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Man Held in Teen Slaying; NASA Worried over Launch Mishap; Italians Protest Bush
Aired June 09, 2007 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Out of one big house, into another big house. Back in jail and due for psychiatric tests. This weekend, we're going to be live in Los Angeles for you.
Also, it was a near-perfect launch. But now there's a problem. NASA says it is concerned over a tear in a thermal blanket. What exactly does that mean? How will it affect re-entry? We will have that for you.
And then, he's charged with killing a young woman. Could he be linked to the disappearance of still another?
And hello, again, everybody. I'm Rick Sanchez. We are going to get started here in B-Control for you. We are going to have more now on this story. Edwin Hall is held for the murder of Kelsey Smith. The Kansas teen apparently vanished a week ago today. Her body found four days later. Investigators say it appears Kelsey was strangled not long after she was kidnapped.
New details are emerging today about Edwin Hall's apparently troubled past though. Also today, heightened interest in another disappearance. There is another teen missing just a few miles down the road from that one. And police suspect that there might be a link in this case.
First, let's do this. Let's start off talking about the suspect. He is a loner with a thousand mile stare, as some have described him. Here's CNN's Ed Lavandera with his story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Around this Kansas City neighborhood, Edwin Hall is known as Jack. He moved here with his wife and young son a few months ago.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He didn't really speak to anyone or say anything to anyone. We didn't know him well or anything.
LAVANDERA: And someone is going by the name Jack on this MySpace Web page looks just like Edwin Hall. This is the Web site photo. This is Edwin Hall's mug shot. This Jack lives in Kansas City just like Edwin Hall, and both have a wife with the same name. If this is Edwin Hall's MySpace page, it paints a disturbing picture of the 26- year-old man accused of kidnapping and killing a teenage girl.
He calls himself a sweet, troubled soul who likes eating small children and harming small animals. His heroes are Batman and his dad, even though he calls him the bastard. And one of his favorite movies is "Strangeland," a 1990s horror movie about a schizophrenic killer who lures teenage girls over the Internet and tortures the daughter of a police detective. Kelsey Smith's father has had a long career in law enforcement.
Investigators say Edwin Hall kidnapped Kelsey Smith from this Target store Saturday night. Police say the surveillance tape shows Hall's pickup truck entering the parking lot soon after Smith arrived. The video then shows Smith being forced into her own car. On Wednesday, Smith's body was found in the woods.
But at this point, it is not clear if Edwin Hall even knew Kelsey Smith. Those closest to the teenage victim are wondering why she was targeted.
JOHN BIERSMITH, KELSEY'S BOYFRIEND: When did you first see her? Was it just random? What's going through your mind?
LAVANDERA: Cameron Migues lives next door to Hall. His call to police led to Smith's arrest.
CAMERON MIGUES, HALL'S NEIGHBOR: I saw the pictures she was in, it looks just like our neighbor. And we both just kind of laughed it off at first. And then when I saw the picture of the truck...
LAVANDERA: Until that moment, Migues says Edwin Hall was just a friendly, normal guy.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Dallas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: The question that we are looking at now is, is it possible that there is another young girl who was just a few miles away, as a matter of fact, who has also disappeared and that there may be a link with this particular case. Let's bring in now by telephone Belton Police Captain Don Spears who is good enough to join us.
Hey, Captain, thanks for being there for us.
CAPT. DON SPEARS, BELTON, MISSOURI, POLICE: You're welcome, sir.
SANCHEZ: Do you suspect there is a link? What are you looking at? What can you share with us and our viewers that can make me understand why you are looking into this case now?
SPEARS: Well, we have been looking into the case for a little over 30 days that our missing person, Kara Kopetsky, has been gone. We are looking to see if there is any connection between our missing person and that of Kelsey Smith.
SANCHEZ: Well, does the crime fit in any way? Is it similar?
SPEARS: Well, the only similarities are that there were two young females that had vanished, basically. One was abducted that was seen through surveillance tape. We do not have that kind of evidence for our missing persons.
SANCHEZ: Well, we are looking at the suspect right now. And obviously, to be fair, he has not been charged with anything having to do with your particular case. But given what you know about him, do you see any similarities in what he did with what may have happened to Kopetsky, your victim?
