News Headlines - 14 December 2017

▽Disney is buying most of 21st Century Fox for $52.4 billion

Disney is buying a huge chunk of 21st Century Fox in a deal that promises to reshape the media industry and help the entertainment giant fend off digital rivals such as Netflix.
The $52.4 billion deal will combine two of the biggest players in Hollywood.

▽Alabama win thrills Democrats as Republicans point fingers

Democrats said on Wednesday their U.S. Senate victory in Alabama could lead to a sweeping comeback for the party in 2018 elections, while Republicans sought to assess blame for a defeat in one of the country’s most conservative states... Trump, speaking to reporters at the White House, said the Alabama outcome would not affect his policy agenda. Republicans are rushing to pass a tax overhaul package by the end of the year.

▽Venezuela opposition banned from running in 2018 election - BBC News

Venezuela's President, Nicolás Maduro, says the country's main opposition parties are banned from taking part in next year's presidential election.
He said only parties which took part in Sunday's mayoral polls would be able to contest the presidency.

▽Chaplin family plead to save London Cinema Museum - BBC News

Charlie Chaplin's family have written an open letter to ask for London's Cinema Museum to be saved.
The museum, housed in the former Lambeth workhouse where Chaplin once lived, could be under threat when its lease expires next March.

▽Video of Starving Polar Bear ‘Rips Your Heart Out of Your Chest’ - The New York Times

The polar bear, though, was not dead — at least not yet. And when it managed to stand up, Mr. Nicklen, a visual storyteller, snapped a photo. When he published it on Instagram, the image garnered such a strong response that he knew he needed to return with other members of his conservation organization and the proper filming equipment. Mr. Nicklen, 49, wanted to show people what a starving polar bear really looked like — he wanted to make a scientific data point something real.