Pressroom

COVER: THE (mostly) BIG THOUGHTS EDITION

Pressroom — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 14:18:21 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Sunday, June 29, 2008

MCCAIN CALLS LINCOLN, TR AND REAGAN HIS ROLE MODELS;

SAYS HE DOESN’T WANT TO BE LIKE HOOVER

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OBAMA ALSO SHARES LOVE OF LINCOLN; IMPRESSED WITH WASHINGTON FOR LEAVING AFTER TWO TERMS: HE COULD ‘STEP OUTSIDE HIS OWN AMBITIONS’

New York—Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain tells Newsweek Editor Jon Meacham, when asked which presidents he thinks of as inspirational figures, “On the obvious plus side, Lincoln, TR and Reagan are people who are in many respects my role models.” And when asked who he didn’t want to be like, McCain says, “One I was thinking about very recently because of this anti-free-trade, protectionism sentiment that understandably is being bred by our severe economic problems is Herbert Hoover. In 1930, he signed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act and there were other actions that the administration and Congress took that sent us from a recession into a deep depression. And my study of history is that Herbert Hoover was at least acquiescent, if not very active, in taking all the wrong steps, which again not only didn’t help the situation but exacerbated conditions which led to the most severe depression in the history of this nation.”

McCain and Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama talk to Meacham in his opening essay about presidents and historical memory in the July 7-14 double issue, “The (mostly) Big Thoughts Edition” (on newsstands Monday, June 30). This issue will remain on newsstands for two weeks.

Obama shares McCain’s love of Lincoln, Meacham writes. “When I think about presidents, I start with Lincoln, and not just because I’m from Illinois,” Obama says. “I think he embodies those qualities that are the very best in America: upward mobility, an embrace of the future and an ability to stand fast on principle while acknowledging the other side of the debate.” Washington’s leaving office after two terms impresses Obama, too: “Our first president was someone who could step outside his own ambitions.”

And the examples he wants to avoid? “You know, I have to admit that I don’t spend a lot of time reading about failed presidents,” he says, then goes on: “There is a long list of presidents who did not rise to the times—Hoover, Buchanan, Andrew Johnson. Many of them are people who did not see, for example, the fault lines of slavery, or the dangers of depression.

Cover story: http://www.newsweek.com/id/143866

# # # (Read essay at www.Newsweek.com)

INTERNATIONAL EDITIONS: HIGHLIGHTS AND EXCLUSIVES, JULY 7-14, 2008

Pressroom — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 14:13:25 GMT

INTERNATIONAL EDITIONS: HIGHLIGHTS AND EXCLUSIVES,

JULY 7-14, 2008 DOUBLE ISSUE

To book guests, contact Brenda Velez at 212-445-4078—Brenda.Velez@Newsweek.com—or Grace Huh at 212-445-5831—Grace.Huh@Newsweek.com. Articles are posted on www.Newsweek.com. This issue will remain on newsstands for two weeks.

COVER: Green Speed (All overseas editions). Assistant Managing Editor Fred Guterl and Special Correspondent Barrett Sheridan look at the environmental challenges the world faces and how well individual countries—the poor, the wealthy and the middling—are responding. The report is based on the Environmental Performance Index, or EPI, jointly produced by Yale’s Center for Law and Environmental Policy and Columbia’s Center for International Earth Science Information Network. The EPI boils all the activities of a nation that relate to the environment down to a simple metric that runs from 100 (the greenest) down to zero (the least green). The Yale-Columbia team released the first complete version of the index in January, and it is the statistical backbone of this special issue on the world’s most and least green nations.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143678

Where Poor Is a Poor Excuse. Beijing Bureau Chief Melinda Liu and Special Correspondent Jonathan Ansfield report that despite stunning rates of economic growth, many Chinese remain poor and rural, prone to ungreen behaviors such as tossing pollutants and trash into the rivers. Although government leaders have set serious ecological goals, they have yet to institute the tough regulatory reforms needed to achieve them.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143693

The New Scandinavians. Moscow Bureau Chief Owen Matthews and Special Correspondent Karin Rives report that although the Baltics’ green movement may have been born in anti-nuclear activism in Lithuania, many now realize that nuclear power can also be a valuable source of clean energy. Lithuania’s high scores in Yale and Columbia’s EPI—it ranks 16th overall—are largely due to its reliance on nuclear power, rather than gas or coal, for its energy.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143684