SPEARS: Not at this time other than the two girls being similar. We have had detectives working with the Overland Park Police Department to see if there are any evidence or any trace evidence that we could find with Mr. Hall that may connect him to our case. But as of this time there has been none.
SANCHEZ: How much do you -- how much physical evidence do you have in this case, if any?
SPEARS: We have very little.
SANCHEZ: So at this point it would be hard, even if you were to try -- you had nothing to match it to, in other words then? By taking his DNA or taking his fingerprints, would that help you at this point?
SPEARS: That would not help us at this point. We were looking for personal articles and things like that that Kara had with her and on her person. Is basically what we were looking for.
SANCHEZ: Do you know anything about her whereabouts? And do they match any of his whereabouts?
SPEARS: No, sir, not at this time. She was last seen leaving the Belton high school at about 10:30 on May 4th and has not been seen or heard from since.
SANCHEZ: All right. Well, thank you, Captain. Captain Don Spears with Belton Police, we thank you, sir. We will certainly keep tabs on this story as well. Hopefully we will be able to talk to you again.
New concerns over 15-year-old Connecticut girl found locked in a closet this week. The Hartford Courant is reporting now that police found homemade pornography in the home of the man who allegedly held her. Reporter Steven Goode is covering the story for us. He is at The Hartford Courant.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEVEN GOODE, THE HARTFORD COURANT: Authorities, when they searched the house, they were looking for two things. They were looking for -- they were going for DNA evidence from Mr. Gault and also they were looking for videotaping equipment, cameras, videotapes, they seized those.
And sources told us that they have determined that there's pornographic images on these tapes of not just one girl but several. And they are not sure if Danielle is on the tapes at this point because the quality is very poor but apparently he was putting them on the Internet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Well, the teen is now under the state's care, by the way.
Well, there are some concerns, as we mentioned at the top of this newscast, about the Space Shuttle Atlantis. While the shuttle made a successful launch Friday, overnight, NASA engineers discovered a tiny tear in the shuttle's thermal blanket.
Another small hitch. Some chunks of foam fell off the fuel tank minutes after launch but they apparently did not hit the spacecraft. Now astronauts are using the shuttle's robotic arm to look for any possible damage. Those inspections are expected to wrap up just before 7:00 p.m. Eastern.
And then at 7:00 sharp NASA has scheduled a news conference which we are, obviously, going to bring you the very -- the details on right here on CNN. For now, engineers are insisting that they are not overly concerned about the rip in the thermal blanket. So what risk, if any, could it pose to the crew?
Well, here's CNN's Space correspondent Miles O'Brien.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN SPACE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It is a four-inch triangular gap in a thermal blanket. And it has NASA's attention. Four-and-a-half hours after a nearly flawless countdown and launch, the crew of Atlantis and flight controllers in Houston spotted the problem during a routine TV survey of the spaceship.
The two-inch thick blanket is either torn or bunched up at place where it meets some heat-resistant tiles.
(on camera): The torn or bunched up thermal blanket is located right about here on the front part of this hump just to the left of Atlantis' tail. It houses a big rocket that is used for major navigation changes when the shuttle is in space. But here is the key point. It is one of the coolest places on a shuttle orbiter as it returns to Earth.
These locations, where you see the black tiles and the other material that's darker, the temperature can approach 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Up here, though, the temperature usually is about 600 degrees.
(voice-over): That's exactly where Columbia's heat shield was breached in January of 2003. A large piece of foam fell off the external fuel tank about a minute after launch, leaving a big hole in the leading edge of the wing. Sixteen days later, the shuttle disintegrated in the heat of re-entry, killing the crew of seven.
Since then, NASA has changed the way the insulating foam is applied to those external fuel tanks. And on this launch, only a few small pieces broke off harmlessly. Not a surprise, not a worry, say the engineers.
WAYNE HALE, SHUTTLE PROGRAM MANAGER: It was at the very end or just past the aerodynamically sensitive time, and so that's something that we have come to understand and expect.
