U.S. President Barack Obama says the killing of radical American-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki is a significant milestone in the effort to defeat the al-Qaida terror network.    

Awlaki was linked to the group al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula.  President Obama said that as a result of his killing, the group remains dangerous, but has been weakened.

“The death of Awlaki is a major blow to al-Qaida’s most active operational affiliate,” he said.

A U.S. airstrike killed Awlaki early Friday as he drove through a remote part of Yemen.  U.S. officials have been quoted as saying the raid was coordinated by the CIA.

Awlaki was wanted by both the United States and Yemen for his suspected role in terrorist attacks.  Those include the attempted bombing of a U.S. airliner flying to the city of Detroit in 2009, and the deadly attack on the U.S. Army base at Fort Hood, Texas.

Obama said the U.S. remains vigilant against any terrorist threat.

The president spoke at a ceremony marking the end of Navy Admiral Mike Mullen’s four-year term as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

New figures released by the U.S. government from last year’s population count show the number of Americans who identify themselves as multiracial grew during the last decade.

The Census Bureau says the number of Americans who described themselves as partly white and partly black grew to 1.8 million between 2000 and 2010, more than doubling the figures from the 2000 census. The bureau says every state saw its mixed white-black population increase by at least eight percent, with the largest increases found in southern states such as South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia and Mississippi.

The number of Hispanics describing themselves as white increased by over 50 percent in 2010, reflecting the Census Bureau’s decision to change the nature of Hispanic as an ethnicity, not a race.  

The percentage of whites in the total U.S. population is 72 percent, but the number of non-Hispanic whites dropped from 69 percent in 2000 to 64 percent in 2010.

Some information for this report was provided by AP.

Everywhere you turn, there are stories about the rapid ascent of the Internet as Americans’ information medium of choice. The trend line is clearly pointing in that direction, but according to a new national survey, traditional media are far from being outmoded or irrelevant.

The survey, by the independent Pew Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism and the newspaper-supported Knight Foundation, broke down local information into 16 topic areas and asked people where they learn about each of them.

Turns out, Americans have developed what the Pew Center’s director, Tom Rosenstiel, calls “a complex ecosystem in which people rely on different platforms for different topics.”

More than 80 percent of respondents, for instance, said they still turn to local TV first for breaking news. And 89 percent go there, not to the Web, to get the latest weather information.

And newspapers are a long way from being dead as a go-to information source. Newspapers and newspaper websites ranked first or tied for first as the resource Americans rely on in 11 of the 16 key categories – including crime, taxes, and the arts.

Even the oldest communication form of all – word of mouth – ranked second to local TV as respondents’ preferred source of information about their communities.  

At the same time, according to the Pew-Knight report, “nearly half of adults occasionally now get local information on mobile devices, though it is still largely a supplemental platform for them.”

The survey of 2,251 American adults is one of the first of nationwide scope that clearly shows the growing complexity of the media landscape, and the willingness – even eagerness – with which consumers are relying on both old and new formats to get their information.

American artist Andy Warhol is best known for his iconic images from popular culture.

Images like his Campbell’s soup cans and portraits of famous people like movie star Marilyn Monroe and Chinese leader Mao Zedong.

However, two new exhibits in Washington, D.C., showcase a side of the artist many may be unfamiliar with.

“Warhol: Headlines,” at the National Gallery of Art, is the first exhibition to fully examine Warhol’s obsession with headline news, a recurrent theme in much of his art.

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Molly Donovan, associate curator of modern and contemporary art at the National Gallery of Art, says the museum has pulled together, for the first time, all of Warhol’s works on the headline theme.

“Also, within this grouping, 40 percent of the works have never been on public view before so it’s a really fresh look at an artist like Warhol who seems to be everywhere and we all seem to know,” says Donovan, “but there’s still new information coming out about him, and new works coming.”

The exhibit features about 80 pieces of Warhol’s work in all variety of media, from his early drawings and paintings in the 1960s to the silk screen canvases for which he became so well known in later years.

The first room of the exhibition features four hand-painted headline canvases from the early 1960s, which marks the start of Warhol’s career.

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The canvases are emblematic of Warhol’s interest in stories about famous people, such as Princess Margaret, the late sister of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth; Hollywood scandals, such as American singer and entertainer Eddie Fisher’s breakdown in “Daily News;” and the tragedies of everyday people, as in “129 Die in Jet.”

These paintings and other works in the exhibit also demonstrate how the artist drew from tabloid headlines, cropping, enlarging and otherwise altering the text to create his unique style. Many of those original sources are included alongside the artwork.

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Donovan believes that Warhol wanted us to have a greater awareness of the media sources that we consume.

“That our information is coming at us from the news very deliberately as information that they know we will buy, and I think Warhol wanted to point our attention to our own role as consumers of the news.”

