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American Morning
"Super Size Me" Filmmaker Expands Media Empire; Sequel to Live Aid Concert Scheduled for Summer
Aired May 31, 2005 - 09:30 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: After the long weekend, Fleet Week is about to conclude. Ringing the opening bell, too, down on Wall Street again today. Dow 30 coming in today, up about five points Friday. 10,542. So after the off day on Monday, see where we go today. At the Nasdaq market site, 2,075 is your opening mark. Also up about four points in trading at the close of business on Friday of last week.
So good morning again.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And it's exactly half past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING. Coming up this morning, 20 years after Live Aid, another concert for Africa.
HEMMER: Could be the music event of the summer, too. Live Eight, Dave Matthews one of the participants. He joins us in a few minutes coming up here.
O'BRIEN: Looking forward to hearing from him this morning. Before that, though, let's get another look at the headlines with Carol. Good morning.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, I am too. Good morning. Good morning, everyone.
"Now in the News," the White House announced just moments ago that President Bush will speak next hour in the Rose Garden. We know the president will speak on the economy and the energy.
Bob Franken's live at the White House to tell us more. What can we expect, Bob?
BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, there will be an opening statement that deals with both of those subjects, Carol, as well as a push to Congress to pass a budget that is satisfactory to the president. And also the Central America Free Trade Agreement, which is still being debated in Congress. He can expect to be getting questions about that so-called lame duck murmuring that's been going around. Now that Jack Cafferty has made it an issue, the president decided to hold this news conference. Not sure that there is a connection between those two, but it is happening at 10:45 Eastern this morning.
There have been some presidential setbacks and the polls are showing a decline in his approval rating. The most recent CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll says it is now at 46 percent, which is steadily downward. 52 percent, for instance, in March. So the president will be covering that issue. Certainly, the reporter is going to be asking about that. Certainly, there will be questions about the repudiation of the European Union constitution by the French. A large gamut of things to cover. It should also be pointed out that the president does this, as I said, Carol, about once a month.
COSTELLO: All right. And Jack is chucking down in his office, I'm sure. Bob Franken live at the White House this morning.
CNN will have live coverage of the presidential address in the Rose Garden, as you heard Bob say. It starts at 10:45 Eastern.
A CNN "Security Watch" now, two Americans accused of conspiring to help al Qaeda are scheduled to be in court this morning. One of the men is a martial arts expert from New York. The other is a Florida doctor who allegedly pledged to host and treat injured militants. He's set to appear at a federal court in Florida about 30 minutes from now.
Stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.
Actor Christian Slater is expected in a Manhattan criminal court at any time now. Police arrested him earlier this morning for allegedly grabbing a woman's behind on the street. One officer said Slater was intoxicated at the time. He is charged with third degree sexual abuse. Slater shouted, "I'm innocent!" as he was led into that police car you're looking at.
HEMMER: That's the kind of P.R. you want to get, huh, Carol?
COSTELLO: No, you don't. Just don't do that ever.
HEMMER: Thank you.
Michael Jackson's fate could soon be in the hands of the jury. In fact, perhaps tomorrow afternoon. His molestation trial enters its final phase. Closing arguments are expected on Wednesday.
More from Ted Rowlands now in California.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The evidence against Michael Jackson is in. More than 135 witnesses took the stand during more than two months of testimony. Those watching the trial seemed to agree it could go either way.
SUSAN FILAN, LEGAL ANALYST: This case is such a cliffhanger. All along it's been a ping pong ball -- ping pong match that we've been watching. Witness after witness has flipped us and flopped us. Now each side needs to put their total case together and let the jury step back and see it in full, and have them be persuaded that their version of the story is the one to believe.
ROWLANDS: The last evidence the jury saw was a video showing the boy accusing Jackson, telling detectives that he'd been molested.
JIM MORET, LEGAL ANALYST: It was extraordinarily powerful for the prosecution to end its case on this evidence. And it's stunning that the last thing that the jury will hear before arguments is this videotape.
ROWLANDS: Jackson is not required to be in court today while both sides work with the judge to write jury instructions. The jury has been told to expect closing arguments to begin as early as tomorrow.
If convicted of any of the four separate counts of molestation, Jackson faces the possibility of several years in state prison. Michael Jackson maintains that he is innocent.
Ted Rowlands, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HEMMER: Also, one other note here. The D.A. Tom Sneddon will not deliver the prosecution's closing arguments. He did deliver opening statements. Instead, jurors will heard hear from the assistant D.A. Ron Zonen in California -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: The man who got us to look at fast food in a totally different way is getting ready to super size his media empire. "Super Size Me" filmmaker Morgan Spurlock, who ate McDonald's fast food for 30 straight days and documented what it did to his health, has just published his book. It's called "Don't Eat This Book." He's also got a reality TV series premiering next month.
