CHICAGO (AP) — The American Medical Association on Tuesday refused to back a ban on prescription drug ads, despite rising concerns about the dangers of certain heavily marketed painkillers and antidepressants. Some doctors have complained that “Ask your doctor about …” ads lead patients to seek risky drugs they don’t need and interfere with the…

NEW YORK (AP) — Surrounded by businessmen in suits in a midtown Manhattan steakhouse, Jeff Corwin realizes several buttons on his loose-fitting linen patchwork shirt have popped open following a lunch of shrimp cocktail, crabcakes and lobster salad. When the accidental exposure is called to his attention, Corwin nervously chuckles at first then unabashedly tugs…

LOS ANGELES (AP) — At 11 weeks old, Juliet Mills made a brief appearance in “In Which We Serve,” the World War II film starring her father, John Mills, and written and directed by her godfather, Noel Coward. “I think I was quite good. I haven’t heard stories to the contrary,” she says with a…

By FRAZIER MOORE / AP Television Writer NEW YORK (AP) — No doubt about it: “The Girl in the Cafe” is the best romantic comedy set at a G-8 summit you’re ever likely to see. But it’s more than that. Besides packing a weighty message — significant reduction in global poverty and infant mortality is…

By FRAZIER MOORE / AP Television Writer CBS boss Leslie Moonves wants to reinvent the “CBS Evening News.” That’s no news. Nor is the fact that Dan Rather exited the anchor chair in March, with Bob Schieffer spelling him until the new format, entailing one or more new anchors, is introduced. But what shape will…

KNOXVILLE (AP) — The University of Tennessee is preparing to raise tuition by 13 percent at its main campus in Knoxville, and just under double digits at its Chattanooga and Martin campuses, the university announced Tuesday. The UT Board of Trustees, which governs the 42,000-student UT system, is scheduled to vote on the tuition increases…

GREENEVILLE (AP) — Undercover FBI agents made dozens of visits to two cockfighting pits in Cocke County since 2002 as part of ongoing probe into illegal gambling, federal court documents indicate. The U.S. Department of Justice is trying to seize the two properties because authorities say they have been used in an illegal gambling business,…

CLEVELAND (AP) — State Rep. Chris Newton has hired lawyers to represent him when he enters a plea to public corruption charges Wednesday in Memphis. Newton, R-Benton, said he has hired attorneys Hugh Moore Jr. and Tom Greenholtz of Chattanooga in advance of his arraignment on federal charges of bribery and conspiracy. He and his…

MEMPHIS (AP) — Former state Sen. John Ford has asked a state board to reverse the $10,000 fine assessed for using campaign funds to cover some expenses of his daughter’s wedding. The “petition for waiver or withdrawal of penalty,” filed on Thursday and signed by attorney Edward M. Bearman of Memphis, was received by the…

NASHVILLE (AP) — President Bush praised Southern Baptists for strong family values and again proclaimed his support for a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in a speech to the faith’s annual convention Tuesday. “Southern Baptists are practicing compassion by defending the family and the sacred institution of marriage,” said Bush, who spoke via satellite to…