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CNN Live At Daybreak

Italy Mourns Slain Agent; Protesting Nelly; Car Crash Test Failures

Aired March 07, 2005 - 06:29   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Anger and grief in Italy this morning. A state funeral for Nicola Calipari began about 90 minutes ago in Rome. It's still going on, as you can see. He's the intelligence officer shot and killed by American troops in Iraq after winning the freedom of a kidnapped journalist. That journalist, Giuliana Sgrena, disputes a U.S. account of the incident, and she has promised Calipari's widow she will find out why they were attacked.
Sgrena is now in a Rome hospital. She's recovering from a shoulder wound.

Let's head live now to CNN Rome bureau chief Alessio Vinci.

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF: Nicola Calipari is considered nothing less than a hero here in Italy for the way he saved Giuliana Sgrena's life and for having secured the release of other Italian hostages in the past in Iraq.

The state funeral took place at the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli in downtown Rome, packed with authorities, including the Italian prime minister, the Italian president, as well as the U.S. ambassador to Rome, Mel Sembler, who called Calipari a friend and an ally of the U.S.

Thousands have also gathered outside the basilica to pay their last respects, as well as showing their support.

Not present at the funeral is Giuliana Sgrena, the freed reporter. She is still in a hospital recovering from a wound to her left shoulder that she incurred during that attack in Baghdad on Friday. She did meet with the widow of Nicola Calipari. She promised her that she would do everything to find out the truth about what happened and why her husband died.

The incident, of course, is still under investigation. The U.S. has promised a full investigation. However, Sgrena is already disputing the U.S. military version of events, saying that the car was not speeding towards the checkpoint as the U.S. is saying, as well as no warning was given to slow down.

Sgrena is also not ruling out the possibility that she may have been targeted deliberately because the Americans oppose Italy's policy to pay a ransom. In an interview she said -- quote: "Everybody knows the Americans are doing everything to prevent the adoption of this practice to save lives of people held hostage. So, I don't see why I should rule out that I could have been a target."

Sgrena is not substantiating with any facts these allegations. However, Italian media are speculating that a ransom of several million dollars may have been paid. And indeed Nicola Calipari was an experienced negotiator.

But Italian officials at this time are not commenting whether or not a ransom was paid. But at this time they're not ruling out the possibility either.

Alessio Vinci, CNN, reporting from Rome.

COSTELLO: A clarification from Chicago police this morning. Those two men depicted in police sketches were not seen together at Judge Joan Lefkow's house. Remember these sketches? Police say one man was actually seen in a car, while another was seen walking around the judge's house.

As you know, the bodies of Judge Lefkow's mother and husband were found in the house's basement as week ago.

And he's depressed. The man accused of being the BTK killer is complaining about depression. Dennis Rader's attorneys told "TIME" magazine he isn't sleeping, and he's asking about his family. Rader's family hasn't visited since he was charged with 10 counts of first- degree murder.

As for those who knew Rader, they're still reeling.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICK CARR, RADER'S FORMER CO-WORKER: Disbelief. I had no idea, and I'm sure that all of the other people that worked with him had no concept of what was going on over a period of years either.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And we'll have more on Rader's comments coming up in the next hour.

"TIME" magazine editor Chris Farley will talk about the exclusive interview with Rader's attorneys. That's coming up on "AMERICAN MORNING" at 7:00 a.m. Eastern.

And speaking of "AMERICAN MORNING," who is defending the BTK suspect in court? And what kind of defense is he building?

Let's get more now -- actually, right now on that attorney. Soledad O'Brien joins us from "AMERICAN MORNING" to tell us more.

Good morning -- Soledad.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Carol, good morning to you.

As you just mentioned, we've been talking about depression for the first time. In fact, we are getting words from the BTK suspect himself. All of this comes out of "TIME" magazine that got this exclusive interview with the lawyers, Dennis Rader's lawyers.

A big question, of course, is rumors about a confession. Are those rumors true? This morning, we're going to talk with a senior editor for "TIME" magazine about the lawyers' strategy.

Also this morning on "AMERICAN MORNING," today marks a historic event in the civil rights movement, Bloody Sunday. Forty years ago today, civil rights marchers attacked by state troopers in Selma, Alabama. This morning, we talk to one of those marchers. He is now the current congressman, John Lewis (ph). He says he thought he was going to die that day. He'll share his story with us on "AMERICAN MORNING" right at the top of the hour -- Carol.

