LRN PM Newscall March 18

Drew Brees says he’s ready for his next career in football as a football commentator for NBC Sports. Taylor Sharp has more…

Cut 1 (31) “ …I’m Taylor Sharp” 

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The Oregon State Board puts President F. King Alexander on probation for ten weeks for his mishandling of sexual misconduct cases during his time as President of LSU. Matt Doyle has the story.

Cut 2 (30) …I’m Matt Doyle”  

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In addition to storm recovery, it also appears that southwest Louisiana is battling two COVID issues, a higher concentration of the UK variant and a lower per capita vaccination rate. Medical Director for the area Lacey Cavanaugh says while they are concerned about the more transmissible variant, they also have a lab to test for it.

Cut 3 (09)  “…by us.”  

Cavanaugh feels storm recovery is a major factor for the issues. An influx of people from all over assisting and many people are having to reside with others in close quarters, both are helping spread the variant. As for the vaccination rate, Cavanaugh believes the numbers are misleading.

Cut 4 (08) “…then” 

Cavanaugh believes more than 8-percent are vaccinated in the region because the current number of residents isn’t reflective of the 2018 census. Cavanaugh says many have left the area after the two hurricanes and for those who are there, getting vaccinated isn’t at the top of their list.

Cut 5  (08)  “…the table” 

Cavanaugh praised the medical community in the region for their efforts with the virus and vaccinations, because they too have had to endure two hurricanes themselves.

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Drew Brees is looking forward to his new career in football as a member of the NBC Sports broadcasting team.  Brees will be a studio analyst for “Football Night in America” on Sunday nights and as a color analyst for Notre Dame football games.  Brees says he hopes fans can learn something about the game from his analysis.

Cut 6 (13) “…game now”

Brees also says he could have played another season in the NFL, but wants to spend more time with his family.

Cut 7 (12) “…it was time.”

Becoming a broadcaster is something Brees has considered for quite some time and says that he’s tried to listen and learn from the greats before him.

Cut 8 (08) “…transition to.”

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Former LSU and current Oregon State President F. King Alexander is placed on probation for his alleged mishandling of sexual assault and harassment reports during his time at LSU.

Alexander is accused of being aware of allegations against former coach Les Miles, but failing to act. Baton Rouge Senator Regina Barrow says probation is a surprisingly light sentence.

Cut 9 (12) “…LSU”

OSU students and the OSU staff union say Alexander’s tenure at LSU proves he’s more concerned with athletics than student safety. Alexander apologized and says he accepts ultimate responsibility, but also says budget cuts hampered Title Nine compliance.

Alexander’s probation and multi-week suspensions to two LSU athletic administrators have been the only punishments meted out as a result of the report. Barrow says that’s not good enough.

Cut 10 (07) “…response” 

Alexander left LSU to join Oregon State nine months ago after running LSU during the period covered by a report that detailed widespread administrative mishandling of sexual misconduct. The over 10 week-long probation sentence was ordered by the Oregon State Board of Trustees.

Barrow says the reoccurring message that the mishandling of these situations was the result of a lack of written policy won’t deter lawmakers from calling for more punitive action.

Cut 11 (07) ”  accountable”

Barrow is a member of the Louisiana Select Committee on Women and Children, a legislative committee spearheading hearings seeking more information about the LSU scandal. They will meet again next Friday.

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The American Rescue Plan includes an estimated $10.4 billion for Agriculture designed to strengthen the industry and food supply chain. Louisiana Ag Commissioner Mike Strain says the plan covers a variety of things.

Cut 12 (10) “ …agriculture.” 

Strain says the legislation includes $66-million for the Farm Loan Assistance Program for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers.

Cut 13 (11)“…forgiven.”

There’s also funding for research institutions, Strain says to provide outreach and extension to farmers in poor and rural areas and assist them with better production.

Cut 14 (11) “…in agriculture.” 

1:30 LRN Newscast March 18

According to the latest vaccination numbers from the state health department, nearly one million people in Louisiana have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine. The lowest vaccination rate is in southwest Louisiana at eight-percent. Southwest Louisiana Regional Health Director Doctor Lacey Cavanaugh has a theory on why that is…
cut 5 (08) “…table”

The American Rescue Plan includes an estimated $10.4 billion for Agriculture designed to strengthen the industry and food supply chain. Louisiana Ag Commissioner Mike Strain says the plan covers a variety of things.
Cut 12 (10) “ …agriculture.”
Strain says the plan includes $66-million for the Farm Loan Assistance Program for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers.

The Oregon State Board of Trustees places OSU President F. King Alexander on probation for ten weeks for his mishandling of sexual misconduct cases during his time as LSU’s President. Matt Doyle has the story.
Cut 2 (30) …I’m Matt Doyle”

Drew Brees hopes his new role as an analyst with NBC Sports will help in his transition from playing football for most of his life. Brees will be a color commentator on Notre Dame broadcasts and a studio analyst for NBC on Sunday nights during the NFL season. Brees believes he could have played another season, but he wants to spend more time with his family.

