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American Morning
Two Journalists Killed on Front Lines in Libya; Libyan Rebels Now Control Key Border Crossing in Tunisia; Stocks Opening at Highest Level in Three Years; The World's Biggest Public Companies; Arrest in Webcam Killing; Pesticides Linked to Lower IQs; Gas Prices Up, 30th day in a Row
Aired April 21, 2011 - 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: I'm Kiran Chetry.
A lot going on this Friday morning, we want to get you caught up.
They went to the most dangerous place in the world right now to try to get the story, and two journalists were killed on the frontlines in Libya. We're going to hear from people who knew them best.
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Ali Velshi.
Stocks are opening at their highest level in close to three years. Strong earnings from some really big names. The huge turn: who we have to thank for it and what it means to you -- all on this AMERICAN MORNING.
(MUSIC)
CHETRY: Well, I was jumping the gun a little bit. I wish it was Friday. It feels like a Friday. But it's Thursday.
Christine Romans is off this morning. It's her Friday, for sure.
VELSHI: It's her Friday. Exactly.
CHETRY: I'm Kiran Chetry. Thanks for joining us.
VELSHI: And I'm Ali Velshi.
Well, we got this news in just minutes ago, a major development in Libya. Libyan rebels tell "Reuters" they now have control of a key border crossing in Tunisia. This is very interesting. It's on the western side of the country which we largely associate with being in government control.
Thousands of Libyan families have been pouring into camps there. Many have been fleeing the violence in Misrata. Gadhafi's forces have reportedly been shelling border towns in the region with rockets and tank shells.
Now, the U.N. has warned there could be a serious humanitarian crisis in the area.
Fred Pleitgen live for us from Tripoli.
Fred, give us some context as to how significant this is.
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Ali.
This is a border post that's in the southern part of Tunisia. It's what that the rebels have been trying to take for a while now. What you have to know is that in that portion of the country, you have tribes that have been notoriously have been anti-Gadhafi. They've tried taking some of the towns in the western border region when this whole uprising began in late February. That was crushed heavily.
The fighting now from what we understand is centering around the towns of Yephron (ph) and Nalut. And we're hearing is that the fighting is very heavy and that Gadhafi is using heavy weapons there. But now that we're hearing at this border post has been taken, it appears as though, indeed, this is a major development.
And you're absolutely right. We're also getting reports from aid organizations that many Libyans are fleeing across the border. That in itself is significant as well because so far, you have had a lot of foreign workers who have been fleeing Libya via that border but not so many Libyans. But now, it seems, the fighting there has intensified, and more Libyans are fleeing. And that, of course, is very significant because it opens another front against Moammar Gadhafi and could further destabilize his regime -- Ali.
VELSHI: OK. Anymore you get on this, let us know, Fred, we'll come right back to you -- Fred Pleitgen in Tripoli.
CHETRY: And, you know, also this morning, we're remembering two topnotch war journalists, including Oscar-nominated director of the documentary "Restrepo," who became the latest casualties of Libya's civil war -- Tim Hetherington and Chris Hondros both came under heavy fire on the front lines in Misrata. It's the city that's been under siege by Gadhafi's forces for over a month. While the population is trying to flee the violence there, these journalists went right into it to bring the story of an alleged civilian massacre to the world.
VELSHI: Hetherington sent out this tweet on Tuesday that would turn out to be his last. It says, "In besieged Libyan city of Misrata. Indiscriminate shelling by Gadhafi forces. No sign of NATO."
Tim Hetherington was a British photographer who received an Academy Award nomination, as Kiran said, for "Restrepo." It's a documentary he co-directed about the deployment of a platoon of U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. He went to places like Liberia and Sudan to chronicle other people's suffering, the type that's often too ignored.
He took this photo for "Vanity Fair," by the way. I want to show this. This one right here. A U.S. soldier collapsing in a bunker after intense fighting -- this was in 2007. And it was the world press photo of the year. The judges said that this image shows the exhaustion of a man and the exhaustion of a nation in Afghanistan.
His colleague and friend, CNN's Peter Bergen, paid tribute to him last night on "JOHN KING, USA."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETER BERGEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Tim was a very empathetic person. He was interested in showing war as it is, like a lot of great war photographers. Unfortunately, to show war as it is, you have to take considerable risks. There are sort of war junkies who will tell you about all of the places they've been.
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right.
BERGEN: Tim was not of that ilk. He didn't rejoice in war. He wasn't -- he was a very modest individual, humble.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Wow. Well, American journalist Chris Hondros of Getty Images also died of severe brain trauma hours after this same attack. He covered hot spots as well since the 1990s, in places like Kosovo, and Iraq, Afghanistan.
Getty remembered him this way, quote, "Chris never shied away from the front line having covered the world's major conflicts throughout his distinguished career and his work in Libya was no exception. We're working to support his family and his fiancee as they receive this difficult news and are preparing to bring Chris back to his family and friends in the United States. He will be sorely missed."
Now, coming up in just about 25 minutes, we're going to be speaking to freelance journalist Greg Campbell. He traveled to Libya with Chris Hondros and has known him since they were teenagers.
VELSHI: A sad story.
