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Super Bowl Preview; Fertility Drug Controversy; Aid Delayed
Aired January 31, 2009 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news on the economy tonight: A delay in efforts to jump-start it. How does it affect you? We go to Washington.
Eight is too much, especially when it comes to babies and fertility. Lots of unanswered questions. Our e-mail shows you are outraged. We read them.
(MUSIC)
LEMON: Well, it seems everyone is mimicking these moves and more. But what happens when high school girls do it with a lap dance? Also, the whole world to see as well? We have the controversial video gone viral.
Plus, sex sells. The question is: What are these nearly naked women selling? Hint: It ain't soap.
The news starts now.
Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon, live here at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
Every second counts when it comes to people suffering in this economy, but now, word has come from the White House that the president's promised economic rescue plan won't be ready as quickly as it first promised.
We had to check in with our senior White House correspondent Ed Henry to find out exactly what is going on. He joins us by phone.
Why the delay, Ed?
ED HENRY, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (through phone): Well, Don, senior aides had told us a couple days ago that they expected this rescue package to be unveiled this coming week, but now they're saying it's going to be delayed another week, until the second week of February, because they want to get some of the details right. And this rescue package is separate from the $819 billion stimulus plan. That is something that's being worked out, obviously, to try to get the economy going.
This rescue package is separate. It would deal with trying to crackdown on those Wall Street bonuses, executive compensation, but also trying to get the credit markets flowing again, try to deal with the foreclosure crisis. And, basically, administration aides were saying that they want to get the details right. There's a lot of moving pieces. And so, it's going to attention an extra week.
And if you think back to what happened last September and October with the TARP bailout legislation, so much of that moved through so quickly, a lot of the details were not really worked out. It's now sort of blown up in the face of the Congress, that getting these details right might make sense. And that's why, I think, they're trying to take their time and make sure this time, they get it right, because accountability is going to be so important.
So many people across the country are hurting, but so many people across the country also are feeling like the original bailout legislation didn't really help them. It focused only on Wall Street and that it didn't have enough accountability in it. And so, this maybe delayed by a few days, but administration officials are confident that that extra time is going to give them a chance to sort of work out the details and make sure this time it works, Don.
LEMON: Our senior White House correspondent, Ed Henry. Thank you very much for that, Ed.
In a week that saw more than 100,000 Americans lose their jobs, the president continues to push for passage of his economic stimulus package. It passed the House with no Republican support. Now, it's headed for the Senate.
Our Elaine Quijano is standing by at the White House -- Elaine?
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Don, President Obama is trying to ratchet up the pressure on lawmakers to get them to support his economic recovery plan.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
QUIJANO (voice-over): Even as President Obama again pushed his massive economic stimulus plan ...
PRES. BARACK OBAMA, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Americans know that our economic recovery will take years, not months, that they will have little patience if we allow politics to get in the way of action.
QUIJANO: His administration was dealing with another distraction. More tax trouble, this time for the president's pick for health and human services secretary, former Senator Tom Daschle.
AMY HOLMES, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: So, he's well acquainted with a lot of these disclosure rules and Senate ethics rules.
QUIJANO: The Senate Finance Committee says Daschle did not report income from the use of a car and driver and more than $80,000 for consulting work. The committee also found he deducted charitable donations to groups that didn't qualify as charities. Daschle has since paid $150,000 in back taxes interest.
MARK HALPERIN, SR. POLITICAL ANALYST, "TIME": While it's an embarrassment, until we hear and unless we hear Democrats expressing concern about this, he will be confirmed. QUIJANO: Both the White House and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid expressed confidence Daschle will be confirmed. But he's the second Obama cabinet pick to be bogged down by tax problems, as Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner was before his confirmation. The distraction comes as the president is trying to focus on pulling skeptical Republicans on board with his economic policy. So far, no luck in the House, where the stimulus bill passed without a single Republican supporting it.
NANCY PELOSI, (D) HOUSE SPEAKER: The bill is passed.
QUIJANO: And Republicans in the Senate, which takes up the bill Monday, remain wary, accusing Democrats of wasting taxpayer dollars.
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL, (R) SENATE MINORITY LEADER: The bill they presented, and which House Democrats approved this week along a party- line vote looks more like a $1 trillion Christmas list.
QUIJANO: But Democrats could get a victory in the Senate. An Obama administration official says Republican Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire is the leading candidate to become commerce secretary. If Gregg is picked and the Democratic governor picks a Democrat to replace him, that could potentially give Democrats the magic number, a 60-seat majority in the Senate, big enough to overcome a Republican filibuster.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUIJANO: An administration official says the decision on the commerce secretary post could come as early as Monday -- Don?
LEMON: All right, Elaine, thank you very much for that.
