SAMPLE CUMULUS PREP FOR 3/25/13 CONTACT INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON REQUEST TRENDING NOW SUPREME COURT TACKLES GAY MARRIAGE NRA, BLOOMBERG GEAR UP FOR GUN SHOWDOWN WASHINGTON STATE WEIGHS FIRST-IN-THE-NATION ABORTION INSURANCE MANDATE NJ POWERBALL WINNER GETS $338M JACKPOT; GOVERNMENT GETS 11CENTS ISRAEL FIRES INTO SYRIA LIFESTYLE BILL GATES WILL GIVE YOU $100,000 TO BUILD A BETTER CONDOM ARE WE ALL MARTIANS? HOW RECENT DISCOVERIES RAISE THAT POSSIBILITY. GENETICALLY ENGINEERING ANIMALS FOR WAR INTERNATIONAL TOPLESS JIHAD DAY MEN TRY MACHINE THAT CREATES SENSATION OF LABOR CAN YOUR GENES MAKE YOU MURDER? DID ADAM LANZA HAVE A MURDER GENE? WOMEN AREN’T EVEN SAFE IN THE TWITTERSPHERE GAY SUPER HEROES - COMIC BOOK STAR DREDD 'MIGHT BE GAY' 6-YR-OLD BOY BECOMES A GIRL: DO SCHOOLS NEED NEW RULES FOR TRANSGENDER STUDENTS? MICHELLE OBAMA’S POSTERIOR CRITICISED AGAIN…IS IT RACIEST? TOP STORIES SUPREME COURT TACKLES GAY MARRIAGE The front-lines of the gay marriage debate move this week to the Supreme Court, as it considers two cases which have the potential to redefine marriage on a national level. The first case the court will take up, on Tuesday, is California's Proposition 8 ban on samesex marriage. The court on Wednesday weighs the Defense of Marriage Act, considering a provision that defines marriage as between a man and a woman for the purpose of deciding who can receive a range of federal benefits.  Ted Olson One of the lead lawyers arguing against Prop 8, solicitor general under George W. Bush. [email protected] 1 202.955.8668  Rick Santorum –Call for information  Newt Gingrich - Call for information  Steve Elmendorf, a Democratic strategist and lobbyist who is also a major player in Washington’s gay and lesbian community- Elmendorf |Ryan LLC 202.737.1010 Booking or Private Contact Requests? Renee Bakos, EP, Cumulus Media, [email protected]       Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.), an openly gay member of Congress first elected in 2008 - Chris Fitzgerald, Communications Director [email protected] GOProud co-founder Jimmy LaSalvia - (202) 543-1003 or [email protected] Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights -Call for information Denis Dison, VP of Comm, Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund - -Call for information Charles Cooper, supported Prop 8 in front of Supreme Court - Call for information Rep Mark Pocan (WI) gay, married- [email protected] 202-225-2906 PLAINTIFFS  Kris Perry- Prop 8 plaintiff- Executive Director of First Five Fund-Call for information  Sandy Stiers, Prop 8 plaintiff, director of information systems for the Alameda County Health Care Services Agency -Call for information LEGAL |INTERPRETING SCOTUS ARGUMENTS       John Eastman, professor of law and former dean at Chapman University Law School; Chairman of the Board, National Organization of Marriage that lobbies against same-sex marriage; Eastman authored an amicus brief for the Proposition 8 case and one for the Defense of Marriage Act case. - Call for information Tara Borelli, Staff Attorney, Lambda Legal - National legal organization that advocates for civil rights of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender people; Borelli co-authored an amicus brief for the DOMA case - Call for information Jody Armour, Roy P. Crocker Professor of Law at the University of Southern California, Gould School of Law, University of Southern California - Call for information Lisa McElroy, Professor of Law, Earle Mack School of Law, Drexel University [email protected] 215-571-4701 Dale Carpenter, a pro-gay-marriage law professor at the University of Minnesota. Douglas NeJaime, an associate professor of law at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles CONSERVATIVE SUPPORT OF GAY MARRIAGE    Dick Cheney, Former VP of U.S. – Call for information Rob Portman – (R-OH) Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee - Call for information David Frum - speechwriters for former President George W. Bush, who endorsed a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage - signed an amicus brief from more than 100 Republicans supporting Prop. 8 opponent - Call for information SAMPLE CUMULUS PREP FOR 3/25/13 CONTACT INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON REQUEST NRA, BLOOMBERG GEAR UP FOR GUN SHOWDOWN With the U.S. Senate slated to consider comprehensive gun legislation next month, two powerful voices on different sides of the gun debate – New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the National Rifle Association’s