Donating to charity itself is a relatively new phenomenon in a society that traditionally values family units. So the announcement that South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak will be donating $26 million, the bulk of his wealth, to charity, is considered highly unusual. The president's office said the money will be used to set up a new youth scholarship program. "My fortune, which I accumulated through hard work during my life, is very precious to me," said Lee in a statement. ...

In bowing out as Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin harkened back to her high school basketball days — although there was no sign of the "Barracuda," as she was nicknamed for her ability to cut through the opposing team's offenses. In a hastily called press conference on the eve of a three-day holiday, Palin presented herself as a point guard exhausted by the "full court press from the national level." The 2008 Republican vice-presidential nominee explained how the ...

Fans of Michael Jackson will have one last chance to say goodbye to the departed pop star on Tuesday with a televised celebratory memorial service at LA's Staples Center, simulcast at the nearby Nokia Theater. Representatives of the Jackson family, the company promoting his final tour, and the City of Los Angeles released very few details about the event at a Friday morning press conference outside the Staples Center. Watch TIME's video "Appreciating Michael Jackson, the Musician." "Everything ...

More than 1 in 6 British Airways staff have agreed to work for free, take unpaid leave or work part-time, the airline said Thursday after the announcement of cost-cutting measures last week. "This is a fantastic first response. I want to thank everyone who has volunteered to help us pull through this difficult period," Willie Walsh, British Airways' chief executive, said in a statement. Of the 40,000-strong workforce, 6,940 employees had volunteered for unpaid leave, part-time working or unpaid work ...

Eight Formula One teams said Thursday they would create a breakaway series championship following a financial dispute with the world governing body over a proposed budget cap for next season. All eight teams are members of the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA), which made the announcement in a press release. The current wrangles stem from controversial plans by the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile to impose a budget cap of $60M for competing teams and technical limitations on teams in 2010 ...

Even without Steve Jobs emceeing, this year's Worldwide Developers Conference sold out in record time. Hopes are running high for products that the secretive corporation will unveil at the conference next week. Rumors about new iPhones, upgraded MacBooks and a highly anticipated touchscreen tablet abound, and there's even gossip about a possible partnership with Verizon. But as wonderful as all those items sound, they remain unconfirmed by Apple. And frankly, some of the rumors sound too good to be ...

Defense Secretary Robert Gates is expected to announce Monday afternoon that he is replacing Gen. David McKiernan as the commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan with Lt. Gen. Stanley McChrystal, defense officials tell CNN. Gates is planning to make the announcement at a Pentagon news conference. The change comes as the Obama administration puts increased emphasis on the fight against resurgent Taliban militants in Afghanistan. Gates visited Afghanistan last week. Before leaving on that trip, Gates told CNN that the ...

On May 3, former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards acknowledged that a federal investigation had been opened into whether his campaign improperly gave money to a woman with whom Edwards had an extramarital affair. Edwards has denied any wrongdoing by his campaign. In an exclusive excerpt from her new book, Resilience, Edwards' wife Elizabeth describes her reaction to learning of the affair in late 2006. John was gone a lot in 2003 and 2004 running for office, and although I ...

Move over, Detroit. Make room for Shanghai As the Big Three U.S. automakers sputter in debt, automobile makers worldwide are speeding into the Chinese market in a race to win profits in the world's fastest growing economy for cars. "You have to be here, and you have to be here in a serious way," Dieter Zetsche, Daimler Chrysler CEO, told CNN. The auto world has descended on the Shanghai Auto Show this week. More than 600,000 visitors are expected to ...

The United Nations humanitarian chief Wednesday criticized a two-day pause in the fighting between the Sri Lankan army and Tamil Tiger rebels as "inadequate." John Holmes, the under secretary general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator, told reporters that the 48-hour break in hostilities was not sufficient, even as fighting resumed in the northeast of the country. The brief cessation of hostilities was announced by the Sri Lankan government on April 12 and allowed the U.N. and its partners ...