Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
CA Police Halt Search For Missing Boy; Biggest Mafia Bust in FBI History; Superintendent Andres Alonso Revolutionizes and Reinvigorates Baltimore Schools; Breaking Down the NFL Conference Championship Games; Smartphones Getting Smarter
Aired January 22, 2011 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: It is the biggest mob bust in U.S. history. (INAUDIBLE) more than 140 alleged members of mafia families. You'll hear from a mafia insider.
If you've got an iPhone, your security could be at risk. We'll have a demo and show you why.
And countdown to the Super Bowl. We'll have predictions on which teams will make it, from -- rather, not one but two Super Bowl vets, Fran Tarkenton and Jamal Anderson.
And then look at this -- legal prostitution in the United States. We'll take you to the Bunny Ranch near Las Vegas in a special investigations report.
(MUSIC)
SAVIDGE: Hello. I'm Martin Savidge at the CNN NEWSROOM in Atlanta. Those distinctive stories and a lot more news to get you caught up on right now. Let's get right to it.
Topping the news, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords looks spectacular. That word from Dr. Dong Kim at Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston. Giffords was transferred there Friday to continue her recovery and rehabilitation from a bullet through the brain in a failed assassination attempt two weeks ago. The latest on the Congresswoman's condition is coming up just ahead.
Doctors and lawyers now have a better grasp on the mental health of the alleged Fort Hood Texas shooter. A Fort Hood spokesman says a psychological evaluation on Major Nidal Hasan has been completed. It's still not known whether it found Hasan confident to face court martial. Hasan could be executed if found guilty in the killings of 13 people and the wounding of 32 others in November of 2009.
Next, friends, family, a former president and many others gathered together to say goodbye to Sargent Shriver at a funeral service in Maryland. Shriver, who died Tuesday, was the first director of the Peace Corps, the 1972 Democratic nominee for vice president, and with his wife Eunice Shriver, the guiding force behind the Special Olympics.
Former President Bill Clinton remembered Shriver as always energetic and full of happiness.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WILLIAM J. CLINTON, 42CD PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I had the opportunity to observe him in two settings which answered a question that even in the most hopeful times was hard to answer with a straight face. Could anybody really be as good as he seemed to be? I mean, come on now.
(LAUGHTER)
CLINTON: Come on. Every other man in this church feels about two inches tall right now.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: Sargent Shriver died at the age of 95.
Moving on to our next story -- violent clashes today between protesters and police in North Africa. Demonstrators hit the streets in Algeria and called for Democratic reforms, security forces pushed back enforcing a government ban on protests. Eleven people in the crowd and eight policemen were hurt according to reports. This comes soon after protests in neighboring Tunisia led to the end of the president's 23-year long rule there.
Next --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEITH OLBERMANN, FORMER MSNBC ANCHOR: This is the last edition of "Countdown." Good night and good luck.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: And that's that for Keith Olbermann, parting ways with MSNBC. Olbermann shocked viewers when he announced he's leaving the network and his show "Countdown" after eight years. Now, neither he nor the network is saying whether he quit or was fired. Olbermann was MSNBC's biggest star, but he has some very public disagreements with management over the years.
Next -- a high-powered team of advisers has taken on the case of former Haitian dictator, Jean-Claude Duvalier. The former leader is accused of pillaging Haiti's wealth during his years in charge. But he made a surprise return to the country last weekend after 25 years in exile.
Former U.S. Congressman Bob Barr is in Haiti at request of Duvalier. Barr tells CNN why the man known as Baby Doc decided to return.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BOB BARR, FORMER U.S. CONGRESSMAN (via telephone): He was very well aware of the risks, personal risks, that he faced in coming back to Haiti, but that paled in comparison to the needs of his people in Haiti. What he would like to do is to see funds made available to help in the relief effort which by any reasonable estimate here has not progressed well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: Next -- in North Carolina, an arrest warrant has been issued for Ann Pettway, suspected of kidnapping an infant in New York City in 1987 and raising her as her own daughter. That girl is Carlina White, now an adult with a child of her own. She was reunited with a biological family this week. Carlina discovered her true identity during an Internet search when she found an old newspaper article and a baby picture about her disappearance.
Police in central California have called off a search in irrigation canal for a missing 4-year-old boy. Police say 27-year-old Jose Esteban Rodriguez grabbed Juliani Cardenas from his friend of his arms Tuesday and then fled in a silver Toyota Corolla. Rodriguez is the ex-boyfriend of the boy's mother. A farm worker says he saw a Toyota with the man and a boy in it plunged into the canal on Wednesday.
Reggie Kumar with our affiliate KRON is on the phone from Patterson, California.
Reggie, they stopped the search for good or just for tonight?