We're going to talk about all of that this morning, because Morgan Spurlock is here. Nice to see you. Thanks for taking about it. Why did you want to write a book?
MORGAN SPURLOCK, AUTHOR, "DON'T EAT THIS BOOK": Well, there was so much we couldn't pack into the film. You know, a movie is a very tight medium, only 90 minutes to get everything we want to say in there. And I got to lot to say, so it's hard to put that into a film.
O'BRIEN: What else did you want to say?
SPURLOCK: Well, I mean, it's -- we really wanted to explore a lot more of the government influence of school lunch programs, of what people in their communities can do. I mean, the book -- just like the film, the book is very empowering and let's you know that you can really make a difference. And hopefully it will.
O'BRIEN: You talk a lot in the film about McDonald's, because that's sort of what your experiment was based on. But in the book, I found that you were talking about fat. Trans fat, bad fat.
SPURLOCK: Sugar, high fructose corn syrup, yes.
O'BRIEN: What's your message? I mean, what's your point? SPURLOCK: I mean, for us, I think we are living in a time where we don't really know where our food comes from, we don't what's in it, we don't what it's going to do to us. And my message is we have to become a little more informed. You know, we have to understand where it comes from and exactly what's going to happen to our bodies. You know, we put too much faith in corporations and the government to say these people are taking care of us, they have my best interest in mind. And that's just not the case.
O'BRIEN: Some people who took some exception to the film, who weren't necessarily even the corporate giants at McDonald's, felt that sometimes you didn't talk enough about personal responsibility. That you could not just eat McDonald's for thirty days. You could sit around and eat buckets of, you know, healthy rice pudding and something that's high in fat and high in sugar that's all natural and you'd still gain weight and have heart problems and have bad skin.
SPURLOCK: Right.
O'BRIEN: Isn't that a fair...
SPURLOCK: Well, there's still a quality to the calorie, you know. Eating like a load of broccoli that's, you know, a thousand calories versus a thousand calories of ice cream that's loaded with high fructose corn syrup, fat and sugar, are completely different. And, you know, once again, there is still quality, not quantity. And you know, and it's true. Once again, people may not eat this food everyday. They may not eat it three times a day like I did. But in America, we overeat, we underexercise every single day.
O'BRIEN: How did you lose the weight?
SPURLOCK: You know, I have...
O'BRIEN: Because you look even skinnier than the last time I interviewed you...
SPURLOCK: Yes.
O'BRIEN: ... of course, right before the Oscars.
SPURLOCK: Right. I've got a -- you know, wonderful fiance now. Alex and I got engaged.
O'BRIEN: Oh, congratulations.
SPURLOCK: Thank you. And so I've got a wonderful fiance who keeps me on the healthy track. And you know, afterwards, she put me on a detox diet.
O'BRIEN: Which was what?
SPURLOCK: It was -- she put me on a very strict vegan detox, which took out all the meat, all the dairy, all the sugar. You know, most -- only good fats, no bad fats.
O'BRIEN: And you're still on that or are you back to like, normal person diet?
SPURLOCK: Oh, no. I'm normal person diet, yes.
O'BRIEN: We mention in the intro that you're also doing this reality -- who doesn't have reality TV show, is what I want to ask?
SPURLOCK: Well, for me, I think we're really taking reality television back to where it started, which is a documentary format. You know, that was the original in the reality show.
O'BRIEN: What's the premise?
SPURLOCK: It's a show called "30 Days." It premieres June 15th on the F/X Network. And each week we examine different social issues in America. And in the premiere episode, the first show, we ask what it's like to have live on minimum wage in America.
And for 30 days, Alex and I move to Columbus, Ohio. You know, I suckered her into coming with me. And we go there and we live on minimum wage for a month, just to really examine how difficult is it, how are things stacked against you when you live this type of lifestyle. And it's pretty informing and scary.
O'BRIEN: Filmmaker and author and TV star Morgan Spurlock joining us. Nice to see you. Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials.
SPURLOCK: Thank you. Thank you very much.
O'BRIEN: Bill.
HEMMER: All right. 23 minutes before the hour.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HEMMER: Sun Valley, California. Rough going for rescuers there, trying to get a horse out of the mud, literally. One person was actually injured when the horse fell on him as he tried to calm the animal. Eventually the horse was pulled out unharmed with the help of a nice strong rope and a good hosing off, too, a bit later, too. Sun Valley, California, KTLA there.
O'BRIEN: Oh, that's so sad when those animals get trapped. It happens a fair amount, actually, you know, when it gets really muddy down there.
HEMMER: Good thing we humans are around to help them out, huh?
O'BRIEN: I know. It's really true.
HEMMER: How can the government protect you from I.D. theft when it can't protect itself? Good question for Andy Serwer. He explains that in "Minding Your Business."
