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American Morning

Remains Identified; Showdown With Iran; Ethanol vs. Unleaded

Aired May 24, 2007 - 06:00   ET

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

KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news. Confirmation overnight that a body found in Iraq is a missing soldier from California.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We love him. We love him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: Now the push to find our other two men still out there.

Plus, road test. Is ethanol a better bargain at the pump?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The math is that good for ethanol?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: How far can a gallon of ethanol really take you, on this AMERICAN MORNING.

And good morning to you. It is Thursday, May 24th. Glad you're with us. I'm Kiran Chetry.

JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning. I'm John Roberts. Thanks very much for joining us.

It will be interesting to see who wins in a head to head challenge, ethanol or gasoline.

CHETRY: That's right, because the prices of ethanol are much, much lower in many places. Not many places offer this alternative and not all cars take it. But if you had that choice, would it make sense for your pocketbook?

ROBERTS: We'll tell you about that coming up.

Also, other stories "On Our Radar" this morning.

A new report says that Iran is doing nothing to slow down its nuclear program. It shouldn't come as a surprise, though, because the Iranian regime has done nothing other than say we're going ahead full boar with this program. It does come, though, amid a huge show of U.S. military force off of the coast of Iran. And now, new allegations that countries outside of Iran are trying to sabotage the nuclear program through industrial espionage. We're going to have a live report with Aneesh Raman. He's the only American television reporter in Iran. That will be coming up in just a couple of minutes.

CHETRY: And, of course, the spat that a lot of people are talking about today, Rosie O'Donnell and Elizabeth Hasselbeck of "The View" clearly have divergent opinions. But sometimes that comes to a head like it did. Let's take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELIZABETH HASSELBECK, "THE VIEW": No, no, no.

ROSIE O'DONNELL, "THE VIEW": Nothing, Elizabeth.

HASSELBECK: That is not -- do not -- you will not call me a coward because, number one, I sit here every single day . . .

O'DONNELL: So do I.

HASSELBECK: Open my heart and tell people exactly what I believe.

O'DONNELL: So do I, Elizabeth.

HASSELBECK: So do not call me a coward, Rosie. I do not hide.

O'DONNELL: It was cowardly (ph) yesterday (ph).

HASSELBECK: It was not cowardly.

O'DONNELL: It was.

HASSELBECK: It was honest.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS: Yikes.

CHETRY: There they go. I mean, after a while, you feel sorry for the guest host. They just sit there and go like this, like they're watching a tennis match. So we'll have more on exactly what sparked that. What Rosie is saying to her fans. Plus, will there be an apology from either one of them.

ROBERTS: Oh, we'll see.

CHETRY: All right. First of all, though, we start with some sad news out of Iraq, and that is the confirmation by our U.S. military just a few hours ago that the body of one of the three missing soldiers has been positively identified. The family of Pfc. Joseph Anzack Jr., 20 years old, of Torrence, California, may be making a statement later this morning after learning the news that it was their loved one who was positively identified. CNN's Arwa Damon is in Yousefia with the troops still searching for two of the other men still missing this morning. Hi, Arwa.

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kiran.

That's right, the missions do continue here. In fact, there are multiple missions ongoing right now as we speak, even though the body of Private Anzack has been identified. Now it was found, pulled out of the Euphrates River by Iraqi police at about 11:00 in the morning yesterday. A representative from this unit, the 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regimen, flew down to (INAUDIBLE) area to try to positively identify the body.

Now that has been made. The family has been notified. The troops here, there is a sense of relief, to a certain degree, because many people were looking for closure. But there is also a sense of complete and utter determination. Two of their men are still out there and the attackers still need to be brought to justice.

Kiran.

CHETRY: Yes. And as you said, I mean, it's just so difficult for them to have to continue with this, the sheer physical exhaustion, but then also knowing that one of their own has been positively identified. How are they keeping up that determination?

DAMON: Well, Kiran, this is what is very interesting, if you will, about the mind-set of the soldiers here right now. Yes, they are exhausted. But at the same time, their determination is really driven by a motivation that they will find, no matter what, the two remaining kidnapped soldiers and that they will bring the attackers to justice.

I was talking with the chaplain. He said that that was also the mood that he sensed from the troops. There is still, though, the hope that the other two soldiers are still alive. I was speaking with the battalion commander who said that he was not looking for revenge, but that there would definitely be a reckoning.