Wayne LaPierre – are bracing for the upcoming legislative showdown on guns. Bloomberg’s gun group announced this weekend that it will pour $12 million into advertising in 13 key states to convince potentially persuadable Democratic and Republican senators to vote in favor of gun legislation. But National Rifle Association’s Wayne LaPierre today dismissed Bloomberg’s ad buy and called the mayor’s positions on guns “reckless” and “insane. ”  Michael Moore , Bowling for Columbine" filmmaker - Call for information  Colin Goddard, Assistant Director Of Federal Legislation, The Brady Campaign Caroline Brewer, Director of Communications -Call for information  Thomas E. Mann, a Congressional scholar at the Brookings Institution, [email protected] 202-797-6050 Office 302-908-6043 Cell    Mayors Against Illegal Guns - Mayor Bloomberg’s Press Office (212) 788-2958 Mayor Menino’s Press Office (617) 635-4461 Darrell Scott, his daughter, Rachel Scott was killed in the Columbine shooting – Call for information Frank DeAngelis- Columbine High School Principal - Call for information Lisa Procaccini, Parent of child at Newtown - Call for information WASHINGTON STATE WEIGHS FIRST-IN-THE-NATION ABORTION INSURANCE MANDATE With 21 states having adopted bans or severe restrictions on insurance companies from paying for abortions, Washington is alone in seriously considering legislation mandating the opposite. The Reproductive Parity Act, as supporters call it, would require insurers in Washington State who cover maternity care -- which all insurers must do -- to also pay for abortions. The bill passed the state House earlier this month by a vote of 53-43, though it faces an uncertain future in the Senate.  Melanie Smith, a lobbyist for NARAL Pro-Choice Washington [email protected] (206) 624-1990  Rep. Eileen Cody of West Seattle, the bill's primary sponsor- Call for information  Peggy O'Ban, spokeswoman for Human Life of Washington - (425) 641-9345 Booking or Private Contact Requests? Renee Bakos, EP, Cumulus Media, [email protected] WINNING $338M POWERBALL JACKPOT TICKET SOLD IN NJ A single ticket sold in New Jersey matched all six numbers in Saturday night's drawing for the $338.3 million Powerball jackpot, lottery officials said. It was the 13th drawing held in the days since a Virginia man won a $217 million jackpot Feb. 6. + POWERBALL PROFITS DON'T ALL GO WHERE YOU THINK THEY DO About 72 cents of every state lottery dollar goes somewhere else. About 60 cents goes to the winner. Some goes to run the lottery. A piece of it goes to a private, Italian-based conglomerate that operates lotteries and slot machines in 50 countries around the world. Depending on what state you live in, that leaves as little as 11 cents left to pay for the government services these games were created to help. Critics argue that, aside from being an inefficient way to raise money, paying for government services with lottery sales also shifts a larger portion of the overall tax burden to those who can least afford it.  Lucy Dadayan, a senior policy analyst at the Rockefeller Institute of Government Call for information  David Gale, Executive Director, North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries 440-466-5630  Patrick Pierce, a political scientist and author of "Gambling Politics: State Government and the Business of Betting." - Call for information ISRAEL FIRES INTO SYRIA DID OBAMA GIVE ISRAEL GO-AHEAD WITH SYRIA? On Friday, President Barack Obama left Israel, after spending a couple days with the leaders of America's closest ally in the region. Now today, two days later, Israel has acknowledged that it fired at a military position in Syria. The sequence of events leads one to ask, what did the two leaders, Obama and Netanyahu, discuss regarding Syria when they met multiple times this last week in Jerusalem? And what did they agree to do to deal with the Syria issue?  PJ Crowley Form Asst Sec Of State- Call for information  Ambassador John Bolton, Call for information  Nicholas Burns, Frm. US Ambassador Call for information  Daniel Levy, Senior Research Fellow, American Strategy Program and Middle East Task Force [email protected]  Nathan Thrall, Middle East analyst for the International Crisis Group- -Call for information SAMPLE CUMULUS PREP FOR 3/25/13 CONTACT INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON REQUEST SECONDARY STORIES FINAL HEARING IN AMANDA KNOX CASE: ‘UNANSWERED QUESTIONS’ MUST BE ANSWERED SAYS MURDERED MEREDITH KERCHER’S SISTER Meredith Kercher‘s sister will be one of the most interested parties in an Italian courtroom Monday during what could be the final hearing in the murder case against Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend Raffaela Sollecito.  