All right. New developments this morning -- following a series of embarrassing and potentially dangerous incidents involving air traffic controllers, the FAA firing two controllers for sleeping on the job. One of them worked at the Miami Air Traffic Center. The other controller was caught sleeping while on duty at McGhee Tyson airport in Knoxville, Tennessee, back in February. Five other cases of sleeping controllers are being investigated.
Former FAA chief of staff, Michael Goldfarb, told CNN the system is stressed beyond its limits.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL GOLDFARB, FMR. FAA OFFICIAL: It remains the safest system in the world, but that does little justice to the kinds of problems we're seeing. The system is under enormous stress. The controllers are fatigued. There's not enough bench strength. They don't have the reserves to fully staff the towers.
So, what we're seeing is the normal symptoms of somebody under enormous stress, that somebody happens to be the entire air traffic control system. (END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Now, amid all the uproar of controllers sleeping on the job, the FAA wants to put them in the cockpit to improve job performance. The agency is reviving an old program. Air traffic controllers now would be able to fly in the cockpit jump seat to see how their communications have an impact on a working flight crew, especially during those most important takeoffs and landings.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL RINALDI, NATL. AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS ASSN.: It really is so valuable for air traffic controller to see at that critical point of flight that teamwork that's happening, and why we really shouldn't give them a different instruction that they're not expecting.
RANDY BABBIT, FAA ADMINISTRATOR: I was a professional airline pilot myself and had controllers on board. It'd give a great understanding. It's a two-way dialogue. And it helps both parties understand some of the work environment that the other is operating in.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: The initial program was scrapped because of security measures after 9/11.
CHETRY: Well, the president is in Reno today. He's wrapping up a three-day town hall tour where a lot has been focused on the economy. First stop was Tuesday at a college in Virginia where students were told that spending cuts would not include education. Today's Reno event takes place at a renewable energy center firm called Electrotherm.
And at yesterday's town hall in Palo Alto, he got to hang out with Facebook headquarters founder, CEO Mark Zuckerberg. He took questions from a small audience in a town hall and a bigger one online, 500 million Facebook users, of course. The event was broadcast live on the social networking site and the president also used the opportunity to sell his budget plan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK ZUCKERBERG, FACEBOOK FOUNDER: So, my question to kind of start off is what specifically do you think we should do and what specifically do you think we can cut in order to make this all up?
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We've made cuts in every area. A good example is Pentagon spending. We've already reduced the Pentagon budget by about $400 billion. We think we can do about another $400 billion. So, we've got to look at spending both on non-security issues as well as defense spending.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: The president also did some re-election fund-raising in San Francisco last night. The chairman of Salesforce.com hosted a dinner at his home. Guests had to pay more than $30,000 each for a chance to dine with the president.
A little bit later, we'll talk about the funny exchanges between Mark Zuckerberg and President Obama. He joked that he was the first president to actually got Mark Zuckerberg to wear a suit. He notoriously wears the hoodies, right?
VELSHI: And he was feeling hot. It's a good story.
CHETRY: Well, the governor of Idaho has signed an executive order that ban his state from participating in the president's health care law. Governor Butch Otter's measure forbids Idaho's government from taking federal dollars to pay for national health care reform in the state. And it takes effect immediately.
VELSHI: BP has filed a $40 billion suit against the owner of the rig that exploded in the Gulf of Mexico last year, killing 11 people and triggering the worst oil spill in U.S. history. BP says Transocean is to blame for the failure of every single system on the Deepwater Horizon rig. BP is also suing Cameron International, that's the company that designed that blowout preventer that we were looking at every single day, the one that's failed to stop the disaster.
Late yesterday, the oil giant filed another suit against the cement contractor, Halliburton, which is accusing the company of fraud and negligence.
CHETRY: Well, wildfires have now burned more than a million acres in Texas. The firefighters hoping to get a break over the next few days as forecasts call for cooler weather and higher humidity. But the latest from the CNN weather center indicates a threat of dry thunderstorms could actually start more fires. More than 1,800 firefighters from 36 states have been called in to try to knock down those flames.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's looking too ugly back there with all the flames. So, we're going to pack up and go. These tents we just set up. Look at that coming down the river down there, look.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: A close call for CNN international reporter Jim Malone (ph) and six friends. They were on a canoe trip down the Brazos River in north Texas when a wildfire erupted right in front of them. They had to leave their camping gear behind when game wardens came to help evacuate them. Those fires are really they're just taking over so much of the state.
CHETRY: Amazing.
All right. Well, let's check in with Jacqui Jeras right now.
So, we talk a little bit about the hope of some more humidity but then also the possibility of dry thunderstorms which, I guess, lightning strikes can cause for trouble. JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Exactly. It's kind of that catch- 22.
You know, for the most part, the chance for rain is going to be in the central and northeastern Texas. And while that's helpful, we also need it way over into western Texas. And those winds are going to be on the increase today, too. So, there's critical fire danger and red flag warnings flying in western and northern part of Texas.
Now, all the moisture today is across parts of the Southeast. We've got showers and thunderstorms which probably woke you up a little bit in the middle of the night last night. The severe threat diminished at this hour, but we are going to see some heavy downpours. So, keep that in mind for your commute for today.
Breezy conditions but trying to get that sunshine back in the Northeast for today. But temperatures across the northern tier still staying cooler than average, staying warm across the thunderstorm area. The sunshine comes out today. We're going to see 80 degree temperatures once again.
