5 things you need to know Wednesday
1. Mayweather and Pacquiao meet face-to-face
When an event's this big, who needs to spend time promoting? Floyd Mayweather, Jr., and Manny Pacquiao meet face-to-face in a press conference on Wednesday for the only time before their massive May 2 fight. The fight is already bringing in the big bets in Las Vegas, which has Pacquiao narrowing in on Mayweather. Oh, and just in case this couldn't get more interesting, Paquiao has recorded his own entrance music for the main event.
2. Four years ago, Japan suffered a devastating earthquake
On March 11, 2011, a magnitude-9.0 earthquake struck east of Sendai, Japan, triggering a tsunami that killed thousands of people and also triggered the second-largest nuclear accident in history at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant. Four years later, nearly a quarter-million Japanese still live in temporary or interim housing because of the disaster.
3. Senate committee takes up war with the Islamic State
A Senate hearing Wednesday will consider President Obama's request for Congress to authorize military force against the Islamic State. Obama's proposal promises no "enduring offensive ground combat" role for U.S. troops and sets a three-year limit on military action. Secretary of State John Kerry and Defense Secretary Ashton Carter are scheduled to testify. The hearing could spotlight an emerging foreign policy debate between Sens. Rand Paul and Marco Rubio, who both serve on the committee and are likely to run in 2016.
4. More people are taking to the skies, a study finds
It turns out you're into flying. The number of airline passengers traveling this spring is expected to be the highest in seven years – just below the record set in 2007, according to the trade group Airlines for America. Bolstered by rising employment and personal income, 10 publicly traded airlines expect to carry 134.8 million travelers, or about 2.2 million per day, during March and April. That's up 2%, or about 43,000 passengers per day, from the same period last year.
5. Study: Parents fooled into thinking sugary drinks are healthy
Bamboozled by misleading product marketing and labeling, parents have failed to get the message that sugary drinks — beyond soda — are not healthy for kids, a new study finds. Many parents believe that drinks with high amounts of added sugar — particularly fruit drinks, sports drinks and flavored water — are "healthy" options for kids, according to the report. Parents said they were particularly influenced by nutritional claims appearing on the packages — such as claims that the items are "real" or "natural" or contained vitamin C or antioxidants, or were low in sodium or calories.
And, the essentials:
Weather: The two damp parts of the country on Wednesday will be the Southeast and the Northwest.
Stocks: Rate hike anxiety weighs on global markets.
TV Tonight: Can't decide what to watch tonight? TV critic Robert Bianco looks at The 100, Black-ish and CSI: Cyber.
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