Steve Moore, former FBI agent who has traveled to Perugia for the verdict Call for information  Barbie Latza Nadeau, author of “Angel Face,” about Amanda Knox – Call for information MILLIONAIRE TRYING TO RAISE MONEY THROUGH KICKSTARTER TO SEND HER DAUGHTER TO RPG CAMP Susan Wilson, one of the “Most Powerful Women Entrepreneurs” according to CNN, is using Kickstarter to raise money for her 9 year old daughter’s schooling. The goal is $829, but Kickstarter users have pledged over $21,000. Critics say this is borderline abuse of the Kickstarter system.The Kickstarter has made a ridiculous amount of money and it’s still racking in some. Luckily nobody has backed using $10,000 pledge *shudders* yet.  Susan Wilson, CEO of The Judgement Group –Communications 877-420-8628 Here’s the Kickstart page: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/susanwilson/9-year-old-building-an-rpg-to-prove-herbrothers-w UNIVERSITY APOLOGIZES FOR STOMPING JESUS Florida Atlantic University has issued an apology for a classroom assignment that involving students writing the name “Jesus” on a sheet of paper and then stomping on the paper. The university also said the lesson will never again be used. The university initially defended the Christ-bashing lesson which is included in a textbook titled, “Intercultural Communication: A Contextual Approach, 5th Edition.” Ryan Rotela, a devout Mormon, was in the classroom and refused to participate and felt that the assignment was insulting and offensive.  Deandre Poole, vice chair of the Palm Beach County Democratic Party, who created the lesson. - Call for information Booking or Private Contact Requests? Renee Bakos, EP, Cumulus Media, [email protected] POLITICO JUNKIES FACEBOOK’S MARK ZUCKERBERG EYES POLITICAL PUSH ON IMMIGRATION Does this mean Zuckerberg will bring foreign talent here at no extra cost while American engineers get sacked? How’s that good for the U.S. economy? The 28-year-old Facebook CEO and billionaire is joining with other executives to form an issues advocacy organization, with an initial focus on comprehensive immigration reform, according to sources familiar with the discussions. Bipartisan Consultants working with the group:   Joe Lockhart of the Glover Park Group- Call for information Jon Lerner, a Republican strategist Call for information PAUL SAYS OBAMA, BUSH COULD HAVE BEEN JAILED FOR DRUG USE Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said that President Obama and former President George W. Bush could have "conceivably been put in jail" for using drugs. Said Paul: "Look, the last two presidents could have conceivably been put in jail for their drug use and I really think - look what would've happened, it would've ruined their lives. They got lucky. But a lot of poor kids, particularly in the inner city, don't get lucky and they don't have good attorneys and they go to jail for some of these things and I think it's a big mistake." The response prompted host Chris Wallace to note, "Actually, I think it would be the last three presidents, but who's counting?"  Senator Rand Paul (R) – Call for information  Steve Kornacki, Senior Political Writer for Salon Contact Kornacki@salon  David Wolfe-Huffington Post Political editor- Call for information SAMPLE CUMULUS PREP FOR 3/25/13 CONTACT INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON REQUEST LIFESTYLE BILL GATES WILL GIVE YOU $100,000 TO BUILD A BETTER CONDOM ARE WE ALL MARTIANS? HOW RECENT DISCOVERIES RAISE THAT POSSIBILITY. GENETICALLY ENGINEERING ANIMALS FOR WAR INTERNATIONAL TOPLESS JIHAD DAY MEN TRY MACHINE THAT CREATES SENSATION OF LABOR CAN YOUR GENES MAKE YOU MURDER? DID ADAM LANZA HAVE A MURDER GENE? WOMEN AREN’T EVEN SAFE IN THE TWITTERSPHERE GAY SUPER HEROES - COMIC BOOK STAR DREDD 'MIGHT BE GAY' 6-YR-OLD BOY BECOMES GIRL: DO SCHOOLS NEED NEW RULES FOR TRANSGENDER STUDENTS? MICHELLE OBAMA’S POSTERIOR CRITICISED AGAIN…IS IT RACIEST? BILL GATES WILL GIVE YOU $100,000 TO BUILD A BETTER CONDOM The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is offering $100,000 of initial funding with up to $1 million of possible continued funding to whoever designs the "next generation of condoms." What might such a futuristic prophylactic look like? “The primary drawback from the male perspective is that condoms decrease pleasure as compared to no condom," says the Foundation's description of the challenge. So a "next-generation" condom