Kiran.

CHETRY: Arwa Damon live for us in Yousefia. Thank you.

Well, today or tomorrow we may learn more about just what the U.S. knew before invading Iraq. A Senate committee is about to release a report this morning, saying that intelligence agencies warned the Bush administration back in 2003 that going to war in Iraq could strengthen both Iran and al Qaeda. In a speech to graduates at the Coast Guard Academy yesterday, President Bush argued for staying in Iraq, saying that al Qaeda is the number one enemy there.

ROBERTS: To Iran now. The Bush administration calling for major expansion of sanctions against Iran. Concerns raised by a new report by the International Atomic Energy Agency that shows Iran has defied world demands and actually stepped up its nuclear program. CNN's Aneesh Raman is the only American reporter in Iran. He joins us live this morning from Tehran. Aneesh, should this IAEA report come as a surprise to anyone?

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No. And what hasn't come as a surprise, either, John, is the reaction we've seen from the Iranian government. This morning, the president said the country will not stop its nuclear program. Earlier, as well, the chief nuclear negotiator said this report, as with others, lacks any smoking gun, proving that Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapon. Now the report also cites issues of transparency, unanswered questions, but no sign that this report or a looming third round of sanctions will do the trick. No sign Iran is going to blink first on this issue.

John.

ROBERTS: You know, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Zalmay Khalilzad, yesterday had some tough talks, saying what they had done so far at the United Nations was not enough. Almost a criticism of people who have gone before him, saying that what we need to do is really rachet it up. You mentioned increasing sanctions. Also to bring about a change in the Iranian calculation, in the Iranian regime. How concerned are leaders there that the United States is actually trying to topple the regime?

RAMAN: It's interesting. Right now, they are very concerned. This whole nuclear issue really began last year, the standoff. And when it started, Iranian officials said this has nothing to do with nuclear programs, it has everything to do with the Bush administration's desire to change the regime here. Over the past year, though, the talk has become more specific. Technical issues of a nuclear program and also talk about Iraq started on the sidelines.

Now, Iraq is, once again, combining these issues and in doing so is strengthening its resolve. It sees this issue, the nuclear issue, as one it cannot back down from, John, because it feels if it backs down on this, the U.S. is only going to push further and ultimately force a regime change.

ROBERTS: All of this comes as the United States has got an increased presence in the Persian Gulf there. New war games going on just off the coast of Iran.

That's Aneesh Raman for us. The only U.S. reporter in Tehran.

We'll keep checking back with you, Aneesh, as the day progresses and see what develops there. Aneesh, thanks very much.

CHETRY: In a roundup today of a Palestinian cabinet minister and mayors of three West Bank towns that Israel says have ties to Hamas. It's part of Israel's response to rocket attacks fired from Gaza into Israel. Israeli war planes also bombed businesses in Gaza accused of funneling money to Hamas.

ROBERTS: A surprising admission from a former top aide to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. Former White House liaison Monica Goodling testified yesterday that she tried to hire only Republicans.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MONICA GOODLING, FORMER JUSTICE DEPARTMENT AIDE: The best I can say is that I know I took political considerations into account on some occasions.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was that legal?

GOODLING: Sir, I'm not able (ph) to answer that question. I know I crossed the line.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTS: Goodling admitted to using Google and other means to identify Republican applicants. She also said that Alberto Gonzales talked to her about the firing of federal prosecutors before his own testimony, something that Gonzales denies.

CHETRY: Well, there's a new seat belt campaign kicking off today and there's a blunt message from a man who learned his lesson the hard way.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. JON CORZINE, NEW JERSEY: I'm New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine and I should be dead. On April 12th, I was critically injured in a car accident where I lost over half my blood and broke 15 bones in 18 places. I spent eight days in intensive care where a ventilator was breathing for me. It took a remarkable team of doctors and a series of miracles to save my life, when all I need was a seat belt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: Wow. Governor Corzine making that public service announcement for the U.S. Department of Transportation. And as he talked about, he was critically hurt when the SUV he was riding in crashed at 91 miles an hour on the Garden State Parkway in New Jersey. The state trooper who was driving was wearing a seat belt and he was only slightly hurt.

