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ICC Praises Capture of Saif al-Islam Gadhafi; L.A. Sheriff's Dept. Reopens Natalie Wood Case; Isaiah Washington Talks Work in Sierra Leone

Aired November 19, 2011 - 15:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: The NCAA is investigating how Penn State handled the child rape allegations against former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky.

And a major security breach, a 125-page booklet detailing President Barack Obama's every move during his trip to Australia was found in a gutter near Australia's parliament. The journalist who found it said the details in it are staggering, it also had the phone numbers of dozens of senior U.S. and Aussie officials.

Moammar Gadhafi's son is no longer a fugitive. Saif al-Islam Gadhafi was found and captured alive today after a fire fight in Libya's southern desert. Military commanders say fighters had been chasing the younger Gadhafi for more than two weeks -- to the capital of Libya right now, Tripoli, CNN's Jomana Karadsheh.

Jomana, what more can you tell us about how this all unfolded?

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, we're hearing from senior military officials among the revolutionary fighters who are telling us that the capture took place after a stake out, an 18- day stake out in -- deep in the southern deserts of Libya. We understand that is where Saif al-Islam Gadhafi was hiding and they tell us they believe that he was trying to make his way to neighboring Niger.

Now after 18 days of this stake-out, they finally moved in on a convoy at about 2:00 a.m. local time and after a gun battle that took place for about two hours they say that Saif and members of his entourage surrendered to the revolutionary forces.

And after that he was taken to the western mountain city of Zintan, this where the fighters who captured him came from where he's being held now in an undisclosed location -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And so, Jomana, what has been the overall reaction from just ordinary people in the streets there in Tripoli?

KARADSHEH: Well, since this news broke, Fredricka, about less than 12 hours ago, we've seen constant celebratory gunfire in the capital of Tripoli. We've also heard and seen pictures from other cities where people have also gone out on the streets celebrating.

We can hear people honking their horns around the city. Definitely a very joyous day for many Libyans but also a sense of relief from a man they saw as a threat as he was out on the run, there were fears that he could create an insurgency here and destabilize Libya.

But, Fredricka, not only were the Libyans welcoming this news, the international community too. We have heard from the International Criminal Court, prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo, who also welcomed this news. Let's hear what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LUIS MORENO OCAMPO, PROSECUTOR, INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT: The good news is Saif al-Islam Gadhafi is arrested. And that's very important because we consider and the judges consider him one of the most reprehensible with his father Moammar on crimes committed in Libya after 3rd February. So that's crucially important.

He's arrested, he's alive. And now he will face justice and that is the important news.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KARADSHEH: And according to a spokesperson for Mr. Ocampo, we understand that he will be traveling to Libya next week to coordinate efforts to bring Saif al-Islam Gadhafi to justice. Fredricka, he's wanted by the International Criminal Court, but Libyans also want to see him stand trial here in Tripoli. That is a matter that is yet to be resolved.

WHITFIELD: Jomana, thanks so much, from Tripoli. Other news from overseas now, police in Egypt forcefully cleared Cairo's Tahrir Square today one day after a massive demonstration there. When darkness fell, witnesses say police fired tear gas and warning shots. More than 160 people were hurt and a police van burned.

Back in this country Los Angeles investigators are taking another look at the death of actress Natalie Wood. And according to The Hollywood Reporter, actor Christopher Walken has hired a lawyer. He was on the yacht when Wood went overboard back in 1981 but police do not consider him a suspect. CNN's Kareen Wynter brings us up to speed.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAREEN WYNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fred, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department says Wood's husband at the time, Robert Wagner, who was on the yacht the night she died, they say he's not a suspect but still this hasn't stopped investigators from taking a second look at this mysterious case.

(voice-over): Natalie Wood was one of the most popular, sought after actresses in Hollywood, which made her death in 1981 at just 43 years old all the more shocking and for some inexplicable. Sheriff's officials were vague Friday about what led to the re-opening investigation after 30 years.

LT. JOHN CORINA, LOS ANGELES SHERIFF'S DEPT.: Recently we've received information which we felt was substantial enough to make us take another look at this case.

WYNTER: It was Thanksgiving weekend 1981 when Wood and her actor husband Robert Wagner went sailing on their yacht, The Splendour. They were joined by actor and friend Christopher Walken. That Saturday night Wagner and Walken got into a heated argument. A short time later, Wagner notified the fourth person on the yacht, Captain Dennis Davern, that Wood was not on board.

