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American Morning
Scout Troop Missing in North Carolina; Controversy Swirls Around Iranian President's Speech At Columbia University; UAW Poised To Strike Against GM Today
Aired September 24, 2007 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: They were supposed to come home last night, around 7 o'clock, from a scheduled weekend camping trip in the Pisgah National Forest.
Well, overnight we heard from a woman whose son and husband are on the trip. She says she thinks the troop decided to stay put. She sounded confident that they were all right.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LISA LOGAN, MOTHER OF MISSING SCOUT: I think more likely than not what happened they got behind in their schedule, saw they weren't going to get out by dark, decided it was probably safer for all the boys to just stop, camp, and come out in the morning. And I feel like that's what they're doing. I have a complete peace that they're fine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: There are others who back that up, including Haywood County sheriff's office. They say the vehicles were still in the parking lot entrance at the campground Sunday evening and this leads them to believe they may have camped out another night. Of course, you can understand how nerve wracking it may be for families who have not heard from them.
There are eight boys, aged 11 to 14, and three adults. They were camping in the Blue Ridge Parkway. Again, we are going to be getting updated by authorities coming up in just about 30 minutes, at 7:30 a.m. Eastern Time. And we'll have much more on that search. And, again, as we heard, the conditions are not bad. About 68 degrees shaping up to be about 90 today so it wasn't terribly cold overnight. We're going to have much more on the search and the update on -- actually we're going to hear more right now.
Charity Sharp is the public information for the Crusoe Fire Department, in Waynesville, North Carolina.
Charity, thanks for being with us.
CHARITY SHARP, CRUSO FIRE DEPT: Hi.
CHETRY: Can you give us an update right on the search area? How big of an area are we talking about that rescuers are searching in this morning?
SHARP: Well, it's approximately 45 square miles, four to five square miles.
CHETRY: Five square miles?
SHARP: Uh-huh.
CHETRY: What is the terrain like?
SHARP: Very mountainous. A lot of creeks, a lot of waterfalls.
CHETRY: As we had said, the vehicles of the Scout leaders were still in the parking lot and that led authorities to believe that maybe they chose to camp out another night. What are some of the working theories about where they might be?
SHARP: We're all led to believe that they have just bedded down for the night, didn't think they would get out before dark. And were almost certain they bedded down for the night and will at some point, in the morning, come out.
CHETRY: In that national forest and in that area, are there pay phones, are there any lines of communication?
SHARP: Scattered cell phone service, only.
CHETRY: Do we know if anyone has heard from them on the cell phone?
SHARP: Not at this point, no.
CHETRY: Do we know if they had cell phones in.
SHARP: Yes, several of them did.
CHETRY: Several did have cell phones, but as you said, it's spotty. There is the possibility of getting service but it's difficult?
SHARP: Correct.
CHETRY: All right. And what we're wondering also is if there does seem to be some confidence that perhaps they decided to camp it in one more night, for whatever reason, why is the search going on now?
SHARP: Well, just in case, you know, there's eight children up there, so we want to make sure that everyone's OK there. There is the possibility that they could be hurt, but we're definitely looking at the optimistic side. Think that they've just bedded down and no one's injured and they're just waiting until daylight to come out.
CHETRY: I got you. How many people are searching?
SHARP: At this point, we've had about 28 personnel out. We have a fresh crew on their way here right now with about 15 to 20 more.
CHETRY: All right. So, you got a good number out there. Charity Sharp, the public information officer for the Cruso Fire Department, thanks for being with us.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Other headlines new this morning, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is in New York City today stirring up controversy ahead of his speech at Columbia University this afternoon. He denies the United States and Iran are headed toward war and he denies that Iran is building nuclear weapons. Even says he has no reason to want them. He refused to answer a question though, posed by "60 Minutes" last night, about whether Iran is arming insurgents in Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD, PRESIDENT OF IRAN (through translator): We don't need a nuclear bomb. We don't need that. What need to do we have for a bomb?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: May I take that as a no, sir?
AHMADINEJAD (through translator): It is a firm no.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Protests are planned at Columbia today fro the Iranian president's visit. AMERICAN MORNING's Alina Cho is live near the campus.
Alina, what is the reaction been so far and are you seeing any protesters there yet?
ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No protesters yet, John. But if you're wondering what the reaction has been, look no further than the New York City tabloids. The cover of "The Daily News", "The Evil Has Landed."
Now security is tight. Police are on site already and they do plan to eventually lock down a six-block radius, that is because in a matter of hours the Iranian president will be here and some students, faculty and even some elected officials in New York say they will be here, too.
"They'll be ready," said one, "to make his life miserable".