would, perhaps, find some way to increase sensation as to get men to wear them more often • Bill & Melinda Gates Association 206-709-3400 and [email protected]’ ARE WE ALL MARTIANS? HOW RECENT DISCOVERIES RAISE THAT POSSIBILITY. The Curiosity rover found gray mud on the red planet, suggesting that there may have been life—and that we might be descended from it. Lawrence Krauss explains how it could’ve happened http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/03/23/martians-how-recent-discoveries-raisethat-possibility.html  Lawrence M. Krauss is director of the Origins Project at Arizona State University http://krauss.faculty.asu.edu/connect/ Jessica Strycker, Executive Assistant to Lawrence Krauss (480) 965-9825 [email protected] Booking or Private Contact Requests? Renee Bakos, EP, Cumulus Media, [email protected] GENETICALLY ENGINEERING ANIMALS FOR WAR Scientific advances have us on the verge of being able to control and manipulate animals. Should we use that power? Today, once again, the U.S. government is looking to animal-machine hybrids to safeguard the country and its citizens. In 2006, for example, DARPA zeroed in on insects, asking the nation’s scientists to submit “innovative proposals to develop technology to create insectcyborgs.” http://www.salon.com/2013/03/23/science_fiction_turns_real_genetically_engineering_ani mals_for_war/  Arthur Caplan, Head Division of Medical Ethics NYU Langone Medical Ctr [email protected] (215) 898-7136 INTERNATIONAL TOPLESS JIHAD DAY AMINA TYLER'S FEMEN SUPPORTERS DECLARE TOPLESS JIHAD DAY AFTER DEATH-BY STONING THREATS FOR TOPLESS PICS The Tunesian activist, 19, posted 2 topless pictures online and received death threats. ‘Long live the topless jihad against infidels! Our tits are deadlier than your stones!’ says the Femen group, a Ukrainebased protest group, has already united thousands of women for Anima. Amina's protest outraged more conservative pockets of Tunisian society. Tunisian newspaper Assabah News quoted Almi Adel, who heads the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, as saying that Amina should die for taking the photos. A petition defending Amina already garnered more than 100,000 supporters.  Richard Dawkins, Noted evolutionary biologist and prominent atheist who supports the cause Call for information  Anna Kirey, Finberg fellow at Human Rights Watch- Call for information MEN TRY MACHINE THAT CREATES SENSATION OF LABOR Dutch television hosts, Dennis Storm and Valerio Zeno of the show “Guinea Pigs were hooked up to a machine with electrodes stuck to their abdomens to simulate labor pains. And just like the real thing, the cramping of the “contractions” got stronger, longer and closer together. The men say they did it so they could better empathize with women. The average labor lasts 12 to 14 hours, but Storm and Zeno only lasted two hours.  Jennifer L Ashton, MD, Obstetrician & Gynecologist (OB/GYN Call for information SAMPLE CUMULUS PREP FOR 3/25/13 CONTACT INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON REQUEST CAN YOUR GENES MAKE YOU MURDER? Gun Violence & Adam Lanza's DNA: Is There A Gene For Murder? Forensic psychiatrist William Bernet of Vanderbilt University was asked to give a killer a psychiatric evaluation. Bernet a took a blood sample of the killer and brought it to Vanderbilt's Molecular Genetics Laboratory. Since 2004, Bernet and laboratory director Cindy Vnencak-Jones have been analyzing the DNA of killers Bernet cited scientific studies over the past decade that found that the combination of the high-risk gene and child abuse increases one's chances of being convicted of a violent offense by more than 400 percent.  William Bernet of Vanderbilt University - Call for information WOMEN AREN’T EVEN SAFE IN THE TWITTERSPHERE When women, like Adria Richard, speak up, they risk the misogynist wrath of those who try to shut them down http://www.salon.com/2013/03/22/women_arent_even_safe_in_the_twittersphere/ ARTICLE VIEWPOINT: The recent media attacks on the victim of Steubenville; the Connecticut 13-year-old girl who’d accused two local football players of sexual assault and found herself the target of online harassment; and Adria Richards getting fired over tweeted a photograph of the men she claimed were making explicit and offensive comments during a recent conference. The message from these stories was that when a woman subjects herself to vile sexism and invasion of her privacy, she is responsible for the destructive attention she’s attracted: it’s all her fault. The mob mentality of “punish the bitch,” a pattern that shows up again and again and again with sickening predictability, is real and it’s got to change.  