Crain's Daily News Alert prepared for Top Executives

CHICAGOBUSINESS — POWERED BY CRAIN'S — Daily Business Briefing CRAIN'S LISTS SEND LETTERS TO THE EDITOR MULTIMEDIA WEEKLY JOB CHANGES TOP HEADLINES Thursday, April 23, 2009 · Metro Chicago unemployment up to 9.3% · Local home sales fall 26% in March · CME profit falls, but execs optimistic · Exelon's 1Q profit jumps 23% on nukes, higher rates · Foreclosure suit hits Evanston condos · Jewel cuts prices to lure shoppers · Former Blagojevich aide pleads 'not guilty' · Fitch lowers outlook on General Growth CMBS · GATX profit falls but firm maintains full-year earnings forecast · OfficeMax downgraded again by Moody's · 10 things to do this weekend  · Quigley goes for the gold; Daley sags in poll; Tony Blair impresses: Hinz blog · Ex-Ald. Natarus takes the stage; Ebert's $1M thumbs-up: Taking Names blog · Trib sports' dark day, Fire's premium seats, and more: Biz of Sports blog  Final Markets Dow Jones 7,957.06 +70.49 +0.89% NASDAQ 1,652.21 +6.09 +0.37% Crain's Index 63.51 +0.130 +0.205% » View Other Top Headlines ADVERTISEMENT Support the Chicago River's continued recovery & get benefits such as FREE admission to the McCormick Tribune Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum by joining our museum's Corporate Club. Learn the benefits to your company, community & the environment at bridgehousemuseum.org. OTHER HEADLINES · O'Hare expansion foe drops fight Daily Herald · U.S. is said to prepare bankruptcy filing for Chrysler New York Times · Abbott in court over Hospira spinoff Daily Herald · Minn. AG tells Ill. tollway to stop sending tickets Fox 9 Crain's Chicago Business | 360 N. Michigan Ave. | Chicago, IL 60601 ADVERTISEMENT TODAY'S FEATURES Chicago Business Today - April 23 President Obama makes his case to credit card company executives. Local home sales plunge from a year ago but are showing signs of improvement. And as Tribune undergoes another round of layoffs, the company asks a court to approve millions of dollars in bonuses to managers.Read More · Crain's full coverage of General Growth · Chicago's largest privately held companies · Entrepreneurs in Action: TopGolf · Road to Recovery: What's ahead for Chicago SIGN UP FOR CUSTOM ALERTS Industries Companies Executives » Account Settings LISTEN LIVE: Traffic, weather and news from our news partner WBBM-AM.

Media Matters Daily Summary

Here are today's news items from Media Matters for America, click on the title or 'read more' to read the entirety of each story. Media ignore facts undermining GOP calls for Napolitano resignation The Politico, Roll Call, and TheHill.com uncritically quoted Republican congressmen suggesting that the DHS report on right-wing extremist groups was "politic[ally]" motivated. None of the articles noted that DHS also issued an assessment of left-wing extremism. Read More NY Times drew false "contrast" between Blair, other Obama officials The New York Times purported to draw a "contrast" between Dennis Blair, who has said that harsh interrogation techniques yielded "high value information," and "President Obama and most of his top aides," who have argued the use of the techniques "betrayed American values." In fact, Blair has also said he opposes their use. Read More O'Reilly revived "wall" falsehood to suggest Holder -- not Bush officials -- should be "prosecuted" Bill O'Reilly falsely claimed "Eric Holder and Janet Reno put the wall up between the FBI and the CIA." In fact, the guidelines to which O'Reilly referred had no impact on communications between the FBI and the CIA, the Department of Defense, or any other agencies. Read More Political History 101: O'Reilly falsely claimed Nixon never met with Mao Bill O'Reilly falsely claimed Richard Nixon never met Mao Zedong. In fact, Nixon met with Mao in February 1972. Read More Fox News' Hemmer "keeping track of the stimulus money" -- by lifting research from GOP website Bill Hemmer repeatedly suggested information about four "interesting" projects reportedly funded by the recovery act was obtained through Fox News' own research, even though nearly all of the information Hemmer mentioned, as well as that included in on-screen text and graphics, first appeared on Rep. Eric Cantor's Republican Whip website. Read More More Fox figures pick up tenuous claim that harsh interrogations thwarted L.A. plot Neil Cavuto, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, and Catherine Herridge joined other Fox News figures in advancing Marc Thiessen's claim that the use of harsh interrogations techniques on Khalid Shaikh Mohammed "stopped an attack on the Library Tower." But the Bush administration has said that the attack was thwarted more than a year before Mohammed was captured. Read More Fox News greets alleged torture with antics Many on Fox News have greeted the release of Justice Department memos authorizing the CIA's use of harsh interrogation techniques with antics that mock the notion that these practices constitute torture. Read More Conservative media claim prosecution of Bush administration officials will turn U.S. into "banana republic" Conservative media figures are comparing possible prosecutions of Bush administration officials for their roles in authorizing the use of harsh interrogation techniques to circumstances in a "banana republic," in "Third World ... dictatorships," or "some little Latin American country that's run by ... the latest junta." Read More You can help support our work; become a volunteer media monitor, or donate to Media Matters for America.

NYT: Chrysler could file bankruptcy next week - The New York Times- msnbc.com

NYT: Chrysler could file bankruptcy next week - The New York Times- msnbc.com: "The Treasury Department is preparing a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing for Chrysler that could come as soon as next week, people with direct knowledge of the action said Thursday."

Ford shares rise on smaller-than-expected loss

Ford shares rise on smaller-than-expected loss: "Ford Motor Co posted a smaller-than-expected first-quarter loss and said it was on track to at least break even in 2011 and did not expect to seek U.S. government loans, sending its shares up more than 22 percent."

Sixty die in deadliest Iraq bombing since June

Sixty die in deadliest Iraq bombing since June: "In a second day of major bloodshed, two suicide bombers wearing explosive vests blew themselves up at the gates of a Shi'ite Muslim shrine in Baghdad on Friday, killing 60 people, Iraqi police said."