There are large protests planned for today. There was a small gathering here on campus yesterday. It got a bit heated at times. One New York state assemblyman said "Ahmadinejad should arrested when he comes to Columbia, not invited to speak."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To the chancellor, today, knowing everything he supposedly knows, he would still --
DOV HIKIND, NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLYMAN: It is outrageous, an insult to every New Yorker. It is an insult to my mother, who wears the number of Auschwitz on her left arm, and the Holocaust survivors in my community and throughout the city. (END VIDEO CLIP)
CHO: Ahmadinejad has made a number of controversial statements. He has called the Holocaust a myth and said Israel should be wiped off the map. Columbia's president, Lee Bollinger says he plans to personally challenge the Iranian president on a number of issues, including these.
We should mention that Ahmadinejad plans to give a speech here this afternoon and he will also be answering some tough questions. The event is closed to the public. Only students, faculty and staff are allowed. And the 600 tickets that were made available, John, were gone in an hour.
ROBERTS: University officials, are expecting to get straight answers from this guy as they challenge him?
CHO: Well, listen, it's hard to tell. He has already made some conflicting statements, John, as you well know. Earlier he said -- late last week -- that after New York City police banned him, essentially, from going to ground zero to lay a wreath he said he would respect that. Now according to the Iranian foreign minister, he says that Ahmadinejad does plan to go to ground zero. And in fact, one Iranian news agency says he plans to meet with 9/11 families.
Listen, it's hard to say. He does plan to give a speech. Part of the agreement here at Columbia was that he would give equal time between speaking, and answering questions, and you can bet this will be a lively discussion later today.
ROBERTS: Well to go to ground zero he'd have to have a New York police department escort. We'll check with them and see if they're prepared to give it to him.
Alina Cho for us this morning.
Why did Columbia's university president invite Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to speak at the school? We'll talk with him live with the dean at the School of International and Public Affairs. That's coming up in about 10 minutes' time.
Kiran.
CHETRY: Also new this morning, GM and the auto workers union are closing in on at the 11th hour. If the contract agreement is not reached by 11 o'clock this morning, Eastern Time, the union is saying it will walk out today. The United Autoworkers Union represents 72,000 GM workers nationwide. They haven't had a nationwide strike in 30 years. Union officials say the talks are stuck on job security and retirement benefits.
Classes resume this morning on the campus of Delaware State University after that shooting that injured two students Friday. University police are now searching for a third person of interest. They have not named any suspects in the shootings. They say they believe the gunman is a male student from Delaware State, who is no longer on campus. The two 17-year-old shooting victims are still in the hospital. Shalita Middleton was shot twice in the stomach, is in serious condition and Nathaniel Pugh was shot once in the ankle. He's listed in stable condition.
Fallout on the campus of Colorado State University over an editorial in the student newspaper. The headline in huge bold number "Taser This, F Bush", but instead of "F" they used the whole word. The editor of the paper defended that headline, while people are saying that he crossed the line.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our intentions weren't, hey, let's really upset the community. Our intentions were let's get college students talking about freedom of speech.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Means what he says, and I like that. I'd rather have a not so politically correct person.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Find a new editor. Somebody who can edit.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: We talked in our last hour with editor Dave McSwain. He says the board was trying to spark dialogue. The university says it can't, by law censor the student newspaper. But it can replace the editor, a move it is considering.
ROBERTS: It's nine minutes after the hour now. Time to check in with our AMERICAN MORNING team of correspondents for other stories new this morning that we're following. Rob Marciano on the CNN Weather Desk, in Atlanta tracking extreme weather.
(WEATHER REPORT)
ROBERTS: Another serious injury on the football field this weekend. CNN's Chief Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen at the CNN Center for us this morning.
And, Elizabeth, this comes just a couple of weeks after that terrible injury to Kevin Everett of the Buffalo Bills. Looks like this one will turn out better.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, it certainly does look like this one is very different. Cedric Tillings, initially when he had a head on collision on the field -- he plays for the Houston Texans -- initially he couldn't move. There was great concern. But according to "The Houston Chronicle" just before he was put on the stretcher he did indeed move his arms, obviously a great relief.
He was taken to the hospital. His teammates visited him, said he was laughing. He was joking. He was clearly regaining his strength. And so far there's been no reports that he's even need surgery -- John.
ROBERTS: All right, let's hope, keep our fingers crossed that it turns out well. The fact that he can move his hands and legs -- arms and legs -- a little bit after that might indicate the injury is not all that serious.
COHEN: Great news.
ROBERTS: Yes. Elizabeth Cohen for us this morning.
Elizabeth, thanks.
COHEN: Thanks.
CHETRY: Brett Favre tying Dan Marino for the most touchdown passes in NFL history. Favre's 420th career touchdown also gave his Green Bay Packers the win in their game against the San Diego Chargers. Favre's Packers' are now 3-0 so far this season.
I wonder which one has been in more movies, though. They both made cameos all over the place.
