The Associated Press

A special committee set up to ensure the editorial integrity of The Wall Street Journal following its 2007 purchase by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. said Monday it found no evidence of wrongdoing at the newspaper.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - State attorneys general are negotiating to give major banks wide immunity over irregularities in handling foreclosures, even as evidence has emerged that banks are continuing to file questionable documents.

A security and privacy expert explains how cracking voicemails takes little skill.. The fallout from the U.K. scandal implicating Rupert Murdoch's media empire of phone hacking has reached this side of the pond.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A special committee formed to oversee the integrity of Dow Jones & Co under parent News Corp is very concerned about the British phone hacking scandal that has shaken Rupert Murdoch's media empire.

ORLANDO, Fla (Reuters) - Amid tight security, Casey Anthony, a Florida woman found not guilty of murdering her 2-year-old daughter Caylee, walked out of a Florida jail early on Sunday.

A Christian conservative group has begun the process of repealing California's controversial gay history bill. A Christian conservative group has begun the process of repealing California's controversial gay history bill. California Governor Jerry Brown on Thursday signed the measure which mandates the inclusion of the historical contributions of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans in the state's textbooks. Starting as early as the 2013-2014 school year, the FAIR Education Act, sponsored by state Senator Mark Leno, a Democrat, requires the California Board of Education and local school districts to include the curriculum in their lesson plans. The Associated Press on Friday reported that the Sacramento-based group Capitol Resources Institute has started the process for a statewide vote to overturn the law. Opponents of the measure have labeled it an attack on the family, and several have called on parents to remove their children from the public school system. The Rev. Lou

NRC should overhaul regulations to assure the public that plants are safe. A special task force of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued a report Wednesday calling for improved oversight and safety for American nuclear power plants.The task force considered the catastrophe at the nuclear power plant in Japan to determine what the United States should do to protect against disaster. Although it said that such a natural event like the massive earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan was unlikely here, the task force said more could still be done in the United States.

Mitt Romney on Tuesday became the highest profile 2012 presidential candidate to reject an anti-gay marriage pledge. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney on Tuesday became the most highest profile 2012 presidential candidate to reject an anti-gay marriage pledge, the AP reported. The pledge, titled The Marriage Vow: A Declaration of Dependence Upon Marriage and Family, was introduced last week by the Iowa-based Christian conservative group The Family Leader. It asks presidential candidates to ?vigorously? oppose marriage equality, be faithful to their own spouse, vow to protect women and children from pornography and reject Sharia law because it is a ?form of totalitarian control.? The group, influential among social conservatives, has said it will not endorse any candidate that does not sign the pledge. The group drew heated criticism for including the passage that an African-America baby born into slavery in 1860 was more likely to be raised in a two-parent household than after

U.S. stocks slipped Tuesday after Ireland's government bonds were downgraded by Moody's to junk status, while gold stocks glistered on Bay Street. . Today on Stockhouse

Vietnamese police forcibly dispersed an anti-China rally on Sunday and arrested at least 10 people, including journalists, after a series of protests over tensions in the South China Sea.

Pakistan did not file an official complaint over a Gay Pride event held at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad last month. The U.S. State Department says Pakistan did not file an official complaint? over a Gay Pride event held at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad last month. The June 26 event was co-hosted by the U.S. deputy ambassador, Richard Hoagland, and the affinity group Gays and Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies (GLIFAA), and was attended by over 75 people, including U.S. Embassy officials, military representatives, foreign diplomats and leaders of the Pakistani LGBT advocacy groups, the Associated Press reported. According to the United Nations, gay sex is illegal in Pakistan and offenders face up to 2 years imprisonment. The event sparked several demonstrations critical of the move and was condemned by a group of conservative Islamic political and religious officials. ?Such people are the curse of society and social garbage,? the group said in a statement. ?They don't deserve to be M

North American stocks rose Thursday, powered by rising commodities, and positive U.S. employment news, which offers hope that the U.S. economy is moving out of a soft patch. . Today on Stockhouse

Georgia on Thursday arrested the personal photographer of President Mikheil Saakashvili and three other photojournalists for allegedly spying for a foreign country, the interior ministry said.

Just days after passage of a civil unions law, Rhode Island gay marriage backers vow to return next year. Just days after Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee signed a civil unions bill into law, backers of full marriage for gay and lesbian couples have vowed to return next year. Chafee on Saturday signed the civil unions bill into law, making Rhode Island the fifth after Illinois, New Jersey, Delaware and Hawaii to recognize gay couples with civil unions. The governor, who supports giving gay couples the right to marry, expressed reservations about the law's limited benefits but added that it would protect thousands of families, saying that the legislation ?brings tangible rights and benefits to thousands of Rhode Islanders? and that it ?provides a foundation from which we will continue to fight for full marriage equality.? Lawmakers shifted from supporting a gay marriage law to civil unions after it became clear a marriage bill would not clear the Republican-controlled Senate. Gay ri

Canadian stocks rose Tuesday, powered by surging oil and gold prices. But U.S. stocks failed to get much of a lift from positive U.S. factory order data. . Today on Stockhouse

The Obama administration on Friday filed a brief in federal court that said the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional. The Obama administration on Friday filed a brief in federal court that said the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional. The 1996 law bars federal agencies from recognizing the legal marriages of gay and lesbian couples. Karen Golinski, a 9th U.S. Circuit of Appeals lawyer, sued the government after her employer denied health insurance coverage to her wife, Amy Cunninghis. The U.S. Office of Personnel (OPM) argues that DOMA blocks such benefits. In its brief, however, the Justice Department, which announced earlier it would no longer defend the law in court, sided with Golinski. ?The official legislative record makes plain that DOMA Section 3 was motivated in large part by animus toward gay and lesbian individuals and their intimate relationships, and Congress identified no other interest that is materially advanced by Section 3,? the DOJ wrote.

U.S. stocks jumped Friday after an index on national manufacturing activity in June beat estimates. Canadian markets were closed Friday to mark the Canada Day celebrations . Today on Stockhouse Your opinion matters. Submit an article to Stockhouse today at submissions@stockhouse.com. Submission guidelines can be found here.

Pakistan told the United States to leave a remote desert air base reportedly used as a hub for covert CIA drone attacks, Defence Minister Ahmed Mukhtar was quoted by state media as saying on Wednesday.

Osama bin Laden was so worried about Al-Qaeda's image that he proposed changing the group's name to try improve its "brand," a US official said Friday.

North American stock markets fell sharply Thursday following a jump in jobless claims and drop in the oil price, but pared its losses on news Greece may be close to a new austerity deal. . Today on Stockhouse