REGGIE KUMAR, KRON REPORTER (via telephone): Not for good. They're going to regroup, get some much needed rest and will resume in 48 hours. They wouldn't give us an exact date as to when that will be, either Monday or Tuesday. They just say they need some much needed rest.
And, like you mentioned, Marty, investigators spent much of Saturday searching Delta-Mendota canal for the 2003 Toyota Corolla, the car the suspected kidnapper Jose Rodriguez is believed to have been driving when he reportedly abducted the 4-year-old Juliani Cardenas from his grandmother's home in Patterson.
Now, investigators today used sonar equipment and searched two miles of that canal. They recovered a stolen Nissan truck from the water, not the Corolla. So far, they pulled five stolen cars from the water and none of them matched the description of the suspect's car, Marty.
SAVIDGE: Reggie, I mean, fortunately, they have not found, I guess, the vehicle. That is a good thing in that canal. But five vehicles pulled from the same canal? I mean, how unusual is that?
KUMAR: It's very unusual you and they say they've been able to solve a lot of stolen vehicle cases now, because now, they know this is a huge dumping ground for criminals. They use this canal to dump stolen vehicles, and get rid of them that way. SAVIDGE: Reggie Kumar, thanks for the update. We'll stay in touch with you.
Now, listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: From Seattle and I started when I was 16.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I got started in the sex industry when I was 15.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I've been in the game since I was 13.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: Legal prostitutes talk about their profitable trade but they're disturbing past still haunts them. You'll hear for it yourselves. It's a CNN special investigation.
And then a horrible traffic accident is caught on dash cam. You'll see it play out, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: Some amazing video now. Here's the hint. Watch the left side of the screen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(EXPLETIVE DELETED)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You OK?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes (EXPLETIVE DELETED)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: A heart-pounding visual out of Canada captures a tractor trailer out of control. It happened on Highway 401 near the New York state border. The truck was carrying more than 30 tons of sand when it broke through the guard rail. Nobody was hurt. Officers charged the truck driver with careless driving. He blamed poor driving conditions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL FRANZESE, FMR. ORGANIZED CRIME FAMILY MEMBER: No. I did not order hit. But, listen, you know, you're part of the life. Violence is a part of that life. And, unfortunately, it's all around you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: A former mafia insider is candid about the underworld. You'll hear what he has to say on the heels of the biggest mob bust in U.S. history. That's next.
And then, if you own an iPhone, there are new apps available that work like a credit card, but they come with security risks.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: The FBI calls it the biggest mafia kicked out in bureau history. More than 120 alleged mob figures arrested in just one day. A list of charge is a mile long, including murder, labor racketeering, illegal gambling, arson and narcotics trafficking.
Susan Candiotti has been following all of this for us.
And, Susan, you've got some reaction to this massive bust, right?
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I do, Marty, yes, indeed.
You know, watching from the sidelines this week, Michael Franzese, as a made man with the Colombo family, Franzese admits to skimming more than $8 million a week in fuel taxes. He spent seven years in prison and then did the unheard of. He left the mob. His own brother sold out their father, who at age 94 will likely spend the rest of his life in prison.
So, when it comes to the latest mafia roundup, Franzese has seen it all before.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: What is it like to belong to a family? What did it mean?
FRANZESE: I was very attracted to the life because, you know, when you come in, I remember when I was proposed, they told me, Michael, from now on, wherever you go in the world, you're going to have somebody, a brother, to back you up. You know, I got your back. You got mine. Nobody's ever going to bump you, your mother, your sister and your wife. You know, you've got brothers.
I don't glorify the life, and I'll tell you, one of the reasons that I have such a problem with it is I have not met one family of one member of that life that hasn't been totally devastated. And I don't mean hurt, I mean devastated, OK? Including my own. Dad gone away 30-some odd years, just another eight years at 94 years old. Mother without a husband for all of these years. My brother is now in the witness protection program, testified against my dad. Two sisters that died at a young age.
It's devastating to the family. It's a horrible life in that regard.
CANDIOTTI: If it's such a hard life, why people are still attracted to it?
FRANZESE: You know, that's a great question. And it fascinates me myself because I speak to a lot of young people. A lot of gang banger so on and so forth, try to tell them, you know, the mistakes I've made and have them not go down that road. And they'll talk to me about "Goodfellas," and about "Casino," and they'll look at that movie and they're so fascinated with the guys. And I say to them, but wait a second, did you see what happened to those guys -- who got killed, went to jail, whose family got destroyed? They don't see that part. I'm telling you, they don't see it.
They only see the money, the power, the suits, the way they carry themselves, and it's a fascination that I don't believe is going to go away.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CANDIOTTI: Franzese is now a born-again Christian, an author, a motivational speaker, and a son who still visits his mobster dad in prison.
