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Payroll Tax Cut Inches Forward; Census: More Americans in Poverty; President Obama on Home Care Worker Pay; Golden Globe Nominees; Hints of the God Particle; The War In Iraq Ends; FAMU President Addresses Hazing

Aired December 15, 2011 - 12:00   ET

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

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Top of the hour. I'm Suzanne Malveaux. Want to get you up to speed.

First-time claims for unemployment benefits fell last week. They are now at their lowest level since May of 2008. Now, the Labor Department says 366,000 people filed for jobless benefits during the week of December 10. That is down 19,000 from the week before.

And stocks now on the rise, reacting to the news on the jobs front. Right now, the Dow Jones is -- what's that number there? We're looking at it -- up 58 points.

Unless Congress acts in the next 16 days, every single American worker will get hit with a tax increase in January. Republicans and Democrats appear to be inching forward on a payroll tax cut extension. Now, a Democratic source says that the president may give up his demand for a millionaire surtax to pay for that extension.

Want to bring in Alison Kosik from the New York Stock Exchange.

So, Alison, set the scene for us, if you will. If the extension doesn't happen, what does it mean for a typical American worker?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: OK, Suzanne. In this struggling economy that we're in right now, you can ask just about anybody and they'll say every extra dollar counts. So, sure, if that tax cut expires, workers next year will wind up contributing two percentage points than more than they are contributing this year.

That means in dollars and cents for employees who make, let's say, $35,000 a year, that means they'll be paying an extra $700 a year. If you're making $50,000, it means you'll pay an extra $1,000. Now -- and it goes on and on.

Now, if the cut is not extended, many economists say it could wind up taking a big bite out of economic growth. But critics say when you look at ways on how to jump-start the economy, the tax cut hasn't even proven to be the best way because it's not targeted to lower and middle income families who are more likely to spend that extra money than they're getting with each check, whereas people who make on the high end, over $100,000, are saving that money. And while it is good to save, it doesn't necessarily help boost the economy -- Suzanne. MALVEAUX: So, Alison, when you look at this tax cut, is it going to make a huge difference when it comes to consumer spending or even the state of the economy?

KOSIK: Well, you can look at the what the Congressional Budget Office says, and what they are estimating is that the cuts would actually generate a significant amount of economic activity for every dollar spent by the government. So that means that 160 million Americans will have more money to spend.

And you know what? We are seeing them starting to spend more. While we haven't seen a huge impact yet, you have to consider that consumers' moods -- it's been improving lately. That holiday spending has been picking up, it's been propping up a lot of companies.

But the CBO is reiterating the idea that the tax cut could help increase production in jobs, but you also have to remember that the effects will be spread over time. But I'll tell you what, it certainly doesn't hurt to get that little extra something in your check every couple weeks -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: It doesn't hurt. All right. Thank you, Alison.

The U.S. Justice Department now says it has found a pattern of discrimination against Latinos within the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office in Arizona. That office is run by Joseph Arpaio, known as hard-liner on illegal immigration.

Well, last year, you may recall, Arizona passed a tough law on the issue, and one of the provisions requires police during the enforcement of other laws to check the immigration status of anybody they suspect of being undocumented. Well, an appeals court ruled the measure overstepped Arizona's authority. The state has now asked the U.S. Supreme Court to settle the issue.

The war in Iraq is now officially over. A ceremony in Baghdad today officially brought the war to a close, and American troops lowered the flag of command that had flown over the Iraqi capital. It has been almost nine years since the war started.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta flew into Baghdad for the ceremony.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LEON PANETTA, DEFENSE SECRETARY: Iraqis can take pride in knowing that through the service and sacrifice of so many brave warriors, your children will have a better future. That is the reward that we all cherish on this historic day. This is not the end, this is truly the beginning.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Here's your chance to "Talk Back" on one of the big stories of the day, the war in Iraq. As we mark the end of the war, was it worth it? We want to hear from you. Put your responses on my Facebook page. It's Facebook.com/SuzanneCNN. We're going to have your responses later in the hour.

