In today’s top news, police say they are “reasonably sure” fugitive ex-cop Christopher Dorner died in a cabin fire, Black leaders say they were happy to hear President Obama address urban issues in the State of the Union address and the CDC says there is an “ongoing, severe epidemic” of STDs in the U.S.

Police say they are “reasonably sure” fugitive ex-cop Christopher Dorner died in a cabin fire. [CNN]

Former L.A. cop Christopher Dorner has a bevy of online supporters. [NYDN]

Black leaders say they were happy to hear President Obama address urban issues in the State of the Union address. [BET]

The CDC says there is an “ongoing, severe epidemic” of STDs in the U.S. [NBCNews]

A controversial lyric of Lil Wayne’s has been condemned by the family of Emmett Till. [BET]

Three men were charges for the brutal, broad-daylight beating of a New Jersey man. [Grio]

Many African-Americans hailed President Obama’s call to raise the minimum wage to $9. [BET]

South African paralympic champion Oscar Pistorious was charged with murder after his girlfriend was found dead in his apartment. [AJE]

Detroit Mayor Dave Bing says Michigan’s state government is also to blame for the city’s decline. [Reuters]

Kenyan presidential candidate Uhuru Kenyatta has asked the International Criminal Court to delay his crimes against humanity trial. [Reuters]

In today’s top news, Beyoncé will sing the national anthem at the 57th presidential inauguration, 22 candidates have stepped up to fill the seat vacated by former Illinois congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. and cable network MSNBC saw a 60 percent jump in Black viewership during 2012.

Beyoncé will sing the national anthem at the 57th presidential inauguration. [Grio]

Twenty-two candidates have stepped up to fill the seat vacated by former Illinois congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. [BET]

Cable network MSNBC saw a 60 percent jump in Black viewership during 2012. [ShadowandAct]

A N.Y. federal judge ruled stop-and-frisk unconstitutional in the Bronx. [BET]

New York’s governor Andrew Cuomo will propose a ban on assault weapons. [AP]

Laurence Fishburne got a restraining order on an alleged stalker who has tried to evict him from his own home. [BET]

The CDC says 1 in 5 high school girls binge drink. [CNN]

2012 was the U.S.’s hottest year on record. [Reuters]

Uganda returned $5 million in embezzled aid to Ireland. [Reuters]

South Africa’s farm workers stage mass strike over unfair wages amid “naked racism and white arrogance.” [BBC]

In today’s top news, Michelle Obama writes an open letter to Newtown, church bells in Newtown chimes 26 times in honor of the Sandy Hook shooting victims, and Fat Joe pleads guilty to tax evasion.

Michelle Obama writes an open letter to Newtown. [BET]

Church bells in Newtown chimes 26 times in honor of the Sandy Hook shooting victims. [NBCNews]

Fat Joe pleads guilty to tax evasion. [BET]

Sarah Palin bashed President Obama’s TIME Person of the Year win. [CNN]

The CDC reports that new infections of HIV among African-American women have declined. [Chicago Sun-Times]

Singer Frank Ocean is facing a $1 million lawsuit from his estranged father. [BET]

Katt Williams was detained in front of a Subway restaurant. [TMZ]

Cuba Gooding Jr., Vanessa Williams and Cicely Tyson will star in the Broadway play “The Trip to Bountiful.” [Grio]

ESPN suspends host Rob Parker for RGIII comments. [Grio]

Archbishop Desmond Tutu likens Uganda’s anti-gay laws to apartheid. [Sapa-AFP]

Humanitarian groups warn that a Mali intervention will harm civilians. [VOA]

In today’s top news, President Obama met with House Speaker John Boehner over the weekend to discuss the fiscal cliff, Nelson Mandela was hospitalized for unspecified medical tests and Manny Pacquiao says he has no plans to retire after devastating knockout.

President Obama met with House Speaker John Boehner over the weekend to discuss the fiscal cliff. [NBCNews]

Nelson Mandela was hospitalized this weekend for unspecified medical tests. [BET]

Manny Pacquiao says he has no plans to retire after devastating knockout. [Reuters]

Analysts say the lineup of replacement candidates for Jessie Jackson Jr.’s House seat has no standout star. [WSJ]

The L.A.P.D. apologized to the Notorious B.I.G.’s family after his autopsy report was released. [BET]

Former IMF leader Dominique Strauss-Kahn close to settling his sexual assault case with hotel maid Nafissatou Diallo. [AP]

A Black high school principal in West Virginia is under fire after forcing students to sing “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” [Grio]

The CDC announces that Black women have the highest obesity rate. [AP]

Toni Braxton was hospitalized for complications from lupus. [BET]

John Mahama was declared the winner of Ghana’s presidential election. [AP]

In today’s top news, Michael Jackson’s mother is reportedly no longer missing, Usher’s stepson Kyle Glover is taken off life support, and politicians reconsider gun laws after movie shooting.