O'BRIEN: It is too early to say what might have hit the quilted blanket, made of silica and woven glass. During the first shuttle mission in 1981, NASA had not yet developed the thermal blankets. And no less than 16 heat-resistant tiles fell off the orbiting maneuvering system pod on Columbia.
And of course, that mission ended with a happy landing. So given the history, NASA engineers say they are not too worried. As one told me, it doesn't raise my blood pressure at all.
Miles O'Brien, CNN, Cocoa Beach, Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: Well, in just about two hours, NASA officials are expected to reveal what they saw during today's shuttle inspection. The news conference is scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. Eastern. We are going to be monitoring it. And we will bring you any developments as soon as we hear them.
Paris Hilton is getting a reality check. The celebrity and sometime TV star woke up in the big house today after an L.A. judge threw the book at her. Celebrity justice or celebrity comeuppance? It is all coming up, to use a term, later in the NEWSROOM.
KARA FINNSTROM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Kara Finnstrom in Atlanta. Was this persecution or pampering? We will have the latest on Paris Hilton's case coming up -- Rick.
SANCHEZ: All right. Thanks so much, Kara. Talk to you in just a little bit. But British pop icon George Michael got a lot luckier than Paris. He said that he had to have faith, after all -- that's a pun. That story coming up in 14 minutes.
And this is the welcome that some people in Rome gave President Bush. It gets ugly. You're watching CNN, we're the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: News across America now. Still no word on two escapees from the Montana state prison system. One is 45-year-old Kelly Frank who was accused of plotting to abduct comedian David Letterman's child. Frank and another inmate escaped during prison work detail yesterday.
In Tennessee, time served factors large into the sentencing of Mary Winkler. The so-called preacher's wife got a three-year sentence yesterday for murdering her husband. But she could be out of jail in as little as 60 days as a judge credited her for time already spent behind bars while awaiting trial. There is another beef recall. This one involving Wal-Mart Store in a dozen states. Tyson Meats that as many as 40,000 pounds of ground beef could be contaminated with E. coli. The meat recall applies to Wal-Mart Stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas. If you live in one of those states, you should be concerned or at least check to see on cnn.com for more details.
Most parents think that their children are priceless. But an Iowa woman is charged with trying to trade her 4-year-old son to pay off a $200 debt for a wedding dress. A judge refused to accept a plea deal for 32-year-old Marcy Gant, who in turn withdrew her guilty plea of child endangerment charges yesterday. She faces up to 10 years if convicted on charges of sale of an individual.
(WEATHER REPORT)
A massive manhunt is under way in Montana at this hour. TV host David Letterman is involved in this one. A full story is ahead from the NEWSROOM. You will want to see this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Here's the latest now on the Paris Hilton saga. She's undergoing psychiatric tests at a Los Angeles jail facility. The Hollywood socialite was ordered back to the slammer by a judge barely 24 hours after the L.A. County sheriff released her to serve most of her six-week sentence under house arrest.
Now Hilton sobbed on the way to the court hearing, during the hearing itself and after the judge announced that he was sending her back to jail. Authorities suggested that her initial release was connected to psychological problems according to the sheriff. Joining us now from Los Angeles is CNN's Kara Finnstrom, who was watching this circus unfold yesterday.
What's the latest on this, Kara, how do we expect this thing will...
(HORNS BEEPING)
SANCHEZ: Boy, those guys -- who is leaning on the...
FINNSTROM: We are in L.A.
SANCHEZ: Who is leaning on the horn back there?
FINNSTROM: We are in L.A. with live TV. Well, Paris's plight -- gosh, someone is excited about this story. Paris' plight has us all asking now, was the sheriff too lenient or was the judge in this case too harsh? We did talk with some attorneys who gave us some insight because they handled cases like hers every day.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAWRENCE TAYLOR, DUI DEFENSE ATTORNEY: So she showed herself to Judge Sauer as someone who perhaps needed a lesson. And he gave her a sentence which under the circumstances probably was not entirely unreasonable.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I felt that Paris got treated more harshly from the beginning of this case up until now.