Now, Curtis Sliwa is also weighing in on this week's mafia bust. You probably know him as the founder of the citizen's patrol called the Guardian Angels. You might not remember the Sliwa was believed to be the victim of a mob hit back in the '90s. He was then set up and shot in the back of a New York City cab after criticizing mob boss John Gotti.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CURTIS SLIWA, FOUNDER, GUARDIAN ANGELS: The RICO statutes have been so effective and naturally modern technology. Getting some of these lifelong criminals to wire themselves up like Christmas trees and go in and take meetings, and you would think they would have TSA agents doing invasive body checks like they do to us in the airports. These knuckleheads, they don't even search their own guys. And we learn of 120, 140 tapes live on Memorex that sinks many of their boats.
So, really, is for those two reasons that many of them are going off in perpetuity and why so many of them are deciding to put the script, join Team America and do the unthinkable -- rat out their fellow cohorts.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CANDIOTTI: The FBI says arresting and convicting capos and their top soldiers of the five mob families hasn't stopped the mafia, but tougher laws, technology and informants are a help in slowing them down -- Marty.
SAVIDGE: Yes, a very interesting takes on what's a bad week for the mob. Thanks very much, Susan Candiotti.
CANDIOTTI: Exactly.
SAVIDGE: Well, a peek inside the profitable trade of legal prostitution, in a rural county in Nevada. But these women also have stories that haunt them. A CNN special report is just ahead. But, first, we take a look at what actor Matthew McConaughey is doing to help kids develop healthy habits for life in this segment of "Impact Your World."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY, J.K. LIVIN FOUNDATION: Hi. I'm Matthew McConaughey and we can make an impact on kids' lives by teaching them to exercise right, eat healthy, and make the best life choices they can so they can grow up and be the best men and women they can be. That's what we're trying to do with the Just Keep Livin Foundation.
So, it's about making the choices where you can be the best you can be, the happiest you can be in your own life.
Join the movement. "Impact Your World" at CNN.com/Impact.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: We want to share some viral videos that caught our attention this week.
First up, the future of 3-D imaging.
You can see small devices attached to his temples, but his eyes flutter wildly and then listen to the description.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It feels really real. I could even touch it. The quality is really amazing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: We're not convinced movie audiences will go for it, but it's definitely one of the stranger videos that we saw this week.
And ever wonder what makes normally sane people go ice fishing in the dead of winter? Here's why.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's kicking. Yes. This thing is (INAUDIBLE).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my goodness, dude! Holy buckets! Oh, this thing is a hog! Holy (EXPLETIVE DELETED)!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: These guys e-mailed CNN after we contacted them. It's Jeremy Rehberg (ph) and Jason Graettinger (ph), two diehard ice fishermen in Wisconsin who post their adventures online on the Web site Jigheadstv.com and they caught this whopper on Lake Superior. As you can see, it's almost too big to fit through the hole.
They say these giant lake trout are very rare and they grow very slowly because of the extreme cold. This one is probably about 30 years old. After documenting the fish, they let it go.
Anyone with small children is familiar with Dr. Seuss. And I promise you've never heard it like this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Take it slowly. This book is dangerous. (INAUDIBLE).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: The girl, she has a special talent for speed talking. And she wowed the crowd by blasting through the book in just over two minutes. If you're in a hurry to get your kids or grandkids to sleep well, you might want to let them watch this video.
Next, two huge NFL playoff games tomorrow. We'll talk about it with a couple of Super Bowl veterans. Hall of Fame quarterback Fran Tarkenton and former pro bowl running back Jamal Anderson. You'll want to hear what they had to say. We might even get some predictions.
But first -- Superintendent Andres Alonso is a lawyer brought in to fix Baltimore City school system. And in three years, he has achieved record high graduation rates in a city where more than 80 percent of the students are on free or reduced priced meals.
CNN education contributor Steve Perry sat down with Alonso to find out how he's turning around one of the most troubled school systems in the country.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. STEVE PERRY, CNN EDUCATION CONTRIBUTOR: What's a Harvard educated lawyer doing running Baltimore city schools?
ANDRES ALONSO, BALTIMORE CITY PUBLIC SCHOOL: Sense of insanity, maybe.
PERRY (voice-over): After working as deputy chancellor in New York City's Department of Education, Andres Alonzo took on Baltimore's troubles in 2007. The impoverished and crime-ridden city had gone through six school superintendents in six years.
(on camera): You're a bit of a swashbuckler. You come down here, and you made it clear that things will never be the same.
ALONSO: I believe as we should all believe that every kid must learn, can learn, that you cannot use poverty as an excuse. That you have to do whatever is necessary to make sure that our kids learn.
PERRY: Seventy-five percent of your principals are new? ALONSO: That is correct. There are so many people in schools that are invested and want to do what's right. We are the examples. I mean, our teachers, they approved the contract where they will no longer get paid every year on the basis of seniority. They will get paid every year on the basis of their ability to prove their effectiveness.
