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Tracking Hurricane Bill; Violence Increases in Baghdad; Model Sues for Online Defamation; Army Entrants to Be Taught Coping Skills; Dogs Maul and Kill Georgia Couple; Earthquake Hits Alaska

Aired August 19, 2009 - 14:03   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: All right, if you want to know about the health care debate and even listen there to Robert Gibbs as he continues the White House briefing, rather, you can check out the special "Health Care in America" Web site on CNN.com. You can also get the latest from the town hall debate, fact checks, iReports, even read the bills that are being proposed. All you do is just go to CNN.com/healthcare or just CNN.com to watch that live briefing in its entirety.

Now for the people of Baghdad, the nightmare days apparently are back. We're being told at least 95 people have been killed, more than 560 now wounded in the deadliest day since U.S. troops pulled out of cities and towns nearly two months ago.

CNN's Arwa Damon has been on the streets surveying the damage and following the story for us.

Arwa, just more sign and I guess pointing to the question, are Iraqis able to take over their country when it comes to security?

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, I think that's the question that every single Iraqi wants answered and I think every single Iraqi is fearing the answer to, because after a day like today, the answer most certainly would be no.

Now, this was not just deadliest day in Iraq since the U.S. military handed the security over to the Iraqi government. It is actually the deadliest day in Iraq of this year. Six explosions happening in the span of just an hour. Two of them truck bombs. One targeting the Iraqi Ministry of Finance. The other and by far, most devastating, exploding in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

It was a blast so massive it not only blew through the ministry itself, it also sent a number of vehicles in the area flying into the air reduced others to burnt hulks of metal. And it also utterly destroyed, devastated a number of homes in the region. One young man who was woken up by the blast, a fan came falling on top of his head. His door was blown off its hinges. Luckily, he escaped unharmed.

He was quite simply saying, how is it possible that this can happen here when this is meant to be one of the safer areas of Baghdad, when it is teaming with Iraqi security forces? And that is because the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is located just outside of the heavily fortified Green Zone. Now the location where this explosion took place is on the road that leads toward the Green Zone. And there used to be a checkpoint there where every vehicle was stopped, the passengers I.D.s were checked and there was bomb detection equipment. The government recently had that removed, part of this whole notion of returning to normalcy. But they might be a bit premature in that, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Arwa Damon reporting live from Baghdad. Arwa, thanks.

Now to our other war zone, Afghanistan, a city, an entire country on the edge. Afghan voters go to the polls in about 8.5 hours to cast ballots for president. The Taliban appears to be carrying out its threat to voters, stay away from the polls or risk your life. In the capital of Kabul, police fought back after militants took over a bank. Three insurgents killed there. Elsewhere, three U.S. soldiers were killed in combat operations today and six election workers died in other attacks.

And with war comes unbelievable stress. Later in the hour, we are pushing forward on the military's new training program to help soldiers cope with combat.

Wild dogs, when they are running away, they don't look so bad. When they are charging towards you, they are terrifying and the last thing a Georgia couple would ever want to see.

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PHILLIPS: He was the man behind CBS's ticking clock. "60 Minutes" creator Don Hewitt died today. We'll take a look at his amazing career.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: A powerful storm churning across the Atlantic. Hurricane Bill now a category 4 and it is getting stronger. Chad Myers is tracking it for us in the CNN Weather Center. Chad?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: it looks like such the classic, major event here. I mean, I can look at this satellite and I can just picture in my mind, Hugo and Andrew and all those very dynamic, giant, massive storms that have run right through this same area that have made landfall in the U.S. in the past.

The difference between those storms and this storm is a big high pressure that should move away and allow the storm to turn back out into the ocean. There it is, here the Leeward Islands, which would be -- there are the Spanish Virgin Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the BBI, Anguilla, Antigua, and those areas there.

This storm will travel to the north of those islands and away from that area, although put some massive waves on the north shores of those islands. And then we will get the waves here into the East Coast of the U.S. And although there won't be that much of an impact on the East Coast when it comes to wind, I do believe the wave action along the East Coast will be significant also with the potential for rip current all weekend long. And if you are along the shore, you just have to keep the kids out of the wall when you know that is happening or those red flags are there or you just see -- if you see ten-footers coming over sandbars on the East Coast, that's not normal. And that's going to get you in trouble as that water begins to move out.

