NBC cancels Canadian co-production The Listener

U.S. network NBC is to replace Canadian co-production The Listener with Law and Order reruns for the rest of the summer.

The CTV program, starring Craig Olejnik as a paramedic who is telepathic, was a poor ratings performer in the U.S., NBC said.

The series began June 4 on CTV and NBC and aired its last episode Thursday on the U.S. network.

Canadian broadcaster CTV and affiliate Space will continue to air The Listener for the rest of the summer. CTV has not yet made a decision on whether to continue production on the series.

NBC has said it will make the five remaining episodes available via streaming.

The Toronto-shot drama is produced by Shaftesbury Films.

Fox International Channels holds the international cable and satellite TV rights to The Listener.

Canadian shows Flashpoint, Copper and The Bridge also have been picked up by U.S. networks.

Citigroup close to deal with regulator: report

LONDON (Reuters) – Citigroup Inc (C.N) is close to a secret agreement with one of its main regulators that will increase scrutiny for the bank, the Financial Times reported in its Thursday edition.

Citing "people close to the situation," the paper said the deal had been discussed in recent weeks amid increased pressure on Citi from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and could be finalized soon.

The agreement was said to require Citi to strengthen its board and governance, improve its asset quality, better manage expenses and provide more information on capital and liquidity.

Cats purrfect the art of getting what they want: study

LONDON (AFP) — Cats coax their owners into giving them what they want with a special purr that blends their normal soft, low sound with a high-pitched element that is hard to ignore, researchers said on Tuesday.

The high-frequency element is similar to a cry or a meow, and cats incorporate this into their normal, contended purr to exploit the nurturing instincts of humans for their own needs -- usually to get fed, according to scientists.

Lead author Dr Karen McComb of Sussex University said she initiated the study after being repeatedly woken up in the mornings by her own cat, Pepo.

"I wondered why this purring sounded so annoying and was so difficult to ignore. Talking with other cat owners, I found that some of them -- including co-author Anna Taylor -- also had cats who showed similar behaviour," she said.

Obama's speech sparks calls for reform across Africa

JOHANNESBURG (AFP) — US President Barack Obama's condemnation of Africa's "big men" resonated across the continent, creating a chorus of calls Monday for better governance in countries from Nigeria to Zimbabwe.

Obama received an ecstatic welcome during his one-day visit Saturday with huge crowds lining the streets of Ghana's capital Accra, where he urged Africans to demand stronger government in order to seize control of their own future.

But as the euphoria died down after the visit by the first African-American president, many nations were left soul-searching over their own track records -- no where more so than in Kenya, the homeland of Obama's father.

Obama's decision to make his first visit south of the Sahara in Ghana again drew attention to last year's post-election violence in Kenya and the problems of corruption in a country once seen as a development success story.

Tribute before UK Thriller show

The lights of a West End theatre have been dimmed for one minute to mark Michael Jackson's memorial service.

The tribute was paid to the King of Pop at the Lyric Theatre, in Shaftesbury Avenue, London, before the latest performance of Thriller Live, a show celebrating music from the star and the Jackson 5.

Roger Wright, one of the lead vocalists, addressed the audience before the first number and said: "Michael Jackson was an inspiration for so many artists and millions of people all around the world."

He continued: "When we heard the news that Michael passed away so suddenly we were all deeply shocked and saddened.

"During his lifetime Michael gave us so much joy, through his beautiful voice, his music, his songs, his rhythm, his dance and classic performances."

Mr Wright then led the audience and cast in a one-minute silence, during which many members of the crowd bowed their heads.

US welcomes Amano as new head of IAEA

WASHINGTON (AFP) — US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Friday welcomed the appointment of Japan's Yukiya Amano as the new head of the Vienna-based UN nuclear watchdog.

"I would like to offer my congratulations to Yukiya Amano of Japan on his appointment as the next director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)," Clinton said in a statement.

The IAEA, she added, "represents the premier international institution for promoting the safe and secure application of nuclear energy in the pursuit of prosperity, and working jointly on global challenges such as nuclear terrorism and proliferation.

"In selecting Ambassador Amano, the member states of the IAEA reiterate their common resolve to collaborate on these pressing issues," she added.

Tsvangirai: Zimbabwe coalition not in danger

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Zimbabwe's troubled coalition government is in no danger of collapsing despite accusations that President Robert Mugabe's party is blocking reform, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai said Tuesday.

Tsvangirai, a former opposition leader who joined Mugabe in the unity government in February, spoke to reporters a day after one of Tsvangirai's top deputies said their party was considering disengaging from the coalition.

Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change has complained about harassment and arrests of Mugabe's opponents and Mugabe's unilateral appointments of top officials. But Tsvangirai said Tuesday that leaders must stand by their political commitments.

"There are frustrations," Tsvangirai said of the comments Monday from his deputy, Thokozani Khupe, about disengaging. But "I can assure you there's no pulling out of this agreement. There's no reason the government is going to collapse."

India to play triangular tournament in Sri Lanka

NEW DELHI (AFP) — India will play a triangular one-day international tournament in Sri Lanka in September with New Zealand as the third team, the country's cricket board said on Saturday.

The teams will play each other once with the top two advancing to the final, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said in a statement.

"A total of four matches will be played during the short tour," it said adding that the itinerary will be announced shortly.

The Indian team is currently playing in a four-match one-day international series in the West Indies after an early exit from the World Twenty20 in England.

The biennial Champions Trophy, to be hosted by South Africa and involving the top eight teams, is also scheduled for September.

Obama makes 11th-hour climate change push

WASHINGTON (AFP) — US President Barack Obama urged lawmakers Thursday to pass a historic global warming bill, amid down-to-the-wire campaigning on the eve of a tense vote in the House of Representatives.

"I know this is going to be a close vote, in part because of the misinformation that is out there that suggests there is somehow a contradiction between investing in clean energy and our economic growth," Obama said.

The House was due to take up the bill, one of the president's cherished domestic priorities, on Friday and its Democratic backers and Republican foes were battling with all eyes on the 218 votes needed to ensure passage.

"My call to those members of Congress who are still on the fence as well as to the American people is this: We cannot be afraid of the future, we can't be prisoners of the past," Obama said in the White House Rose Garden.

UK Muslim group faults Sarkozy over burqa remarks

PARIS (AP) — A top Muslim group in Britain lashed out at Nicolas Sarkozy as "patronizing and offensive" on Tuesday, after the French president said body- and face-covering Islamic garments such as the burqa turn women into prisoners.

In Paris, parliament formally created a commission Tuesday to study the wearing of body-cloaking Muslim robes in France, a day after Sarkozy told lawmakers that the burqa would not be welcome in the country.

A top official with the Muslim Council of Britain, an umbrella organization for British Muslim groups, accused Sarkozy of "divisive politics," and said his comments could fan an "Islamophobic reaction" in Europe.

"It is patronizing and offensive to suggest that those Muslim women who wear the burqa do so because of pressure or oppression by their male partners or guardians," the council's assistant secretary-general, Reefat Drabu, said in a statement. "Such suggestions can legitimately be perceived as antagonistic towards Islam."