On Friday Davern told CNN he thought she might have tried to take the yacht's dinghy to shore.

DENNIS DAVERN, FORMER CAPTAIN, THE SPLENDOUR: And I said to Robert Wagner, I said, well, you know, let's turn on the search light to see if we can see her. And he says, no, we don't want to do that right now.

WYNTER: Natalie Wood was discovered hours later dressed in a nightgown and socks, floating a mile from the yacht. The autopsy revealed dozens of bruises on her body. Still the coroner sought to quash rumors Wood was killed or committed suicide, insisting "The Splendor in the Grass" star died of accidental drowning.

Was alcohol to blame? An autopsy showed Wood had an alcohol blood level of 0.14. Even more perplexing, Wood once told an interviewer her greatest fear was dark sea water and her sister Lana later claimed Natalie didn't even know how to swim.

Thirty years later, the question remains, how did Natalie Wood end up floating in the Pacific?

(on camera): As for Dennis Davern, well, investigators say they want to talk to him and hear what he has to say this time around -- Fred.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Thanks so much, Kareen.

In Washington, admiring dresses of some of the nation's first ladies. The new exhibition of first lady frocks is open to the public this weekend. Eight new gowns are among the 26 that are on display at the Smithsonian Museum. Curators rotate the dresses that go into the display, it allows them to extend the life span of the collection.

Republican presidential hopefuls are making a big push for support in Iowa but some big names are skipping the state weeks before its caucus.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Six GOP contenders are courting social conservatives in Iowa at a dinner forum tonight. It's one of the last chances for Republican hopefuls to make a lasting impression ahead of Iowa's Caucus on January 3rd. Shannon Travis is at the Thanksgiving Family Forum in Des Moines.

So, Shannon, talk about who is and isn't there. SHANNON TRAVIS, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: Yes. Who is here, six presidential candidates as you just mentioned, Fred, Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Rick Santorum, Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich, and Herman Cain. And potentially about 2,000 Christian evangelicals, that's really important because, as you mentioned, the caucuses are on January 3rd. That's just 45 days away.

And this is one of the last forums, the last times that these candidates will be able to appeal to this critical, critical base of voters here in Iowa, voters who could potentially hoist, propel some of these kinds to a win.

Outside behind me you see some of the people filing in right now. Let me take you inside where I just left from. There's basically a table, all of the six candidates will sit around the table with pollster Frank Luntz. I just spoke with some organizers, Fred, and let me give you three key things that I was just told.

Number one, that Luntz will try and push these candidates off of their talking points. He wants for the people in attendance to really get to know who these people are. So he has been studying debates and he will ask original questions, I'm told.

Number two, that the questions won't just center on matters of faith, that he will ask them about economics and national and foreign affairs, but wrap them around issues of morality.

And number three, Herman Cain, we learned this week that he has recently gotten a Secret Service detail. That that somewhat, somewhat complicated the situation. Typically these kinds of forums, people just kind of come in but that is going to make things a little bit more complex -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: Does it seem like these candidates are going to be working really hard, as they've shown up, to try to distinguish themselves, since time is running out, the caucus is right around the corner.

TRAVIS: That's right. Absolutely. And they have to because, again, these are the voters that will come out rain, shine, snow whatever, Fred, January 3rd. And so this is a key voting bloc. So all of them, you had better believe that all of these candidates will be making direct appeals for their support.

WHITFIELD: All right. Shannon Travis, thanks so much, in Des Moines.

Another opportunity for candidates to distinguish themselves Tuesday night right here on CNN. The Republicans running for president will be gathering just steps away from the White House. It's the presidential debate on national security and the economy, co-sponsored by the Heritage Foundation and the American Enterprise Institute. Watch it at 8:00 Eastern time Tuesday.

As we've been reporting, the congressional super committee has until the middle of next week to propose a plan to cut our nation's deficit by at least 1.2 trillion or they risk setting off unpopular automatic spending cuts. Christine Romans discusses it with her "Fortune Brainstorm" panel.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is getting -- it's getting down the wire and I think they pretend as though they are hopeful there will be a decision, but I don't think they are going to get anything.

JEANNE SAHADI, SENIOR WRITER, CNNMONEY: Well, I'm not in Washington, but we're not hearing anything out of Washington to suggest that they are going to be close to a deal. And I thought it was interesting, you had both Chris Van Holland and Senator Pat Toomey on "AMERICAN MORNING" on Friday and they didn't show up together, they showed up separately.