PERRY (voice-over): The details of the evaluation system are still being worked out, but it will be tied to student testing. Alonzo also closed failing schools, let's students choose their schools, and gave principals full control over the school's budgets.
KAREN WEBBER-NDOUR, PRINCIPAL, NATL. ACADEMY FOUNDATION H.S.: In order to retain the best teachers in the classroom you have to give them respect and the tools they need to do their job. And so, by Dr. Alonso pushing the resources to me as a principal, I can push them down to the teachers so that they can get into the classrooms.
PERRY (on camera): Would you send your daughter to your school?
WEBBER-NDOUR: Absolutely. That's the measure.
PERRY: Steve Perry, Baltimore.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: It is Super Bowl decision time. The Green Bay Packers travel to Chicago tomorrow -- in case you didn't know -- to face the Bears. And then the New York Jets, they'll be in Pittsburgh to play the Steelers. The winners will be moving on to Dallas in two weeks for some big event down there we've heard of.
Hall of Fame quarterback Fran Tarkenton, who played in three Super Bowls, is here, along with former pro-bowl running back Jamal Anderson, also a Super Bowl veteran.
Great to have you both here with us. Thanks very much.
FRAN TARKENTON, NFL HALL OF FAME QUARTERBACK: Thank you very much. If any of those teams have this guy to be running back for them, they'd win. The Packers would really like to have Jamal Anderson in their backfield.
JAMAL ANDERSON, FORMER PRO BOWL RUNNING BACK: I bet they would, as a matter of fact.
(LAUGHTER)
SAVIDGE: Well, let's talk about Green Bay and Chicago. You know, that game coming up tomorrow, and I'm wondering, how big of an advantage is it for Chicago to have a home field, Fran?
TARKENTON: I think it's a big advantage. But I played in the Soldiers Field many times because I'm in the black and blue division. The winds roar off Lake Michigan. It's the worst turf in football and Green Bay is built for speed and passing. And this is a slow field. It will help Chicago a lot. Don't you think, Jamal?
ANDERSON: I do. You know, it's interesting, though, in this day and age that the field is going to be a condition, but we saw the last game the Chicago Bears hosted. But the thing is, and Fran knows this, Aaron Rodgers, the way he's playing quarterback position, and the Chicago Bears, they're known for defense. They've been outstanding all year long.
But Aaron Rodgers and the way the Packers wide receivers have been playing, I know they're going to be outside. We're not talking about in the Georgia Dome again. Thanks goodness.
SAVIDGE: Well, yes, I mean, that's a good point. Both of these quarterbacks are accustomed to playing in cold weather. That's obviously very good for them. Key, though, to their play?
ANDERSON: You know, I wouldn't necessarily say -- well, the thing is, Green Bay Packers, all of a sudden, have a running game and they're just on fire right now. This is a team that had some injuries throughout the beginning of the season. All of a sudden, everything is coming together right now.
And the Chicago Bears, the big key for them is Jay Cutler, you know? Can Cutler do it? You know what to expect from a defense, Matt Forte is going to be there, but can Jay Cutler come in and get it done?
TARKENTON: Here's the big question mark. Hester, if he -- if he runs kickoffs or punch back what he's capable of doing, he could be a difference. But I think Green Bay and Pittsburgh are the clear favorites.
But I think the team that could upset the most is Chicago, because they play tough defense and they played in Green Bay a few weeks ago and it was 10-3 Green Bay at home in good conditions and they won't be as good of conditions this time. The weather and the field hinders a great quarterback like Aaron Rodgers.
SAVIDGE: So it's really almost too cold?
TARKENTON: Well, it's the wind. You know, the wind there on that field. It's either right dead in your face or it's right at your back. And that affects field position. When you punt the ball 30 yards down the field, kicks off short against - when you throw into that wind, you can maybe judge it to 30 yards. Wind's at your back, it sails on you.
The strength of Green Bay is the passing game with great speed and Aaron Rodgers. Aaron Rodgers and (INAUDIBLE) playing better than any quarterback in football, but that is nullified to some extent by the conditions of the field and the weather.
SAVIDGE: All right. Let's move on to the other games and that the Jets and Pittsburgh. You know, we look at the quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers here, and you know, he really has -
TARKENTON: He's not a quarterback. He's a bear.
ANDERSON: Yes, yes.
SAVIDGE: One of his own.
ANDERSON: He's huge. I mean, think about this, though. The beginning of the season, this is a guy who is suspended four games. Everything that he went through, in fact, the Steelers traded away their Super Bowl MVP from a year ago.
So I mean, the teams that we're talking about in the final round, the Packers suffered tremendous injuries in running back position and tight end position. You're talking about two big players for the packers. You look at the Steelers, what happened to Roethlisberger. They traded away a guy who is going to come back now in Santonio Holmes, and then the Jets, there was a point in the season, Martin, in fact, the last time they went to Pittsburgh, they had to win that game to even qualify for the playoffs.