Putrid Rivers of Sludge. Special Correspondent Jason Overdorf reports on the delays slow- acting bureaucrats have caused in the campaign to clean the sacred Yamuna River in Delhi. After a half-billion-dollar, 15-year program to build 17 sewage treatment plants, raw sewage still spills into the river at the rate of 3.6 billion liters a day. Meanwhile the state-government-controlled water board has been bickering with the municipal government over whether the state’s leaky sewer pipes or the city’s clogged sewer drains were to blame for a recent cholera epidemic.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143694

Winning The Peace. Special Correspondent Steven Ambrus reports that Colombia’s war on drugs has actually helped preserve its wilderness. The guerrilla war over the manufacture of illegal drugs has scared developers away from rural areas, making it easy for the country to put aside land for wildlife.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143686

The Threat From Trees. Special Correspondent Thomas Lovejoy reports that 85 percent of Indonesia’s carbon emissions is from its forests, which have been in retreat for decades. Although much of the current loss was initially due to harvesting for timber and forest products, in recent decades illegal logging has been more widespread. Another disturbing trend is the conversion of peat forests, which hold huge amounts of carbon, into plantations by international companies.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143691

The Myth of Water. Jerusalem Bureau Chief Kevin Peraino and Special Correspondent Joanna Chen report that although the Yale/Columbia EPI ranks Israel 49th overall and best among desert nations, in part for managing the stress irrigation puts on water supplies, some scientists worry about the environmental cost of building an economy in the desert.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143688

When Gray Looks Green. Owen Matthews reports that Russia’s high ranking on the Yale/Columbia EPI may come as a surprise to some. One reason for the disconnect is the very vastness of Russia, which includes pristine wilderness that dilutes the effect of heavy industry. Russia, alone among big nations, may also be cooking the numbers. Indeed, officialdom now seems to spend more time cracking down on ecologists than tackling ecological problems.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143695

Coasting on Past Glory. Special Correspondent Mac Margolis reports that the Amazon’s future hinges on Brazil’s ability to find creative ways to stem deforestation. Brazil is the fourth biggest contributor of greenhouse gases globally, of which 75 percent comes from the felling and burning of forests. Fortunately, Brazil has options: all it needs to do is go back to its old habit of making the right environmental moves.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143696

The Least Green Country on Earth. Africa Bureau Chief Scott Johnson reports on why Niger came in last in the Yale/Columbia EPI. Poor scores across the board, from the burden of disease to water quality and education rates, confirm Niger as an example of the disaster that can result when environmental weakness, poverty and poor governance collide.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143697

Not in This Africa. Assistant Managing Editor Jonathan Tepperman reports that as a result of the violence that erupted in Zimbabwe during the run-up to the country’s presidential election, the chorus of condemnation from African leaders of Robert Mugabe’s tactics became deafening. As an increasingly isolated leader, Mugabe is now dragging down the reputation of South Africa’s President Thabo Mbeki, who refuses to denounce his old ally.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143693

One Mob, One Vote. Tepperman reports on what is driving the spate of demonstrations that have broken out in many Asian countries. The countries in question, which include some of Asia’s strongest economies, have suffered enormous street protests, parliamentary meltdowns, threats of military intervention and other forms of bare-knuckled politics. One underlying common cause is a lack of democratic maturity.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143660

Brown’s Battleground. London Reporter William Underhill reports that with soldiers heavily committed overseas, British commanders fear the armed forces are dangerously close to the breaking point. They’re starting to speak out, breaking a long-established rule: serving officers don’t publicly criticize their political masters.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143729

WORLD VIEW: How to Lose Iraq. Karl Meyer, editor at large of the World Policy Journal, writes that the Bush administration’s desire to seek Status of Forces Agreement—a type of compact that governs the treatment of U.S. personnel abroad—with Iraq could be a mistake. “Most SOFAs grant U.S. personnel immunity from prosecution by the host country,” Meyer writes. “In this case, according to leaked accounts from Iraqi leaders, Washington is demanding even more.”

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143674

THE LAST WORD: The Karmapa. Buddhism’s third highest leader, the Karmapa, says that he is against boycotting the Beijing Olympics. “China is a big country and does not belong only to the Communist Party. It belongs to the Chinese brothers and sisters. The world needs to give them more chances and opportunities to show their growth and express their views…I am not for the boycott, and His Holiness the Dalai Lama is also [against it].”