COSTELLO: We'll be right here. Thank you, Soledad.

They made fun of a tragedy. Not a good idea when your comments are being recorded. Nine police officers and dispatchers in Austin, Texas, have been suspended for sending inappropriate computer messages to each other. It all happened when this fire broke out at a nightclub last month.

Among the comments were "burn, baby, burn," and an offer to add gasoline to the fire.

Some African-American patrons of the club became upset after seeing the messages on the computer screen of a patrol car.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF STAN KNEE, AUSTIN POLICE: I think we have to learn that sometimes we say things that we have one interpretation as police officers, but the community might have another interpretation. I think we went to great lengths to show that none of these responses were, in fact, racially motivated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Five officers and four dispatchers were suspended for 15 days each. A sixth officer received a written reprimand.

Vile, filthy. Tear your tickets up. Twenty churches are urging you to prevent your kids from going to a Nelly concert. In case you don't know who Nelly is, take a look. I know it's early, but you should know what your kids are watching on MTV and BET. This is video from the song "Tip Drill." And you can discern for yourself what exactly that means, "Tip Drill" that is. Nelly is set to appear at Arkansas State University on March 12.

Let's head live to Arkansas and Pastor Adrian Rodgers.

Good morning, Pastor.

REV. ADRIAN RODGERS, PROTESTING APPEARANCE BY NELLY: Good morning.

COSTELLO: Pastor, tell us what you and 19 other pastors are doing.

RODGERS: Well, we decided to take a stand against this kind of vile and filth coming to our community. And when we begin to look at the lyrics and even the video of Nelly, we decided this is really the wrong thing to come to our community. And though we recognize that because of contracts being signed and so on and so forth, we could not stop it, we wanted to educate parents to let them know what this was all about.

COSTELLO: Well, let's educate our viewers a little bit about some of the lyrics of a Nelly song. And this was a very, very popular song. It's called "Hot in Herre." And let's put the graphic up right now. I'm just going to read a few lines from the lyrics. I'm going to try to pick a line I can actually read on the air this morning.

RODGERS: It's not easy.

COSTELLO: No, it's not actually. OK. This is how one line goes: "I was like, good gracious, A-S-S" -- I'll just spell it -- bodacious. Looking for the right time to shoot my steam, you know, waiting for the right time to flash them G's. Then, um, I'm leaving. Please believing. Oh me and the rest of my heathens." And then, you know, "It's getting hot in here, so take off all your clothes."

I'm sure many of you parents have heard that on the radio. But let me ask you this, Pastor. For many years, people have been complaining about lyrics and rock and roll. But rock and roll is still played. This song was very popular. I mean, what real harm is there in those kinds of lyrics?

RODGERS: Well, by being a minister, my source is always the word of God. Proverbs 18:22 says, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue; they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof." It is no way you can listen to this, you can speak this, talk this, hear this all day and it not have a negative effect on you. It's just impossible.

And Johnnie Cochran made it famous during the O.J. trial, "garbage in, garbage out." And if you take in garbage consistently, the end result has to be the same.

There was an article in the March issue of "Essence" magazine that dealt with this, and they did a survey -- and this was so awesome -- that girls who watched these kinds of videos consistently, and I quote -- it was done by the Motivational Education Productions. And it said that girls that did watch these kinds of videos, they begin to think that their body was more important than their mind. And these girls were more likely to use their bodies to barter. And they were more likely to engage in risky behavior like unsafe sex, sex with multiple partners or sex with many men twice their age, or much older anyway.

COSTELLO: Well, I'm sure many people know where you're coming from, Pastor. But let me read you what Tim Dean -- he's the director of the Arkansas State Convocation Center, where this Nelly concert will be held, on March 12 by the way. He said, "It would appear that with ticket sales over 5,000, many others have expressed their right and find Nelly's music entertaining and worth spending their time and money on."

So, aren't you really fighting a losing battle here?

RODGERS: No, we're not fighting a losing battle. If we're educating people, we're not fighting a losing battle. I've talked to some who said, I did not know that it was this bad. My children are not going. There was even one lady who joined our church after she had already bought the tickets. We just told her, in fact, last night, we'll buy the tickets back, because we don't want to see people exposed to this kind of stuff.

And to also respond to Mr. Dean, many people that are coming to this concert are not from this area. They're coming from other parts and other cities into our city, and we are very concerned not only about this concert, but the residue that it will leave after Nelly has collected his check and gone on to the next place.

