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CNN Live Saturday

Report on Growing Strength of Tropical Storm Ernesto; One Year Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina; FDA approves Controversial Morning After Pill; Inside look at Post Traumatic Stress Disorder; Reporter Arrested in Sudan on Espionage Charges

Aired August 26, 2006 - 16:00   ET

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

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Next on CNN LIVE SATURDAY, all eyes on Tropical Storm Ernesto.
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I'm meteorologist Jacqui Jeras in CNN hurricane headquarters.

Ernesto expected to strengthen and may be heading for the good morning.

The latest on the projected path is coming up.

MALVEAUX: Plus, a white school bus driver suspended.

Why?

For sending black students to the back of the bus.

And the morning after pill gets the green light.

So just how safe is it?

Hello and welcome to CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

I'm Suzanne Malveaux in for Fredricka Whitfield.

Those stories and more.

But first, a quick last question at what else is making new right now.

Possible hope for two hostages kidnapped in Gaza. The Palestinian prime minister says he is hopeful that Steve Centanni and Olaf Wiig of Fox News will be released in the coming hours.

NASA delays the scheduled launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis. Lightning hit the launch pad yesterday and bad weather looms for tomorrow. So they're now shooting for Monday.

We'll have a live report a little bit later.

And an oil producing nation in Africa says it's taking over oil fields currently run-by Chevron. The president of Chad says Chevron hasn't paid its taxes and needs to clear out starting tomorrow. No comment yet from Chevron. Also today, Iran unveils a plant that could generate plutonium. The Islamic Republic is staring down the barrel of a Thursday deadline to either stop enriching uranium or face possible U.N. sanctions.

It was one year ago Tuesday that Hurricane Katrina roared ashore along the Gulf Coast. And now, just days before that anniversary, another powerful storm could be headed toward the Gulf Coast.

Jacqui Jeras, of course, in the Weather Center, giving us the very latest on Ernesto -- Jacqui, what do you know so far?

JERAS: Well, the outlook not looking all that great at this point, Suzanne.

It does appear that we're going to have some kind of a tropical system in the Gulf of Mexico-some time mid to late next week.

Right now, it's a tropical storm. Maximum sustained winds are at 50 miles per hour. It's been kind of holding steady over the last six hours or so, but satellite imagery is showing that the system may be getting itself a little bit better organized and we may see those wind speeds increase a little bit later on tonight, despite how wind shear, as we call it, the winds to the west of the system here, has kind of been knocking down the western side of the storm.

Can you see in the satellite animation here how this western side kind of flattens out a little bit?

Now, look how it looks a little bit more symmetrical. It looks more like a circle. So we could see this thing strengthen a little bit here over the next couple of hours.

The general trend is that we are expecting it to strengthen slowly over the next couple of days, then possibly becoming a hurricane late in the forecast period. There are tropical storm warnings in effect for the south coast of Haiti; also, for all of Jamaica. And then a hurricane watch in effect for the Cayman Islands.

We'll show you the projected path and show you where this storm system is going to be going. We are expecting that it could be heading toward the Yucatan and toward the Gulf of Mexico--- there you can see it -- as a category one, maybe a category two storm. But we've got a lot of time between now and then, so there may be some more changes -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Jacqui, thanks for the update.

Now, while Jamaica is getting ready for Ernesto, NASA is facing other weather woes. It's delaying tomorrow's launch of Shuttle Atlantis for 24 hours because of a severe lightning strike that happened Friday.

At the half hour, we'll take you live to Kennedy Space Center.

CNN technology correspondent Daniel Sieberg has the latest. Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco-says she is keeping an eye on Tropical Storm Ernesto as her state prepares to commemorate the horrors of Hurricane Katrina.

CNN's Susan Roesgen is live for us now from New Orleans -- Susan.

SUSAN ROESGEN, GULF COAST CORRESPONDENT: Suzanne, this was a symbolic event here to remember Hurricane Katrina here at the New Orleans Superdome, where some 25,000 people were stuck for days after the hurricane.

The organizers of this event had hoped to have about 100 people -- rather, 700 people to completely circle the Dome in a human chain. Instead, only about 100 people came. Maybe it was the heavy rain earlier today.

They formed a partial chain. They held hands. They said a prayer. And instead of facing toward the Superdome, they looked away. They faced away from the Superdome in a symbolic gesture of saying they're trying to look past Katrina and face forward to the future.