Every computer model so far keeps this storm out to sea. Now there are a few that get very, very close to Nantucket and Cape Cod. This would be the U.S. East Coast. Bermuda still well down there. So far Bermuda, you get missed as well just off to the west by about 200 miles. That's going to be a big-time forecast change whether that happens or not. Because it will be a Category 4 as it goes by Bermuda.

Take a look at this. It's a NASA shot from 220 miles up, Kyra. This is out of the International Space Station looking right down smack down into the eye. Now you are not seeing water down there, because there was just enough dense overcast over here that you couldn't actually see the water through it. But what an amazing shot from 220 miles up.

PHILLIPS: Pretty cool stuff. Thanks, Chad.

A Swiss banking giant is naming names and it's not pretty.

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PHILLIPS: Top stories now, proof of just how dangerous Iraq is, even as the U.S. military starts to draw down their presence, there are half a dozen bombings in Baghdad all within an hour today. Near 100 people killed, hundreds more injured. It's the deadliest day in Iraq since American troops pulled out of the country's cities and towns nearly two months ago.

Just hours ahead of Afghanistan's presidential election, another round of deadly violence there. At least seven election workers killed in attacks on the eve of the election along with three American soldiers. And the ballot will include President Hamid Karzai and 40 challengers, including two women.

Remember this crash? A New York woman killed herself and seven other people. But how do you charge a dead woman? Prosecutors now say they won't file charges in the Diane Schuler case. She was drunk and high on marijuana when she drove the wrong way on a New York parkway killing herself, her daughters, three nieces and three men in that SUV.

A Swiss banking giant is naming names. Thousands of Americans have been hiding money in offshore accounts for years. But it is not a secret anymore. Susan Lisovicz at the New York Stock Exchange with the details. I mean Susan, this was always the inside joke. If you were hiding money, they were in Swiss accounts.

(BUSINESS REPORT)

PHILLIPS: So can you call someone a skank online and get away with it? A former model doesn't want a name-calling blogger to get away with it and her legal battle could affect what you can write and read online.

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PHILLIPS: Republicans want it, a two-word message from the White House responding to reports that if all else fails, Democrats may pass health care reform alone. They have the votes if they stick together and especially if they use a special procedure that takes away the possibility of a filibuster. Still, the White House says it wants a bipartisan bill and isn't giving up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GIBBS: The president believes strongly in working with Republicans and Democrats, Independents, any that seek to reform health care, that want to see costs cut, coverage increased, insurance reforms implemented that no longer discriminates against families and individuals. The president strongly believes that we're making progress.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Folks on both sides of the health care debate are trying to be heard online and in town halls and maybe even in the streets of your town. In Northern Virginia, for instance, some supporters of the public option, rather, are going door to door to discuss it. Our photojournalist Jeremy Moorhead tags along for the latest in our "Health Care In Focus" series.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: we're just going to load up with voter guides.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Should we start at the top of the street?

WEBBER: We're on Cedarwood right now, right?

HUENNEKENS: These people look good.

WEBBER: That will be closer.

HUENNEKENS: We're volunteers with the Virginia Organizing Project, a statewide nonpartisan social justice group.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good luck, Paul.

HUENNEKENS: I have the odd side of the street, and Allie's (ph) going to take the evens. Just going to go up to the house, knock on the door and talk with people about health care reform. On our clipboard is the name of registered voters in the neighborhood. And we data-entry just the information, how they feel about health care reform.

WEBBER: We go to every house, though. HUENNEKENS: We go to every house.

WEBBER: We don't just go to the registered voters' houses.

Nobody was home.

HUENNEKENS: Our goal is trying to get people to call Senator Mark Warner, our Virginia senator, and get him on board with supporting a public option.

WEBBER: Usually, if we knock on maybe 100 doors, usually about 20 will answer. Ten will talk to you.

I am just going to see if someone is still living here. I'm Atlee Webber. One of the main issues we're working on this summer is health care reform. On a scale of one to five, five being most important, how important is that in your opinion?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's a four.