COSTELLO: Well, Pastor Adrian Rodgers, thank you for joining DAYBREAK this morning. We appreciate it.

And by the way, the next concert date for Nelly is coming up in just a few weeks at Ohio State University.

Coming up on DAYBREAK, Sony may be one of the biggest Asian businesses to hit America. But with the company facing some troubles, who do you think they've called on to steer the turnaround?

And two former presidents, one plane, one bedroom on the plane. What happens when former commanders-in-chief travel together?

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Monday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Let's take a look at the international markets now. They're mixed. Japan's Nikkei closes up 52 points, Britain's FTSE down 8 and a half points, the German DAX up just a little over 2 and a half points.

It's time now for a little "Business Buzz." Sony looks outside of Japan for a new CEO.

Carrie Lee live at the Nasdaq Marketsite with more on this story.

Good morning.

CARRIE LEE, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.

It's the first time ever that the Japanese electronics giant is going to have a non-Japanese head. Sony has hired Howard Stringer, born in Wells, now a U.S. citizen. He is named the new chairman and CEO of Sony. And basically, the company is trying to turn around its electronics sector by linking it with its entertainment businesses.

Stringer was president of CBS News from 1986 through 1988, and then president of CBS Broadcast Group from 1988 to 1995. He joined Sony in 1997, and he's helping the company music and movie business, one of the few bright spots in recent years.

Overall, the electronic operations have suffered in the face of cheaper competition from Asian rivals, so they are hoping Stringer will turn things around.

And by the way, it is very rare for a Japanese company at all to have a foreign executive head the company. So, it's a bit of a different move for Sony. We'll see if Mr. Stringer can turn things around.

Meanwhile, a quick check on futures this morning, pointing to a bit of a higher open. We saw very nice gains on Friday on that February jobs report. A lot of people are watching to see if the Dow can cross the 11000 mark. We haven't seen that happen since July of 2001.

Dow component Boeing is in focus today. The U.S. Air Force late Friday said it has lifted a 20-month suspension of Boeing satellite launch contract bidding.

So, that's the latest from here. Carol -- back to you.

COSTELLO: Carrie Lee live from the Nasdaq Marketsite. Thank you.

We love our cars, don't we? But are you safe when you get behind the wheel? We've got some disturbing new crash test results to share with you this morning. It's pretty bad. That's when DAYBREAK returns.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports. It is 6:46 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

For a second Sunday in a row Pope John Paul II appeared at his hospital window. The pope, as you know, is recovering from breathing problems. He blessed onlookers there. We just got word from the Vatican with an update on his condition. He's doing well, and they say that he will appear for Easter services. We'll keep you posted.

All right, on to Lebanon now. Syrian troops are seen gathering up equipment. That's what you're looking at now. This is perhaps beginning the first stage of redeployment. The leaders of Syria and Lebanon are meeting at this hour, discussing the proposed two-stage troop pullback.

In money news, expect more pain at the gas pump. I know you have noticed the cost of gas going up. The Lundberg Survey has, too. It says the average retail price jumped to $2 a gallon as of Friday. That's up nearly 7 cents in two weeks. Lundberg says the combination of factors could push pump prices even higher.

In culture, "The Pacifier" kept movie audiences pretty content over the weekend. The Vin Diesel flick was tops at the box office with $30 million. John Travolta's "Get Shorty's" sequel, "Be Cool," finished in second place.

In sports, Illinois' perfect season sank with a last-second three-pointer by Ohio State. Illinois had won 29 straight games. They were trying to become the first team in more than a dozen years to enter the NCAA tournament with no losses, but not this time, Chad.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: No, they'll still be the first seed, though, in that conference.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you this morning.

As we've been telling you all morning long, there is a high-level meeting going on right now in the Middle East. It's between Syria and Lebanon.

CNN's Bill Hemmer joins us now with a look ahead.

Good morning -- Bill.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Carol, good morning.

In fact, they're still talking this hour. Big developments from the Middle East already today. Syrian troops packing up east of Beirut. The government is now outlining a plan to pull back some of its troops in Lebanon and closer to the border with Syria. Is it enough now to satisfy the White House? We'll talk to Syria's ambassador to the U.S. back with us today.

Also in this country, Carol, a controversial story out of Chicago. A mother says her 6-year-old son was suspended from school because the mother would not spank him. The school has a different take on this. We'll talk to the mother and a school administrator coming up this morning.

