新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 20:00 2015/01/21（打印版）

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is due to address the World Economic Forum in Davos tonight

Officials in Shanghai have sacked a number of officials in connection with the deadly New Year's Eve stampede on the Bund.

US President Barack Obama delivers his annual State of the Union address to a Republican-controlled Congress.

In business..... Spring Airlines debuts on the most positive day on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in some 5-years.

In sports... China's last hope for glory at the Australian Open moves into round 3.

In entertainment.... the family of Yao Beina says they may release some of the late singers unheard songs.

Beijing will be clear tonight, with a low of minus 6. It will be sunny tomorrow, with a high of 5 degrees.　

Meanwhile Shanghai will be cloudy tonight, with a low of 3, tomorrow will continue to be cloudy, with a high of 8.

Chongqing will be clear tonight, 7 degrees the lowest, tomorrow will be cloudy with a high of 16.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is due to address the opening session of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, later today.

The premier is expected to deliver a message of confidence about the Chinese economy through an explanation of the so-called "new normal."

This is a term the Chinese government has been using to describe a slower rate of growth in China amid reforms to the overall economy to a more consumer-driven model.

The Chinese premier is leading an 80-plus-strong delegation comprising high-ranking government officials, business elites and prominent academics, including influential business leaders such as Alibaba founder & Chairman Jack Ma and Huawei CEO Ren Zhengfei.

"On the one hand, China's 'One Belt and One Road Initiative' plays a key role in improving infrastructure in relevant countries, which will bring Europe and Asia ever closer together. On the other hand, certain prominent Chinese entrepreneurs like Jack Ma and Ren Zhengfei are accompanying Premier Li at the forum, which is good news for foreign investors."

This year's session in Davos, which runs for 4-days, is entertaining around 25-hundred world and business leaders.

Eleven officials in Shanghai have been punished in-connection with the New Year's Eve stampede which left 36 people dead and 49 others injured.

The Shanghai municipal government has released a report, labeling the New Year's Eve stampede as a "public safety incident due to negligence".

The official investigation report says a lack of public security is the main cause of the heavy casualties.

"The Huangpu district authority and police department didn't make a risk assessment for the change of the New Year countdown venue, thus resulting in inadequate prevention and preparation for the mass activity. The police didn't issue a warning to the public, nor request reinforcements from the municipal police. So, the Huangpu District authority and police should take responsibility for the incident."

The investigation has also found that several local officials were taking part in an opulent banquet at the time the fatal stampede took place.

Four, including the Party Chief of Huangpu District, have been removed from their posts.

In making the announcement, Zhou Bo, vice mayor of Shanghai, has issued an apology on behalf of the government.

"To the relatives of the victims and to those injured and their families, I send our deepest apologies. And to all the people of Shanghai, we feel truly guilty."

The deadly stampede took place just minutes before the stroke of midnight while tens-of-thousands were on Shanghai's historic waterfront region, known as The Bund.

There were only around 500 police officers and urban management personnel deployed in the area at the time.

The report does not include information as to what may have sparked the initial stampede in the first place.

President Barack Obama has delivered his annual State of the Union address to Congress, the first time in his Presidency he's spoken to a House and Senate controlled by the Republicans.

Speaking to Congressional lawmakers, US President Barack Obama has declared an end to the financial crisis and is promising economic policies to benefit all Americans.

In a speech crafted to appeal to working families, Obama has outlined his strategy for "middle-class economics".

"We've seen the fastest economic growth in over a decade, our deficits cut by two-thirds, a stock market that has doubled, and health care inflation at its lowest rate in fifty years. This is good news, people. So the verdict is clear. Middle-class economics works. Expanding opportunity works. And these policies will continue to work, as long as politics don't get in the way."

Obama is urging lawmakers to help working families by passing legislations on equal pay, affordable childcare and even slashing tuition in community colleges, where 40 percent of Americans go to get a higher education.

But most observers note his plans are unlikely to make it through a Republican-controlled Congress.

On the foreign policy front, the President says the United States reserves the "right to act unilaterally" in hunting down terrorists.

He's also called on Congress to pass a resolution to authorize the use of force against Islamic State.

Obama also took time to hail the Sino-US climate change pact he announced at the APEC meeting in Beijing this past year.

"In Beijing, we made an historic announcement?-?the United States will double the pace at which we cut carbon pollution, and China committed, for the first time, to limiting their emissions. And because the world's two largest economies came together, other nations are now stepping up, and offering hope that, this year, the world will finally reach an agreement to protect the one planet we've got."