WEBBER: All right. Do you know if you'd support a public health option that would compete with private health insurance plans?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Depending on how it was structured, yes.

WEBBER: You know, a lot of people are worried about losing their health care insurance. And we assure them that they could keep their private insurance if they wanted to, but there would be a public option available to people who aren't as fortunate as them.

HUENNEKENS: A lot of people we talk to think it means Canadian- style single payer, where the government will provide for everyone. And so, just informing people, assuring people that it is a public option. You don't have to -- you can keep your private insurance if you're happy with it.

WEBBER: And a lot of people have never called their senator before. So, that's always really exciting when we get someone to get involved who never was involved before, didn't feel like they could be involved.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well, if you want to get involved in the health care debate or at least get educated on the details, check out CNN.com/health care. There's a ton of resources for you, including fact checks, town hall schedules, and yes, you can even read the bills that Congress is arguing about, all 1,600 pages of them.

Name-calling, it's the oldest form of bullying in the book. But it's now at the heart of a lawsuit that could change what you can post online. Let me begin with Exhibit A, gorgeous former "Vogue" model Lescula Cohen (ph). But if you read an anonymous blog, Skanks in NYC, she is called a "skank" and a "ho," among other things.

Well, she was pretty upset, and rightfully so. Exhibit B, Google, the company behind the Internet search engine that you use online every day. Cohen (ph) took Google to court. What did she want? The name of the anonymous person who called her names on its site, blogger.com.

Well, a judge ruled that Google did indeed have to give up information. So, Google did. Now, Lescula Cohen (ph) says that she's suing the blogger for defamation. And on ABC's "Good Morning, America," Diane Sawyer asked her, with all the stuff out there on the Web, why didn't she just let this go?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LESCULA COHEN, DEFAMED ONLINE: Why should anybody let it go? If somebody attacks somebody on the street, you're not going to let it go. If somebody attacks you personally, your not going to let it go. Why should I let it go? Why? Why should I just ignore it? I couldn't find one reason to ignore it. So I didn't.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, a lawyer for the blogger says that her client has voluntarily taken down the Web site, which brings us to Exhibit C. George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley joins me now live from Washington. OK, John, now, I agree with you. I think this could be a pretty fascinating torts case. What do you think?

PROFESSOR JONATHAN TURLEY, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY LAW SCHOOL: It is very interesting because it really gets in that difficult question of balancing between the need for anonymity and free speech and to protect people like this former model. The great concern is that it will also sweep into more protected areas, for example, whistle-blowers who use anonymity to make statements against powerful individuals or organizations. Anonymous critics of people like the Church of Scientology or more litigious organizations. I think they are concerned that this is going to open the door for these individuals to pursue them and to strip them of anonymity.

PHILLIPS: But truth remains a defense here, right? And there's a big difference between exposing somebody who's corrupt and doing something horrible to somebody than just some coward that, you know, has an issue with somebody and wants to call her horrible names that have no truth to it?

TURLEY: Well, that's right. Truth is always a defense. I mean, he could argue that "I could prove she's a skank," but I doubt he'll do that. And for good reason.

PHILLIPS: Oh, it's a she, by the way.

TURLEY: Oh, it is a she?

PHILLIPS: Yes. We found out the blogger is a she. And actually, Lescula (ph) did and called her up and said, hey, you know, why did you do this? And apparently, according to Lescula (ph), she said the blogger told her that she didn't know what she was talking about and said that the two women should not speak to each other except in the presence of their attorneys.

And then that was it. But the next thing you knew, the blog was taken off the Web.

TURLEY: Well, you know, it's interesting, because the courts have dealt with these types of name-calling cases. Roby (ph), a well- known case, deals with the meaning of "slut." And so, we often have to deal with the lowest common denominator in the law.

But what's interesting about this, Kyra, is that usually, name- calling like this is treated like opinions. Calling a model a skank, many people would view is like calling a politician corrupt. That it's an opinion that is usually protected.

You cross the line when you make a statement of fact. You don't just simply say a politician is corrupt, but you make some reference to money in an envelope. And then you have something to answer for. So, what's interesting about this case is that when you look at these attacks, they're juvenile, they're vicious, but they're generally not the type of thing that you see in a major defamation case.