As the president and lawmakers wrestle with the stimulus package, and later, a separate rescue plan, there's one question that everyone is asking. What is in it for me and, really, when it's going to help me probably?
Poppy Harlow of CNNmoney.com joins me now from Los Angeles.
Here's a question. Unless you're paying real close attention, I think, if you really following the news, you may note the difference between the rescue and the recovery plan. Can you explain the difference to our viewers, Poppy?
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Well, in terms of, Don, this stimulus package, the $819 billion, the whole problem here and why there is such a partisan divide is because there are critics and there are supporters, some who say this rescues our economy, turns it around, and others who say this just keeps our economy from falling further into the hole that it is already in.
Critics say, "Listen, we have to get this on board. If we don't do it in the right way, it's going to drive us deeper into debt." And then supporters of it, Don, say, "Listen, what you're going to miss out on is that job creation that's so critical," and also, on the tax revenues that we rely on, and also, in terms of economic output.
But also want to be clear what Ed Henry was talking about is that recovery plan, the American Recovery Plan, and the stimulus plan, the stimulus plan is talking about dollars that can go right into Americans' pockets, whereas the recovery plan is not the same thing at all.
LEMON: Yes.
HARLOW: So, it's important to distinguish that two.
LEMON: Thank you for doing that.
First, can you tell us what's in this -- it may be a little bit confusing, but we're trying -- we're trying to get through it and get the viewer through it.
HARLOW: Yes.
LEMON: Tell us what's in this stimulus package.
HARLOW: Any way that you slice it, there's money in there for most Americans.
Let's go through a few things here. And first, I want to show you about the tax cuts that are included in the version of the bill that passed the House -- $145 billion in tax cuts. That would mean $500 per individual in the form of a tax rebate for people that make under $75,000 a year, 1,000 bucks for couples that make under $150,000 together per year. And then $43 billion in terms of those unemployment benefits, giving you a little bit more in those unemployment checks, about $25 more a week and extending the amount of time that people can be on unemployment.
But, Don, again, you're talking so much about delay and people say, we need to get this quickly so that people who are trying to live on unemployment can do that and then also, for other folks that, you know, are trying to pay their taxes and day-to-day costs.
Let's go through the next one on your screen there: Billions and billions of dollars for improving schools. So, again, that's kind of behind the scenes. That may not affect you as cash in your hands, but it is behind the scenes and then more to offset those educational costs, Don.
LEMON: All right. Poppy Harlow -- thank you very much for that, Poppy. We appreciate it.
Also, after this broadcast, tonight, 8:00 p.m. Eastern, you don't want to miss this. It's the CNN Money Summit, again, 8:00 p.m. Eastern. CNN's Ali Velshi and some of the sharpest minds in money take on the $800 billion-plus economic stimulus plan. It is a big number and we're asking bigger questions. You don't want to miss that.
We've also been asking a question of you tonight, your feedback, and many of you are sounding off about the economy. This one is from, one of our iReporters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, IREPORT)
SAL STEELS, IREPORTER: Hi. I just want to comment about how our family is handling this difficult economic situation. I think we're doing the same thing that most Americans are doing, we're scaling back, we're not going out to eat, we're shopping at discount retailers. We're definitely not buying a new car or new appliances or a big screen TV.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, and on Twitter tonight, Caramia4 -- here's some of you saying --Caramia4 says, "My concern is job losses. Today, my friend was told by their union not to make any large purchases, car, house, et cetera." Yes4integrity says, "Helping a friend who is drowning in debt, trying to stay afloat in an empty economy."
And Cairnrae says, "There are not enough jobs for everyone looking. Bonuses for the 'job well done' with bailout money is infuriating." MarilynM, "CEO bonuses and cabinet members who apparently don't have very good CPA's."
Make sure you join our community. Logon to Twitter, Facebook, iReport or MySpace. Tell us what you're thinking. We want you to be part of our community. We take your responses very seriously here.
Well, people are suffering in a big part of the country tonight and U.S. troops have been deployed to help thousands of Americans trapped tonight in freezing cold and darkness. It is literally a life and death situation after one of the worst ice storms in recent memory. This killer storm has already taken at least 42 lives.
The severe winter weather stretched from Texas to Maine, but as this highlighted map shows, the worst was from Oklahoma to West Virginia. Kentucky was especially hit hard. Thick, heavy ice, it coats everything in sight, more than half a million people are without power and about 200,000 are without water. The governor has called up all the state's Army National Guard units and FEMA is rushing generators and emergency supplies to stricken areas.
Our Jacqui Jeras is tracking the cold front. Her forecast for you in just moments.
