North and South Koreans find cause for unity: Japan

PYONGYANG (Reuters) – It took six decades for the divided Koreas to meet to talk about Japan’s colonial past, but it took them just two hours to agree they had common grievances with their Asian neighbor.

Despite the 1950-53 Korean War that killed millions and decades of animosity, there was little dispute between a South Korean group that visited Pyongyang last week and their North Korean hosts, as they agreed Japan’s colonial rule still casts a shadow over the peninsula.

The two Koreas have been split since Japan’s defeat in World War Two ended its 1910-1945 colonial rule. The united Korea under Japan’s emperor was then replaced with two states — the South under the U.S. sphere of influence and the North under the Soviet.

ESPN in $500 million deal for U.S. college football bowls

CHICAGO (Reuters) – ESPN, Walt Disney Co’s sports cable television network, outbidding Fox Sports, will pay $500 million for a four-year deal to broadcast several popular college football bowl games.

ESPN said on Tuesday the deal with the largest college football schools covers 15 Bowl Championship Series (BCS) games from 2011 to 2014. They include the Fiesta, Orange and Sugar Bowl games each season, and the BCS national championship game in 2011, 2012 and 2013.

The new deal will shift the popular bowl games to cable TV from News Corp’s Fox broadcast network, a move some critics say will hurt the college game’s exposure. However, others said the deal was long anticipated.