And later in the hour, we are also looking at one of the chilling legacies from the Iraq War.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I got blown, like, 20 feet from the Humvee. And I remember looking up saying, "Oh God. Oh God."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And Florida A&M University in the spotlight over hazing allegations. We're going to talk to the university president.

And later, researchers say that they have found hints of a so-called God Particle. We're going to find out what it is and why it's important.

And then, what products are made in America? We're going to travel to a proud American town.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: There are alarming new numbers on poverty in America. The Census Bureau now says that more than half of all Americans are either low income or living in poverty. That is 146 million people. Ninety- seven million are low-income category. Another 49 million are living in poverty.

The recession and the tough job market has made these numbers even worse, especially for people like this woman who we found living in a tent city in New Jersey.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARILYN BERENSZWEIG, NEW JERSEY TENT CITY RESIDENT: It's very hard for a company to decide to use a 61-year-old trainee. I'm too young for Social Security. So, yes, it's going to be a rough -- a rocky flight. It's been a rocky flight.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Joining me now is Anita Beaty. She's executive director of Atlanta's Task Force for the Homeless. And via Skype, Professor Cornel West.

Is Cornel West ready for us?

OK. We're going to go to Cornel West when he's set up for us.

I want to bring you in first to this discussion, because you work with the homeless in the Atlanta area.

These numbers, first of all, when you hear about this, does this surprise you? Does it shock you?

ANITA BEATY, ATLANTA TASK FORCE FOR HOMELESS: It doesn't shock me because of the increase in homelessness in the United States. The report, sadly, doesn't connect homelessness to these poverty numbers, but there's an intimate connection.

MALVEAUX: How is it possible that so many Americans are struggling?

BEATY: Well, people are unemployed or underemployed. Forty percent of the people we serve every day are working somewhere now, part time labor pools, whatever they can get. But they don't earn enough to pay rent in the marketplace in Atlanta or anywhere in the country. You need to make $18 an hour at least to afford fair market rent in the United States, and you need to make $16 an hour minimum in Georgia to afford a fair market rent two bedroom apartment.

MALVEAUX: What do they need to do to help those folks who are still struggling? What is the one thing that needs to change?

BEATY: The one thing that needs to change is the emphasis on housing costs and the subsidy of -- permanent subsidy of social housing, what we called public housing in the past. We have totally eviscerated the public housing stock.

Housing now is a private commodity that people can't afford, and there's no control on private rent or private costs. So we're watching more an more people go into rental housing and pay their rents, but because the mortgages are high and the landlords don't have the value in the property, the landlords are not paying the mortgage with the rent. So people are being evicted.

MALVEAUX: I understand that this is a problem that is even worse in the South. Why are we seeing that move, where there's more struggle here?

BEATY: Well, we have a different racial make-up in the South, and the majority of people -- well, more than half of African-Americans who live under the poverty line are at risk of homelessness because they're paying more than 50 percent to 70 percent of their income for housing. So the discrimination in the housing market, the commodities that people need to afford like housing and health care, they're not entitlements. And people are poor in direct proportion to the demographics of their area.

MALVEAUX: I want to bring in Professor Cornel West to talk a bit about this.

Because, Professor, have you been traveling the country, you've been meeting people, and you see the new faces of the poor. Who are we talking about now?

PROF. CORNEL WEST, PRINCETON UNIVERSITY: Well, this is precisely what brother Tavis Smiley and I saw. We're talking about precious and priceless fellow citizens who are struggling, who are suffering, who are shuttering. And we see a state of national emergency. These levels of poverty constitute a threat to our national security. I want to see a sense of urgency. And tax policy is not a substitute for massive job programs and massive investment in housing and education.

MALVEAUX: And Professor West, what do you want to see? We know the president is about to speak momentarily. What do you want to hear from him? Is this something that the government can do?

WEST: No doubt about it. I want to see that sense of urgency. I want to see the passion. I want to see the deep concern about the social misery of our precious fellow citizens of all colors who are literally catching hell out here. Seventy-three percent of brown children --

(CROSSTALK)

MALVEAUX: OK. We want to go to the president right now. He's speaking at the White House. Sorry. We're going to have to interrupt and go to the president.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: -- and responsibility is rewarded. It's whether this is going to be a country where working people can earn enough to raise a family and build a modest savings and own a home, secure their own retirement, look after their kids. That's the test of our time.

