviewers pretty much trashed her trash talk: “In the place of real insight, we frequently get catty asides,” wrote Stephen Lowman in The Post. “Some of her ex’s [Levi Johnston’s] trash-talk expertise must have rubbed off on her, because she dishes it out with aplomb.”

 The public, too, seems to have lost its appetite for Bristol’s brand of spectacle. She had to turn to Craigslist to beg people to show up at a book signing on Saturday at Books-A-Million in the District. In an ad on the Web site, Palin offered free, autographed copies of her book to the first 100 people to RSVP. Even the conservative DC newspaper the Examiner noted that the ad was “an attempt to entice fans to attend the event.”

 After first bursting into the spotlight during her mother’s run for the vice presidency in 2008, at which time it was revealed she was an out-of-wedlock pregnant teen, Bristol went on to slide across the floor as a contestant on “Dancing with the Stars.” She was herself the latest shooting star who was famous for a few moments for being famous, and now at last it seems the world is getting close to closing the book on her. ||||| Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period.

 Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period.

 Location: Washington, DC

 Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job poster.

 Please, no phone calls about this job!

 Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.

 Please join Bristol Palin and her ghostwriter Nancy French in a special book signing!We're welcoming folks of all ages to join Bristol as she promotes her best selling memoir "Not Afraid Of Life - My Journey So Far".The first 100 people to RSVP will receive a free autographed book by Bristol herself.WHEN: Saturday, February 11th @10A - 12PWHERE: Books-A-Million11 Dupont Circle NorthWashington, DC 20036Please RSVP with your name, age and info at email above!If you receive a response from us, it will guarantee you entry. |||||Summary:

– Apparently Bristol Palin is a little bit desperate for people to show up to her book signings. Last week, in an ad posted on Craigslist, organizers offered free autographed copies of Palin's recent book to the first 100 people who promised to attend a weekend signing in Washington, DC, the Post reports—noting that Not Afraid of Life: My Journey So Far got trashed by reviewers and failed to become popular after it was released last year. The Post adds that even DC's right-leaning Examiner called the Craigslist ad "an attempt to entice fans to attend the event."


Write a summary based on this article:

Story highlights Sen. Lindsey Graham will host a fundraiser on Monday in support of Sen. Ted Cruz's presidential campaign

 A draft of the invitation, obtained first by CNN, invites guests to "honor and support a great friend of Israel and the Jewish people"

 Support for the Texas senator is an about face from the South Carolina senator, who compared nominating Donald Trump or Cruz to being shot or poisoned

 (CNN) In a sign of just how much the Republican presidential primary has turned the party on its head, Sen. Lindsey Graham will headline a fundraiser on Monday in support of Ted Cruz.

 Graham told CNN that while the Texas senator is not his preferred candidate, he's "the best alternative to Donald Trump," and he said he will "help Ted in every way I can."

 A draft of the invitation, obtained first by CNN, invites guests to "honor and support a great friend of Israel and the Jewish people," at a meet-and-greet event that will take place during the AIPAC policy conference in Washington next week.

 Graham, who ended his bid for the Republican nomination last December, originally threw his support behind former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and campaign for him in South Carolina. ||||| Former presidential candidate Marco Rubio told a group of Minnesota supporters Wednesday he is hoping one of the remaining candidates for president will stop Donald Trump from winning the Republican nomination — and that Texas Sen. Ted Cruz could be the best option for conservatives.

 Rubio, who dropped out of the race Tuesday after losing his home state of Florida, didn’t endorse any of his former rivals in a conference call with dozens of Minnesota supporters. In the call, he explained his decision to leave the race and why he felt his presidential campaign didn’t do better, and suggested he might run for office again at some point in the future.

 He said he saw no real path forward for his campaign after losing Florida and its 99 winner-take-all delegates. He acknowledged he could have stayed in the race with the intention of seeking the nomination at the convention, but said he would have had to run a shoestring campaign with no money to defend himself on the airwaves. Even if he had won the nomination against the odds, Rubio said, the victory could prove pyrrhic.

 “Winning a general election with a nominee that a significant percentage of the base thinks stole it, even though you did it through the rules of the RNC, would be pretty much fatal for the party,” Rubio said, though he added that many Republicans will not vote for Trump, either.

 But he’s rooting for someone else to stop Trump from winning the 1,237 delegates he needs to clinch the nomination — someone who can go into the convention with more delegates and a better claim than Rubio believes he would have been able to muster.