FINNSTROM (voice-over): Lawrence Taylor and Neil Shouse (ph) are attorneys whose specialize in handling DUI cases. Both say Hilton's plight after violating probation following an alcohol-related incident started a tug of war between the judge and the sheriff.
During Hilton's hearing Friday, Judge Michael Sauer was clearly annoyed that the Sheriff Lee Baca strayed from his instructions, saying: "I at no time condone the actions of the sheriff and at no time told him I approve of the action and at no time did I approve of the defendant being released from custody to her home."
SHERIFF LEE BACA, L.A. COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPT.: The only thing that I can detect as special treatment is the amount of her sentence because under our 10 percent early release program, she would not have served any time in our jail or would have been directly put on home electric monitoring system.
FINNSTROM: The sheriff says county doctors told him Hilton's condition was deteriorating. He says he will now keep her at a special facility indicating Hilton, who cried and screamed as she left the courthouse, might be danger to herself.
BACA: We will watch her behavior so there isn't anything that is harmfully done to herself by herself.
FINNSTROM: Legal analyst Laurie Levenson says the glare of the media ratcheted the stakes higher for everybody involved.
LAURIE LEVENSON, LEGAL ANALYST: It made the judge want to send a message through her to other celebrities. And it made the judge react very strongly when she was let out early, even if other people might have received the same treatment.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: So I imagine what's wrong with her, Kara, is totally psychological now, right? Because yesterday we were getting all of these reports that there might be some physical problem with her or nothing. That has been eliminated, right?
FINNSTROM: Well, you know, they have never really come out and laid it out for us because they say, this is a private matter, her medical condition. But yes, all the references yesterday were to a psychological problem. The sheriff saying there, you know, clearly that he's worried about her hurting herself.
SANCHEZ: What do we know about the attorney representing her yesterday?
FINNSTROM: Richard Hutton is his name. And all the attorneys that we spoke with us in this piece said that he's known as one of the best DUI attorneys in this area. Interestingly enough, she just started using him. And they say maybe if she had used him earlier, the outcome in this might have been different.
SANCHEZ: Kara, thanks so much for that report.
A British pop star, George Michael, is trying to put his troubles behind him as well. Yesterday a judge sentenced Michael to 100 hours of community service and a two-hour driving ban. Michael pleaded guilty last month to driving under the influence of drugs. He could have gone to jail. Tonight Michael is set to become the first star to perform at the rebuilt Wembley Stadium instead.
That is the sound of angry protesters. Italian police battling protesters in the streets of Rome. Some people in the eternal city not happy about President Bush being in town. Details on that story are coming up in just a little bit.
Also, live in your living room, news, entertainment and obscenity. Well, we will put it all together for you. How a new court ruling loosening the controls on what you hear on TV.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: Welcome back, everyone. I'm Rick Sanchez here in CNN NEWSROOM. Every day we at CNN come across ordinary people who with little or no fanfare have an extraordinary impact on the lives of others. We don't always get a chance to tell you about them. But all this year, we will. As we honor CNN Heroes. Today's CNN hero is Dr. Trey Wilson (ph). He is a dentist from New York City with a lucrative practice. But he's also doing some work on a world away that's changing lives in profound ways.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TREY WILSON, "MEDICAL MARVEL": Every single one of us has that capacity to be of service to others. And I just did something about it.
I'm Trey Wilson. I live in New York City and I provide free dental care and dental education to Kenyans.
Dental care in Kenya is virtually nonexistent. When I arrived in Kenya, routinely I saw in my clinic 4-year-olds with 20 teeth that needed to be extracted. I bring a team of dentists and volunteers who provide dental care in two clinics that we've established in Kitale, which is the fifth-largest city in Kenya.
When we arrive in the morning, there are already 400 or 500 people assembled, ready to be seen. My organization gives patients the opportunity to have their teeth fixed. We provide dental education. And we hand out toothbrushes to people.
There was a woman who waited seven hours to see me because she said, I like my smile and I won't have anything to smile about if they pull my front tooth. I think that it would be a good idea to try to save that tooth.
She was so happy that her beauty -- I mean, her beauty really came out.
Give me a hug. All right.