Arsonists have apparently struck again, this time just outside the city of Coatesville, Pennsylvania. At least four suspicious fires were set early this morning. Residents were obviously traumatized there.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ELIZABETH SWING, ARSON VICTIM: Well, I was on the phone with 911. He discovered that an area rug right inside the back door was on fire and while he put that out, he discovered that it was on the deck outside. And we got out of the house, and the backdoor of our house was on fire. Someone had pulled the trash can up from the curb because it's trash day and put it on our back steps and set it on fire.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Coatesville City leaders have appealed for state and federal help in coping with the arson wave. The fire last weekend destroyed 15 row houses in the city, displacing almost a dozen families. The community has been terrorized by about 30 fires over the past year. One person has been killed. We'll keep tabs on the region throughout the night for you.
Octuplets born this week to a mother who already had six children and who took fertility drugs. What were her and the doctors thinking?
And what do you think? Log on. We want to know what you're thinking. Log on to Twitter, to Facebook, iReport, MySpace. No topic is off- limits here tonight.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Well, this story was already eye-popping. In fact, it was almost unheard of. One woman gives birth to eight healthy babies. But that seems to be just where this story started, not where it ends. It turns out the mother of the eight newborns already had children and lots of them.
Here's CNN's David Mattingly.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Eight babies, one mother. The news was startling enough. And then we learn the mother already has six children at home. And that's produced a frenzy of questions.
ED SULEMAN, OCTUPLETS' GRANDFATHER: She's fine, the babies are fine, everybody's fine. Except us, because of you! That's all.
MATTINGLY: The grandmother told the "Los Angeles Times" that the mother had undergone some kind of fertility treatment. Why? We don't know. Hospital doctors say the mother came to them in her first trimester and they advised her she could selectively remove some of the fetuses. She declined.
(on camera): What kind of risk was this woman taking when she chose to have these babies?
DR. MICHAEL TUCKER, REPRODUCTIVE PHYSIOLOGIST: In my mind, at that point, with seven and ultimately, eight babies on board, an extreme risk.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Reproductive physiologist Michael Tucker says the case goes against modern fertility practices of limiting multiple births. He says the case will be scrutinized for how fertility drugs might have been used, or how many embryos might have been implanted.
TUCKER: Somebody who's already known fertile, to transfer more than one or two embryos is quite unreasonable, to say the least.
MATTINGLY: Guidelines of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine says doctors normally would not implant more than two embryos at a time for any woman under 35.
(on camera): Her age has not been confirmed, but with eight new babies, she now has a total of 14 children. So far, she's trying to hold on to her privacy, but through the California hospital where she's recovering, she called the Octuplets a miraculous experience.
(voice-over): But the questions about these births address more human concerns. The baby's grandfather says multiple births were not part of the plan.
SULEMAN: She did not seek to have more children. She thought she was going to have one more child, then it happened.
MATTINGLY: And the surprises continued up until delivery on Monday. Mom thought she was having only seven babies. She was carrying so many that the eighth escaped detection until the landmark C-section.
David Mattingly, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Well, lots of people are reacting to this story. We've been asking for your responses.
Here's what Zenxgirl (ph) says, "Tired of paying for babies people cannot afford." Mojustice says, "Woman was irresponsible in her choice. However, it is her choice and we don't have right to take away reproductive choice of women." Xzavier1971 says, "If her family is paying the bill, then that is here business. If the taxpayers are flipping the bill, then shame on you."
Cosmicpolitan says, "Everyone has a right to have as many kids as they want. This is the United States of America, not China." Denarrard says, "It is so sexist for people to dictate this woman's choice to have kids. It is her body and her responsibility to raise them."
Please join our community. You please log on to Twitter, to Facebook, iReport, and MySpace, tell us what you're thinking. And no topic is out of bounds here. You can tell us anything you want to talk about.
Let's get back now to our developing story. Hundreds of thousands of people in Kentucky are trying to recover from a crippling ice storm.
Our Jacqui Jeras joins us now with the very latest.
Jacqui, I'm hearing that it could be weeks before people could get their power back. It is cold. It is dark tonight.
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, that's some of the estimates, three to six weeks. You know, that's not everybody, but, you know, I think most people can't even imagine a couple of days without power. Temperatures have been below freezing, really since Tuesday. Today was the first day a few of you got just above that 32-degree mark. There you can even see 34 in Indy; Cincinnati, 30 degrees. And you got up to maybe 32, 34 degrees in the Louisville, Kentucky, area.
Now, temperatures are going to continue to go up a little bit through the weekend, before a little clipper-type system moves on through. This is your five-day forecast for Louisville. And it shows you here that cold air is going to come right back. So, it's not going to be lasting all that long.
And the clipper will bring some light snowshowers, but not all that much. For the most part, this is a dry front, and that's actually not good for a lot of people down here. And I'll tell you why.
Check out these pictures now that are just coming in out of Oklahoma. A grass fire is out of control at this hour in northwestern parts of the state. These pictures are coming in from KWTV.