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143672

# # #

MEDIA LEAD SHEET/JULY 7-14, 2008 DOUBLE ISSUE

Pressroom — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 13:53:51 GMT

MEDIA LEAD SHEET/JULY 7-14, 2008 DOUBLE ISSUE (on newsstands Monday, June 30). To book correspondents, contact Brenda Velez at 212-445-4078—Brenda.Velez@Newsweek.com—or Grace Huh at 445-5831—Grace.Huh@Newsweek.com. Read the issue and Web exclusives at www.Newsweek.com. This issue will remain on newsstands for two weeks.

COVER: THE (mostly) BIG THOUGHTS EDITION (p. 26). In this second annual double issue, Newsweek poses questions, collects factoids and writes essays on topics ranging from whether politicians should pander, whether having children makes you happier and whether this year’s wild weather really is because of global warming. Readers can also test their Global IQ by taking quizzes on Newsweek.com on topics covered in the issue. Try these:
1. How many presidents achieved the rank of general or higher? A. 2 B. 3 C. 5 D. 7
2. Which country has the cheapest gas in the world? A. Iran B. Russia C. The United States D. Venezuela.
3. Which of the following contains the most calories? A. Alcohol B. Carbohydrates C. Protein D. Fat. (Answers on p. 6) Assistant Managing Editor Mark Miller is available for interviews on the issue.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143584

NEWSWEEK POLL on Global Literacy. What Do Americans Know? The NEWSWEEK Poll gauges what U.S. citizens know on a broad range of topics, from the price of oil to the works of Shakespeare.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143921

HISTORY: “Who Was More Important: Lincoln or Darwin?” (p. 30). Newsweek poses the question about who was more influential: Abraham Lincoln or Charles Darwin? They were both revolutionaries—two men who upended realities that prevailed when they were born. Everybody knows Darwin and Lincoln were near-mythic figures in the 19th century. So, considering the joint magnitude of their contributions, it is hard not to wonder: who was the greater man? But if you limit the question to influence, it bears pondering, all the more if you turn the question around and ask, what might have happened if one of these men had not been born?

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143742

POLITICS: “True or False? Candidates Should Never Flip-Flop” (p. 39). Senior Writer and Political Correspondent Jonathan Darman writes that before true believers start getting glum about Barack Obama and John McCain flip-flopping on some issues, it is worth remembering that flip-flopping has a noble history in this country. Lincoln, Lyndon B. Johnson and Bobby Kennedy all switched positions on significant issues. Those were conversions of courage, but changing one’s mind in politics is more often lambasted than lionized. The muddle of our modern political coalitions has made it virtually impossible for ambitious politicians not to change their position on some issue as they rise from local to national prominence. Answer: False.
http://www.newsweek.com/id/143864

ENVIRONMENT: “True or False? Global Warming Is a Cause Of This Year's Extreme Weather” (p. 52). Begley writes that whenever someplace is hit with extreme weather, scientists trip over themselves to absolve global warming. This pretense has worn thin. The frequency of downpours and heat waves, as well as the power of hurricanes, has increased so dramatically that “100-year storms” are striking some areas once every 15 years, and other once rare events keep returning like a bad penny. As a result, some climatologists now say global warming is to blame. Answer: True.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143787

TECHNOLOGY: “True or False: The Internet Is The New Sweatshop” (p. 54). Senior Writer N’Gai Croal reports that thanks to the growth of user-generated content on the Internet, today’s most valuable employees will most likely never set foot inside the building—or collect a paycheck. They may be teenagers posting videos of themselves dancing or programmers messing around with Twitter’s tools to create cool new applications. But what they have in common is a willingness to work for little more than peer recognition and a long shot at 15 seconds of fame. Answer: True.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143740

ECONOMY: “True or False? The Power to Fix the Economy Rests With the Next President” (p. 56). Senior Editor Daniel Gross writes that John McCain and Barack Obama are each promising to generally kick the economy back into gear. But “Most of the promises that Obama and McCain are making about the economy will founder on the shoals of a Congress unwilling to be a rubber stamp, organized industry opposition, unanticipated events, budget realities and changes in the macroeconomic climate,” he writes. Answer: False.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143513