Meanwhile, the Republican opposition has offered its rebuttal to the President's address.

The rebuttal, handled by Iowa Senator Joni Ernst, took swipes at the state of the economy and at Obama's vision.

"Americans have been hurting, but when we demanded solutions, too often Washington responded with the same stale mindset that led to failed policies like Obamacare. It's a mindset that gave us political talking points, not serious solutions,"

The State of the Union address is a constitutionally-mandated exercise, which forces the US President to periodically update a joint session of congress on issues affecting the United States.

It's also a venue for the US President to outline his policy plans for the coming year.

At the same time, its voicing its support for President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi amid the worsening political and security crisis in Yemen.

Shiite Houthi rebels, who are supporters of ousted former President Ali Abdul Saleh, have seized the Presidental palace in the capital, Sana'a.

This comes just a day after Hadi negotiated a ceasefire agreement with the rebels.

Yemen has been gripped by tribal and political turmoil in recent weeks, despite the formation of a new government in Novermber designed to end the unrest in the country.

Nine people have been killed and dozens arrested in anti-government protests in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Security forces have clashed with protesters, after mobs looted mainly Asian-owned shops and set fire to a government building.

Demonstrators in the capital, Kinshasa, are calling for President Joseph Kabila to step down next year.

Protesters contend a new law which requires conducting a nationwide census before the elections is a ploy to delay the elections and allow Kabila to maintain his grip on power.

"This is a democratic republic and we don't want to go back to the dictatorial days of Mobutu."

The Muslim employee who hid customers from an Islamist gunman at a Jewish supermarket in Paris has been granted French citizenship.

24-year-old Lassana Bathily helped hide potential victims in the store's underground stockroom after the gunman burst in, killing four people.

"Now I need to rest and help my family or my village. I would like to support young people to become integrated in France. I hope I will receive support tomorrow as I receive it today. I have to thank all the members present this evening. I'm so happy to have dual nationality."

Bathily is being hailed as a hero after ensuring the safety of the customers, then sneaking out of the building to inform police as to what was happening.

He was also able to sketch diagrams to help authorities eventually take down the gunman, saving the lives of the 15-hostages.

Bathily, who is originally from Mali, has lived in France for the past 9-years and applied for citizenship last year.

Indonesian investigators have announced they're not going to be releasing the full preliminary report into the crash of an AirAsia jet in the Java Sea.

The Indonesian government says it will release portions of their review to the public.

It's now believed the plane entered into an unrecoverable stall while trying to climb rapidly to avoid a weather system.

Questions as to why the pilot would attempt the risky maneuver and why the stall could not be recovered from could be included in the initial report, which is first being submitted to the International Civil Aviation Organization next week.

Meanwhile, Indonesian search teams are preparing to lift sections of fuselage from the ocean floor with the help of balloons.

"We already have 70 balloons. We have prepared the points of search to be delegated so that together, Banda Aceh and we will expedite this operation together. I hope that with all these components we have gathered, we can fully maximize our resources to raise the AirAsia debris."

So far 53 bodies of the 162 people killed onboard the flight have been recovered.

It's believed the rest of the victims are inside the fuselage of the plane, which went down on December 28th while on a flight from Surabaya, Indonesia to Singapore.

China and Japan have started another round of high-level talks connected to maritime issues.

"The talks, held between officials from both countries' foreign ministries, defense ministries and other maritime affairs departments, are a comprehensive way to coordinate and communicate between maritime affairs departments of the two countries."

China and Japan re-started holding meetings on maritime affairs late last year after they were shut down after the Japanese government "nationalized" the Diaoyu Islands.

The latest meeting comes on the heels of the Chinese and Japanese governments agreeing late last year to ease tensions and re-start official channels of dialogue.

Chinese authorities are launching a special campaign against cyber extortion, targeting Internet regulators and companies who take fees for deleting posts.

The 6-month-long campaign is aimed at illegal websites, wechat accounts and PR companies and their intermediaries.

"Cyber extortion is to blackmail enterprises, government offices or celebrities online. By taking advantage of their concerns on negative information about them spreading online. Criminals con them in exchange for their silence."

Migrant workers in construction industry struggling to be paid ahead of spring festival

Chinese Labor authorities have launched an overhaul of annual wage payments to ensure the millions of migrant workers in this country are properly paid before they return home for Chinese New Year's.