Harper County, at least four large grass fires are burning more than 600 acres and being fueled by some very winds. Winds are southwesterly, 10 to 20 miles per hour. We've had some gusts up to 30 miles per hour as well.
High fire danger is expected to continue in Oklahoma for tomorrow. Now, believe it or not, we also have high fire danger elsewhere in the state of Florida, because of the dry tinder conditions. So, just a big heads-up for all of you celebrating with the Super Bowl for tomorrow, and if you've got the charcoal grills out there, if you happen to be a smoker, which you know you shouldn't be anyway, be extremely, extremely careful.
And out (ph) in the stadium, this go around, Don -- clear skies, temperatures in the upper 50s.
(INAUDIBLE)
(LAUGHTER)
JERAS: What do you say, Steelers or Cards? Can't help myself.
(INAUDIBLE)
JERAS: I've lost my FV (ph).
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARC HUJIK, SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER: Personally, it's embarrassing.
SHAWN YDE, SCHOOL DISTRICT BUSINESS MANAGER: Of course, you're sick to your stomach, I mean, to the point of panic, almost.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, IREPORT) PETER CABRERA, IREPORTER: My father is -- he's retired early after working so hard his whole life and he's watching his 401(k) disappear. That -- that terrifies me because, you know, he's -- he may very well end up now having to work until the day he dies.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: I-reporter Peter Cabrera, we feel you on that. Thank you for sending in that iReport.
I want to turn now to the economy and job number one for President Barack Obama. And today, more jobs lost. Sears is giving pink slips to 300 corporate employees. The cuts are happening at headquarters in Illinois and facilities in Michigan and New York. In all this week, 145,000 jobs lost.
On Capitol Hill, Republicans are pledging to work with President Obama on the economy, but they're renewing their opposition to much of the economic stimulus package now before Congress.
In his weekly radio address today, President Obama promised a new strategy soon for spending the second half of the financial bailout money. He says it will be aimed at lowering mortgage costs, offering jobs, job-creating-loans for small businesses, getting credit flowing, and reining in free-spending executives.
Well, this evening, the president is attending the Alfalfa Club dinner tonight. It is an annual closed-door event, roasting well-known politicians, both Republicans and Democrats.
The nation's financial crisis is reaching into every nook and cranny. And CNN's Poppy Harlow is back with us now.
She has the story of a Wisconsin school system which is -- Poppy, learning this economics lesson really the hard way. She joins us from Los Angeles.
How are they learning the hard way?
HARLOW: What a story, Don, that we're going to show you, far from the battered banks on Wall Street, a school district in Wisconsin. They're reeling from a big, big bet that has gone very bad.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HARLOW (voice-over): It's early morning basketball practice at Whitefish Bay High School. On the shores of Lake Michigan, more than 800 miles from Wall Street, it's one of five Wisconsin school districts brought to the brink of losing a $200 million investment by the nation's financial crisis.
MARC HUJIK, SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER: Personally, it's embarrassing.
SHAWN YDE, SCHOOL DISTRICT BUSINESS MANAGER: Of course, you're sick to your stomach, I mean, to the point of panic, almost. HARLOW: Two years ago, Shawn Yde, the business director for the Whitefish Bay school district, and Marc Hujik, a football coach and local school board member, signed off on an investment for teachers' retirement and health care benefits.
HUJIK: We were, you know, specifically told that we were investing in bonds.
HARLOW: But with the value of the investment now down 95 percent, they're screaming foul play, alleging they were misled from the beginning.
HUJIK: What I now believe is that we were sold something that we never discussed. Nowhere did we ever discuss that after a couple of defaults, you can lose all your principal.
HARLOW: Instead of buying corporate bonds, they actually purchased synthetic collateralized debt obligations. In essence, these products insure company's debt. But when Lehman Brothers and Washington Mutual went bust, day took the value of the school's investment down with them. Now, the districts are suing their former financial adviser, Stifel Nicolaus, and the bank that created the investment product, the Royal Bank of Canada, calling the deal fraudulent.
ROBERT KANTAS, SCHOOL DISTRICT LAWYER: These firms made multiples of seven figures in fees ...
HARLOW (on camera): OK. What would ...
KANTAS: ... to sell their products.
HARLOW: But why would they want -- I mean, these are human beings we're talking about. Call them Wall Streets freaks (ph), if you will. These are human beings. Why would they want to see other human beings, school districts, suffering? You really think that's what they were going after?
KANTAS: You're assuming they have a conscious, that they're not motivated by their wallets. And with history as my guide, I tell you they are.
HARLOW (voice-over): In response to our question, the defendants, RBC and Stifel Nicolaus denied any wrongdoing and claimed the risk was clearly outlined. And it was -- on paper.
(on camera): Your signature right there, this outlined risk and no guarantee.
