Return to Transcripts main page
Anderson Cooper 360 Degrees
Taken: Children Lost and Found; Pedophile: Criminal or Patient?; Our Friend Maliki?; Disaster Fund Dry; Runaway Stowaway; Eating Healthy?; The War Within
Aired January 18, 2007 - 23:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICHARD KLEESCHULTE, SCOTT KLEESCHULTE'S FATHER: Is he still out there? Or if he's not, what -- what did happen? We would like to have a closure one way or the other.
JONATHAN FREED, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): St. Charles police haven't stopped working on that. And that's why they're going to interview Michael Devlin, the man accused of kidnapping 13-year-old Ben Ownby last week and 15-year-old Shawn Hornbeck more than four years ago.
The two boys were found at Devlin's apartment last Friday in nearby Kirkwood.
At his arraignment in the Ownby case today, Devlin pleaded not guilty. However, the prosecutor in the case said Devlin confessed to kidnapping the boy.
CAPT. GERRY POLLARD, ST. CHARLES POLICE: When Mr. Devlin was taken into custody, he did confess that he had kidnapped Ben Ownby from Franklin County.
FREED: Devlin's attorneys did not comment on that or about investigations into whether Devlin is linked to other cases of missing children. And they have not returned calls seeking comment.
They did say intense media attention to the case would make it hard for Devlin to get a fair trial.
The judge said Devlin would face 30 years to life if convicted in the Ownby case alone.
St. Charles police say Devlin's been living too close to their community to ignore him as a possible suspect.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to do everything we can. We're going to cross our Ts and dot our Is to get to the bottom if Devlin's involved or not with our case.
FREED: St. Charles is the latest police department to look for possible links between Devlin and unsolved missing children cases.
Up the road, in Lincoln County, investigators say the details of Shawn Hornbeck's disappearance resemble the Arlin Henderson case. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Please let him go. He's all I've got.
FREED: Like Hornbeck, Henderson was 11 years old when he vanished in 1991. And the two boys were both slight with close cropped hair.
(On camera): Arlin Henderson was last known to be on this stretch of Chantilly Road in Lincoln County. He was just riding his bike and he disappeared. They found his bike a couple of months later about two miles away.
(Voice-over): Shawn Hornbeck was also last seen riding a bike on a rural road.
LT. RICK HARRELL, LINCOLN COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: One thing is common sense and it's good law enforcement, if they developed a suspect in the region that fits a certain profile of a case that we've had since 1991, then we're going to look back into our archives.
FREED: Scott Kleeschulte's family doesn't even know what Scott looks like today, if this age progression image even comes close. But they refuse to give up looking for him and say if Shawn Hornbeck could eventually come home...
KLEESCHULTE: Down deep, I think there is hope. I mean, this just proves you can't give up and I just got a gut feeling that something might come out of this.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Well, that was CNN's Jonathan Freed reporting.
Whether or not a jury ever convicts Michael Devlin, whenever a story like this happens, people try to wrap their minds around the question why. What turns the guy down the street into a predator?
More on that now from 360 M.D., Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
"STEVEN" CONVICTED PEDOPHILE: It involves several young male boys, over a period of time from the time I was about 22 years old, 47 years old, 48 years old. And it wasn't a continuous thing, it was something that went like a broken -- broken tire, a flat tire in a car. You'd go along and things would be OK and then you'd hit the flat spot and you would abuse.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): There's no doubt this 52-year-old man is a pedophile. The bigger question, is he a criminal or a patient?
"STEVEN": I'm the guy that's going to take the long way around a group of kids in a shopping mall.
GUPTA: "Steven," who has asked for his name to be changed and to be interviewed in silhouette, spent three years in prison after being convicted of acts of pedophilia as a crime. Since then he has been treated for pedophilia as an illness.
Admittedly, it is blurry. Increasingly, we medicalize bad behavior -- alcoholism, violence, even murder may all be due to imbalances of chemicals in the brain.
But the risk is, we may let criminals pay a lesser price for monstrous deeds or punish patients for whom treatment could prevent future crimes.
"STEVEN": It's not a disease as it's you know, a bacteria or virus. It is a mental illness. OK, it's a cognitive dysfunction that people can get.
Is somebody born with it? Some people might be born with it.
GUPTA: As for "Steven" himself, he's not sure whether he was born with it. He is sure that for almost 30 years he molested more than a dozen children.
It was only the combined force of the police, court and prison that could break "Steven's" cycle of abuse.
Pedophilia has been a diagnosable mental illness for decades. Simply defined as an abnormal sexual attraction for children. And while there are no brain scans or blood tests to confirm the diagnosis, there is a battery of treatments ranging from psychotherapy to antidepressants, to forms of chemical castration with anti- antigens, aimed at reducing testosterone and sex drive.