So it seems to me that these guys have to start standing shoulder to shoulder and delivering the message. Because otherwise you're just going to get part talking points. And what has been frustrating about covering this is that we have nothing to fact check. We have everybody's word. This is what the Democrats propose. This is what the Republicans propose. We hear from aides. But we don't get all the details.

(CROSSTALK)

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: But what we're seeing, though, and I hope David Walker is right in being optimistic, but what we're seeing though is people already trying to rationalize failure.

Which is the Democrats essentially saying, you know what, it's better to have these cuts take effect in a year in 2013 because they actually -- we protected the poor in the cuts here and defense spending is going to take a big hit; and the Republicans saying, you know what, we can get our national security credibility back by trying to restore some of the defense cuts because we've got to protect our troops, et cetera, et cetera.

DAVID WALKER, FMR. U.S. COMPTROLLER GENERAL: Christine, two things. One, they need to understand that if Congress does nothing, if it takes a 10-year vacation, then we have a deficit of 3.4 trillion over the next 10 years. All right. They have got to have the right benchmark.

Secondly, let me tell you why you are not going to get a big deal now. Because neither Simpson-Bowles, neither Domenici-Rivlin, nor this super committee has done zip outside of Washington's Beltway to engage the American people with the facts, the truth, and the tough choices, and to help them understand that what's happening in Europe can happen here.

This is the future of -- this is America's future, this is the future of our families, this is the future of domestic tranquility on our streets. And where is the president? Hawaii.

(END VIDEOTAPE) WHITFIELD: Coming up, Black Friday is right around the corner and we have some smartphone apps to help you get a leg up on other shoppers, and ease the stress on your wallet.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: I know some of you just can't wait, Black Friday is less than a week away and many retailers are offering tempting deals on products to kick off the holiday season. So if you have a smartphone, there are apps that you can use to sniff out good deals, so says our technology analyst, Marc Saltzman, joining us via Skype from Toronto.

All right. Good to see you. Well, there's an app for everything, isn't there? And now there's an app where you can have a bar code on your phone so that you can try and find the best deals. Tell me how that works.

MARC SALTZMAN, SYNDICATED TECHNOLOGY WRITER: Sure. So the first of three kinds of apps that we're going to talk about, all of which can help you find a great deal around Black Friday or in some cases, any time of the year, they will scan a bar code of a product at retail.

So two in mind are ShopSavvy and RedLaser. So all you do is you take your -- you're standing at retail, you're picking up a $20 DVD, wondering if you should buy it for your kids. You essentially scan the bar code with your, in this case, iPhone. These also work with Android devices. And then it will say -- you know what, it will say, down the street, 0.3 miles away, you can find it for $11.99. So in other words, don't buy it here.

So retailers don't love this. But it basically scans the bar code of the product. Tells you where you can find it cheaper nearby using the phone's GPS, or online.

Now some of them can even take a picture of the front of the product, not just the bar code. So here's a video game, "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2." So all you do, this is called SnapTell, and there's another one from Amazon called Flow. It takes a picture of the box. This works with books, by the way, DVDs, video games, and music CDs.

So you take a picture of the front and then it matches, it uploads that photo to an online database, and it will know what product you're looking at, and it will tell you where you can find it cheaper online or nearby.

So this is a $59.99 video game from Xbox, but it will actually -- oh, sorry, PlayStation 3, but it will say that I can find it for as low as $49.99 online, including shipping. So these are great tools to use.

WHITFIELD: That's incredible. Then there are some Black Friday- specific apps for your Android or your iPhone. Tell me about those.

SALTZMAN: That's right. Some are specific to Black Friday. So this one here is from fatwallet.com, simply called Black Friday. And it will just simply list all of the Black Friday deals in your area. And you can -- so you can segregate the content by three ways, by retailer, by category, such as sporting goods or electronics or clothing, or by location.

So you can say, I want to know of good deals in my area. Or if you're planning a trip to say to Los Angeles, you can say, I want to know what retail Black Friday deals are going on there for big screen TVs.

So you get to identify what you want. So that one is called Black Friday from FatWallet. And if you're an Android user, this one here is called Black Flyday, F-L-Y-D-A-Y. And this is heavily integrated with Facebook. So you can use your community of friends on Facebook to tell you when they found a good deal or you can push a deal back out.

