Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Dive To The Deepest Place On Earth; Solar Storm Races Toward Earth; House Votes On Jobs Bill; Initial Jobless Claims Jump; Fears Spike Over Iran's Nuclear Plans; Explosions, Defection Rock Syria; Indy Loses Its Hero; Controversial Cable TV Show Ends; Whitney Houston's Will Filed; Left Slams Limbaugh, Right Slams Maher; Government to Sue Apple, Publishers; Santorum: I'm Not Asking Anyone to Drop Out
Aired March 08, 2012 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: We begin with a dangerous and unprecedented mission to the deepest point on the planet. A place only two people have ever set eyes on, the bottom of the Mariana Trench off the coast of Guam.
It's nearly seven miles beneath the Pacific Ocean, uncharted territory, and home to life forms we've never seen before. In the coming weeks, legendary filmmaker, James Cameron will try to dive there inside a high tech submersible craft.
CNN's Jason Carroll was the only news reporter invited on Cameron's ship for his test dives. He's just back to New York. He joins us live now. It just must have been fascinating, Jason.
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It was absolutely incredible, Carol. I mean, you know how much I like stories like this. Every single person on board that ship passionate about what they're doing.
This is really an explorer's dream, but it's not just about exploration. It's really all about potentially discovering new forms of life that exists on this planet's final frontier.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CARROLL (voice-over): James Cameron is on a mission, and what you're seeing is another step, or better to say, dive towards reaching it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It goes by fast. No, it does. It's so exciting. Every second you're seeing something cool. I'm telling you, I'm wiped out after the dive because your brain is going 1,000 miles an hour.
CARROLL: Though Cameron may be best known for directing two of the highest grossing films of all time, "Avatar" and "Titanic." He is also known in the scientific community as an accomplished deep sea explorer.
And after working for several years, Cameron and his team of scientists has created a technologically advanced sub to take him to the deepest know point on the planet.
In a joint project with National Geographic Society, Cameron sets his sight on the challenger deep. It's carved in the Marianna Trench, some 36,000 feet below the surface, nearly seven miles down.
JAMES CAMERON, EXPLORER/DIRECTOR: I want to get down there and look around the image and use the 3D cameras and bring it all back so people can see what's there. You know, I mean, it's the last unexplored frontier on the planet.
CARROLL: Cameron has taken his sub, aptly named "Deep Sea Challenger," on a series of test dives. Already they've collected strange looking organisms at depths so extreme it would crush a man. It's a treasure trove for scientists, and on this day, our cameras are invited for a key test dive.
CAMERON: We're going to 26,000 feet, we, meaning me and the sub.
CARROLL (on camera): Good.
CAMERON: Tomorrow afternoon. No, you're not coming. It's a one- seater.
CARROLL (voice-over): But the test at 26,000 feet cut a little short.
CAMERON: Deepsea Challenger is requesting permission to send, over.
CARROLL: Deepsea Challenger made it to a little more than 23,800 feet then had to come back.
CAMERON: Good news is. It's now officially the deepest diving submersible in the world. Bad news is never saw the bottom. Had about five major systems failures that prevented me from going on.
CARROLL: But Cameron and his team did go on to reach a point beyond 26,000 feet. Their next step, challenger deep.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CARROLL: And, Carol, Cameron has been on more than 70 submersible dives by one count here, 50 of those to deep sea depths. So he is well aware of the risks that are at play here, but you know, he's dedicated to science, and he has a desire to explore. We'll see what happens.
COSTELLO: I know. When will we get to see those new life forms?
CARROLL: Well, if you tune in to my story tomorrow, Carol, you'll be able to see a lot more.
COSTELLO: Well, I definitely will then. Jason Carroll, thank you.
If you thought that sounded like a science fiction movie, listen to this. A huge solar storm, the largest in five years, is already hitting earth today at 4 million miles per hour.
CNN meteorologist, Rob Marciano, this is just hard to wrap your mind around.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It is. We've talked about this in the past, but this is the strongest one that we've seen since 2006. So it's got everybody on alert right now, but it's happening right now.