DR. PAUL FEDOROFF, SEXUAL BEHAVIOR PSYCHIATRIST: The aim of treatment in pedophilia is not for people to stop having sex, but rather to modify this sexual interests so that they become non- criminal.
GUPTA: "Steven's" course involved two strategies -- antidepressants to curb sex drive and psychotherapy to understand why he has abused.
Now, nearly eight years after being convicted, he says he no longer thinks of children sexually.
"STEVEN": I don't spend enough time thinking about them to have fantasies. So, it's like a guillotine coming down. There's a child. I remember terrible things happened. I don't want to go there. Clank. Done. Out of it. Let's change our thought pattern and go someplace else.
GUPTA: But can treatment work for everyone? Can pedophilia ever really be cured? Many are cautious, including Dr. Gene Able, director of Behavioral Medicine at Emory University.
DR. GENE ABEL, BEHAVIORAL MEDICINE INST. OF ATLANTA: Rheumatoid arthritis never goes away. Congesting heart failure is never cured. Diabetes is never cured. This is not cured. And this behavior, inappropriate behavior, is not cured. We just help the person stop this behavior.
"STEVEN": I would say when you get to the definition of cured being, I don't want to, I don't feel like it and I have no interest. If that's your definition of cured, then you've got a lot of people out there that have been cured.
If your definition of to be cured, never ever having had a pedophilic thought in your life, then there is no cure.
An alcoholic isn't a drunk if he never drink again. Right? Is he cured? Well, might as well be.
GUPTA: As far as pedophiles go though, for now at least they will be treated as both patients and criminals.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN reporting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Some additional perspective now from Dr. Helen Morrison, a forensic psychiatrist. She joins us tonight from Chicago.
Doctor, thanks for being with us.
We just heard that man saying, you know, in that alcoholic doesn't drink again, then they're not a drunk. But most alcoholics would say even if I don't have a drink, I'm still an alcoholic.
Even -- I mean, and he admits pedophiles, they're not -- they don't no longer have the impulse, they just try to control the impulse.
DR. HELEN MORRISON, FORENSIC PSYCHIATRIST: Right. It doesn't mean that they have -- it's gone away.
I mean, I understand his saying that it's like a guillotine coming down -- oh, it's over. But, unfortunately, the history of dealing with these individuals is one of dismal outcome. There is very little information and very little research that says that once a pedophile, never ever again a pedophile.
COOPER: Because essentially what society is asking these people who have this illness or disease or sickness, whatever you want to call it, you're asking them to control thoughts, thoughts which are as inherent to them, it seems, as heterosexuality or homosexuality or whatever else.
MORRISON: Or as breathing. To them it's not abnormal. You never hear a pedophile saying that, gee, I really did something abnormal. There may be the people who try to use it as an excuse, saying, oh, I'm mentally ill, I didn't know what I was doing. But that is not the case with pedophiles.
Pedophiles very often will clearly justify their behavior in saying that, well, I did it and I did it, period. COOPER: I shot some documentaries about pedophiles years ago and spent many months following around several of them and they were the most manipulative people I've ever met.
MORRISON: Yes, very much so. And when you really work with pedophiles on a consistent basis, you see that manipulation and you understand if they can do this to an adult, can you understand how they can do it to a child?
COOPER: And there's multiple kinds of pedophiles.
MORRISON: Yes.
COOPER: I mean, there's people who groom children, who spend a lot of time sort of following, getting to know and, you know, getting themselves into the family of a child.
MORRISON: Oh, yes.
COOPER: And then there are people who snatch and grab children.
MORRISON: Yes. And their methods are different, but the end point is always the same, which is sexual abuse of a child.
COOPER: And what do people need to know out there? I mean, what do parents need to know? What do children need to be told?
MORRISON: Children have been taught never to go -- you know, stranger danger, I think was the big phrase. But I think children tend to be somewhat trusting, especially the younger child, the 9- year-old, 10-year-old, 11-year-old, who sees a friendly face and goes with an individual or is so intimidated by an adult who may be telling him that if he doesn't get in the truck or the car he's going to hurt him or his family or his pet.
And that's something I think that we need to help kids and parents understand that, you know, it's a horrible thing to say, but don't trust unless you know.
COOPER: Dr. Helen Morrison, appreciate your perspective. Thank you very much.
MORRISON: Thank you.
COOPER: As Jonathan Freed reported at the top of the hour, police are now exploring possible connections between Michael Devlin and three other missing child cases, including the case of Arlin Henderson, a little boy who vanished in 1991. He was 11. New hope, perhaps, for some kind of answer after so many years for his mom, Debra Henderson-Griffith, and his Uncle James McWilliams.
I spoke to them earlier tonight.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Debra, I can't imagine what this week has been like for you. Authorities are now saying that Devlin is the most viable lead in the investigation of your son's disappearance.
What do you think of this possible break after these 16 years?