I'm holding up tablets, by the way, because these apps also work with touch screen tablets, not just with smart phones. So this is an example of Black Flyday. So same idea. You say, hey, I'm in the -- I want to buy some hockey gear for my kids, what are some of the best Black Friday-specific deals going on right now in my area?

WHITFIELD: Oh my, OK. And then you can use your smartphone's GPS to track down some other pretty good deals. How do you do that?

SALTZMAN: That's right. So the third type of apps that will help you get a good deal, this Black Friday or Cyber Monday, are ones that use the GPS chip built into the smartphone or in some cases the tablet. And what happens is that you're pushed deals.

So one is called Push a Deal, and the other one is Deals.by. So when you sign up -- and by the way, all these apps are free. When you sign up with these apps, you say what kind of deals you're looking for, again by category such as consumer electronics or furniture.

And then when you happen to be walking around your city or another city, you're going to feel your smartphone vibrate or hear it chime. And when you look at it, it will say, all right, across the road at wherever, there's a deal, 40 percent off on the items that you flagged as the products that you want to buy as a gift.

So it pushes the information to you instead of you having to manually open it and search for deals in your area. So two examples, again, for IOS and Android devices, Push a Deal and Deals.by, Deals-dot-B-Y.

And if you're in Canada, ShopCatch for iPhone...

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh. Great deals. You've made Black Friday uber exciting now. And welcome back from New Zealand. We saw you in New Zealand last weekend and so now you're back home in Toronto. So you glad you had a good trip. Thanks so much.

SALTZMAN: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Marc Saltzman, happy shopping.

SALTZMAN: Cheers.

WHITFIELD: All right. For more hi-tech ideas and reviews just go to cnn.com/tech and look for the "Gaming and Gadgets" tab.

All right. Women deciding to put off having children in favor of careers, the conversation straight ahead.

And then later.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ISAIAH WASHINGTON, ACTOR, AUTHOR, "A MAN FROM ANOTHER LAND": My exit from "Grey's" was definitely a catalyst for sure. Even in loss, you gain. Even in loss, you win. Even in an "L," you get a "W."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Actor Isaiah Washington lost a critical TV role after upsetting his castmates and viewers by using an offensive word. Four years later he has written a book about self discovery that followed. We talk "Face to Face" later on in the NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Motherhood versus careers. Women are choosing between the two every day. So what does your choice say about you? Two women share their story right after these top stories.

A 125-page booklet detailing President Barack Obama's every move during his trip to Australia was discovered in a gutter near Australia's parliament. The journalist who found it told CNN's T.J. Holmes President Obama was in the middle of his visit at the time in Australia and the details in the booklet are staggering.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DYLAN WELCH, SYDNEY MORNING HERALD: He would have been there for about another 14 hours. So, I mean, there is a big if in this story. Obviously those are the big issues if it was foreign intelligence or a lone wolf kind of person with a significant capability. But if they did find it, they would have had 14 hours and during that 14 hours they would have known to the minute where the president was, they would have known exactly what his convoy was comprised of, and as you said earlier, they would have even known exactly which side of the limo he was going to be getting out of.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The book also had the phone numbers of dozens of senior U.S. and Aussie officials.

Libyans are cheering the arrest and capture of Saif al-Islam Gadhafi. He is the son of former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, tracked down and taken into custody today in the desert. Libya's new leaders says they will try him there.

Oklahoma State University football players held a moment of silence last night for two women's basketball coaches. Head coach Kurt Budke and assistant coach Miranda Serna were killed when their plane crashed on the way to a recruiting trip in Arkansas Thursday. A memorial service will be held on campus Monday.

And this very bizarre crime in Florida, police arrested this man who dresses as a woman for pretending to be a doctor. But that's not all. He allegedly injected a woman with a concoction that included cement, mineral oil, and super glue. The woman thought she was getting a butt enhancement but she almost died.

And more often now than ever, American women are remaining childless. Studies show about one in five, 20 percent of adult women are instead choosing to focus on their careers, their education, or just a child- free lifestyle. So we're asking today, is a woman's value defined by her ability to have children? Those are the questions explored in this book "The Barrenness," and the women together have collaborated.

Right here are the authors, Sonja Lewis, also here, longtime television sportscaster Pam Oliver. You all go way back. You were college dorm classmates and now you share this incredible story that is in the form of this.

This is fiction, right?. This is fiction but it really is based on real life experiences. Sonja, you first, what was the inspiration as to you noticed -- either you noticed or you encountered an awful lot of people who said, you know what, this is the life that I'm choosing.

SONJA LEWIS, AUTHOR, "THE BARRENNESS": Yes. It's a really sort of important subject for me, the whole inspiration came when I myself to deal with whether I was going have children or not. Once I came to the conclusion, I realized that there were stigmas around some women who didn't have children, particularly my dad's sister who, she died about six years ago and she was 80 when she died.

But her generation of women sort of had this, I don't know, scarlet letter on their chest, they seemed to be perceived as unfulfilled. I didn't want that for my generation of women and for women to follow. And so I wanted to write about it and I wanted to do it as a novel because with fiction you can just fully explore this topic and I just wanted to show that women can be fulfilled in other ways. Motherhood is great but it's an option.

WHITFIELD: You really wanted to reveal the blessings that come with it as opposed to, as you just mentioned, there were connotations as though it was a curse or it means unhappiness.

LEWIS: Yes.

WHITFIELD: And not being fulfilled.

LEWIS: Absolutely. I wanted people to know that although it's really a traditional thing and it's conventional, you know, if you don't have children it might be, you know, an unconventional thing but it's not abnormal, it's absolutely fine. And what I did was after I wrote the novel, it's just so exciting, Pam and I, we've been together forever and a day.

And so I'm just thrilled that we're back together, because I live in London now. Just an opportunity, she's just a perfect example, you know, of demonstrating that women can have a really fulfilled life as well as -- you know, without being a mother.

WHITFIELD: And so, Pam, when you knew that Sonja was doing this, this project and embarking on this topic, you imposed on her or encouraged her to say, you've got to include this because this really is my life, and I'm perfectly happy about it and OK. Even though people all the time stop you and ask you about, how are your kids doing? You just play along with it.

PAM OLIVER, SPORTSCASTER: I know, they do. And I do play along with it. I'm like, they're great, you know, 18 months old is my fake son, you know, because sometimes it's just easier. But the question always comes up. Like something, you have to have this life, and of course there's a kid involved.

But I made that decision. It was made for me for medical reasons. But the question always comes up. And there is no kid. And there won't be any kids. And I have a beautiful life and a great career, and a great husband, and three wonderful dogs, and awesome friends.

But interestingly enough, I'll ask girlfriends who I think would being a great mothers and I ask, do you want children? And they'll say -- at least five of them will say no. And I'll be horrified that they say no because I think they will be great moms. But they feel that's not a life for them...

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: Is it kind of a shared experience? Is there something that you feel like you can identify with as to why they say, you know what, I don't want to?

OLIVER: They like their lives. They like their lives the way they are. They just have never wanted children and they are not growing a second head. There's nothing wrong with them. There's nothing to say that, you know, they made the wrong choice. Their parents would of course loved to -- you know, that they would.

But it's just a choice that some women make and they are perfectly fine with it. There's nothing wrong with it.

WHITFIELD: Right. And it's very interesting, because, you know, in this industry of broadcasting it's very difficult. You're constantly traveling. You're very focused. And quite frankly it's extremely common that women will not have children. There is just no time for it, et cetera.

But by extension, it's interesting that there is this feeling universally that there are certain plateaus or chapters of every woman's life, and in every woman's life there is supposed to be that chapter of marriage or supposed to be that chapter of child-bearing. It's raising a family.

(CROSSTALK)

OLIVER: ... isn't it? LEWIS: Yes, it's so traditional. And it's one of those things, even when you're happy -- you know, and we are happy, we're fulfilled. We enjoy different aspects of our life. People don't believe you. You know, we've talked about that.

WHITFIELD: How interesting.

LEWIS: That sometimes people say, are you sure? They look at you. They...

(CROSSTALK)

OLIVER: Adopt? You know.

WHITFIELD: And this has to be fun too that two girls from college who roomed together and have all those life-forming, -changing experiences in college have come full circle and are talking about life and helping other people deal with life in a very different way, different perspective as adult women.

LEWIS: Yes. Actually we came together in our first jobs.

OLIVER: We were cub reporters.

LEWIS: Yes, we were both reporters.

OLIVER: Then roommates.

(CROSSTALK)

OLIVER: Then Sonja brought this rooster.

LEWIS: Oh my God...