My life would have been a Monday through Friday Madison Avenue dentist, getting in my car and driving out to the country and gardening all weekend, but I had a revelation that with just a little bit of effort, I could make a huge impact.
All of us are far more resourceful than we ever think we are. And we have much more to give than we think that we have.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: It is half past the hour. We are in B-Control, bringing you the news. And here's what's happening now. You see that little hole right there. It is really not -- it's even more than a hole. It's about four inches by the way across. There are some safety concerns for the Space Shuttle Atlantis as it heads towards the International Space Station. NASA engineers are evaluating this four- inch hole on the craft's thermal protection system. No decision yet if the tear warrants repair before the shuttle's return back to Earth. That's certainly one we will be watching for you closely at the news conference tonight.
The case of a 17-year-old Missouri girl missing for more than a month now is getting a fresh look from authorities. That's Kara Kopetsky's case. That's her MySpace homepage you are looking at, by the way. She disappeared May 4th from her hometown in Belton, Missouri. And that is where the body of 18-year-old Kansas girl was found Wednesday. A man is under arrest in this Kansas case. Could it be linked? We will be looking into that.
Also, hotel heiress, reality show star and jail inmate Paris Hilton. She's back in jail and due for psychological evaluations now. The presiding judge in her case ordered Hilton back into custody Friday to serve the rest of her sentence. L.A. sheriff's deputies released her on home detention. That home confinement lasted just one day, though.
All too familiar scene as President Bush travels around the world again. Protests and demonstrations turning violent. It happened in Germany preceding the G-8 summit and happened again today. These pictures are from Rome, Italy, as Mr. Bush visited Pope Benedict XVI and Italy's prime minister. The Italian police say that they had to use tear gas to try and disperse the rock- and bottle-throwing rabble- rousers.
Police estimate that there were as many as 12,000 protesters against Mr. Bush. Those demonstrators were taking place -- or demonstrations, I should say, were taking place just as the president wound up meeting with the pope and the Italian leaders. More from White House correspondent now, Suzanne Malveaux.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Bush said he was in awe, meeting Pope Benedict XVI.
GEORGE BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I was talking to a very smart, loving man.
MALVEAUX: But even before their closed door session, the pope was ready to get down to business, grilling the president first on his meetings at the G-8 summit in Germany.
BUSH: It was successful.
MALVEAUX: Then, in front of reporters, the pope asked about meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin.
BUSH: I'll tell you in a minute.
MALVEAUX: "I'll tell you in a minute," Mr. Bush said, aware of the watchful eyes of the press, brushing off the question. At a press conference later with Italy's prime minister, the president said the pope's real concern is the deteriorating situation in Iraq.
BUSH: He's worrisome about the Christians inside Iraq being mistreated by the Muslim majority. He's deeply concerned about that.
MALVEAUX: The pope's concerns mirror many Americans' frustrations with the war, a war that's going to be led by a new face at the Pentagon with the replacement of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs. That announcement came while the president was overseas. The shakeup is a political casualty for President Bush, who realized his current chairman, Peter Pace, would likely not survive a renomination process before a Democratic Congress.
BUSH: I think the fact that Secretary Gates made the recommendation not to move forward with a renomination speaks to the U.S. Congress and the climate in the U.S. Congress. And so the decision has been made and I'm going to miss him.
MALVEAUX (on camera): President Bush's next stop is Albania. It's one of Europe's poorest and most pro-American countries. President Bush will hold up its government as a model for democracy.
Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, Rome.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: Next up for President Bush, two former communist countries in Eastern Europe. Mr. Bush is going to travel to Tirana, Albania, tomorrow. And then Monday the president ends his weeklong journey with a stop in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Russia is sending out a clear message to President Bush about his controversial missile defense plan. The U.S. wants to install missile shields in both Poland and the Czech Republic, claiming that they are needed to counter a nuclear threat not from the Russians, he says, but from Iran. So Russia claimed the shield would actually threaten Moscow and today Russia's foreign minister called on Mr. Bush to instead consider sharing his missiles in Azerbaijan and his radars, saying, if you need protection, we will give you protection if it is just against Iran. He says, that would make U.S. missile shields in Central Europe unnecessary.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SERGEI LAVROV, RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER (through translator): I'm convinced that if the United States are really striving for stability in the world and not for change of strategic balance in their favor, then the United States would avoid actions which concern the security of their partners.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
JOSHUA LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, I'm Josh Levs here in the CNN NEWSROOM. You know something, Paris Hilton actually had something of a cameo role in a federal court decision this week that knocked down government rules involving swearing on TV. I'm going to explain that in a "Reality Check" that's coming up -- Rick.
