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American Morning
Police in Massachusetts Still Searching for Teenage Hate Crime Suspect; Super Bowl Security
Aired February 03, 2006 - 09:33 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Police in Massachusetts are still searching for a teenage hate crime suspect. They say 18-year-old Jacob Robida carried out Wednesday night's attack at a gay bar in New Bedford, Massachusetts, armed with a hatchet and a handgun.
AMERICAN MORNING's Dan Lothian live for us this morning in New Bedford about 60 miles south of Boston, a fishing town.
Dan, what do we know?
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, still police are searching for this teen. They do believe that he is armed and dangerous, but no sign of him yet this morning. They also believe that he still might be in the area. They don't think that he's gone very far.
A quick description, as you mentioned, he's an 18-year-old teen. He's a white male, 5'6, 210 pounds, brown hair and hazel eyes was last seen driving a 1999 Pontiac Grand Am. He allegedly walked into the gay bar behind me Wednesday night and had a hatchet that he pulled out, allegedly attacked one of the customers with a hatchet, and then opened fire on two others.
As I mentioned, police do believe he is armed and dangerous right now. They are searching for him on potential charges of attempted murder, assault and also civil rights violations -- Miles.
M. O'BRIEN: What do we know about him, Dan?
LOTHIAN: Well, he remains pretty much a mystery other than what we've been able to find out from his Web site and talking to relatives and friends. We hear that he is a young man who was very quiet, somewhat stayed to himself, was also very angry. And when you check on his Web site as well, he posted a lot of sort of sort of hate dialogue, a lot of hate symbols.
And so that's pretty much all we've been able to find out about him. We also know that he was involved in the junior police academy about five years or so ago. The police aren't saying whether or not he has a criminal record.
M. O'BRIEN: Police are looking for is it a Grand Am, is that right.
LOTHIAN: That's correct, a 1999 Pontiac Grand Am.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Thank you very much, Dan Lothian in New Bedford, Massachusetts.
For more updates on today's top stories and of course many CNN exclusives, be sure to tune in to "ANDERSON COOPER 360," weeknights, 10:00 Eastern, right here on CNN.
CNN Security Watch now. Super Bowl Sunday practically upon us. The game attracts thousands of fans to the site, and of course millions of viewers, and these day a whole lot of security. And it might make an inviting terror target any year, but this year the location is cause for bigger concern, because it's so near the Canadian border.
CNN's Brian Todd with our story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When's the last time you saw a helicopter try to steer away a plane in mid flight? Or one speed boat nearly collide with another on the border of U.S. and Canada? This is what awaits terrorists should they attempt to target Super Bowl XL in Detroit.
(on camera): This will give you an idea of the huge security concerns for the Super Bowl. Look how close Ford Field is to the Detroit River. The border of U.S. border to Canada runs right up the middle of that river and then hundreds of miles north to adjoining rivers and lakes.
(voice-over): We flew in joint airspace along with Commander Bob Makowski of the U.S. Coast Guard who explained his challenge heading off pilots who violate airspace.
CMDR. BOB MAKOWSKI, U.S. COAST GUARD: An unfamiliar pilot, we don't know what they're going to do. They don't really know what we're going to do.
TODD: This year, U.S. security officials have partners, coordinating like never before with the Canadian counterparts. Both countries are under North American Aerospace Defense Command, NORAD, that will have fighter jets and helicopters enforcing a 30-mile fright restriction on Super Sunday.
On the water, just for this event, heavily armed American boats can cross into waters. American officers can board Canadian vessels to chase suspects. The Canadians can do the same.
BOATSWAIN 1ST CLASS, CURTIS TAFT, U.S. COAST GUARD: You look for anything out of the usual, such as small vessels traveling at a high rate of speed that don't appear to be, you know, acknowledging that have you a zone in place.
TODD: With the sheer mileage of the open border space on the water, we asked Coast Guard Admiral Robert Papp, coordinator of all U.S. Homeland Security Agencies for the Super Bowl, where the vulnerabilities are. REAR ADM. ROBERT PAPP, U.S. COAST GUARD: These are the places, though, where you have the biggest challenge, where you have virtually just a couple hundred yards. A boat can get across in five minutes.
TODD: That potential threat is why Homeland Security officials have set up a tight security zone along the detroit waterfront. That doesn't cover the hundreds of miles of open border over the adjacent river and lakes. But right now, officials tell CNN they have no specific credible threats to the Super Bowl.