I talked to a couple of people here, one of whom was a woman, a mother. Her son was stuck in the Superdome. And the other was a man from Manhattan who chose the worst possible time to come home to his hometown here in New Orleans.

And he told us just how bad it was inside the Superdome.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RONALD MURREY, WITNESS TO KATRINA: Oh, oh, the truth. When you go to the bathroom, the urine was flooding over onto the floor and, you know, the toilet was -- it was -- it was as bad as it was. I found everybody extremely nice to get along with. They were just all -- we were all in the same boat.

ELIZABETH CRAWFORD, WITNESS TO KATRINA: As a community, we have to hold hands and say thank you, Jesus, that we made it out. It could have happened anywhere. We made it out OK.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROESGEN: And as a community now, this city may be praying once again to be spared what might become Hurricane Ernesto.

Right now, in fact, New Orleans' emergency management chief is getting ready to have a news conference here. He's going to talk about the city's preparations in case we might have to have some sort of evacuation. We certainly hope not. But you've got all these people living in FEMA travel trailers and the city has said that if there is even a storm with 50 mile an hour winds that comes in this area, those people would have to be evacuated, that those travel trailers simply cannot withstand even that much of a high wind.

So, Suzanne, you have people both looking back today and looking warily ahead. MALVEAUX: Susan, we certainly hope for them the very best.

And, of course, we're all keeping a very close eye on Ernesto. We understand, of course, that those hunkering down are also packing up at this point. The people in Jamaica already preparing for Ernesto. A journalist there, Fitzroy Prendergast, who joins us on the phone from Kingston with the very latest there.

What are people doing at this hour and are they afraid?

FITZROY PRENDERGAST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Suzanne, since we last spoke, everybody has upped the ante in terms of preparation. One of the things that just -- the big (UNINTELLIGIBLE) in Kingston are filled with people. The supermarkets are filled. All the things that -- the tinned foods are out, basically in (UNINTELLIGIBLE). Everything is basically on the low because people are stocking up for Hurricane Ernesto.

MALVEAUX: And certainly, from looking around and talking to people and watching all the activity, does it seem like they'll be able to prepare in time?

PRENDERGRAST: Well, what you get is a sense of understanding that they don't have much time. And certainly people are trying their very best to get to a level of preparation that would allow them to not feel the total effects of this hurricane.

But people are well aware that if the storm hits Jamaica, certainly they're going to feel some effects.

So they're preparing themselves as best as they can.

MALVEAUX: Fitzroy, thank you so much for joining us by telephone.

And, of course, please be safe, you, your colleagues and everyone there.

PRENDERGRAST: Yes, thank you very much.

MALVEAUX: Fitzroy, thanks again.

PRENDERGRAST: We'll be right here.

MALVEAUX: OK.

Great.

Thank you.

President Bush says that Katrina exposed failures of government and the problems within society. On Monday, Mr. Bush is going to visit the Gulf Coast for the 13th time since the storm hit a year ago.

Here's Mr. Bush from his weekly radio address and the Democratic response from Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Unfortunately, Katrina also revealed that federal, state and local governments were unprepared to respond to such an extraordinary disaster and the flood waters exposed the deep-seated poverty that has cut people off from the opportunities of our country.

The federal government has conducted a thorough review of its response to natural disasters and we're making reforms that will improve our response to future emergencies.

With help from Congress, we've committed $110 billion to the recovery effort and we're playing a vital role in helping people clear debris, repair and rebuild their homes, reopen their businesses and schools and put their lives back together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MARY LANDRIEU (D), LOUISIANA: Countless neighborhoods appear as if the hurricanes were just yesterday and they serve as harsh reminders of how our nation was so unprepared.

Unfortunately, our nation, in many ways, remains unprepared for major disasters, whether they be hurricanes, earthquakes or terrorist attacks. Too often, federal agencies are slow to move and encumbered by red tape.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Well, CNN never left the Gulf Region. One year later, we'll take you back with us. Our special coverage starts Monday.

Monday night at 10:00, a special "A.C. 360." Anderson Cooper live from the Gulf Coast on the storm of a lifetime and whether officials are keeping their pledge to rebuild.

We'll also have more on Katrina throughout the weekend.