In some cases, building this kind of economy is going to require some action from Congress. And right now Congress needs to make sure that 160 million working Americans don't see their taxes go up on January 1st.

None of the workers who joined us here today can afford a $1,000 tax increase next year, and it wouldn't be good for the economy. Every economist indicates it's important for us to extend the payroll tax cut and make sure that unemployment insurance is extended.

So this Congress cannot and should not leave for vacation until that -- until they have made sure that that tax increase doesn't happen. Let me repeat that. Congress should not and cannot go on vacation before they have made sure that working families aren't seeing their taxes go up by $1,000 and those who are out there looking for work don't see their unemployment insurance expire.

There's no reason why we shouldn't be able to extend these items, the payroll tax cut, before the holidays. There's no reason the government should shut down over this. And I expect all of us to do what's necessary in order to do the people's business and make sure that it's done before the end of the year.

Now, only Congress can prevent the payroll tax from going up next year, but there are some things that we can do without Congress to help make sure that hard work pays off, and that's why we're here today. Right behind me here is my friend Pauline Beck. One day back in 2007, Pauline was my boss. I was in California to take part in an event called Walk a Day in My Shoes, where you spend the day working the job of someone who was in the service industry. And I was lucky enough to be paired up with Pauline, and I have to tell you, it ended up being one of my favorite days of the entire campaign.

Pauline is a home health care worker. When we met, she was getting up every day at 5:00 a.m. to go to work taking care of an 86-year-old amputee named Mr. John. And each day she'd dress Mr. John and help him into his wheelchair. She'd make him breakfast. She'd scrub his floors. She would clean his bathroom.

She was his connection to the outside world. And when the work day was done, she would go home to take care of a grand nephew and two foster children who didn't have families of their own.

Heroic work and hard work, that's what Pauline was all about. And one of the things I remember about Pauline was her patience.

She was patient with me even when I didn't wring out the mop properly or didn't shake out the sheets before putting them in the laundry bin. But I also remember listening to her talk about the hardships in her life, and she did so without any self-pity.

She was glad to be working hard and she was glad to be helping someone. All she wanted in return for a hard day's work was enough to take care of those kids she was going home to, enough to save a little bit for retirement, maybe take a day off once in a while to rest her aching back.

Each of the folks who are here today has a story like Pauline's. They represent nearly 1.8 million home care workers across the country, hard-working professionals, mostly women, who work around the clock so that folks who need help, including many of our family members, can live independently in their own home.

Right now home care is one of the fastest growing industries in America, partly because we're getting older as a society. And as the baby boom generation heads into retirement, more and more Americans are going to need the services of these outstanding workers.

But here's the thing. As the home care business has changed over the years, the law hasn't changed to keep up. So even though workers like Pauline do everything from bathing to cooking, they're still lumped in the same category as teenage baby-sitters when it comes to how much they make.

That means employers are allowed to pay these workers less than minimum wage with no overtime. That's right. You can wake up at 5:00 in the morning, care for somebody every minute of the day, take the late bus home at night, and still make less than the minimum wage.

And this means the many home care workers are forced to rely on things like food stamps just to make ends meet. That's just wrong. In this country, it's inexcusable. I can tell you first hand that these men and women, they work their tails off, and they don't complain. They deserve to be treated fairly. They deserve to be paid fairly for a service that many older Americans couldn't live without. And companies who do pay fair wages to these women shouldn't be put at a disadvantage.

Four years ago, a home care worker named Evelyn Koch (ph) took her case all the way up to the Supreme Court. And Evelyn was working up to 70 hours a way with no overtime pay. But the court ruled against her, saying that to change the law would require action from Congress or the Department of Labor.

I'm sure many of you won't be surprised to know that Congress hasn't acted on this issue so far. Today, I will.

Today, we're guaranteeing home care workers minimum wage and overtime pay protection, and that's thanks to the hard work of my Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solis. We are going to make sure that over a million men and women in one of the fastest growing professions in the country don't slip through the cracks.