A busy Monday morning, a packed show for you coming up just about 12 minutes away. Carol, we'll see you then.

COSTELLO: We will. Thank you, Bill.

HEMMER: All right.

COSTELLO: If you have a wreck on the way to work -- I shouldn't even mention that. But anyway, have you wondered how your small compact car will protect you, if at all? See how the size of your car really does matter.

You are watching DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: It is 6:52 Eastern. It just turned 6:52. Here is what will be making news today. Newly-released photos believed to be that of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi were seized several weeks ago. That's according to the U.S. military. It's not known how recently the pictures of the suspected terror leader were taken, but look at how different he looks in these pictures from the pictures you've seen in the past.

A new bulletin from the Vatican says Pope John Paul II has had no complications since throat surgery for breathing problems. The Vatican says he'll probably leave the hospital in time for Holy Week.

And why did President Clinton sleep on the floor? I know what you're thinking, and you're wrong. The government plane that former Presidents Clinton and Bush used to tour the tsunami damage had only one bedroom with one bed. And the younger Clinton deferred to the older Bush, and he allowed the 80-year-old Bush to sleep on the bed.

A U.S. court rules that three flight attendant applicants can sue American Airlines. The airline made tentative job offers six years ago pending medical and background checks. Blood tests found the men were HIV-positive, which they did not list on a medical history form. The job offers were then rescinded.

A question for you this morning: Is your small car safe? A new crash test gave failing grades to a majority of small cars. But is the news as bad as it sounds?

CNN's Julie Vallese answers those questions.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JULIE VALLESE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In tests designed to simulate a side-impact crash between a car and an SUV, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety crashed 16 small cars.

Only two were raced acceptable, the Chevy Cobalt and the Toyota Corolla.

ADRIAN LUND, INSURANCE INSTITUTE FOR HIGHWAY SAFETY: The test results for the Cobalt and for the Corolla when it was equipped with side-impact airbags showed that even small cars can be made to protect their occupants.

VALLESE: Without side-impact airbags, the two vehicles received a poor rating in this simulation that both manufacturers and the institute characterized as severe.

LUND: I think that this test is a message to manufacturers. They're selling a lot of small cars to people out there, and those people aren't adequately protected in the kinds of impacts that are increasingly frequent.

VALLESE (on camera): In small cars, side-impact airbags are not enough, says the institute. Some of the cars rated poor had them.

(voice over): The structural integrity, the actual design of the cars, says the institute, must be improved. Manufacturers say safety is their top priority and that they're working to make improvements wherever possible, something the institute is happy to hear.

LUND: We are hopeful that the new designs that are coming out later this year that weren't included in this test group will do better.

VALLESE: But no one knows for sure until those new cars go up against the SUV simulator at 31 miles per hour.

In Washington, I'm Julie Vallese.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: You are watching DAYBREAK for a Monday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Our favorite time in the show has arrived.

MYERS: What? Because we get to go to IHOP and have stuffed crepes? They look pretty good.

No, obviously, we're giving away the DAYBREAK coffee mug from Friday. Two hard questions, Carol. In fact, there were only 30 correct answers of all of the ones that were sent in. What year were the most recent changes made to the SAT test before the ones they're making now? That answer was 1994. And who is the executive producer of Martha Stewart's new reality show? And that is Mark Burnett. He has obviously done a lot of those reality shows.

And the winner, Stephanie Harrell from Orlando, Florida. The DAYBREAK coffee mug in the mail, as we say.

Carol, now the chance from today. I hope you were paying attention, because whoever is making these questions are making them quite hard. In what state are preachers protesting a performance by Nelly? And now, this No. 2, which two senators are proposing a minimum wage increase?

E-mail your answers to Daybreak@CNN.com. Your name and address, please. And a random drawing for tomorrow and the winner.

COSTELLO: I believe our 6:00 producer, Angela Massey (ph), comes up with those difficult questions. She agonizes over them each morning.

MYERS: Yes. But she also writes the stories, so she knows the answers.

COSTELLO: She does. Daybreak@CNN.com. I cannot speak this morning.

MYERS: I know what you mean. Travel.

COSTELLO: Will you take away that travel update and take it away from me?

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Do you put money in a 401(k)? Of course, you do. If you do, then be sure to watch DAYBREAK tomorrow morning. We'll tell you about a new trend that could be affecting your retirement. That would be 401(k) theft. That's Tuesday on DAYBREAK.