Brian Todd, CNN, Detroit.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
M. O'BRIEN: Stay with CNN day and night for the most reliable news about your security.
We've been calling it insult to injury. The city of New Orleans this morning, many folks, some of them who had just repaired roofs damaged by Katrina, are now contending with yet another natural disaster, a trio of twisters came through about this time yesterday, some of them very strong. Some of them packing 150-mile-an-hour winds.
One of the places affected, Louis Armstrong International Airport. Roy Williams is the director of that airport. And even though they don't expect the Mardi Gras traffic that they would have gather inn a typical year, it's still a busy time of year in New Orleans and for the airport. Mr. Williams, how seriously was the airport damaged. And how much of an impact will it be on the increased travel there?
ROY WILLIAMS, DIR., LOUIS ARMSTRONG INTL. AIRPORT: The good news is the damage was basically confined to just one concourse of our four concourses. Truly on the concourse the damage was much worse than the wind and rain impacts of Katrina. It really beat the concourse up very severely.
The good news is compared to normal, we're not quite up to our pre-Katrina level of air service, and so we are able to move airlines around. We've got United, and American and Air-Tran on different concourses, and so they are already back up and operating.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, so the airlines affected, you say, were United, American, Air-Tran, but probably won't be a blip for their flights, as you say, because what are you, about half your normal capacity right now?
WILLIAMS: That's right. We started with just three a day back in September. We're now up to nearly 80 and doing very well and growing. So you're right, we won't have quite the Mardi Gras crowd we would normally expect, but we're definitely going to have very full planes in February.
M. O'BRIEN: So just on a personal level here. Now, when you wake up and read about this or hear about something like that, it's just such a kick in the gut, isn't it?
WILLIAMS: Well, it certainly is. And I think we all sort of wondered what it could mean. But underneath it all, it's just the weather, and we happen to have had two very significant events here in a five-month span.
M. O'BRIEN: As far as we know, you know, the first thing you think about when any bad weather strikes are the levees and the fact they are not in a full state of repair, obviously. That's in progress. Do we know about any sort of damage to them?
WILLIAMS: I'm sorry, I missed that, the damage to...
M. O'BRIEN: The levees themselves? Have you heard anything about that?
WILLIAMS: It's pretty clear that none of these strikes were on any of the levees, and so the good news is that's not -- the situation is not any worse. It appears that primarily homes, trailers, and in our case, the terminal building were the primary victims.
M. O'BRIEN: All right, Roy Williams, who is director of the Louis Armstrong International Airport. We wish you the best as you try to ramp up, so to speak, and get back in business there. And we hope that things go well for the Mardi Gras traffic that you face very soon. Thanks for being with us.
WILLIAMS: Thank you.
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MARKET REPORT)
M. O'BRIEN: All right. Coming up, some A.M. Pop. And we're going to continue on this theme of advertisements. You know those Super Bowl ads are a big deal. Have you heard about this?
SERWER: Yes, I have.
M. O'BRIEN: Oh, yes, big deal, big deal.
I think it's a big deal, and people spend the money because we do the segment you're about to see. Yes, free ads, you know, kind of thing, right? We're going to give you a little preview of what you will see when you tune in, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
M. O'BRIEN: This just in to CNN. We have reports of at least two church fires in and around the area of Centerville, Alabama. This is Bibb (ph) County, Alabama. Two fires damaged overnight including the Ashby Baptist Church in the Briarfield (ph) Community. Another fire damage, a church also in Chilton County late yesterday afternoon. So I guess that brings the total to three, is that correct? Do we have three church fires in the same vicinity of Alabama?
So just coming into us now. This is stuff coming from the Associated Press, three church fires overnight in and around the area of Bibb Country and Chilton County. We'll be tracking that story for you all day today of course right here on CNN.
Let's shift gears now significantly. A lot of people will tune into the Super Bowl. Super Bowl XL -- XL. That's 40 in Roman numerals. But it's, of course, everything gets bigger and bigger with the Super Bowl every year, including the commercials and the anticipation for those very same commercials. It is truly astounding how much they have become a part of all of this.
Joining us to talk a little bit about this phenomenon and the new batch is Suzanne Vranica. She's with "The Wall Street Journal," and she covers advertising over at the "Journal."
Good to have you with us, Suzanne.
SUZANNE VRANICA, "WALL STREET JOURNAL": Thanks for having me.
M. O'BRIEN: All right. You know, every year there's always kind of one or two. You know, of course we go back to the 1984 commercial, the famous Apple commercial, The Benchmark of commercials, aired only once, and it gets replayed over and over again. Unlikely we're going to have a repeat of that probably ever again, who knows.