We're going to make sure that companies who do right by their workers aren't undercut by companies who don't. We're going to do what's fair and we're going to do what's right.

Now, Evelyn Koch (ph) didn't live to see this day, but the truth is, Americans like Evelyn and Pauline and the rest of the workers who are here today, they're one of the reasons that I ran for president. They work hard. They play by the rules. In exchange, they just want to see that their hard work and their responsibility is rewarded. It's that simple.

Americans all deserve a fair shake and a fair shot. And as long as I have the honor of serving as president, I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure that those very modest expectations are fulfilled. I'm going to make sure that they are treated right. I'm going to make sure that every American is treated fairly.

Thanks very much, everybody. Thank you.

MALVEAUX: Want to bring in Gloria Borger out of Washington, first of all, to talk about what the president is trying to achieve here through executive order. And it seems to me as if it's kind of working on the edges here, that he can get some things accomplished without Congress to help low and middle class folks.

Does this seem like this is a convincing enough strategy to voters, that this is a president who is paying attention to those who are struggling in this country?

BORGER: Well, you know, the whole thesis of what they call "We can't wait" is that Congress isn't doing its job. We can't wait for them to do their jobs, and therefore he talks about things like he just spoke about now, which is minimum wage and overtime protections for home health workers. But in the larger picture of things, Suzanne, the first thing he said when he came out is that we also can't wait, and that Congress shouldn't go home for Christmas vacation until it extends the payroll tax cut. And that's also a pretty good political move for him, wouldn't you say?

MALVEAUX: Yes. I mean, do we think that there's much that's actually going to get done though before the new year?

BORGER: Well, here's the thing. I cannot imagine -- and again, I could be wrong here. I don't want to be Pollyanna, but I cannot imagine that these members of Congress, knowing their low approval ratings, will want to leave here for Christmas vacation before they make sure that the government doesn't get shut down and before they agree on some way to extend the payroll tax cut.

The Republican Party has been divided on the question of the payroll tax cut. A lot of them think it didn't work, so why would you extend it? But they have a difficult political point to make, because if you want to extend tax cuts for the wealthy, why would you not want to extend tax cuts for the middle class? And you have Barack Obama arguing for tax cuts.

So they're trying to protect themselves here. And I think these people, above all else, are politicians. They want to get re-elected. And so they don't want to go home without at least getting this done.

MALVEAUX: Yes, they can't go home empty-handed.

BORGER: Exactly. Exactly.

MALVEAUX: Gloria, thank you.

I want to bring back in Anita Beaty.

Because we were talking before about these rather shocking numbers from the Census report saying that half the folks are either low income or poor in this country now.

BEATY: Right.

MALVEAUX: You work with the homeless in the Atlanta area. Did you hear something from President Obama that signals to you that he gets it, he understands, that he's trying to help those who you work with who are struggling?

BEATY: Well, there wasn't any connection made between low-income jobs and pay and less than low income jobs and the cost of housing. We're looking at the greatest increase in homelessness among families.

Twenty-five percent of the homeless are children under 18. So the numbers are growing so dramatically, that we have to have an urgent -- an emergency response from the administration in homelessness.

The Occupy movement all over the country is connected with homelessness. Certainly, it is here in Atlanta, connected with foreclosures on families who are working. Up to 40 percent of the people who are homeless are working, but they can't pay rent.

So that, to me, is the canary in the mine. It's the tip of the iceberg, that the growing poverty rate, you can just predict how many people are going to experience homelessness in a year by taking 16 percent of the people into poverty. They will lose their housing at some point during the year. So this is the emergency.

MALVEAUX: All right. Anita Beaty, thank you so much for joining us here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

BEATY: Thank you.

MALVEAUX: I really appreciate it. Thank you.

BEATY: Thank you.

MALVEAUX: A college campus rocked by allegations of hazing. Florida A&M University and its world famous band is now under scrutiny. We're going to talk with a college president and author about how to stop hazing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: The Florida A&M president promises to root out hazing on campus, but he isn't saying what new steps the school plans to take. Florida A&M has been in the spotlight since the death of its drum major in a suspected hazing incident.

