Here are the AP’s latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All times EDT. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s coverage, visit Coverage Plan at https://newsroom.ap.org
——————-
ONLY ON AP
FILE - In this Nov. 1, 1993, file photo, sculptor Glenna Goodacre, right, helps workers guide the Vietnam Women's Memorial into place in Washington. The bronze statue depicting three Vietnam era women and a wounded male soldier was placed near the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Goodacre, 80, has died. Family members said Goodacre died of natural causes Monday night, April 13, 2020, at her Santa Fe, N.M., home. News of her death was posted to the Instagram page of Harry Connick Jr., who is married to her daughter, Jill. (AP PhotoDoug Mills, File)
——————
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CHINA DELAY — In the six days after the Chinese government realized it likely was facing a pandemic from a novel coronavirus, the city of Wuhan hosted a mass banquet for tens of thousands of people, millions traveled through for Lunar New Year celebrations and an estimated 3,000 people were infected, documents obtained by the AP show. The Chinese government’s delay in warning the public only a week later was not its first mistake nor the longest lag, as governments around the world have dragged their feet for weeks and even months. SENT: 2,320words, photos. An abridged version of 1,000 words is also available.
----------------
President Donald Trump arrives to speak about the coronavirus in the Rose Garden of the White House, Tuesday, April 14, 2020, in Washington. (AP PhotoAlex Brandon)
TOP STORIES
----------------
VIRUS OUTBREAK — South Korea’s parliamentary elections have gone ahead under the supervision of masked poll workers armed with thermometers and sanitizing spray, highlighting that even as the coronavirus pandemic eases, health precautions will still be needed if countries move forward with plans to scale back social distancing guidelines. By Chris Blake and Kim Tong-Hyung. 1,000 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-AFRICA FOOD — Lockdowns in Africa limiting the movement of people in an attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus are threatening to choke off supplies of what the continent needs the most: Food. UPCOMING: 800 by 3:30 a.m., photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-TRUMP-WHO — The secretary-general of the United Nations says now isn’t the time for the U.S. to withhold financial support from the U.N. health agency, the World Health Organization. President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he is cutting off payments to the WHO because, in his view, the organization failed to do enough to stop the coronavirus virus from spreading after it first surfaced in China. SENT: 790 words, photos, video. By Darlene Superville. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is walking back previous assertions that he has the absolute authority to decide when it’s time to reopen the economy ravaged by the coronavirus. SENT: 1,110 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-MILITARY — The U.S. military is bracing for a months-long struggle against the coronavirus, looking for novel ways to maintain a defensive crouch that sustains troops’ health without breaking their morale — while still protecting the nation. By National Security Writer Robert Burns. SENT: 940 words, photo. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-MARINE HAIRCUTS — Barbershops at some Marine Corps bases are abuzz with demand for high-and-tight haircuts despite social distancing. SENT: 440 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-US SURVEILLANCE — As countries around the world edge toward ending lockdowns and restarting their economies and societies, citizens are being more closely monitored. . By Christina Larson and Matt O'Brien. SENT: 1,200 words, photos.
Find more all-format coverage on the Virus Outbreak featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
------------------———————————————
WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
------------------———————————————
OBIT-GLENNA GOODACRE — Renowned sculptor and painter Glenna Goodacre, who created the Vietnam Women’s Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C, has died at age 80. SENT: 200 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-RELIEF CHECKS-MISINFORMATION — Online reports claiming that Americans will have to repay the relief checks they receive from the government under the $2.2 trillion coronavirus aid bill are not true. SENT: 380 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-EGYPT PHOTO ESSAY — It wasn’t unexpected, but the ban on visitors to Egypt’s famed Pyramids amid the coronavirus pandemic still came as a shock to souvenir vendor Sayed el-Gibri and other tourism workers. SENT: 520 words, photos.
