The income fairness debate has just gotten a lot more interesting. And it's taking place in anything but Mitt Romney's "quiet rooms."

Romney's release of his federal tax details for 2010 and 2011 came the morning that President Obama was preparing to deliver his State of the Union address, a speech in which he was expected to make the increasing gap between the superwealthy and everyone else a major topic of the evening.

Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks, is trying to take his web-based provocations to the TV screen. Wikileaks announced Assange will host a television series featuring interviews with "key political players, thinkers and revolutionaries from around the world."

Wikileaks, which has published a vast amount of classified data including video and secret government documents, promises to "draw together controversial voices from across the political spectrum."

Good morning!

Our early posts:

-- Gulf Arab States Pull Monitors From Syria, Will Ask UN For Support

-- Scorsese's 'Hugo' Leads The Oscars With 11 Nominations

These days, as hospitals elbow each other to attract your business, they're offering patients — and those who might become patients — a whole range of perks.

These loyalty programs can be as straightforward as free valet parking and discounts at the hospital gift shop. There are also educational sessions showcasing surgeons' prowess, just in case you're ever in the market for a new hip or a knee.

In the end, there were nine nominees for Best Picture announced on Tuesday morning, and eight of them were entirely predictable: The Artist, The Descendants, The Help, Hugo, Midnight In Paris, War Horse, The Tree Of Life, and Moneyball.

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

The Oscar nominations were announced this morning, and leading the pack with 11 nominations is the 3D movie "Hugo." It's about a Paris street urchin who befriends one of the inventors of cinema. "Hugo" was nominated for best picture, best director and best adapted screenplay, among others. NPR's Neda Ulaby joins us to talk about the Oscar nominations, and good morning.

NEDA ULABY, BYLINE: Good morning.

MONTAGNE: What else was nominated for best picture?

A day after Syria roundly rejected an Arab League proposal that it hoped would end the violence in the country, the Gulf Cooperation Council said it was ending its monitoring mission in the country.

The Arab League, which has a few monitors of its own in the country, said its monitors would remain, if Syria is OK with it.

The Telegraph reports:

The Academy Awards announced this morning that Martin Scorsese's "Hugo," a film about the adventure of an orphan in 1930s Paris, was nominated for 11 Oscars, including best picture and best director.

The mostly silent film "The Artist" came in second with 10 nominations.

The AP reports: