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State of Emergency: Wildfires in Oklahoma; E. Coli Outbreak at Alabama Water Park Hospitalizes Half Dozen Children; CNN Sports Icon Dies; Advice on Debt Reduction; Criminal With Hostage Updates Facebook Page During Standoff With Police; NASCAR Drivers Discuss Their Sport

Aired June 25, 2011 - 14:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: You're in the CNN NEWSROOM where the news unfolds live this Saturday, June 25th. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

Keeping watch on the rising river in Minot, North Dakota, we should see it crest in ten hours or so from now. About a fifth of the city is underwater with the floodwaters already at record levels. Now people in the nearby small town of Sawyer are being told to evacuate.

Wildfires in Oklahoma forcing the governor there to declare emergencies in 33 counties. Thousands of acres are burning. Some residents in central Oklahoma were forced to evacuate. Making matters worse, the drought and heat could spread those fires.

And a half dozen children are in the hospital after an e. coli outbreak in Alabama. It developed severe gastrointestinal illnesses after visiting an indoor water park in Opelika. The health department was temporary closed -- or has temporary closed the splash park while it runs tests.

Legendary mob boss Whitey Bulger is behind bars this weekend in Plymouth, Massachusetts. He had been on the run for 16 years until the FBI caught up with him on Wednesday in southern California. Bulger faces numerous charges, including murder and racketeering.

And just as everyone started to settle in for another day of testimony in the Casey Anthony murder trial, the judge said no court today, come back Monday. CNN's David Mattingly is outside the courthouse.

So explain, David, what happened?

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I wish I could explain, Fredricka, as does everyone else here covering the trial. But what happened this morning, everyone was in place when the judge and the attorneys went into a closed door session. This is something that is unusual. Usually they do all their discussions in a side bar in front of everyone in the courtroom. This time they went behind a closed door, took the court reporter with them for record, and they emerged sometime later, and the judge had this to say to the surprised courtroom.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JUDGE BELVIN PERRY, ORANGE COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT: As both sides concurred that a legal issue has arisen unrelated to the issue that we talked about first thing this morning, dealing with Dr. Fern that would necessitate us recessing for today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Now, what could that legal issue be? Could it be something minor that only affects the scheduling of this trial, makes it go maybe a day or so longer? Or is this something that could have some sort of impact on the outcome of this trial? That would be something very serious. That could be a problem with a juror, a problem with one of the witnesses, a problem with some of the testimony we've already heard, or a problem with one of the attorneys in this case.

We just don't know at this point. You know how much speculation has been going on with every step of this trial. This latest move just takes it up to a new notch, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: David Mattingly, thanks so much, in Orlando, appreciate that.

All right, I'm not sure where we're going next. All right, let's go to New York. How about that? Well, New Yorkers woke up today with a new law on the books. The state Senate passed a bill last night legalizing same-sex marriage. The vote followed intense last minute negotiations. Let's turn now to David Ariosto covering the story now from New York right now. Give me an idea how it all played out last night, in the wee hours.

DAVID ARIOSTO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. It was in the wee hours that Governor Andrew Cuomo signed this Bill into law. It will be enacted about 30 days from now. While there may have been political horse trading here, by most accounts what seems to have transpired was just a major action by Cuomo who seems to have made this a priority. We spoke to individuals, both for and against this Bill, and they seem to have very differing opinions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is just incredible. I used to be in raids for six years before stone wall. But, you know, it is really amazing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's just really great to know that finally here that everyone else can have the same rights and be able to get married and, you know, show the love that they have. It is amazing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ever since a little girl, I didn't think that marriage was possible for me at all. And, like, just now, hearing, like, you can get married.

REV. TRE STATON, PASTOR, EMPIRE CHRISTIAN CENTER: The most influential state of the most influential nation of the world has licensed lasciviousness, and with that comes a great price to pay for America. God bless America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ARIOSTO: Let me put this in a little bit of perspective here. New York becomes the sixth state to legalize same-sex marriage. But the population in New York is so populous that it would affect double the amount of people living in states that live under same-sex marriage laws.

Proponents of the bill say that effectively that this is long overdue. It was a historic moment providing people with equal rights in terms of taxation, hospital visitation rights, employer health care, all sorts of rights that oftentimes married couples take for granted. Detractors, critics of the bill say there may be unintended consequences, something that forced lawmakers to go into several extra days after the session ended on Monday to try to figure out an amendment to protect those religious institutions. Fred?