O'BRIEN: And ahead, singer Dave Matthews will join us live. He'll tell us why he's taking part in this summer's star-studded follow-up to Live Aid. That's ahead. Stay with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: We'll get to Andy "Minding Your Business" in a moment here. But first, 20 years ago this summer the historic Live Aid concert held in cities across the world. It was something to see, too, raising tens of millions for Ethiopian famine relief. The follow-up is now planned for is 2nd of July -- that's a Saturday -- in numerous cities including Philadelphia, and London, and Berlin and Rome.
Singer activist Sir Bob Geldof, once again, heading the whole thing up this time around. He had this to say just a few moments ago when the announcement was made in London.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SIR BOB GELDOF, LIVE 8 CONCERT ORGANIZER: What this is, is to take an issue that doesn't trouble the electorates of the G-7, it doesn't exercise it perhaps as much as it does here, how do we create domestic political heat? And the only way to do it is to have people focus on what the artists are doing. And that's what will happen at Live Eight.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: Dave Matthews and his band among the groups performing. Dave is my guest now down in Philly. Good morning to you, Dave.
Thanks for making time for us today.
DAVE MATTHEWS, MUSICIAN: No problem. It is the morning, isn't it?
HEMMER: Yes. Believe me.
MATTHEWS: Barely started.
HEMMER: Hey, listen, what do you hope to accomplish with your involvement with the band this time around?
MATTHEWS: Well, I think it's, you know, awareness is the biggest thing, that sometimes is what's needed to really move the leaders of the world. I think one of the reasons that I -- at that first Live Aid concert I was in Johannesburg, growing up there, and one of the things that changed South Africa was not, you know, great world leaders coming together and saying, oh, let's focus on South Africa. It was really the people of the world, saying we can't sit around and watch this happen, and have our countries or our representatives trading indefinitely with the apartheid government, so the people of the world rose up and changed that.
And I think is another instance and opportunity, where we can say, look, Africa shouldn't be indebted to us. It's in a deep, deep state, a spiral of poverty, a spiral of the AIDS crisis. Downward and really unforgivable is the fact that it's -- that Africa spends all of its resources on repaying a debt that it owes the West, which is absurd.
And this is just to say, let's forgive that debt and let's become proactive, let's become active participants in improving the possibility of Africa's future and erasing...
HEMMER: In 1985, about six years before your band even came together and was created. What do you remember from the images of 1985 from that concert?
MATTHEWS: Well, I think the thing that was most powerful about that, again, was this rally, was this -- the quality of people coming together, the power of people. And when people are -- when people are moved to do something, or more so than that, given the opportunity to do something, to be powerful in the face of the world's future, they take that opportunity. And I think this is another chance that we have to bring together power of people to move our leaders.
It's a very small -- it's almost absurdly tiny, the act of forgiving, the actual act of forgiving Africa's debt, or much of Africa's debt. But to move politicians to do something as profound as that requires the power of people saying, you know, if you truly represent us then you will stop this crime, this crime against humanity, which is the poverty and the hunger in Africa.
HEMMER: Dave, I apologize for the interruption. 2003 in Central Park, you did a massive concert outside out there Central Park. That was to benefit New York City schools, and this, again, is another charity. You mention you're originally from South Africa. Do you feel some connection to this cause more so than anyone else would, because you come from the southern part of that continent?
MATTHEWS: I don't think more so. Maybe I -- you know, I have memories, I have smells that I think of that remind me of Africa that more than maybe average people in the U.S., but I think we have a connection to each other. And there's a general -- there's a quality in us all where when we see an injustice, if it's within our power to change that, I think people are generally moved to do so.
And so I certainly have an investment in Africa's future that's personal. But on a far greater level, I have an investment in the future of the world and the health of the world, and that is dependent on every nation, every country, every continent having a -- the possibility of a future.
And so I don't necessarily think I'm more invested in that than anybody else. I think all of us want a healthier, better world, a world where, you know, democratic ideas and free ideas can prosper, and that can only happen if we're free from fear, or at least attempting to free ourselves from fear of poverty and fear of illness, which is where Africa is, under a blanket of it.
HEMMER: Nice to talk to you. Good luck to you all right. We're waiting for the 2nd of July.
MATTHEWS: Thank you. It'll be a blast.
HEMMER: I bet it will, down in Philly. Thanks.
MATTHEWS: I think so, too.
"CNN LIVE TODAY" is coming up next.
Hey, Daryn, good morning to you. What are you working on?
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, Soledad.
Coming up at the top of the hour, we're going to hear from President Bush. He has called a press conference for the Rose Garden. That is set for 10:45 Eastern. We're going to carry that live of course. Also you were just talking Live Aid. The concert announced this morning. You talked to Dave Matthews. I talked with Bono, just sat down with him last week, and we're going to talk about Africa and what it means to him, and it's something you'll see only here on CNN.