When I see you guys again, by the way, we're going to talk traffic. I know it's April, but we've got to do it. I'll tell you why, coming up.
VELSHI: Thanks, Jacqui.
CHETRY: Well, a stunning move by Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig, announcing that the league is now taking control of the financially troubled Los Angeles Dodgers. The team's future has been clouded because the owner is going through a nasty divorce right now, Frank and Jamie McCourt. The commissioner says he's going to appoint a representative. It's a trustee to oversee the business and the day- to-day operations of the Dodgers.
VELSHI: And the New York Yankees famed top hat logo, that one, is now the subject of a lawsuit. A woman in Yonkers, New York, claims the team copied a logo from a design created by her uncle way back in 1936 at the request of then-team owner, Jake Ruppert. The suit alleged copyright infringement and breach of contract. The Yankees spokesperson says, quote, "There's no proof of the woman's claim."
CHETRY: Well, they may be the most famous boo birds in all of sports. Well, the fans in Philadelphia found a new target to boo at. It was the robot.
VELSHI: I was so excited about this.
CHETRY: I know. This was supposed to be -- oh, wow, a robot throws out the first pitch, to throw out the ceremonial pitch, right?
VELSHI: Right.
CHETRY: So, there he is. He's got his little hat on, getting all ready and excited. This is at Citizens Bank Park. So, the so-called Philliebot managed -- hold on -- what? Wow, a weak one hopper over the plate. Poor Phillie Phanatic, he doesn't look happy either.
VELSHI: No.
CHETRY: He's going to have to waddle out there. He won't shake his hand anyway. The robot was built by students at the University of Pennsylvania's robotics program. I feel bad for them because they're really bright kids.
VELSHI: Yes. And the robot's entirely capable. Something went wrong.
CHETRY: Yes, obviously.
VELSHI: But, boy, you never want to be at the wrong end of a Phillies fan.
CHETRY: No. I'm married to one. I know.
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: All right. Well, heard this news and it doesn't make me happy that your iPhone and some of your devices like your iPad track your every move. What does this mean?
VELSHI: I'm not altogether surprised, but the research indicates there may be more to worry about than you think.
And we're back to talking about peanuts on planes.
CHETRY: Yes. The reason why, there was a move underfoot perhaps to ban peanuts completely on flights because people are allergic. There are people who have deadly peanut allergies.
VELSHI: But, now, the peanut has made a case for itself.
CHETRY: Well, yes, but in exactly what way will it emerge on your next flight. We're going to talk about that coming up as well.
Thirteen minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Listen to that gunfire in the street of Syria. Remember, this is ongoing, the situation in Syria. And this videos a was posted on YouTube showing what appears to be Syrian Security Forces going through the streets in riot gear. But we cannot independently confirm when or where this was shot.
Thousands of students have been rallying against the government. They're planning huge rallies today, which, of course, is the - the beginning of the - the end of today, the prayer day in the Muslim world will begin on Friday. It's not there Friday yet.
CHETRY: All right. Well, violence in Nigeria after presidential elections there, reports of people being stabbed, people being shot in the streets, burning of churches and mosques and homes. A civil rights group says that more than 200 people have been killed in Nigeria. Tens of thousands are trying to escape the violence taking shelter in military and police barracks. The candidate who lost the election says it was rigged, but he stress he is not behind the bloodshed.
VELSHI: And a roommate of Rutgers University student who committed suicide last fall, if you remember we talked about this so much then. That roommate has been indicted on hate crimes charges.
Eighteen-year-old Tyler Clementi posted a goodbye message on his Facebook page before leaping to his death from the George Washington Bridge in New York City in September. Now, 19-year-olf Dharun Ravi - Dharun Ravi is accused of using a webcam to spy on Clementi during a same-sex encounter and then streaming it online.
Clementi's subsequent suicide sparked a national debate about bullying. Experts say technology is compounding the problem.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PROF. DOROTHY ESPELANGE, UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS: As we see, bullying going into kids using technology, we see that they can reach their audience - a larger audience in a faster amount of time. Any rumor that's being spread or footage that's being taped can be distributed on a mass level. And the reality is that you can't escape from this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Ravi was indicted yesterday on 15 counts including bias intimidation and invasion of privacy.
In the Long Island, those searches continue. No - no new leads have turned up. Police divers on Long Island are headed back into the water this week looking for clues in the search for a suspected serial killer. Eight bodies have been found along the island's South Shore beaches since December.
Meanwhile, test results from bone fragments found last week are in. They are not human. Investigators say they came from an animal.
CHETRY: Well, former baseball great Roger Clemens has a motion hearing today. He's accused of lying to Congress about his alleged steroid use. Clemens' attorneys are trying to get the case thrown out because lawmakers are refusing to turn over internal documents from their investigation.
VELSHI: Take a look at this video between - a collision between an Amtrak train and an 18-wheeler in Southeastern Louisiana. The truck was carrying military vehicles when it somehow got stuck in the tracks yesterday morning. The truck driver and five passengers on the train were injured.
CHETRY: All right. Still ahead, we're going to be talking about the Donald - a lot of talk about the Donald, right? He says he doesn't want to run for president, but he has to.