Mary Elizabeth Williams, Salon Writer and the author of "Gimme Shelter: My Three Years Searching for the American Dream. - Call for information Booking or Private Contact Requests? Renee Bakos, EP, Cumulus Media, [email protected] GAY SUPER HEROES - COMIC BOOK STAR DREDD 'MIGHT BE GAY' First picture of the latest edition of comic 2000 AD, titled Closet, shows Dredd kissing another man. The latest edition of the comic 2000 AD is titled Closet and deals with the issue of a teenager coming out. The first page has been released on the internet and apparently shows Dredd - a judge/policeman form the future - kissing the youth in a gay club. Reaction to the teaser, which was released online last month, has been mixed, with some fans so hostile to the idea they have threatened to burn the comic.  Writer Rob Williams - http://www.robwilliamscomics.co.uk http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rob_Williams_(comics) - Call for information  DC writer James Robinson , who created the gay Green Lanternhttp://www.dcentertainment.com/contact - Call for information A 6-YEAR-OLD BOY BECOMES A GIRL: DO SCHOOLS NEED NEW RULES FOR TRANSGENDER STUDENTS? Recently the story of the transgender child who was banned from the girl’s room has gone viral on the Internet. The unusual case points up the need for schools to discuss whether transgender students may need accommodation — or entirely new policies. Sixteen states have laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity. But no one tracks how many schools have official policies on how to treat transgender students, Might a boy who identifies as a girl and plays on the school tennis team have an advantage over her teammates? Will transgender girls go out for varsity football?   Diane Ehrensaft, director of mental health at the Child and Adolescent Gender Center in San Francisco and author of Gender Born, Gender Made - Call for information Michael Silverman, executive director of the Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund and one of the Mathis family’s attorneys. Call for information MICHELLE OBAMA’S POSTERIOR CRITICISED AGAIN…IS IT RACIEST? They’re at it again. The latest public rant against Michelle Obama’s effort to promote lowcalorie school lunches was recently caught on tape in Alabama: “Fat butt Michelle Obama,” said Bob Grisham, a high school football coach, “Look at her. She looks like she weighs 185 or 190. She’s overweight.” Grisham isn’t the first high-profile person comment on the first lady’s physique. Rush Limbaugh has repeatedly called her Michelle “My Butt” Obama. And Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner, was caught commenting on her “large posterior.” But what is it with Michelle Obama’s critics and the fixation with her derriere?  Ayana Byrd, the co-editor of the anthology “Naked: Black Women Bare All About Their Skin, Hair, Hips, Lips and Other Parts” [email protected]  Andra Gillespie, an Assoc. Prof. of Poli Sci at Emory University. - Call for information SAMPLE CUMULUS PREP FOR 3/25/13 CONTACT INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON REQUEST ENTERTAINMENT SETH MEYERS TO REPLACE JIMMY FALLON? File this under “maybe,” “possibly,” and “in our dreams”—and also “still fun to think about.” Page Six reports that Saturday Night Livehead writer Seth Meyers could replace Jimmy Fallon, should Jimmy Fallon in fact replace Jay Leno on The Tonight Show—as has been widely speculated. Nothing is confirmed, but it’s intriguing.  Robert Thompson, founding director of the Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture at Syracuse University, where he is also a Trustee Professor of Television and Popular Culture - Call for information EMMA WATSON POSES IN THE NUDE FOR GLOBAL GREEN'S 'NATURAL BEAUTY' Why is it okay for starlets to strip for a cause but they regard stripping for a film a form of prostitution? Emma Watson stripped down to raise environmental awareness, even though she said she won't do it for the "Fifty Shades of Grey" movie. “The Perks of Being a Wallflower" star tweeted her support for James Houston's book of celebrities posing nude to raise environmental awareness. The book's proceeds will go to Global Green USA, a nonprofit focused on sustainability. In the book, the 22-year-old poses in various states of undress, covering her breasts with her arms or boldly hued flowers  Rich Juzwiak, Gawker Editor, - Call for information  Marilyn Moss, The Hollywood