O'BRIEN: I think it's going to be an amazing concert. I'm so excited about it. I'm glad they announced it and they're going forward with it. Maybe it will do a lot of good, too.
Daryn, thanks a lot. We'll see you at the top of the hour. Well, guess who just had a giant case of identity theft, the same people who are supposed to catch the crooks.
Andy Serwer is "Minding Your Business" with that story up next.
Stay with us. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: All right, here's another good one for you, too. The latest shocker in I.D. theft. Law enforcement has fallen victim to people stealing personal information. Andy Serwer's got this, with the cool music, too.
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE": And the cool graphics.
HEMMER: What happened here?
SERWER: Don't forget the cool graphics. Let the music -- it's great stuff.
It's ironic that the government agency responsible for prosecuting identity theft has itself now become the victim of identity fraud. We're talking about the Department of Justice. "U.S. News and World Report" reporting that 80,000 Justice Department employees have had their identities compromised. A computer lifted from a travel agency in Fairfax, Virginia.
And the usual stuff is now ensuing. They're watching and monitoring the credit cards of these 80,000 government employees, maybe some of them who are on the case trying to protect the rest of us from government -- from identity theft, I should say. Interesting stuff. Another identity theft story. This one having to do with some of the nation's top universities. There was a case a couple months ago where hackers broke into the admissions files of Harvard, Stanford and other business schools and alerted applicants that if they checked into a certain Web site, they could find out whether they got into the school or not. This was shut down after about ten hours.
Harvard automatically rejected all the applicants who decided to pursue this. Stanford decided to let the 41 people who followed the hackers' advice tell the university why they wanted to do it. Well, they wanted to do it to find out whether they got in or not. Stanford has now rejected all of those 41 students, which is a little harsh if you ask me. They sort of followed someone's lead.
Let's talk about the market. Stocks trading down at this hour, sad to say. The Dow is off. Let's take a look. 34 points down. One stock to the upside, though. It's the stock that just keeps on keeping on. Google, up 2 percent to $270 a share. One brokerage putting a $300 price target on that stock.
HEMMER: What's the (INAUDIBLE) ratio on that thing, about 1,500?
SERWER: It does not exist.
HEMMER: It does not exist.
SERWER: It does not compute.
HEMMER: Thanks, Andy.
SERWER: You're welcome.
O'BRIEN: Jack, final look at e-mails. Good morning.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, good morning. Has President Bush lost his political capital? There's a piece in "The Washington Post" this morning suggesting you can hear the phrase lame duck being whispered about some of the corridors in Washington.
Pamela in Michigan writes: "If you compare the political agenda the Bush administration is pushing -- benefits for corporation, huge tax cuts, religion and war --- to the national agenda the people are seeking -- jobs, healthcare, workers' rights and security -- it's not hard to see why Bush has no political capital."
Peter in Texas writes: "Never had it. That's the mortal flaw with setting a two-term limit on the presidency. You just wait 'til the first term is over and then Congress can do as it wishes."
And Monica writes from New York: "The political capital President Bush won with his slim margin in the last election amounted to change in his pocket. It was spent on day one and now he's working on I.O.U.'s that we and our children will have to pay."
O'BRIEN: Final words. All right, Jack, thanks. Well, as part of CNN's 25th anniversary, we're looking at defining moments from those years. 1997 the world mourned the tragic death of Princess Diana, when she was killed in a fatal car accident in Paris.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: As CNN celebrates 25 years, we remember the news stories that defined a generation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE ANCHOR: Just into CNN, apparently Princess Diana has been in a serious road accident in Paris.
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR EUROPEAN CORRESPONDENT: I immediately headed for the scene. There was probably several hundred people around the mouth of the tunnel. About halfway through the tunnel we could see the black Mercedes. Some reports were that she was in pretty good shape. But of course that proved to be very, wrong.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE ANCHOR: But the French government has informed all of us that Princess Diana has died.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The world's minds are on what we are watching and listening to.
BITTERMANN: Diana lived her life in front of people and she died there and I think that left a truly lasting mark.
ANNOUNCER: CNN celebrates 25 years of "Defining Moments," a CNN primetime event, June 1, 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: Huge day tomorrow. June 1st, 2005. On this day back in 1980, CNN went on the air.
Tomorrow, colleague and former anchor Bernie Shaw stops by. We'll reflect with Bernie tomorrow here. Looking forward to seeing him again, talking to him again.
O'BRIEN: That will be nice to catch up with him. I like him.
HEMMER: Reflecting the past quarter-century. They call it the silver one, right? Silver anniversary? 25 years?
COSTELLO: That's right. We're all getting a piece of silver for the anniversary, didn't you hear?
O'BRIEN: Really? Right. And that's it. We're out of time, you guys. That's all for us this morning. We'll see you back here tomorrow morning. Let's get right to Daryn Kagan. She's at the CNN Center.