SANCHEZ: Hey, thanks so much, Josh. Going to look forward to it.
Well, let's see if we can talk about that without a lot of bleeps, obscenity on TV, straight ahead. Josh is the man. He has got the story. We will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NICOLE RICHIE, CELEBRITY: Have you ever tried to get cow (expletive deleted) out of a Prada purse? It is not so (expletive deleted) simple.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Nicole Richie, Paris Hilton or Rick Sanchez, who do we got here? I think I'll go. But I'm not going to curse. See, you can't do that on TV. And if you do, you better start thinking again. There is a new court ruling against the FCC that is heating up the TV and decency debate. So does that mean now that anything goes? Our Josh Levs is joining us now here with a "Reality Check."
This is interesting. So they are kind of bringing it back.
LEVS: Yes, I mean, now maybe you can do some of this stuff on TV. It is kind of wild, what has happened in the past week. And it is also interesting that Paris Hilton would end up in this clip that's suddenly the subject of a major federal court ruling.
Here's what happened, just so everybody understands. And don't worry, we are not going to air the offending words. But the words you just didn't hear there originally aired the first time. And they became a subject of this court major decision.
What happened was this federal court said that the FCC rules that exist right now limiting swearing in a context like that just might be unconstitutional.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEVS (voice-over): Cher used the F-word at the 2002 Billboard Music Awards. The next year, at the same ceremony, came this: the words were not bleeped.
RICHIE: Have you ever tried to get cow (expletive deleted) out of a Prada purse? It's not so (expletive deleted) simple.
LEVS: They're called "fleeting expletives." Traditionally, the government did not go after networks for these lives situations, but President Bush has taken a tougher stance against indecency. Congress passed and he signed a bill multiplying the maximum fine by 10, up to $325,000.
BUSH: It's going to help American parents by making broadcast television/radio more family-friendly.
LEVS: But is it legal for the FCC to fine for fleeting expletives? A federal appellate court in New York ruled no, because the FCC has not provided a reasoned basis for changing its policy. The court also noted the FCC was OK with swear words when "Saving Private Ryan" played on network television. The court said the FCC's subjective rules may violate the First Amendment.
And the court said the words at issue aren't always used literally, to describe sexual or excretory activities, words the FCC can regulate. The court noted how President Bush used the S-word in a conversation with Tony Blair that was caught on a microphone, and how Vice President Cheney told Senator Patrick Leahy to, you know.
FCC Chairman Kevin Martin slammed the court's decision in a statement using both words in "multiple times." He said children watch at certain hours and he fears that if the FCC cannot block these fleeting expletives, Hollywood will be able say anything at any time. That fear is nothing new.
In 1939, producers of "Gone With the Wind" had to pay a $5,000 fine for using the D-word.
CLARK GABLE, ACTOR: Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: There you have it. He doesn't give a damn but apparently some people do. There is a difference between cable and regular television, right?
LEVS: Yes. Big time. SANCHEZ: You can get away with a lot more. I mean, have you watched Bill Maher? I mean, has he watch John Stewart? They are kind of potty mouths.
LEVS: Yes. They are. And you know what, they can get away with it because pretty much the FCC has no say in that because, here is the deal. All of these FCC rules really come back from the day when the broadcasters were being given the opportunity to broadcast over the public airwaves, public airwaves back in the day when there were a handful of channels and all you had was the public airwaves. Today 86 percent of people who watch TV are watching it on cable or satellite and they get so many channels that the FCC cannot effect. So right now...
SANCHEZ: And that's not public because we pay for it.
LEVS: Because it is private. Everything cable, everything satellite is private and it is just the broadcast networks that still use these public airwaves.