HEALTH: “What Condition Could Stem Cells Help First?” (p. 58). Science Columnist Sharon Begley writes that the answer almost doesn’t matter because stem-cell research has become the latest casualty of a plague sweeping biomedical science: advances in the lab aren’t reaching patients. Researchers have turned to state and private money, and there have been notable successes in using human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) to treat lab animals. But the real obstacle is that “no one is funding research to get these advances into the clinic,” says Robert Lanza, chief scientific officer of Advanced Cell Technology.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143788

HEALTH: “True or False? The Obese Should Have to Pay More For Airline Tickets” (p. 60). Senior Editor Jerry Adler writes that Americans persist in the belief that it’s fat people who consume more than their share of resources, and since existing social disincentives to obesity haven’t worked, people keep suggesting ways to enhance them, including weight surcharges for airplane tickets and higher rates for medical insurance. Others view obesity as a “tragic addiction” and still others view it as a protected category, like race or gender, which would make discrimination illegal. Answer: False.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143790

FAMILY: “True or False? Having Kids Makes You Happy” (p. 62). Senior Writer Lorraine Ali writes on several studies that show that couples without children are happier than those with children. One study finds that parents are about 7 percentage points less likely to report being happy than the childless. “For the childless, all this research must certainly feel redeeming. As for those of us with kids, well, the news isn’t all bad. Parents still report feeling a greater sense of purpose and meaning in their lives than those who’ve never had kids,” Ali writes. Answer: False.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143792

CULTURE: “Who Exports the Most TV to the U.S.?” (p. 64). Associate Editor Joshua Alston reports that the answer is Israel. With two shows hitting TV this year and another two in development, it’s Israel that is fast becoming Hollywood’s cheat sheet. One was adapted into HBO’s critically acclaimed series “In Treatment.” This fall on CBS is “The Ex List,” adapted from another Israel series.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/143795

TIP SHEET: “Single Mom With Kid Needs Break” (p. 75). General Editor Anna Kuchment reports on the growing number of travel agencies specializing in trips for single parents traveling alone with kids. They allow adults to take some time for themselves while their kids watch a movie or compete in an Xbox tournament.

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

International Editions: Highlights and Exclusives - June 30, 2008 issue

Pressroom — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 18:46:54 GMT

To book guests, contact Brenda Velez at 212-445-4078-Brenda.Velez@Newsweek.com-or Grace Huh at 212-445-5831-Grace.Huh@Newsweek.com. Read the issue at www.Newsweek.com.

INTERNATIONAL EDITIONS: HIGHLIGHTS AND EXCLUSIVES, JUNE 30, 2008

COVER: How The Quake Changed China (Latin America and Pacific edition). Special Correspondent Mary Hennock and Beijing Bureau Chief Melinda Liu report that the 7.9-magnitude earthquake that flattened parts of Sichuan also shattered parts of the traditional social order-for worse but also for better. New forces are now emerging from the rubble that will determine how China is ruled and perceived far after the crisis has passed. The official scramble to assist disaster victims has been accompanied by an unusual display of government transparency and openness, creating new opportunities for old rivals such as Taiwan and Japan; breaking down some barriers between rich and poor; injecting new levels of trust between the Communist Party and the people it rules; and offering those people new liberties.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142563

COVER: Sarko's Comeback Plan (Atlantic editions). Special Correspondent Tracy McNicoll reports on how French President Nicolas Sarkozy will change the country over the next few months despite his low approval ratings. Last summer, Sarkozy appointed a commission led by Jacques Attali to devise ways "to liberate growth," and in January it came back with 316 measures including immigration, harnessing the digital age and tightening public spending-and Sarkozy responded. "The fact that half the reforms we gave have been launched is very, very good," says Attali. "But the easiest has been done." Now, with his poll numbers near their bottom, Sarkozy is actually speeding up the pace, and in some instances fighting against his own party and his core constituents. Many of the tougher reforms are now moving toward completion this summer in part of the biggest surge of economic reform Europe has seen since Margaret Thatcher transformed Britain in the 1980s.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142564