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Aired May 31, 2005 - 09:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: After the long weekend, Fleet Week is about to conclude. Ringing the opening bell, too, down on Wall Street again today. Dow 30 coming in today, up about five points Friday. 10,542. So after the off day on Monday, see where we go today. At the Nasdaq market site, 2,075 is your opening mark. Also up about four points in trading at the close of business on Friday of last week.
So good morning again.
SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: And it's exactly half past the hour on this AMERICAN MORNING. Coming up this morning, 20 years after Live Aid, another concert for Africa.
HEMMER: Could be the music event of the summer, too. Live Eight, Dave Matthews one of the participants. He joins us in a few minutes coming up here.
O'BRIEN: Looking forward to hearing from him this morning. Before that, though, let's get another look at the headlines with Carol. Good morning.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, I am too. Good morning. Good morning, everyone.
"Now in the News," the White House announced just moments ago that President Bush will speak next hour in the Rose Garden. We know the president will speak on the economy and the energy.
Bob Franken's live at the White House to tell us more. What can we expect, Bob?
BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, there will be an opening statement that deals with both of those subjects, Carol, as well as a push to Congress to pass a budget that is satisfactory to the president. And also the Central America Free Trade Agreement, which is still being debated in Congress. He can expect to be getting questions about that so-called lame duck murmuring that's been going around. Now that Jack Cafferty has made it an issue, the president decided to hold this news conference. Not sure that there is a connection between those two, but it is happening at 10:45 Eastern this morning.
There have been some presidential setbacks and the polls are showing a decline in his approval rating. The most recent CNN/"USA Today"/Gallup poll says it is now at 46 percent, which is steadily downward. 52 percent, for instance, in March. So the president will be covering that issue. Certainly, the reporter is going to be asking about that. Certainly, there will be questions about the repudiation of the European Union constitution by the French. A large gamut of things to cover. It should also be pointed out that the president does this, as I said, Carol, about once a month.
COSTELLO: All right. And Jack is chucking down in his office, I'm sure. Bob Franken live at the White House this morning.
CNN will have live coverage of the presidential address in the Rose Garden, as you heard Bob say. It starts at 10:45 Eastern.
A CNN "Security Watch" now, two Americans accused of conspiring to help al Qaeda are scheduled to be in court this morning. One of the men is a martial arts expert from New York. The other is a Florida doctor who allegedly pledged to host and treat injured militants. He's set to appear at a federal court in Florida about 30 minutes from now.
Stay tuned to CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.
Actor Christian Slater is expected in a Manhattan criminal court at any time now. Police arrested him earlier this morning for allegedly grabbing a woman's behind on the street. One officer said Slater was intoxicated at the time. He is charged with third degree sexual abuse. Slater shouted, "I'm innocent!" as he was led into that police car you're looking at.
HEMMER: That's the kind of P.R. you want to get, huh, Carol?
COSTELLO: No, you don't. Just don't do that ever.
HEMMER: Thank you.
Michael Jackson's fate could soon be in the hands of the jury. In fact, perhaps tomorrow afternoon. His molestation trial enters its final phase. Closing arguments are expected on Wednesday.
More from Ted Rowlands now in California.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The evidence against Michael Jackson is in. More than 135 witnesses took the stand during more than two months of testimony. Those watching the trial seemed to agree it could go either way.
SUSAN FILAN, LEGAL ANALYST: This case is such a cliffhanger. All along it's been a ping pong ball -- ping pong match that we've been watching. Witness after witness has flipped us and flopped us. Now each side needs to put their total case together and let the jury step back and see it in full, and have them be persuaded that their version of the story is the one to believe.
ROWLANDS: The last evidence the jury saw was a video showing the boy accusing Jackson, telling detectives that he'd been molested.
JIM MORET, LEGAL ANALYST: It was extraordinarily powerful for the prosecution to end its case on this evidence. And it's stunning that the last thing that the jury will hear before arguments is this videotape.
ROWLANDS: Jackson is not required to be in court today while both sides work with the judge to write jury instructions. The jury has been told to expect closing arguments to begin as early as tomorrow.
If convicted of any of the four separate counts of molestation, Jackson faces the possibility of several years in state prison. Michael Jackson maintains that he is innocent.
Ted Rowlands, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HEMMER: Also, one other note here. The D.A. Tom Sneddon will not deliver the prosecution's closing arguments. He did deliver opening statements. Instead, jurors will heard hear from the assistant D.A. Ron Zonen in California -- Soledad.
O'BRIEN: The man who got us to look at fast food in a totally different way is getting ready to super size his media empire. "Super Size Me" filmmaker Morgan Spurlock, who ate McDonald's fast food for 30 straight days and documented what it did to his health, has just published his book. It's called "Don't Eat This Book." He's also got a reality TV series premiering next month.
We're going to talk about all of that this morning, because Morgan Spurlock is here. Nice to see you. Thanks for taking about it. Why did you want to write a book?