WHITFIELD: All right, thanks so much, David. Appreciate that.

New York is the sixth state to legalize same-sex marriage. It joins Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire. The District of Columbia allows same-sex marriage also.

How about this? Better than riding in a helicopter or a role coaster or even a speedboat, taking a spin in a stock car on one of NASCAR's most prized motor speedways. Face to face with two of NASCAR's star drivers, including Jason Leffler.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Whose idea was this? I'm actually really excited, and I know I'm in great hands with Jason here. If I have a first time racecar experience, this is the way to go. We're in a Richard Petty NASCAR experience vehicle. So, here we go. Let her rip.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The butterflies didn't last long. Face to face with Leffler and fellow NASCAR driver Joey Logano straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Dozens are dead in a suicide attack in Afghanistan. Here are a few of the other international headlines. The target today was a hospital in eastern Afghanistan that included a maternity ward. Several women and babies are among the 35 people reported killed.

NATO officials acknowledged today its aircraft mistakenly hit Libyan opposition forces while targeting forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. It happened Thursday in the key contested oil city of El Brega. NATO says it regrets any possible loss of life or injuries.

And Peru's government is shutting down a private silver mine. That's after five protesters died yesterday in clashes between police and people who oppose mining and drilling in southern Peru.

To Syria now, where the government has kept CNN's cameras and reporters out really since the anti-government uprising began there in march. That has now changed. We have crews in Syria now, though they have been closely watched by government minders. Here is Hala Gorani in her first walk through in months.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This young man, he just came out of the mosque and he said he doesn't want any trouble. The country is with Bashar. You're seeing a small group of pro- government demonstrators, their expressing their support for the regime. And his name is Bashar, ironically. This young man is saying people are paying money from outside to ferment this unrest.

(SHOUTING)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Our reporter Hala Gorani was among a group that supports President Bashar Assad there. Since March, more than 1600 people have died, most of them anti-government protesters. That number is according to a human rights group.

CNN has been shining a spotlight on modern day slavery this week. Oscar winning actress Mira Sorvino is also a U.N. goodwill ambassador fighting human trafficking. She talks about her work now in "Impact your World."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIRA SORVINO, ACTRESS: A lot of what I've learned about human trafficking has been through direct conversations with victims. I've interviewed many, many victims in several different countries and different situations and different age ranges. Almost all of the victims I've spoken to have been women and most of them have been in sexual exploitation.

Some of it is so shocking that it almost, like, ruins you for a few weeks, like you can't actually escape the horrendousness of what people are telling you and the pain that they have lived through. I met a little girl at a shelter and she was showing me her homework and it was her addition and subtraction and she was very proud of. And then they took me aside and they said, her father murdered her mother in front of her and then he dropped her off with some relatives in Cancun and they sold her to a brothel at age four.

Four to seven she was working in a brothel, doing things she did not even know how to describe except that she knew they were "incorrectos," incorrect, wrong. And then somehow she was liberated and ended up in this shelter.

To think there is a sex tourism demand for children of the age of four, it is one of most stomach-turning things I could possibly imagine as a mother. If all of us rise up and all of us fight this, it will end. It is going to change because it is morally intolerable.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: There are many ways to impact your world. Go to CNN.com/impact and see the various organizations that will accept your donations. You can find out more about human trafficking tomorrow when CNN presents a freedom project documentary, join Demi Moore for "Nepal's Stolen Children." It airs at 8:00 p.m. eastern tomorrow here on CNN.

Many more of you are saving instead of spending these days. So can you answer this? Most Americans save what percentage of their income? Is it zero percent, five percent, 10 percent, 15 percent? The answer after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: So before the break, we asked what percentage of Americans' income are Americans saving? Is it five percent, 10 percent, 15 percent? The answer is 5 percent according to the U.S. bureau of economic analysis.

So what do you do with your money whether you're saving it or spending it? Are you a spender? And how do you feel about your money? What is that emotional attachment with your money? Well, apparently those attachments really could be rooted in how you grew up. With us now, financial expert and the author of "It's Just Money," Karen Lee with us right now. So, Karen, why are so many people so, I guess, emotionally attached to their money?

KAREN LEE, FINANCIAL EXPERT: Well, in my career, I try to figure out what is the single most important thing that makes people financially successful or not? And I was astounded because I saw people earning $600,000, $700,000 a year who had less to show for it than some of the people who were earning $60,000 and $70,000. I thought what is it? I realized it is how they view and value money and it is what I call the relationship that you have with money.

WHITFIELD: How you were raised. What kind of -- what messages were or were not sent when you were a child growing up?

LEE: It is part of it. I think there are two things that basically will impact your relationship with money. The first one is exactly what you said, what you learned in your childhood. I don't know about you, I was raised by an immigrant, and I always thought we were poor, turned out we were middle class. But it impacted how I felt about money.

So I like people to take a look at what kind of messages they got growing up, did you feel like you had a lot of money, not very much money? And did your parents talk about money? And how about your parents? How are they doing financially right now? But the second thing would be how about what's happened to you in your life since then, because a lot of times events occur. For example, you're a good saver but, lo and behold, you end up divorced. You lose half of or more of your wealth. WHITFIELD: There goes that savings.

LEE: You might change your view and say, is it really worth it? Do you get financially educated or do you kind of keep things private about money? So those are the sort of things about your adult life you can look at.

WHITFIELD: So how we view money is certainly a reflection of, you know, what experiences you have, how you grew up, et cetera. What direction can you make some modifications or changes if you need to?

LEE: In my book, I try to take the spectrum of financial problems and tell story, as you know, you've taken a look at it. On the one side we have got the people who are the big spenders, and they are simply typically living way beyond their means, possibly drowning in debt, but, Fred, we have a whole other side of the spectrum there, people who are fearful that they'll never be enough money.

Either way, it is a dysfunctional relationship with money and can cause problems and relationships, if a spender is married to a saver, it can be very contentious. So ask yourself the first question, and most people can answer this, are you a spender or a saver. I'm a saver. How about you?

WHITFIELD: I think I'm both.

LEE: Both. Do you get help with your money or do you keep it private? The next question would be, what is money really mean to you? What does it do for you? The next time you're about to make a purchase, if you're a spender, and you've got debt, ask yourself how am I going to feel, why am I doing this?

WHITFIELD: I guess what constitutes the spending. Because your -- I mean what you have to, you know, spend on your day to day living, does that count?

LEE: I call it luxury versus necessity, wants versus needs. There are certain things that we must have. But do we always have to have the most expensive one of those? So that's how you can sort of look at spending. And is it realistic spending that needs to happen or is it overspending?

WHITFIELD: OK, and then once you have that understanding about, you know, money, or you're a spender or saver and, you know, how do you need to -- I guess how do you begin that kind of reform?

LEE: It is just the first step. So you make a great point. It is not just going to transform you to understand, but it should --

WHITFIELD: Breaking habits or changing habits.

LEE: -- deep-seeded thoughts and processes, but like most great life challenges, if you're an overeater and trying to lose weight, maybe you drink too much and you're trying to stop drinking, it helps if you ask yourself why do I take that drink? Why do I overeat, why do I resist exercise? So awareness is the first step. It is not going to solve it, but it is crucially important to your financial success and happiness. Specifically at the end of my book, I have the six steps that should transform your money life. This is just of the first step. Become aware of what your thinking is and what that relationship is and you'll be on the road to financial --

WHITFIELD: I guess it is like anything, if there is a problem, you have to get to a point where you admit there is a problem.

LEE: There's a problem, exactly. Exactly.

WHITFIELD: Karen Lee, thanks so much. Appreciate it. "It's Just Money," so you know, that's the title of her book. So why does it cause so many problems? More information from Karen Lee. You can reach out to Karen, too, from @Karenleeandassociates.com.

New York is the latest state to approve same-sex marriage. Our legal guys weigh in on that next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A look at our top stories now. Firefighters now have the upper hand on a half million acre blaze near the Arizona-New Mexico border. The wallow fire is 70 percent contained, still dozens of homes have been burned.

In Craig, Missouri, a battle to fight back against the Missouri River. The bloated river is seeping into Craig, prompting many of the town's residents to flee. Right now, more than 100,000 acres of prime farm land is under water.

Trevor Hendricks turned 16 yesterday, but his birthday surprise came a day earlier. Trevor was listening to a band playing on the Virginia Beach oceanfront when he was asked to come on stage. Well, moments later, his father suddenly appeared. He was home on leave after a year in Afghanistan.

Alleged mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger is spending the weekend in jail. He was arrested after 16 years on the lam. At a hearing in Boston yesterday, Bulger claimed he can't afford a lawyer. The judge gave him until Monday to file a financial affidavit showing why he can't.