Drawing The French Battle Lines. Paris Bureau Chief Christopher Dickey reports Nicolas Sarkozy's radical overhaul of his nation's military could resurrect its role as a global player. Last week Sarkozy announced a radical restructuring of the French armed forces, and at the beginning of July, France will take over the rotating presidency of the European Union with an agenda intended to put Paris front and center in the Union long after it gives up its six-month seat in Brussels. The plan would make it the first among (un)equals in an ever-tighter alliance for defense as well as trade.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142565

'He Should Never Have Gone to Iraq' 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

WORLD VIEW: What Obama Should Say on Iraq. Newsweek International Editor Fareed Zakaria writes that Barack Obama needs to give a speech about Iraq. "The most important reason to do this is not political. Iraq is fading in importance for the public and, to the extent that it matters as an electoral issue, most people agree with Obama's judgment that the war was not worth fighting," Zakaria writes. Should he be elected, "the war would be his biggest and most immediate problem. He will need to implement a serious policy on Iraq, one that is consistent with his long-held views but is also informed by the conditions on the ground today."

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142642

Microsoft After Gates (And Bill after Microsoft.) Senior Editor Steven Levy reports that after stepping away from Microsoft, Bill Gates, the icon of the tech world, will focus on philanthropy. It was spring 2004 when the Gateses began discussing the possibility that if he increased his role at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation-making as big a donation in brainpower as he has in dollars-he could save or improve many lives. The question now is whether Microsoft can compete as effectively without its founder. Steve Ballmer, who took over as CEO from Gates in 2000 after 20 years as Bill's key exec, is confident it can.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142672

HEALTH FOR LIFE: Your Lifestyle, Your Genes, And Cancer. In this installment of the ongoing Health for Life series, Newsweek and Harvard Medical School look at the connection between cancer rates, lifestyle and genetics. The strongest evidence of the importance of lifestyle in cancer is that most common cancers arise at dramatically different rates in different parts of the globe.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/141495

Houston, We Have No Problems. Senior Editor Daniel Gross writes that to find a hot spot where soaring oil and commodity prices, and the booming economies of the developing world, are keeping cash registers ringing and construction crews fully employed, travel to Houston, Texas. "Houston's good fortune is largely a function of the current oil boom. But this isn't the type of gusher that led to busts in 1981 and 1986," Gross writes. "Instead, Houston is experiencing a 21st-century boom fueled by a weak dollar and global growth."

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142633

WORLD VIEW: Justice for Our Justice. Guest Columnist Aitzaz Ahsan, president of the Supreme Court Bar Association of Pakistan and the leader of the Lawyers' Movement, writes about the ongoing struggle to have Pakistan's ousted Supreme Court Justices reinstated. Since the first bloody protest in November 2007, public outcry has become louder and more common. After the June 14 protest, Ahsan writes that he found himself "wondering if the governing coalition, the general or his backers in America had been listening."

http://www.newsweek.com/id/142567

THE LAST WORD: King Abdullah of Jordan. Abdullah tells Newsweek's Special Diplopmatic Correspondent Lally Weymouth that the greatest threat to the region is lack of peace and not necessarily Iran. "For the first time, I think Iran is less of a threat. 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

###

Media Lead Sheet - June 30 issue (on newsstands Monday, June 23)

Pressroom — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 18:42:56 GMT

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

# # #

Newsweek Cover: Behind That Smile. Understanding Cindy McCain.

Pressroom — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 18:32:46 GMT

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

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

Contact: Jan Angilella FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

at 212-445-5638 Sunday, June 22, 2008

COVER: BEHIND THAT SMILE

UNDERSTANDING CINDY MCCAIN

CINDY MCCAIN SAYS IT TOOK HER LONGER THAN HER HUSBAND TO GET PAST 2000

AND THE SOUTH CAROLINA PRIMARY; 'IT'S ANOTHER LESSON I LEARNED FROM MY

HUSBAND ABOUT FORGIVENESS'

----

SAYS IT'S BEEN GOOD TO MEET OTHER MOTHERS WITH SONS IN THE WAR;

'I HAVE MADE A LOT OF LASTING FRIENDSHIPS'

New York-Cindy McCain tells Newsweek that it took her longer to get past the dirty politics of the 2000 South Carolina primary than her husband, Sen. John McCain. "It's another lesson I learned from my husband about forgiveness," she tells White House Correspondent Holly Bailey in the current issue. "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's interview is part of the June 30 Newsweek cover, "Behind That Smile," (on newsstands Monday, June 23). Bailey also talks to Cindy McCain about their son in Iraq, a topic they do not bring up on the campaign trail. She says, from a mother's standpoint, "If I can hear his voice, I know he's OK. And I know that's a feeling that thousands upon thousands of other families in this country have felt. It's been good for me to meet other mothers who are going through what I go through, and I have made a lot of lasting friendships through this common bond."

