What's Your News IQ?

1. Which of the following actors was NOT born in San ­Diego?

a) Cameron Diaz

b) Dennis Hopper

c) Robert Duvall

d) Gregory Peck

2. Many San Diegans recently observed Memorial Day by attending ceremonies at Fort Rosecrans Cemetery. The oldest military veterans buried at the cemetery served in which ­war?

a) World War I

b) The Civil War

c) The Mexican War

d) The Spanish-American War

3. Which San Diego theater is the ­oldest?

a) Spreckels

b) Fox (Symphony Hall)

c) Balboa

d) North Park

4. Which of the following pundits said, “I thought when we elected a black president, we were going to get a black president”?

a) Walter Williams

b) Keith Olbermann

c) Chris Matthews

d) Bill Maher

5. In a recent poll conducted by the Associated Press, what percentage of Americans say they are suffering from debt-related ­stress?

a) 62 percent

b) 46 percent

c) 56 percent

d) 39 percent

6. Which country recently ended its ban on Facebook, after Facebook apologized for a page that had depictions of ­Mohammed?

a) Indonesia

b) Pakistan

c) Syria

d) Turkmenistan

7. A family is suing a school district after its bus driver berated their daughter as a “stupid little bigot” because she said she ­didn’t like President ­Obama’s positions on abortion and gay marriage. Where is this school district ­located?

a) Alabama

b) Oregon

c) Idaho

d) Indiana

8. Who was named by Entertainment Weekly as the “greatest television character” of the last 20 ­years?

a) Simon Cowell

b) Oprah Winfrey

c) Peter Griffin

d) Homer Simpson

9. Tropical Storm Agatha killed more than 100 people and caused a sinkhole 60 meters deep in the capital of which Central American ­country?

a) Guatemala

b) Honduras

c) Costa Rica

d) Nicaragua

10. Nine municipalities surrounding the city of Boston are levying property taxes against closed churches in the Archdiocese of Boston, insisting that the properties are no longer tax-exempt because

a) of the ­archdiocese’s opposition to homosexual marriage

b) the archdiocese refuses to pay psychiatric bills for abuse victims

c) the ­archdiocese’s protection of abusive priests violates RICO statutes

d) the archdiocese is no longer using the properties

11. San Diego manufacturer DexCom was recently issued a warning for failing to report frayed wiring in its products. Which government agency issued the ­warning?

a) The Federal Communications Commission

b) The Food and Drug Adminstration

c) The Federal Trade Commission

d) The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firemarms

12. The coach of which ­country’s soccer team has promised to run naked through his ­country’s capital city if his team wins the World ­Cup?

a) Argentina

b) Greece

c) Brazil

d) Ireland

13. Lukoil, ­Russia’s largest private oil company, reported that their first quarter net income for 2010 had nearly doubled from the previous year. Which U.S. oil company owns 20 percent of ­Lukoil?

a) ExxonMobil

b) Chevron

c) ConocoPhillips

d) BP

14. Former Vice President Al Gore and his wife Tipper have announced that after 40 years of marriage, they are separating. What is Tipper ­Gore’s real first ­name?

a) Elizabeth

b) Annette

c) Jennifer

d) Mary

15. Which entertainer recently said that the Fox News Channel is a “24-Hour A Day Racism Engine”?

a) Sarah Silverman

b) Robin Williams

c) Julia Roberts

d) Chris Rock

16. Mexico has announced plans to open a satellite consular office for issuing Mexicans I.D. cards in which California ­resort?

a) Marina del Rey

b) Palm Desert

c) Newport Beach

d) Catalina Island

17. The California State Assembly recently passed a ban on plastic grocery ­bags. How many plastic bags does the average Californian use each year (according to government estimates)?

a) 1000

b) 220

c) 552

d) 712

18. The U.S. Department of Agriculture found last year that there was a dramatic increase of which kind of pest that could result in a huge infestation in ­America’s great ­plains?

a) grasshoppers

b) boll weevils

c) rats

d) wasps

19. A school board in Texas recently read this quote from a former California politician at one of their meetings, which unleashed a firestorm of criticism:

“I like to believe we are living today in the spirit of the Christian religion. I like also to believe that as long as we do so, no great harm can come to our ­country.”

Who was the school board ­quoting?

a) Earl Warren

b) Ronald Reagan

c) Richard Nixon

d) Pete Wilson

20. Elena Kagan was nominated by President ­Obama to the U.S. Supreme Court after Justice John Paul Stevens announced his retirement. Which recent president has named more justices to the U.S. Supreme ­Court?

a) George W. Bush

b) George H.W. Bush

c) George W. Bush and Bill Clinton

d) George W. and George H.W. Bush