TASK DEFINITION: Given a document and an entity the task is to select the author's sentiment towards the entity. Sentiments can be Positive, Neutral and Negative. Select Positive if the article expresses a positive view towards the given entity or praises its quality or skills. Select Neutral if the document expresses no clear view towards the entity or has equal amounts of positive and negative statements or expressing some fact/quote by someone else. Select Negative if the article expresses a negative view towards like harsh remarks, criticizing entities action/decision etc. Note that URLs in the text have been replaced with [Link].
PROBLEM: What is the sentiment of the following document towards the entity Justin Cronin ? His new vampire thriller  "The Passage " published this month  is a best-seller. The unfinished manuscript sold in a bidding war to Fox 2000 for $1.75 million. And Stephen King called during Cronin's interview on ABC's "Good Morning America" to tell him that he is a fan.
 Cronin talked about vampires  his inspiration for "The Passage" and readers' reaction to his book in a recent interview.
 Cronin: It was her dare. In the fall of 2005 my daughter was 8. I was kind of wondering what to do next and she came to me and she said she thought I should write a book  in her words  "about a girl that saves the world and that it should be interesting." I think every interesting thing a man does in his life  he probably does to impress a girl  and so I wrote this book to impress my daughter.
 Cronin: The word "series" isn't quite right. I want each of these books to be a satisfying book all in itself. ... To call it a trilogy is true but not really the whole truth and not the exact truth  but there are three books all taking place in this world with this basic set of characters.
 Cronin: Oh  yeah. My office is the war room. I've got a white board and photographs and maps and every kind of thing up there.

SOLUTION: Positive

PROBLEM: What is the sentiment of the following document towards the entity Jared Kushner ? It was supposed to be a triumphant year for  White House Senior Adviser Jared Kushner . Part of the team that guided his father-in-law to victory in 2016   the young Kushner  was catapulted into the highest echelons of power.
 He  was handed a broad portfolio that included making peace in the Middle East and was reportedly a key part of Trumpâs inner circle and decision-making team. But as 2017 dragged on  the man known as Mr. Perfect had anything but a perfect year.
Here are  Kushner âs worst moments from 2017:
When  Kushner  visited Iraq in April  he obviously did not want to abandon his dedication to preppy style. But the image of the senior adviser sporting a flak jacket (with âKushnerâ scrawled on it)  along with a blazer and khakis  brought on a torrent of mockery.
This pic of  Jared Kushner  in Iraq with a military bullet-proof vest over  his  usual Thurston Howell III outfit really says it all pic.twitter.com/Qbt90NiqV4 â Amy Westervelt (@amywestervelt) April 6  2017
Although  Kushner  stepped down as head of Kushner Companies in January   his  real-estate firm gave  him  a number of headaches throughout 2017. Perhaps the biggest one was its use of the EB-5 visa program  which allows wealthy investors to gain visas in return for investing in the U.S.
Jared and Ivanka are reported to be scaling back their roles in the White House after officials have become annoyed by their presence. The move came shortly after Trumpâs decision to back Sen. Luther Strange in the Alabama Senate primary backfired spectacularly and Strange was crushed by conservative challenger Judge Roy Moore.  Kushner  was widely believed to have been a key voice in urging Trump to get involved in the race and back Strangeâa decision Trump himself admitted may have been a âmistake.â
 Kushner  was also widely reported to be a key official encouraging President Trump to fire FBI Director James Comeyâa move which has since turned out to be seen as a mistake as it directly led to the appointment of FBI Special Counsel Robert Mueller  whose probe has dogged the Trump administration throughout 2017.
FBI Special Counsel Robert Muellerâs appointment was announced in the wake of the firing of FBI Director James Comeyâa decision reportedly backed by  Kushner . But as the probe has gone on   Kushner  has apparently become a key figure for Mueller.
 Kushner  was part of a 2016 meeting between Donald Trump Jr. and a Russian lawyer at Trump Towerâa meeting which Trump Jr. said he took as it promised information that would âincriminateâ Hillary Clinton.
 Kushner  was questioned by Muellerâs team in November  during which  he  reportedly answered questions about a meeting with the Russian ambassador during the transition. It later emerged that  Kushner  was the âsenior Trump officialâ who directed former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn to contact the ambassador about a U.N. vote on Israeli settlements.
While it is not clear if the Mueller team believes  Kushner  did anything wrong  Muellerâs interest in him has no doubt led to a tough 2017 for  Kushner .
 Kushner  spent much of 2017 aggravating congressional lawmakers with  his  lack of disclosure about  his  foreign contacts and other information deemed importantâparticularly over various investigations into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election.
Two Senate committees have complained about  his  failure to hand over certain documents  and that they have learned certain details from the media. Lawmakers on the Senate Intelligence Committee were angered in September when they discovered from media reports that  Kushner  used a private email account occasionally for White House business.
Lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee wrote to  Kushner âs lawyer in November  saying the document collection he provided to the committee was incomplete.
Newsweek reported in December that  Kushner  is still using an interim security clearance after  he  initially omitted dozens of foreign contracts from  his  original form submission for clearance.

SOLUTION: Neutral

PROBLEM: What is the sentiment of the following document towards the entity Alfan Fandi ? Barely 12  with large brown eyes and sticklike arms  Fandi is three years older than his brother -- in his eyes almost a man.
 "I am older " he said sternly. "I do more rowing. But sometimes the work is hard  especially when the current is strong."
 The delay doesn't bother Fandi and Alfan. For them  the Kampar River is their local street corner  a place where they play and test themselves  becoming excellent swimmers.
 On a recent day  still dressed in his school uniform -- pink plaid shorts and matching tie -- Fandi launched his sampan from a sagging dock with rotting boards. Leaving school  he had picked up a plastic jug of cooking kerosene for his mother  which he stowed along with his green backpack.
 His gaze focused  Fandi stood for better leverage  extending two long oars into the water. The handles crossed at his chest  he pushed outward  propelling the boat forward  lifting the oars from the water as he felt the craft surge forward.
 A weary Fandi sometimes hands the oars over to his brother. Secretly  Alfan would like to row more  but he knows his place.
 Sometimes  when his Fandi is running late  Alfan leaves school without him  knowing his brother will catch another ride. The younger boy takes the sturdy little boat by himself and rows alongside a friend  like a neighborhood kid trying out a new bike without supervision.
Alfan would like to row more  but he knows his place.
 Yet the when need arises  he said  "I'm ready."
 Sometimes  when his Fandi is running late  Alfan leaves school without him  knowing his brother will catch another ride. The younger boy takes the sturdy little boat by himself and rows alongside a friend  like a neighborhood kid trying out a new bike without supervision.
 Even when the new bridge is finished  Fandi said  he isn't sure he wants to give up his daily row. The trip is quicker on water. The river is what he knows.

SOLUTION:
Positive