Cindy McCain says she had to "think about it a little bit" when asked whether she was eager to go through another presidential election. "I wasn't as eager as others were," she says. "I had to come around. I'm very happy and I support him 100 percent, and I'm onboard. But having done this before, I knew what I was getting into, and I didn't know if I was ready to make the sacrifice again. It's not that I don't believe in my husband, but if I was going to do this, I wanted to do the very best I could and give 100 percent. So I did have to think about it a little bit."

In the cover story, Bailey profiles Cindy McCain, who calls herself her husband's "best friend, best adviser and closest confidant." After nearly 30 years together but apart, she has her own sense of mission, one that does not necessarily require a husband in the White House. That doesn't mean
she doesn't want it-particularly for him. As First Lady, she would not sit in on cabinet meetings. But the White House would give her a platform to advance causes, like special education, 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."

Bailey was with Cindy McCain last week in Vietnam where she went to do charity work with Operation Smile, which helps children with cleft palates. She got started after a 1984 scuba diving trip in Micronesia, when a friend was injured and had to be taken to the hospital. She was sickened by the filthy conditions in the ER: "There were cats in the operating room and rats everywhere," she says. When she returned home, she began collecting medical supplies and sending them to the hospital. "Finally, the hospital called and said, really what we need is a good orthopedic surgeon," she says. "So I called some friends and we planned a trip ... I don't know what made me do it."

She named her charity the American Voluntary Medical Team. In 1991, she camped in the Kuwait desert five days after the end of the gulf war to bring medical supplies to refugees. That same year, she visited Mother Teresa's orphanage in Dhaka, Bangladesh, where she saw 160 newborn girls who had been abandoned. The nuns handed her a small baby with a cleft palate so severe that she couldn't be fed. Another baby, also just a few weeks old, had a heart defect. Worried they would die without medical attention, Cindy applied for medical visas to take the girls back to the United States. But the country's minister of health refused to sign the papers. "We can do surgery on this child," an official told her. Cindy, frustrated, slammed her fist on the table. "Then do it! What are you waiting for?" The official, stunned, simply signed the papers. "I don't know where I got the nerve," Cindy said.

When she arrived in Phoenix, she carried the baby with the cleft palate off the plane. Her husband met her at the airport. He looked at the baby. "Where is she going," he asked her. "To our house," she replied. They adopted the little girl and named her Bridget. Family friends adopted the other little girl.

Last week in Vietnam, Cindy relived that time as she talked to a young Vietnamese mother at a hospital in tiny Nha Trang. The woman clutched a tiny newborn with a severe cleft palate. Ditching her handlers, she went over to talk with her. "Where's the interpreter?" Cindy said. In tears, the woman told Cindy that she had been denied a consultation by the Operation Smile workers because they feared her baby was too sick to be helped. "I had a baby just like yours," Cindy slowly told her, allowing the interpreter to translate. She played with the baby's tiny fingers, recalling that her own daughter had been written off as unsavable. She joined the mother in the observation room and listened as cardiologists told them they feared the baby might go into cardiac arrest if they were to operate. As the mother cried, Cindy, through an interpreter, told her that she knew exactly how she felt and patted her back. "That baby deserved a shot," she said, "just like Bridget did." In the end, the doctors decided to perform the surgery.

# # # (Read interview and cover story at www.Newsweek.com)

Media Lead Sheet

Pressroom — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 18:37:01 GMT

MEDIA LEAD SHEET/JUNE 23, 2008 ISSUE (on newsstands Monday June 16). 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. Articles are posted on www.Newsweek.com.