"We are from Guizhou, and all our family members are waiting here. Right now, there is no electricity or water. Every night, our kids are crying and screaming until midnight."

These are migrant workers from different construction teams in an abandoned construction site in South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

A year ago, the project they were working on to build a vocational school was abruptly suspended, leaving them unpaid.

This is just one of many construction sites across China where migrant workers are still waiting to be paid-in-full before the Spring Festival, which this year falls on February 19th.

The Lunar New Year is the most important festival on the Chinese calendar, and making it home for the holiday is of utmost importance for almost everyone.

As such, a number of incidents have occurred in recent weeks as people scramble to try to get paid so they can go home.

In one case, a 14-year girl committed suicide in a construction site in Hebei after failing to secure her step-father's wages for him.

A 47-year old migrant worker was killed in a dispute at a construction site in neighboring Henan when she and a group of workers tried to storm the construction site offices to get their back-pay.

A picture of her hair being stood-on by a local security officer created a firestorm of controversy on the internet.

As such, a new report put together by several Chinese universities is suggesting the prepaid funding system for construction projects and the sub-contracting system are the main reason workers aren't paid.

"If the construction industry cannot tackle the problems of prepaid funding, it means workers are conducting construction work at the expenses of their own payment. Even though our laws make it a crime for contractors who fail to pay their workers, the current labor laws aren't enough to solve the fundamental problem that has existed for years."

Construction is organized via a complex system of sub-contracting in China, involving "just-in-time" crews.

Lu Huilin is an associate professor with the sociology department at Peking University.

"Many construction workers in China are managed by their sub-contractors at the construction sites, rather than an employer in a legal sense. Although the recruitment system has been legally banned, it still exists in the construction industry."

As a response, experts are now suggesting the government set up a special body to compensate unpaid workers before asking for money from bankrupt contractors.

First, let's have a look at the numbers across the Asian markets this Wednesday evening.

Chinese markets closed significantly higher today, with Shanghai posting its biggest daily gain in over 5-years.

Market data suggests the rebound today and yesterday has been fueled by an influx of foreign capital, as some 5 billion out of the 13 billion yuan quota was used on both days through the Hong Kong-Shanghai Stock connect.

The connect scheme has seen lukewarm use since its launch, with less than 500 million yuan moving through the system on an average day.

The jump in the A-share market also had a positive influence on Hong Kong, where the Hang Seng ended nearly 2 percent higher.

The Japanese Nikkei lost half a percent after the Japanese central bank cut its inflation forecast for the year.

China's largest budget airline, Spring Airlines, has made its successful debut on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, seeing a 44-percent surge in its initial public offering price to reach 26 yuan a share.

Market observers are suggesting the run on Spring Airlines shares is the company's ability to consistently turn a profit.

The China Banking Regulatory Commission is setting up a new department tasked specifically with supervising the country's private banking sector.

For more on the moves, we are now joined live by Benjamin Cavender, Principal of China Market Research in Shanghai.

The latest stats show China became an outbound net capital exporter this past year.

The Chinese Commerce Ministry says an additional 20-billion US dollars' worth of Chinese spending went out last year than that came into the country.

"China's outbound investment reached 116 billion U.S. dollars in 2014. If the Chinese firms' investment through third parties were included, the total ODI volume would reach about 140 billion dollars. This is 20 billion more than foreign direct investment into China."

The 140 billion dollars in outbound investments is an increase of around 15 percent from a year earlier.

China Telecom has confirmed it's hoping to put in a bid for a 10-billion US dollar national broadband project in Mexico.

The company has confirmed it's in talks with several local partners in an attempt to form a consortium.

Mexico's telecom sector has been dominated by the man who has been the world's richest man, Carlos Slim.

However, Mexican regulators are forcing Slim to keep his market share below 50-percent, meaning the doors are now open for other telecom players, including bids from overseas companies.

The Chinese government is signaling interest in building a massive high-speed rail network linking the six states of the Gulf Cooperation Council.

An official with the National Development and Reform Commission is being quotes as saying the GCC states have the simple geological conditions conducive for high-speed rail.

The same official is also being quoted saying Chinese high-speed rail would be to the GCC's advantage, as it will keep costs down.

The statements come on the heels of Oman's Transport Minister revealing the GCC is looking to spend some 200 billion US dollars on a high-speed network linking the six countries, which include Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE, Bahrain, Oman and Qatar.