ROBERTS: Political pork tops your "Quick Hits" now. There's been a dramatic decrease in congressional pet projects under new rules of disclosure. The $459 billion military budget approved earlier this month contains just 1,000 earmarks. That's down from 2,600 in last year's bill. Democrats have made earmarks a prime focus since taking control of Congress in 2006. But there were complaints that they didn't do enough quickly enough, now maybe something's happening.
Evil reigned at the box office this weekend. The zombie flick, "Resident Evil Extinction" debuted in the top spot, bringing in $24 million. "Good Luck Chuck", "The Brave One", "3:10 To Yuma" and "Eastern Promises" rounds out the weekend's top five.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS (voice over): Later on AMERICAN MORNING it's the speech everyone is talking about.
DOV HIKIND, NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLYMAN: I call on New Yorkers to make the life of Ahmadinejad, as he is in New York, miserable!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Without a doubt he's a terrorist.
ROBERTS: Find out why Columbia University invited Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to speak at the school. And why it has people so outraged. We talked to the dean, ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Welcome back to the most news in the morning, your "Quick Hits" now. A fire at a strip mall in Fayetteville, North Carolina. A police officer noticed the fire shortly after midnight. By the time firefighters arrived flames were 40 feet high. There you can see it fully engulfed. They did their best. The building ended up being totally destroyed.
A tanker truck catches on fire in an Arizona highway. One person was killed in this. The driver lost control of the truck, it crashed and burst into flames. Authorities say the road may actually be damaged from the intensity of that fire.
In Melbourne Australia, two trams crashed into one another; 20 people were hurt including one of the drivers. The injuries were not considered life-threatening, even though you can see, boy, what a smashup. The front of the tram just wrecked.
ROBERTS: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won't necessarily be getting the red carpet treatment when he speaks at Columbia University later on today, but he will be allowed to speak. Regardless of the touch questions he'll face, some say that he shouldn't be heard from, period.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DOV HIKIND, NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLYMAN: I call on New Yorkers to make the life of Ahmadinejad, as he is in New York, miserable! Make his life miserable!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Some very passionate arguments there today. Joining me now is the dean of Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs, John Coatsworth. He's live on the Columbia campus, here in New York.
Mr. Coatsworth, thanks for being with us this morning.
JOHN COATSWORTH, DEAN, COLUMBIA U. SCHOOL OF INTL., PUBLIC AFFAIRS: Good morning.
ROBERTS: Opening question, here is a leader who has advocated the destruction of Israel, denied the Holocaust and accused by our government, the United States government of supplying both fighters and equipment to insurgents in Iraq to kill U.S. troops. Why would you ever want him on your campus?
COATSWORTH: Well, precisely because he is the leader of an important country and one that our country is going to have to deal with, in the future. Iran is infinitely more powerful today than it was just three years ago. In the future, Iran is going to be -- is going to hold the key to peace in the Middle East.
We have to be able to deal with and negotiate with leaders like this, however much we may disagree with their views. Like it or not, he's an important guy.
ROBERTS: The question that some people are raising, is what are you going to hear from him, and will he be straight with you, as you seek to challenge him? Here's what Newt Gingrich said about that yesterday. Take a quick listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEWT GINGRICH, FMR. HOUSE SPEAKER: He's a pathological liar. He is a very effective public speaker. And I think that Columbia University is being very foolish to allow that kind of person to have a venue like an American university.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: So Newt Gingrich is concerned -- and it's a concern shared by other people -- is that you're not going to get straight answers from this guy. He's a spinmeister, he's a propagandist. How will your students be able to challenge him in a way that they'll be able to cut through?
COATSWORTH: Well, look, we're going to ask him tough questions. If he gives us terrible answers that will be known by not only the faculty and students of the university but by everyone in the world. He's on TV when he speaks at Columbia. The Voice of America will broadcast his speech, but also the questions and his answers throughout Iran. The people of the world will know if he's giving answers differently today than he's given in the past.
ROBERTS: There is opposition to his appearance today on both sides of the political aisle. We just heard from Newt Gingrich. Here's what Senator Chuck Schumer of New York had to say about it.
"Free speech means that you shouldn't silence anyone doesn't mean you need to invite everyone to come to speak. I wish they hadn't invited Ahmadinejad."
The concern appears to be giving a platform to a leader, in this country, when the United States government has real problems with him. Aren't you afraid that you're going to be used in a way here?
COATSWORTH: No, Ahmadinejad is a world leader of consequence. He has a platform whenever he wishes to have one. What he doesn't have is a classroom, and that's what we're offering him; an opportunity not only to present his views, but defend them in the face of challenges and tough questions.
ROBERTS: Yeah. Also, you said, when you were asked about this a couple of days ago, quote, "If he, (Hitler), were willing to engage in debate and a discussion to be challenged by Columbia students and faculty, we would certainly invite him."