COVER: "What Would Winston Do?" (p. 22). Newsweek examines the appeasement debate that has surfaced in the 2008 presidential campaign by looking back at Winston Churchill and Neville Chamberlain, and what leaders should take away from the decisions made during World War II. The Republicans say that if you vote for Barack Obama, you may get another Munich; the Democrats say that if you vote for John McCain, you may get another Vietnam. "The Munich and Vietnam analogies are, of course, closely linked. Arguably, the fear of appeasement, of not standing up to the communists, was the single most important factor in dragging America into Vietnam. In recent years, American politics has been trapped by both clichés. It is worth examining just how one dangerous trope led to another-and how the overreaction to both has repeatedly led America astray abroad," Newsweek writes.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/141502

CAMPAIGN 2008: "Aiming To Avoid the Dole-drums" (p. 34). White House Correspondent Holly Bailey reports on the lessons John McCain learned in 1996 when he was one of Bob Dole's top surrogates in the campaign against Bill Clinton. McCain watched as the Democrats successfully transformed the image of the former Senate majority leader, once known for his consensus-building and dry wit, into an old, humorless Washington insider who couldn't deliver real change. Now McCain finds himself returning to some old arguments. Two weeks ago in New Orleans, McCain declared that Obama "hasn't been willing to make the tough calls to challenge his party. I have." In response, Obama has called McCain a "creature of Washington" who is too entrenched to offer real change-a line Clinton frequently used against Dole 12 years ago.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/141506

SURROGATES: "She Had Such Nice Things to Say" (p. 36). Senior Writer and Political Correspondent Jonathan Darman reports on how former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina has turned into John McCain's most energetic female surrogate. Fiorina recently spoke to Women for Fair Politics, a coalition of Ohio Hillary Clinton supporters formed to protest what they see as an injustice done to Hillary by the Democratic Party. Wooing women could be McCain's most important task. Fiorina is eager to be his ambassador, using her legendary communications skills to soften McCain's image.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/141508

POLITICS: "Everywhere and Beyond" (p. 37). Senior White House Correspondent Richard Wolffe reports on Paul Tewes, who led Barack Obama's winning campaign in Iowa and is now head of the Democratic Party's massive national field operation to elect Obama. In the coming weeks, he will lead the effort to put the national party under the Obama campaign's control. The idea is to re-create the kind of success he had in Iowa, but on a much larger scale.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/141507

JUSTICE: "Overplaying Its Hand" (p. 38). Contributing Editor Stuart Taylor Jr. writes that when the Bush administration denied basic legal protections to the detainees at Guantánamo Bay, the U.S. Supreme Court had to step in. Detainees were not allowed to have defense lawyers in initial military hearings to determine their status as enemy combatants, or to see or rebut evidence deemed secret by the government. The Supreme Court ruled that terror detainees must be given full access to federal courts, under the ancient principle of habeas corpus, which roughly means that government cannot hold you without proving to the courts a legal basis for the detention.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/141509

HEALTH FOR LIFE: "Your Lifestyle, Your Genes, And Cancer" (p. 40). In this installment of the ongoing Health for Life series, Newsweek and Harvard Medical School look at the connection between cancer rates, lifestyle and genetics. The strongest evidence of the importance of lifestyle in cancer is that most common cancers arise at dramatically different rates in different parts of the globe. Several cancers that are extremely common in the U.S.-colon, prostate and breast cancer-are relatively rare in other parts of the world. Equally striking, when people migrate from other parts of the world to the U.S., within a generation their cancer rates approach those of us whose families have lived in this country for a long time. Even if people in other parts of the world stay put, but adopt a U.S. lifestyle, their risk of cancer rises. The main culprits seem to be the Western diet, obesity and physical inactivity.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/141495

"The Doctor Factor" (p. 44). Senior Writer Claudia Kalb reports that while researchers have made great strides in the science of cancer in recent years, oncologists are making progress in another area: caring. Practicing world-class medicine and humane treatment aren't mutually exclusive, says Dr. Lidia Schapira, an oncologist at Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center. "They're part of the same definition of a good cancer doctor." Talk to cancer patients who love their doctors-and, yes, the word "love" comes up frequently-and key themes begin to emerge: hope, trust, respect.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/141496

"'Some Kids Do Die'" (p. 48). General Editor Mary Carmichael reports on the success of the treatment of pediatric cancer in the past few years. Some forms of childhood cancer now have cure rates of 80 percent, an astonishing improvement on the 20 percent that was standard three decades ago. Dr. Holcombe Grier, clinical director of pediatric oncology at Dana-Farber and Children's Hospital Boston, is one of the nation's top researchers on childhood cancer; his work has saved many lives. He has also made a point of encouraging colleagues to share their data and ideas-an openness that underlies almost all the recent success in the field.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/141497