Our Jeanne Moos has a very interesting look on his rounds on the talk show circuit. Some of the things he said lately.
VELSHI: And "Forbes" has a list out. We always enjoy these lists. It's got the most powerful companies in the world here in the United States and around the world. Do you work for one of them? Do you invest in one of them? Do you keep your money with one of them? We'll tell you after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: An unusual closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange. But look at that, up 186 points.
CHETRY: What were they shaking?
VELSHI: They were those little things you - you turn around, you whistle, you know?
CHETRY: And cow bells. They always have a lot of cow bells on the Florida Stock Exchange.
VELSHI: But look at that. That is the highest level in - since June, 2008. There it is again. The Dow up, the NASDAQ up, the S&P up. We had a rough week earlier this week when the S&P downgraded or said they might downgrade U.S. debt. The market sold off on that. It seems to all be back.
CHETRY: All right. Well, that's good news, certainly.
Meantime, this is probably not such good news if you like your privacy. iPhone tracking your every move. Researchers say that Apple's iPhone and iPad consistently record your whereabouts. That information is then transferred and saved to your computer every time you sync the device. So far there's no evidence the location data is being sent to Apple or other companies. The researchers say they're also testing Android phones to see if they record the same amount of information.
VELSHI: I happen to think - I mean, I use a BlackBerry and it's very clear they have an option here whether you turn location services on or off.
CHETRY: Right.
VELSHI: Mine is always off.
CHETRY: Right.
VELSHI: I'm assuming they're going to have to stick a switch (INAUDIBLE).
CHETRY: But this is the problem. If you want something like an Around Me app where it can tell you what you're doing, you need to switch the location services on.
VELSHI: And I made the decision I don't want the thing recording my moves, so I'm going to give up for now the Around Me app. CHETRY: I know. But if you even have your maps, OK?
VELSHI: yes.
CHETRY: If you even want to look up like you did yesterday where a certain county is in Iowa -
VELSHI: It's in Illinois, I guess (ph).
CHETRY: -- in Illinois.
VELSHI: Yes.
CHETRY: -- that also will track your data.
VELSHI: I'll have to think about this.
CHETRY: Me, too.
Let's check in with Stephanie Elam. Does it bother you at all that your iPhone may track your moves?
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: As long as like the public doesn't know where I am, I'm fine with it -
VELSHI: Right, right.
ELAM: -- because I'm not doing anything sneaky. You can pretty much have (INAUDIBLE) me here.
VELSHI: Yes. By the way, she's like me. She travels so much, but there's a record of all your moves.
ELAM: Yes. And, you know, if you're putting stuff on Twitter or Facebook, people know where you are. So it's - it's not that surprising to me. It only matters if you're doing something shady -
VELSHI: Yes.
ELAM: -- and you don't want your spouse or loved one to go on your computer and see where it is. It's not really on your phone. It's actually on your computer, so -
Anyway -
VELSHI: Talk to us about this "Forbes" list of companies.
ELAM: Some big companies we're talking about here. We're talking about the biggest, most powerful companies. And when you take a look at this for the world, they base this list, "Forbes" did, by - by looking at sales, profit, asset and also market value.
On your screen right there, you can see the top five. So basically what we're saying here is banks and oil with a side of GE which is a -
VELSHI: Kind of everything. ELAM: -- conglomerate.
VELSHI: Right. Yes.
ELAM: Right. So that's just pretty much everything.
VELSHI: Which, by the way, is in banks and provide services for oil.
ELAM: Right. Exactly. So basically (ph) they're -
VELSHI: They're everywhere.
ELAM: -- huge.
So the interesting thing about this, they cap at $32 trillion in revenues, 3-point - I'm sorry -- $2.4 trillion in profits. And these firms employ 80 million people worldwide.
So if you take a look at the companies that are the U.S. companies, they actually had their best year since 2007. U.S. firms list are growing faster than the U.S. economy by far and they earn an average of 26 percent of their revenues outside of the United States.
So this shows you this growth is because of overseas and nearly a quarter of these companies are actually generating most of their revenues outside of the United States. That's where the growth is really is for these companies.
One thing to point out, though, the hold that the U.S. companies have on this list has been slipping since 2004. In fact, 2004 there were 751 U.S. companies, now there's 536. But American companies still make up the bulk of the top 100.
VELSHI: Right.
ELAM: It's about 28. So just taking a look at -
VELSHI: That's the trend that we've been used to. That U.S. companies are becoming a little less influential on the grand scheme of things -
ELAM: But it makes sense.
VELSHI: -- but they're still the biggest.
ELAM: Because other countries are building up and catching up -
VELSHI: Sure. Yes.
ELAM: -- you can't always stay there at the top. So a really interesting look there from "Forbes."
VELSHI: All right. Stephanie, thank you.
ELAM: Sure.
CHETRY: Good to see you.
ELAM: Thanks.
VELSHI: This is a topic that you - you were very interested in, peanuts on planes.
CHETRY: Well, yes, my daughter has a peanut allergy.
VELSHI: Yes.
CHETRY: And, you know, there's a big debate about, you know, peanuts in public places like schools and like other places. Well, one is a plane. There are some people who actually are so allergic - thank God my daughter's not - that they can actually get ill from just having peanuts in the air -
VELSHI: In the air.