MORGAN SPURLOCK, AUTHOR, "DON'T EAT THIS BOOK": Well, there was so much we couldn't pack into the film. You know, a movie is a very tight medium, only 90 minutes to get everything we want to say in there. And I got to lot to say, so it's hard to put that into a film.
O'BRIEN: What else did you want to say?
SPURLOCK: Well, I mean, it's -- we really wanted to explore a lot more of the government influence of school lunch programs, of what people in their communities can do. I mean, the book -- just like the film, the book is very empowering and let's you know that you can really make a difference. And hopefully it will.
O'BRIEN: You talk a lot in the film about McDonald's, because that's sort of what your experiment was based on. But in the book, I found that you were talking about fat. Trans fat, bad fat.
SPURLOCK: Sugar, high fructose corn syrup, yes.
O'BRIEN: What's your message? I mean, what's your point? SPURLOCK: I mean, for us, I think we are living in a time where we don't really know where our food comes from, we don't what's in it, we don't what it's going to do to us. And my message is we have to become a little more informed. You know, we have to understand where it comes from and exactly what's going to happen to our bodies. You know, we put too much faith in corporations and the government to say these people are taking care of us, they have my best interest in mind. And that's just not the case.
O'BRIEN: Some people who took some exception to the film, who weren't necessarily even the corporate giants at McDonald's, felt that sometimes you didn't talk enough about personal responsibility. That you could not just eat McDonald's for thirty days. You could sit around and eat buckets of, you know, healthy rice pudding and something that's high in fat and high in sugar that's all natural and you'd still gain weight and have heart problems and have bad skin.
SPURLOCK: Right.
O'BRIEN: Isn't that a fair...
SPURLOCK: Well, there's still a quality to the calorie, you know. Eating like a load of broccoli that's, you know, a thousand calories versus a thousand calories of ice cream that's loaded with high fructose corn syrup, fat and sugar, are completely different. And, you know, once again, there is still quality, not quantity. And you know, and it's true. Once again, people may not eat this food everyday. They may not eat it three times a day like I did. But in America, we overeat, we underexercise every single day.
O'BRIEN: How did you lose the weight?
SPURLOCK: You know, I have...
O'BRIEN: Because you look even skinnier than the last time I interviewed you...
SPURLOCK: Yes.
O'BRIEN: ... of course, right before the Oscars.
SPURLOCK: Right. I've got a -- you know, wonderful fiance now. Alex and I got engaged.
O'BRIEN: Oh, congratulations.
SPURLOCK: Thank you. And so I've got a wonderful fiance who keeps me on the healthy track. And you know, afterwards, she put me on a detox diet.
O'BRIEN: Which was what?
SPURLOCK: It was -- she put me on a very strict vegan detox, which took out all the meat, all the dairy, all the sugar. You know, most -- only good fats, no bad fats.
O'BRIEN: And you're still on that or are you back to like, normal person diet?
SPURLOCK: Oh, no. I'm normal person diet, yes.
O'BRIEN: We mention in the intro that you're also doing this reality -- who doesn't have reality TV show, is what I want to ask?
SPURLOCK: Well, for me, I think we're really taking reality television back to where it started, which is a documentary format. You know, that was the original in the reality show.
O'BRIEN: What's the premise?
SPURLOCK: It's a show called "30 Days." It premieres June 15th on the F/X Network. And each week we examine different social issues in America. And in the premiere episode, the first show, we ask what it's like to have live on minimum wage in America.
And for 30 days, Alex and I move to Columbus, Ohio. You know, I suckered her into coming with me. And we go there and we live on minimum wage for a month, just to really examine how difficult is it, how are things stacked against you when you live this type of lifestyle. And it's pretty informing and scary.
O'BRIEN: Filmmaker and author and TV star Morgan Spurlock joining us. Nice to see you. Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials.
SPURLOCK: Thank you. Thank you very much.
O'BRIEN: Bill.
HEMMER: All right. 23 minutes before the hour.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HEMMER: Sun Valley, California. Rough going for rescuers there, trying to get a horse out of the mud, literally. One person was actually injured when the horse fell on him as he tried to calm the animal. Eventually the horse was pulled out unharmed with the help of a nice strong rope and a good hosing off, too, a bit later, too. Sun Valley, California, KTLA there.
O'BRIEN: Oh, that's so sad when those animals get trapped. It happens a fair amount, actually, you know, when it gets really muddy down there.
HEMMER: Good thing we humans are around to help them out, huh?
O'BRIEN: I know. It's really true.
HEMMER: How can the government protect you from I.D. theft when it can't protect itself? Good question for Andy Serwer. He explains that in "Minding Your Business."