"AMERICAN MORNING" starts right now.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.


Aired March 7, 2005 - 06:29   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Anger and grief in Italy this morning. A state funeral for Nicola Calipari began about 90 minutes ago in Rome. It's still going on, as you can see. He's the intelligence officer shot and killed by American troops in Iraq after winning the freedom of a kidnapped journalist. That journalist, Giuliana Sgrena, disputes a U.S. account of the incident, and she has promised Calipari's widow she will find out why they were attacked.
Sgrena is now in a Rome hospital. She's recovering from a shoulder wound.

Let's head live now to CNN Rome bureau chief Alessio Vinci.

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF: Nicola Calipari is considered nothing less than a hero here in Italy for the way he saved Giuliana Sgrena's life and for having secured the release of other Italian hostages in the past in Iraq.

The state funeral took place at the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli in downtown Rome, packed with authorities, including the Italian prime minister, the Italian president, as well as the U.S. ambassador to Rome, Mel Sembler, who called Calipari a friend and an ally of the U.S.

Thousands have also gathered outside the basilica to pay their last respects, as well as showing their support.

Not present at the funeral is Giuliana Sgrena, the freed reporter. She is still in a hospital recovering from a wound to her left shoulder that she incurred during that attack in Baghdad on Friday. She did meet with the widow of Nicola Calipari. She promised her that she would do everything to find out the truth about what happened and why her husband died.

The incident, of course, is still under investigation. The U.S. has promised a full investigation. However, Sgrena is already disputing the U.S. military version of events, saying that the car was not speeding towards the checkpoint as the U.S. is saying, as well as no warning was given to slow down.

Sgrena is also not ruling out the possibility that she may have been targeted deliberately because the Americans oppose Italy's policy to pay a ransom. In an interview she said -- quote: "Everybody knows the Americans are doing everything to prevent the adoption of this practice to save lives of people held hostage. So, I don't see why I should rule out that I could have been a target."

Sgrena is not substantiating with any facts these allegations. However, Italian media are speculating that a ransom of several million dollars may have been paid. And indeed Nicola Calipari was an experienced negotiator.

But Italian officials at this time are not commenting whether or not a ransom was paid. But at this time they're not ruling out the possibility either.

Alessio Vinci, CNN, reporting from Rome.

COSTELLO: A clarification from Chicago police this morning. Those two men depicted in police sketches were not seen together at Judge Joan Lefkow's house. Remember these sketches? Police say one man was actually seen in a car, while another was seen walking around the judge's house.

As you know, the bodies of Judge Lefkow's mother and husband were found in the house's basement as week ago.

And he's depressed. The man accused of being the BTK killer is complaining about depression. Dennis Rader's attorneys told "TIME" magazine he isn't sleeping, and he's asking about his family. Rader's family hasn't visited since he was charged with 10 counts of first- degree murder.

As for those who knew Rader, they're still reeling.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICK CARR, RADER'S FORMER CO-WORKER: Disbelief. I had no idea, and I'm sure that all of the other people that worked with him had no concept of what was going on over a period of years either.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And we'll have more on Rader's comments coming up in the next hour.

"TIME" magazine editor Chris Farley will talk about the exclusive interview with Rader's attorneys. That's coming up on "AMERICAN MORNING" at 7:00 a.m. Eastern.

And speaking of "AMERICAN MORNING," who is defending the BTK suspect in court? And what kind of defense is he building?

Let's get more now -- actually, right now on that attorney. Soledad O'Brien joins us from "AMERICAN MORNING" to tell us more.

Good morning -- Soledad.

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Carol, good morning to you.

As you just mentioned, we've been talking about depression for the first time. In fact, we are getting words from the BTK suspect himself. All of this comes out of "TIME" magazine that got this exclusive interview with the lawyers, Dennis Rader's lawyers.

A big question, of course, is rumors about a confession. Are those rumors true? This morning, we're going to talk with a senior editor for "TIME" magazine about the lawyers' strategy.

Also this morning on "AMERICAN MORNING," today marks a historic event in the civil rights movement, Bloody Sunday. Forty years ago today, civil rights marchers attacked by state troopers in Selma, Alabama. This morning, we talk to one of those marchers. He is now the current congressman, John Lewis (ph). He says he thought he was going to die that day. He'll share his story with us on "AMERICAN MORNING" right at the top of the hour -- Carol.

COSTELLO: We'll be right here. Thank you, Soledad.