YDE: Correct. But, again, the risk that was verbally provided us is not the risk that we have in this transaction.
HARLOW (voice-over): The school districts site multiple meetings they had with David Noack, their then financial adviser from Stifel Nicolaus.
DAVID NOACK, FINANCIAL ADVISER: It takes 15 defaults for us to start losing money and we have somebody watching over every company everyday for seven years and if it starts to look like it's going that way, they get out of it. The only way -- the real -- you would need 15 Enrons.
HARLOW: Noack has not been named a defendant in the lawsuit and his lawyer declined to comment for this story. As for the school -- all they can do is watch and wait.
YDE: I can't tell you how many nights I've lost sleep over this, over the last 12 months. It's been -- 2008 was not a good year.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARLOW: Now, Don, the schools won't know the value of that investment until it matures in five years, but realistically speaking, given the current state of the global markets, the prospects are very grim. And for the people of these Wisconsin communities that I talked with, Wall Street has never seemed closer to home than it does right now.
LEMON: Yes. And it's really, Poppy, a sign of the times, because it's not just in the Wisconsin school district, this is really a sign of what people, businesses, school districts, are dealing with all across the country.
HARLOW: All across the country -- businesses, school districts, cities, Don. Municipalities, 46 states in this country are, right now, they have budget shortfalls, some because of investments like this. And what happened is this school district in cities across this country invested like they were banks, like they were hedge funds. And the same products that are affecting this school right now with that 95 percent loss so far in their investment is what led, partially, to the collapse of Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns.
It's really, really, really terrifying for a lot of folks.
LEMON: Yes, it is. Poppy, we appreciate that report. Thank you very much for that.
HARLOW: You're welcome.
LEMON: What began as a joke about selling all their possessions and starting over turned into reality. As medical bills piled up for two small children, a Georgia family went on eBay to auction off the entire contents of their home.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Life threw us a curveball. So, you know, we're willing to sacrifice these things and put our children first.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nothing's more precious than the kid. I mean, not a sofa, not a TV.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, they got a very generous offer for their things, and most people would say it's even better than what they had asked for, but, you know, the sellers have some questions now. And coming up tonight at 11:00 p.m. Eastern, you'll hear from the family on why they might turn down that offer.
The big business or the big game, from the A-list parties to the luxury boxes to the multimillion dollar ads, how much of an economic hit or miss can retailers expect to see?
Plus this -- OK, what is that selling? Maybe we gave it away. And who's behind this? One network says it's so racy, they squashed it. But guess what, viewers are eating it up.
(MUSIC)
LEMON: All right, another racy one for you. Everyone's mimicking these moves, right, and more. But what happens when high school girls do it with a lap dance for the whole world to see? We have the controversial video gone viral.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Very nice. You're a Steeler fan, huh, Lambert? Boy, why don't we talk some football, that nice (inaudible). Show him walking back over there. He's a big Lambert fan. OK. So let's talk some Super Bowl now.
Do you watch the game or do you watch the commercials? Well maybe you watch both. But advertisers are plunking down big money for just 30 seconds during tomorrow's big game. Is it worth the gamble?
CNN's Larry Smith is live in Tampa, Florida, right now, catching up on all the pre-game buildup. Hey, it's not quite as big a buildup because of the economy this year. That's what I'm hearing.
LARRYS SMITH, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, you're absolutely right. We have heard some festivities and seen a few more fans today. It does for the first time feel more like a Super Bowl's about to happen. But as far as those advertisements, NBC is happy. The final two spots have been sold. It is sold out. If not for them, a record $206 million in ad revenue, just in the ads sold for the game itself. Tomorrow, Super Bowl XLIII between the Cardinals and the Steelers, but I tell you what, it wasn't easy.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SMITH (voice-over): The annual battle for commercial supremacy during Sunday's Super Bowl will come with a record price tag of $3 million for 30 seconds of ad time. In today's desperate economy, the real question may be, is it really worth it?
TY MONTAGUE, CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICER, JWT: It buys you access to an audience of 100 million people or almost 100 million people. You know, the Super Bowl is still, is one of the great shared experiences in our culture today.
JOEL EWANICK, V.P. MARKETING, HYUNDAI: It actually gives us an opportunity to talk to almost all of America at a time when they're actually paying attention to commercials. So it's not that they're just watching the games, they're also watching their commercials.
SMITH: Hyundai is in for the second year in a row, but as stock prices tumble and unemployment rises daily, some companies have decided they cannot justify the expense this year.
General Motors bailed out under pressure from congressional hearings while Fedex also decided to stay on the sidelines saying in a statement, "there is a time to justify such an ad spend and a time to step back. Being if the game simply sends the wrong message to both employees and other Fedex constituents."