Now back to New York's new same-sex marriage law. Governor Andrew Cuomo signed it last night just hours after the legislature approved it. When it takes effect in 30 days, New York will become the sixth state to allow gay marriage. I talked with our legal guys, Avery Friedman and Richard Herman, about the impact of the new law.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICHARD HERMAN, ATTORNEY: This is a raging national issue, Fredricka. And the states are having to address it as New York did this past weekend in passing this legislation. It will indeed require employers to look at employees as married couples, even though they're same sex.

But there is another powerful piece of this that I think warrants attention. And that is the problems that same sex relationships have had at the time where another significant other is dying or is in a hospital. The obstructions that these individuals have suffered have been extraordinarily difficult.

And now with the recognition of same sex, Fredricka, what is going to happen is that hospitals will no longer be under pressure in denying a significant other the opportunity to help the hospital and also in life ending decision-making. So the law is profoundly important, not just in employment, but in the whole Specter of various lifestyles.

WHITFIELD: And, Richard, this law, the way in which it was written, this allows someone who is living out of state to marry in the state of New York, but they may go back to their state where same- sex marriage is not recognized. Tell me how this is going to work.

HERMAN: Well, I guess it is going to be a minimum residency in New York, and you'll be able to come in, get the ceremony performed. That's people flocking to Las Vegas every year, Fred, to those little Elvis chapels and get married here and go back home to their states.

WHITFIELD: That was -- that was allowed.

HERMAN: That's right, absolutely. Let me touch on something else, Fred, you brought up with Avery. You know, in New York, when you're married and then a spouse dies, there are certain rules of interest, say, if there is a will, if there is not a will, if there is a will, one spouse gets left out, the other spouse can have a right to elect against the will and actually sue the estate. All of that now is going to be fair game for same-sex couples that are married. So it is really going to be such a broad spectrum of rights that are going to attach to these couples.

WHITFIELD: And, Avery, how do you see this window of opportunity? You don't live in New York. But you go to New York and you are able to get married there, same-sex couples can get married. But then when you return to your home state, you know, does that New York certificate mean anything?

AVERY FRIEDMAN, ATTORNEY: I think that's a wonderful question. You know, under our constitution we have something called full faith and credit. So if someone, for example, living in Florida decides to come up to New York to get married, and then returns, should the state of Florida recognize that?

And that's a battleground. States that don't enact this legislation, and that's most of them, don't want to recognize it. So ultimately we may very well face off to a constitutional battle on whether other states must recognize same-sex marriage laws in these six states that now have them. And that's a case that has not been decided. It is a cutting edge issue and a very important one too.

WHITFIELD: All right. HERMAN: Fred, so that's why proponents of this Bill now are cheering and celebrating but they're saying now we must move to the federal level and get this approved nationally. So that's the next challenge for everyone.

WHITFIELD: All right, Richard Herman, Avery Friedman, thanks so much. Always good to see you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, taking a very fast spin face to face with NASCAR driver Jason Leffler at the wheel. He told me just how close to the wall he gets going nearly 200 miles an hour.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Imagine driving up to 200 miles an hour 200 times around a racetrack over a ten-month, 36-race season. A lot of numbers, right? Two NASCAR drivers I caught up with face to face said it beats working for a living.

Before we say down Jason Leffler, took me for a spin around the charlotte motor speedway to give me a more authentic view.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: So when you're practicing, what are you working on? Are you working on speed, working on the banks, what are you trying to focus on?

JASON LEFFLER, NASCAR DRIVER: You're working on speed. You're working a little bit of your technique behind the wheel of the car because the track conditions change every day, every time you come to a racetrack. Then the main thing you're working on is your race car trying to set it up, communicating with your crew chief. We're not on the edge of this car. When you're on the edge and, you know, you're not looking for seconds, you're looking for tenths of a second.

WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh. That is so awesome. I love it. I so love it. Man, why didn't I start out earlier? I could be a racecar driver. Danica Patrick, look out, because I'm so hooked. You can have some competition one of these days soon.

(LAUGHTER)

I loved that. That was great. So how fast did we go?

LEFFLER: How fast?

WHITFIELD: Not that it matters, because I can feel it on the turns.

LEFFLER: We were probably going 170 for sure.

WHITFIELD: Wow. That is fierce.