DEBRA HENDERSON-GRIFFITH, MOTHER OF ARLIN HENDERSON: I'm really glad for the break. I'm hoping something comes out of it. I'm hoping for answers. And this has been the best lead we've had, so we're just holding our breath till the authorities -- till the authorities question him.
COOPER: We're looking at a picture now of your son. Tell us about what happened, how he went missing.
HENDERSON: We were -- typical day. We were at home, and he decided he wanted to go out and ride his bicycle. I guess it was about 2:30, somewhere around there. And I told him, yes, go ahead, but I was going to cook supper early so I could give grandma her medicine because she had to eat before she took it, and for him to come back in a little bit. And he said, all right, Mom, save me some poli sausage. And I stood at the door and watched him get on his bike and ride down the street. And that was the last I saw of my son.
COOPER: And I understand three months later a farmer found his bicycle. Is that correct?
HENDERSON: Yes. Yes. It was found in a bean field.
COOPER: I understand that for a long time you kept sausage, polish sausage, in your freezer just in case he came back.
HENDERSON: Yes, I did. And I till try to keep it in there, but I've got three teenagers that -- my grandkids, and they keep pretty well everything eaten up. So I have to keep remembering Arlin.
COOPER: What has -- I mean, you said it was like a roller coaster. What -- I think it's impossible for anyone to imagine what these years have been like. How do you get through?
HENDERSON: Prayer. And like I said, I'm raising my three grandkids. They keep me going. And my family, and hope.
COOPER: James, one of the investigating sheriffs says that he sees a striking resemblance between a picture of Arlin and a picture of Shawn Hornbeck when they were both 11.
Have you had a chance or your family had a chance to speak with the Hornbeck family? Or -- I mean, do you see a resemblance?
JAMES MCWILLIAMS, UNCLE OF ARLIN HENDERSON: The resemblance with my nephew and Shawn Hornbeck was, like we said earlier, they both took a ride on their bikes like they normally would and just vanished into thin air.
And, you know, they keep us updated, you know, and let us know that, you know, they are still working and hoping and praying that there's something going to -- good come out of this.
COOPER: Debra, there have been, I guess, hopes raised and hopes dashed a lot over the years.
Back in 2001, a guy actually falsely confessed to killing Arlin, to killing your son. He then recanted after investigators basically poked holes in the story. That must have just been horrific.
HENDERSON: Yes. I had to sit in the courtroom and listen to this young man say all the terrible things that had been done to my son. And I didn't think I was going to survive that. But I kept thinking, you know, if -- I don't know how this is. It couldn't be this way. And I told the police, and I told -- I even told the news reporters, this boy is perjuring himself. I don't know why. I can't comprehend why. And finally they gave him a lie detector test and he failed it.
COOPER: I understand you've stayed -- you've kept your number the same. You've, you know, you've stayed in the same place because you want -- if Arlin is able to come back, you want him to be able to find you. Do you -- is there still -- you still have hope every day?
HENDERSON: Oh, yes, every day. I can just see him walking up. I have stayed in the same place. I have changed my phone number, but I kept it under his father's name, Arthur Henderson, so he would know. And everybody around knows me and if he went anywhere, he could find me.
COOPER: Debra, I'm sorry to be talking to you under these circumstances, but you're a strong woman and I know it's important for you to get the message out about Arlin and about all the other kids out there who are still missing. So I appreciate you talking.
HENDERSON: Well, thank you for having me and thank you for keeping Arlin's name going and his pictures going because someday there's going to be a miracle and you're all invited to the party.
COOPER: I'll be happy to be there.
HENDERSON: Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: An incredibly strong lady.
As we said earlier, being kidnapped by a stranger is actually quite rare. When it happens it can be deadly. Here's the raw data.
In 1999, which is the most recent data available, 115 children were abducted by strangers or people they barely knew -- 40 percent of them were killed, 60 percent were recovered, 4 percent were never found.
Up next, you turn to the feds for help after a disaster, right? But months later, you're asking where's the money? We're keeping them honest.
Plus, a mom on the defensive.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... any money to get on a plane.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER: So how did a 9-year-old boy get on one flight and then another? He also led police on a high-speed chase with a stolen car. What was he thinking and what will his mother do? Some answers, when 360 continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
Another string of bombings in Baghdad. Sadly, nothing new there. This, however, might be. Iraq's Prime Minister al-Maliki, claiming that government forces have now arrested some 400 members of the Mehdi army, Muqtada al-Sadr's Shia militia. A sign, if it's true, that al- Maliki may finally be willing to rein some of his Shia allies in. Or it could be a sign that he's just paying lip service to what Washington wants.
President Bush is putting a lot of faith in his Iraqi counterpart, and Mr. Maliki seems to be acting the part.
As CNN's Suzanne Malveaux reports, the prime minister is talking like someone who knows he's got the upper hand.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice over): It was his first interview since President Bush laid out his new strategy to bring calm to Iraq. And it was biting.
Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, the man Mr. Bush is counting on to take the lead in turning things around, turned the tables, blaming the Bush administration for not providing enough weapons for the Iraqi troops to secure the country.
NOURI AL-MALIKI (through translator): I believe that our armed forces could be in much better position than it is now and if that had happened, it would have spared us and people with other foreign forces a lot of losses.
MALVEAUX: Maliki didn't say exactly what kind of weapons his government had asked for or how many.
President Bush brushed off Maliki's criticism, focusing instead on his new pledge to Maliki to send more American troops to help secure Baghdad.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We may not be providing as quickly as he wants, but nevertheless it's a good sign when the prime minister says, just give us the capabilities. And that's precisely what my new strategy and new plan is attempting to do.
MALVEAUX: But his strategy also requires Maliki to step up his military and political responsibilities. And administration officials have been warning him, America's patience is wearing thin.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the Iraqi government was on borrowed time.
Maliki borrowed a familiar phrase from the Bush administration, suggesting the criticism would only embolden the terrorists. He said, "I believe such statements give a morale boost to the terrorists and push them toward making an extra effort, making them believe they have defeated the American administration. But I can tell you, they haven't defeated the Iraqi government."
White House aides downplayed Maliki's comments, characterizing it as a sign of his independence, meant to show strength to the Iraqi people.
TONY SNOW, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: You have comments to reporters and you also have actions on the ground, and those are actions that we support and those that demonstrate real seriousness on the part of the Maliki government.
MALVEAUX: Some of those actions include Maliki sending in two brigades to Baghdad, moving forward on an oil profit sharing plan for the Iraqi people, and detaining more Shiite militia members. Significant because the government is dominated by Shiites.
(On camera): The one question Maliki does not answer is whether or not President Bush needs him more than he needs President Bush. Maliki laughs and says, this is an evil question. It's a question that's being asked more often.
Suzanne Malveaux, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, back here in the U.S., Hurricane Katrina wiped out their livelihoods. And now 16 months later, many small business owners who applied for federal loans are still waiting for their money. If Congress doesn't step in, they may never see a dime.
CNN's Jeanne Meserve is tonight, keeping them honest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LEE VORISEK, BUSINESS OWNER: This piece of equipment is just -- it's been terribly damaged.
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hurricane Katrina nearly wiped out Lee Vorisek's custom packaging business in Louisiana. It handles everything from cookies to military equipment.
It is now up and running, no thanks to the Small Business Administration.
Vorisek applied for disaster loans and was approved, but because of strings attached, almost a year and a half after the storm he still hasn't gotten one penny. VORISEK: If we were relying on the SBA money, we would not be in business today.
MESERVE: Now, a potentially bigger problem for people and businesses who count on the SBA's disaster assistance loan program. Unless Congress approves more money in the next few weeks to run the program, an internal memo says SBA will have to shut down the program, disrupting our support for the victims of Hurricanes Katrina, Wilma and Rita and dozens of smaller disasters across the country.
SBA says it needs millions of dollars. And if Congress doesn't act soon, no one can count on any SBA money for new disasters, like the Midwest ice storms this week.
The head of the SBA believes Congress will find the money.
STEVEN PRESTON, SBA ADMINISTRATOR: Democrats and Republicans care deeply about this program. It serves an essential need for American disaster victims and they're going to take care of it. I'm very confident of that.
MESERVE: Preston calls the budget crunch a glitch that has arisen before and been easily dealt with. One key factor, Congress's failure to pass a 2007 budget for the agency.
But one Democrat blames bad budget planning by the administration.
REP. NYDIA VELASQUEZ (D) CHAIR, SMALL BUSINESS COMMITTE: When it comes to providing the resources, the tools for the agency to continue to be the powerhouse that once it was, they have not been there.
MESERVE: The SBA has been raked over the coals for its Gulf Coast response. A report last August said 80 percent of business owners who had been approved for loans had not gotten the money.
The SBA says since then the program has been revamped.
PRESTON: Of the 160,000 applicants -- or approvals in the Gulf, 98 percent of those people have either gotten all of their money, part of their money, or they decided not to seek those funds.
MESERVE: Lee Vorisek hopes someday soon some of that money will get to him.
VORISEK: We're hopeful. We have -- we're optimistic. You have -- to be a businessman, you have to be a continual optimist.
MESERVE: Particularly if you nearly lost everything to Katrina.
Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Wow. First by car, then by plane. A 9-year-old boy leads police and his family on a long distance chase. That's coming up.
Plus, more trouble behind the scenes of "Grey's Anatomy." There's a story line that has one of the stars in hot water again.
This is 360.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Now, to the story we first told you about last night. It is about a young boy. While other kids his age are learning how to read and write, he was teaching himself how to drive and to drive really fast. And that's when things really get strange.
