Here are Cronkite News Service stories that moved from Oct. 22-26. If you have questions or would like to receive the daily news digest by e-mail, please contact Steve Elliott at 602-496-0686 or steve.elliott@asu.edu.
WEEKEND SPECIAL
SCHOOLS CHIEF SAYS CLASSICAL PIANO SETS TONE FOR HIS LIFE AND WORK
SCOTTSDALE _ When Tom Horne, the state’s superintendent of public instruction, took the stage at a recent conference on arts education here, he did more than just talk about the arts. He played a little Bach too. To the surprise of some teachers and administrators in the audience, Horne is an expert pianist and a classical music enthusiast. He demonstrated this with a skilled rendition of a sonata for piano with flute and recorder. “He’s an amazing technician as a pianist, but he also plays with a lot of emotion,” said Lynn Tuttle, director of arts education at the state Department of Education and Horne’s flute accompanist for the performance. When he’s not directing education in Arizona, Horne finds time to play with the Phoenix Baroque Ensemble, a group he helped establish in 1992. He also plays piano regularly at fundraisers, charity events, social gatherings and schools around Arizona.
Slug BC-CNS-Horne-Music. By Eric Graf. With BC-CNS-Horne-Bio Box.
NOTE: This story moved Wednesday, Oct. 24. We recommend it for weekend use.
Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 (thumbnails, captions below)
WEEKDAY SPECIALS (Stories offered for use throughout the week)
ENDANGERED FERRET BOUNCING BACK AT NORTHERN ARIZONA RANCH
SELIGMAN _ Outside this northern Arizona town, black-footed ferrets are chowing down on prairie dogs, making baby ferrets and helping return the species from the brink of extinction. That’s a far cry from 20 years ago, when the only ferret species native to North America had vanished from Arizona and most of its range across much of the West. Its numbers dwindled to fewer than 20. A captive breeding site on a private ranch in Aubrey Valley is one of 11 black-footed ferret reintroduction sites across the West. While it’s thought to number in the hundreds around the West today, officials say the ferret has a long road ahead.
Slug BC-CNS-Ferret Recovery. By Sonu Munshi. With BC-CNS-Ferret-Box.
NOTE: This story moved Tuesday, Oct. 23.
Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 (thumbnails, captions below)
GROUPS STEP UP CALL FOR LEAD AMMUNITION BAN TO HELP CONDORS
PHOENIX (Thursday, Oct. 25) _ Wildlife advocates say a new California law barring hunters from using lead ammunition in the California condor’s range should prompt Arizona to issue its own ban. Four groups that asked the Arizona Game and Fish Commission for a ban earlier this year are pressing for a response now that California’s law is on the books. While there has been no official answer, a state official says the state Game and Fish Department plans to continue an effort to provide lead-free ammunition to those hunting in condor territory and educate hunters that lead ammunition can poison condors that eat big game entrails left by hunters.
Slug BC-CNS-Lead-Condors. By Sonu Munshi.
Photos: 1 | 2 (thumbnails, captions below)
THE WEEK’S NEWS
ARIZONANS DIG DEEPEST FOR MCCAIN’S CAMPAIGN; ROMNEY SECOND
PHOENIX (Wednesday, Oct. 24) _ Arizonans have contributed about $5.5 million so far to presidential candidates, giving the biggest boost _ $2.4 million _ to the campaign of home state Republican candidate Sen. John McCain, according to the latest data from the Federal Election Commission. Republican Mitt Romney was second in Arizona with $1.2 million, and U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton led Democrats with $600,000. The FEC data run through the quarter ending Sept. 30.
Slug BC-CNS-Campaign Contributions. By Sonu Munshi. With BC-CNS-Contributions-Box.
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PHOTOS: Click thumbnails to see full-resolution images and download
CONDORS-LEAD
CAPTION FOR BC-CNS-CONDORS-LEAD: A California condor is shown at the South Rim in Grand Canyon National Park in this undated photo from the National Park Service. Environmental groups want Arizona to ban lead ammunition to help protect the condors, which can pick up the toxic metal from piles of animal entrails left in the wilderness by hunters. They are pressing the effort now that California has enacted a law against the use of lead ammunition for hunting big game and coyotes in the condors’ range. (Photo Credit: Mark Lellouch, National Park Service, via Cronkite News Service)
CAPTION FOR BC-CNS-CONDORS-LEAD: California condor No. 350 is shown in 2004 after it fledged at Grand Canyon National Park. Environmental groups want Arizona to ban lead ammunition to help protect the condors, which can pick up the toxic metal from piles of animal entrails left in the wilderness by hunters. They are pressing the effort now that California has enacted a law against the use of lead ammunition for hunting big game and coyotes in the condors’ range. (Photo Credit: Chad Olson, National Park Service, via Cronkite News Service)
HORNE-MUSIC
CAPTION FOR BC-CNS-HORNE-MUSIC: Tom Horne, superintendent of public instruction for Arizona, plays piano Friday, Oct. 19, 2007, at his home in Phoenix. Horne is a skilled pianist who plays regularly at fundraisers, charity events, social gatherings and schools around Arizona. He says his passion for music informs his decisions as superintendent. (Cronkite News Service Photo/Stephanie Sanchez)
CAPTION FOR BC-CNS-HORNE-MUSIC: Tom Horne, superintendent of public instruction for Arizona, plays piano Friday, Oct. 19, 2007, at his home in Phoenix. Horne is a skilled pianist who plays regularly at fundraisers, charity events, social gatherings and schools around Arizona. He says his passion for music informs his decisions as superintendent. (Cronkite News Service Photo/Stephanie Sanchez)
CAPTION FOR BC-CNS-HORNE-MUSIC: Tom Horne, superintendent of public instruction for Arizona, plays piano Friday, Oct. 19, 2007, at his home in Phoenix. Horne is a skilled pianist who plays regularly at fundraisers, charity events, social gatherings and schools around Arizona. He says his passion for music informs his decisions as superintendent. (Cronkite News Service Photo/Stephanie Sanchez)
CAPTION FOR BC-CNS-HORNE-MUSIC: Tom Horne, superintendent of public instruction for Arizona, plays piano Friday, Oct. 19, 2007, at his home in Phoenix. Horne is a skilled pianist who plays regularly at fundraisers, charity events, social gatherings and schools around Arizona. He says his passion for music informs his decisions as superintendent. (Cronkite News Service Photo/Stephanie Sanchez)
FERRET RECOVERY
CAPTION WITH BC-CNS-FERRET RECOVERY: An endangered black-footed ferret is shown in this undated photo from the Arizona Game and Fish Department. The ferret’s eyes glow bright green under light in the darkness, helping officials track its numbers. A reintroduction site near Seligman, one of 11 around the West, has helped return the species from the brink of extinction. (Credit: Arizona Game and Fish Department via Cronkite News Service)
CAPTION WITH BC-CNS-FERRET RECOVERY: An endangered black-footed ferret is shown in this undated photo from the Arizona Game and Fish Department. A reintroduction site near Seligman, one of 11 around the West, has helped return the species from the brink of extinction. (Credit: Arizona Game and Fish Department via Cronkite News Service)
CAPTION WITH BC-CNS-FERRET RECOVERY: Jennifer Cordova, a wildlife technician with the Arizona Game and Fish Department, shows a trap used to capture black-footed ferrets on a ranch near Seligman. Arizona has one of 11 reintroduction sites where officials are trying to bring the species back from the brink of extinction. (Cronkite News Service Photo/Sonu Munshi)