NBC which will broadcast the game sold 85 percent of the ad space by mid-September, but has been struggling since the economy tanked shortly thereafter and is still a few spots from being sold out.
DICK EBERSOL, CHAIRMAN, NBC SPORTS: It gets a little bit slower in making decisions. But now in this last month, getting back to the fact that if you're in the Super Bowl, it's an unrivaled way to get attention. And so people have come through.
SMITH: Many of those signed on feel it's worth it to be in the lineup if only to show competitors and consumers alike that they can still afford to be.
EWANICK: We've seen the companies that have actually pushed harder during recessions, have actually come out better.
MONTAGUE: Certainly, clients can use that environment and the price tag to make a statement about their stability. If you have the money to pay to be in the super bowl, it does say something about your bullishness and your financial stability.
SMITH: And although the price tag is for 30 seconds, in this internet age, a Super Bowl advertiser gets a lot more than half a minute of attention.
People search the ads the next day, they comment on other people's opinions about the ads. They look at the polls to see who did better and who did worse and they debate all that. And all of that is value.
SMITH: So while only one team can be crowned Super Bowl champion on Sunday, the advertisers are confident they'll all be winners too.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SMITH: In a nod to the economy's woes, direct marketer Cash for Gold is one of the Super Bowl advertisers this year, featuring celebrities Ed McMahon and MC. Hammer, a couple of celebs who have known their shares of financial troubles in the past. Don, let's go back to you.
LEMON: All right. Thank you, Larry. We appreciate that. We'll see you tomorrow.
The Super Bowl may be one of those few things motivating people to spend money right now. Think about it, grocery stores are doing a brisk business in chips, chili fixings, and maybe a little beer. Could be time right now, our sports analyst, Rick Harwood, picked up a wings business. You might make some money tomorrow doing that. Rick Horrow is our sports analyst. He's also in Tampa getting ready for tomorrow's big game. Hello, Rick.
RICK HORROW, SPORTS ANALYST: Hey, how are you doing?
LEMON: I'm doing well.
HORROW: I've tried to sell these couple of tickets to Larry and you know no takers here. So I guess I'm stuck with them.
LEMON: Hey, listen, you know, we're having big economic troubles. So it's certainly understandable. Tell us about the impact though on advertising. Let's talk about that first.
HORROW: Well, you know, Larry's right about the advertising commitments too. And most of them were sold before the crash, let's call it. But there are some companies, like Pedigree Foods, Denny's, the first sit-down restaurant company to advertise. General Electric is back in the game for the first time since 1982, probably because they're NBC's parent.
But the $3 million 30-second ad spot is still a tremendous way to separate yourself from the all so (inaudible), though an expensive way to do it.
LEMON: It's very interesting. I wonder, you know, if GE has to pay for advertising or if it's a wash. That's interesting. OK, listen, what about the parties? We talked last week and you know, lots of people who usually have big parties, like some of the magazines, or whatever, not showing up this year. Are they sending a signal that they're cutting back and does that mean no luxury boxes, no parties as well?
HARROW: Well, let's remember, we have 11 million people unemployed and we have companies like Monster who do ads now, but there's nothing funny about it. And the big-time corporate hospitality, like the General Motors, they're saying, we're not doing that this year. Maxim still has its party, but it's thrift down, so to speak. Playboy doesn't have it, and others - I understand, I'm sorry. And Playboy doesn't have it. There are others who don't have it as well. And the bottom line is it's a very difficult environment to have fun in.
LEMON: Yes, playboy, down to the bare essentials when it comes to the Super Bowl.
HORROW: Come on, Don.
LEMON: Hey, real quickly, I'm running out of time here. I want to tell you, the Super Bowl, always a sellout. The real economic impact, I think you said the inauguration was what 15 or 14 times more than the Super Bowl makes, but what's the real economic impact here?
HORROW: Well, the tickets are fine because each team in it gets 35 percent of the allocation. The Pittsburgh Steelers are big-time team. Arizona Cardinals haven't been in it in 61 years. The economic impact, some say, is $150 million or so. $180 million in a normal year. That's still a big number. It's not as big as the inauguration, to be sure, but it's going to be just fine at the end of the night tomorrow night.
LEMON: You're wearing green. What is that an indication of?
HORROW: It's an indication that I'm not giving you a prediction, because neither team is a green, OK?
LEMON: All right.
HORROW: So it will be a good game, it will be close. That's all I'm going to say.
LEMON: All right. Rick. Bye-bye. Thank you, sir.
HORROW: Bye-bye. See you tomorrow.
LEMON: OK. See you tomorrow. There's no question that fans can expect to see an intense battle tomorrow night, but could there be long term medical effects white rooting for your favorite player but that could pose some issues, what happens to them after the game?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Did it surprise you to see some of these things?
