Source: Hackers send new message to Sony  —  The hackers behind a devastating cyberattack at Sony Pictures have sent a new message to executives at the company, crediting them for a “very wise” decision to cancel the Christmas day release of “The Interview,” a source close to the company told CNN.

SEE IT: NYPD plainclothes officer delivers body blows to youth as he's being cuffed, Internal Affairs investigating  —  'I can't believe he just did that after everything that's happened' a witness says as the boy is punched repeatedly while three NYPD officers try to subdue and cuff him in an incident caught on video.

Rand Paul and Marco Rubio wage Twitter battle on Cuba  —  The first battle of the GOP primary began on radio and cable news, spilled over to Twitter and splashed across Facebook and the wider Internet, a preview of the Republican Party's coming cage match over foreign policy.

Some witnesses lied to Michael Brown grand jury, McCulloch says.  So why have them testify?  —  Certain witnesses who spoke before the grand jury investigating the Aug. 9 shooting of Michael Brown told obvious lies under oath, St. Louis Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch said Friday.

In Case You Missed It, Obama Made History Today: Calls Only on Female Reporters … Mark this down as a historic day in White House history.  —  President Obama has just become the first president to field questions from only female reporters at a White House press conference.

Woman Seeks Trademark For “I Can't Breathe,” Dying New York Man's Final Words  —  Buster  —  An Illinois woman is seeking to trademark the dying last words of the New York City man who gasped “I can't breathe” while being arrested by NYPD cops for selling loose cigarettes.

Putin's Bubble Bursts  —  If you're the type who finds macho posturing impressive, Vladimir Putin is your kind of guy.  Sure enough, many American conservatives seem to have an embarrassing crush on the swaggering strongman.  “That is what you call a leader,” enthused Rudy Giuliani …

MIT Computer Scientists Demonstrate the Hard Way That Gender Still Matters  —  An aerial view of the MIT campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts.  David L Ryan/The Boston Globe/Getty Images  —  “We're 3 female computer scientists at MIT, here to answer questions about programming and academia.

The Unidentified Queen of Torture  —  For the past eight months, there has been a furious battle raging behind closed doors at the White House, the C.I.A., and in Congress.  The question has been whether the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence would be allowed to use pseudonyms as a means …

Obama's Cuba switch forces exile groups to adapt  —  MIAMI (AP) — Hours before President Barack Obama announced an end to a half-century of U.S. efforts to isolate Cuba's communist government, the Cuban American National Foundation opened the doors to its inviting new headquarters …

Your Waitress, Your Professor  —  LAS VEGAS — ON the first day of the fall semester, I left campus from an afternoon of teaching anxious college freshmen and headed to my second job, serving at a chain restaurant off Las Vegas Boulevard.  The switch from my professional attire to a white dress shirt …

Obama signs massive defense spending bill  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama on Friday signed into law a massive defense policy bill that endorses his plan to fight Islamic State militants, including air strikes and training Iraqis and moderate Syrian rebels.

Bush officials gave CIA wide latitude  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — In July 2004, despite growing internal concerns about the CIA's brutal interrogation methods, senior members of George W. Bush's national security team gave the agency permission to employ the harsh tactics against an al Qaida facilitator …

Obama renews tax breaks, creates ABLE accounts  —  Associated Press 1 hr ago  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama has signed legislation renewing dozens of costly tax breaks for millions of businesses and individuals.  —  The bill signed Friday extends the breaks through Dec. 31.

Dog shoots man: Accidental shooting injures man  —  SHERIDAN — The Johnson County Sheriff's Office has released its findings on the shooting of a man Monday on Murphy Gulch Road.  —  Sheriff Steve Kozisek said Richard L. Fipps, 46, of Sheridan had driven to Murphy Gulch Road with two employees to move a vehicle that had become stuck.

As a Major U.S. Problem, Race Relations Sharply Rises  —  Story Highlights  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — The percentage of Americans naming “race relations” or “racism” as the most important problem in the U.S. has climbed dramatically to 13%, the highest figure Gallup has recorded since a finding of 15% in 1992 …