PHILLIPS: Well, but these -- and you know as well as I know, I mean, you and I both have had some pretty horrible things said about us. I mean, you and I -- that's why I don't like to read these blogs, you know. At least these people have the guts, though, to put their names on what they say about me. I don't know about you.

TURLEY: I was recently called Exhibit C.

PHILLIPS: There you go. Come on, that was nice.

TURLEY: That was nice.

PHILLIPS: C stands for charmer. But seriously, I mean, these type of things have led to people losing work, getting fired, you know, getting talked about in other circles that have been -- we've sort of watched this unfold, I mean, even here within our business.

So, do you think that something -- she has something here? Now that we've seen a development, could this lead to something bigger, and could these anonymous bloggers, who as you well know, are extremely unfair, and so many of them are just making things up, and it's not factual. Could they be held accountable, finally?

TURLEY: Well, they can. The question is what limits there are. And what's surprising is that you have here a public figure. And usually public figures are subject to a thing called the New York times versus Sullivan test, which you're very familiar with, which is basically saying that you -- even if something is untrue, it's still not defamation unless the person acted with actual malice.

Now, there does seem to be actual malice here. But it's a little surprising to see a public figure respond to such name-calling. But you're absolutely right, there's no sympathy towards this person. The only concern is, how far will this swing? To what extent will the next person who is making claims against a politician or a company find themselves in court and having their anonymity stripped?

To what extent will whistle-blowers be reluctant to go to the Internet? I mean, the Internet is the most important development of free speech in decades, maybe in the history of our species. It is an amazing tool that allows people to participate in politics, to have their voices heard. And so, there is a concern that cases like this could create a chilling effect.

PHILLIPS: But there's -- and there's also so many people, Jonathan, as you well know, that whether it's Wikipedia or these blogs, or...

TURLEY: Oh, yes.

PHILLIPS: ... other, you know, that have -- that don't show their face, their name, their credentials. You don't know who the heck they are, and they make things up. And it just -- it's so unfair.

TURLEY: No, you're very right.

PHILLIPS: Well, we'll continue to follow this. It will be interesting to see how it develops and what kind of impact it has. In the meantime, I'll only write nice things about you, Jonathan.

(LAUGHTER)

TURLEY: Thanks, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Good to see you.

TURLEY: Okey doke.

PHILLIPS: Well, Lescula Cohen (ph) will be a live guest with Campbell Brown. That's tonight at 8:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.

The stress of combat on the battlefield and at home. Teaching soldiers the skills they need to survive. A new program we're going to tell you about.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Top stories now. When all else fails, maybe some divine intervention for President Obama's health care reform plan. Just a few hours from now, Mr. Obama taking part in a health care call-in and web cast sponsored by a group of religious leaders, Faith in Public Life. The group is calling for quality, affordable health care for every American family.

In Iraq, proof of just how dangerous the country is even as the U.S. military starts to draw down its presence there. Half a dozen bombings in Baghdad, all within an hour. Nearly 100 people killed. Hundreds more injured. The deadliest day in Iraq since American troops pulled out on June 30th. Just hours ahead of Afghanistan's presidential election, another round of deadly violence. At least seven election workers killed on the eve of the election. And three American soldiers. The ballot will include president Hamid Karzai. Forty challengers, including two women.

Basic training. Learning how to fight and survive in combat. As we've seen from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, it's just not enough. Now a new set of skills being taught to our troops.

Barbara Starr is at the Pentagon to tell us about it. Finally they are talking about suicide and PTSD and doing something about it, Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENAGON CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Kyra. Not just learning how to fight in war but learning how to come home. With suicide rates, drug use, alcohol use all on the rise compounded by post-traumatic stress, the Army has begun a new program to teach mental strength to the young troops.

Now, everybody coming into the Army will attend classes in what they call mental resilience, learning how to survive life's problems. Teaching the Internet generation that life sometimes deals you a rotten hand and you have to go on and learn to live with it. The power of positive thinking, if you will.

