News stories from Sunday April 24, 1977

Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:

President Carter's energy program was endorsed by executives representing major components of the energy industry -- oil, coal and electricity -- but with big qualifications. This appeared to confirm that the energy industry had grasped what the political grapevine in Washington has been saying -- that the White House would welcome a broadside attack by the energy companies because it would tend to build support for the President's program in Congress and divert public attention from the fact that the heart of the program is higher energy prices. [New York Times] Mr. Carter's presidency, now approaching the 100-day mark, has not yet produced the delegation of responsibility to a strong cabinet that he promised, according to aides. They say that like his former mentor, Admiral Hyman Rickover, he tends to cling to power, intimidate subordinates and be ill at ease with strong-minded dissenting assistants. [New York Times] A team of American experts arrived in Norway to attempt to repair a blowout at an offshore oil well pouring millions of gallons of oil into the North Sea off the Norwegian coast. The spill has formed an oil slick 15 miles long and five miles wide. Phillips Petroleum, the well's operator, hopes to have the repairs completed this week. If it is not possible to seal the well, a new well will have to be drilled to relieve the pressure, and that may take a month. [New York Times] A decline of 20 percent in first-quarter earnings despite a 5 percent rise in sales was reported by the Eastman Kodak Company. Lower earnings, the report said, resulted from the company's inability "to increase prices sufficiently to counteract the effects of rising costs of raw materials and higher wage rates." [New York Times] Thousands of Americans whose work exposes them to a far greater risk of cancer than most other people have not been told of the danger, even though a federal agency has collected the names and addresses of 74,000 such people. The roster was gathered over the last five years by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Dr. John Finklea, head of the institute, said the workers had not been informed of the risks because the agency lacked the necessary funds and authority and also because notification without an effective follow-up ''might do more harm than good." [New York Times] An intramural conflict in the commodities trade has followed the administration's proposal to establish a national grain reserve against possible shortages. The government would give farm cooperatives the opportunity to obtain low-cost federal financing by turning grain over to the government as collateral. Commodity traders say the cooperatives would get too much control over the nation's grain supply. [New York Times] Cuba is in serious economic trouble. Officials in Havana made this clear in five days of frank talk with Minnesota businessmen and they indicated at almost every meeting that they want to make deals -- economic and possibly political. Premier Fidel Castro said his first import priority from the United States -- if the trade embargo is lifted -- would be technology. [New York Times] Pakistan's political crisis moved toward a decisive confrontation between Prime Minister Bhutto's government and a large part of the population. The arrests early today of almost all the major opposition leaders who were not already in detention constituted the latest repressive measure taken by the Prime Minister. "He is containing the forces that are lined up against him, but how can he hope to conquer us?" said a member of the opposition who expected to be arrested at any moment. [New York Times] The net migration of Italians from their homeland has come to a halt for the first time since the early 19th century, when the first waves of emigration began. More migrants are returning home from other countries, where they are no longer able to find jobs, than are leaving Italy. [New York Times] Abba Eban's bank accounts in New York City were the subject of a meeting between Israel's former Foreign Minister and a government official. Mr. Eban defended their legality by saying he had received a permit to maintain them. He has admitted that he did not apply for renewal of his permit, which was canceled along with many others in 1974. [New York Times] The Danube River will eventually become a shipping lane mainly for Soviet-bloc nations. This is clearly anticipated by experts from the eight countries through which the Danube flows who are meeting in Budapest to discuss ways to improve shipping on the river. The five-year plans of the six Communist-governed Danubian countries call for greatly intensified river navigation. "What Moscow really wants is access for its riverboats to the Rhine," said West Germany at the Budapest meeting. [New York Times]