And breaking news today from the African nation of Sudan, where an American journalist is now accused of being a spy. Paul Salopek is a Pulitzer Prize winning reporter for the "Chicago Tribune." He was freelancing for "National Geographic" in Sudan.

A court there charged him today with espionage and writing "false news."

Salopek's editors say he is not a spy. They are working for his release.

Pro-government forces arrested him three weeks ago in Sudan's Darfur region, which Salopek reported on in-depth. Raging battles between the government and rebels there have caused a humanitarian disaster. We are going to continue to follow that story.

It is one of the most talked about cases in U.S. history, but for now, no one is talking. The suspect in the JonBenet Ramsey murder will be in court on Monday. Until then, John Mark Karr is leading a lonely life.

CNN's Christopher King is in Boulder, Colorado.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

CHRISTOPHER KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): John Mark Karr remains isolated from other inmates. The Boulder County sheriff says it's for his own safety.

SHERIFF JOSEPH PELLE, BOULDER COUNTY, COLORADO: He'll be allowed to recreate periodically by himself and he will be fed in his cell or in a sub-day room, which is a small isolated area off of the main -- off of the cell.

KING: Karr's attorney met with the murder suspect in jail for several hours Friday afternoon.

SETH TEMIN, BOULDER COUNTY PUBLIC DEFENDER: It's a very difficult thing to (UNINTELLIGIBLE). It's very challenging. There's a lot of pressures on him.

KING: On the outside, the judge in the case imposed a gag order and Karr's public defender filed several motions Friday, including one to seal handwriting samples taken from Karr by authorities.

Karr's recent arrest in Thailand reignited the media frenzy that began with the murder of child pageant star JonBenet Ramsey in 1996. Karr is being held on suspicion of first degree murder, kidnapping and sex assault in connection with the slaying.

Though Karr has not confessed to any crime, he told reporters he was with JonBenet Ramsey when she died. He called her death accidental.

In Boulder, Colorado, I'm Christopher King.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

MALVEAUX: Well, based on the reception that he is getting in Kenya, you would think that Senator Barack Obama is a rock star. Wherever he goes, thousands turn out.

A live report from Kenya later on CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

Also, the so-called morning after pill can now be sold over the counter.

How safe is it?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JANICE WILLIAMS, PARENT: I was very upset. I'm not going to tell no lie. I was upset, because my kids have never been treated that way. At all. Never.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Plus, you would think that this was a story from the 1960s. A school bus driver is suspended for sending black students to the back of the bus, next on CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Other News Across America, New York City police are questioning "a person of interest" after a shooting rampage in Queens last night. One person was killed and several others injured.

One Boy Scout definitely deserves his merit badge. Joey Ricketts' Eagle Scout project is a memorial to 9/11 victims, complete with a limestone piece from the Pentagon. The five foot memorial was formally dedicated today in Lynchburg, Virginia.

All right, here, kitty, kitty. Well, maybe they didn't quite say it that way. But this mountain lion wondered into a storage area at a business in southern California. The owners tried to scare it away, but the kitty just hid in a shed. Finally, animal control officers tranquilized it and took it back to the woods.

Now, how could this happen in this day and age?

That is the question that some black parents in Louisiana are asking after their kids' school bus ride turned into something that goes back to the '60s.

CNN's Lisa Sylvester has that story.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

LISA SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Nine students in Coushatta, Louisiana, catching the bus, ready for the new school year. But the lesson they are learning could have easily come out of a textbook chapter on the civil rights era.

A white school bus driver allegedly told the black students they had to give up their seats in the front for white students and sit in the back of the bus.

WILLIAMS: I was very upset. I'm not going to tell no lie. I was upset, because my kids have never been treated that way. At all. Never.

SYLVESTER: The families filed a complaint with the Red River Parish School Board. The response was to take the students off that bus route and put them on a bus with an African-American bus driver. But that has not toned down the criticism -- outrage this kind of thing could even conceivably happen in 2006. JAMES PANNELL, NAACP: The manual that tells you what to do about someone being asked to go to the back of the bus, that manual is somewhere in some archives somewhere. That's not even something that you could even look in a book and find because we don't assume that that's something that we would have to even be confronted with.