Also this warning coming now from your fellow drivers. The cities with the most number of speed traps, the suburbs of Detroit topping that list, followed by Colorado Springs, Houston, Orlando, as well as Nashville. The list was compiled by drivers reporting speed traps. And if you'd like, you can see that full list at speedtrap.org.

ROBERTS: More stories that we're tracking for you this morning. Rescuers are going to try new sounds underwater today of whales attacking other whales to try to urge those wayward humpbacks back to sea in northern California. They're also worried that injuries on the whales do appear to be getting worse and they're now fearing for their health.

Cuban leader Fidel Castro says he's eating solid food and improving after many months of intravenous feeding. The 80-year-old Castro has not been seen in public since last summer when he announced that he had had intestinal surgery.

And take a look at this spectacular video, Hawaii's Mt. Kilauea erupting. We're going to have more on that in just a moment.

Chad, on storms battering the west right now.

You're watching AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: Well, take a look at this. Spectacular video this morning of Hawaii's Mt. Kilauea erupting. Look at the glowing lava that's flowing down the volcano. And this stuff always looks better in nighttime pictures. Kilauea has been continually active since 1983. That's 24 years. Continuing to add a little bit more real estate every day to the big island there.

Highways blocked as heavy rains flood parts of central Kansas. The area was hit on Wednesday by more than seven inches of rain.

And those wildfires in Georgia and Florida are sending smoke all the way across Alabama now. People with breathing difficulties are advised to stay indoors.

Twelve minutes after the hour. Chad Myers here to tell us about more extreme weather across the country.

Who's in the target zone today?

(WEATHER REPORT)

CHETRY: Well, the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog agency says Iran is not only ignoring calls to halt its nuclear work, but actually increasing its activities. That report comes as an American armada flexes its military muscle. There you see it, a show of force in the Persian Gulf. And Iran detains yet another American scholar. So where is all of this headed? Alireza Jafarzadeh is a leading authority on Iran and its nuclear ambitions. He's the author of "The Iran Threat: President Ahmadinejad and the Coming Nuclear Crisis." And he joins me this morning.

Great to see you, Alireza.

ALIREZA JAFARZADEH, AUTHOR, "THE IRAN THREAT": Great to be here, Kiran.

CHETRY: We talked about the new report and we talked about pressing ahead for new sanctions. It seems we've talked about this so often in the past. Will this work, sanctions?

JAFARZADEH: Well, sanctions will work out if we tighten the sanctions. That would include arms, oil, technological and diplomatic sanctions. We need to step up the pressure.

But also we need to make this parallel with political pressure inside Iran where it really counts because the Iranian regime's main Achilles heel is its international situation. There's a lot of opposition going on inside the country, both among the women, the students, the workers, the teachers. There are one million teachers who have been on strike for the past few weeks.

There are some 4,000 anti-government demonstrations in Iran over the past one year. That's where we really need to focus it, absolutely.

CHETRY: How close are they to developing a nuclear weapon?

JAFARZADEH: Well, the information I've been getting from my sources inside Iran, and these are the sources that have been proven accurate in the past, suggest that if things go undeterred, Iran is anywhere between one to three years away from actually having developed a nuclear bomb. And their program is very advanced. They also have the means to deliver the weapon. They have advanced missiles. Sharp (ph) three, sharp four. They're working on sharp four. And there's a new missile, adil (ph) 101, that would allow the Iran regime to deliver it.

CHETRY: If that is the case, why are we still talking sanctions in the United Nations? It would seem that that would be a much bigger problem.

JAFARZADEH: It is a much bigger problem because the Iranian threat is not just limited to its nuclear weapons program. It deals with the terrorism of the Iran regime, this threatening the whole region. Its involvement in the region, in Iraq, in the most violent way.

CHETRY: In fact, we have new information. Our U.S. military is saying that Iranian intelligent is funding Sunni terrorist and they have the intel proving that. How deep are they in it with Iraq?

JAFARZADEH: Well, Kiran, that very much corroborates with the information I've been getting myself from my own sources. The information I've been getting is that Iran has been stepping up its pressure in Iraq, sending arms explosives. The most advanced roadside bombs, known as the EFPs, that has the ability to penetrate through the armor, are actually built in Iran. I have the exact information where they are building them in Tehran by the most elite unit within the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, known as the Quds Force, sending them across the border, providing them to the pro-Tehran proxy groups.

