Feuds

FLORESTA, Brazil - The little priest leans in, as though to make a confession. The subject is forbidden, but tonight he will talk. " A violencia ," he says. The violence of his account seems impossible. This small town, called Floresta, blooms in Brazil's sertao , a wild and arid land. On its surface, Floresta is all pinks and yellows and purples, its facades covered with thick layers of paint. The houses stand in rows around a tree-lined square, and in the center sits a church.

A Los Angeles judge ordered an investigation Friday into the care ofMichael Jackson'schildren, capping a tumultuous week of family feuding in which some relatives of the late pop star accused others of kidnapping their elderly matriarch. Superior Court Judge Mitchell Beckloff, acting on his own initiative, instructed a probate court investigator to prepare a report "addressing the status of the minor children" and their grandmother, Katherine Jackson. The judge stripped the 82-year-old of guardianship Wednesday after hearing allegations that some of her children were holding her against her will in Arizona.

A Los Angeles judge ordered an investigation Friday into the care of Michael Jackson's children, capping a tumultuous week of family feuding in which some relatives of the late pop star accused others of kidnapping their elderly matriarch. Superior Court Judge Mitchell Beckloff, acting on his own initiative, instructed a probate court investigator to prepare a report "addressing the status of the minor children" and their grandmother, Katherine Jackson. The judge stripped the 82-year-old of guardianship of the three children Wednesday after hearing allegations that some of her children were holding her against her will in Arizona.

After the coffee. Before hearing Katie Couric talk about her new talk show. The Skinny: I had a weird dream that I was watching a different cut of "All the President's Men" in the middle of the night in an empty Rockefeller Plaza. Please send me numbers for good therapists. Thursday's headlines include analysis of the "Modern Family" dispute, a profile of "Today" executive producer Jim Bell, who will be in charge of NBC's Olympic coverage. Also, Dish makes some tweaks to its AutoHop that seemed designed to take some of the sting out of the lawsuits against the satellite broadcaster.

The Jacksons of Gary, Ind., rose to fame on pitch-perfect harmonies, synchronized dance moves and an unwavering devotion to family as personified by their pious and steadfast mother. But in the last week, those qualities have come to seem as out of date for the famous family as the bell bottoms and butterfly collars they sported on "The Ed Sullivan Show"four decades ago. In a bitter public feud that has played out in tabloid leaks, Twitter posts and police reports, some family members accused others of kidnapping the 82-year-old matriarch, Katherine, in a bid to enlist her in a fight over the vast fortune of their deceased superstar brother, Michael.

Mitt Romney certainly knows Barack Obama is the “current”  president. He might think he is a “corrupt” president. And therein lies a media and Twitter tempest. Speaking to the VFW in Reno on Tuesday, the Republican presidential candidate sharply hit the president, accusing him of putting U.S. troops and national defense at risk, with national security leaks, budget cuts and a weak economy at home. “A healthy American economy is what underwrites American power. When growth is missing, government revenues fall, social spending rises, and many in Washington look to cut defense spending as the easy way out,” Romney told the assembled veterans.

If Emmys were given out for underdog TV projects that appeared to be an expensive, risky gamble, it would be hard to beat History's "Hatfields & McCoys. " Executive producer Leslie Greif had tried for 30 years to bring his passion project to fruition, with endless rejection from studios and networks. Its miniseries format had been largely abandoned by networks, and its massive scale, historic setting in a remote part of the country and western-movie overtones were considered out of vogue with younger, hip audiences, particularly when juxtaposed against flashier modern fare such as HBO's "Girls" or even the stylish retro flavor of "Mad Men. " In addition, History had little experience with scripted programming, with its first scripted drama, "The Kennedys," derailed after drawing extensive controversy.

Under the glimmer of a fingernail moon, Christopher Kelley tiptoed toward a two-story, Spanish Mission-style building in Los Feliz. He and his crew were jittery. What if a security guard spotted them? A few blocks away, late-night revelers mingled in trendy bars. But Kelley's target was dark and hushed -- exactly as he wanted. The building's front door was protected by a padlocked, wrought-iron gate. So the crew crept around back, sidestepping a few jugs of rainwater and a tomato plant.

Once again, TV viewers encountered full-page ads in the newspaper this week declaring that a greedy cable or satellite company was denying people the right to watch their favorite shows. The latest example of this increasingly familiar art form featured a picture of Comedy Central's Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. "What'll they take away next ... freedom?" the ad asked. "DirecTV is at it again. Rise up!" Darn that DirecTV, dropping Comedy Central, Nickelodeon and other channels.

No more Mr. Nice Judge. Last week on "America's Got Talent," as the live shows kicked off, new judge Howard Stern proved two things: 1) He can still be combative and even cruel when he wants to be. 2) He is a very good arbiter of talent and predictor of America's tastes. Stern proved that again Tuesday night, when the show clicked into its new Tuesday/Wednesday schedule, going toe-to-toe with fellow judge Howie Mandel over a truly talent-free contestant who, just as Stern said, should never have made it through to the quarterfinals, depriving worthier contenders of a slot.