“Andy Warhol: Shadows” at the Hirshhorn Museum showcases work the artist created in the last decade of his life.

All 102 silkscreened and hand-painted canvases of Warhol’s monumental artwork, “Shadows,” are being shown together for the first time, installed edge-to-edge as the artist intended. They extend uninterrupted around the Hirshhorn’s curved galleries.

The canvases feature distorted photographs of shadows generated in the artist’s studio between 1978 and 1979.

Evelyn Hankins, associate curator at the Hirshhorn, believes “Shadows” will surprise many museum’s visitors.

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The work is 450 linear feet (137 meters) long and deviates from Warhol’s mass media images.

“So what we’re hoping here is people will learn about a Warhol that they’re not so familiar with,” says Hankins. “And what’s important about the “Shadows” aside from their monumental scale is that they really represent Warhol beginning to engage abstraction for the rest of his career.”

The National Gallery’s Donovan believes Warhol’s art will live on for generations.

“After deeply looking at this artist’s work for four years, I can say that he was truly one of the most prescient and important artists of the 20th Century,” she says. “And even though he made it seem as though it was casual, and playful and unintentional, it was all very calculated, and he was a prolific talent.”

Warhol died in 1987 at age of 58. While his life was short, the images he created have left a lasting impression.

Radical U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki has been killed in an airstrike in Yemen that news reports say was orchestrated by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency.

Missiles fired from a drone aircraft killed Awlaki early Friday as he rode in a convoy in eastern Yemen.

President Barack Obama called Awlaki’s death a “major blow” to one of al-Qaida’s most active affiliates.

Speaking to a military audience outside Washington, Mr. Obama said the operation that killed Awlaki is proof that the terrorist group and its affiliates cannot find a safe haven anywhere in the world.

Quick Facts: Anwar al-Awlaki

Anwar al-Awlaki was a notorious and outspoken figure within al-Qaida, and a leader of the terrorist network’s wing in Yemen. Awlaki, whose group in Yemen is known as al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, was believed to have been the target of a U.S. drone attack in May. He also escaped an air attack that killed 30 people last year. He was born in New Mexico, USA in 1971 (Yemeni parents, fluent in Arabic and English). He served as an imam at several U.S. mosques, including one in the western city of San Diego that was frequented by two men who were involved in the September 11, 2001 attacks against the United States. After Awlaki traveled to Yemen, he became an Internet sensation with a loyal following, including many radicals around the world who listened to recordings of his preachings. He was a vocal critic of America and was suspected of motivating others to commit violence against U.S. interests. Was wanted by authorities in US and Yemen. Yemeni authorities charged Awlaki with “inciting violence against foreigners” for the 2010 killing of a French oil industry worker in Yemen. Believed to have helped Nigerian suspect arrested for attempted 2009 Christmas Day bombing of US airliner. Acted as advisor to U.S. Army psychiatrist accused of carrying out mass shooting at military base that left 13 dead in 2009.

Western news organizations quote U.S. officials as saying the raid was coordinated by the CIA and led by U.S. Joint Special Operations Command, the counterterrorism unit that led the May operation killing Osama bin Laden.

Several other suspected militants were killed in the operation, including Samir Khan, an American of Pakistani origin who produced an English-language magazine for al-Qaida on the Internet.

Awlaki was linked to the group al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, based in Yemen.  He was wanted by both the U.S. and Yemen for his suspected role in terrorist attacks.

Those attacks included the December 2009 attempted bombing of a U.S. airliner that was approaching the U.S. city of Detroit.

Authorities believe Awlaki advised the suspected bomber, Nigerian Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab. Investigators believe Awlaki also played a role in a deadly attack, a month earier, at a U.S. military base.

They say Awlaki may have advised U.S. Major Nidal Malik Hasan, who is accused of killing 13 people in the attack.

Awlaki’s death comes with Yemen in a political crisis, marked by heightened calls for President Abdullah Saleh’s resignation.

Activists say thousands of anti-government protesters rallied in the capital, Sana’a on Friday and in the southern city of Taiz.

In an interview with The Washington Post and Time magazine this week, Mr. Saleh said a political transition plan crafted by Yemen’s Gulf neighbors made it clear that “all elements” contributing to the country’s civil unrest should be removed.

The president warned it would be “very dangerous” if his rivals, General Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, who defected to the opposition, and Hamid al-Ahmar, a telecom tycoon and politician whose brother heads Yemen’s most powerful tribal confederation, were to retain their positions after he resigns.

He said that outcome could “lead to civil war.” Mr. Saleh has agreed to the plan crafted by the Gulf Cooperation Council three times since April.

However, each time he has backed out before the deal could be signed.

Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

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Millions of containers from around the world enter ports throughout the United States every year.  The threat to U.S. national security at these ports have grown in the last decade and so has security.  At a recent technology conference near Los Angeles, companies were able to show off their latest inventions in high tech security.