When it comes to inviting world leaders for this program that you've had going for a few years now, where do you draw the line? Is there anyone you wouldn't invite? Would you really have invited Hitler?
COATSWORTH: Look, if Hitler had come to the Columbia University in 1939, I would have been outside with the peaceful protesters. Or if I had been dean, I would have been inside presenting him to our students to be challenged.
You can't choose your role in life. You can only choose the principles you have to live by. And in this case, we're providing not a platform but a classroom and we're going to challenge this guy as he has not been challenged in other places. ROBERTS: Why didn't you allow Minuteman founder Jim Gilchrist, that same opportunity to be challenged? I know that he spoke there last year and his speech was interrupted by students who stormed the stage, but he had a speaking engagement coming up October 6th that was canceled. Why do you allow Ahmadinejad there and not the founder of the Minuteman Project?
COATSWORTH: We certainly would invite him and allow him to speak on campus, so long as security could be arranged properly. We did not rescind an invitation to him. He's perfectly welcome to come and speak on campus as long as there's a student or faculty group, or institutional group, like a school or department that's willing to sponsor him.
ROBERTS: Would you be willing to sponsor him? Does he have any value to you?
COATSWORTH: He doesn't have a value to the School of International and Public Affairs. He had value to the Young Republicans at Columbia, and if they wish to invite again he will certainly be permitted to speak.
ROBERTS: Let me check this with you, if you can provide security for Ahmadinejad, could you provide enough security for Jim Gilchrist?
COATSWORTH: Why, of course.
ROBERTS: OK, well, Maybe they'll re-invite him.
John Coatsworth, dean of the School of International and Public Affairs, thanks for being with us today. We'll be tuning in live this afternoon. We'll see how this whole thing turns out. Appreciate it.
COATSWORTH: Thanks, look forward to.
ROBERTS: All right. We want to know what you think, too. Should Iran's president be allowed to speak at Columbia University? Got to our web page and cast your vote. It's all there at CNN.com/am.
Right now, 72 percent of people say yes, he should be allowed to speak; 28 percent say no.
CHETRY: All right. Well, the U.N. will soon be back in business in Baghdad. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon says the United Nations will open a new office there to encourage diplomacy. Security is still an issue, though. It was back in 2003 that 22 U.N. employees were killed in a bombing of its original Baghdad headquarters.
A badly burned Iraqi boy is going to be undergoing a second surgery today at a Southern California burn center. Little Youssif was disfigured when gunmen in Iraq poured gasoline on him and set him on fire. Doctors say that his first surgery, the one where our own Sanjay Gupta was able to observe, in person, went very well last week. CNN viewers helped send Youssif to the U.S. for treatment through donations from our website on "Impact Your World." A strike threat on the line for General Motors. Ali Velshi is watching that and the effect it could have on the market as they get down to the wire. They have until 11 o'clock today to reach and agreement, or they strike for the first time in three decades at General Motors.
We'll have much more on that ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: It's 25 past the hour. Ali Velshi is "Minding Your Business" today.
Ali, some are watching this agreement, whether General Motors and the United Auto Workers Union can reach some sort of an agreement. They have about three and a half hours. What type of impact would it have on the market if they do strike?
ALI VELSHI, CNN FINANCIAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, here's the thing. You know, until sort of last night we didn't think there was going to be a strike even though the strike deadline was over a week ago. The United Auto Workers have been extending this on an hour by hour basis.
Then at 1:40 a.m. Eastern they issued a press release and it says this, "That unless UAW members hear otherwise between now and the deadline we will be on a national strike against GM at 11:00 a.m. EDT on Monday September 24th."
We have heard that workers are preparing for this strike and there are views on both sides as to whether it will happen. But a strike would be very difficult for General Motors if it were a long one. There are some people saying what if there was a strike and it was a few days long, it might just get things settled.
A strike would be bad for workers and General Motors. Of the three Detroit automakers General Motors is in the strongest position right now. This fight, as you're talking about earlier, is about health care, retiree benefits, and job security.
The United Auto Workers are saying they've taken it in the teeth for the last few years with all the downsizing and the cuts in benefits. They want General Motors to offer them some job security. The big deal here, Kiran, is that if they get a good deal with GM, they use that as a model for the negotiations with Ford and Chrysler. So the first contract is always the most important one. We'll stay on the story Kiran and if anything develops we'll bring it to you.
CHETRY: All right. Ali Velshi, thanks.
Right now a look at a story coming up that you can't miss. A lot of people make appointments for laser hair removal, tattoo removal, even in some of the ads they make it look like it's very easy and perhaps painless process, but is it?
ROBERTS: It all depends. I think the laser has got to be in the hands of a person who is well-trained, because you could get burns. Dermatologist took a little thing off my nose said he's heard all kinds of reports of people getting burned using lasers on skin when they go to the places that aren't board certified.