SYLVESTER: The bus driver declined to comment to CNN, but told school officials the seating assignments were based on problems with the seating chart last year. In a statement, the school district said, "Regardless of the cause, this will not be tolerated," and added,..." the actions of the bus driver do not represent the beliefs of the Red River Parish School Board, its administration or its employees. At the same time, we wish again to assure the students and the public in general that prompt remedial action has been taken against the employee relative to this matter."

The incident has shined a spotlight not only on the small Louisiana town, once the site of a famous race riot, but on the forms of racism that still exist today.

REP. MELVIN WATT (D), CHAIRMAN, CONGRESSIONAL BLACK CAUCUS: We get preoccupied with these kind of open acts of racism and we make a big deal of them. But these kinds of things are going on subtly in the workplace, in the -- in the community, in our neighborhoods all the time.

SYLVESTER: And a new generation is finding out just how hard it is for the nation to close the book on racism and discrimination.

(on camera): The school district won't say what disciplinary action has been taken against the bus driver, citing personnel confidentiality laws.

Meantime, the NAACP is weighing whether to file a formal complaint with the Department of Justice. DOJ, in a statement, said: "We are aware of the situation. We cannot comment on specifics, but we are taking these allegations very seriously."

Lisa Sylvester, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: Now, new developments on the two journalists who were held captive in Gaza. That story next on CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

Plus, they are now available over the counter but are the morning after pills safe?

Dr. Lloyd (ph) has some answers.

And a delay for the Space Shuttle Atlantis. We're headed live to Kennedy Space Center.

You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) (BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED CNN CORRESPONDENT: Jane Friedman is the CEO of HarperCollins, the book publisher. She has a very demanding schedule. She relies on e-mail. She's constantly checking it, spending hours a day. She says she reads all of her e-mails.

JANE FRIEDMAN, PRESIDENT & CEO, HARPERCOLLINS PUBLISHERS: My day is very full. It doesn't start very, very early in the morning, because I'm usually out quite late at night. One of the things I have always done is to attend all author functions, which I think is probably unique as a CEO. I feel that if an author has written a book for us and an author is being celebrated, then if I can possibly be at that celebration, I will be there.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

MALVEAUX: New developments in the Middle East.

Here is what we know.

More European troops are now in Lebanon. Fifty more French soldiers arrived today, bringing the number of French forces there to 300.

The European Union has agreed to contribute more than half of the 15,000 troops that will make up the international peacekeeping force.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan plans to discuss the deployment of that force with Lebanese officials Monday in Beirut. He then heads to Israel. Annan is also expected to make stops in Syria and Iran.

There is new information on the fate of two Fox News journalists who were kidnapped by militants in Gaza. The Palestinian prime minister says that he hopes the men will be released within hours.

CNN's Chris Lawrence is in Jerusalem with more -- Chris, what do we know?

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sources in Gaza tell us both journalists are healthy and have not been harmed. A spokesman for the Hamas government said he expects good news soon.

GHAZI HAMAD, PALESTINIAN GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN: And I hope that in a couple of days that we can reach to the -- have an end for this tragedy.

LAWRENCE: Even though there were no direct talks between the Hamas government and the kidnappers, sources tell CNN third parties have been facilitating communication between the two.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: We ask you to do anything you can to try to help us get out of here. LAWRENCE: Fox News correspondent Steve Centanni and cameraman Olaf Wiig were abducted on August 14th. Both are experienced journalists who had been working in Gaza.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: By now you know they cherish life. They have no power. They are not deal makers.

LAWRENCE: Before it claimed responsibility, no one had heard of the Holy Jihad Brigades. There's speculation it's a renegade faction of one of the major parties.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are major -- two blocs, Fatah and Hamas. But within each group, there are other affiliated smaller groups that take some money and you -- they use the money and arms that are being supplied to them in order to have certain targets attacked.

LAWRENCE: This kidnapping and threats of more to come forced a lot of reporters to leave the area.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's not a situation in which we think it's safe for Americans to be in Gaza.

LAWRENCE: The Palestinian prime minister and militant groups condemned the kidnapping, saying it hurts the Palestinian cause.

(on camera): Some Palestinians say having journalists like Centanni working freely in Gaza allows the world to hear their story.

Chris Lawrence, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

MALVEAUX: Now, up next, we are going to go live to the Kennedy Space Center on the Atlantis mission that was scrubbed at least for 24 hours because of weather.

