United States

Columbus, Ohio -- Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel has been given a raise that, at $3.5 million a year, makes him the highest paid coach in the Big Ten Conference.

There's no getting around it: The past year has been awful for dividend-focused investors.

Companies that not along ago were considered bastions of dividend fortitude -- Citigroup (NYSE: C), Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM), etc. -- have been slashing payouts left and right. In fact, there were more dividend cuts last quarter than in any quarter since 1991.

New York -- It's back to school for many U.S. students and in these tough times with a lot of clothes to buy it's the grandparents footing the bill, a survey indicates.

Los Angeles -- The California blogger accused of posting nine unreleased Guns N' Roses songs on the Internet reportedly could get up to three years in prison if convicted.

Denver -- Jennifer Lopez was among the hosts of an event honoring children's rights advocate Marian Wright Edelman in Denver this week, organizers said.

New York -- U.S. stock indexes edged lower Friday as oil prices climbed and Tropical Storm Gustav bore closer to the Gulf of Mexico.

Van Nuys, Calif -- Actress and singer Mackenzie Phillips, who was arrested this week for alleged drug possession, has been released from Van Nuys Jail after posting $10,000 bail.

Los Angeles -- NBC says it is picking up nine additional episodes of its sophomore drama "Chuck" to give the U.S. series a full-season order for 2008-09.

Los Angeles -- Shannen Doherty says a widely circulated story that she and her "Beverly Hills, 90210" co-star Jennie Garth once engaged in fisticuffs is untrue.

Burbank, Calif -- NBC says it has renewed the television competition show "America's Got Talent" for a fourth season.

Los Angeles -- David Duchovny's lawyer says the married U.S. television and film actor is undergoing treatment for sex addiction.

Aaron Sorkin, an acclaimed Hollywood writer, is writing a movie about the online social networking site Facebook Inc. Sorkin, a playwright and screenwriter and the creator of the television series “The West Wing,” announced on his own new Facebook page that he has agreed to pen a film about the founders of social networking site Facebook.

A study indicates that Magnesium sulfate partially decreases the risk of cerebral palsy in the babies that are born to mothers who are at the danger of preterm delivery.