ROANOKE, Va. (AP) ? The maker of the powerful painkiller OxyContin and three of its current and former executives pleaded guilty Thursday to misleading the public about the drug?s risk of addiction, a federal prosecutor and the company said. Purdue Pharma LP, its president, top lawyer and former chief medical officer will pay $634.5 million…

Of all the items on your baby-shopping list, a crib probably will be among the most challenging to select. There?s a vast array of cribs on the market, ranging from economy and midpriced models to high-end cribs with hand-painted details and European influences. ?Consumer Reports? Best Baby Products? (Ninth Edition) offers useful tips to help…

Scott Haile & Company was recently recognized as one of the top three firms representing BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee in 2006 for group insurance. The company offers a large menu of products with progressive program designs, and has created an employee benefit environment that can assist small to large employers with the ongoing challenge of…

NEW YORK (AP) ? Wall Street resumed its advance Friday as investors interpreted a government report of milder inflation as a signal that the Federal Reserve might consider cutting interest rates later this year. The Dow Jones industrial average soared more than 100 points, and posted its fifth straight weekly gain. Investors were encouraged after…

By Dave Ramsey Dear Dave, I?m a senior in college, and my roommate just got a credit card that features airline miles. He wants me to get one, too, so we can take a trip together at the end of the year. What do you think about this idea? ? Tim Dear Tim, This is…

NEW YORK (AP) ? The outlook for consumer spending in the coming months dimmed Thursday after retailers, their sales hurt by rising gasoline prices and the slumping housing market, had one of their worst months ever in April. As retailers released their monthly sales figures, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. recorded a rare decline ? the weakest…

DETROIT (AP) ? Ford Motor Co. said Monday it will close its casting plant in Brook Park, Ohio, near Cleveland in 2009. The plant employs 1,218 hourly and salaried workers. The company also will shutter Cleveland Engine Plant 1 in Brook Park for at least a year starting in two weeks. It employs 577 workers.…

By James Clark New JCPenney manager Jody Gambill comes to McMinnville with stellar credentials. He has 10 years experience as a store manager at Lowe?s and has most recently spent two years as store manager of Target in Knoxville. It?s a rich Business Pulse tradition for me to pause a moment on this great day…

Scottsville, Ky., resident and longtime McMinnville resident, Robert Morris Dinwiddie Sr., 72, died May 8 at Erlanger Medical Center in Chattanooga after an extended illness. He is survived by his wife of 49 years, Anna Mary Walsh Dinwiddie of McMinnville; children, Paula Ann Dinwiddie of Alexandria, Va., Mark James and wife Teresa Dinwiddie of McMinnville,…

McMinnville resident and Wilder native Joyce J. Boyd, 80, was born Jan. 31, 1927 and died May 9 at her residence following a lengthy illness. A seamstress and a member of Friendship The Baptist Church, she was the daughter of the late Samuel Jefferson and Dellie Selles Dodson. She was married first to Daniel Walker…