CHETRY: -- near them.
VELSHI: Well, you remember last year, the Department of Transportation proposed a series of measures that were designed to protect people who have these severe peanut allergies. And one option was a complete ban on planes. The agency says there's a 12-year-old law that actually blocks them from tampering with the peanut policy.
CHETRY: That's strange.
VELSHI: Right. I mean, I would imagine we can work on changing that law if that were the goal.
Some airlines have developed their own policy. Some don't serve peanuts at all. Others say they might create peanut-free buffer zones. I haven't seen that happening.
CHETRY: Right. No.
VELSHI: Were you telling me about that?
CHETRY: Yes. But the bottom line is if you call ahead and you tell the airline this is a flight I'm going to be on and I have a severe peanut allergy, they wouldn't serve peanuts.
VELSHI: They'll give you a little blocked out area?
CHETRY: Depending on the severity, though.
VELSHI: OK.
CHETRY: Either they wouldn't serve it or you'll be in an area where people around you cannot have it.
VELSHI: Yes. And I think we've learned from the number of examples of the sort of things that being reasonable people about this all around is probably the best solution. People can get very extreme, particularly in the - I'm not making accommodations for people with allergies.
CHETRY: Right.
VELSHI: I'm not sure why we -
CHETRY: Right.
VELSHI: -- can't make accommodations.
CHETRY: And technically, it's a disability - it falls under Americans with disabilities. It's like saying you don't want to be inconvenienced when someone, you know, on your bus needs, you know, to have the wheelchair ramp go down. You have to wait for a couple of minutes.
VELSHI: Let's talk about sugar.
CHETRY: Well, this is (INAUDIBLE).
VELSHI: You might help in something.
CHETRY: A very - a very controversial article that was written in "The New York Times" about whether or not sugar is actually toxic for people.
VELSHI: Yes.
CHETRY: That it's not just, oh, it's bad for you. It's not a calorie is a calorie, but that sugar is toxic for you. Well, it is now one of the most searched articles on "The New York Times." And we're going to be talking a little bit more about that with one of our guests coming up.
VELSHI: All right. Very good. And the terror alert system. We told you the old one's going away because virtually nobody could tell you what it meant and what you were supposed to do about it. It's being replaced now by a new system.
We're going to tell you how the new one is going to work and whether it's going to be any more useful to you than the old one.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Crossing the half hour right now. What a beautiful shot of sunrise over New York City today.
VELSHI: Really?
CHETRY: What?
VELSHI: What are you looking at? Is that the park on the east side?
CHETRY: I think that's the river, Manhattan --
VELSHI: That's the park, and then buildings on the east side.
(CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: We can never see the east river from here. I think that's just the sun.
CHETRY: All right, fine. I've also discovered today is Thursday, not Friday. So, you know what --
VELSHI: If the producer hadn't told me that was New York, I wouldn't have known.
CHETRY: All right.
VELSHI: That's the view outside our window.
CHETRY: Fifty-nine right now, heading up to 60 degrees. Jacqui Jeras is going to be here in 15 minutes to tell us where the heck we are this morning.
VELSHI: As Kiran says, half an hour, 30 minutes after the hour.
Let's give you a check of the morning's top stories.
The battle for Libya has claimed the lives of two Western photojournalists. Chris Hondros and Tim Hetherington were killed following the fighting. They were covering the fighting between rebels and Gadhafi forces on the front lines in Misrata.
Hetherington gained an Oscar nomination last year as co-director of the Afghan war documentary "Restrepo."
The FAA is bringing down the hammer on two air traffic controllers caught sleeping while on duty. One of the fired controllers worked in Miami and the other in Knoxville, Tennessee. The agency is investigating five other incidents of controllers sleeping on the job.
And out with the old color coded warnings, in with the new system of terror alerts. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano unveiled the new warning system which goes into effect next week. It replaces the five primary colors which just about nobody understood with just two, elevated and imminent. The new bulletins will include details about a potential attack and how the public and law enforcement can help reduce the risk. That is going to be a helpful addition.
What exactly am I supposed to do with this information? Those constant announcements at airports were difficult for people to understand. What do I about that?
CHETRY: Exactly. And after a while, people were just sort of tuning them out, it seems.
VELSHI: Right.
CHETRY: All right. Well, just a sad situation right now. We're following the latest on a story of two journalists who gave their lives to cover the story. They were killed yesterday covering the war in Libya. Chris Hondros and Tim Hetherington were hit by a rocket-propelled grenade in Misrata yesterday.
Hetherington you may know because he was an Oscar-nominated journalist. Hondros is an award-winning photographer.
And joining us now from Denver, one of Chris' best friends, freelance journalist Greg Campbell.
Greg, I know that you've known Chris since you were 14 years old. I can't imagine how difficult it is for you to hear this news. We just want to offer our condolences and ask -- how are you doing this morning?
GREG CAMPBELL, FREELANCE JOURNALIST: Thank you. I'm doing as well as can be expected. It has been a very emotional day for me and for all of Chris' friends and colleagues and family around the world, as I'm sure you can imagine.
CHETRY: Absolutely. And it must be such a shock because didn't you just receive an e-mail from him yesterday about where they were moving, what their positions were in Libya?