China National Machinery Import and Export has won the contract to build Sri Lanka's first new railway in nearly a century.

Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing has bought Britain's Eversholt Rail for some 3.8 billion US dollars.

Cheung Kong Group has reportedly poured in around 50 billion dollars into the UK, making it the biggest overseas investor in the country.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, speaking upon his arrival in Switzerland to attend this year's Davos sessions, says the Chinese government is going to continue moving forward with a proactive fiscal policy and prudent monetary policy, with more emphasis on structural reforms this year.

The comments come on the heels of new stats showing China's economic growth dropped to the lowest in over two decades last year.

The Chinese Premier is due to address the World Economic Forum later on this Wednesday.

Li Keqiang is leading a delegation of around 80 high-ranking government officials, business leaders and prominent academics.

Authorities in Shanghai have levelled punishements on 11 different officials in the city in connection with the New Year's Eve stampede that left 36 people dead and 49 others injured.

The deadly stampede on New Year's Eve occurred in Shanghai's historic riverfront area, known as the Bund.

Shanghai authorities have described it as a "public safety accident due to negligence."

Early reports suggest the attacker is a young Palestinian from the northern West Bank.

Israeli authorities haven't said what they feel the motivation for the attack may be.

However, Palestinian group Hamas is hailing the attack, describing it as "a response to Israeli terrorism."

South Korean police say an 18-year-old from the country is believed to have crossed the Turkish border into Syria, reportedly with a plan to join the Islamic State.

Police in Seoul say they're acting on information the young man crossed the border into Syria voluntarily.

South Korean authorities say they're unsure if the young man, only identified by his family name of Kim, has made contact with the Islamic State.

If confirmed, he would be the first known jihadist to join the group from South Korea.

It's believed the young man, a middle-school drop-out, made contact with Islamic State figures through social media.

Indonessian rescuers are tring to lift the fuselage of the crashed AirAsia plane to the surface of the sea.

12 floating bags have been brought on board a search and rescue ship, where the rescue team pumped them full of air and prepared to deploy them.

Only 53 bodies have been retrieved so far, but most of the remaining bodies are thought to be trapped in the fuselage of the plane.　

Indonesia's transport minister Ignasius Jonan said today that the flight was climbing at a speed of some 1,800m per minute and plunged suddenly before disappearing from radar.

The Shanghai Food and Drug Administration received more than 84-thousand calls to its 12331 hotline last year.

It says the number of calls from whistleblowers in the period almost doubled to 531.

More than 28 percent of the people providing tip-offs did not leave any contact details, which means the authority will have difficulty paying them rewards.

The food authority introduced a payment system for people who whistle blow on dubious practices related to food and drug safety in 2007. Since 2011, the maximum possible reward has been 200-thousand yuan, or 32-thousand US dollars.

Though "anonymity is guaranteed," many people prefer not to leave their details for fear of retribution, an official said.

About 60 percent of the calls last year were related to food safety issues, of which 66 percent proved accurate.

China will strengthen supervision of assets that corrupt officials transfer abroad illegally through gambling houses in Macao, the Ministry of Public Security said on Tuesday.

It is reported that ministry officials will travel to Macao in the coming week to meet with directors from Macao's financial supervisory authority and bankers. They will discuss combating such crimes.

In recent years, many corrupt Chinese officials have transferred their assets acquired illegally to overseas destinations through money laundering and some underground banks, including through Macao casinos.

They have then fled to the United States, Canada and Australia to avoid punishment.

According to the Macao Financial Intelligence Unit, from January to June 2013, the city's gambling industry received more than 900 reports of suspicious activity, an increase of more than 31 percent compared with 2012.

With an array of reading material available on the Internet, parents can help their children tackle more questionable texts by reading together with them and encouraging a healthy skepticism.

This was the advice of Singapore's Minister for Communications and Information who encouraged parents to teach their children "to read critically".

According to the minister, the Government can educate children about cyber wellness and how to ensure that whatever they are reading is factually correct, but it is parents who will have an important role to play.

This comes after the minister read a Malay storybook to an audience of children at the Central Public Library.

To encourage families to read together, the library has tips for parents and recommendations of suitable books for each age.

Presenting the findings of the latest tiger census, Environment Minister said the tiger population had risen from 1,706 in 2011 to 2,226 in 2014.

He said a number of government initiatives to streamline tiger conservation were behind the increase.

Tiger conservation practices that had proved successful in India could be adopted elsewhere, minister suggested.

Also India was willing to donate tiger cubs to the international community and play a key role in global tiger conservation.

Wildlife campaigners had been expressing concerns over dwindling numbers of tigers for some time.

One of the lead actors in The Hobbit films is here in China promoting the Chinese release of the final installment in the series, which is set to hit theatres across the country on Friday.

43-year old Richard Armitage is an English film, television and voice actor. He is best known internationally for his role as Thorin Oakenshield in Peter Jackson's film trilogy adaptation of The Hobbit.

Thorin Oakenshield is a young Dwarf leader that set out to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from Smaug the Dragon. He explains:

"It's sort of a un-fulfilled legacy that if he doesn't set out for door and take on the burden that's been given to him by his father and his grandfather, then the Kingdom Arabor will never be reclaimed. So that's a huge burden that he carries. I saw him as a kind of dying ember needed to be reignited."

The film begins with Smaug's attack on Lake-town and continues with Smaug's demise, The Attack on Dol Guldur, The Battle of the Five Armies, and the return journey.

Armitage said at the Beijing press conference that unpredictability was what kept him fascinated throughout the filming.

"It's certainly reignited me taking on this role because it became something that I never expected became completely unpredictable. And the journey that I was taken on by and the material I was given was a cherished childhood novel of mine was a real life for filming."

Like its predecessors The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, the film is produced and directed by Peter Jackson, who also directed The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

In a Weibo message, he greeted Chinese fans and said he is excited to be able to come to China. His appearance in Weibo, Chinese version of Twitter attracted thousands of fans instantly.

Filming took place primarily in New Zealand, Peter Jackson's hometown. And the movie also stars Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins, Ian McKellen as Gandalf the Grey, and Benedict Cumberbatch as Smaug.

"The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies" has made around 800-million U.S. dollars in Global box office sales.

To check whether it deserves a box office success, Chinese moviegoers can go to see it on their own on January 23.

Maria Sharapova has saved two match points in a narrow escape against the world number 150, her Russion compatriot Alexandra Panova at the Australian Open, advancing to the third round with a 6-1, 4-6, 7-5 win.　

Second-seeded Sharapova made 51 unforced errors as she went for the lines, saving some of her high-risk winners for when she needed them most.　

She faced two match points in the 10th game of the third set, ripping big forehand winners on both points against Panova, a qualifier who entered the Australian Open without a single match win at five previous majors.　

On the men's side, sixth seed Andy Murray didn't let the home crowd at the Margaret Court Arena bother him as he beat Australian Marinko Matosevic 6-1, 6-3, 6-2.　　

And it was Seventh-seeded Tomas Berdych advanced with a 7-6 (0), 6-2, 6-2 win over Austrian qualifier Jurgen Melzer.　

Rafael Nadal is taking on Tomas Smyczek. The match is in a tie-breaking 5th set. Nadal took the first set 6-2. Smyczek took the second and third sets, 6-3, 7-6, respectively. Nadal answered by taking the 4th set 6-3. And Smyczek leads the tie breaker 1-0 at last check.

7th seed Tomas Berdych, Czech Republic, beat Jurgen Melzer, of Austria, 7-6, 6-2, 6-2

And it was 2nd seed Roger Federer, Switzerland, beating Simone Bolelli, of Italy, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-2

And it was 10th seeded Ekaterina Makarova, Russia, taking out Roberta Vinci, Italy, 6-2, 6-4

FIFA Secretary General Pledges to honor commitment to Brazil after 2014 World Cup

FIFA says it will honor its commitment to give back some of the 2014 World Cup income to grassroots programs in Brazil.

While it may take years assess the impact of the World Cup in Brazil, FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke insists his organization is committed to following through on its promises in the country.

"We are working hard to make sure that our commitment (is) to be in Brazil after the World Cup, not to leave, as some media said. I mean, 'FIFA is coming to Brazil taking the money out of Brazil and run away from Brazil right after the final.' It's not true. I mean, FIFA is committed to develop and to support football wherever we organize our events."

Brazil's former Deputy Sports Minster Lois Fernandez says that the long term impact of the event will be felt all over Brazil.

"We will invest 100 million dollars that we will receive from FIFA in the states that did not host the event, make sure the benefits of the World Cup to reach to places where although the love for football is huge the infrastructure for the community cannot be compared with what we see in the big cities."