President James Ammons says it is difficult to break this code of silence.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES AMMONS, PRESIDENT, FLORIDA A&M UNIVERSITY: One of the things that we have found with hazing is that there is a veil of secrecy. This is a culture not just here at Florida A&M University, it's on college and university campuses all across America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX In fact, the 2008 study found that 55 percent of students involved in clubs, teams, or organizations, experienced hazing. In 95 percent of cases where students say they were hazed, they did not report it to campus officials.

Joining us to talk about hazing and how to deal with it is Walter Kimbrough. He is president of Philander Smith College that is in Little Rock, Arkansas. He's also the author of "Black Greek 101" about the culture of African-American fraternities and sororities.

Professor, thanks for joining us. First of all, we heard from the president of Florida A&M. Do you agree that there is a problem here? This veil of secrecy that makes it even harder to deal with this issue?

WALTER KIMBROUGH, PRESIDENT, PHILANDER SMITH COLLEGE: Yes, there is a great deal of secrecy around these groups and their hazing practices. Part of the issue is that the students want to belong to these organizations and they are going to do whatever it takes to be a member.

So if they have to participate in some of these, what some students might call a right of passage. The newest members have to prove their worth to the older members. They are willing to do those things so they can be fully accepted into these groups.

So they know coming in it is not allowed, it is not something you should do, it is illegal in most states, yet they have a strong affinity for these groups and they want to do whatever it takes to be a member.

So there's no need for them to tell. They want to be in the group more than they want do anything else. So they are going to work not to tell, which causes the problems.

Because we normally as campus administrators, you don't find out if there is a problem unless something very bad happens. Most of the times they get away with it and they know that. When something bad like this happens, then it becomes the bigger problem.

MALVEAUX: And something, of course, we know very bad happened at Florida A&M involving this drum major, Robert Champion, who died because of all of this. How widespread of a problem is this?

KIMBROUGH: I think it is very widespread. We can chronicle hazing in the United States as early as the 1600s. It became very prominent in the 1850s but you can chronicle hazing back to the 1400s in Germany and was really for the freshman. They were the newest star on campus. They had to prove their worth.

The same thing happened in the United States. Freshmen had to prove themselves, but in the 1920s, colleges and universities started to outlaw this hazing of freshmen. So it sort of migrated into different groups, fraternities, sororities, bands, athletic teams. So it is a major problem that we've dealt with for centuries.

MALVEAUX: You said that you recently called for the ban of the Florida A&M to be treated like a fraternity or sorority, and given a long term suspension. What would that accomplish? I mean, doesn't that really punish the good students, the people who aren't involved in this if you suspend the band?

KIMBROUGH: Right, well, I mean, part of our practices have been -- and we have a lot of chances in various occasions in terms of really dealing with these issues. But until you have a period of time where you can really figure out how do we operate very differently with these groups.

One of the suggestions you can look at and this is a common practice with fraternities and sororities is there is a cooling off period. There is a time to sort of restructure. Part of the philosophy is if you can graduate people who have been a part of that culture.

You have at least a chance to start over with a fresh group and have some break with some of those negative traditions. The other thing that I think part of all of these hazing cases is that we have to put more on the onus of the students who are members of these different groups to report it.

I mean, that's part of the veil of secrecy that the president talked about there. They don't feel like they have to say anything, just say I'll stay out of it. But everybody has something to lose when people don't speak. We've got to let students know there is a consequence for everyone who is a member of these groups if they are quiet about it.

MALVEAUX: And let's talk about since the death of Robert Champion we've learned about other alleged incidents of hazing at that university. There were three people who were charged this week in the case of Brea Hunter who authorities say was beaten weeks before -- here's what her attorney said yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

B.J. BERNSTEIN, LAWYER FOR BRIA HUNTER: Accountability and responsibility is a critical part for any student who's a part of this. But even more so, Florida A&M has to change. Had perhaps Florida A&M acted in an appropriate way, could it have saved Robert Champion's life? This happened three weeks before.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Do you agree? Should the university -- could the university have done more?