Also, plus we will talk about Barack Obama's triumphant journey to his father's home in Africa, next on CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The mysteries of mother nature have intrigued scientists for centuries. Deborah Estrin is now unlocking some of those secrets with a new technique.

DEBORAH ESTRIN, DIR, CTR FOR EMBEDDED NETWORK SENSING: Embedded Network Sensing combines the same technology that's in your cell phone and in your laptop and combines them on to small devices that can be literally embedded in the physical world.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: By placing the censors directly into the environment, Estrin and her team can observe and measure phenomenon at a level of detail never seen before. From water to wildlife, Estrin says the data collected can help solve real world problems.

ESTRIN: It is safe to drink this water? Is it safe to have a building this close to a natural reserve?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In addition to a mobile robotic sensor, Estrin is also developing an intelligent censor that will not only gather data from its surroundings but can interpret it as well.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: Here's what's happening now in the news, a correspondent for the "Chicago Tribune" is facing spying charges in Sudan. Paul Salopek, a two-time Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, was detained three weeks ago. We'll talk to a top Tribune executive in just a minute.

Freedom may be near for two Fox News journalists in Gaza. The Palestinian prime minister says he expects reporters Steve Centanni and photographer Olaf Wiig to be released in the coming hours.

In New Orleans is hindering a Hands Around the Superdome rally. It is one of several events commemorating the Katrina tragedy. Tuesday marks the one-year anniversary of the storm's Gulf Coast landfall.

Iran's president inaugurates a new nuclear plant. That comes just days before the United Nations deadline to suspend nuclear enrichment activities.

Right now, New Orleans and other Gulf Coast areas are in what's called the Cone of Uncertainty, as tropical storm Ernesto gathers pace in the Caribbean. CNN meteorologist Jacqui Jeras is keeping up close tabs on the developments. Jacqui, tell us what that means, Cone of Uncertainty. How are things going?

JERAS: Well, basically that is a cone, an area that you need to watch that could potentially be under the gun, so to speak, for a landfalling tropical system. When you get so many days out, five, six days out, we're talking about a huge margin of error to the left or to the right of what we call that little skinny black line. So New Orleans, yes, is in that Cone of Uncertainty, but it doesn't necessarily mean that they're going to be taking the big bullet, so to speak, form this storm.

Here's what we know about the latest and greatest, I guess, from Ernesto. It is a tropical storm, with winds around 50 miles per hour. That's the maximum sustained winds, but we are seeing some gusts around 65 miles per hour. It is moving west-northwest, moving through the Caribbean. You can see the impact of the storm already on Hispaniola and up towards Puerto Rico, including the San Juan area. We are expecting some gradual strengthening with Ernesto over the next 24 to 36 hours, and then eventually becoming the first hurricane of the season.

We're expecting it to head towards the Gulf Coast. This is that little skinny line I was talking about. Here's your cone of uncertainty, as it heads towards the Gulf of Mexico. Now I want to take you over here and show you some of the computer model forecasts that we have. This is from a company called WrightWeather.com. Basically what they do is they take all of the computer models from the National Hurricane Center, plot the coordinates and show you how well the models are agreeing or disagreeing. You can see there's still quite a bit of a margin of difference between the different models as we head through the Gulf of Mexico.

So we'll have to wait and see how this plays out. But look towards Jamaica, for example, you can see how closely those lines are together. So we have higher confidence that this storm will be moving over or very near Jamaica. They could be seeing some very heavy rainfall, in fact, four to eight inches, causing some deadly flash flooding. Back to you Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Jacqui, thanks again. We'll be keeping a close eye on Ernesto.

Join us Monday for our Katrina anniversary coverage live from the Gulf Coast Monday night. Anderson Cooper returns to New Orleans for a special "AC 360." keeping them honest, to see if promises made have been promises kept. That is Monday at 10:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.

And stormy weather over Florida forced NASA today to delay tomorrow's launch of the Space Shuttle Atlantis. It is now set for Monday. Our technology correspondent Daniel Sieberg is live at Kennedy Space Center. Daniel, what is the prospect for a Monday launch?

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: Well, a Monday launch, at least as far as weather goes, is about a 20 percent chance that weather would prohibit the launch on Monday, but there's also a lot of things they have to consider between now and then in terms of assessing this lightning strike that happened yesterday. We're inside here. We were outside, but the bad weather here at Kennedy Space Center has brought us inside.