LEFFLER: We were going faster than the car wanted to go.

WHITFIELD: It felt good. I liked it.

LEFFLER: I wanted to give you, you know, a real idea on what goes on out there.

WHITFIELD: You totally did. I tried to imagine all the other cars on the track and how close you like to be to that wall.

LEFFLER: Yes. Yes. We weren't that close to it. I took you out there one time to give you a feel for it. Sometimes you're inches off the wall. You go wherever the car handles the best.

WHITFIELD: Wow. That's fantastic. I loved that. I really admire your job. You got a cool gig.

LEFFLER: It beats working for a living.

WHITFIELD: I would say so.

My gosh, I love that. That was so fun. I don't know how many times we went over. That was another thing I noticed, you lose track of where you are. You probably don't. I noticed the threes and the fours for the turns.

LEFFLER: You can.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

LEFFLER: Yes. Not, you know, if you're not used to it, it is easy to get lost out there. Who would have thought it is easy to get lost when you're going in a circle.

WHITFIELD: Thank you so much, Jason. I appreciated that, that was fun. What is with the steaming there?

LEFFLER: I think we ran the car too hard.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: We did. That's all right. I got the full experience, the full effect.

LEFFLER: Yes, yes. We wanted to give you the full deal.

WHITFIELD:

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Yes, at 170 miles per hour around the track. So driver Joey Logano says he still gets that same kind of rush when he gets behind the wheel. After the driving, I sat down face to face with both Logano and Jason Leffler to talk about their passion for stock car racing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) WHITFIELD: So take me back where this passion came from. Here you and your family are living in Connecticut, and somewhere this spark of go cart racing and dreams of something bigger come along. How did that -- what was the evolution of that?

JOEY LOGANO, NASCAR DRIVER: It is crazy. I mean, my family wasn't into racing. My father played baseball and basketball through high school. And, you know, those are the things that I tried first. I think the fact I wasn't good at any of them, I think that was the fact that -- I enjoy winning no matter what it is. If it is not racing, it is, you know, playing a board game, whatever it is -- I want to win. I think there is something I found I was good at and I was able to win at, and I just liked it.

I was the kid with the racecar bed and all the little matchbox cars and all that stuff. That was this kid here. And all the racing gear, al the NASCAR stuff and I was just, you know, fortunate enough I was able to follow my dream. And, I mean, I never ever thought I would be racing, you know, in the sprint cup series against, like you said, Jeff Gordon and tony Stewart and all these guys that I watched on TV.

Mark Martin, I watched him on TV. I had his gear. I wore mark martin stuff around. And here I am racing door to door with him. I remember the first time that happened. I was like, that's crazy. I was right next to the guy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Very fun stuff. You can catch the rest of my face to face conversations with Joey Logano and Jason Leffler at 3:00 and 4:00 eastern today.

The next few hours are critical in Minot, North Dakota. We're tracking a flood that has already broken all the records and by tonight it comes to get even worse.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Take a look right there. Pictures from the Gavins Point dam on the border between South Dakota and Nebraska. It's pretty extraordinary. This is what it looks like when 160,000 cubic feet of water is released each second. The U.S. army corps of engineers is flushing out the massive amounts of water trying to prevent flooding upstream along the rain-bloated Missouri river. We thank iReporter Stephanie Salvador for sending us these extraordinary pictures.

On the Souris River in Minot, North Dakota, floodwater is swallowing the homes there. Water has reached the rooftops in Minot's low lying neighborhoods you see right there. About a fifth of the city looks like a lake, not a community.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANDI MOSSER, FLOOD VICTIM: My sister called me and her husband's parent's house is totally under water now. So it's tough.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You've gotten other calls like that through the week?

MOSSER: Yes, yes. I got my brother-in-law's house, my dad's house is all under water now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Wow. This flood has broken a whole lot of records and there is more heartache ahead. The next few hours will be critical.

Let's check in with our Alexandra.

This flooding right now is expected to crest or the Souris River is expected to crest on Sunday, correct?

ALEXANDRA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, tomorrow. 1:00 in the morning. You look at these pictures. It is heart breaking, 41,000 people in Minot, a quart of them being evacuated. So this is really record-breaking on so many fronts. We're talking about centuries old flood records, dating back to 1881. We have seen anything like this there.