What we found most extraordinary when we set out to do this story is the woman leading the program. Her name is Brigadier General Rhonda Cornum. Back during the first Gulf War, she was held as a POW by the Iraqis. She was molested, she had two broken arms, a gunshot wound. Talk about being tough, Rhonda Cornum is one tough Army general. And now she is trying to teach the rest of the troops to be the same - Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. We hope to talk more about that. I know you've got the report coming up in "THE SITUATION ROOM." I apologize, Barbara. We have to go over to Chad. Apparently, there is an earthquake that's happened in Anchorage. Chad, what can you tell us?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It is a 5.2 earthquake, Kyra, which is a fairly strong earthquake. It was only about 30 miles from the center of Anchorage itself. Across the water. They're not expecting any type of tsunami from this. It was a fairly deep quake. It was almost 40 miles deep.

We did talk to a couple of affiliates in Anchorage. For the most part, they did feel about 30 seconds worth of shaking. If the earthquake is right there, we take you across the water. Literally 30 miles away, this would be the town or the city, if you will, of Anchorage. Three dimensionally right there. This shaking happens all the time in Alaska, but a 5.0 is a pretty strong shake. It may have been up to a 5.2. The seismologists will look at it for just a little bit and see.

Right now, no reports of damage. That's enough shaking to maybe cause something. We'll keep an eye on that for you, Kyra. PHILLIPS: All right, Chad. Thanks.

They may look like your family pooches but most of these guys are closer to wolves. Aggressive wild dogs, a pack of them, ending a couple's lives and now, authorities are going after more.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Statistics show you are more likely to be killed by lightning than killed by a dog. Which makes what happened to a Georgia couple all the more grotesque.

Kate Bolduan has been following this story for us. And you kind of -- you didn't really believe it until you started reading more about what these dogs are doing.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's hard to believe. I have a dog. You can't imagine these dogs, especially this pack of dogs, is capable of something like this. But they definitely are in terms of numbers. A total of 16 dogs have already been put down. One dog is still on the loose today.

It happened Friday. This elderly couple mauled and killed by a pack of dogs. I talked to the county coroner in Oglethorpe County. That's in north Georgia. He said, you know what? I have working this job for 29 years and never had seen anything like this. Describing the hundreds of flesh wounds. He said, in a word, it was traumatic.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(voice-over): These are the last pictures of the dogs. By now, 11 adults and five puppies have been euthanized per court order. Friday night, on this rural road, the same pack of dogs mauled Carl and Sherry Schweder (ph) to death, according to investigators. They say Sherry Schweder had gone out for a walk that evening. When she didn't come home, her husband went looking for her.

MARK SCHWEDER, VICTIMS' SON: It's a huge shock, a huge shock.

BOLDUAN: The parents' bodies were found Saturday morning mutilated, riddled with hundred of dog bites, according to the county coroner. The dogs still standing guard above their prey when authorities arrived on the scene.

JIM FULLINGTON, GEORGIA BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION: It appears at this time that she was attacked and killed by the dogs in some manner at some point and then possibly, later on, he came up. We feel sure she was probably attacked first.

BOLDUAN: Animal Control was called in to capture the dogs. The sheriff described them as aggressive. After the animals attacked two of his deputies, tranquilizers had to be used. The dogs were wild, according to county officials, but they say an 83-year-old man, the only man to live on this road, had been feeding them.

While this kind of dog mauling is brutal, the Humane Society says it is rare. In the first eight months of this year, there have been 20 fatal dog attacks nationwide. Compare that to 22 in 2008 and 33 the year before.

Even though this sort of attack is unusual, it's little consolation for Mark Schweder who will never see his parents again.

MARK SCHWEDER, VICTIMS' SON: And they were, you know, wonderful, dear, kind-hearted people. And we just -- we miss them. And this is just terrible, terrible.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Again, deputies are out there today. They say there is still one of these wild dogs roaming around in this wooded area. As of last check, no charges have been pressed against this elderly gentlemen who is the only man who lives on this rural road. No charges have been pressed against him as of today.

PHILLIPS: All right. So the takeaway here, you said these were wild dogs. So, bottom line, to prevent this from happening again.