Usher’s stepson Kyle Glover passed away this weekend. [BET]

Politicians are considering tighter federal gun laws after Aurora movie shooting. [CNN]

Michael Jackson’s mother, who was reported as missing, is reportedly “fine.” [BET]

Rupert Murdoch has stepped down from the boards of News Corp’s U.K. newspapers. [FT]

BET, MTV, Nickelodeon and other channels return to DirecTV subscribers. [Chicago Times]

Apple predicts a dip in earnings as consumers hold out for the new iPhone. [Bloomberg]

Penn State’s removal of Joe Paterno statue incites anger within the university’s community. [MSNBC]

Eating less salt could prevent stroke and cancer deaths. [BBC]

CDC: 1 in 13 women drink alcohol during pregnancy despite major health risks. [ABC]

South Sudanese runner will race under the Olympic flag after denying Sudan’s offer. [REUTERS]

In today’s top news, FAMU’s board of trustees issued a vote of no confidence for President James Ammons, another man allegedly high on bath salts bites a chunk off of someone’s face and  Lauryn Hill is in hot water for failing to pay taxes on $1.8 million in income.

FAMU’s board of trustees issued a vote of no confidence for university president James Ammons over his handling of the hazing scandal. [BET]

Another man allegedly high on bath salts bites a chunk off of someone’s face. [KATC]

The DOJ claims Lauryn Hill failed to pay taxes on $1.8 million in income. [Reuters]

The CDC says nearly 60 percent of teens are texting and driving. [AP]

Suicides among U.S. troops are rising. [AP]

Basketball Wives star Evelyn Lozada pens a letter to her 7-year-old self. [BET]

Rising rapper Azealia Banks ditches Lady Gaga’s manager for her beau. [BET]

A study shows that regular meditation can help Black teens skirt heart problems later on in life. [ScienceDaily]

A man whose wife was killed in a Nigerian plane crash this weekend is suing Boeing and the estate of the pilot in U.S. court. [CNN]

The Netherlands’ soccer league claims racist chants were yelled at members of the team during a recent training session in Poland. [BBC]

Nearly half of HIV-positive young people don’t realize that they’ve been infected, according to U.S. health officials. In fact, says the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fewer than a quarter – 22 percent – of sexually active high school students are tested for the virus, which causes AIDS. “At the end of 2006, an estimated 48 percent of adolescents and young adults infected with HIV were unaware of their infection, representing missed opportunities for diagnosis, treatment, and reduction in the number of new HIV transmissions,” the CDC said. Using data from a 2007 survey of ninth- to 11th-graders, the CDC found that people ages 12 to 24 represented 4.4 percent of the estimated 1.1 million people in the United States infected with HIV. Still, that number represented 10 percent of the estimated 232,700 people living with the virus without knowing it. The CDC recommends that doctors offer HIV screening as part of routine checkups for U.S. high school students.

Sexually transmitted diseases are on the rapid rise throughout the United States, reports Mary Engel of The Los Angeles Times. She writes in Wednesday’s edition that: “Rates of the sexually transmitted disease chlamydia are climbing in the U.S., and rates of syphilis – once on the verge of elimination – rose for the seventh consecutive year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday in its annual report on STDs. Read the rest here.

Government doctors fight staph infection.

Just as NBA Star Grant Hill rallies others who have experience with the flesh-eating staph infection known as MRSA, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention launched a campaign to make parents more aware of the dangerous and potentially deadly effects of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The government campaign hopes to get parents to identify, prevent and combat the infection. Often mistaken for a spider bite as the symptoms, MRSA also causes painful, red, swollen areas on skin that sometimes ooz puss, experts say. MRSA infection begins as a bump or infected area on the skin, is warm to touch and maybe accompanied by fever. It is contracted when someone touches an infected area or shares a personal item with someone who is already infected. Athletes are more prone to this infection, but it is also common at hospitals. To prevent the disease, the CDC advises frequent hand-washing, no sharing of personal items such as towels and to keep any wound or cut clean and bandaged. Early detection is always advisable as the infection at a later stage becomes difficult to treat. As part of the awareness campaign, the CDC hopes to develop Web sites, brochures, fact sheets, posters, radio and print public services, Web banners and mom-blogging sites. To find out more about Hill’s personal experience with the deadly staff infection and the Stop MRSA Now campaign go to BET.com/Body & Soul.  

Study: Fast-Food Ads Target Blacks.   A higher exposure to fast-food ads and marketing of other fatty foods is in part to blame for why overweight and obesity rates are such a bigger problem for African Americans (68.9 percent) than for Whites (59.5 percent), says the numbers crunched by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Read more at BET.com’s Body & Soul.
 

Blacks with lung disease have twice the cancer risk. Blacks with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease – including chronic bronchitis and some types of serious chronic asthma – have twice the risk of developing lung cancer than Whites with the condition, according to a study published in the journal Cancer Prevention Research, Reuters reports. For the study, lead researcher Carol Etzel of the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center and colleagues developed a risk assessment model to help predict Blacks’ risk for lung cancer. Researchers analyzed data on 491 Blacks with lung cancer and 497 Blacks without the disease and compared those numbers against models that measured the disease in Whites. Researchers said the model will help doctors better predict lung cancer risk. The new model found that Black men with a history of chronic lung disease, often called COPD, had a more than a six-fold increased risk of developing lung cancer, which is about the same risk for those who smoke. According to Reuters, both Black and White smokers have a risk of lung cancer six times higher than that of non-smokers. Smoking is the leading cause of COPD, but pollution, and other environmental factors also play a role, Reuters reports. “What we hope is that a doctor can use these models to encourage their patients to take steps to prevent lung cancer,” Dr. Ezel says. “Even if they are never smokers, they can be at risk.”