CAMPBELL: Yes. I was in Libya with Chris and Tim just a little over a week ago. And Chris and I have maintained e-mail contact every day since then. In fact, yesterday morning, he sent me an e-mail from Misrata, basically saying that everything was fine and stable, and he was enjoying his assignment and getting some good photographs and certainly giving no indication of any danger or threat to his safety. So, It was quite a shock shortly thereafter to receive the news.
CHETRY: Absolutely. I imagine it is, and especially trying to sort of piece together the details. What do you know about what happened?
CAMPBELL: You know, all I know really is what has been published. And from some communication I've had with journalists that are on the scene in Misrata, which is that sometime in the late afternoon yesterday, Chris and Tim were with a group of other journalists out on what I guess is called "Tripoli Street" in Misrata. They came under fire and suffered some sort of explosive attack, whether it was rocket-propelled grenade or a mortar seems to be somewhat in question.
But they were, of course, grievously wounded, and Tim and Chris didn't survive their wounds and were evacuated to a triage tent with two other journalists who were also wounded as well. So, I don't know much more, frankly, than I think everybody else knows.
CHETRY: Right. The amazing thing, and you know it firsthand when covering this -- I mean, you're clearly putting your life at risk just going to these places, yet sometimes you emerge unscathed and sometimes you pay the ultimate price. And it was very -- it was actually chilling to see this video that you actually shot of Chris talking about the rebel fighters.
I just want people to see it so they have a sense of who we're talking about. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRIS HONDROS, GETTY PHOTOJOURNALIST: These are bystanders. They're just teenagers. They don't have weapons. I mean, they don't pretend to have weapons.
Essentially, we're standing out here, if you look at it, clearly, with three or four armored trucks. We're standing out here with three or four trucks that actually have ammunition. So, the Libyan army is fully mortarized down the street with who knows how much.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Just give us a sense of the state of mind of you and Chris and Tim and everybody who went into this war zone with really no guarantees about your safety. What is that like?
CAMPBELL: Well, you know, every time you're in an environment like that, I think that in the back of your mind, you've realized that you may not come out of there. However, every journalist that I ran into in Libya and in many other places that Chris and I have covered together, Sierra Leone, Kosovo, Nigeria -- we've tried to be as safe and practical as possible.
And that's one of the things that I really treasured about Chris' professionalism was that he was always very, very safe. He realized the risks and he tried to minimize them as much as possible. So, when I was traveling with Chris, we would take as many precautions as we possibly could. We would travel in a group, you know, we would defer to caution as opposed to risk. We would make decisions as best as we could make them in the field without realizing, you know, whether you're making the right decision or the wrong decision.
And, you know, there are times when 99 percent of the time you tend to make the right decision and you're being cautious about it. But there are times, unfortunately, when you just don't know which decision is right or wrong. And, unfortunately, that's what Tim and Chris found themselves in.
CHETRY: Yes. Well, all of our thoughts and prayers are with you and their families as you go through this difficult time.
CAMPBELL: Thank you.
CHETRY: It's nice, though, for people to be able to remember them and their heroic actions, what they were trying to do was just tell people what's going on in Libya.
Greg Campbell, friend of Chris and freelance journalist, who just returned from Libya himself -- thanks so much for being with us.
CAMPBELL: Thank you very much.
VELSHI: You know, there's a freelance journalist still being held in captivity in Libya, James Foley. He's a freelancer with "The Boston Globe." He's -- we're still trying to find out the details around him.
And, remember, all of these journalists are people who -- they believe they've got a message, that they're doing a service. If they're not there, you're not hearing what's happening to people.
CHETRY: Exactly.
VELSHI: And that's a great thing for governments to be able to get rid of journalists covering bad news. That's a very, very sad story.
Remember the story we were talking about where somebody -- a man in China was having a webcam conversation with a woman in Toronto. A man knocked on the door, they had a conversation, he started assaulting her. And then the man realized the laptop was on and he switched it off. That man has now been arrested. We're going to tell you more about that story when we come back.
CHETRY: Also, we're following details for the royal wedding. Talk about this for pressure. So, you're the in-laws. You get invited over, you know, to have a nice lunch. Well, what if the person inviting you over the queen of England? We're going to have more on that as well.
Thirty-eight minutes past the hour.
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CHETRY: Meeting the in-laws. Was that fun for you?
VELSHI: I'm just thinking about it. I first met my in-laws in this building.
CHETRY: You did?
VELSHI: Yes.
CHETRY: They work here?
VELSHI: No. We had lunch here.
CHETRY: Oh, that's cute.
VELSHI: I met my father-in-law once before.
CHETRY: But we know, though, that --
(CROSSTALK)
VELSHI: But sometimes it can be a stressful thing.
CHETRY: -- o many years ago, I think of them as family, of course.
VELSHI: That's right. You want to make a good impression.
CHETRY: Exactly. Well, what will you if you're the daughter marrying into the royal family, and Queen Elizabeth wants to host a private lunch for you?
Well, Princess-to-be Kate Middleton's parents are going to be experiencing that. And Zain Verjee is in London this morning.
VELSHI: She's met Kate met the queen. But the family is getting together, right?
CHETRY: Yes.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, right, for the very first time, you know?