Now included among those groups are the Sunnis. Tehran believes that anyone who can help the Iranian regime, stepping up violence against the United States, that could help pushing the Americans out of the country, that would pave the away for an establishment of an Islamic republic in Iraq. That serves Tehran's purpose.

CHETRY: Alireza Jafarzadeh is the author of "The Iran Threat."

It looks like we still have a lot of work to do. Thank you.

JAFARZADEH: Thank you very much. It's been a pleasure. ROBERTS: Seventeen minutes now after the hour. And other stories that we're following this morning.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff tells "USA Today" that conservative Republicans working to block the immigration compromise risk endorsing silent amnesty if they insist on mass deportations.

And a crackdown on gas gouging. The House has passed a bill that carries stiff fines for oil companies, traders or retailers who take unfair advantage or charge excessive prices for gas and other fuels.

Also, ethanol versus regular gasoline. Which gas gets you more miles per gallon? Our Greg Hunter's on the case.

Hey, Greg.

GREG HUNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, can this solve our energy problems? It's ethanol E-85. It's being sold more and more across the country. We'll tell you about the pros and the cons when we come back on AMERICAN MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHETRY: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING.

There it is. We're checking the CNN gas gauge right now and it's up again. Americans are paying an average of almost $3.23 for a gallon of regular according to AAA.

ROBERTS: Wow. Getting up there every day.

The Bush administration has been pushing ethanol as a homegrown alternative to gasoline. Most ethanol in the United States is made from corn. Last year, 20 percent of the U.S. corn crop was used for ethanol. An acre of corn, how much can it produce? Enough ethanol to run a car for some 72,000 miles. How much out of a bushel? Well, it yields at least 2.8 gallons of ethanol.

There are some 6 million so called flexible fuel vehicles on the road in the United States that can run on either gasoline or another blend called E-85, which is made up of 85 percent ethanol, 15 percent blended gasoline. E-85 also costs less per gallon than regular unleaded. A little less than $1 at this point, but pretty close.

Are you getting your money's worth, though, out of all of that? AMERICAN MORNING's Greg Hunter is live in Albany, New York, at one of the few stations that are selling E-85 ethanol fuel.

And at face value, Greg, it looks like a better deal. Is it?

HUNTER: Well, it depends on how you look at it. Here's the E- 85. It just looks like -- almost like water. But it's not. It's 85 percent, as you said, 85 percent ethanol, 15 percent gasoline. And it smells, you know, like gasoline. You don't have smell-a-vision out there, but you get my drift. Here at the pumps it's about 58 cents a gallon different. Regular gas is $3.179. And if you look over here to E-85 is $2.599 a gallon. About 58 cents a gallon cheaper.

Now a lot of energy proponents of this say, hey listen, this does great things. It lowers our dependence on foreign energy. That's a big number one. Number two, it is much, much cleaner than burning gasoline, or at least somewhat cleaner than burning regular gasoline. And, number three, we can develop an entire industry here in America to actually have, you know, biofuels or renewable energy. And this is one of them, E-85.

On the con side, people act -- like the EPA is saying, hey, listen, the energy reduction or the mileage reduction is somewhere in the neighborhood of, you know, 20 percent to 30 percent. Our friends at consumer reports also tested a flex fuel vehicle, got less gas mileage. So you have to weigh the, you know, energy independence aspect, you know, the cleaner emissions aspect to what it costs at the pump right now. And supposedly it's going to get better in the future.

John.

ROBERTS: So, Greg, when you take a look at the amount of energy that you get out of a gallon of ethanol versus a gallon of gasoline and then you look at the disparity in the price, is there really that much of a different in prices?

HUNTER: Right now there is -- the big difference is, you burn a little cleaner and it's a homegrown fuel. But it's not really cost- effective for the consumer according to the folks at "Consumer Reports." But again, this industry is in its infancy and the technology about flex fuel vehicles will get better. The technology for producing, you know, E-85 will be much better in the future. Yield much more than, for example, corn. There's other things out there that they can grow other than corn to yield more and better ethanol.

Back to you.

ROBERTS: We should mention, as well, Greg, that coming up next hour, you're actually going to go out to the test track with the "Consumer Reports" people and test ethanol versus gasoline head to head. We're looking forward to that.

Greg, thanks. We'll see you next hour.

CHETRY: Twenty-four minutes past the hour right now and Carrie Lee is in for Ali Velshi, minding your business this morning.