TELEVISION: "TV's Not-So-Great Pyramid" (p. 56). Chief Foreign Correspondent Rod Nordland reports on a documentary called "The Lost Pyramid," debuting on the History Channel, that follows a team of archeologists as they unearth Egypt's fourth Great Pyramid at Giza, which has been lost for years to the desert sands. The only problem is that Egyptologists have known about Djedefre's pyramid for years. It was discovered a century ago-or rediscovered, since tomb raiders and stonemasons had been picking it over for centuries. The documentary is the latest entry in the competition among documentary makers to find the latest new old thing.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/141527

TIP SHEET: "Brides Go on a Budget In This Lousy Economy" (p. 60). Correspondent Ashley R. Harris reports on ways brides are cutting costs but still putting on a big event. They're cutting the guest list, using iPods instead of hiring DJs, faking their many-tiered cakes and even wearing a "gently-used" wedding dress.

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

Newsweek Cover: What Would Winston Do?

Pressroom — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 18:19:39 GMT

http://www.newsweek.com/id/141502 - Cover

http://www.newsweek.com/id/141501 - Christopher Hitchens’ review

Contact: Jan Angilella FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

at 212-445-5638 Sunday, June 15, 2008

COVER: WHAT WOULD WINSTON DO?

NEWSWEEK EXAMINES 2008 APPEASEMENT DEBATE IN CONTEXT

OF MUNICH AND CHURCHILL

----

CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS ON PAT BUCHANAN'S 'CHURCHILL, HITLER AND THE UNNECESSARY WAR': 'BUCHANAN IS THE MOST TRENCHANT CRITIC OF WHAT HE CONSIDERS OUR FONDEST NATIONAL ILLUSION'

New York-It may be true, as the saying goes, that leaders who ignore history are doomed to repeat it. But it's also true that leaders who carelessly or heedlessly use historical analogies, who twist or hype the lessons of the past, may be destined to make even bigger mistakes than their predecessors, writes Newsweek Editor-at-Large Evan Thomas in the current issue's cover package. "In modern American history, no metaphor has been more used-or abused-than 'Munich.' The lesson of appeasement-that giving in to aggression just invites more aggression-has calcified into dogma. Neville Chamberlain's name has become code for a weak-kneed, caviling politician, just as Winston Churchill has become the beau ideal of indomitable leadership. American politicians have gone to extraordinary lengths to be seen as Churchill, not Chamberlain, with results that have not always been in America's best interests."

The words "Munich" and "appeasement" have been re-interjected into the 2008 political debate, courtesy of President George W. Bush, who still entertains dreams of a Churchillian legacy, Thomas writes. He writes that both McCain and Obama may use the Munich and Vitenam clichés in their campaigns. In the June 23 cover, "What Would Winston Do?" (on newsstands Monday, June 23), Thomas writes, "The Munich and Vietnam analogies are, of course, closely linked. Arguably, the fear of appeasement, of not standing up to the communists, was the single most important factor in dragging America into Vietnam. In recent years, American politics has been trapped by both clichés. It is worth examining just how one dangerous trope led to another-and how the overreaction to both has repeatedly led America astray abroad."

Also in the cover package, Contributor Christopher Hitchens takes on Pat Buchanan and his new book, "Churchill, Hitler and the Unnecessary War." "Descending as he does from the tradition of Charles Lindbergh's America First movement, which looked for (and claimed to have found) a certain cosmopolitan lobby behind FDR's willingness to involve the United States in global war, Buchanan is the most trenchant critic of what he considers our fondest national illusion, and his book has the feel and stamp of a work that he has been readying all his life," Hitchens writes.

"I myself have written several criticisms of the cult of Churchill, and of the uncritical way that it has been used to stifle or cudgel those with misgivings. ('Adlai,' said John F. Kennedy of his outstanding U.N. ambassador during the Bay of Pigs crisis, 'wanted a Munich.') Yet the more the record is scrutinized and re-examined, the more creditable it seems that at least two Western statesmen, for widely different reasons, regarded coexistence with Nazism as undesirable as well as impossible. History may judge whether the undesirability or the impossibility was the more salient objection, but any attempt to separate the two considerations is likely to result in a book that stinks, as this one unmistakably does," Hitchens writes.

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