Helen Thomas

The 90-year-old, who left her longtime job as a White House correspondent last summer after controversial remarks she made about Israel, is back in journalism. Thomas' first column in seven months was printed on Page 13 of  the Falls Church News-Press. She wrote on the subject of Social Security reform.  The paper's owner-editor, Nicholas F. Benton, said in the edition that Thomas "is progressive, and following my more than eight hours of direct, one-on-one talks with her since the events of last June, I remain firmly convinced that she is neither bigoted, nor racist, nor anti-Semitic." The News-Press is a weekly newspaper distributed free of charge throughout the greater Falls Church area, northern Virginia and Washington, D.C., according to its website.

Gene Sperling

The 52-year-old will be announced Friday as the director of the National Economic Council, a key policy post in the Obama administration. Sperling is currently senior counselor to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and was an adviser to President Bill Clinton and 2004 Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry. In 2010, as reported by CNN, Sperling was in talks for the No. 2 job at the Office of Management and Budget.

George Ryan

The former Illinois governor, who is serving a 6½-year sentence for racketeering and fraud convictions, filed an emergency request to leave federal prison so he can be with his dying wife. Lura Lynn Ryan, 76, suffers from metastatic Stage IV carcinoma, an aggressive form of cancer that has attacked her lungs, back, pelvis, ribs and liver, according to an emergency motion for bail posted on the Chicago Sun-Times' website. The motion seeks Ryan's release from Indiana's Terre Haute federal prison through two avenues. One is through the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, where he has asked for an emergency release on bail. The other is through the Bail Reform Act, which allows for the temporary release of inmates in special circumstances.

Tyler Hudson

The fourth-grader at Frank Middle School in the Klein Independent School District is being hailed a hero for putting "the hammer" or, Heimlich maneuver, on a classmate he noticed choking during lunch, according to CNN affiliate KHOU of Houston. While other kids thought the girl was only laughing, Tyler sprang to action when she frantically motioned toward her throat and her face reddened. Tyler wrapped his arms around her abdomen and squeezed three times, KHOU reported, dislodging a Cheeto that was stuck in her throat. Tyler said the move he did was "the hammer," which his dad playfully does on him all the time, KHOU reported.

Vivian Schiller

The CEO at National Public Radio won't be getting her 2010 bonus after NPR's board of directors completed a review of news analyst Juan Williams' firing, the organization said in a statement released Thursday. "[Schiller] accepted responsibility as CEO and cooperated fully with the review process. The Board, however, expressed concern over her role in the termination [of Williams]" the release said. After Williams' firing, Schiller told the Atlanta Press Club that his comments undermined his credibility as an analyst for NPR. “His feelings that he expressed on Fox News are really between him and his psychiatrist or his publicist,” she said at the time. She later apologized for what she called a “thoughtless remark.” NPR's board of directors announced several other changes in light of the incident, including the resignation of Ellen Weiss, senior vice president for news.