KIMBROUGH: Well, based on my knowledge of the case, not having seen all the facts for this case, but I know that there has been a program in place at that university like most universities to do some extensive training and education for students who are interested in joining the fraternities or sororities.

And as well as the band and they have done training at Florida A&M in terms of educating the students in terms of that. So, you know, I think there is a lot of second-guessing what do we do and one of the things I've been having conversations with people is how do we go forward.

How do we ramp up not only education, but in terms of the sanctions and I'm a proponent of maybe, you know, states need to get rid of hazing laws as whole and we start treating everybody as assault, battery, manslaughter to give it a little bit more substance for people to say this is a serious crime and it is not just boys being boys, horsing around that kind of thing. So maybe we need to look at the laws differently.

MALVEAUX: I'm sorry, we've clearly run out of time, but you also mentioned, as well, that this is -- you studied black fraternities and sororities at campuses and colleges. But this is certainly not a kind of racial thing here, that this is something we see across the board with all schools, all organizations, all races. Yes.

KIMBROUGH: Right, exactly. I mean, we've seen a range of cases -- and we forget in the country -- it's sad but there was a 2003 high school case of the girls out of Chicago that was a very brutal beating that was videotaped and we saw all over the place. So it transcends race and socioeconomic class. It's just been a problem that we've seen in higher education back to the 1400s in Germany.

MALVEAUX: All right, Walter Kimbrough, thank you so much for your perspective. Really appreciate it.

It is now a new day for Iraq and its people after almost nine years. The war officially over. We're going to get a report from Baghdad.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: We go in-depth now to Iraq. It is an historic day for that country and for the United States almost after nine years, the war is over.

It officially ended today in Baghdad during a ceremony known as the casing of the colors. From the beginning to now, almost 4,500 Americans have lost their lives in Iraq. More than 30,000 wounded and tens of thousands of Iraqis have been killed, most of them civilians. CNN's Arwa Damon is in Baghdad.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is now eerily silent where America's final military ceremony took place. The casing of the colors happening here in Baghdad as the U.S. military officially ended its role here.

There are still a few thousand troops in country. They will be departing by the end of the month. Among those in attendance -- Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta telling those gathered here that they should remember the lessons of war and recalling, too, the American lives that were lost.

But the U.S. overall painting a fairly optimistic future for Iraq, though acknowledging that many challenges lie ahead. But when it comes to the sacrifices of war, perhaps no one knows them better than the Iraqi population.

You would be hard pressed to find a single family here that has not lost someone they know or a loved one. Many Iraqis incredibly disappointed, some of them bitter as well when it comes to the United States, because so many of them tell us that they had such great dreams when the U.S. invaded.

They believed that America would bring them prosperity. That they would be able to thrive, that they would open up to the outside world and that they would find themselves a better future. Instead Iraq became embroiled in a bitter sectarian war and al Qaeda took over huge swaths of the country.

While security has significantly improved, since what many Iraqis call the dark days, they are still not entirely sure that that kind of violence will not re-emerge in the future. They say that there are incredible problems when it comes to governance.

There's very little faith in the abilities of the country government to really form a government of national unity and there are great concerns about the potential security vacuum that could be left behind. Arwa Damon, CNN, Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: Hollywood's foreign press association has announced the nominees for this year's Golden Globe awards. Find out if your favorite actors and films made the cut. A.J. Hammer is live with the results up next.

But first, "THE NEXT LIST" is a new CNN program focusing on some of America's most creative minds. Each Sunday, Dr. Sanjay Gupta profiles people on the cutting edge of technology and innovation. This week, Sanjay shows us what an album looks like today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)_

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So an App Album is a brand-new thing. The idea is to create a complete fully immersive interactive experience that involves visuals, music and activity.

You used to take an album home and you'd have to play it on a record player. Think there is something kind of like reverential, almost like spiritual the way we would bond with an album.

App has the potential to bring that back and the way it does it is by demanding all of your senses all at once.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: The Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced its nominees for this year's Golden Globe Awards. "Showbiz Tonight" host A.J. Hammer live with us in New York.

A.J., so, George Clooney, right, one of the nominees?

