Talking points
Our editors will be looking ahead today to these developing stories ...
US President Barack Obama will speak from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, in Washington, D.C., the same place Martin Luther King stood when he delivered his stirring "I have a dream" speech 50 years ago. The August 28, 1963, March on Washington, was an iconic moment in US history that ushered in the idea of massive, non-violent demonstrations and helped bring about the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
A high-profile gang-rape case involving the 17-year-old son of a nationally famous military singer starts in Beijing's Haidian district court today. The court earlier said it would be a closed-door hearing but local media reported the young man's family requested a public trial, citing their lawyer.
United States Secretary of Defence Chuck Hagel will visit Brunei today for a regional defence meeting that will include China. Hagel began his Southeast Asia tour last week in Malaysia. His trip has included Jakarta and he will fly to the Philippines tomorrow on his final stop. The Pentagon chief's week-long trip is part of a concerted effort by Washington to rebalance America's strategic priorities towards the Asia-Pacific.
The future of Turkish soccer team Fenerbahce is uncertain over a match-fixing scandal involving links to organised crime which allegedly run through top levels of the club. The allegations will draw to a conclusion today - hours after the team played Arsenal in the second leg of their Champions League qualifier overnight - when the Court of Arbitration for Sport makes a ruling on the accusations against the club. The club denies the charges.
The Venice film festival, the world's oldest, starts today with Geroge Clooney and Sandra Bullock expected to be among the Hollywood stars who will grace the red carpet as 20 films compete for the Golden Lion prize. The world premiere of Mexican film director Alfonso Cuaron's , which stars Clooney and Bullock, will open the festival. Last year's Golden Lion award was won by South Korean movie , a violent story of a loan shark.
The Bank of England's new governor, Mark Carney, is expected to use a speech today before the Chamber of Commerce in Nottingham, England, to reaffirm his intention to hold borrowing costs at an all-time low. He is scheduled to deliver his first major policy address since announcing on August 7 that finance officials would not consider raising borrowing costs before unemployment drops to 7 per cent as long as price and financial stability were not jeopardised.
