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One of U.S. celebrity chef Paula Deen's employers said on Thursday it was monitoring the controversy over her admission that she has used a racial slur in the past, while Deen's own company said the cooking star does not condone racism. In a May 17 court deposition that surfaced on Wednesday, Deen, who is white, was asked if she had used the so-called N-word, a racial epithet directed against African-Americans, to which she responded: "Yes, of course."   The Food Network, which broadcasts two popular shows featuring Deen and her Southern cooking, said it was keeping an eye on the flap resulting from her statements that have been widely criticized on social media. "Food Network does not tolerate any form of discrimination and is a strong proponent of diversity and inclusion," the network said. The videotaped deposition was taken as part of a lawsuit by a former employee of Paula Deen Enterprises, Lisa Jackson, who is suing Deen and her brother Earl &quo

A spike in sales of "The Sopranos" DVDs, downloads and merchandise based on the mafia series following star James Gandolfini's death may only be short-lived and likely won't provide much of a windfall for HBO and its parent Time Warner Inc. Sales of DVDs on the retail site Amazon shot up in the hours immediately following the 51-year-old star's death in Italy on Wednesday. "The Sopranos: The Complete Series," which sells for $124.99 on the site, by late Thursday had jumped to second place among best-sellers from 1,463 on that list.   The series' first season was also ranked No. 4 on Apple's iTunes list. "It's a one-day wonder, and it won't last," said Alan Gould, media analyst with Evercore Partners, who follows Time Warner. Old episodes will likely generate a lot of streaming, especially since kids are home from college, but it's unlikely to last beyond four to six months, said TV consultant, Adam Armbruster, a partn

Senator Bill Nelson said contractor Booz Allen Hamilton had hired an employee convicted of lying to the U.S. government for a position in which he would handle classified documents. Nelson, a Florida Democrat, called on the Senate Intelligence Committee to conduct an investigation broadly into how contractors are handling employees with top secret clearance. He said he is alarmed by the combination of this incident and the more recent revelation that a National Security Agency contractor who worked for Booz Allen Hamilton leaked sensitive government documents. Nelson, in a letter to Senate Intelligence Chair Dianne Feinstein, said these incidents merit a probe "to determine more broadly how private contractors are managing the hiring and monitoring of employees who have top secret clearance from the government."   A spokesman for Booz Allen Hamilton declined to comment. Nelson said he was reminded earlier this week of a situation in which Booz Allen Hamilton hired a man

Sprint Nextel Corp raised its buyout offer for Clearwire Corp to $5 per share on Thursday and announced support from a key group of dissident shareholders, likely ending a bitter battle with rival suitor Dish Network Corp. Sprint, currently Clearwire's majority shareholder, has been fighting publicly with Dish over Clearwire since January as both companies want Clearwire's vast trove of valuable wireless airwaves to help them compete in wireless services. Clearwire put its support behind the latest offer, representing the second major blow in a matter of days against Dish Chairman and founder Charlie Ergen, who wants to expand his satellite TV company into the wireless market.   Earlier this week Ergen had to back out, at least for now, from a battle with Japan's SoftBank Corp to buy Sprint itself. Dish declined comment on the new Clearwire offer. Several analysts said they now expect Sprint to prevail. "We believe Clearwire shareholders will approve the $5 off

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday expanded its approval of the so-called "morning after" contraceptive pill to include all women of child-bearing age to comply with an order from a U.S. District court. _0"> The FDA said the Plan B One-Step emergency contraceptive, which is sold by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, would be made available as an over-the-counter (OTC) product without age or point-of-sale restrictions. Plan B One-Step is a single dose pill intended to reduce the chance of pregnancy following unprotected sex or suspected contraceptive failure, such as a broken condom. "Over-the-counter access to emergency contraceptive products has the potential to further decrease the rate of unintended pregnancies in the United States," Janet Woodcock, long-time director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said in a statement. The FDA initially objected to, and appealed, a court decision ordering it to remove age restr

The bulk shipper STX Pan Ocean Co Ltd filed for protection under U.S. bankruptcy law on Thursday to shield its assets from creditors in the United States, less than two weeks after filing for court receivership in South Korea . _0"> STX sought protection under Chapter 15 under the U.S. bankruptcy code with the federal bankruptcy court in Manhattan. The company had previously said it needed protection because it faced "a liquidity crunch" that left it unable to obtain sufficient funds to repay its debt, which recently totaled about 5.51 trillion won (now US$4.81 billion).   In Thursday's filing, two court-appointed administrators for STX said the company has struggled with a shrinking profit margin amid a decline in the value of dry bulk shipping contracts. They said STX has several long-term contracts that will prove profitable and around which it intends to reorganize. The filing seeks recognition of the Korean proceeding as a "foreign main proceeding

A pipeline carrying deadly sour natural gas ruptured in Turner Valley in southern Alberta on Thursday, prompting the evacuation of some of the town's 2,100 residents, the Alberta Energy Regulator said.   The regulator said it is working with pipeline owner Legacy Oil and Gas Inc and the local government of Turner Valley, about 60 kilometers (37 miles) southwest of Calgary, to respond to the leak. The gas contains 1 percent hydrogen sulfide. While no injuries have been reported due to the leak, hydrogen sulfide can cause serious injury or even death at levels as small as 100 parts per million. In smaller doses, it will cause irritation to eyes, nose and throat. "The Town of Turner Valley has evacuated some residents as a precautionary measure. Legacy Oil and Gas has enacted its emergency response plan and is taking measures to manage the incident," the regulator said in a statement. Turner Valley and many other municipalities in southern Alberta, including the city of