We can give you pictures of what it is like around here. And also over at the launchpad 39-B, where Shuttle Atlantis is there. Basically what happened was yesterday, about 2:00 in the afternoon, some very violent lightning strikes in the area. One of them struck that 70-foot mast that's atop the launchpad structure there. It is designed to withstand lightning strikes like this.

They do believe it was the largest lightning strike to hit here at Kennedy Space Center. About 100,000 amps, Florida being the lightning capital of the United States. They've had to assess what has happened as a result of that. Just recently they've had a meeting, a briefing to talk about some of these things and one of the NASA managers there, Leroy Cain talked about how they're going to approach analyzing some of this data going forward.

LEROY CAIN, LAUNCH INTEGRATION MANGER: What we decided today at the mission management team is we know just enough to know that we don't know enough to be able to press on into a launch situation tomorrow.

SIEBERG: You could call it a current event of sorts. Lightning strikes do happen here on a regular basis at Kennedy Space Center. We're just hearing a thunder clap in the distance here. But typically this shuttle is not out on the launchpad. So this has happened previously, back in 2000 when Atlantis was on the launchpad. Back in 1995 when Atlantis was out there as well. And in 1983 when Challenger and a number of other instances as well. And any time this happens, they really have to be careful and look at that data, make sure that there are no serious concerns with the electrical systems on board the orbiter, as well as the machinery that's part of the launchpad itself.

So they're going to look at both of those things and see if they're OK for that scheduled launch window on Monday afternoon. That would be about 4:00 in the afternoon, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Thanks, Daniel. We'll look for a possible launch then on Monday.

An American journalist arrested in Sudan and charged as a spy. It is a developing story that we are following very closely. Joining us now, of course, is Ann Marie Lipinski. She's the editor at the "Chicago Tribune," where accused reporter Paul Salopek works. She joins us by phone. Of course, there's a lot of concern and confusion over this story. If we can start by asking what happened? Why would he be charged as a spy?

ANN MARIE LIPINSKI, EDITOR, CHICAGO TRIBUNE: We're not entirely sure. Paul was picked up with two Chadian colleagues he was traveling with. He was reporting in Chad, had apparently crossed over the border into Sudan, was detained, we believe, on or about August 6th and we had not heard from him for some time and did finally hear from him a week ago Friday. We're not entirely sure what the Sudanese government is basing their allegations on.

MALVEAUX: Now he was charged with entering Sudan illegally, but he had two U.S. passports. Is that true?

LIPINSKI: He did, which the U.S. government has informed the Sudanese is very common and legal in this country. Frequent travelers, such as journalists, who carry lots of visas often have two American passports. Many foreign correspondents do. It's very common.

MALVEAUX: And I assume that you are working to secure his release at this time?

LIPINSKI: Day and night. We've been working very hard through a variety of different channels. We have been in contact with Paul. He has been able to speak with us and his family and he is aware of the Herculean efforts under way on his behalf.

MALVEAUX: Well we certainly wish the very best to Paul and as well as you in securing his release.

LIPINSKI: Thank you very much. MALVEAUX: Illinois Senator Barack Obama is a long way from his constituents today. He's exploring his family's East African roots in Kenya. He's also trying to draw attention to the AIDS epidemic there.

Our Jeff Koinange is traveling with Obama and joins us via broadband. Jeff tell us about this visit here. Obviously we have seen the pictures and it is unbelievable the reception he has gotten.

JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Unbelievable is the word. I tell you thousands and thousands of Kenyans showed up this day and early on a Saturday morning to welcome the man they call their favorite son. And the first thing he did was go to a hospital, a voluntary testing center, to get tested for HIV. And tens of thousands of people appeared there. They showed up just to watch this happen because he was doing this in the open.

Before he did this, he turned to the crowd, greeted them in the local language, to cheers and applause. Then he went ahead and told them if a stranger can come all the way from the U.S. to get an HIV test, you have no excuse. Went ahead, did the test. Twenty minutes later got his results. Then came back out and urged the people to be tested.