They made fun of a tragedy. Not a good idea when your comments are being recorded. Nine police officers and dispatchers in Austin, Texas, have been suspended for sending inappropriate computer messages to each other. It all happened when this fire broke out at a nightclub last month.

Among the comments were "burn, baby, burn," and an offer to add gasoline to the fire.

Some African-American patrons of the club became upset after seeing the messages on the computer screen of a patrol car.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF STAN KNEE, AUSTIN POLICE: I think we have to learn that sometimes we say things that we have one interpretation as police officers, but the community might have another interpretation. I think we went to great lengths to show that none of these responses were, in fact, racially motivated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Five officers and four dispatchers were suspended for 15 days each. A sixth officer received a written reprimand.

Vile, filthy. Tear your tickets up. Twenty churches are urging you to prevent your kids from going to a Nelly concert. In case you don't know who Nelly is, take a look. I know it's early, but you should know what your kids are watching on MTV and BET. This is video from the song "Tip Drill." And you can discern for yourself what exactly that means, "Tip Drill" that is. Nelly is set to appear at Arkansas State University on March 12.

Let's head live to Arkansas and Pastor Adrian Rodgers.

Good morning, Pastor.

REV. ADRIAN RODGERS, PROTESTING APPEARANCE BY NELLY: Good morning.

COSTELLO: Pastor, tell us what you and 19 other pastors are doing.

RODGERS: Well, we decided to take a stand against this kind of vile and filth coming to our community. And when we begin to look at the lyrics and even the video of Nelly, we decided this is really the wrong thing to come to our community. And though we recognize that because of contracts being signed and so on and so forth, we could not stop it, we wanted to educate parents to let them know what this was all about.

COSTELLO: Well, let's educate our viewers a little bit about some of the lyrics of a Nelly song. And this was a very, very popular song. It's called "Hot in Herre." And let's put the graphic up right now. I'm just going to read a few lines from the lyrics. I'm going to try to pick a line I can actually read on the air this morning.

RODGERS: It's not easy.

COSTELLO: No, it's not actually. OK. This is how one line goes: "I was like, good gracious, A-S-S" -- I'll just spell it -- bodacious. Looking for the right time to shoot my steam, you know, waiting for the right time to flash them G's. Then, um, I'm leaving. Please believing. Oh me and the rest of my heathens." And then, you know, "It's getting hot in here, so take off all your clothes."

I'm sure many of you parents have heard that on the radio. But let me ask you this, Pastor. For many years, people have been complaining about lyrics and rock and roll. But rock and roll is still played. This song was very popular. I mean, what real harm is there in those kinds of lyrics?

RODGERS: Well, by being a minister, my source is always the word of God. Proverbs 18:22 says, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue; they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof." It is no way you can listen to this, you can speak this, talk this, hear this all day and it not have a negative effect on you. It's just impossible.

And Johnnie Cochran made it famous during the O.J. trial, "garbage in, garbage out." And if you take in garbage consistently, the end result has to be the same.

There was an article in the March issue of "Essence" magazine that dealt with this, and they did a survey -- and this was so awesome -- that girls who watched these kinds of videos consistently, and I quote -- it was done by the Motivational Education Productions. And it said that girls that did watch these kinds of videos, they begin to think that their body was more important than their mind. And these girls were more likely to use their bodies to barter. And they were more likely to engage in risky behavior like unsafe sex, sex with multiple partners or sex with many men twice their age, or much older anyway.

COSTELLO: Well, I'm sure many people know where you're coming from, Pastor. But let me read you what Tim Dean -- he's the director of the Arkansas State Convocation Center, where this Nelly concert will be held, on March 12 by the way. He said, "It would appear that with ticket sales over 5,000, many others have expressed their right and find Nelly's music entertaining and worth spending their time and money on."

So, aren't you really fighting a losing battle here?

RODGERS: No, we're not fighting a losing battle. If we're educating people, we're not fighting a losing battle. I've talked to some who said, I did not know that it was this bad. My children are not going. There was even one lady who joined our church after she had already bought the tickets. We just told her, in fact, last night, we'll buy the tickets back, because we don't want to see people exposed to this kind of stuff.

And to also respond to Mr. Dean, many people that are coming to this concert are not from this area. They're coming from other parts and other cities into our city, and we are very concerned not only about this concert, but the residue that it will leave after Nelly has collected his check and gone on to the next place.

COSTELLO: Well, Pastor Adrian Rodgers, thank you for joining DAYBREAK this morning. We appreciate it.