At two of the busiest ports in the United States, thousands of containers come and go every day.   

John Holmes with the Port of Los Angeles says 10 years ago security around here was not a priority.

“Not even fences or lights or signs,” said Holmes. “It was just [a] very open atmosphere where the big focus was moving cargo through.”

But everything changed after the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.   U.S. ports have become a potential target because most of the goods that come into the U.S. come by the ocean.

“Every single container does get screened.  Everything that comes off the ship goes through radiation detection equipment,” added Holmes.

The ports of Los Angeles have different high-tech devices that look for bombs, chemical and biological weapons.

Michael McMullen with the Port of Long Beach says technology is a big component of security.

“Most of the security that we do today is really done almost in a virtual state,” he said.

McMullen says there are underwater sonar sensors, high-tech radars that detect every ship within 11 kilometers of the port and hundreds of cameras above ground.  In a room filled with computers and video monitors of all sizes, security analysts can track everything that goes on in and around the port complex.  The port has shared the technology with personnel from Latin America and Asia so they can learn how these high tech systems are integrated and apply them to their own port security.

“Ports may all be a little bit different, but what we’re trying to do is very similar,” Holmes explained.

To share information, John Holmes says the Port of Los Angeles held a port security summit last year with countries that included China, Korea and Israel.  Holmes says ports around the world are vulnerable, using the 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India as an example.

“In Mumbai, the attacks actually came from the water,” he said.

Security experts say exchanging information will help them stay current with all the new high-tech devices on the market.  At a technology conference near Los Angeles, Fred Aldrich is trying to sell a container scanning system.  It would go on a ship and scan stacks of containers before they reach land.   

“Our system would be installed at the foreign ports and scanning and detection happens 24/7 autonomously,” Aldrich said.

Craig Crawford with 3-D Image Tek, is trying to find buyers for his machine that converts video from 2-D to 3-D. He says 3-D images provide depth and detail.  He says it can be used for night surveillance or even to diffuse a bomb.

“It actually puts human eyes right on the threat then they can manipulate it just like a surgeon would be during a surgery looking at the wires identifying the threat,” said Crawford.

Port of Long Beach’s Michael McMullen says in the next two years, he expects 3-D technology to be one component of security at his port that will help improve communication by providing even more detailed information.

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U.S. Army General Martin Dempsey assumes his post Friday as President Barack Obama’s choice for the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.  .

General Martin Dempsey comes from the trenches, a veteran of two wars in Iraq and one in Afghanistan.

He takes over as the nations’ top military officer at a time when the Defense Department’s budget faces cuts of $450 billion  or more, and troop drawdowns in Iraq and Afghanistan.   

On leaving his previous brief post as army chief this month, he laid out his vision.

“There are some words and phrases that will describe our army in the future, but decline is not one of them,” said General Dempsey. “Smaller?  Probably.  Different?  As a learning organization, I hope so.  The best in the world, you better believe it.  Doing what’s right for the country, absolutely. “

Dempsey has a reputation as an effective and respected commander, an intellectual and a strategist — an officer who brings the perspective of the battlefield to Washington.

Analysts say that unique view is critical as the U.S. military shifts from a period of consistent war over the past decade to a new era of necessary adjustment. Clark Murdock is with the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

“I think his experience as a former commander – and he has held many different levels of command within the army – and the army has been the most stressed of the services, he knows the problem up close and personal of what’s involved in maintaining the quality of the force,” he said.

Another big challenge that awaits Dempsey is managing complicated relations with Pakistan, a U.S. ally in the war in Afghanistan and against terrorism.

Dempsey’s predecessor, Admiral Mike Mullen recently accused Pakistan’s intelligence service of supporting Afghan extremists who have targeted Americans.  

“The Haqqani network, for one, acts, as a veritable arm of Pakistan’s internal services intelligence agency,” said Admiral Mullen.

Aside from being what a Pentagon colleague describes as a commander’s commander, General Dempsey known for singing at parties, and – most notably – his interpretations of the famous songs of the late Italian-American singer Frank Sinatra.

Dempsey’s renditions of the song New York, New York  have drawn the attention of Defense Secretary Leon Panetta.

“He’s a passionate student of history, of the military, and they also tell me of Frank Sinatra,” said Panetta. “They tell me there are videos floating around the Internet of Marty belting out his favorite Sinatra tunes. I assume he’s trying to be an aspiring member of the rat pack. But Marty, I hate to tell you – as someone of Italian heritage – you’d better stick to your day job.”

In the new job, Dempsey will have the serious tasks of defeating Afghan insurgents, bringing home the troops, streamlining the military, and do it all on a tighter budget.