A.J. HAMMER, ANCHOR, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Couldn't happen to a nicer guy, Suzanne. Great money for George Clooney. He got multiple nominations. One for best actor in a drama for "The Descendents" and also his other film, "The Ides of March." That earned him a directing and best screen play nomination. I knew I had it right here. Both of those Clooney movies are nominated for the best picture drama category. Clooney's co-star in "The Ides of March," Ryan Gosling, also got multiple nominations. He's up for best actor in a drama for "Ides," as well as best actor in a musical or comedy for his role in "Crazy Stupid Love."

Now, the silent film, "The Artist," is the one that lead the way with an overall six nominations. They got one for best musical or comedy.

Also, as we move on, in that category it's up against "50-50," "Bridesmaids" -- thrilled seeing that get a nomination -- "Midnight in Paris" and "My Week With Marilyn."

Now, I just spoke with Kenneth Branagh, who's up for best supporting actor for "My Week With Marilyn." This guy was just over the moon, as you'd well imagine, after hearing the news of his nomination. Listen to what he told me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KENNETH BRANAGH, ACTOR (voice-over): To be recognized, myself and Michelle, for this kind of thing is really -- it feels as though it's coming from sort of an inside group who have a kind of understanding, appreciation of these things. So to even get that far with a group like this is very exciting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HAMMER: Hearing a guy so accomplished, so humbled is really something. Branagh facing off against Albert Brooks for "Drive," Jonah Hill -- he got nominated for his "Moneyball" performance, Viggo Mortensen from "A Dangerous Method," and Christopher Plummer for "Beginners."

Now, I also spoke with Jonah Hill. Jonah said he never could have imagined a world where his name was mentioned alongside all those great stars.

Also, we continue to get all kinds of reaction from around Hollywood. Just got a statement from Angelina Jolie. Now her directing debut film, "In the Land of Blood and Honey," was nominated in the best foreign language category. And here's what Angelina Jolie is saying about that this morning. "I am grateful that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association is honoring our film. This was a true collaboration and I am forever indebted to our cast and crew who experienced their own personal tragedies in the Bosnian War and gave me an authentic perspective into the conflict. This nomination is a tribute to the collective talent and passion of this extraordinary cast."

So, yes, we'll have Angie there, and, of course, Brad Pitt, her partner, will be there. He's going to be there for his personal labor of love, "Moneyball." That earned him an acting nomination. And the film itself also competing in the best motion picture drama category. It's up against George Clooney's "The Descendants," "The Help," -- a spectacular films there, Martin Scorsese's "Hugo," "Ides of March and Steven Spielberg's "War Horse."

We all know, Suzanne, that the Golden Globes, one of the big award show parties that truly is a party, this year a parade of a-listers there. Globes being handed out on January 15th. Ricky Gervais back as host. We never know what to expect with Ricky Gervais.

MALVEAUX: Can't wait. I loved "Bridesmaids." That was one of my favorites. So I'm looking forward to it. HAMMER: I loved "Bridesmaids." And I'll tell you very quickly. I spoke with Judd Apatow, who produced that, and he just can't believe it and is thrilled that comedy of this kind is getting this kind of recognition.

MALVEAUX: Yes, it was great. Absolutely great.

Thank you, A.J., appreciate it.

If you any more information on everything breaking in the entertainment world, A.J.'s got it this evening on "Showbiz Tonight," 11:00 Eastern, on HLN.

Could be a major scientific breakthrough. Researchers say they have found hints of the so-called God Particle. I'm going to find out what is it and why it's important.

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MALVEAUX: So if you follow science, you might have heard of the so- called God Particle. Researchers have gotten some very interesting hints that it actually exists.

I don't know what it is, I don't know why it's important. That's why we go to you, Chad. You have the answers to all these things.

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Nothing to do with God.

MALVEAUX: OK.

MYERS: They thought when they found a particle, and they thought it was -- what could we say, what could we call it that would make people interested? Well calling it the Higgs Boson doesn't do much. That's -- no one's going to really follow the Higgs Boson Particle or even look for it. But when you call it a God Particle, we all know from science class how atoms work. You know, the electrons are going around the protons and the neutrons and all that.

MALVEAUX: Yes.