Good to see you.

CARRIE LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good to see you as well.

CHETRY: You know, I thought that the Coke/Pepsi wars, the cola wars were over in the 90s. LEE: No. Well, this takes a different stance. You might remember that the Coca-Cola secretary trying to steel and sell trade secrets, Coke trade secrets to Pepsi. Well, she has just been sentenced to eight years in prison for doing just that.

A federal judge actually sentenced her -- gave her a longer sentence than recommended by prosecutors, saying this is the kind of offense that cannot be tolerated in our society. They say she chose to go to trial. She lied on the stand. Said she never committed a crime.

So now Joya Williams, 42-years-old, will be in jail for five years. Her co-defendant was sentenced to five years in prison. Both also have to pay $40,000 in restitution.

The government says she stole confidential documents and samples of products. She was secretary to Coke's brand director and then tried to sell them to the highest bidder. So that is the latest here. She was sentenced back in February. I mean, she went to trial back in February, rather.

CHETRY: Live and well. All right. Thanks a lot.

LEE: Also, a little bit on the markets. Former Fed chief Allen Greenspan yesterday talking about the Chinese market, saying that they are due for a correction, the market there due for a correction, so even those stocks ended -- started a little higher yesterday, crossing the 13,600 mark for the first time. Ended lower across the board. And we are set for a little bit of a weak open this Thursday morning.

ROBERTS: The pullback begins.

LEE: Well, we'll see. We'll see.

CHETRY: All right, Carrie Lee, thanks so much.

LEE: OK.

CHETRY: Rosie O'Donnell leaving "The View" in a few weeks, but she's not going without a fight. She called her frequent sparring partner, Elizabeth Hasselbeck, a coward because Hasselbeck didn't defend her when critics accused Rosie of implying that U.S. troops in Iraq are terrorists. The whole thing turned into a long and heated fight. Let's listen to a little bit of it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELIZABETH HASSELBECK, "THE VIEW": No, no, no.

ROSIE O'DONNELL, "THE VIEW": Nothing, Elizabeth.

HASSELBECK: That is not -- do not -- you will not call me a coward because, number one, I sit here every single day . . .

O'DONNELL: So do I.

HASSELBECK: Open my heart and tell people exactly what I believe.

O'DONNELL: So do I, Elizabeth.

HASSELBECK: So do not call me a coward, Rosie. I do not hide.

O'DONNELL: It was cowardly (ph) yesterday (ph).

HASSELBECK: It was not cowardly.

O'DONNELL: It was.

HASSELBECK: It was honest.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHETRY: All right. Rosie and Elizabeth have frequently debated on the Iraq War. But even during the heated moments, they still refer to each other, at least they did, as friends.

ROBERTS: Yes, I wonder if they're still friends today.

Worries this morning as Iran continues to defy world demands to stop its nuclear program. A U.N. report says Iran has significantly accelerated its enrichment of uranium.

Highways blocked as heavy rains flood parts of central Kansas. The area was hit on Wednesday by more than seven inches of rain.

And we all know that Google can be a great source of information, but could it have too much information on you and your family?

That, plus our top stories next on AMERICAN MORNING. The most news in the morning is on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: Breaking news this morning. The military confirms the body found in Iraq is that of a missing American soldier. Now the race to find two other GIs ramps up on this AMERICAN MORNING.

CHETRY: And good morning to you. It is Thursday, May 24th.

I'm Kiran Chetry.

ROBERTS: And good morning to you.

I'm John Roberts.

Thanks very much for joining us.

CHETRY: We have some stories "On the Radar" this morning.

(NEWSBREAK)

ROBERTS: The military says the body found in Iraq is one of the missing soldiers. The family of Private First Class Joseph Anzack Jr., 20 years old, of Torrance, California, got that word overnight.

The commander of the troops searching for the U.S. soldiers, the missing soldiers, the two still out there, is Lieutenant Colonel Michael Infante. He joins us now on the phone.

Lieutenant Colonel, what's the status on the search for the two remaining soldiers who are missing?

LT. COL. MICHAEL INFANTI, U.S. ARMY: Sir, right now we're continuing with the same level of intensity that we've had since this incident occurred. And we'll just keep hunting them 24/7. We have not stopped. And, you know, we're just not going to stop.