O'BRIEN: And ahead, singer Dave Matthews will join us live. He'll tell us why he's taking part in this summer's star-studded follow-up to Live Aid. That's ahead. Stay with us on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: We'll get to Andy "Minding Your Business" in a moment here. But first, 20 years ago this summer the historic Live Aid concert held in cities across the world. It was something to see, too, raising tens of millions for Ethiopian famine relief. The follow-up is now planned for is 2nd of July -- that's a Saturday -- in numerous cities including Philadelphia, and London, and Berlin and Rome.
Singer activist Sir Bob Geldof, once again, heading the whole thing up this time around. He had this to say just a few moments ago when the announcement was made in London.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SIR BOB GELDOF, LIVE 8 CONCERT ORGANIZER: What this is, is to take an issue that doesn't trouble the electorates of the G-7, it doesn't exercise it perhaps as much as it does here, how do we create domestic political heat? And the only way to do it is to have people focus on what the artists are doing. And that's what will happen at Live Eight.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HEMMER: Dave Matthews and his band among the groups performing. Dave is my guest now down in Philly. Good morning to you, Dave.
Thanks for making time for us today.
DAVE MATTHEWS, MUSICIAN: No problem. It is the morning, isn't it?
HEMMER: Yes. Believe me.
MATTHEWS: Barely started.
HEMMER: Hey, listen, what do you hope to accomplish with your involvement with the band this time around?
MATTHEWS: Well, I think it's, you know, awareness is the biggest thing, that sometimes is what's needed to really move the leaders of the world. I think one of the reasons that I -- at that first Live Aid concert I was in Johannesburg, growing up there, and one of the things that changed South Africa was not, you know, great world leaders coming together and saying, oh, let's focus on South Africa. It was really the people of the world, saying we can't sit around and watch this happen, and have our countries or our representatives trading indefinitely with the apartheid government, so the people of the world rose up and changed that.
And I think is another instance and opportunity, where we can say, look, Africa shouldn't be indebted to us. It's in a deep, deep state, a spiral of poverty, a spiral of the AIDS crisis. Downward and really unforgivable is the fact that it's -- that Africa spends all of its resources on repaying a debt that it owes the West, which is absurd.
And this is just to say, let's forgive that debt and let's become proactive, let's become active participants in improving the possibility of Africa's future and erasing...
HEMMER: In 1985, about six years before your band even came together and was created. What do you remember from the images of 1985 from that concert?
MATTHEWS: Well, I think the thing that was most powerful about that, again, was this rally, was this -- the quality of people coming together, the power of people. And when people are -- when people are moved to do something, or more so than that, given the opportunity to do something, to be powerful in the face of the world's future, they take that opportunity. And I think this is another chance that we have to bring together power of people to move our leaders.
It's a very small -- it's almost absurdly tiny, the act of forgiving, the actual act of forgiving Africa's debt, or much of Africa's debt. But to move politicians to do something as profound as that requires the power of people saying, you know, if you truly represent us then you will stop this crime, this crime against humanity, which is the poverty and the hunger in Africa.
HEMMER: Dave, I apologize for the interruption. 2003 in Central Park, you did a massive concert outside out there Central Park. That was to benefit New York City schools, and this, again, is another charity. You mention you're originally from South Africa. Do you feel some connection to this cause more so than anyone else would, because you come from the southern part of that continent?
MATTHEWS: I don't think more so. Maybe I -- you know, I have memories, I have smells that I think of that remind me of Africa that more than maybe average people in the U.S., but I think we have a connection to each other. And there's a general -- there's a quality in us all where when we see an injustice, if it's within our power to change that, I think people are generally moved to do so.
And so I certainly have an investment in Africa's future that's personal. But on a far greater level, I have an investment in the future of the world and the health of the world, and that is dependent on every nation, every country, every continent having a -- the possibility of a future.
And so I don't necessarily think I'm more invested in that than anybody else. I think all of us want a healthier, better world, a world where, you know, democratic ideas and free ideas can prosper, and that can only happen if we're free from fear, or at least attempting to free ourselves from fear of poverty and fear of illness, which is where Africa is, under a blanket of it.
HEMMER: Nice to talk to you. Good luck to you all right. We're waiting for the 2nd of July.
MATTHEWS: Thank you. It'll be a blast.
HEMMER: I bet it will, down in Philly. Thanks.
MATTHEWS: I think so, too.
"CNN LIVE TODAY" is coming up next.
Hey, Daryn, good morning to you. What are you working on?
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, Soledad.
Coming up at the top of the hour, we're going to hear from President Bush. He has called a press conference for the Rose Garden. That is set for 10:45 Eastern. We're going to carry that live of course. Also you were just talking Live Aid. The concert announced this morning. You talked to Dave Matthews. I talked with Bono, just sat down with him last week, and we're going to talk about Africa and what it means to him, and it's something you'll see only here on CNN.