But perhaps really the highlight of the day was a visit to his father's home village, where he met his grandfather for first time in 14 years. The entire village was literally waiting for him. He embraced grand mother. They walked hand in hand throughout the compound. It was a poignant moment. Later on, Senator Obama saying, remember, the very first time he came to Kenya, saying he had to take public transportation. That is no longer the case.

MALVEAUX: Jeff Koinange, thank you very much for that report.

Moving on to another topic, the morning-after pill gets government approval. Over-the-counter sales are now legal, but just how safe it is? Dr. Lloyd has some answers next on CNN LIVE SATURDAY.

And among the most popular stories this hour on CNN.com, Oprah Winfrey's latest project, opening a school in South Africa. Four hundred fifty disadvantaged girls will attend the $40 million school outside Johannesburg.

Another big story, the suspension of a white bus driver in Louisiana. School officials are investigating claims the driver ordered nine black children to sit at the back of the bus.

And finally, Elton John may be headed for the world of hip-hop. The singer tells "Rolling Stone Magazine" he wants to work with producer Dr. Dre and several other top rap singers.

Click on to CNN.com for details.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Thursday the FDA approved the over-the-counter sale of Plan B, or what is better known as the morning after pill, for sale without a prescription to those 18 and older. But some are criticizing the Plan B idea. Let's get Dr. Bill Lloyd in on this. Doctor, critics of the FDA's actions are out, of course. Does scientific evidence back up these arguments against Plan B?

DR. BILL LLOYD, UNIV. OF CAL-DAVIS MED CTR.: Well Suzanne, the Plan B pill includes a hormone that's been present in ordinary oral contraceptives for 35 years. We know it works. The chemical is called Progestin.

People who are opposed to Plan B may be simply opposed to any kind of artificial birth control or some people who are opposed to Plan B are opposed to it because in some instances the pill works because it keeps the egg from becoming fertilized and they're saying life begins at conception, at the moment of the union of the egg and sperm, that's when life begins and we shouldn't interfere with that. But many of these same people have raised children through artificial insemination, through IVF and other techniques and there it often takes 30 or 40 fertilized eggs in order for them to get their one baby. So I think we need more discussion about this.

MALVEAUX: Well tell us about the routine birth control pills. Of course they can cause some adverse side effects in some women. Is this the same, is this true for Plan B as well? Are there those risks?

LLOYD: Plan B does have some side effects but they're minor. Plan B is only Progestin. Ordinary birth control pills have a combination of Progestin and Estrogen. It is that combination that can be dangerous, particularly for women who are taking it every single day. Women who smoke, for example, might be at greater risk for having problems with blood clots. Of course, we know about potential for breast cancer as well. None of this applies to the morning after pill, which is actually two tablets, taken 12 hours apart within 72 hours of a sexual act and this should stop the pregnancy in upwards of 90 percent of cases.

MALVEAUX: So why are there some people, even those who support a woman's right to use contraception, argue against the use of Plan B?

LLOYD: Well some people are just, right off the top, against the whole notion of artificial birth control. There's another group that says when fertilization occurs, that is the egg and sperm meet, that's when life begins. So any way in which you artificially or chemically interfere with that, that is by allowing that fertilized egg to set up housekeeping inside the uterus, you're actually stopping life. There's other people, a final group that says it's a moral issue. If you make this Plan B tablet available, then there's going to be sex everywhere. It's just going to be out of control. Plan B has been available in 100 countries now for nearly 30 years and that's not the case.

MALVEAUX: Dr. Lloyd, thanks so much for your time. We're going to have to turn the corner now, of course, to Jacqui Jeras who has some additional news on that possible hurricane, Ernesto, what do you have, Jacqui? JERAS: Not a hurricane yet, but it is getting stronger. We showed you last hour, the satellite loop and how we were seeing signs that this thing was strengthening a little bit. Well maximum sustained winds are now up to 60 miles per hour. And it slowed down just a little bit in forward speed. It is moving West/Northwest at 13 miles per hour. So Ernesto slowly but surely gaining strength.

We also have some new watches, which have been issued. The government of Cuba has issued a hurricane watch for some of the western provinces there. And also tropical storm warning is being recommended by the National Hurricane Center for the south coast of the Dominican Republic. Of course there are already tropical storm warnings and hurricane watches posted for Jamaica, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Jacqui thanks, much.

Of course, Carol Lin is going to be keeping a very close eye on Ernesto as well. What do you have on tap for the 5:00 hour?

CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: It's going to be a busy 5:00 hour. But we have something in particular, an interview with Spike Lee. A long sitdown interview about his four-hour documentary and one of the points that he's trying to make in this documentary, Suzanne you might have heard of it, that he thinks that there's a conspiracy by the Bush administration to try to eliminate poor black people in New Orleans. He claims that the government blew up the levees so that those neighborhoods ...

MALVEAUX: We've heard about that.

LIN: And he also has an idea of how he's going to get President Bush and his administration to watch the film. That might be more controversial than the film itself. But anyway, he had a lot to say to our Randi Kaye. It's an interesting story.

MALVEAUX: Great, well it will be very interesting to see if the president actually sits down and watches it. Maybe I'll put in a good word for him and see what happens.

LIN: OK, right from the White House.

MALVEAUX: Absolutely, we'll take a look at that.

Of course, it was one of the big headlines from the Vietnam War. Soldiers suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, now comes evidence that the headlines were inaccurate. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

But first, in today's Life After Work series, a retiree who has reached new heights. Here's CNN's Valerie Morris.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VALERIE MORRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: 68-year-old Tom Reid is flying high now that he's retired. TOM REID, VOLUNTEER PILOT: Once that airplane takes off, that feeling that comes over you is hard to describe. There's no other experience like it. My name is Tom Reid, I'm with the "Right Flight."

MORRIS: As a volunteer pilot for the non-profit organization "Right Flight," Reid helps deserving kids experience that same rush.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was fun.

MORRIS: The nine-week program is open to fifth through 12th graders who sign a contract promising not to do drugs, drink or smoke. They must also write an essay about what they've learned and must improve a report card grade by one level before flying.

REID: You cannot wipe the smile off of their face. I mean, it goes from ear to ear. I get choked up even when I talk about. I thought I was going to retire, maybe go out and play some golf, go down to the beach, walk around the beach and see some sunsets. But I haven't gone to the beach since I moved here. Because I've been so involved with everything else.

MORRIS: The former power company supervisor took an early retirement package and moved from New York to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Along with "Right Flight," Reid's also a civil air patrol wing commander volunteering with kids who want to join the Air Force.

REID: I still feel young inside and I still want to do all these things, and being involved with the young children keeps me going.

MORRIS: Valerie Morris, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: A new study provides some discrepancies about the stress of combat. It shows that fewer Vietnam vets have post- traumatic stress disorder than originally believed. Here is our Gary Nurenberg.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY NURENBERG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The stress of combat ...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't recall one mission that I did not get shot at.

NURENBERG: ... can change your life.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then I started drinking real hard and getting angry and fighting and then I went to the drugs.

NURENBERG: Iraq veteran Allen Hardman (ph) suffers from Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD, an affliction that has haunted thousands of Vietnam Veteran for decades. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We found that one in five develop onsets of war related PTSD and one in ten still had impairing PTSD over ten years after the war ended.

NURENBERG (on camera): That's controversial because those numbers are roughly one-third lower than those in the 1988 study that have been generally accepted for more than 15 years. And they may have consequence for Iraq vets.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Frankly, it is going to provide political ammunition for people that are trying to cut the allocations of funds to meet the needs of veterans.

NURENBERG: Vietnam vet Bobby Moer (ph) expects Iraq PTSD numbers, quote, staggeringly higher than from Vietnam.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The violence is greater. The extent of exposure to the violence is longer. And you have multiple deployment.

NURENBERG: Doctor Dorenwim (ph) says length of time in danger is key.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With increasing severity of exposure, there are increasing rates of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

NURENBERG: Veterans advocacy groups believe some troubled Iraq vets aren't getting the help they need from the government.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Instead of treating their problem like a medical issue or a psychological issue, they treat it as a disciplinary problem. Those people get kicked out of the military for making those mistakes and lose their benefits forever.

NURENBERG: Congress is being asked to approve additional mental health funding that could help other veterans avoid Allen Hardman's struggles.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And you feel like you're in the gates of hell and you can't get out.

NURENBERG: Among Iraq veterans he is not alone. Gary Nurenberg, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: There is still much more ahead on CNN LIVE SATURDAY. Carol Lin takes over now with the latest on Tropical Storm Ernesto, the most serious threat so far this hurricane season. The latest track, next.

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