So it's interesting that these are the teams that are going for it, because what they've done, in the off-season, obviously, Rex Ryan and his love of things that we put on or cleats for, you know.
SAVIDGE: But Rex has been very quiet this week.
TARKENTON: Right. Because the Steelers are playing in a high level. Their defense is giving up nothing. Dick Lebeau played against, he's the guy that invented the zone blitz, the coordinator for the Steelers. He'll have blitzes Mark Sanchez has never seen, and Polamalu will be a factor in the game, and it's going to be hard to score points. If you don't get a short - on this game, they're not going to be many points. I think the Steelers have a really good edge in this game.
SAVIDGE: Well, as a quarterback, I mean, do you think that Roethlisberger has sort of come back here because of what happened to him in the beginning of the season than motivated him?
TARKENTON: No, no. Football players play football. All THE things around us are what they are, he came back, he's a football player. You know, he's quarterback to a world championship team. Two Super Bowl teams. Pittsburgh always has great talent, they got a great organization. We got three of the oldest franchises in football. Green bay, Pittsburgh, Chicago.
ANDERSON: Right, it's classic.
TARKENTON: It's classic. And Pittsburgh will be really tough and Sanchez is still a work in progress.
ANDERSON: Right.
TARKENTON: And to go and play in this game is a real challenge. He's held up amazingly well, but this is a different team than New England. New England had no running game. New England had not the strong physical defense that he's going to see tomorrow. Pittsburgh will be tough.
SAVIDGE: Yes, and I don't want to waste this opportunity, because we're running out of time and I want to get your predictions. What do you think of the outcome?
ANDERSON: Well, I agree with what he said. The biggest key for the Jets and the Steelers game is Troy Polamalu, who was not in this game. I really wanted to ask, because everybody's been asking me this week. If Ben wins a third ring, if Ben gets past the Jets this week, where's his legacy?
TARKENTON: Well, I always feel that it's a team game. Isn't it not?
SAVIDGE: Right.
TARKENTON: Teams win. Individuals don't. And the team wins. I think - I think Roethlisberger is a big game player. He's an awkward guy. We've never seen a quarterback quite like him. He's very effective. Got pretty good players on that team, too. I think Pittsburgh will win and I think Green Bay will win.
SAVIDGE: The Super Bowl pick.
ANDERSON: You know, I think, Martin, as a fan, for some reason, I'm like, what the Packers have done on the road and what the Jets have done on the road, both of those teams are strong. You can go on the road and win both games the way these two teams have done, I feel pretty good about both of them coming into, but I would like to see the Bears and Steelers. But we'll see.
SAVIDGE: Now, that's the team match up my wife picked.
TARKENTON: Bears/Steelers. It could be.
SAVIDGE: Yes.
TARKENTON: It could be and I'd like to see the Packers/Steelers. I think they're the best two teams. I think that'll be one really good Super Bowl. But the Packers in that weather, still a challenge running the ball. They don't have Ryan Grant in there. They need this guy. If they had this guy they'd walk this game.
SAVIDGE: Yes. Well, it will be classic.
TARKENTON: It's going to be classic.
ANDERSON: As a football purist, Martin, you've got to love this, especially the Chicago-Green Bay. The first time that they're meeting in a championship game. Big.
SAVIDGE: All right. I'm a Browns' fan. So I'd like to see those -
(INAUDIBLE)
ANDERSON: You'll get there one year.
TARKENTON: You got members of Jimmy Brown. That's enough.
(CROSSTALK)
SAVIDGE: Fran Tarkenton and Jamal Anderson, thanks. Great to see you.
TARKENTON: Thank you.
SAVIDGE: Well, a cool app for your iPhone is making it easy to swipe it and pay in Starbucks. But there are some security risks. You'll see them all ahead.
And we all know prostitution is illegal in America. But there is a place called the Bunny Ranch, near Las Vegas, where it's not. We'll take you on a tour, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: Prostitution is illegal in America, with the exception of a few rural counties in Nevada. CNN Amber Lyon spent a year investigating the illegal trafficking of under aged girls in America. It's a brutal trade affecting up to 300,000 American children.
She went to America's most famous legal brothel, that's the Moonlite Bunny Ranch. The women who work there do so freely and they make good money. But as Amber discovered many are still haunted by their past.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DENNIS HOF, MOONLITE BUNCH RANCH: Hi, honey. How are you?
There's a lot of sexual trafficking going on in Las Vegas.
AMBER LYON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dennis Hof, he's been called America's pimp master general, but he considers himself a businessman.
HOF: Hey, I love it.
LYON: And what he does is legal. Hof is the owner of the most famous legal brothel in America, the Moonlite Bunny Ranch.