BALSWIN: Spay and neuter your pets. Easiest way, said and done. You know, if you don't, we continue to have these wild dogs. They weren't necessarily rabid dogs, but they had this pack mentality. They were dangerous, they were hungry, they wanted food. And this was survival for them.

PHILLIPS: It's heartbreaking. Thanks, Brooke.

Well, he was the man behind CBS's ticking clock. "60 Minutes" creator Don Hewitt died today. We'll take a look back at his amazing career.

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PHILLIPS: Well, Don Hewitt was a television news pioneer in every sense of the word, a giant in our business and he passed away today. And as a former colleague and friend remembers Hewitt, he was a pretty remarkable innovator.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KLEIN, PRESIDENT, CNN: The influence that Don has, if you look on the bottom third of the screen, all those graphics, the thing that says my name or the subject matter that Don Hewitt has died; those are called supers, right? Don invented supers. He said, you knee what, on the screen, we need another way to convey information to viewers. Maybe we can superimpose them? And he figured out technically a way to do it. He was a director, which is a technical job in television. And he figured that out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And here now with a look back at the man and his incredible career.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS (voice-over): Pioneering journalist, Don Hewitt in the early days of television. He began his career in print journalism. He moved to CBS in 1948, where he stayed for more than 50 years.

ANNOUNCER: See it now, a document for television.

PHILLIPS: He directed the CBS documentary series, "See It Now" and the legendary series, "CBS Reports." He worked alongside correspondent Edward R. Murrow and producer Fred Friendly. They set the highest standards, virtually inventing the new medium of television journalism.

DON HEWITT, CREATER OF "60 MINUTES": Coast to coast, Douglas Edwards reporting.

PHILLIPS: As producer and directory of "Douglas Edwards and the News," he had a tremendous influence on the development of day to day television news programming. He headed CBS's early political coverage including the 1960 presidential debate.

HEWITT: Nixon was ill. This guy has been in the hospital. He arrived here looking like the wrath of God. Jack Kennedy looked like (INAUDIBLE).

PHILLIPS: 70 million viewers tuned in to that debate, which revealed the awesome power of television.

HEWITT: People who heard it on radio thought that Nixon won. All the people that watched on television saw this sort of salo, green, pasty, hesitant Richard Nixon and decided that Kennedy was the winner.

PHILLIPS: Don Hewitt is best known for creating the groundbreaking news broadcast "60 Minutes."

ANNOUNCER: This is "60 Minutes." It's a kind of a magazine for television.

PHILLIPS: "60 Minutes" became one of the most successful and profitable news programs in television history. An impression achievement for the man who dropped out of college after just one year and admitted he was not really an intellectual. His genius came in creating stories in a way that appealed to the average person.

HEWITT: I go to every screening as a viewer. And I sit there and I say to myself, if I were a guy sitting home at 7:00 Sunday, would I look at this? Does this interest me? Can this be told better?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He did a book about it called tell me a story. it was a story. It was a story. And he (INAUDIBLE) this whole crowd on stories.

PHILLIPS: Hewitt developed the reputation of a hands-on manager, a person whose fingerprints could be seen on every frame, every line of every story. A stickler for perfection.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's a kind of idiot savant of broadcasting, flying by the seat of his pants in a control room, or edit room, or careening around the hallways adjacent to his office.

PHILLIPS: He developed a reputation as a domineering boss. His handling of "60 Minutes" staffer is legendary, sometimes volatile and heavy handed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are oftentimes blood on the floor of that screening room. Believe me.

PHILLIPS: Over the years, "60 Minutes" became appointment television, bringing us some of the most memorable and sometimes touching moments in television history.

BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES: This is not an arrangement or an understanding. This is a marriage. It's a very different thing.

PHILLIPS: In June, 2004, Hewitt stepped aside. Some would say he was pushed aside as executive producer of "60 Minutes." He left at age 81, after heading 60 minutes for 36 years.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's been a great boss, he's been a great boss. You can challenge him. You can fight him. The only thing you cannot do is bore him in the screening room. That is the one thing that is not allowed.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Don Hewitt died of cancer at his home in New York. He was 86 years old.

That does it for us. Rick Sanchez takes it from here.