And by the way, the next concert date for Nelly is coming up in just a few weeks at Ohio State University.

Coming up on DAYBREAK, Sony may be one of the biggest Asian businesses to hit America. But with the company facing some troubles, who do you think they've called on to steer the turnaround?

And two former presidents, one plane, one bedroom on the plane. What happens when former commanders-in-chief travel together?

But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Monday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Let's take a look at the international markets now. They're mixed. Japan's Nikkei closes up 52 points, Britain's FTSE down 8 and a half points, the German DAX up just a little over 2 and a half points.

It's time now for a little "Business Buzz." Sony looks outside of Japan for a new CEO.

Carrie Lee live at the Nasdaq Marketsite with more on this story.

Good morning.

CARRIE LEE, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.

It's the first time ever that the Japanese electronics giant is going to have a non-Japanese head. Sony has hired Howard Stringer, born in Wells, now a U.S. citizen. He is named the new chairman and CEO of Sony. And basically, the company is trying to turn around its electronics sector by linking it with its entertainment businesses.

Stringer was president of CBS News from 1986 through 1988, and then president of CBS Broadcast Group from 1988 to 1995. He joined Sony in 1997, and he's helping the company music and movie business, one of the few bright spots in recent years.

Overall, the electronic operations have suffered in the face of cheaper competition from Asian rivals, so they are hoping Stringer will turn things around.

And by the way, it is very rare for a Japanese company at all to have a foreign executive head the company. So, it's a bit of a different move for Sony. We'll see if Mr. Stringer can turn things around.

Meanwhile, a quick check on futures this morning, pointing to a bit of a higher open. We saw very nice gains on Friday on that February jobs report. A lot of people are watching to see if the Dow can cross the 11000 mark. We haven't seen that happen since July of 2001.

Dow component Boeing is in focus today. The U.S. Air Force late Friday said it has lifted a 20-month suspension of Boeing satellite launch contract bidding.

So, that's the latest from here. Carol -- back to you.

COSTELLO: Carrie Lee live from the Nasdaq Marketsite. Thank you.

We love our cars, don't we? But are you safe when you get behind the wheel? We've got some disturbing new crash test results to share with you this morning. It's pretty bad. That's when DAYBREAK returns.

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COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports. It is 6:46 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.

For a second Sunday in a row Pope John Paul II appeared at his hospital window. The pope, as you know, is recovering from breathing problems. He blessed onlookers there. We just got word from the Vatican with an update on his condition. He's doing well, and they say that he will appear for Easter services. We'll keep you posted.

All right, on to Lebanon now. Syrian troops are seen gathering up equipment. That's what you're looking at now. This is perhaps beginning the first stage of redeployment. The leaders of Syria and Lebanon are meeting at this hour, discussing the proposed two-stage troop pullback.

In money news, expect more pain at the gas pump. I know you have noticed the cost of gas going up. The Lundberg Survey has, too. It says the average retail price jumped to $2 a gallon as of Friday. That's up nearly 7 cents in two weeks. Lundberg says the combination of factors could push pump prices even higher.

In culture, "The Pacifier" kept movie audiences pretty content over the weekend. The Vin Diesel flick was tops at the box office with $30 million. John Travolta's "Get Shorty's" sequel, "Be Cool," finished in second place.

In sports, Illinois' perfect season sank with a last-second three-pointer by Ohio State. Illinois had won 29 straight games. They were trying to become the first team in more than a dozen years to enter the NCAA tournament with no losses, but not this time, Chad.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: No, they'll still be the first seed, though, in that conference.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Those are the latest headlines for you this morning.

As we've been telling you all morning long, there is a high-level meeting going on right now in the Middle East. It's between Syria and Lebanon.

CNN's Bill Hemmer joins us now with a look ahead.

Good morning -- Bill.

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Carol, good morning.

In fact, they're still talking this hour. Big developments from the Middle East already today. Syrian troops packing up east of Beirut. The government is now outlining a plan to pull back some of its troops in Lebanon and closer to the border with Syria. Is it enough now to satisfy the White House? We'll talk to Syria's ambassador to the U.S. back with us today.

Also in this country, Carol, a controversial story out of Chicago. A mother says her 6-year-old son was suspended from school because the mother would not spank him. The school has a different take on this. We'll talk to the mother and a school administrator coming up this morning.

A busy Monday morning, a packed show for you coming up just about 12 minutes away. Carol, we'll see you then.