SANCHEZ: Well, wait a minute. It gets confusing, because I watch the regular channels on cable.
LEVS: Exactly.
SANCHEZ: So when I'm going to watch the local channels here in Atlanta, I watch them on cable.
LEVS: In all, 86 percent of people do. So very, very few Americans are left actually using their -- the old public airwaves to watch that, which is why it is becoming a lot tougher for the FCC to say, you know what, we should have a say over what's done. Plus, there are so many channels that are private.
SANCHEZ: That's problematic. Yes. Well, eventually what? They are going to just do away with all the rules?
LEVS: Well, it's interesting. I mean, what we're seeing right now, the FCC can try to appeal this and say, you know what, even in cases that like this, where it is live and sudden, that we should be able to limit it, the FCC can try that argument. But if they do, we are being told by legal experts, the Supreme Court will probably not even listen to it. And it is quite possible that this decision will stick.
SANCHEZ: Interesting.
LEVS: Yes.
SANCHEZ: Good stuff, Josh. Appreciate it.
LEVS: Thanks a lot. You got it.
SANCHEZ: Shots fired at the border between Israel and Gaza again. Gunman tried to get through the border fence. That full story is coming up straight ahead from the NEWSROOM. Also, opposition groups in Russia protesting Putin, under the watchful eyes of authorities. Next in the NEWSROOM. And you are watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: We are going global now with a check of the headlines that are taking place all over the world. One Palestinian militant is dead after a gun battle with Israeli forces at the Gaza border. It is believed to be the first border incursion by Palestinian militants since two Israeli soldiers were killed and a third kidnapped last year. And remember what that turned into.
Hundreds of protesters crowded the streets of St. Petersburg, Russia, today, to protest their president. Protesters accused Vladimir Putin of strangling democracy before next year's presidential election. Many chanted "Russia without Putin." Past rallies by opposition groups have ended in violence there. But this was the first one without police interference. Loud.
And it isn't exactly the Tour De France. It is more like the tour without pants. Get it? Tour De France, Tour without pants. Hundreds of cyclists in Madrid, Spain, eager to show how naked and vulnerable they feel in traffic. They shed their clothing. It is part of a global protest against the car culture. Cyclists are promoting pedal power and people are looking on. Let's see. There they are. The naked people. One of many nude bike-riding events taking across the world today. We weren't going to show you that. But you thought for a minute we might, right?
Paris Hilton's story has long legs. Not just in the U.S., but pretty much everywhere in the Western world. CNN's Phil Black reports now from London where even the tabloids who never met a star they don't dislike are salivating.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Paris Hilton's troubles. She was in jail on a probation violation. She was released. Now she's back in again. It is big news throughout the Western world. New York, Sydney, London. Michael Booker from London's Daily Star Sunday calls it a cracker of a story.
MICHAEL BOOKER, DAILY STAR SUNDAY: This is a woman -- one of the richest women in the world. She is good looking. She can get a good blond on the front page. It has just got a little bit of everything. And it is no wonder that most people are hooked on it.
BLACK: From glamorous heir and socialite to traumatized jail inmate. At this London newspaper stand, there were lots of opinions on Paris Hilton. But not much sympathy.
(on camera): Do you think it deserves to be on the front page as we are seeing today?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why not? Yes, I do. Yes. She deserves it. She puts herself in the limelight. So she has to suffer the consequences. If she stayed at home all the time and was a good girl, she wouldn't be there. She wouldn't be much fun but she wouldn't be there.
BLACK (voice-over): (INAUDIBLE) professor Steven Barnett believes the fascination is because it is about justice.
STEVEN BARNETT, UNIVERSITY OF WESTMINSTER: Even the rich and the famous are subject to the ordinary laws of the land. And the extent to which people like to see the laws being applied regardless of how much you are worth.
BLACK (on camera): And there is another theory on why this is a popular story. And it points to the darkest side of human nature. While Paris Hilton is suffering publicly, it is possible some people are enjoying it.
(voice-over): This newspaper editor admits he is one of them.