Reporter - Call for information  Jen Chaney, Washington Post Celebrity Critic - Call for information Booking or Private Contact Requests? Renee Bakos, EP, Cumulus Media, [email protected] MY POP CULTURE FAVES TILDA SWINTON, BEST ACTRESS IN A BOX Tilda Swinton, fashion renegade, general Scottish bad-ass, will sleep in a box for seven-hour stretches as part of a MoMA performance piece this year. The Swinton-conceived piece “The Maybe,” which she brought to a London gallery in 1995 and later recreated it in a Rome museum, premiered yesterday at the New York museum. “Museum staff doesn’t know she’s coming until the day of, but she’s here today,” a MoMA source was quoted. “She’ll be there the whole day. All that’s in the box is cushions and a water jug.” The MoMA declared that Swinton will nap/perform “The Maybe” about a half-dozen more times, all of them unannounced and unpublicized, throughout 2013. FORD PULLS AD SHOWING PARIS HILTON DRIVING CAR WITH BOUND & GAGGED KARDASHIANS IN THE TRUNK! An ad showing the Kardashian sisters – Kim, Khloe and Kourtney – bound, gagged and stuffed into the trunk of a car with a gleeful Paris Hilton in the driving seat, has been pulled. The drawing featuring the reality TV show rivals was put together as part of a brainstorming initiative by JWT India, the agency that produces ad campaigns for Ford Figo in that country. It was one of a series of drawings with the tag line: “Leave your worries behind with Figo’s extra-large boot.” But the cartoonish images backfired and caused outrage after they appeared on the Ads of the World website. One of the three ads shows former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi – who is accused of sleeping with prostitutes – in the front while three scantily clad, bound and gagged females are shoved into the trunk. SAMPLE CUMULUS PREP FOR 3/25/13 CONTACT INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON REQUEST BATES MOTEL Could've done without the rape scene, but overall I thought the first episode of A&E's scripted drama was well done and even creepier than expected. (An extended version of the episode has been posted on the official site.) PUNK ROCK JESUS by Sean Murphy. The six-issue comic comes out as a trade paperback April The story, which I found hard to put down, follows a futuristic reality show that decides to clone Jesus Christ. He winds up joining a punk rock band, and craziness ensues. http://www.vertigocomics.com/comics/punk-rock-jesus-2012 DINOSAUR JR. J MASCIS new cover of Phoenix's new single. (Cool bumper music!) http://snd.sc/ZPSbJT SIAMESE TWINS, THE CURE. FX's The Americans continues to boast a killer soundtrack; this week's EP featured a montage set to Siamese Twins: https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=GXpNenuQrcY#! Booking or Private Contact Requests? Renee Bakos, EP, Cumulus Media, [email protected] REGIONAL NY BLOOMBERG’S TV BLITZ ON GUNS PUTS SWING SENATORS ON THE SPOT Determined to persuade Congress to act in response to that shooting, Mr. Bloomberg on Monday will begin bankrolling a $12 million national advertising campaign that focuses on senators who he believes might be persuaded to support a pending package of federal regulations to curb gun violence. The ads, in 13 states, will blanket those senators’ districts during an Easter Congressional recess that is to be followed by debate over the legislation.  Thomas E. Mann, a Congressional scholar at the Brookings Institution, agreed that Mr. Bloomberg “is not popular in many of the states he is going into right now.” [email protected] 202-797-6050 Office 302-908-6043 Cell  Mayors Against Illegal Guns - Mayor Bloomberg’s Press Office (212) 788-2958 Mayor Menino’s Press Office (617) 635-4461  See Top Stories for additional contacts CA COLD-CASE PROSECUTORS SEEK DNA FROM DEAD CALIFORNIA INMATES Opening a new frontier for solving cold cases, California prosecutors are hunting for DNA from killers, rapists and other prison inmates who died before authorities obtained their genetic profiles. Prosecutors say they believe the program is the first in the nation to target potentially thousands of offenders who have died in prison or while on parole before a biological sample could be tested for DNA as required by state law. California is notorious for the backlog of DNA cases and not enough experts to solve the cases. What holds up a DNA case from being solved? How many prosecutions result from these DNA cases? How many victims are still waiting to be processed/?  