12:30 LRN Newscast Mar 18

Former LSU and current Oregon State President F. King Alexander is on probation for his alleged mishandling of sexual assault and harassment reports during his tenure at LSU. He’s accused of being fully aware of allegations against former coach Les Miles but failing to act. Baton Rouge Senator Regina Barrow says probation is a surprisingly light sentence.

Cut 9 (12) “…LSU”

So far Southwest Louisiana has the lowest vaccination rate of 7.8-percent. That’s almost half of the 13-percent rate of the New Orleans region. Southwest Louisiana Medical Director Lacey Cavanaugh believes the numbers are misleading since many have evacuated from the area after two hurricanes last summer.

Cut 4 (08) “…then” 

Drew Brees says he’s ready for his next career in football as a football commentator for NBC Sports. Taylor Sharp has more…

Cut 1 (31) “ …I’m Taylor Sharp” 

The state reports that nearly a million in Louisiana have received at least one dose of their COVID vaccination.

 

 

11:40 LRN Sportscast March 18

The LSU men’s basketball team is out of NCAA quarantine in Indianapolis and after multiple negative COVID-19 tests, they can now practice for Saturday’s first-round NCAA Tournament game. Coach Will Wade says it’s a different NCAA experience, but he rather be living in a hotel room in Indianapolis than in Baton Rouge preparing for next season…
cut 18 (11) “…to be here”
The Tigers will play Saturday afternoon against Saint Bonaventure in Bloomington at Indiana University’s Alumni Hall. The Bonnies won the A-10 regular-season and tournament championships and rank fifth in the nation in defense, allowing 60 points a game.

The Pelicans get another shot at Portland tonight. On Tuesday night, New Orleans blew a 17-point lead and lost by one point to the Trail Blazers. Tip-off is at nine PM.

Drew Brees says he’s ready for his next career in football. Brees will work as a studio analyst for NBC Sports on their Football Night in America show and as a color commentator during NBC’s broadcasts of Notre Dame home football games. Brees says he’s been preparing for his new role…
cut 8 (12) “…transition too”
Brees says he feels like he could play another season in the NFL, but says it’s more important for him to be around his family more.

Former LSU standout Patrick Peterson has found a new team as the perennial Pro Bowl cornerback has signed a one-year, 10-million dollar contract with the Minnesota Vikings. Peterson is 30-years-old and has 28 interceptions in his career.

LSU says it will allow tailgating with limitations at spring outdoor athletic events starting tomorrow with Tigers hosting Mississippi State in a big SEC baseball series.

11:30 LRN Newscast Mar 18

In addition to storm recovery, it also appears that southwest Louisiana is battling two COVID issues, a higher concentration of the UK variant and a lower per capita vaccination rate. Medical Director for the area Lacey Cavanaugh says while they are concerned about the more transmissible variant, they also have a lab to test for it.

Cut 3 (09)  “…by us.”  

Drew Brees will be a studio analyst for “Football Night in America” on Sunday nights with NBC Sports and a color analyst for Notre Dame football games.  Brees says he hopes fans can learn something about the game from his analysis.

Cut 6 (13) “…game now”

The attorney representing the family of Tommie McGlothen Jr., the black man who died after an incident with police officers, filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Shreveport, the police chief and officers involved Tuesday. Attorney James Carter says the four officers named in the suit, were charged by a grand jury in Caddo Parish last fall with negligent homicide and malfeasance.

Cut 11 (07) “…oversight.”

McGlothen, who had a known mental condition, passed away after the incident in April.

Neighboring states Texas and Mississippi have done away with their mask mandates and instead are merely recommending their citizens wear masks when necessary. But Governor John Bel Edwards says that approach doesn’t work…

cut 7 (08) “….part”
Edwards says masks are still necessary as not enough people are vaccinated yet.

10:30 LRN Newscast Mar 18

The attorney representing the family of Tommie McGlothen Jr., the black man who died after an incident with police officers, filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Shreveport, the police chief and officers involved Tuesday. Attorney James Carter says he tried to settle the matter amicably.

Cut 10 (12) “…very end.”

McGlothen who had a known mental condition died last April after his arrest. Cater offered a $25-million settlement last fall to the city.

Louisiana residents will receive extra time to pay off their high winter power bills after the back-to-back winter storms last month produced a huge demand for heat. Public Service Commission Chairman Craig Greene says this will help those customers who are having difficulty.

Cut 4 (08)“…for people.”

The PSC told the state’s utility providers to give customers extra time to pay off their bill from the February freeze.

The World Meteorological Organization’s Hurricane Committee retired Laura from the storm name rotation and decided the Greek alphabet will no longer be used to name systems. Along with Laura, State Climatologist Barry Keim says the committee retired Dorian, a devastating 2019 storm that hit the Bahamas, and Eta and Iota, two major storms that landed last year in Central America.

Cut 13 (04) “…Louisiana.”

93 names have now been officially retired from the storm name six-year rotation.

Will the Superdome and college football stadiums be filled next fall as they would be pre-pandemic? Governor John Bel Edwards believes so…
cut 9 (08) “…it can”
Edwards says for full stadiums to return, people need to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.

