People in the news

• Tweet

The latest news on today's hottest celebrities ...

MARK HAINES: U.S. television financial commentator Mark Haines has died at his home, CNBC confirmed. He was 65.

TMZ confirmed Haines' Tuesday death but said a cause has not yet been released.

Haines worked for the cable network for 22 years and was a co-anchor of its "Squawk on the Street" program.

"Mark loved CNBC and we loved him back. He will be deeply missed," CNBC President Mark Hoffman said in a statement.

"Mark's legacy is that he didn't tolerate any B.S. from anyone," Haines' former co-anchor Erin Burnett said in a separate statement. "He wanted to tell the story -- and that's why so many viewers trusted him. He would always ask the question that nobody else would ask. He was fearless."

SCOTTY McCREERY: Scotty McCreery was crowned the Season 10 winner of "American Idol" in Los Angeles Wednesday night.

McCreery, 17, beat out fellow finalist Lauren Alaina, 16, for the honor.

Alaina blew out a vocal cord during rehearsal this week, but recovered in time to perform on the final night of competition Tuesday. EW.com said more than 122 million votes were cast after the show.

The winner was announced Wednesday.

Serving as judges on this season of "Idol" were Steven Tyler, Jennifer Lopez and Randy Jackson. Ryan Seacrest is the show's host.

OPRAH WINFREY: Oprah Winfrey said "until we meet again" instead of "goodbye" to the audience for the final episode of her 25-year-old talk show in Chicago.

Winfrey, 57, ended her iconic series this week to focus on her OWN cable television network.

UsMagazine.com said Winfrey reminisced during the show's Wednesday finale with the crowd of 300, which included her close friends Maria Shriver and Gayle King, and her longtime boyfriend Stedman Graham.

"Each one of you has their own platform. Mine is a stage in a studio. Yours is wherever you are," USA Today quoted Winfrey as telling her fans. "You can help somebody, you can forgive, you can listen, you can heal -- you have the power to change someone's life."

At the end of the show, she said gratitude "is the single greatest treasure I will take with me from this experience."

"I thank you for sharing this yellow brick road of blessings. I won't say goodbye -- I'll just say, 'Until we meet again,'" she added.

ANNA KOURNIKOVA: Russian-born tennis star Anna Kournikova is to be a fitness trainer on Season 12 of "The Biggest Loser," NBC announced Wednesday.

The show is to return in September.

"I'm so excited to be a part of 'The Biggest Loser' team; I've always been a fan of the show," Kournikova said in a statement. "As a former professional tennis player and certified trainer, this is a wonderful opportunity for me to share my enthusiasm for staying fit across America's homes. I'm honored to join a program that embraces the values of a healthy lifestyle and is committed to fighting obesity. I look forward to the upcoming season and seeing the results we can achieve together."

"We couldn't be more excited about Anna joining 'The Biggest Loser' family," added Paul Telegdy, executive vice president of alternative programming and specials for NBC and Universal Media Studios. "She is a fierce competitor and an accomplished athlete, and we are confident that she will be a powerful motivator to contestants to get fit and healthy."