 He didn’t endorse either Texas Sen. Ted Cruz or Ohio Gov. John Kasich, the two other remaining candidates. But Rubio praised Cruz as “the only conservative left in the race.”

 Rubio said his positive campaign message didn’t match the national mood, and said media coverage helped snowball Super Tuesday losses into the end of his campaign.

 “This election was entirely driven by national media coverage, in many ways,” Rubio said, in audio of the conference call obtained by the Pioneer Press. “When the media narrative goes negative on you, and all the news is bad, it kind of knocks us off.”

 Minnesota was one of only three primaries or caucuses Rubio won in his year-long presidential campaign and the only state he won. His other wins were in Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.

 “We’re always joking the last 24 hours at home that we need to move to Minnesota with a winter home in Puerto Rico and work in D.C.,” Rubio said.

 The Florida senator said he had tried to run an upbeat campaign, but didn’t think that message resonated in an election when “there’s a lot of frustration in this country.”

 “I really believe we’re on the verge of an incredible era in our history,” Rubio said, but added: “This is not the greatest year for that kind of message.”

 Describing the arc of his campaign for his Minnesota supporters, Rubio said he endured an “unprecedented” amount of attack ads from the Super PAC supporting former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. Though he “weathered” those ads, Rubio said he “probably could have won Iowa if it weren’t for the TV attacks.”

 He said he “saw the bottom fall out of our support” after the March 1 elections, when Rubio won Minnesota but lost everywhere else.

 “The media kind of just said, ‘Marco Rubio had a terrible night, and it looks like the strongest anti-Trump alternative is Ted Cruz,'” Rubio said.

 He rejected an unidentified supporter’s suggestion that negative coverage by Fox News was particularly to blame for his defeat, but said “there were a couple people on (Fox) that went full Trump.”

 The “drumbeat” of negative news about his chances made it harder for Rubio to raise money, he said, and also turned away potential voters.

 “When the media is constantly telling you, ‘So-and-so is winning and so-and-so is losing,’ it impacts voters,” he said.

 Rubio said polling showed him trailing in Florida by just 5 points last Thursday — “We were closing fast on Donald Trump in Florida,” he said. But by the time Tuesday came around Rubio got blown out by 17 points.

 “The only thing that happened over the weekend was the constant drip drip drip of ‘Rubio’s losing’ ” in the media, he said — as well as a Trump rally in Chicago that was canceled after a heavy presence from protesters. “I don’t know for a fact it had an impact on voters, but there’s nothing else that happened during that three-day period.”

 But Rubio acknowledged that media narratives cut both ways.

 “When we won Iowa, we came in third place, but the media coverage treated us like the winner. We were raising $250,000 a day online,” Rubio said. “We benefited from that narrative, but in the end, we were hurt by it, too. That’s just the way it is.”

 He said he is “at peace” with his decision to leave the race but believes he might seek office in the future — though he joked he doesn’t “have any ‘Rubio 2020’ signs printed out or anything like that.”

 “I remain open to public service in the future if the opportunity is right for me,” Rubio said.

 Rachel E. Stassen-Berger contributed to this report.

 This story has been updated with additional information. |||||

– Politicians are getting behind Ted Cruz ... sort of: In a conference call to Minnesota supporters Wednesday that was mostly focused on explaining why he dropped out of the presidential race, Marco Rubio said that he hopes one of the GOP candidates still in the race will keep Donald Trump from becoming the nominee, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports. He also said that Ted Cruz is "the only conservative left in the race" ... but he didn't actually endorse Cruz. (John Kasich is the only other non-Trump contender left.) Another senator and former 2016 presidential contender offered a similar non-endorsement of Cruz: Lindsey Graham tells CNN that he'll headline a fundraiser for Cruz on Monday, a meet-and-greet event during the AIPAC conference in DC. Why? "I think he's the best alternative to beat Donald Trump. I'm going to help Ted in any way I can," Graham explained. Buuuuut, "He's certainly not my preference," Graham added of Cruz. "But he's a reliable Republican, conservative, which I've had many differences with. John Kasich is the most viable general election candidate. I just don't see how John gets through the primary. This is an outsider year, and he is an insider." Graham, who has previously joked about how unpopular Cruz is among his fellow senators, added that Cruz is indeed "not well-liked," but said that even though "Senator Cruz would not be my first choice, I think he is a Republican conservative who I could support."