It's the setting for HBO's long-running reality series "Cat House."
HOF: People love the sex business, and I love being a part of it.
LYON: What he doesn't love are pimps.
(on camera): You're saying pimps to stop. HOF: I think pimps are the worst leeches in the world. It's in Birmingham. It's in Charleston. It's everywhere. It's everywhere in America, there are pimps that are trying to grab the life of young girls and take them away from their families.
LYON: And what types of money are pimps pulling in?
HOF: Oh, tens of thousands of dollars a week.
LYON: A week?
HOF: Oh, yes, absolutely.
LYON: What is it with underage girls? Why do pimps make more money off them? Why are there so many underage girls?
HOF: They're easily manipulated. They're young. They're naive. But the price they pay is horrendous.
LYON (voice-over): Hof says he wants to set the record straight, let the public know that life in his legal brothel is a far cry from the lives of most American prostitutes.
HOF: Ladies, this is Amber. She's here to visit you, to spend some time with you girls. She wants to be with you all.
(INAUDIBLE) every buck or two, come in and make their money, and go back home and live their life.
Want me to walk you around and show you everything?
LYON (on camera): Yes.
HOF: There are just rooms down here and the girls decorate them like they want. We want people to be comfortable. LED plasma TVs.
LYON: Yes, it looks just like a regular bedroom. What is this?
HOF: This is a swing.
LYON: I don't quite know how this works.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's really easy. It's great.
LYON: Let's move on to the next room. There's boobs in the hallway. It's just boobs.
(voice-over): The women are in the safest and most profitable environment possible for a sex worker.
HOF: This is used one day a week for a couple of hours.
LYON: They're tested weekly for STDs. They have panic buttons in their room that they can hit if a client gets out of line, and they also keep half of their cash.
Some make six figure incomes.
(on camera): So, I know you guys are all of age now and you're in the business now legally. But how many of you were sex trafficked underage when you started in the business, can you raise your hand real high?
So, we have one two three.
(voice-over): We counted hands and asked the women to tell us their stories.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm from Seattle, and I started hoeing when I was 16.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I got started in the sex industry when I was 15.
JAZZY, BUNNY RANCH GIRL: I've been in the game since I was 13.
LYON: All were effectively sex slaves controlled by pimps and all were sold online.
JAZZY: Virginity wasn't an option where I came from. You know, it was taken from you. And so, when you -- when you get into the game or when you like have somebody tell you, you know, you can sleep with me for money and you've already lost your virginity, you're just like, why not? Like, you know, it's like, why not? You know, sex is not as sacred as it once was.
LYON: Amber Lyon, CNN, Carson City, Nevada.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SAVIDGE: "SELLING THE GIRL NEXT DOOR" airs Sunday night, 8:00 Eastern and immediately following this news cast right here on CNN.
New Smartphone apps are making it easier to pay your bills using your cell phone, but there could be security drawbacks. We'll in fact give you a demo, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: This week, Starbucks introduced a way to pay by smartphone. It is part of a growing trend to skip checkout lines by just pulling out your cell.
CNNMoney's Laurie Segall has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAURIE SEGALL, CNNMONEY.COM (on camera): As more and more people are using smart phones, developers are coming out with different ways for consumers to actually use their phone as their wallet. Instead of something like this, we'd eventually be able to use this.
Starbucks is one of the first companies trying out a mobile payment app. It's very easy. It works like your Starbucks card. You can literally plug in your Starbucks card number into the mobile app, take it up front, and scan your phone and when you're done, you can get your coffee, you can reload it through the app. Very, very simple.
So can I get an Americana with skim milk and foam, please. Awesome.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What size?
SEGALL: Let's go with venti. So it's very easy. When I want to pay all I have to do is touch this, and then ready to scan, right?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
SEGALL: Awesome, great.
(voice-over): And they're not the only ones who let you buy a mochacino with your mobile. The next time you head for coffee with your friend, (INAUDIBLE) text messaging. Venmo lets you pay your friend back for coffee, movie tickets, and whatever else, simply by texting them money.
You just link up the app to a credit card or a bank account for free. In addition, Venmo is working with smaller businesses like food, trucks and cafes so they can accept payments this way.
There's another app called bump, that allows people to bump their phones together to exchange money. Originally used to trade information like contacts and pictures, bump is now expanding its service to facilitate mobile payments via PayPal.
Finally, the real buzz is around NFC, near field communication. This is when the phone itself has technology integrated inside of it that allows it to trade information with another device up to four inches away. It is just starting to be rolled out in the U.S., but with this technology, you're going to be able to pay for subways, fast food and other goods and services simply by holding your phone near the receiver.
Whether you want to bump it, beam it or text it, your phone is quickly becoming an alternative to your wallet.