BOOKER: So she has lived this charmed life, she was born into riches. She has had riches thrust upon her by many people in the media, she has done fantastic (INAUDIBLE). And now it is all coming out to bit her on the bottom.
BLACK: Luckily for Paris, not everyone gives her so much thought.
(on camera): When you look at that photo of her crying and tears, obviously very upset, what are the thoughts, what are the feelings?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel quite empty really. I really just don't care.
BLACK (voice-over): Phil Black, CNN, London.
SANCHEZ: He doesn't care.
You "Sopranos" fans, by the way, Sunday night might be the end for Tony, like curtains end. But you can be live -- or you can relive his life, pardon me, by taking the tours of some of the -- T's favorite places. Jim Acosta is going to bring us that story. Yes, that's right, in Jersey no less. We'll be right back.
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SANCHEZ: Who doesn't love "The Sopranos"? All that murder and stuff, in New Jersey, no less. Well, how about if you get a chance to actually go to the places where they film the show? That would be cool, right? There is an actual tour. Here's Jim Acosta. He's going to be taking you on it.
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JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Take heart, "Sopranos" fans, there is life after HBO. Fans of the show can still walk in Tony Soprano's shoes by taking a stroll through the crime family's famous stomping grounds.
But you had better hurry if you're dying to see the notorious, but fictional Satriale's pork store.
MANNY COSTERA, REX PROPERTIES: Well, the front of the building is a very popular site on the show.
ACOSTA: Real estate developer Manny Costera plans to whack the building in favor of a new condominium project he calls "Sopranos Court." The signs out front and the store's interior, all added by the show's makers during production, are gone.
COSTERA: This is where Tony had his little confrontation with the FBI guy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't get so bent out of shape. You're a big boy, Tony.
COSTERA: So this is a pretty significant little corner here.
COSTA: Want more? Twice a week on-location tours will show you 47 of the show's best known locales.
LINDA DOLL, "SOPRANOS" FAN: It makes me want to go back and watch all of the episodes again so we can see these sites.
ACOSTA (on camera): The popularity of "The Sopranos" has turned ordinary businesses in New Jersey into cultural landmarks, even a one- second appearance on the show can mean a fortune.
(voice-over): Take Pizzaland pizza, which stars in the program's opening credits.
AL PAWLOWICZ, PIZZALAND OWNER: Now with "The Sopranos," you go by Pizzaland, you go, oh, that's Pizzaland! We've got to go in there.
ACOSTA: If you want a taste, owner Al Pawlowicz and his son will deliver their pies, shipped on ice, of course, across the country.
PAWLOWICZ: From Texas, Nebraska, where else do we get out? Wisconsin, right?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wisconsin, California.
PAWLOWICZ: California, everywhere. And they weren't just like one-pie orders. They were three-, four-, five-pie orders.
ACOSTA (on camera): Because of the show?
PAWLOWICZ: Because of the show.
ACOSTA: One attraction you won't find on any "Soprano" tour is Tony Soprano's house. That's because the actual owner of the home and his neighbors have fought to keep the tour buses out of their community. (voice-over): And what "Sopranos" tour would be complete without the Bada Bing, or the club's actual name, Satin Dolls? Shy about visitors here? Forget about it.
SUSIE QUIGLEY, SATIN DOLLS: People from all over the world, London, Japan, Ireland.
ACOSTA: And what tourist can resist picking up a few souvenirs?
QUIGLEY: Yes, grandmothers coming in and stealing shot glasses off the bar, salt and pepper shakers off the bar because it came from the Bada Bing was very strange, but we've gotten used to it.
ACOSTA: But it may take time getting used to life without "The Sopranos." For some of the show's 12 million fans, it will feel like a loss in the family.
Jim Acosta, CNN, North Arlington, New Jersey.
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SANCHEZ: By the way, we're kind of related, "The Sopranos" and us, because "The Sopranos" airs on HBO and that's the sister company of CNN, (INAUDIBLE) Time Warner. 11:00 p.m., not 10:00 p.m., as usual. That's what we're doing tonight. I'm going to sit down and talk to some average Americans about immigration. Don't forget that's 11:00 Eastern tonight. "LOU DOBBS" starts right now.
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