CHETRY: Right, some of it largely unregulated. That you don't have to be under a medical supervision. You can get your hands on a laser. Our AMERICAN MORNING's Greg Hunter actually did an investigation on this. And he brings us the inside story on what you need to know if you're think being having any of this done, either for tattoo removal, or hair removal for cosmetic reasons. That's coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to AMERICAN MORNING. We're following breaking news for you on this Monday, September 24th. I'm Kiran Chetry.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN, ANCHOR: Good morning to you. I'm John Roberts. The breaking news is out of North Carolina. An overnight search for a missing Boy Scout troop, troop 217 out of Raleigh. The group was supposed to return to Raleigh last night, eight kids and three adults were on a weekend campout in the mountains, near the Blue Ridge Parkway. Police in Haywood County search teams were organized late last night after their families didn't hear from the campers. Their cars were found in the parking lot of the campground.
One of the mothers of the young boys believes they've sort of got a little bit behind in their schedule, probably decided to bed down for the night in the woods rather than try to walk out in the dark. Officials in Haywood County searching for those missing boy scouts are holding a press conference in the next few minutes. We're monitoring the situation there. There's a live shot for you and we'll go to that just as soon as they start talking but some people confident, and fully expect those kids and scout leader also walk out of the woods a little bit later on this morning.
CHETRY: They just want to be safe, you know, because they are 11 to 14-year-old kids. They got about nearly 50 people doing that search this morning.
Also new today, revelations from a new book on the president, President bush in it predicting that Hillary Clinton will beat Barack Obama for the presidential nomination for the Democrats. It's all in a book that comes out today by reporter Bill Sammon called "The Evangelical President." The book is excerpted this morning on examiner.com, the "Washington Examiner's" web site, it quotes the president as saying that it will be a tough race but that the Republicans will hold the White House. Sammon also goes on to quote an anonymous White House source that Senator Obama relies on his easy charm, and even though he is smart tries to get by and shows an intellectual laziness.
The Florida Democratic Party announced that it is going ahead with plans to hold a state primary on January 29th. This is despite a threat from the Democratic National Committee that it will strip the state of its delegates if it does so. Florida's party chairwoman says that the January date will mean a larger turnout.
And China says it is increasing inspections of agriculture products. China trying to cut down on the use of forbidden pesticides. It says 10 people have been arrested and 100 companies shut down as part of its effort to cleanup the food supply.
ROBERTS: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says the U.S. and Iran are not headed toward war. He is in New York City today and will address the U.N. General Assembly tomorrow. Our Senior U.N. Correspondent Richard Roth is live at the United Nations. Richard, not the first time that Ahmadinejad has been there but certainly there is no end to the controversy surrounding this visit, particularly this idea that he still says he wants to go to ground zero.
RICHARD ROTH, CNN SENIOR U.N. CORRESPONDENT: That's right. New York City police say no way. The Iranian leader arrived last night and met with some Iranian-Americans we believe at a hotel. He's expected to come to the U.N. today, only to use it as a base for an interview with the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.. He speaks to the General Assembly Tuesday, hours after President Bush. The Iranian leader denies that his country wants to possess a nuclear weapon. That he says its peace that is the goal of Iran. He thinks that Americans don't have the correct information about his country. He certainly sees his many stops here as a way of getting his message out.
ROBERTS: Richard, if he were to decide to go to ground zero, the NYPD actually said that ground zero, the construction site was closed because he wanted to go down into the pit. If he still wanted to go down to the area there, is that possible, without the cooperation of the NYPD?
ROTH: I don't think so. You would have to have security clearance due to the nature of the area, those narrow streets. Condoleeza Rice is also ringing the bell to open the Stock Exchange this morning. That would be interesting if both sides were in that same zone. I think it's highly unlikely at this point that you're going to see the Iranian leader down there unless New York City authorities change their minds.
ROBERTS: All right. Richard Roth for us at the U.N. this morning. Richard, thanks.
And President Ahmadinejad as we said is stirring strong emotions in New York. He has been invited to speak at Columbia University today. Police are preparing for a large protest. The format allows him to be challenged by students. He has denied that the holocaust happened and said that Israel should be destroyed. Ahmadinejad was denied permission to visit ground zero but some of his staff tell Alina Cho that he's going to try to go there anyway, but as Richard Roth just pointed out, without the cooperation of the NYPD to provide security and a motorcade escort, it's unlikely he'll be able to get anywhere near it. Kiran.
