Dole Food to pay 10-cent dividend to shareholders

Dole Food Co. will pay a dividend of 10 cents a share on Sept. 20, to shareholders of record Aug. 31. The amount is unchanged from the same quarter a year ago and the most recent quarter. Founded by missionaries in Hawaii in the mid-1800s, Dole is the world's largest producer of fresh fruits and vegetables and had revenues of $4.8 billion last year.

Hawaiian Airlines offers coupon books deal

Hawaiian Airlines is offering coupon books at $330 each for sale through the end of August. Each book is good for six one-way interisland flights to be taken up to Dec. 15, or a whole book can be exchanged at a Hawaiian Airlines counter for a round-trip on Hawaiian's mainland routes. The airline cautioned that seats on the mainland flights will be limited.

Competitor Aloha Airlines announced a $330, six-coupon deal July 16, also with a mainland offer, but its books must be purchased with a MasterCard credit card.

Disney buys Fox Family children's network

LOS ANGELES >> Walt Disney Co. is buying the children's cable network Fox Family Worldwide Inc. for $3 billion in cash plus the assumption of $2.3 billion in debt.

The deal announced today adds another major cable outlet to Disney's portfolio, which already includes ESPN, A&E, the Disney Channel and Lifetime. The Fox Family Channel, which Disney plans to rename ABC Family, reaches about 81 million cable subscribers in the United States.

Disney bought Fox Family from News Corp. and Saban Entertainment Inc., which each owned 49.5 percent of the company.

At least 500,000 drivers use phones during day

WASHINGTON >> At any given time, about 3 percent of drivers are talking on hand-held cell phones while operating their vehicles, according to a government survey unveiled today.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that at least 500,000 drivers are talking on their cell phones simultaneously during the daytime. Rates nearly doubled during nonrush hours.

Officials at the agency say this is the first such research report to quantify cell phone use on American highways. NHTSA data collectors observed more than 12,000 vehicles at 640 intersections around the country last fall.

An industry group estimates 119 million Americans use cell phones. Those driving vans and SUVs are most likely to use a cell phone while driving. Women use their cell phones more than men, 3.4 percent to 2.7 percent.