9:30 LRN Newscast March 18

Governor Edwards will provide a COVID-19 briefing today at 2:30 PM. Yesterday during his monthly Ask the Governor’s show, Edwards said he has no plans to remove the statewide mask mandate, despite improving COVID numbers. The governor says while the vaccination campaign is going well, they need more people vaccinated…
cut 8 (09) “….transmission”
Over 900,000 Louisianans have received at least one dose of a vaccine and over half a million have completed their series.

The family of Tommie McGlothen, a black man who died after he was beaten and tased by four Shreveport police officers last April has filed a federal lawsuit against Shreveport, its police chief, and the officers involved in the altercation. Attorney Larry Carter says the family is seeking justice through the judicial system.
Cut 12 (08) “…life.”
Carter says he offered the city a settlement of $25-million in October.

The World Meteorological Organization has made some big changes to tropical storm naming. Matt Doyle has more.
Cut 3 (30) “…I’m Matt Doyle.”

Drew Brees hopes his new role as an analyst with NBC Sports will help in his transition from playing football for most of his life. Brees will be a color commentator on Notre Dame broadcasts and a studio analyst for NBC on Sunday nights during the NFL season. Brees believes he could have played another season, but he wants to spend more time with his family.

8:30 LRN Newscast March 18

COVID numbers are way down but Governor Edwards says the mask mandate is here to stay for a while longer. Matt Doyle has the story.
Cut 1 (29) “…I’m Matt Doyle.”

Oregon State has placed former LSU president F- King Alexander on probation for his role in the mishandling of sexual misconduct complaints while he was leading the L-S-U system. The Oregon State University Board of Trustees is calling on Alexander to come up with an action plan on how he will rebuild the trust with the O-S-U campus.

Good news for utility customers who are facing high power bills as a result of turning their thermostats way up when the temperatures were below freezing in February. The Public Service Commission has ordered utility companies to spread out the costs of those bills over several months…
cut 6 (05) “….can be”
That’s P-S-C member Foster Campbell.

Tropical storms will no longer be named after the Greek Alphabet. The World Meteorological Organization says naming storms after the Greek Alphabet distracted from the actual impacts of the storm, there was confusion with some Greek alphabet names when translated to different languages and the pronunciation of several Greek letters are similar. State Climatologist Barry Keim says a new overflow list will be used instead…
cut 15 (08) “…the line”

7:30 LRN Newscast March 18

The Louisiana Public Service Commission has ordered utility companies to spread winter heating costs out over several months. When temperatures went below freezing in February for an extended period of time, utilities had to purchase more energy to meet customer demand. North Louisana Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell says that has led to higher than normal power bills for many customers…
cut 5 (06) “…for it”
Campbell says as a result of P-S-C’s order, customers will be given six to 12 months to pay those high winter bills.

The Greek Alphabet will no longer be used to name tropical storms after the season surpasses 21 named storms. State Climatologist Barry Keim says the World Meteorological Organization’s Hurricane Committee ditched the Greek alphabet for several reasons, the names are a distraction, the alphabet’s poor translation into other languages, and…
Cut 14 (03) “…letters.”

A federal lawsuit has been filed on behalf of the family of Tommie McGlothen, Jr, a black man who died after an altercation with Shreveport Police.
Cut 2 (30) “…I’m Brooke Thorington.”

Will the Superdome and college football stadiums be filled next fall as they would be pre-pandemic? Governor John Bel Edwards believes so…
cut 9 (08) “…it can”
Edwards says for full stadiums to return, people need to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.

6:45 LRN Sportscast March 18

The LSU basketball team is staying at a hotel in Indianapolis as they get ready to take on St. Bonaventure on Saturday afternoon in a first-round NCAA Tournament game. Head Coach Will Wade says his team arrived on Monday and had to quarantine for two days and they have been confined to their hotel.
Cut 16 (11) “…for practice today.”
Bloomington, Indiana is where LSU will play its first-round NCAA Tournament game on Saturday against St. Bonaventure. The game will take place at Indiana University’s Assembly Hall.

The bracket for LSU legend Shaquille O’ Neal has the Tigers winning the NCAA Tournament. But they have to get past the Bonnies first. St. Bonaventure won the A-10 regular-season and tournament championships and rank fifth in the nation in defense, allowing 60 points a game.

Saints Quarterback Drew Brees hopes his new role as an analyst with NBC Sports will help the transition from playing on Sundays in the fall for the last 20 years. Brees will be a color commentator on Notre Dame broadcasts and a studio analyst for NBC on Sunday nights. Brees believes he could have played another season, but he wants to spend more time with his family.

Former LSU standout Patrick Peterson has found a new team as the perennial Pro Bowl cornerback has signed a one-year, 10-million dollar contract with the Minnesota Vikings. Peterson is 30-years-old and has 28 interceptions in his career.

Will the Superdome and college football stadiums be filled next fall as they would be pre-pandemic? Governor John Bel Edwards believes so…
cut 9 (08) “…it can”
Edwards says for full stadiums to return, people need to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.