(CROSSTALK)

OLIVER: It was a plastic rooster. I told her, any chance I got I was going to bring up this hideous rooster. But it's a girlfriend thing, you know?

LEWIS: What I have to say about the rooster, the rooster provided great backdrops, rich wonderful things for writing. When you have that kind of sort of rich wonderful upbringing where you have all of these sort of different things that you have to deal with, it's fantastic. And we had some fantastic experiences together.

WHITFIELD: Oh, it sounds like you have to write a book about that one too. Pam, before I let you go, of course, we can all see you on the tube. You're talking about what's happening in football this season. But now as we talk about the NBA and that delay in that season, you have any thoughts on that? Any inside scoops?

OLIVER: It's not looking good. It's not looking good. And it's sad because so many people are affected from concessions to ticket-takers. But I wouldn't want to count on it. They are closer than they have been. But they dig in their heels. We thought the same thing for the NFL. So anything can happen. There's nothing to be encouraged about at this moment but a breakthrough could happen at any time. And, you know, it's just one of those things.

WHITFIELD: Meantime, it gives you a chance to be able to be a book tour as well.

OLIVER: Exactly.

WHITFIELD: You're not trying to juggle all things.

OLIVER: On my iPad constantly.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: All right. Pam Oliver, great to see you. And, Sonja Lewis, thanks so much.

LEWIS: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: It's called "The Barrenness." Ladies, appreciate the collaboration, good to see you. Glad you came through Atlanta.

Straight ahead, he played a doctor performing life-saving surgeries on television. Now actor Isaiah Washington says he's saving real lives. Were you guys big "Grey's" fans?

LEWIS: Oh, yes.

WHITFIELD: OK. "Face to Face" with Isaiah Washington after this. You'll want to stick around and listen to what he has to say.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It has been four years since actor Isaiah Washington starred in the hit television show "Grey's Anatomy" as the self assured doctor Preston Burke. That is until he made an offensive remark in 2007. In his new book, "A Man from Another Land," Washington talks about life after "Grey's Anatomy," the defeat, self- discovery, and his re-awakening in West Africa. We talk "Face to Face."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: I talked to a lot of viewers who couldn't wait to hear your story and find out where you are, where you've been in the last four years.

WASHINGTON: Representing 6 million people, 6,000 villages, (INAUDIBLE) Gondobay Manga, my village, and I've already saved lives. In fact I have 500 students in my school. That's what I've been doing for the last four years.

And to get excited about saving real lives, that's the biggest -- I don't know, the biggest adrenalin rush that I could ever have for someone like me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WASHINGTON: I am Preston Burke.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Had that experience at "Grey's Anatomy" not played out the way it did, would the inspiration to talk about this self-discovery or your mission and commitment to Sierra Leone...

WASHINGTON: That's a good question. That's a good question.

WHITFIELD: Would that have happened?

WASHINGTON: Obviously, my exit from grace was definitely a catalyst, for sure. Even in loss, you gain. Even in loss, you win. Even in an "L," you get a "W."

WHITFIELD: After making that discovery that you're the 99.9 percent of Sierra Leone ancestry, you have committed yourself to building schools, to changing lives of young people and their parents. Does this bring you greater gratification than reaching a pinnacle of your acting career ever could?

WASHINGTON: Now I get to be on the world stage. Seeing the smile on these faces that would have never had an opportunity to get an education ever?

WHITFIELD: So this helped you remove some of the misgivings you had about your blackness.

WASHINGTON: Completely.

WHITFIELD: That was imposed on you by all kinds of experiences along the way that made you feel insecure.

WASHINGTON: Inadequate. Ugly.

WHITFIELD: Inferior?

WASHINGTON: Yes. Mm-hmm. Unattractive, all of it. Broad-nosed, full lips, the whole thing. All of those negatives went away.

WHITFIELD: And that's what's extraordinary because you exude, through your characters, through who you are, a confident man, completely comfortable with the skin that you're in. Playing these powerful figures over a span of all these movies and television shows and that it would take this kind of moment, this DNA test for you to now feel complete.

It is really hard, I'm sure, for a lot of people to understand and embrace that...

WASHINGTON: Yes.

WHITFIELD: ... when you come across as completely OK with who you are. WASHINGTON: I'm a good actor.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: So you felt like you were fooling yourself and fooling a lot of people along the way until this point?

WASHINGTON: No, just following the writing. Just following the writing.