Here's CNN's Dan Simon.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There's no denying he's a clever kid.
SAKINAH BOOKER, MOTHER: He's a genius. That's what we call him. He's a genius.
SIMON: A genius who was also troubled, says his mother. At only 9, Semaj Booker has figured out how to steal cars and fly across the country without his own ticket.
BOOKER: He's a 9-year-old kid that was able to go through security, everything and with no money, no ticket, no parent, no nothing.
SIMON: Semaj's journey began on Sunday, when for the third time in his life his mother says he stole a car that was left running outside a neighbor's house near Tacoma, Washington. The fourth grader, leading police on a high-speed chase.
His mom, who is raising four boys by herself, says Semaj needs a father figure.
BOOKER: It's just been mom for the last nine years of his life. He has uncles and -- but some are in prison and others are just -- they're not worth being around him. I don't want anybody negative that is around my boys because I have four boys and I'm trying to raise them into gentlemen, just good men.
SIMON: She says Semaj hasn't been happy since the family moved a few years ago from Dallas to Tacoma.
After the boy crashed the stolen car, police tried to take him to juvenile detention. But the officers were told he's too young, so they took him home instead.
(On camera): The next morning Semaj turned up at the Seattle airport. Not only that, he fooled Southwest Airlines into giving him a ticket. The airline tells us he posed as someone else to get their boarding pass. His mom says he simply chose a name at random. BOOKER: They said what is your last name. And he said Williams. Whoever it was, the lady typed it in the computer and she said Frank Williams? And he said, yes.
SIMON (voice-over): Southwest says it's investigating. No word yet on what happened to the real Frank Williams.
In any case, getting through airport security proved easy. You see, children don't need photo I.D., just a boarding pass, which Semaj had.
He first flew to Phoenix for a quick layover, then to San Antonio. When he tried to get on a third flight to Dallas, where the boy still has family, Southwest was on to him and called airport police.
Semaj remains in San Antonio at a shelter for kids until authorities figure out what's best for him.
BOOKER: He's not crazy. He's just very smart and he has -- he thinks out the box. He doesn't just think in the box. He thinks out of the box.
SIMON: But that thinking has gotten him into trouble. He's charged with two felonies, car theft and eluding police. But given his age, prosecutors say they're unsure if they'll actually go forward with the case.
Dan Simon, CNN, San Francisco.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, there is still one big mystery out there. Exactly who is Frank Williams, and did he get to travel? That's the name the young boy used to get on the plane.
Frank, give us a call.
To Hollywood now, and a star under fire. The "Grey's Anatomy" controversy, coming up.
Plus, some surprising tips to help you get in tiptop shape.
Exercise and ice cream, four types a week. Is it really OK to splurge? What about diet soda, good or bad? And what about detox diets, will they work for you? 360 M.D. Sanjay Gupta answers your questions, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Well, it's the hottest drama on television, but the tension on the set of "Grey's Anatomy" these days has nothing to do with the script. It all started a few months ago with an anti-gay slur. Then at the Golden Globes Monday night, it happened again. Now the war of words between the doctors at Seattle Grace Hospital is back on. CNN's Sibila Vargas reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SIBILA VARGAS, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Millions tune in to "Grey's Anatomy" each week to see the sparks fly on the TV drama. But it's the show's backstage drama that's making headlines.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's -- it's -- it's pretty bad.
VARGAS: The controversy started in October when during an off camera argument with co-star Patrick Dempsey, Isaiah Washington reportedly referred to cast mate T.R. Knight, using an anti-gay slur.
T.R. KNIGHT, "GREY'S ANATOMY": He referred to me as a faggot.
VARGAS: Knight, who plays Dr. O'Malley on the show, told Ellen DeGeneres this week that the highly publicized incident forced him out of the closet.
KNIGHT: I've never been called that to my face. And so I think when that happened, it's like, I don't know, something shifted and it just became bigger.
VARGAS: Knight's tell-all interview comes on the heels of the show's Golden Globe win Monday night, when during a backstage news conference, Washington stunned cast mates by grabbing a microphone and insisting he never used the epithet on the set.
ISAIAH WASHINGTON, "GREY'S ANATOMY": No, I did not call T.R. a faggot. Never happened. Never happened.
VARGAS: But the fact that Washington used the same offensive language when defending himself has reignited the uproar, infuriating many.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm going to be really honest right now. He needs to just not speak in public, period. I'm sorry. That did not need to be said. I'm not OK with it.
VARGAS (on camera): Co-star Katherine Heigl is not alone. The Gay and Lesbian Alliance against defamation is also lashing out, condemning Washington for his use of the slur, and demanding an apology.
A statement from GLAAD's president says, quote, "When Isaiah Washington uses this kind of anti gay slur...it does more than create a hostile environment for his cast mates...it also feeds a climate of hatred and intolerance that contributes to putting our community in harm's way."