DR. ANN MCKEE, BEDFORD, VIRGINIA HOSPITAL: Absolutely. To see the kind of changes we're seeing in 45-year-olds is basically unheard of.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Yes, it's a story you don't want to miss. Our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta reports straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Well, playing sports can take an enormous toll on your body, but what about your mind? In our special medical series, "Concussion in the brain," our Dr. Sanjay Gupta looks at brain trauma that can easily go undetected.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA: Punishing blows have become an inextricable part of many sports.
TED JOHNSON, SUFFERED MORE THAN 100 CONCUSSIONS: Some of my tackles with more right side.
GUPTA: Ted Johnson took his share as a linebacker for the New England Patriots.
JOHNSON: I've gotten maybe, you know, four or five, six documented concussions.
GUPTA: Those were just the dizzying knockouts. By his count, Johnson suffered more than 100 mild concussions.
Impossible to test for, a concussion is a vague injury, invisible, until now.
GUPTA (on-camera): This is the brain of an athlete. Is that right?
MCKEE: That's right.
GUPTA: This is the only thing you know at this point?
MCKEE: That's right.
GUPTA: How many brains have you looked at so far?
MCKEE: From athletes?
GUPTA: From athletes.
MCKEE: I think this makes eight.
GUPTA: And what have you found in the first seven?
MCKEE: They've all had changes of traumatic encephalitis.
GUPTA: A new study confirms what some scientists have long suspected. Concussions start an injury cascade that looks like this.
MCKEE: I think what's been surprising is that it's so extensive. It's throughout the brain, not just on the superficial aspects of the brain, but it's also deep inside.
GUPTA: This is a healthy brain and this is the brain of a former NFL player in his 40s. Those brown tangles, they indicate brain damage that could eventually kill cells. The trauma in this NFL player's brain looks a lot like damage in this brain, a 70-year-old who suffered from dementia.
GUPTA (on-camera): Did it surprise you to see these things?
MCKEE: Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. To see the kind of changes we're seeing in 45-year-old is basically unheard of.
GUPTA: Years removed from the football field, Ted Johnson is still tackling side effects of all those concussions - depression, headaches, anger issues.
JOHNSON: I almost forgot what I was like before, before the hits. I couldn't remember and I just lost myself for the last three years.
GUPTA: Johnson, a former pro-wrestler Chris Nowinski are part of the Sports Legacy Institute which asks athletes to donate their brains to continue the study into the impact of concussion.
Is there a message for football players? Is there a message for the NFL here?
MCKEE: Well, I think the message is that we need to identify what constitutes a significant head injury and we need to treat it sufficiently. And I think that probably means resting an injury a lot more than we rest it.
GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: And we have a quick note for you. Sanjay's story suggested the NFL wasn't doing enough to educate players. The NFL has since given us a statement saying this, hundreds of thousands of people have played football and other sports without experiencing any problem of this type and there continues to be considerable debate within the medical community on the precise long-term effects of concussions.
We are currently funding an independent medical study of retired NFL players on the long-term effects of concussion, which we hope will contribute to the overall understanding of this issue. Professional athletes aren't the only ones potentially at risk for serious injuries.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He cross checked me to the throat, which had so much force behind it that lifts me high up in the air and I smashed the back of my head off of the ground.
Playing hard and possibly paying the price. Dr. Sanjay Gupta's special report "Concussion and the Brain" continues.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Kids and sports. They seem to go together, even hand in hand, but we often don't think about the potential for serious and long lasting injuries. Now a new study has doctors worried about the risk of brain injury in young athletes. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta takes a closer look in our special medical series "Concussion and the Brain."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA (voice-over): Lacrosse was once the center of 18-year-old James Arigos(ph) life until the game when he suffered back-to-back concussions. So when is the last time you actually had the chance to pick up a lacrosse stick?
JAMES: Probably a year ago now. So it's kind of weird. It brings back some pretty vivid memories. The other teammate comes up and this is a kid on the other team and he comes and he cross-checks me to the throat, which had so much force behind it, that lifts me up in the air and I smashed the back of my head off the ground.
So that was the first concussion. Then the same kid, he comes and he hits me in the side of the head when I wasn't ready for it. Just boom, and snaps my neck down and I go right down. GUPTA: James didn't know it yet, but within minutes, he'd suffered two concussions. If he'd suffered a third -
What would have happened?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, he probably would have died or had severe brain injury.
GUPTA: A new study suggests the risk of brain injury in young athletes with concussions is real. I recently spoke with one of the study's authors, neurologist, Dr. Ann McKee.
MCKEE: So this is a case of an 18-year-old who played multiple sports in high school and sustained several concussions.
GUPTA: The brown tangles seen here, evidence of brain damage.
MCKEE: It's not just a few tangles. It's actually a lot of them.