Unfortunately more rain is headed for the region, but when you can see so many people's homes, the first floor completely flooded, so worst really is yet to come. We have tonight to make it through, unfortunately not looking at too much rain today. The balance of heavy rain is farther south in Minot. But expected crest tomorrow morning at 1:00. We're talking about six feet above record stage. So it is really at an extraordinary level.

And the two culprits, rain and terrain. We have seen an awful lot of rain. In the next hour, I'll talk about what came to this, the record rains and snows. But it is the terrain that is the factor now.

Minot is at -- in a valley. It is right at the base of a valley. So it is so different than what happened with the Mississippi. The Mississippi was so flat, al that water had somewhere to go. This is not the case in Minot. It is at the base of the valley, so the rain falls and in essence it just pools and has nowhere to go, so terrain a big factor with this.

Again, a quarter of the population has been evacuated, the old record dating back more than a century. And we're going to watch that water rise another five to 10 feet.

Here is this -- how much rain we're expecting from now through Monday. You see here is Minot. We are going to see the rain. The jet stream is farther north where it typically is in the summer. Rain, thunderstorms, part and parcel this time of year, and, of course, this part of the country. But you can see the heaviest rains stay south and stays east around Fargo. So Minot will see a little bit of rain, but shouldn't even see about half an inch or so.

(WEATHER BREAK)

WHITFIELD: So you know people go crazy over certain types of images that cross the web. So let's look at some fun stuff. Most of us have seen motorcycle crashes and races before, right? But how about something like this?

STEELE: Viral video. This is what is sweeping the internet. This is in central France. What is happening, you see these two motorcycles crashed and their brakes got locked. It is doing this kind of funny ballet, a pirouette of sorts.

And the guys are getting so frustrated. These are amateur motorcyclists and they can't catch on. He's like stop, stop. So in the end, one guy never made it to the finals the next day. The one guy did. He ended up being second, 17th out of 40th in the endgame. But how frustrating is this?

WHITFIELD: Neither one of these cyclists could have thought for a second that you grab the bike and then what? You'll be spinning around the bikes --

STEELE: You're just waiting for them to go.

WHITFIELD: No. Just wait. Wait for them to run out of gas or something like that.

STEELE: In the end, it slowed.

WHITFIELD: Crazy stuff. I know you would be steely throughout.

STEELE: Oh, steely for sure. And you look so adorable in the race car in that outfit.

WHITFIELD: It was fun. I loved it. I think I have a need for speed.

STEELE: All right, racy.

WHITFIELD: Alexandra Steele, thank you very much. And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: After a battle with cancer, Nick Charles, CNN's first sports anchor and a network fixture for two decades, has died. CNN President Jim Walton said, quote, "As a journalist and sports personality, Nick Charles helped put CNN on the map in its early days."

Mark McKay looks back at a remarkable career.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARK MCKAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Nick Charles was a CNN original. The first voice to deliver sports news on the then fledgling cable television network. NICK CHARLES, FORMER CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Good evening. I'm Nick Charles with Bob Kurtz. This is sports to the moment.

MCKAY: Before the advent of 24 hour sports news channels, Charles was the network's nightly authority when it came to chronicling the winners and losers of the games people played. He was paired with Fred Hickman for a nearly two decade run on CNN's sports tonight program.

CHARLES: Fancy meeting you here.

FRED HICKMAN, FORMER CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes, indeed, after all this time.

CHARLES: This is a milestone show for Fred and me, 3,000 together.

HICKMAN: Seems like only yesterday and it wasn't.

I've always looked up to Nick and always kind of aspired to do what he did. He was a great inspiration to me, taught me to be a better storyteller and better reporter and better journalist, better person.

MCKAY: Charles reported on all of the major sporting events, from the Olympics to the Super Bowl.

CHARLES: I'm Nick Charles of CNN Sports. Hello again from Pontiac, Michigan. In city, Australia. It is not just another day on streets of London. We're here at the rose bowl and the scoreboard tells the story. This is Nick Charles on the stretch at Churchill Downs in Louisville.

MCKAY: Whether reporting or anchoring, Charles played particular attention to the way he used his words.

HICKMAN: Great storyteller, tremendous storyteller. He could -- I've seen him do it, he could literally do a story about a horse and make you think this horse was like a person. He could take boxing and turn it into something poetic.

MCKAY: The changing times and the calendar have turned Muhammad Ali from a fiery, unconventional star who always evoked reaction into a soft endearing figure.

MCKAY: Charles not only had a way with words. He had a way with the newsmakers in the world of sports.

