MEDIA LEAD SHEET/JUNE 30, 2008 ISSUE (on newsstands Monday June 23). To book correspondents, contact Brenda Velez at 212-445-4078-Brenda.Velez@Newsweek.com, Grace Huh at 445-5831-Grace.Huh@Newsweek.com-or Jan Angilella at 445-5638-Jan.Angilella@Newsweek.com. Read the issue and Web exclusives at www.Newsweek.com. 

COVER: "Behind That Smile: Understanding Cindy McCain" (p. 20). White House Correspondent Holly Bailey profiles Cindy McCain, wife of Sen. John McCain, who says in an interview that she is her husband's best friend, adviser and confidant. Cindy talks about how it took her longer to get past the dirty politics of the 2000 South Carolina primary than it took him. "It's another lesson I learned from my husband about forgiveness," she says.  "I have publicly said it was very difficult for me because it was my daughter ... You can go after me, but stay away from my children. In a sense I am over it. I can sit here now and say it was just politics, and that's the downside to all this." Cindy McCain tells Bailey that if she makes it to the White House, she'd use that as a platform to advance causes that are important to her. "My biggest goal is hopefully to inspire more people to get involved in their communities, to focus on, as my husband has said, causes greater than themselves." 

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142650

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142651 - Interview

THE SENATE: "Mr. Obama's Washington" (p. 28). Senior Writer and Political Correspondent Jonathan Darman reports that Barack and Michelle Obama are part of a new generation of political couples that doesn't assume election to the Senate means a new life in Washington. But while frequent-flier legislators have been a boon for constituent services, they aren't necessarily good for governance. Old-guard senators bemoan their new colleagues' eagerness to get out of town on Thursday nights, a tendency that the veterans believe has helped make Washington a more partisan place. And others ask how Obama can change a place he barely knows.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142652

NEWSWEEK POLL:  The latest Newsweek Poll shows Barack Obama with a substantial double-digit lead over John McCain, 51-to 36 percent among registered voters nationwide. The latest numbers on voter dissatisfaction suggest that Obama may enjoy more than one bounce. The new poll finds that only 14 percent of Americans say they are satisfied with the direction of the country. Overall, voters see Obama as the preferred agent of "change" by a margin of 51 percent to 27 percent. Younger voters, in particular, are more likely to see Obama that way: those 18 to 39 favor the Illinois senator by 66 percent to 27 percent. The two candidates are statistically tied among older voters.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142465

IRAQ: "'He Should Never Have Gone to Iraq'" (p. 32). Deputy Washington Bureau Chief Dan Ephron reports on the case of Pvt. David Dietrich, a soldier with a history of cognitive problems who was sent to Iraq and killed by sniper.  In Iraq, it's unclear whether his cognitive issues had something to do with his death. Yet his superiors had serious misgivings about the troubled soldier. According to records made available to Newsweek, the attrition rate for GIs with health, performance or conduct problems in their first months of army service has dropped by as much as 45 percent since 2004.  In other words, as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan strain the Army more and more, fewer problem soldiers are getting weeded out in basic training, Ephron reports.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142640

IRAQ: "The Booze Is Back in Baghdad" (p. 34). Baghdad Correspondent Larry Kaplow reports on the changing atmosphere in Baghdad and they're not just drinking alcohol again. Men are shaving their beards; women are wearing jeans and taking off their headscarves; couples are holding hands in public.  Musicians and DJs feel safe to take more gigs at weddings and parties and couples are even sitting close in riverside parks.  So far, most of the inhibition shedding is confined to a few urban areas.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142639

INTERVIEW: King Abdullah of Jordan ( p. 39). Special Diplomatic Correspondent Lally Weymouth interviews King Abdullah of Jordan who tells her that for the first time he thinks "Iran is less of a threat" in the region. "But if the peace process doesn't move forward, then I think that extremism will continue to advance. When it comes to Iran, I am quite supportive of what I see in Europe and the West-people who want to engage"

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142645

TECHNOLOGY: "Microsoft After Gates (And Bill after Microsoft)" (p. 40). Senior Editor Steven Levy reports on Bill Gates' last week at Microsoft and what's ahead for him, as well as what's ahead for the company. Beginning in September, the new focus of his work will be the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the organization he began with his wife in 2000. With a current $37.3 billion endowment, it's the world's richest philanthropic institution. And no one really knows how much culture shock will set in when Gates leaves the Microsoft campus. Though he will remain the chairman of its board of directors, the idea that he won't be there seems unreal.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142779

SOCIETY: "The $10,000-a-Month Psychic" (p. 44). Reporter Tony Dokoupil reports on Laura Day, who calls herself a psychic, and whose feel for the unknown has become a hot commodity among certain high-profile businesspeople, bringing in hundreds of thousands of dollars a year for her. Day is one of a small but growing cadre of corporate psychic consultants. Rebranded as "intuitives" or "mentalists," psychic advisers in recent years have been crossing over into the world of legitimate business, where they are used by decision makers in law, finance and entertainment looking for an edge in a down economy. 

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142632

MUSIC: "Return From Exile" (p. 53).  Associate Editor Joshua Alston reports on the rerelease this week of Liz Phair's debut album "Exile in Guyville" to commemorate its 15th anniversary, in a deluxe edition that features previously unheard tracks and a documentary she directed. But while this is the album that got her beatified by the rock cognoscenti, it's also the album that set up her reversal of fortune.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/38563

THE TIP SHEET: "Take a Three-Martini Nap"  (p. 56).  Special Correspondent Tina Peng reports on the growing popularity of workplaces that allow employees to take naps.  In March, the National Sleep Foundation reported that 37 percent of Americans nap during the day and about a third of the people surveyed by the NSF said their workplace permitted naps. Worktime napping has seen enough of a popularity boost to fill its own business niche: Yelo, a New York City store that opened last year, has both private rooms and sleep pods for quick naps ($15 for 20 minutes; yelonyc.com). 

http://www.blog.newsweek.com/blogs/tipsheet/default.aspx

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