The Briefing - Your Wednesday morning news catch up

Welcome to your Wednesday morning briefing. Let us ensure you’re up to speed on what’s happening and are prepared for the day ahead.

Wed, 05 Nov, 2014 - 00:00

BRIEFING TOP STORY

THE BURDEN OF RAPE: EMMA SULKOWICZ CARRIES THAT WEIGHT

EMMA Sulkowicz, a senior visual arts student at Columbia University in the US, has been lugging a 50 lb mattress around her college campus for months in a protest against the college’s failure to expel the man who raped her.

IRISH NEWS

ATTEMPTS TO CLARIFY WATER CHARGES BACKFIRES

The first attempts by ministers to bring "clarity" to water charging ended in more confusion as the Government appeared to backtrack on how much a family of four adults could expect to pay.

WRITE THE STORY YOU WANT TO HEAR, EVA TELLS WOMEN

Actress Eva Longoria has urged women to create their ideal roles in film and television and take it upon themselves to "write the story you want to hear". The businesswoman and philanthropist took to the stage of the Web Summit to discuss a range of topics.

WORLD NEWS

SWIFT FLEXES MUSCLES TO BREAK UP WITH SPOTIFY

Taylor Swift, the US pop-country singer who parlayed heartache into global super-stardom, has flexed her showbiz muscles and dump Spotify — and the music streaming company doesn’t want to let go.

REPUBLICANS POISED FOR MID-TERM GAINS

Sleeping with numerous women protects a man from prostate cancer, a study has found.

SPORT

RODGERS DEFIANT AFTER REAL GAMBLE

Brendan Rodgers stood by his selection gamble as predictions of a rout proved to be well wide the mark after Liverpool’s weakened side produced a disciplined if not ultimately successful performance at the Bernabeu.

WENGER STUNNED BY GUNNERS' COLLAPSE

On a night when all the headlines should have been about Arsenal’s new talisman Alexis Sanchez and a place in the Champions League knockout stages, their porous, nervous defence are instead under scrutiny after Arsene Wenger’s side were horribly and embarrassingly taken apart by Anderlecht to throw away a three-goal lead and draw 3-3 at the Emirates.

BUSINESS

IRISH LIFE STAFF VOTE TO ACCEPT PAY HIKE DEAL

Almost 1,000 workers in Irish Life have voted overwhelmingly to accept a Labour Court recommendation which will result in some of them getting a pay increase of as much as 7%.

VIEWPOINTS

THE BIGGER PICTURE IS THE COLLAPSE OF ESTABLISHMENT POLITICS

STICK with me honey, and you’ll be farting through silk” was the lure of Robert Mitchum for an unnamed actress. History doesn’t record if she filtered her flatulence through that fine fabric.

EXAMVIRAL

SALES BOOM FOR SWIFT ALBUM

Taylor Swift has given the record industry some good news – she’s notched up sales of almost 1.3 million copies of her new album in just its first week.

SHOWBIZ

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BEMEDICT CUMBERBATCH ANNOUNCES ENGAGEMENT WITH NEWSPAPER SMALL AD

Benedict Cumberbatch has gotten engaged - to a girlfriend that apparently few people knew he had.

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