If the queen invites you for lunch so show up at Windsor Castle. And, you know, it's kind of like "Meet the Parents" thing here. It was very first time after years that she met Carol and Michael Middleton. And they came over.
And a source who was there says there was lots of laughter, and it was very relaxed and everyone was happy. Everyone got along. And the lunch itself lasted about an hour and a half. You know, the queen doesn't really like to linger over lunch. But they said it went really well.
And William and Kate, though, were not there. William was in Wales doing a search and rescue mission with the Royal Air Force and Kate was out shopping on King Street here.
Kiran, I'll take you there when you come.
(LAUGHTER)
CHETRY: She's on King Street, I love it, right?
VERJEE: Not queen street.
CHETRY: I can't wait, Zain. You're not going to be able to get rid of me.
By the way, it's also the queen's birthday, right, today?
VELSHI: But she doesn't celebrate on her birthday.
VERJEE: That's right, Ali. Today is the queen's birthday. She kind of celebrates it privately. But what she does, she has another one in June where the whole country gets to celebrate along with her. Today, she was at Westminster Abbey. She turned 85 years old, born in -- gosh -- 1926. And she actually looks great, right, wearing this fabulous sky blue outfit walking into the abbey.
What she does is a tradition every Thursday before Easter. They have this service called the Maundy service, and what she does is she basically gives out money to pensioners. So, there are 85 men and 85 women today and she's going to be doing that.
CHETRY: Maundy Thursday. That's right. Holy week.
Wow, all right. Well, Zain, I am looking forward to seeing you. We're having tea together as a first thing I do --
(CROSSTALK)
CHETRY: I can't wait.
All right, Zain, thanks so much.
VELSHI: Do enjoy. I'll be here watching the fort if anybody needs me.
You can watch Zain every morning 5:00 a.m. on "WORLD ONE" right here on CNN.
What's your thought on sugar?
CHETRY: I think that it's all moderation, right?
VELSHI: Right.
CHETRY: When you're trying to lose weight, though, people tell you to cut off the sugar.
VELSHI: Sure. And refined sugars and carbs and things like that. But there's now some people saying it's not just kind of bad for you. It's toxic.
VELSHI: Yes. We're going to talk more about that.
And also, the best of Donald Trump. Now, that he's a contender probably for president in 2012, we're going to hear some of the best of -- as only Jeanne moos can bring us.
It's 44 minutes past the hour.
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VELSHI: A lot going on this morning. Here's what you need to know to start your day:
President Obama blasting a Republican plan to shrink the national debt, calling it radical. The comments made during the president's visit to Facebook headquarters.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: A lot going on this morning. Here's what you need to know to start your day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI (voice-over): President Obama blasting the Republican plan to shrink the national debt, calling it radical. The comments made during the president's visit to Facebook headquarters.
A suspect under arrest accused of a murder watched on the web. A 23- year-old exchange student was killed in her Toronto apartment. Authorities say a friend in China watched the attack via web cam.
Apple selling a record 18 million iPhones in the first three months of this year fueling another blowout quarter for the company. Profits nearly doubled and they could have been higher if not for an iPad supply backlog.
A bird strike grounding a 767 in Orlando. The airport says the plane had to turn around shortly after takeoff. Officials are checking out damage to the left engine, 269 people on board and no one was hurt.
Want a smarter baby? Stay away from pesticides. New studies show that babies exposed to high pesticide levels while in the womb have lower than average IQs.
Gas prices on the rise for the 30th day in a row. According to AAA, the national average this morning up a fraction $3.84 for a gallon of unleaded.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
You're caught up on the day's headlines. AMERICAN MORNING back in 60 seconds.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: It's 47 minutes after the hour. I'm hoping today is one of those days. We've had such crazy weather days all week in different parts of the country.
CHETRY: Hold on. I can't even take you seriously. He just shoved a peep in your mouth.
VELSHI: You're not supposed to tell people that.
CHETRY: Before a story about whether or not sugar is toxic.
VELSHI: Reporter business, right?
JERAS: A jelly bean might be more discreet, my friend.
VELSHI: It's close to Easter.
CHETRY: He's going like this.
VELSHI: I walked in the office and found a box of peeps.
CHETRY: Because this is about a story we're doing that sugar is bad for you and you've already eaten one of the chicks.
JERAS: But it helps give you energy to start your day.
VELSHI: Exactly.
CHETRY: Especially when the weather hasn't been so good.
JERAS: Some go for coffee, some go for the peeps. A lot of people up really this morning though, by the way, across parts of the southeast, the thunderstorms woke you up, didn't they?
Yes, I know, about 2:30 for me. There you can see, still across the deep south, the severe thunderstorm watches have expired now and canceled early so not expecting much in terms of organized severe weather.
Look here in southern parts of Arkansas expecting to see a lot of lightning with that and some heavy downpours. So leave a little early freshly paved I-75 in Atlanta, by the way. It was a little slick for me.
All right, the northeast for you guys, wind, that will be the big story today. You've got a little bit of light rain and snow moving through upstate, but this isn't going to really amount to anything. Wind will be the bigger issue. Hang on to the hats today.