Shortly after a statement released by the show's network ABC, saying Washington's actions were unacceptable, the actor, through his publicist, issued his own apology and welcomed the chance to meet with leaders of the gay and lesbian community. GLAAD said it welcomes that opportunity and hopes to meet with Washington as early as next week. Perhaps now the healing process can begin for cast mates on a show that's all about healing.
Sibila Vargas, CNN, Hollywood.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, Sibila mentioned late tonight Isaiah Washington issued a statement, apologizing to his colleagues, the fans of the show and gay and lesbian citizens.
In the statement, he also says there are issues he needs to examine within his own soul, and that he has asked for help.
Well, do you want to lose weight this new year? Find out if the choices you're making will make you fit or fat. 360 M.D. Sanjay Gupta answers your questions. That's coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Well, it's a new year, of course. If you're like many people, you made a resolution to exercise and eat better. Maybe you're still trying to keep it.
Whether you're trying to lose just a few pounds, though, or figure out a better way to feed your family, we're introducing a new segment tonight that may help. It's called "Fit or Fat."
360 M.D. Sanjay Gupta is here to answer some of your questions. We've been getting a lot of e-mails on this.
The first one, Sanjay, is from Kristen in Denver. She writes, "Every morning I fix 3 egg whites and have a yogurt. I've heard mixed reviews for egg whites. My cholesterol is a little high but when you combine the good cholesterol my levels are fine."
Fit or fat, Sanjay? Egg whites, fit or fat?
GUPTA: Well, Kristen, I have to say fit on that one. It certainly sounds like you're eating a pretty healthy breakfast every day.
Here's the skinny on eggs -- pretty controversial about whether or not you should have them in your diet. Typically, eating a whole egg, the yolk itself is going to be about 200 milligrams of cholesterol. You should really be getting no more than 300 milligrams a day. So if you're eating two eggs, that's probably too much. So if you're someone who's watching your cholesterol, the egg whites or egg substitutes, probably a pretty good deal. You eating the egg whites and yogurt, that's a great breakfast. We'll give you a fit on that one.
COOPER: All right. Our next question comes from Susan in Glen Cove, New York. She writes, "What's the truth behind diet coke? Zero calories -- but I heard it makes you crave food" So Sanjay, diet soda, fit or fat?
GUPTA: Susan, you're going to be surprised on this one, but I'm actually going to call fat on that one. And that's based on some research that we saw out of the University of Texas that actually showed this, that people who drank diet sodas regularly were typically more obese than people who drank the same amount of regular soda.
Now, there's three reasons as to why this could be.
One is that people who drink diet soda think, I can drank I diet soda, I can eat whatever I want. That's a common reason.
Second reason is that people who are already obese tend to switch to diet soda. So it could be a situation of already being obese.
The third situation, kind of an interesting one, is that people who drink a sugary drink, they sort of trick their body into thinking they're about to get some energy. They drink a diet soda, they're not getting any sugar. So all of a sudden, the person starts to get hungry, starts to crave calories, and they end up eating a lot more.
That's a bit of speculation. Still studies need to be done on that. But we do know this. Diet sodas have a lot of sodium. So if you're watching your sodium, you got to watch that as well.
COOPER: Hmm. All right. Well, that's kind of depressing.
And now a question from Sylvia in Ontario, Canada. She says, "I work out four to five times a week for 40 minutes. I eat a lot of whole grains and low fat foods, but I love ice cream and may have some a few times a week. Is that something I should change, or is it all right as long as I watch my diet and continue to exercise?"
So Sanjay, ice cream once in a while if you eat healthy otherwise? Fit or fat?
GUPTA: Sylvia, we're going to give you fit on that one. And I share your same cravings. I love some ice cream every once in a while myself.
It sounds like you're eating a pretty healthy diet. And most dietitians will tell you, as long as you're eating healthy most of the time, it's OK to get a little sugary sweet every now and then. You got to just make sure that you're doing things in moderation.
Also, you might want to add some upper body resistance training to your workout as well. Just mix it up with a little bit of anaerobic training.
COOPER: Sounds good.
Rotna (ph) in New York City, asks, "Truth or myth? Detox diets are the best way to jumpstart weight loss?"
So, Sanjay, detox diets, fit or fat? GUPTA: I'm going to give Rotna (ph) a big fat on the diet thing, detox diet in particular. Most of the fad diets, most of the quick diets, detox diets as well, they simply don't work long term.
Most people want a long-term fix. You're not going to find it from these diets. They may lose a little bit of weight initially, but not in the long term.
Detox diets, Rotna (ph), I'm particularly concerned because sometimes you can cause significant electrolyte imbalances. So when your electrolytes get thrown off, that can be dangerous sometimes for your overall health. Detox diets, we're going to give that the fat.
COOPER: All right. Good information.
Sanjay, thanks.