WHITFIELD: So the last four years has been an incredible revelation for you?

WASHINGTON: Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: Evolution for you. A lot of people who are watching movies, watching television, thinking, I'm not seeing Isaiah, I do remember seeing him from "Grey's Anatomy," and all they are thinking about is, gosh, what has happened? And may feel sorry for you because they are not seeing you like they once did. Your response is, don't feel sorry for me. This has been an incredible journey.

WASHINGTON: They helped thousands of children, thousands of adults that need job creation. So in that losing on this TV show, I now win as an ambassador for an entire country, to literally rebuild it in the next five to 10 years. In losing Dr. Burke, I've gained Isaiah. Truly gained Isaiah Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Isaiah Washington remains pretty busy. This weekend he's in Florida discussing his memoir, "A Man from Another Land." Over the last few months Washington has produced two movies and a documentary. And you'll also see him on the big screen with a couple of movies coming out, "The Suspect," and "Area Q."

And coming up in our next hour, Washington reveals details about that controversial departure from "Grey's Anatomy," and does he ever tune in to watch from time to time? He answers "Face to Face."

And are you ready for some holiday shopping before you hit the stores? Check out the most common and costly mistakes shoppers make, next.

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WHITFIELD: Forget Black Friday. The holiday shopping season is already under way. But before you buy anything else check out this week's "Smart Is the New Rich." Christine Romans is here with some cost-saving tips.

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ROMANS: Hello holiday hype machine. Retailers will do whatever they can to separate you from your money whether you have it to spend or not. So holiday buyers beware. Here are five steps to outsmart them. Don't open a store credit card. Most have high interest rates and credit limits are too low. Even applying for them hurts your credit score. That one time 10 percent off may not be worth it.

Now if they aren't pushing the store credit card, they're pushing the extended warranty. Don't waste your money.

MANDY WALKER, CONSUMER REPORTS: In fact you really very seldom should take the extended warranty, probably never is OK.

ROMANS: Consumer Report's Mandy Walker says your credit card may already cover you, plus.

WALKER: Products seldom break during the extended warranty time period which is probably only two or three years past the time you bought it. And the manufacturer's warranty will probably last the first year.

ROMANS: Gift cards are not always a great gift. A quarter of all gift cards are still lying around in your purse or your desk drawers 10 months after you get it. This is according to Consumer Reports. And two-thirds of people who get them spend more than the card's face value. So they are basically paying for their own present.

Unless you know for a fact the recipient wants it and will use it, you're probably buying the retailer a gift. Also be leery of layaway. There are upfront fees. What if the item goes on sale. And if you miss a payment, the retailer could cancel the layaway and you'll lose money.

And, finally, do not pay full price. Beware of retailers who jack up a price before lowering it again. And hunt through the online sites like RetailMeNot for coupon codes you can plug in for online shopping. Make it your mission never to pay for shipping. There are always free shipping deals right around the corner. And don't buy the hype, Black Friday prices are not always the lowest of the season.

Christine Romans, CNN, New York.

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WHITFIELD: Thanks, Christine.

A simple bar of soap, well, it can change a life, and it's all thanks to a "CNN Hero," you're about to meet him.

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WHITFIELD: A simple bar of soap has one "CNN Top 10 Hero" reaching around the globe. Derreck Kayongo saw the need of poor children and families not being able to wash their hands, their faces, or their feet. He also noticed that tons of soap hotel chains throw away all the time. So he started the Global Soap Project in 2009, taking soap from the hotels, reshaping, repacking it, and then sending it to places like his native Uganda. Derek joins me now in Studio 7.

So, congratulations, Derreck.

DERRECK KAYONGO, GLOBAL SOAP PROJECT: Thank you so much.

WHITFIELD: So fantastic. So your Soap Project has reached so many, not just in Uganda, but in Kenya, so many place where it's as simple as sanitation that is helping to save lives.

KAYONGO: Yes.

WHITFIELD: And you know this because you experienced this as a refugee, as a Ugandan who was in Kenya, and so you came up with this way to help -- to reach back.

KAYONGO: It's an unbelievable journey that starts off really sad. Being a former refugee, you're really between a rock and a hard place. And then you end up here where you actually use that experience that could have been a catastrophe, and you use that experience to sort of launch yourself.

And that's what I did when I saw those three bars of soap in the hotel being thrown away. I said, oh, my goodness, we could do something with this. There is 800 million bars of soap that are thrown away every day -- I mean, every year in the U.S. That is 2.6 million bars of soap every day.