CHETRY: Well, who owns pictures that are posted on-line of you? 16-year-old Alison Chang of Bedford, Texas, had her picture taken. There it is. It was at a church event. Her friend posted it on his flickr account, that's an online photo sharing account. Well, now the photo is part of a new ad campaign for Virgin Mobile Australia. It's been seen on billboards and bus stops across the country. Alison though never consented to it. Earlier on AMERICAN MORNING, we spoke to Ryan Zehl, the lawyer for Alison Chang's family. I asked him about how she felt when she found out that her photo was all over Australia in Virgin's ad campaign.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RYAN ZEHL, ALISON CHANG'S ATTORNEY: She was upset first of all that her picture was being used without her consent or her knowledge, but secondly, it is the wording of this particular billboard and the campaign in general. It says "dump your pen friend" which is a little offensive to her, and it also says "Free virgin to virgin" which kind of has a double entendre. What's important here is that Alison has a separate and independent right of privacy and it was incumbent upon Virgin Mobile to obtain her parents' consent before using the picture.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Again, they say they tried to contact Virgin Atlantic Australia many times to resolve this. They heard nothing back, that's why they have decided to sue.
ROBERTS: Your "Quick Hits" now, Virginia Tech has received a $960,000 federal grant to improve its mental health services. The school requested the funding after April's mass shooting on campus. Seung-Hui Cho, the student gunman who killed 32 people before taking his own life was found to be mentally ill but never got adequate counseling. A school spokesman said the grant money will be used to refine and strengthen their system.
Public safety is behind Purdue University's testing of an emergency text messaging system. Researcher will send a test text to a cross-section of the campus population to analyze speed and dependability. More than 7,000 cell phone users at the Indiana school have signed up to receive the messages.
We told you that we are monitoring the situation in Haywood County, west of Asheville, North Carolina for these boy scouts and their troop leaders that are missing. Apparently, the press conference is beginning now. Let's go there and let's listen to what they've got to say.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What general area are you searching?
CHARITY SHARP, PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER: Well, we're in the Great Smoky Mountain and the national forest, specifically on Black Balsam in that area. It's very mountainous, there are a lot of creeks, a lot of waterfalls, a lot of trails that are not necessarily clearly marked, because it is national service, national parkland. So...very easy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What kind of conditions? SHARP: It was actually perfect conditions for a search. It was just cool, nothing too cold. A lot of fog this morning, nothing too thick like it sometimes is. No rain. Just clear enough. Just fair conditions for a search.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sometimes, the search will go on through the night and resume during the day...
SHARP: Crews did search through the night just in case, we wanted to go ahead and find them as quickly as possible. I mean, there's eight children out there so find them as quick as we can, make sure no one's hurt.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How often do people get lost in this area and get turned around? Is this something that's quite common?
SHARP: It's quite common up here, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is it simply because the trails are unmarked well or because they intersect and cross over each other, that type of thing?
SHARP: Right, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What do you expect anything other than these kids and adults did get turned around and preferred to stay one more night?
SHARP: Yes, at this point we have no reason to believe anyone is injured. We think they found out they were going to be too late getting in, decided to bed down for the night and hopefully will come out as soon as first light comes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And as far as communications, is there any cell phone service anywhere, did they climb up to the time of the mountain?
SHARP: There is scattered cell phone service but it is very scattered. Once, they get out to the roadway, it's a little better but as long as they're back in the woods and the mountains, it's pretty scattered.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're seeing some activity behind you, we're seeing some dogs. What's going to happen in the next hour?
SHARP: We have a search crew on the way, hopefully between 15 and 30 people. They are bringing the dogs back out, we're sending them back out in the woods and bringing the crews that have been up all night in for a rest.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you know specifically where these campers went to camp? Did they leave a record of what (ph)?
SHARP: They did leave an itinerary with the troop leaders back in Raleigh, and we've scoured every possible angle they could have went to, you know, or gotten turned around away and went from. So... UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did any of the scouts or troop leaders have any cell phones, to your knowledge?
SHARP: I think one of them did, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And is there any indication that this could be anything other than the troops just being lost?
SHARP: At this point we have no indication that anything else is wrong.
CHETRY: All right. So we were just hearing from Charity Sharp, one of the public information officers of the local fire department there near Asheville and what she said was there was an all-night search going on with some rescue workers. She said they're bringing them back, letting them rest and then a new fresh group is going in, of about 15 to 20 other people. They still say that they don't think anything is necessarily wrong but they want to be sure.
ROBERTS: Yes, They went in there, they had a lot of gear. They had enough gear to last for an entire weekend and typically boy scouts always prepared take a little bit more than you need. The mother of one of the kids thinks they probably just got a little bit late in their schedule coming out, got dark and rather than going all the way to the parking lot through what's pretty rugged terrain out in that area of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and just decided to bed down for the night and probably a little after first light had something to eat and began walking back out and imagine they're a few miles in, it will take a couple of hours for them to get out.
CHETRY: I wonder if they know that there is even a search going on, probably not. I'm sure they do probably are acutely aware that they wanted to contact the family member because people would naturally worry. We did hear that they had cell phones, several members of the group had cell phones. The problem is in that mountainous area, the cell reception is pretty spotty. So hopefully, and we're going to continue to monitor this, if they are okay and can get to an area where they do get some cell service they'll call in and put people's minds at ease.