O'BRIEN: I think it's going to be an amazing concert. I'm so excited about it. I'm glad they announced it and they're going forward with it. Maybe it will do a lot of good, too.
Daryn, thanks a lot. We'll see you at the top of the hour. Well, guess who just had a giant case of identity theft, the same people who are supposed to catch the crooks.
Andy Serwer is "Minding Your Business" with that story up next.
Stay with us. You're watching AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: All right, here's another good one for you, too. The latest shocker in I.D. theft. Law enforcement has fallen victim to people stealing personal information. Andy Serwer's got this, with the cool music, too.
ANDY SERWER, "FORTUNE": And the cool graphics.
HEMMER: What happened here?
SERWER: Don't forget the cool graphics. Let the music -- it's great stuff.
It's ironic that the government agency responsible for prosecuting identity theft has itself now become the victim of identity fraud. We're talking about the Department of Justice. "U.S. News and World Report" reporting that 80,000 Justice Department employees have had their identities compromised. A computer lifted from a travel agency in Fairfax, Virginia.
And the usual stuff is now ensuing. They're watching and monitoring the credit cards of these 80,000 government employees, maybe some of them who are on the case trying to protect the rest of us from government -- from identity theft, I should say. Interesting stuff. Another identity theft story. This one having to do with some of the nation's top universities. There was a case a couple months ago where hackers broke into the admissions files of Harvard, Stanford and other business schools and alerted applicants that if they checked into a certain Web site, they could find out whether they got into the school or not. This was shut down after about ten hours.
Harvard automatically rejected all the applicants who decided to pursue this. Stanford decided to let the 41 people who followed the hackers' advice tell the university why they wanted to do it. Well, they wanted to do it to find out whether they got in or not. Stanford has now rejected all of those 41 students, which is a little harsh if you ask me. They sort of followed someone's lead.
Let's talk about the market. Stocks trading down at this hour, sad to say. The Dow is off. Let's take a look. 34 points down. One stock to the upside, though. It's the stock that just keeps on keeping on. Google, up 2 percent to $270 a share. One brokerage putting a $300 price target on that stock.
HEMMER: What's the (INAUDIBLE) ratio on that thing, about 1,500?
SERWER: It does not exist.
HEMMER: It does not exist.
SERWER: It does not compute.
HEMMER: Thanks, Andy.
SERWER: You're welcome.
O'BRIEN: Jack, final look at e-mails. Good morning.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, good morning. Has President Bush lost his political capital? There's a piece in "The Washington Post" this morning suggesting you can hear the phrase lame duck being whispered about some of the corridors in Washington.
Pamela in Michigan writes: "If you compare the political agenda the Bush administration is pushing -- benefits for corporation, huge tax cuts, religion and war --- to the national agenda the people are seeking -- jobs, healthcare, workers' rights and security -- it's not hard to see why Bush has no political capital."
Peter in Texas writes: "Never had it. That's the mortal flaw with setting a two-term limit on the presidency. You just wait 'til the first term is over and then Congress can do as it wishes."
And Monica writes from New York: "The political capital President Bush won with his slim margin in the last election amounted to change in his pocket. It was spent on day one and now he's working on I.O.U.'s that we and our children will have to pay."
O'BRIEN: Final words. All right, Jack, thanks. Well, as part of CNN's 25th anniversary, we're looking at defining moments from those years. 1997 the world mourned the tragic death of Princess Diana, when she was killed in a fatal car accident in Paris.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: As CNN celebrates 25 years, we remember the news stories that defined a generation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE ANCHOR: Just into CNN, apparently Princess Diana has been in a serious road accident in Paris.
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR EUROPEAN CORRESPONDENT: I immediately headed for the scene. There was probably several hundred people around the mouth of the tunnel. About halfway through the tunnel we could see the black Mercedes. Some reports were that she was in pretty good shape. But of course that proved to be very, wrong.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE ANCHOR: But the French government has informed all of us that Princess Diana has died.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The world's minds are on what we are watching and listening to.
BITTERMANN: Diana lived her life in front of people and she died there and I think that left a truly lasting mark.
ANNOUNCER: CNN celebrates 25 years of "Defining Moments," a CNN primetime event, June 1, 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: Huge day tomorrow. June 1st, 2005. On this day back in 1980, CNN went on the air.
Tomorrow, colleague and former anchor Bernie Shaw stops by. We'll reflect with Bernie tomorrow here. Looking forward to seeing him again, talking to him again.
O'BRIEN: That will be nice to catch up with him. I like him.
HEMMER: Reflecting the past quarter-century. They call it the silver one, right? Silver anniversary? 25 years?
COSTELLO: That's right. We're all getting a piece of silver for the anniversary, didn't you hear?
O'BRIEN: Really? Right. And that's it. We're out of time, you guys. That's all for us this morning. We'll see you back here tomorrow morning. Let's get right to Daryn Kagan. She's at the CNN Center.
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