GUPTA: Thank you.
COOPER: We want to hear from you. If you have a hit or fat question for Sanjay, you can send it to us by logging onto our Web site, CNN.com/360 and click on the link.
And coming up, it's not just the war on terror, it is the war within. One religion, two voices, the struggle for Islam between moderate Muslims and extremists who want to hijack the faith. Next, on 360.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: The terror attack on London's transit system back in July of 2005, 52 people killed by four homegrown fanatics.
To most, the suicide bombers were killers, but for 13 percent of the British Muslim population, they're considered martyrs.
It is the new battle going on in Britain. It is the war within. The war within Britain and within Islam itself.
CNN's Chief International Correspondent Christiane Amanpour reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's been dubbed Londonestan, the hidden world of London's homegrown Islamic extremists.
They are a tiny minority of Britain's 1.6 million Muslims, but they have no trouble getting their voices heard.
ANJEM CHOUDARY, ISLAMIC ACTIVIST: One day you will conquer Rome.
One day, one day you will conquer the White House.
AMANPOUR: Anjem Choudary is the public face of Islamic extremism in Britain. His group, Amwar Jaroun (ph) disbanded before the British government could outlaw it under its new anti-terrorism rules. But that hasn't shut Choudary up.
CHOUDARY: Who are thyself, Islam or (UNINTELLIGIBLE) the Prophet Muhammad. (UNINTELLIGIBLE) deserves capital punishment.
AMANPOUR: That was Choudary's inflammatory rhetoric just days after Pope Benedict's controversial speech about Islam.
CHOUDARY: Pope Benedict, you will pay.
UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: Pope Benedict, you will pay.
CHOUDARY: The Mujahadine are on their way.
UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: The Mujahadine are on their way.
AMANPOUR: Outside Westminster Cathedral, British Catholics looked on in disbelief.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They can stand outside our church and abuse us and abuse our religion and people we hold dear, with absolute impunity.
AMANPOUR: The simple question to the Christians is, do you condemn what the pope said? Do you condemn the pope?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What he said...
(CROSSTALK)
AMANPOUR: Yes or no?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If any of us was to amble up to, you know, the mosque at Regent's Park and (UNINTELLIGIBLE) regards to Allah or Mohammad or what have you. Best case, though, they take away the police for (UNINTELLIGIBLE) racial hatred. Worst case scenario, attacked by a bunch of thugs wearing towels on their heads.
AMANPOUR: Even away from the bully pulpit, Choudary, who is a lawyer, not a cleric, continues to advocate extremist views, like calling for Shariah, Islamic law for Britain.
CHOUDARY: All of the (UNINTELLIGIBLE) belongs to Allah, and we will live according to the Shariah where we are. This is a fundamental belief of the Muslims. You know, if I was to go to the jungle tomorrow, I'm not going to live like the animals.
AMANPOUR (on camera): Basically, a lot of what you're saying is, it's my way or the highway. I mean, how does that kind of logic fit into a democratic state like the one we live in now and like the one you live in? You live here by choice. Do you not believe in democracy?
CHOUDARY: No, I don't at all. We believe that people must live according to the Shariah. AMANPOUR: That would mean in a country such as Britain, people would have their hands cut off for robbery, would be stoned for what you call adultery. Hanged. You can see that happening?
CHOUDARY: One day the Shariah will be implemented in Britain. It's a matter of time. Whether it comes from our peaceful discussion and debate, whether it comes because the Mujahadine will send an army one day, Allah knows.
AMANPOUR: An Islamic army coming to lay down the law in Britain? What do people think in Walsomstow (ph), one of London's biggest Muslim neighborhoods.
Ishmael (ph), would you like to see Shariah law in England?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shariah, what's that?
AMANPOUR: Islamic law.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no. I'm Muslim myself, but like for -- for someone to tell me that's the law of the whole country, the whole land, I think is wrong. This is a free land. Everyone is entitled to what they want to do, you know what I mean? It's not Taliban here.
AMANPOUR: It's not the Taliban here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, It's not the Taliban, you know what I mean?
AMANPOUR (voice-over): But you wouldn't know it at this traditional Muslim wedding. The Choudary has come to officiate.
CHOUDARY: In the west they want to say equality between all people, between men and women. However, Allah (UNINTELLIGIBLE) created us differently. And surely he has given man authority over the woman. He has given him (UNINTELLIGIBLE) because he provides food, clothing and shelter.
AMANPOUR: We never saw the bride or the female wedding guests. They were segregated in different halls. But we were invited to witness the nica (ph), the dowry agreement between the groom and his father-in-law.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Allah, please accept this nica (ph) to have been conducted in accordance with the Shariah.
AMANPOUR: And even at this wedding, Choudary preaches holy war.