COSTELLO: We will. Thank you, Bill.

HEMMER: All right.

COSTELLO: If you have a wreck on the way to work -- I shouldn't even mention that. But anyway, have you wondered how your small compact car will protect you, if at all? See how the size of your car really does matter.

You are watching DAYBREAK.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: It is 6:52 Eastern. It just turned 6:52. Here is what will be making news today. Newly-released photos believed to be that of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi were seized several weeks ago. That's according to the U.S. military. It's not known how recently the pictures of the suspected terror leader were taken, but look at how different he looks in these pictures from the pictures you've seen in the past.

A new bulletin from the Vatican says Pope John Paul II has had no complications since throat surgery for breathing problems. The Vatican says he'll probably leave the hospital in time for Holy Week.

And why did President Clinton sleep on the floor? I know what you're thinking, and you're wrong. The government plane that former Presidents Clinton and Bush used to tour the tsunami damage had only one bedroom with one bed. And the younger Clinton deferred to the older Bush, and he allowed the 80-year-old Bush to sleep on the bed.

A U.S. court rules that three flight attendant applicants can sue American Airlines. The airline made tentative job offers six years ago pending medical and background checks. Blood tests found the men were HIV-positive, which they did not list on a medical history form. The job offers were then rescinded.

A question for you this morning: Is your small car safe? A new crash test gave failing grades to a majority of small cars. But is the news as bad as it sounds?

CNN's Julie Vallese answers those questions.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JULIE VALLESE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In tests designed to simulate a side-impact crash between a car and an SUV, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety crashed 16 small cars.

Only two were raced acceptable, the Chevy Cobalt and the Toyota Corolla.

ADRIAN LUND, INSURANCE INSTITUTE FOR HIGHWAY SAFETY: The test results for the Cobalt and for the Corolla when it was equipped with side-impact airbags showed that even small cars can be made to protect their occupants.

VALLESE: Without side-impact airbags, the two vehicles received a poor rating in this simulation that both manufacturers and the institute characterized as severe.

LUND: I think that this test is a message to manufacturers. They're selling a lot of small cars to people out there, and those people aren't adequately protected in the kinds of impacts that are increasingly frequent.

VALLESE (on camera): In small cars, side-impact airbags are not enough, says the institute. Some of the cars rated poor had them.

(voice over): The structural integrity, the actual design of the cars, says the institute, must be improved. Manufacturers say safety is their top priority and that they're working to make improvements wherever possible, something the institute is happy to hear.

LUND: We are hopeful that the new designs that are coming out later this year that weren't included in this test group will do better.

VALLESE: But no one knows for sure until those new cars go up against the SUV simulator at 31 miles per hour.

In Washington, I'm Julie Vallese.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: You are watching DAYBREAK for a Monday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Our favorite time in the show has arrived.

MYERS: What? Because we get to go to IHOP and have stuffed crepes? They look pretty good.

No, obviously, we're giving away the DAYBREAK coffee mug from Friday. Two hard questions, Carol. In fact, there were only 30 correct answers of all of the ones that were sent in. What year were the most recent changes made to the SAT test before the ones they're making now? That answer was 1994. And who is the executive producer of Martha Stewart's new reality show? And that is Mark Burnett. He has obviously done a lot of those reality shows.

And the winner, Stephanie Harrell from Orlando, Florida. The DAYBREAK coffee mug in the mail, as we say.

Carol, now the chance from today. I hope you were paying attention, because whoever is making these questions are making them quite hard. In what state are preachers protesting a performance by Nelly? And now, this No. 2, which two senators are proposing a minimum wage increase?

E-mail your answers to Daybreak@CNN.com. Your name and address, please. And a random drawing for tomorrow and the winner.

COSTELLO: I believe our 6:00 producer, Angela Massey (ph), comes up with those difficult questions. She agonizes over them each morning.

MYERS: Yes. But she also writes the stories, so she knows the answers.

COSTELLO: She does. Daybreak@CNN.com. I cannot speak this morning.

MYERS: I know what you mean. Travel.

COSTELLO: Will you take away that travel update and take it away from me?

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Do you put money in a 401(k)? Of course, you do. If you do, then be sure to watch DAYBREAK tomorrow morning. We'll tell you about a new trend that could be affecting your retirement. That would be 401(k) theft. That's Tuesday on DAYBREAK.

"AMERICAN MORNING" starts right now.

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