MYERS: But what keeps all of those other atoms together? Why I am here? Why is this wall here? We know there are atoms in there, but what's the glue that holds all of that together?

Well, the collider, that's -- in France it's called c-e-r-n, CERN, goes around 17 miles and they send these protons flying into space and then they send another one going this way, or a bunch of them going this way, streams of these. And eventually, at one point, they will collide. That collision is what the big part is.

What's the big thing? When you send the particles in and they collide with each other here, a bunch of things fly out. The flying out part is what we're seeing. Can we find what is actually holding the protons together? Holding this stream of mass together. Holding you and me together. Holding the world. It's kind of like gravity holding us to the surface of the earth. And when you drop an egg, it hits the floor. We know gravity is there but we can't see it. We can prove it is there. We can prove that, you know, an apple falls from a tree and hits a guy on top of a head and all of a sudden you have gravity. But can we really prove it? Can we see it?

Well, you can't see what's holding these atoms together either, but they think that as they got these collisions going, they thought they saw pieces -- not yet, this is not confirmed yet, but they think they have found pieces of what's holding it together called the Higgs Boson or, of course, the God Particle.

MALVEAUX: The God Particle. All right.

MYERS: So it's almost there. By next year, this time, we will know for sure.

MALVEAUX: Cool. I like that. You know, it holds everything together. That makes sense.

MYERS: It's the glue.

MALVEAUX: The glue. (INAUDIBLE) holding together.

Thank you.

MYERS: You're welcome.

MALVEAUX: As the war in Iraq ends, we're going to look at one of its tragic legacies.

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MALVEAUX: We go back now "In Depth" to Iraq. The war there finally ended. One of its biggest legacies -- IEDs, improvised explosive devices, that have killed or wounded hundreds of American troops.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ON SCREEN TEXT: Iraq & IEDs.

SGT. JOSHUA COPE, U.S. ARMY: I got blown like 20 feet from the Humvee and I remember looking up saying, oh God, oh God.

ON SCREEN TEXT: The IED became the weapon of choice for the Iraqi insurgency.

BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMIT, FORMER ASST. SECRETARY OF STATE: The IED is a poor man's weapon of mass destruction. It's immediate, it's cheap, it doesn't require a large well-trained military force. It takes a very few people to build a bomb and even fewer people to hide the bomb. That's why it's become such an effective weapon.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wow. This is what they put inside the IEDs to kill us. This is what does our casualties right here. ON SCREEN TEXT: More than half of all coalition combat deaths were caused by IEDs.

1ST LT. RYAN MILLER, U.S. ARMY: We were driving by and all of a sudden, boom, and I was hanging out of the back of that truck, which was basically the closest thing, you know, you can get to hell, you know, on this earth.

KIMMIT: We went into the war with one set of equipment designed for one type of warfare. By the end of the war, our tactics, our techniques, and our procedures were greatly modified because of the presence of IEDs on the battlefield.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a little confusing. You never know where they're coming from. You can just be walking down the street and, boom. People are hurt.

ARWA DAMON, CNN: They were everywhere. And the IEDs got more and more sophisticated as the years went on. The IEDs got more sophisticated, the U.S. military armor got more sophisticated. And it went on in a cycle like that. It was a battle between the IEDs and the U.S. military's machine in trying to pump out protection for its troops against them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You see how the dirt is a different color over there and how it's freshly dug? It's a perfect sign that there's an IED -- that's one's been planted there recently.

KIMMIT: It's clear that IEDs, in this contact, like booby-traps during Vietnam, are going to be present in Iraq for some time and in Afghanistan some time. No matter the technological advantages and the technological advances that we bring to this fight, they will be persistent on the battlefield and we just -- our troops need to be ready to confront them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know. I just kind of don't think about it. If you think about it, that's when it gets nerve-racking.

ON SCREEN TEXT: Since 2003 in Iraq, more than 1800 coalition troops have been killed by IEDs. The number of Iraqi civilians killed by IEDs remains unknown.

Iraq & IEDs.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: That's it for today. Thanks for watching. CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Don Lemon.

Hi, Don.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Suzanne, hello. Thank you very much.