CHOUDARY: Allah, please bless them with pious children, and they will continue the jihad to liberate our land. Allah, please support all the Mujahadine, wherever they are in the world, (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
AMANPOUR: But how about those who carried out the London subway attacks on July 7th, 2005? Choudary gives an ominous answer.
CHOUDARY: I'm not planning to blow myself up on the underground or carry out a modern operation in Britain. However, those people who may be will be doing what Mohammed said (UNINTELLIGIBLE) probably because of the same reasons which they included in their will. So I think you really need to look at that.
AMANPOUR: This is the videotape will of one of the subway suicide bombers, Mohammed Sadiq Khan.
MOHAMMED SADIQ KHAN, SUICIDE BOMBER: Until we feel security, you will be our targets. Until you have stopped the bombing, gassing, imprisonment and torture of my people, we will not stop this fight. We are at war and I'm a soldier. Now you too will test the reality of this situation.
AMANPOUR (on camera): Those reasons that they included in their will, are those reasons justified in your view or in your view of Islam?
CHOUDARY: I think we have everything we need in those wills.
AMANPOUR: Where in the Koran does it justify the killing of innocents?
CHOUDARY: I'd like to get on to another question because I've answered that question already.
AMANPOUR: Have you? In the Koran?
AMANPOUR: In the video of Mohammed Sadiq Khan, he quotes the verse in the Koran which is chapter four, verse 111, where Allah says he has purchased from the believers their life, they will kill others and be killed.
KHAN: Muslims all over the world, I strongly advise you to sacrifice this life for the hereafter.
AMANPOUR: There are mullahs, imams today who say that the suicide bombers have really done a lot of damage to the reputation of Islam. They're saying that the kinds of things that you are saying is in fact damaging the religion so much.
(CROSSTALK)
CHOUDARY: Well, I mean, this is -- this is -- I mean, you're obviously just making a statement here. There's no real question there. The fact is, people don't refer to you for Islam. They refer to people like (UNINTELLIGIBLE), people like Sheik Ayman al-Zawahiri, people like Sheik Osama bin Laden. I happen to be in an ideological and political war. My brothers in al Qaeda and other Mujahadine are involved in the military campaign.
AMANPOUR: You call them your brothers. Do you mean that?
CHOUDARY: Of course.
AMANPOUR: al Qaeda?
COUNDARY: Every, every Muslim in the world is my brother.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COOPER: Well, Christiane Amanpour's startling report is the first of our CNN Special investigations Unit, "The War Within," premieres this Saturday at 8:00 p.m. Eastern. It is a fascinating look.
And ahead tonight, attention parents, a report on the safety of infant car seats is being reconsidered. What you need to know, next on 360.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COOPER: Randi Kaye joins us with a 360 bulletin -- Randi.
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Lots of news tonight, Anderson.
We begin with a bold move by China that has angered the U.S. and other countries. News today that China recently tested a missile that can destroy satellites and other gear in space. The target, an old Chinese weather satellite was knocked out of orbit more than 500 miles above earth.
Parents, you need to know this. "Consumer Reports" is backing off its warning earlier this month on infant car seats. The magazine said that most of the seats it tested failed disastrously in side impact crashes as slow as 35 miles per hour. Well, now it turns out the tests were actually done at much higher speeds, up to 70 miles per hour.
Grants Pass, Oregon, now, there's no way to know if he could have been rescued. That's according to a new report released today on the massive search for James Kim. But investigators say there was frequent confusion over who was in charge of that rescue effort. You may recall Kim was found dead last month of exposure after he set out on foot to find help for his family. They were stranded for days on a back country road after taking a wrong turn. Kim's wife and two daughters were found alive.
And he made fun of politicians long before Jon Stewart. Syndicated Columnist Art Buchwald has died of kidney failure. He chronicled the life and times of Washington for four decades. Art Buchwald was 81 -- Anderson.
COOPER: A remarkable career.
Randi, thanks.
Make sure you catch, "AMERICAN MORNING," tomorrow. Soledad O'Brien interviews Pam and Craig Akers, the parents of Shawn Hornbeck, who now have their son back after he was missing for more than four years. That's tomorrow on "AMERICAN MORNING," beginning at 6:00 a.m., Eastern.
We'll also talk to the Akers on 360 tomorrow night at 10:00. Now, an update on the AC 360 Takes you Live Sweepstakes. A lot of you have been asking who's the grand prize winner. We want to congratulate Leigh Penny of Phoenix, Arizona. She and a guest have won a trip here to New York for a behind the scenes look at 360. While the sweepstakes is over, you can still check out our special Web site, cnn.com/ac. Watch video clips, test your news knowledge and a whole lot more.
And before we go tonight, a reminder, we want you to help us keep them honest. If there's a wrong that needs to be made right in your community, tell us about it at cnn.com/360.
"LARRY KING" is next. His guest, former American Idol Winners Taylor Hicks and Fantasia Barrino.
I'll see you tomorrow night.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com