We're going to see some gusts around 30, 40 miles an hour. Yes, that's going to cause some problems at the airports unfortunately. Possibly over an hour for you there as well in Boston, Atlanta because of thunderstorms later today. Dallas will see some thunderstorms and now will be the area that we'll watch for that severe weather threat guys. We'll also talk more about fire danger coming up in the next hour.
VELSHI: Jacqui, thank you.
CHETRY: All right, well, it's a provocative story that has a lot of people talking this morning about a sugar toxic?
VELSHI: Let me just move these.
CHETRY: Yes, move the peeps as we discuss this, please. This was the "New York Times" Sunday magazine cover and in it was the story that suggests that sugar can be perhaps as dangerous as cigarettes or alcohol and it's a risk factor for heart disease, high blood pressure and many common cancers.
VELSHI: One of the reasons that they say sugar is so toxic is the way the human body metabolizes the fructose in it.
CHETRY: That's right. So when it comes to sugar, how much would be too much? We're going to find when we talk to Dr. Ian Smith. He's written a lot of books.
VELSHI: He's very fit.
CHETRY: Right, he's fit, yes. But he also has some suggestions. He says his book is not a diet book. It's basically about lifestyle changes that can get you on the road --
VELSHI: He calls it an effortless weight loss solution. I think like you he thinks that moderation is probably the answer. He doesn't sort of come out against one thing in particular, but interesting that people are actually saying it's toxic. It's 8:20 Eastern.
All right, what about that woman suing the Yankees? CHETRY: She said that's her logo.
VELSHI: Or her uncle or somebody made it back in 1936. The Yankees are saying no proof on that. We're going to bring you up to speed with what the dispute is about and - and what it means.
CHETRY: Also ticket master. Is this fair that the prices for things change depending on how much you really want the ticket? Is that fair?
VELSHI: I would think that the prices start based on where you want the ticket, so I don't know. It's a good question.
CHETRY: Are they trying to undercut the scalpers? It's 50 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: It's 54 minutes after the hour. He's the leader of the Trump empire, but does that mean that the Donald is ready to be the leader of the free world?
CHETRY: He thinks so. But the real estate mogul says he's seriously considering running for president despite what people say. He's making the rounds on the talk show circuit and Jeanne Moos can only do is she shows us some of his most memorable moments.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Don't let the dainty wave fool you, this has become a Trump-a-thon. Long and getting tougher with labor pains from belaboring the birth certificate issue.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You sent investigators to Hawaii and you said, quote, "they cannot believe what they're finding." What they have found?
DONALD TRUMP, ENTREPRENEUR: That's none of your business right now. We're going to see what happens.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Have they found anything?
TRUMP: We're going to see what happens?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When?
TRUMP: George, next question, George.
MOOS: We're going to see what happens when Chris Matthews counts Donald Trump's other favorite phrase.
TRUMP: Excuse me, excuse me. You brought this up. Excuse me. If he wasn't born -- excuse me.
MOOS: For the record in one interview there were --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Eighteen "excuse mes".
MOOS: Excuse us for yet another Trump hair joke.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Donald gets home at night. He sits down and the hair goes. How are we doing today? Who shall we marry next?
MOOS: Though he's riding high in Republican polls, Trump is getting pulverized by some conservatives like radio host Mark Levin.
MARK LEVIN, RADIO HOST: Does this guy sound stupid or what?
MOOS (on camera): Critics keep comparing Trump to other people.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is now NBC's Charlie Sheen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trump is the Al Sharpton of the Republican Party, provocateur and clown.
MOOS: But there's one name Donald Trump was called that we're pretty sure he's never heard himself called before.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's what's called a blatherskite.
MOOS: It's a natural real dictionary word --
GEORGE WILL, CONSERVATIVE COMMENTATOR: That's a word my grandmother was fond of. That's someone who blathers promiscuously.
MOOS (voice-over): Lately, everyone is making jokes about how Trump is already measuring the drapes in the White House because he offered to build a new wing to replace a tent they have to use for big events.
TRUMP: Instead of a canvas tent, we will build one of the great ball rooms of the world.
MOOS: He called former Obama adviser David Axlerod and offered up to $100 million to build something as ritzy as Trump's Florida estate.
TRUMP: He said, wow, that's interesting. I never heard from him. That's the problem with our country.
MOOS (on camera): The Donald Trump-a-thon possible presidential run reminds us of an old liberal sitcom.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And then there's Trumps. And then there's Maude compromising enterprising anything but tranquilizing right on Maude.
MOOS: Anything but tranquilizing, right on, Trump.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHETRY: I think we have a new word.
VELSHI: Blatherskite. CHETRY: Blatherskite, I love it.
VELSHI: Someone who blathers promiscuously. I do think it's interesting that Donald Trump identify the problem with our country is that he offered to build this $100 million ballroom at the White House and nobody called him back.
CHETRY: That's right.
VELSHI: We're going to talk a lot more about him, by the way. He says he's toying with the idea of a presidential run. Some say he's just toying with us. So is he a serious political contender or is this a brilliant marketing ploy?
CHETRY: We're going to talk to investigative journalist and author Christopher Byron.
VELSHI: He's written a lot about this.
CHETRY: And he's interviewed Trump many times as well. We're going to talk to him coming up at 7:30 Eastern. Meanwhile, we're going to take a quick break. We have all of your top stories coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