--------------------—————————————-
MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK
--------------------——————————————
VIRUS OUTBREAK-GOVERNORS-REOPENING — After a month in crisis mode, governors across the U.S. face their next challenge in the coronavirus pandemic: When and how to lift restrictions designed to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and return to something approaching normal life. SENT: 930 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-LOST LIVES-BRAZIL-NEW MOM — Raised by an aunt because her parents couldn’t provide for her, Rafaela de Jesus Silva was always working in one job or another. She sold fruit and clothes on the streets, pumped gas, and walked the beaches of northeastern Brazil to sell homemade food. The hustle wasn’t just to meet material needs. The 28-year-old wanted to make sure that her daughter, born March 25, would have an easier upbringing than she did. A week after giving birth, Silva died of complications related to the coronavirus. SENT: 700 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CALIFORNIA — Staggered school start times. Class sizes cut in half. Social distancing in the hallways and cafeteria. These are a few of the possible scenarios for California schools that Gov. Gavin Newsom laid out in a roadmap for reopening the state amid the coronavirus. SENT: 770 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ASIA — Coronavirus patients are being moved to more hospitals and even hotels as infections surge in Tokyo, where experts warn the health care system is near collapse. Tokyo has about a quarter of Japan’s cases and many are hospitalized. Japan is the world’s oldest nation, which is a concern since the virus can be especially serious and fatal in the elderly. SENT: 900 words, photos.
A separate wire advisory has been sent outlining the AP’s complete coronavirus coverage.
-------------------
INTERNATIONAL
-------------------
AUSTRALIA MEDIA RAIDS — Australia’s highest court has ruled that a search warrant at the center of a national storm over press freedom was invalid. News Corp. journalist Annika Smethurst went to the High Court to overturn the warrant that was executed on her Canberra home last year and triggered a national campaign for greater press freedom. The judges unanimously agreed the warrant was invalid. SENT: 480 words, photos.
EGYPT — Egypt says its security forces have killed seven suspected militants in a shootout in Cairo. It says a police officer was also killed during the hours-long firefight which erupted when security forces raided a suspected militant hideout at a residential building. SENT: 420 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-SKOREAN ELECTIONS — South Korean voters are wearing masks and moving slowly between lines of tape at polling stations to elect lawmakers in the shadows of the coronavirus. The government has resisted calls to postpone the parliamentary elections billed as a midterm referendum for President Moon Jae-in. SENT: 880 words, photos.
FRANCE-NOTRE DAME — A year after a devastating fire, the restoration of Notre Dame Cathedral has been halted by a lockdown in Paris stemming from the coronavirus. SENT: 800 words, photos.
NATIONAL
LOST APPLES-NEW FINDS — A pair of so-called “apple detectives” has rediscovered 10 apple varieties in the Pacific Northwest that were planted by long-ago pioneers and had been thought extinct. SENT: 1,O20 words, photos. WITH: LOST APPLES-NEW FINDS-LIST
FATAL SHOOTING-OFFICER ARRESTED — Authorities say an Alabama police detective fatally shot a woman as part of a “love triangle” dispute with a colleague. SENT: 200 words.
——————————
BUSINESS/ECONOMY
——————————
-------------------
ARTS/ENTERTAINMENT
-------------------
COMCAST-STREAMING VIDEO-PEACOCK — NBCUniversal says its video-streaming service Peacock will launch nationally in July as planned, even though just a handful of its original series will be ready. SENT: 300 words, photo. By Technology Writer Tali Arbel.
-------------------
SPORTS
-------------------
VIRUS OUTBREAK-STRANDED FANS: Fifteen soccer-crazy fans of Colombia’s Independiente Medellín traveled to Buenos Aires to watch their team face Boca Juniors in the historic La Bombonera stadium in a Copa Libertadores group stage match. But then came the new coronavirus pandemic, leaving them stranded in Argentina for more than a month. SENT: 350 words, photos.
DRAFT-VIRTUAL WORK — With the pandemic having closed training facilities, a group of 30 NFL draft hopefuls participates in a virtual pro day. By Pro Football Writer Rob Maaddi. SENT: 800 words, photos.
-------------------
HOW TO REACH US
---------------------
At the Nerve Center, Shameka Dudley-Lowe can be reached at 800-845-8450 (ext. 1600). For photos, ext. 1900. For graphics and interactives, ext. 7636. Expanded AP content can be obtained from http://newsroom.ap.org. For access to AP Newsroom and other technical issues, contact apcustomersupport(at)ap.org or call 877-836-9477.