CHARLES: George, do you mind the portrayal that you're a demanding guy?

GEORGE STEINBRENNER, FOR NEW YORK YANKEES OWNER: You know me, I'm never going to be any different.

CHARLES: You look happy, confident, like I haven't seen you in a long time. What's the secret? MIKE TYSON, FORMER HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION: Hey, you know, this is my job. This is where I'm most comfortable at.

MCKAY: Those closest to Nick Charles say the guy that you saw on television was not unlike the friend and colleague they knew away from the studio.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nobody had a better laugh than Nick. He just would light up a room with his laugh. It just shook the room. And you knew that Nick was selling a story or listening to one and enjoying himself. He lived life to the fullest. He was -- it was something very, very special.

HICKMAN: He could, you know, meet you or I and or just some guy that was walking up on the street and he would make you feel as though he had known you for 15 years. Hey, man, how are you doing? Great to see you! Where are you from? That was his whole thing. It was genuine.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think when people look back on nick years to come, that they're going to remember the hair.

(LAUGHTER)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He loved that hair. He used to just drive us crazy. But in all seriousness, I think you can look back at one of the great sports journalists of all time. I don't think there is anything better that you can say about a man than that.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Time for our CNN = Politics update. We're keeping an eye on the latest headlines at the CNNpolitics.com desk. Here is what is crossing right now.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the nation's same-sex marriage law last night just hours after the legislature approved it. The law was a top priority for Cuomo. The Democratic governor praised Republican legislators who crossed party lines to support the bill.

And House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi is questioning the patriotism of corporate leaders who seek big tax cuts. The remarks came in an interview taped for tomorrow's edition of tomorrow's "STATE OF THE UNION." She said tax cuts increase the deficit and asked, quote, "What are these people, not patriotic?" unquote, her words.

Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum is picking up an endorsement. CNN learned that former South Carolina Congressman Gresham Barrett will endorse Santorum this weekend and serve as his state campaign chairman.

And for the latest political news, you know exactly where to go, CNNpolitics.com. Police in Utah close in on a fugitive who barricaded himself in a motel room with a hostage. The standoff lasted 16 hours. But the fugitive keeping in contact with the outside world through Facebook. David Ariosto explains how they used the status updates to their advantage.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARIOSTO: For police it began when fugitive Jason Valdez was spotted by an officer.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He has a long-standing violent and drug related history with us. And he's a very well-known and long-standing gang member as well.

ARIOSTO: Police pursued and he locked himself in a motel room.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When police made contact with him on the phone, he simply stated, "I'm not going back to prison. I have a gun, I have a hostage."

ARIOSTO: It was the beginning of a 15-hour standoff. Police shut down his phone service, but they didn't realize they couldn't block his data service. Several hours in, the situation took a strange twist.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were notified by someone on the outside that he was coming up on Facebook and he was discussing the negotiations and police activity.

ARIOSTO: He updated his Facebook status six times -- quote, "I'm currently in a standoff. Kind of ugly. I love you guys. If I don't make it out of here alive, I'm in a better place." At one point, he posted a picture of his hostage, whose face we have blurred, with the note, quote, "Got a cute hostage, huh?"

Relatives and friends chimed in, "Keep your head up, do the right thing." But some tipped him off to police movements. Fearing others might do more to help the alleged fugitive, police considered shutting down his page. They weren't sure that they could. Ultimately Assistant Chief Randy Watts says they decided it was worthwhile to keep it up and running.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were gaining more than we were losing by allowing the Facebook activity to continue.

ARIOSTO: Another comment, "End this peacefully." It didn't happen. Police eventually blew up the walls of the motel room, police say Valdez fired off two rounds before turning the gun on himself. He's in the hospital in critical condition but expected to survive. He'll face charges when he recovers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He just didn't want to go back to prison.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He'll do anything for anybody, OK? He helped me out a lot. ARIOSTO: Police say social media could have made the situation much, much worse if Valdez supporters had descended on the scene.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We didn't see it developing, but that was one of the concerns and it is definitely a concern for the future.

ARIOSTO: He says other law enforcement should take note.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you haven't seen it yet, you're going to see it. I would start preparing now.

ARIOSTO (on camera): Valdez faces two attempted murder counts and one kidnapping charge. The hostage made it out without injury. As you can guess, his page is drawing a lot of attention.

David Ariosto, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)