GUPTA: This new evidence of tangles, in an 18-year-old's brain, echoes evidence McKee and colleagues already found in the brains of seven former NFL players who suffered multiple concussions.
What is the significance of this?
MCKEE: Well, we think this is how chronic traumatic encephalopathy starts.
GUPTA: Were you surprised to see - I mean this degree of in an 18- year-old?
MCKEE: Shocked.
GUPTA: Are you back to normal?
JAMES ORRIGO, SUFFERED BACK TO BACK CONCUSSIONS: Yes.
GUPTA: 100 percent.
ORRIGO: Just a few headaches, but that's only if I do, you know, too much working out, getting - yes, besides that, it's good.
GUPTA: James no longer plays contact sports.
Instead, he plays the guitar and he educates other young athletes about concussion.
ORRIGO: You must watch sports on television. You're probably going to watch the Super Bowl.
ORRIGO: Right.
GUPTA: What goes through your head as you see somebody as you say laid out.
ORRIGO: I see it all the time happen in these games. And the announcers, I guess were the most angry. They're the ones saying oh it's just a concussion. You know he'll be back in to play or something like that. And it's just scary to think about that. There's no real urgency.
GUPTA: As you can see, we know more than ever about the vague term, Concussion. And more importantly, what happens deep inside the brain, but this is just the beginning. Over the next several years, they're going to look at hundreds more brains and hopefully get more answers. Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right. Sanjay.
Too racy for TV? We'll show you the commercial that's got squashed by NBC. But viewers, they're eating it up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Too racy for the Super Bowl. When have you ever heard that? Well, except for that wardrobe malfunction thing. A commercial touting the benefits of a vegetarian diet gets squashed by NBC. Roger, director, I can hear you laughing. But viewers are eating it up. Here's CNN's Jeanne Moos.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Normally you tell kids to eat their vegetables. But now kids are being warned to hide from them.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Please let me forewarn, you might want to send the kids out of the room.
MOOS: Women molesting vegetables, it's the pro-vegetarian commercial banned from the Super Bowl.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How can a vegetable be suggestive? Do we have a picture of a normal vegetable? There you are.
MOOS: The people from PETA, the people for the ethical treatment of animals submitted the commercial to NBC and got a shot by shot rejection memo.
We're talking about things as ridiculous as licking a pumpkin.
MOOS: But PETA doesn't really mind that its commercial got squashed. Its commercials always get squared. They have what I call their squash strategy. Do you know how many times you've been rejected by the Super Bowl?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think this makes the third time.
MOOS: There was the anti- meat commercial.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With extra sausage. MOOS: There was the milk gone wild commercial. Don't freak out. You're going to glimpse pretend cow udders. Take that, Janet Jackson. But every time PETA gets its Super Bowl commercials rejected, they get a ton of free publicity. On the view, Whoopi made out with a head of lettuce. Talk shows debated the issue.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you eat a lot of vegetables, Jim?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, not after this. I mean it's very discouraging who knows where they've been.
MOOS: This seems to be an intentional strategy to get ads rejected.
MICHAEL MCGRAW, DIRECTOR OF MEDIA RELATIONS, PETA: You know, you will never see an ad from PETA that isn't provocative or funny.
MOOS: Or funny. Take the recent campaign to rename fish sea kittens. People realize fish have feelings too. PETA says the Super Bowl controversy has led to over a million hits on its website with a banned commercial leads viewers to a serious video on the evils of meat. Move over Paris Hilton, with your hamburger commercial. It's time for the R-rated vegetable.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hope those vegetables were of legal age.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If I want to see a beautiful woman get it on with a vegetable, I'll look through the window at Hugh Hefner's house.
MOOS: Hopefully this doesn't upset the People for the Ethical Treatment of vegetables. Bottom line, PETA likes to get shot down. Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
LEMON: Speaking of racy, look at those moves, hey? You know Beyonce, famous for her music and her moves. That video doesn't really raise many eyebrows. Why not? But similar stuff at a Jonesboro high school basketball game in Georgia has led to major controversy.
School officials say a dance team's moves went way too far, and we want you to have a look at it.
All right. So this one came with lap dances. Administrators say these moves were completely inappropriate. The dance team has been disbanded. Their coach has been removed. Parents are angry and school officials are trying to figure out how the dance ever got approved.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The official at the school saw the routine, but there was no costumes involved. And there were - and there was limited props and the entire routine was not reviewed.
At what point did somebody should have said, let's stop this. Turn the music off. At what point did that happen? It didn't happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, we like to keep it clean here at CNN. We have a good time, though. So no dancing like that. But as far as that sea kitten, we'll be having that tomorrow and a lot of yard bird as well for the Super Bowl. We'll see you back here tonight, 11:00 p.m. Eastern. "Money Summit" with Ali Velshi and Anderson Cooper begins now. I'm Don Lemon.