In New York, Laurie Segall, reporting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SAVIDGE: We were just talking and they actually use it a lot in Europe, have done for years. But as smartphones get smarter they also get riskier. Now when someone steals your phone, you run the risk of them not only emptying your bank accounts, say by ordering 4,000 lattes from Starbucks and the question is how can you better protect your smartphone?
Cyber security expert Gregory Evans is here and he's got some advice. You know, when you hear about that effort, regarding what you can buy at Starbucks, what do you think?
GREGORY EVANS, CYBER SECURITY EXPERT: First of all, it just proves that the United States is behind the times. In Europe, they've had this technology for years. So it's a plus tool. I mean, it's convenient. Now, you don't have to reach into your wallet, pull out a credit card. Now you can have just your phone, already in your hand, have it scan and it's great, I mean, you pay for your item, and you continue to just keep going.
SAVIDGE: But if my phone is stolen, that means somebody is running up -
EVANS: That's the problem. Say, they're building the technology. The more convenient, the more risk that's going to be out there in anything that you do. So what you have to do which is very important. If you download this application, what you want to do is make sure you have your phone set up, password protected. So if you ever set your phone down for five minutes, it goes into lock mode.
SAVIDGE: I see.
EVANS: So if someone steals your phone, they just can't just grab it and go to the next convenience store and just start purchasing.
SAVIDGE: OK. Well, it isn't just purchasing things. There are other ways that your phone can actually be sort of broken into.
EVANS: Correct.
SAVIDGE: Even over long distance?
EVANS: Yes, there are other ways people can do it and even through applications, they just showed bump. Bump is something I use on the iPhone. I meet someone and so I try to give them my number. We just bump. But if we bump what exactly information is it really taking from my phone? You have to remember that, and then you can get spyware on your phone, they can steal that whole application along with your credit card and other information that's on there.
SAVIDGE: All right. Let's talk specifically about voicemail. This I found pretty fascinating. And you've got a demonstration for us.
EVANS: That is correct. What we're going to do is we're going to demonstrate how easy it is to listen to someone else's voicemail without knowing their pass code. There's caller I.D. services out there that allow you to change, they call them call I.D. spoofing. It allows you to call a number, and have any number show up in a person's caller I.D..
SAVIDGE: OK. You're going to call this number?
EVANS: If I call this number and put this number in the caller I.D., it will send me the voicemail. But to prove to your audience that this is a real cell phone and a real number, I'm just going to dial this number real quick and it will show CNN demo. We put CNN demo so we will not be displaying the phone number to this phone.
SAVIDGE: Wait for it. There it comes up.
EVANS: There you go. CNN demo.
SAVIDGE: Yes. OK.
EVANS: OK. That's my personal phone. I don't want that number there.
SAVIDGE: Step one works.
EVANS: Yes, step one works. Now, how the technology works, and this is what we're about to do. We're going to call this number, this phone and we're going to put this number in the caller I.D. and it's going to send me directly into this call, this phone company's - this person's phone and I can listen to the messages.
If there's any messages I can change the pass code or whatever. So I think there are, they're already ready to go and just display and call this number as we speak.
SAVIDGE: So this is being done remotely by someone on a computer?
EVANS: Right. You can do this. You can go to hackmyvoicemail.com and check to see if your voice mail is hackable. But the caller I.D. services that are out there, like the spoof tales or the spoof themes, they allow you to go ahead and do it. We're calling now on the CNN demo and we're calling this number. We're going to answer this phone here and we're going to put it on speaker. And we're calling this phone here in a second. This is going to put me directly into the voice mail.
SAVIDGE: So in theory, I'm going to be able to eavesdrop on your voice mail.
EVANS: That is correct. You can listen - you will be able to listen in and hear all the information of this phone. For instance, right now, I think we are connected. I think - I think your CNN people in the back are the ones that are making the - doing the demonstration here. So and I don't think your callers can actually hear that we're actually in their voice mail as we speak.
SAVIDGE: But had it worked, though, you would have been -- a stranger could have dialed in and listened in to your voice mail and other voice mails.
EVANS: And see it's very scary. What happens, how you have to protect yourself is, when you check your voice mail from your phone, you want to make sure that you have to enter a pass code. If you don't have to enter a pass code, that means anybody can call your number, put your number in the caller I.D., and the cell phone company will think that you're trying to check your voice mail. And it will put that person directly in your voice mail and they can listen to your messages. SAVIDGE: Who is doing this? I mean, who would gain from listening -
EVANS: Well, just think about it. You may have an ex-husband, a crazy girlfriend or you might be the CEO of a big "Fortune" 500 company and know your I.T. department or you didn't know or no one is aware that you should password protect your actual voice mail if you're calling it from your actual phone. You may protect your phone if, you know, go into lock mode. But it does not protect it in your voice mail.
So if you're someone high profile, I can listen to all your messages by just calling in and that's kind of scary. I don't need to know your pass code whatsoever.