FIFA, a non-profit organization, generated more than 4 billion (US dollars) in sales from the 2014 World Cup.

Six players scored in double figures as the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Nuggets 109-99 earlier today.

In the first quarter, a dunk by Kenneth Faried on a break gave the home side an early 7-2 edge.

Later in the opening quarter, a short jumper from Kawhi Leonard cut the Spurs deficit to 20-18.

Leonard scored 17 points in the game, and pulled down 15 rebounds as well in a strong outing since returning from a hand injury.

NFL announces that 11 of 12 footballs used in AFC Championship game were underinflated

The NFL has found that 11 of 12 of the New England Patriots game balls were inflated significantly less than the NFL requires, according to an official announcement made by the league today.

The investigation found the footballs were underinflated by 2 pounds per square inch of air less than what's required by NFL regulations during the Pats' 45-7 victory over the Indianapolis Colts.

Part of the investigation that still needs further vetting is how the 11 footballs became underinflated.

The game balls provided to each team for preparation were required to be inspected and approved by referee Walt Anderson two hours and 15 minutes before kickoff before they were returned to a ball attendant before the game.

No alteration of footballs is allowed once they are approved, under league rules and regulations.

Bottom dwelling Edmonton Oilers edged out the Washington Capitals in a shootout, ending up 5-4.

Family of Yao Beina, the Chinese singer who died of breast cancer last Friday, have hinted that they may release her unpublished works.

Her father spoke at her memorial service telling the crowd that aside from songs recorded in June, she still has some tracks that have not yet been published. He declared that the family will take some time to organize them.

The memorial service yesterday in Shenzhen was attended by her family, Chinese singer Liu Huan and Na Ying, her coach on the Voice of China. Thousands of fans and local citizens flocked to pay tribute to the singer's life.

Late last year, she was hospitalized in Shenzhen, Guangdong province due to the cancer's return.

Yao, who had already made a name for herself singing theme songs for hit television shows like Legend of Zhen Huan and Feng Xiaogang's film 1942, auditioned for the second season of the Voice of China in 2013. Her wide vocal range and immaculate techniques won the hearts of the judges, and also that of the public.

The Cannes Film Festival has announced that brothers Joel and Ethan Cohen will be the festival jury's first joint chairmen.

The Cohen brothers will act as co-presidents of the panel of film makers and actors who will judge the contenders in the main competition.

The US siblings, who are 60 and 57 respectively, won the festival's Palme d'Or prize for Barton Fink in 1991. In 2013, they won the Cannes jury prize for 'Inside Llewyn Davis' and were nominated for the festival's top prize for 'No Country For Old Men' in 2007 and 'The Ladykillers' in 2004.

The Coens' trophy cabinet also boasts four Oscars, two Baftas and a Golden Globe.

Madonna's new album track listing has been released and there's a few shock surprises including a collaboration with Mike Tyson.

Retired boxing champion Mike Tyson will appear on the song 'Iconic' along with Chance the Rapper. The last musical release from the sports star was his cover of 'One Night in Bangkok' for hit film The Hangover Part 2.

Six songs from Rebel Heart, including Living for Love, have already been released following a massive demo leak last month that forced the pop star to release the album ahead of schedule.

The album which was originally planned to be a double album before the demo leaks, will be released in March.

Madonna has been confirmed as one of the performers at the upcoming Grammy awards which take place on February 8th.

Sound of music stars Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer are set to reunite at the TCM Classic Film Festival.

The sixth annual TCM Classic Music Festival will open with The Sound of Music. The stars of the 1965 film will be on hand for the movie-musical's 50th anniversary gala screening on March 26th.

The screening of the title at the festival marks the second year in a row that a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical has opened the festival. Last year, the big screen 1955 adaptation of Oklahoma! launched the festivities.

This year's lineup of restored classics, with the theme 'History According to Hollywood' also includes Apollo 13 and The Hunchback of Notre Dame'.

With her latest album 'Partners' reaching Platinum certification, the star has extended her own record for the most Platinum certifications for a woman ever.

Partners debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 chart in September last year. It was her 10th album to top that chart making her the only act to notch a number 1 album in each of the last six decades.

Barbara isn't just smashing the platinum album record, she already holds two Oscars, five Emmy's, 10 Golden Globes, eight competitive Grammys, two special Grammys and a special Tony award.

新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 20:00 2015/01/21（在线收听）