In U.S. presidential politics, a new public opinion poll shows a wide open race for the Republican Party’s presidential nomination.  Republicans can pick from no fewer than 10 presidential hopefuls. But that has not stopped some activists from pushing at least one more politician to join the race – New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.

The latest Fox News poll has former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney in the top spot with 23 percent, followed by Texas Governor Rick Perry at 19 percent. That is a change from last month’s survey, where Perry led Romney by seven percentage points. Before that, Romney had led the field for months. Other recent polls show Perry still leading the field.

Perry’s drop in the Fox poll comes in the wake of bad reviews of his debate performances in recent weeks and the surge of little-known Georgia businessman Herman Cain. Cain placed third in the latest Fox poll with 17 percent support, coming on the heels of his surprise victory in a recent straw poll, or test vote, in Florida.

No clear consensus

The latest opinion survey suggests the Republican race is wide open, with Romney and Perry as the top two contenders.

Many Republicans see flaws, though, in all the current candidates and that has given way to fresh calls for New Jersey Governor Chris Christie to join the race.

One voter urged Christie to reconsider his decision not to run for president during a recent speech at The Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California.

One woman said, “Please sir, we need you. Your country needs you to run for president.”
Christie replied, “I hear exactly what you are saying and I feel the passion with which you say it, and it touches me. But by the same token, that heartfelt message you gave me is also not a reason for me to do it. That reason has to reside inside me.”

The possibility that Christie might change his mind and join the race has excited conservatives who like the New Jersey governor’s blunt style and willingness to cut government spending. But Christie also holds moderate views on some social issues that could disappoint conservatives, if he decides to run.

Perry’s trajectory

Rick Perry also excited Republicans when he joined the race, but he has drawn criticism from his rivals for supporting tuition breaks in Texas for the children of illegal immigrants, a stand many conservatives oppose.

Perry’s recent problems show the pitfalls of a late entry into the campaign, said ABC News Political Director Amy Walter.

“If we have learned anything this week from Rick Perry, it is that it is hard to jump into the race for president this late into the game,” said Walter.

Analyst John Fortier of the Washington-based Bipartisan Policy Center said conservative desire for Christie to join the race and earlier demands for Perry to get involved stem from lingering doubts that Romney is a true conservative.

“And I think for the [Republican] base, Rick Perry seems a little bit more of a natural fit. There is some question as to whether Mitt Romney is really ‘one of us,’ they will ask,” said Fortier.

Romney’s rise

Fortier said Romney might have an advantage among Republican voters, however, who are looking for the most electable candidate to face President Barack Obama in next year’s election.

“And I think there is a question for Rick Perry, who might be more naturally popular among Republicans, whether he is a little less electable than Mitt Romney against President Obama because he is further to the right,” said Fortier.

The attention on Christie, Romney and Perry is overshadowing the other contenders in the Republican race, like Minnesota Representative Michele Bachmann. Bachmann has slipped sharply in recent surveys and, this week, she urged young conservatives not to settle for a party nominee who is anything less than a true conservative.

“I am not willing that we settle because you deserve more than a nation that settles,” said Bachmann.

The voting process to choose a Republican Party nominee begins early next year with presidential caucuses in Iowa and the New Hampshire presidential primary election.

The U.S. Justice Department has asked the Supreme Court to uphold the Obama administration’s historic overhaul of the nation’s health care system.

The Justice Department on Wednesday filed an appeal asking the nation’s top court to review an earlier decision by a federal court, which ruled the legislation exceeded its authority by requiring most Americans to pay for health insurance or face a penalty.

The court ruling, issued in August, upheld the rest of the health care reforms as legal.

Earlier Wednesday, 26 U.S. states and an organization representing small businesses filed appeals to the same ruling, asking Supreme Court justices to declare the entire law unconstitutional.

Three federal courts have so far issued conflicting decisions on the health care legislation, with one upholding it, another partially striking it down, and a third declining to issue an immediate ruling.

Legal experts say the Supreme Court is likely to rule on the issue by the end of its current session in June, which would fall in the middle of the 2012 presidential campaign.

The health care debate has been divisive in American politics, with many Republican presidential candidates promising to repeal the law, if elected.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP.

The U.S. government says the sluggish economy grew a bit faster than first estimated in the second quarter of the year, but still not fast enough to reduce the country’s high unemployment rate.

The government said Thursday that the nation’s economic output advanced 1.3 percent in the April-to-June period, up from the previous estimate of 1 percent. Even so, the U.S. said its economy, the world’s largest, grew only by nine-tenths of one percent for the first half of the year. That was the weakest six-month performance since the recession officially ended more than two years ago.

U.S. companies have been reluctant to hire more workers, leaving 14 million people unemployed. The government said Thursday that first-time unemployment compensation claims fell sharply last week, down 37,000 to a 391,000 figure.

But the government said the decline may have been an aberration, making it difficult to compare with longer-term trends.

Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.