ROBERTS: Right. And what's the mood there of the battalion that you command now with the news that Private...

INFANTI: I'm sorry, sir. I didn't hear you.

ROBERTS: I said what is the mood there in the battalion now that it has been confirmed that Private Anzack was the soldier who was found in the river yesterday?

INFANTI: Sir, I hardly made you out. But it was PFC. Anzack out of Delta Company 431 Infantry. I was out with the soldiers today as they continue their search. Their mood right now is reserved and disciplined.

ROBERTS: Right. Is there an increased sense of urgency? Is there an increased sense of urgency now that Private Anzack's body has been found that you need to find these two remaining soldiers?

And it looks like we have lost communication with Lieutenant Colonel Infanti. Of course all over Iraq communications are sketchy. Apparently as well, and specifically as well, down in that area where their battalion is operating.

But we're going to do our best to try to get him back on the telephone with us again. And, of course, Arwa Damon will be with us throughout the morning to report more on what's going on.

CHETRY: So, will Hillary take the advice or not to skip Iowa in the upcoming presidential race? It looks like she is not going to do that.

Her deputy campaign manager suggested maybe skipping the state -- he wrote this in a memo -- in order to try to focus on other places where she's doing better in the polls. Others though say there is little chance she would actually take that advice.

House Minority Leader John Boehner cutting to the chase on the immigration bill. He was caught last night at a private gathering calling it a piece of -- enter your own four-letter word. It starts with an "S".

Well, your phone number could lead the wrong people right to your house. We're going to tell you how to protect your information. It's online. It's all out there. A lot of it's free. People can just find out where you live.

Coming up on AMERICAN MORNING.

The most news in the morning here on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: Thirty-seven minutes after the hour. Some other stories that we're tracking this morning.

Philadelphia police say one of the men accused of plotting to attack New Jersey's Fort Dix tried to become a police officer. Investigators say that he also applied to be a cop in Oakland, California.

You remember Martin Lee Anderson, that Florida teen who died after being roughed up in a juvenile boot camp? His family is going to get $5 million from the state.

And the World Trade Center developer is getting a $2 billion insurance settlement for the 9/11 attack. The developer says the settlement clears the way for Ground Zero rebuilding.

CHETRY: Well, there's a feature on Google that will allow anyone who knows your phone number to get a map to your house. It's a case of too much information that you and your family should probably be at least aware of.

Alina Cho joins us right now with more on this reverse phone book.

We talk about Google, but there are about a half dozen other sites out there that do the same thing.

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. It's kind of scary when you think about it, right? We got this security e-mail yesterday and all of us were alerted to it here at CNN.

CHETRY: Right.

CHO: It's actually not new, Kiran. It's been around since 2002. But a lot of people don't know about it.

Essentially, what you do is, you go on to Google, you can type in anyone's phone number. Say you have anyone's phone number -- you did it with your parents, I did it with my parents. You know, it's amazing what pops up -- the name, the address and a link to a map.

You click on the map, it gives you directions right to the house. Well, you can imagine how people might be scared about this, right? So, what Google has done is they have an opt out page that you can go to. And we're going to bring it up right now.

The Web site is www.google.com/help/pbremoval.html. It should be on the lower part of your screen.

CHETRY: And can you get that from the search? Meaning, when you search the number, can you get to this page? Or do you have to know it yourself?

CHO: You have to know it yourself, but you can, I'm sure, go to Google search opt out, removal form -- you know, phone number, and this should pop up in theory, right?

So, you go down here. You scroll down and you see here it's pretty simple if you want to opt out. You enter your name right there, enter your city and state, your phone number.

You can give a reason for removal. You know, phone number is incorrect, privacy concerns, other whatever.

You just submit the form, you press that. And what comes up if you did this is a notice saying your request will be processed within 48 hours. And in theory, within two days if you put your phone number back in there, your name and address, the map, should not come up.

CHETRY: So you've got to go back and check. The other interesting thing is, on a couple of other competitive sites -- because when you do this, the interesting thing Google also says, it may be removed from our phone book, but it's not from al of these other sites.

CHO: Oh, sure. There's a half a dozen others, a dozen others. And I checked them. I know you checked them as well.

You go on to these sites, and some of them it's pretty easy. You can say if you want -- there's a little notice that will say, if you want to remove your phone number, here is the link. Just click on that.

CHETRY: But you really have to hunt for it.