VRANICA: Probably every again.
M. O'BRIEN: That was something.
All right, but let's talk about this year. I know the Fabio commercial is previewed as being kind of fun. Let's watch it, first of all.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: From the man who brought fantasy to life comes a hair product born into reality. Beauty has a face, perfection a name, and now you can experience a shampoo worthy of only one man's...
ANNOUNCER: Life comes at you fast. Be ready with Nationwide, investments, retirement, insurance.
ANNOUNCER: Nationwide is on your side.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
M. O'BRIEN: Had me hook, line and sinker. Kind of reminds me of that Bob Dole spot a few years ago, where you think he's going down the Viagra road, and it's a Pepsi ad. It's a great twist, and that will be a fun one, right?
VRANICA: Well that's what you have to do on Super Bowl Sunday. It's all about surprise endings, twisting the audience, making them laugh. You can't do anything serious, because people are drinking beer and having fun. So the least think you want to do is really annoy your audience.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, you want to get their attention. You want to -- and generally speaking, humor is the tack that is taken, although I think a lot of advertising executives will tell you humor isn't always the best way to connect the product with the commercial, right?
VRANICA: It's very hard to do. But on Super Bowl Sunday if you don't use humor and you try and go for heart strings or you go for something depressing, you really do and can risk your brand out there. People are expecting to be entertained. And if you don't entertain them, that could actually you.
M. O'BRIEN: Of course, 1984 wasn't funny but it was, in itself, very cinematic.
VRANICA: It was epic.
M. O'BRIEN: Epic, that would be the term for it. Let's talk about this Pepsi spot. P. Diddy is in this one. Or is that what he's called now, P. Diddy now?
VRANICA: Yes, P. Diddy.
M. O'BRIEN: I can't keep track of the names.
Let's take a quick look at that and what's the premise here on P. Diddy.
VRANICA: It's all about...
M. O'BRIEN: Listen for a second.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Diddy! So, you want to make a record with my client's Diet Pepsi.
SEAN COMBS, "P. DIDDY": He's fresh. He's new. The ladies love him. I got to have him signed for the label.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It sounds good, but we have to have mutual creative control.
COMBS: You've got a deal.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
M. O'BRIEN: The Pepsi can becomes the star.
VRANICA: Absolutely. It's all about celebrities on Super Bowl. That's the other formula that works so well. Pepsi has basically nailed it. They know what people want. One year they went, I think it was 2004, they went away from celebrity, and consumers were outraged. They really want celebrities in their Super Bowl Sunday.
M. O'BRIEN: Interesting, celebrities count. All right, Dove, now this is part of an overall theme of being a little more appealing to families, right?
VRANICA: Right.
M. O'BRIEN: Because there was some concern there was too many...
VRANICA: Janet Jackson Super Bowl fiasco that's what started it all.
M. O'BRIEN: You want to get away from that, right?
VRANICA: Yes.
M. O'BRIEN: So let's watch the Dove spot briefly, a little excerpt of it.
(SINGING)
M. O'BRIEN: I thought you said don't tug the heart strings. Come on, I'm already weeping! Is this one going to work.
VRANICA: I think it has a good chance. You have to remember, there are over 30 million women watching this Super Bowl Sunday. So there's a chance that you can kind of get your brand in front of those women, and this is one way to do it. But you might alienate some men,but I guess it's no big deal because they are not buying dove.
M. O'BRIEN: So the guys might be belching, the girls will be bawling.
All right, let's -- final thought here, career builder.com. We'll just roll a little voice-over of that. We're kind of out of time.
VRANICA: The whole point is they know how to do it. You bring out chimpanzees and monkeys on Super Bowl Sunday, and for some reason, that's basically what wins the game every year. E*Trade did it for years.
I don't know, people have this affinity of monkeys. I don't even want to go there why it actually works so well.
M. O'BRIEN: It's true. There you have it, monkeys. And that's just one of the many things you will soon be seeing in another bumper crop of Super Bowl ads.
Suzanne, thanks for dropping by.
VRANICA: Thanks for having me.
M. O'BRIEN: Suzanne Vranica takes care of the advertising beat at the "Wall Street Journal."
That's a good job.
VRANICA: Not bad.
M. O'BRIEN: Yes, not bad.
Nice work if you can get it. And on Monday, we'll have you back, and we'll get a full review.
VRANICA: And you'll be a "Wall Street Journal" poll that goes on Sunday night, and you'll know what the winners were. All this on AMERICAN MORNING on Monday, super Monday, we'll call it.
Back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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