Anne Marie Schubert, a supervising deputy district attorney in Sacramento who is spearheading the effort. [email protected] 916.874.7017  Michael T. Risher, a staff attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California who has litigated DNA privacy cases, said targeting dead inmates raises fewer privacy concerns - Call for information  Carol Burke, Veteran Los Angeles County prosecutor at LA DA Call for information WA WASHINGTON STATE WEIGHS FIRST-IN-THE-NATION ABORTION INSURANCE MANDATE With 21 states having adopted bans or severe restrictions on insurance companies from paying for abortions, Washington is alone in seriously considering legislation mandating the opposite. The Reproductive Parity Act, as supporters call it, would require insurers in Washington State who cover maternity care -- which all insurers must do -- to also pay for abortions. The bill passed the state House earlier this month by a vote of 53-43, though it faces an uncertain future in the Senate. A similar bill in the New York state Assembly has been introduced each session for over a decade but has never received a public hearing.  Melanie Smith, a lobbyist for NARAL Pro-Choice Washington Call for information Rep. Eileen Cody of West Seattle, the bill's primary sponsor- (360) 786-7978 or Melinda McCrady Communications Director – 360-786-7385  Peggy O'Ban, spokeswoman for Human Life of Washington - Call for information SAMPLE CUMULUS PREP FOR 3/25/13 CONTACT INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON REQUEST CHICAGO GENDER-IDENTITY CLINIC OPENS FOR CHILDREN 30 transgender or gender-nonconforming children from Chicago and across the Midwest are now receiving guidance and support from a pediatric gender-identity clinic launched by Lurie Children's Hospital, the first of its kind in the region and one of only a few such facilities in the country. Families who come to the new clinic will be able to access psychiatric and psychological services as well as Lurie Hospital physicians specializing in areas like urology and endocrinology. There is a medical ethicist onboard. And the clinic will provide play groups for families of gender-nonconforming children and send experts into schools to train teachers and administrators how to accommodate transgender youths.  Robert Garofalo, pediatrician and associate professor of pediatrics and preventive medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. -Call for information DETROIT UNIONS BRACE FOR CHANGE AS MICHIGAN'S RIGHT-TO-WORK TAKES EFFECT On Thursday, Michigan's right-to-work law takes effect, a stunning shift in this symbolic capital of organized labor. The historic change is just the latest sign of turmoil in the union movement that has seen its nationwide membership shrink to its lowest levels since at least the 1930s — a paltry 6.6 percent in the private sector. With 14.4 million members, unions still can be a potent political force at the ballot box. But protests in recent years over the passage of right-to-work laws in Michigan and Indiana, clashes over collective bargaining in Wisconsin and Ohio and a sharp drop in union elections across the U.S. have raised larger questions: Where do unions go from here? How they do mend their battered image? Can they recruit new members? And is organized labor even a movement any longer?  Jefferson Cowie, a Cornell University labor historian -Call for information  Michigan Governor Rick Snyder -Call for information  State Rep Mike Shirkey - Clark Lake - Author of Michigan's Right to Work Legislation -Call for information   Senator Gretchen Whitmer - Senate Minority Leader - Democrat leading the fight  against Right to Work - Call for information DALLAS GOOD NEWS: 75% DECLINE IN SHOPLIFTING; BAD NEWS: THE COPS DON’T CARE A police policy that made it harder for store owners to report small-time shoplifting cases brought down petty shoplifting reports by a whopping 75 percent in Dallas last year. The shoplifting continues, but much of it is no longer reported or counted as a crime. The policy that went into effect early last year requires retailers to report thefts under $50 by mail. Police don’t come to the scene of the crime anymore except in certain situations, such as when a theft suspect refuses to identify him or herself. Even then, officers are not supposed to issue a citation or fill out a police report.   Police Chief David Brown - Police Media Relations Unit 214-671-4065 Joe Williams, Vice President Regulatory and Member Services and spokesman for Texas Retailers Association -Call for information Booking or Private Contact Requests? Renee Bakos, EP, Cumulus Media, [email protected]