ROBERTS: We have no idea what held them up if that indeed was the case but you know, it's possible that one of the kids could have slipped, injured themselves, or something that they had to maybe take a little bit of time to get them out so. Still looking very positive at this point, though, rescue workers believe that they're going to come out at some point though they still are, as Charity Sharp said, they're continuing to look for them. We'll keep on following that story.
Our Drew Griffin is there by the way and he'll be joining us live in just a little while to talk more about it.
We're also following a new tropical storm this morning. Where is it now and headed? Tracking Jerry at the CNN weather center. That's ahead on AMERICAN MORNING.
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CHETRY: There's a road in Los Angeles. It's reopened now after a weekend mudslide, trapped as many as 14 cars. An estimated 4,000 tons of mud as well as boulders, tree limbs came tumbling down the hill. We see it a lot this time of the year in the area. The road still has a layer of silt on it, but authorities say it is drivable.
45 minutes past the hour. Rob Marciano checking in. So, the west probably not the best weather picture as we take a look at the country, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, CNN, METEOROLOGIST: No, that storm from California now heading into the mountains but not all that bad. It's probably about a month ahead of schedule to get a storm this strong. It's a mid fall-like storm and now it's heading into the Wasatch, the Colorado Rockies, we have some snow advisories up for the high country of the Wasatch. You could see a couple of inches of snow. There shouldn't be too much of an issue. So certainly there is some cool air with this system. it's trying to plow into some relatively warm air.
So we have a slight risk of seeing some severe storms fire up today, namely in the eastern parts of Nebraska and into parts of Minnesota. Speaking of warm air, here's South Dakota, 97 yesterday. Louisville, Kentucky, 96, 93 in Springfield, Illinois. So, a lot of different areas getting a piece of the action and I have to tell you folks who live in the Great Lakes and the northeast, it was definitely lovely and it will be again today, although it maybe a little bit warm.
This is what's left of tropical storm Jerry, doesn't look at all impressive, does it, John? Well, it's in the central Atlantic and the only folks that it's going to bother at least right now would be well if you're the captain of a big freighter, maybe driving through the shipping lane. Back up to you.
ROBERTS: Well, I'm not so I won't worry about it. Rob, thanks.
MARCIANO: OK.
ROBERTS: Over $6 million in property damage, top your "QUICK HITS." The damage report is in for the tornado that whipped through Eustis, Florida late on Thursday night. 116 structures impacted, 27 homes with major damage, seven of those destroyed.
And a fire is under investigation in Atlantic City, a 43-story luxury edition under construction at the Borgata Hotel and Casino went up in flames on Sunday. Debris fell from the towers as firefighters tried to put the fire out. No one thankfully though was hurt.
Well, some people swear by it but when done wrong laser surgery can leave your skin frighteningly scarred. What do you need to know if you're even getting it done? Up next, our Greg Hunter will show you. AMERICAN MORNING is coming right back. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) ROBERTS: Coming up to ten minutes before the top of the hour and let me show you a born cubs fan. And we do mean born. Wrigley Alexander Fields was born two weeks ago and could be just in time to see the Cubs win their division. His parents, Paul and Terri Fields have been planning the name for 15 years. They say that Wrigley will stay Wrigley and until he gets old enough when he's able to use his middle name, Alexander, should he so choose and leave the friendly confines of their Michigan City, Indiana home. Paul and Terri also like the bears so they could name their next child, Soldier.
CHETRY: And this just in, there's a couple out of Baltimore that just named their kid, Camden. Camden Yards. I'm kidding.
ROBERTS: Let's hope not.
CHETRY: Wrigley is not that bad. You know, if you're going to do something Wrigley actually works. I like it. Congrats.
Laser surgery is huge right now. It's growing in popularity for things like removing hair, tattoo and wrinkles. Well in the right hands, these lasers can produce amazing results. In the wrong hands, though, the outcome can be horrifying. AMERICAN MORNING's Greg Hunter is live right now. He is looking out for you and looked into these laser treatments. Hi, Greg.
GREG HUNTER, "LOOKING OUT FOR YOU": Hey, Kiran. I'm at a Dr. Ronald Roncaccio's office. He's a dermatologist in Brooklyn, New York. This is one of the many lasers he has to do treatment. When he's doing treatments he's either here doing it or he's here to supervise but supervised laser treatment from doctors is unfortunately not the case in many areas across the country.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GREG HUNTER (voice-over): Julie Pak went to her local beauty salon to get a rose tattoo on her back removed. There, a woman used a laser to peel away the skin?
When you (ph) top of your skin.
JULIE PAK, LASER PATIENT: Right.