SAVIDGE: So my protection then is to institute a pass code, you say? If my phone has it.
EVANS: Right.
SAVIDGE: Do all phones have that ability?
EVANS: Yes, they do. And some come with it, some of them did not. Before the iPhones, you were able to listen to anybody's voice mail if they had an iPhone. So the 10, 20, 30 million iPhones out there, the reason why is the iPhones allowed - had visual voice mail. They didn't give you an option of entering a pass code.
Now, if you try to call and do it, AT&T and Apple have worked together to put in technology in there so you will not be able to listen to an iPhone user's voice mail.
SAVIDGE: OK. So if I want to find this, I go into my settings on my phone, is that where I'm going to find that?
EVANS: Right. Not in your phone. As I said, you have to call into your voice mail, go into password options, and what you want to do is you want to say turn on password. And that's universal, no matter who your carrier is.
SAVIDGE: OK.
EVANS: And what type of phone it is. Not just smartphones, it is any type of phone.
SAVIDGE: Very good advice. I will tell you this, I already have that.
EVANS: You already have that.
SAVIDGE: Yes.
EVANS: Well, that's a good thing too.
SAVIDGE: Well I know people who have this option where they just go automatically to their voice mail - EVANS: Right.
SAVIDGE: And there is no pass code and I learned a long time ago that you should.
EVANS: You definitely do that. Definitely.
SAVIDGE: Thank you, sir.
EVANS: No. Thank you. Appreciate it.
SAVIDGE: Gregory Evans, thank you very much for an insight there on security with your phone and what can happen.
A California woman undergoes a rare operation that enables her to speak again. You will hear her next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SAVIDGE: Every weekend we like to bring you interesting news items that you might have missed during the week. For a lot of students, get this, the first two years of college are a big waste of time. That is the headline and a scary one for any parent who is paying tuition from a new study called "Academically Adrift," which surveyed 3,000 students in 29 campuses nationwide. The study finds that 45 percent of college sophomores had no significant gains in learning after two years on campus.
According to study results published in the "USA Today," college students that spend most of their time socializing and about a quarter of their time sleeping.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
SAVIDGE: That's the sound of the number one record, but (INAUDIBLE) number one isn't what it used to be. That's the bank "Cake" and their new "Showroom of Compassion" album is the poorest selling album to reach number one since 1991. It sold only 44,000 copies last week. In case you didn't know, digital music is king. Last week, music fans bought more than 400,000 digital copies of Britney Spears' newest single.
Controversy and an apology marked a very busy week in office for the new Alabama governor, Robert Bentley. Shortly after his swearing in, he told a King Day Church audience that if you haven't accepted Jesus Christ as your savior "you're not my brother and you're not my sister, and I want to be your brother."
Well, those comments didn't sit well with some religious leaders. One of whom said that he felt disenfranchised. At midweek, the governor held a meeting with members of Alabama's Jewish community and the Baptist minister and said he was sorry, he didn't mean to offend anyone and in his words, "if you are not a person who can say you're sorry, you're not a very good governor."
And a Sacramento woman is celebrating the success of a rare operation, a voice box transplant. This week Brenda Jensen reunited with a team of surgeons who implanted a voice box, windpipe and thyroid gland in her three months ago. According to our affiliate, KCRA, the "Modesto Bee" reports that Jensen lost her vocal cords after she kept pulling out her breathing tube during a kidney operation 13 years ago. She had been using a device in order to speak.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRENDA JENSEN, LARYNX TRANSPLANT RECIPIENT: This was my 80th operation and -
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Eightieth, right?
JENSEN: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Eight zero.
JENSEN: And every time you have surgery, there is always a risk. But after 12 years of putting up with a lot of humiliation, a lot of teasing, not only from the kids, but from adults, staring because I talked with a mechanical machine, and I sounded like a robot, and everywhere I was people turned their heads. And it was frustrating. But I had to live with it.
But when this opportunity came up, I wanted to do it. I was ready to go. I wanted to talk again and I'm doing it. So it was very much worth it to me. Well, my daughter, she called me on the phone when she heard that I was talking. And from what I understand she cried like a baby when she first heard me talk.
And my 12-year-old granddaughter, Samara, she never heard my voice before because it was 12 years ago since I spoke and she only knew me as talking with my mechanical robot voice. And she called my machine the talkie-talkie machine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAVIDGE: Jensen's voice box transplant is only the second of its kind ever performed successfully. Congratulations to all of them.
It is being called a house of horrors. An abortion clinic where babies were allegedly murdered. We'll have a live report from Philadelphia ahead at 10:00 Eastern.
I'm Martin Savidge at CNN Center in Atlanta. I'm on Facebook and on Twitter. "PRESUMED GUILTY: MURDER IN WEST MEMPHIS" is next.