WHITFIELD: In large part because of the hotels, they change their soaps every time, even if you're going to be in that hotel for three days, you get a new bar of soap every day. And you thought, wait a minute, this is actually wasteful.

But then you had the ingenuity to say, how do I take this soap, used and unused, and then have it repackaged, you were going to do it, actually, and then send it off?

KAYONGO: Yes. And the first...

WHITFIELD: It sounds like a colossal task.

KAYONGO: It's a humongous task. But we're humans. We've been to the Moon and back. We can do this. So I think it begins from this idea of knowing that there is a problem. That there are 2 million kids that die every year because of (INAUDIBLE) diseases. The CDC, the Center for Disease Control says you can mitigate that by 40 percent if you put a bar of soap in their hands, for them to wash their hands. That's what I saw. And I knew that we could do this.

WHITFIELD: Wow. That's extraordinary. So tell me how gratifying this has been. Well, A, I know how gratifying it has been just to have the project, but then now to be recognized as a "CNN Hero," you're a "Top 10," how has your life, your organization changed as a result of that title?

KAYONGO: My goodness. First of all, the publicity has been incredible, but also the goodwill, our little Web site, the Global Soap Project Web site, has had so many hits. In fact, at one point, we had 5,000 hits that came as a result of this particular (INAUDIBLE).

But we've also gotten a new partner since the announcement for "CNN Heroes." We have the Hilton Hotel has partnered with us to give us all their soap. That is what we wanted to see happen. We also have other partners, NGOs that are coming, non-government organizations, saying, we want your soap, we'll give to it the poor kids.

So we're seeing a lot of vibrations from the bottom up, urging us on, so it's really, really remarkable.

WHITFIELD: Fantastic. Derreck Kayongo, congratulations, all the best, we're rooting for you...

KAYONGO: Oh, thank you so much.

WHITFIELD: ... and the other nine. There are 10 of you now.

KAYONGO: Yes, they are fantastic.

WHITFIELD: "CNN Heroes of the Year," all of you are all are heroes doing extraordinary work. Thanks so much for sharing.

KAYONGO: Cheers, thank you.

WHITFIELD: Appreciate it.

And meet all the "Top 10 CNN Heroes" for 2011 and vote for the one that inspires you the most at cnnheroes.com. All 10 will be honored live at the "CNN Heroes All-Star Tribute," December 11th, mark your calendars, get ready. It will be hosted by Anderson Cooper. You can also vote online, on your tablet, even your mobile phone. Just go to cnnheroes.com right now.

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WHITFIELD: President Barack Obama says the trade deals he announced during his Asian trip will create nearly 130,000 U.S. jobs. The president is heading home after concluding the nine-day tour with a stop in Indonesia. White House correspondent Dan Lothian takes a look back.

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DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: After beginning his trip by saluting U.S. troops on Veterans Day and watching college hoops on the USS Carl Vinson in San Diego, President Obama turned his attention to high diplomacy, attending three summits, beginning with APEC in Honolulu, Hawaii, that's where trade deals were announced, and the administration turned its attention to Asia, a new strategy away from Europe where we've seen some economic problems.

President Obama also held nine bilateral meetings with world leaders including those of India, Japan, Thailand, and Malaysia. And then here in Bali, Indonesia, President Obama attended two smaller regional summits. And while here, announced that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will be headed next month to Myanmar, also known as Burma, after what the administration says has been flickers of progress over the last several weeks.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The government has released some political prisoners, media restrictions have been relaxed. And legislation has been approved that could open the political environment. So taken together, these are the most important steps toward reform in Burma that we've seen in years.

LOTHIAN: But looming over this trip and this new focus on Asia, China. Administration officials concede that economic and security challenges remain.

TOM DONILON, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: We have had in parallel and as part of our overall Asia strategy a deep engagement strategy with the Chinese to manage a range of issues. We have a very complicated and quite substantial relationship with China across the board.

LOTHIAN: China has voiced concerns over the new security agreement with Australia where over the next several years, up to 2,500 U.S. troops will rotate in and out of the northern region of that country. Some see this as a counterweight to China's growing influence in the region.

President Obama now turns his attention back to Washington where the super committee has that rapidly approaching deadline to identify deep cuts.

Dan Lothian, CNN, Bali, Indonesia.

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