HUNTER: Painful?
PAK, LASER PATIENT: Oh, excruciatingly painful. It was beyond words. I was in tears for I believe a week, but certainly while she was doing it, I mean, I didn't have any sort of anesthesia or anything or anything. She literally had a laser pen and it was just like zapping across my skin.
HUNTER: Her doctor says it was much worse than mere zapping. Her skin melted?
DR. ELIZABETH TANZI, PAK'S DOCTOR: Correct, basically. So, we see, she had second and third degree burns related to an inappropriate treatment. HUNTER: Now, Pak again has to endure painful laser treatment to reduce the scarring and hopefully get rid of the tattoo. The American Society for Dermatologic Surgery says botched laser skin procedures have increased 41 percent in one year. And it's not just tattoo removal, this woman sued and settled after experiencing burns and scars on her legs from laser hair removal.
ALASTAIR CARRUTHERS, SOCIETY FOR DERMATOLOGIC SURGERY: We see a definite increase in the number of people who are being damaged by untrained individuals using these lasers, and we think that this is going to just get to be more of a problem.
HUNTER: Medical spas, which offer laser treatments, have grown 160% in the past three years. Some doctors worry, the increased demand is outpacing the number of people trained to use it.
CARRUTHERS: If you use them inappropriately, you can damage tissue severely.
HUNTER: This woman says she was disfigured by laser treatments to remove sunspots. The clinic employee who did the work was under supervision of a doctor, not on site. Regulation of who can use lasers and what defines medical supervision differ from state to state. Some require a doctor on site, others don't.
SUSANNE WARFIELD, NATL. COALITION OF MANUFACTURERS: If we could get a clear definition from the state medical boards as to what medical supervision is, it would make our lives a lot easier and keep consumers much safer.
HUNTER: The salon Pak says disfigured her back eight years ago has gone out of business but she says her emotional and physical scars live on.
PAK: Summertime is probably my least favorite season because it's the only time either it's showing or I have to make special efforts to cover it up. So even for my wedding I had to you know, I had a strapless gown but I had a really long veil to cover it up and it was something I was self-conscious about the entire evening. It affects every day of my life.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HUNTER: This is Dr. Ronald Roncaccio. He's a dermatologist and he's also on the board at NYU Medical School. Andm doctor, you're going to show us the awesome power of one of these lasers. Take a look right down here. This is a piece of paper.
Well, hold on. Stand by.
I'll tell you what it did before. Take a look right here. Live TV, folks. This right here is where the laser hit. Can you see that there, right here? That's a leather glove and what happens when a laser hit, it actually vaporizes the skin, right, doctor.
DR. RONALD RONCACCIO: Correct. HUNTER: That's correct. And so, we'll get that thing fired up here. One of the things you need to worry about getting laser treatments, some warning signs, number one you need to make sure there's a doctor always on site, like the Dr. Roncaccio here. Number two, if they quote you a price over the phone without seeing you -- an exact price, that's what happened to Julie Pak, well that is a warning sign and finally don't be afraid be afraid to do a test patch. Now more tips on cnn.com/americanmorning. Look under the "Looking Out for You" section. Back out to you guys.
ROBERTS: All right, Greg. Thanks very much.
AT&T is suspending sales of its new parental control feature. Why and when will the service be up and running again? Ali Velshi is going to tell you.
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ROBERTS: Just about a minute before the top of the hour now. Ali Velshi "Minding Your Business"
AT&T dropping a program that it literally just started. What's going on?
ALI VELSHI, "MINDING YOUR BUSINESS": Yes. It was an interesting program. It was one of these parental limits so you can control when your kid receives calls, who they receive them from and who they can call. It was called the Smart Limits Program, just instituted a little while ago and we reported on it. AT&T now telling us that they are discontinuing it, just temporarily.
Here's the problem, during a no call periods, let's say you activated so your kids can't call during school times or at night. Kids can still call 911, which is the way it was supposed to be built, but if the call is disconnected, the 911 operator can't call the kid back. So, AT&T telling me that they have not had a report of this happening but to be safe they want to discontinue this. They'll refund the money of anyone who signed up. They will get back to the program as soon as they fix this glitch. They're confident that everybody who signed for the reasons they signed up will probably come back. But as a result they are telling parents that they are going to discontinue it. They'll give them back their money and they'll let us know when it's fixed.
ROBERTS: This is just a temporary thing then.
VELSHI: Just a temporary thing. They don't want to risk that somebody calls 911 and can't get a call back from 911 operators if there's an emergency.
ROBERTS: Yes, that would be a big glitch. Yes, the reason why a lot of parents give their kids cell phones is for an emergency.
VELSHI: Yes, exactly.
ROBERTS: All right. Ali, thanks very much. VELSHI: OK.
CHETRY: The next hour of AMERICAN MORNING starts right now.
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