CHO: You really have to look for it. So it's not easy. So, you've got to keep this in mind. There is that option to opt out, but you have got to hunt for it.

CHETRY: And the other interesting thing that it raises is just how much of all of our private information is available now because of these search engines. And Google is actually doing things to enhance it even more.

CHO: That's right. Just last week, they came out with this new function, really, and it's designed to save you a few clicks, save you some time.

So, right now what you do is if you want to do a search, you have to do it separately -- images, Web, video. You know how to do that. And people who are familiar with Google know that.

Now what you can do is you can go to -- we're going to clear the screen here -- you can go to Google and type in -- let's say -- why don't we use you as a guinea pig, all right? So type in Kiran Chetry. Hold on one second here. Let's get this.

Kiran Chetry, and what comes up is this. So we've got photos, we've got Web results, and eventually -- now this is not yet fully integrated. It will be soon. But what you'll be able to do in time is also get video.

So let's say there's video of the show. You'll be able to do that right from the search page. So, essentially, it's streamlined, it's a blended search, a universal search. It's designed to make it easier on you, the user.

CHETRY: That's right. But in the meantime, when it comes to your privacy, and if you don't want your phone number out there, you've got to just be aware and be vigilant and try to take care of it.

CHO: That's absolutely right. That's absolutely right.

CHETRY: Alina, thanks. Very interesting. Thanks so much -- John.

ROBERTS: Forty-one minutes after the hour now. Chad Myers here with a look at what's going on in terms of weather across the country.

(WEATHER REPORT)

It will be hot today in Chicago.

(WEATHER REPORT)

ROBERTS: We were talking earlier about alternative fuels. Ethanol production is helping to drive the cost of corn up, and it's all having a ripple effect on the entire American food supply.

AMERICAN MORNING'S Chris Lawrence takes a look at what else is driving the increase.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Mac and cheese is up 25 percent. A gallon of milk costs 30 percent more. A pound of oranges, 75 percent. And for California shoppers, there is no relief in sight.

TERRELL RICHARDSON, GROCERY SHOPPER: I have definitely noticed a difference.

LAWRENCE: Terrell Richardson is shopping for his wife and daughter. He spent so much more on food that he's had to skimp on other necessities, like routine car maintenance.

RICHARDSON: So, I'm going to sacrifice my car and get my car washed to make sure my daughter has a good meal in her belly in the morning. And with these prices, it's really, really hard.

LAWRENCE: Last month, food prices rose four percent nationally. It's even worse in California because of its high real estate and gas prices. Analysts blame a combination of drought, freezing weather and the rising price of corn.

Corn? That's right. It's the main ingredient in ethanol, an alternative fuel in hot demand.

Corn syrup is used to make ketchup and sweeten soda pop. Corn fattens animals before slaughter, and it's forcing dairy farmers to spend millions more to feed their milk cows.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And the dairy industry, with skyrocketing feed prices which must be passed on to the consumer eventually.

LAWRENCE: This Texas factory produces six million tortillas a day. That's a lot of corn. The owner says he's competing for corn with ethanol producers, food versus fuel.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Corn products, chip, tortillas, enchiladas, they will go up about 25 to 30 percent at restaurant level if things continue as they are now.

LAWRENCE: And with ethanol production expected to double in the next four years, today's food prices may look like a bargain.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTS: That was AMERICAN MORNING'S Chris Lawrence reporting.

6:45 now.

CHETRY: Some more headlines.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: Fifty-four minutes now after the hour.

Some health stories that we're tracking this morning.

Add toothpaste to the list of Chinese imports coming under scrutiny. Tainted toothpaste has turned up in other countries. This is toothpaste tainted with deadly diethylene glycol, the same compound that was found in some cough syrup recently. A cheep alternative for glycerin.

So far, though, no reports of problems here.

A little fish oil might be just the ticket to a healthy heart and a slimmer waist. Researchers say when combined with exercise, fish oil can decrease body fat and improve cholesterol levels.

And it appears that not all doctors are willing to fess up to their mistakes. A new survey shows one in five doctors failed to disclose minor mistakes to patients. They do, however, seem to be much more ready to admit major mistakes. Only four percent keeping quiet in those cases.

(BUSINESS REPORT)

(NEWSBREAK)

ROBERTS: The next hour of AMERICAN MORNING begins right now.

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