The first pulse of these x-rays and radio waves came through about a day and a half ago. That's when you'd have a bit of a radio blackout. There you see that little explosion right there. That is where the solar flare emitted all that radiation, some of which got here at the speed of light, which takes about an hour roughly.
Others which travel at, as Carol said, between 3 million and 5 million miles an hour. That is arriving right now, all emanating from these sun spots, which have become quite active in the past couple of years, and will continue to be active for the next 18 months or so.
We're in this solar cycle. What that does and what that means for me and you are the following. First of all, high frequency radio blackouts. That came with the first round of radiation, about 24 hours ago. So that's done.
But the potential for power grid outages with this magnetic storm that's happening right now, that's possible. GPS and satellite interruptions, meaning if you're driving down the road with your GPS on, that could be interrupted. So keep the map handy.
And the good news is brilliant auroras. This also affects airline travel. If you're flying at high latitudes, those planes will be rerouted a little bit closer to the poles or lower because that radiation will penetrate through the skin of the aircraft.
Also, astronauts, and it can affect them as well. As of right now, they have not -- they're measuring that on the ISS, and the word right now is they have not told the astronauts to seek shelter just yet. And the other thing, of course, the brilliant auroras.
Other piece of good news, you think about satellites, all the satellites we have up there and the amount of space junk we have. We've had these satellites falling to the earth recently, and that's another thing we've been talking about.
Part of the reason is during these solar maximums, that kind of pushes these satellites a little bit closer. It actually helps clean up some of the junk. So that's the positive here. We'll get maybe with the solar wind pushing some of those junkie satellites down and get them out of orbit.
COSTELLO: So quickly, you're talking about brilliant -- the brilliant things in the sky we can see. Where can you see those things?
MARCIANO: The auroras? The further north you are, the better. But I think tonight a good bet is as far south as Milwaukee, Minneapolis, maybe as far south as St. Louis. We've had a full moon too so that kind of dims things. Anyway, you live in those areas. You slip north, clear sky. Maybe see some northern lights. COSTELLO: Thank you, Rob.
MARCIANO: All right, Carol.
COSTELLO: Can you believe it? There's bipartisanship happening on Capitol Hill today. The House votes on a bill called the Jobs Act. It's designed to help small businesses remove some of the barriers to investment.
President Obama, Democrats, and Republicans all on board, most of the act's measures have already been passed. But the economy clearly still needs help. A little more than an hour ago, we found out more people are filing for unemployment benefits.
That's not so great. The government just released the latest figures, and here are the specifics for you. The number of people filing for first time unemployment benefits went up to 362,000 last week. That's an increase of 8,000. What does it mean? Let's go to the woman who knows, Christine Romans.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: It means things are getting a little better, but they're not getting better very quickly. That's what it means pace basically. Tomorrow, we get that big jobs report, Carol.
And we're expecting that to show 210,000 jobs created. A CNN Money poll of analysts, 210,000 is what they're expecting tomorrow for the jobs report. The unemployment rate steady at 8.3 percent. I want to caution you too, Carol, because we could see that unemployment rate tick up.
That's a potential for this week and for months ahead because, as the economy looks like it's healing a little bit, you could get a lot of people who completely dropped out of the labor market, who come back in and try to work, try to find a job, and that means that rate could go up.
So clearly, that's one of those funny things where a healing labor market could make the unemployment labor market rise a little bit in the near term.
COSTELLO: We always make a big deal of these unemployment numbers, but it's really not the whole picture when we take a look at the entire economy.
ROMANS: No, it isn't and that's really a good point because a lot of people when we talk about the healing labor market, we're bombarded by comments, right? By people, you know, who say, it doesn't feel that way to me. I'm still out of work. I'm working, but I'm not making as much as I used to or it's just harder in general.
There's another number we look at, Carol, called the underemployment rate. It's the U6 number on the Bureau of Labor Statistics tables and charts. It's 15.1 percent. What does that underemployment rate contain?
It's people who are unemployed. It's people who are working part time, but they really want to be working full-time. They're just working part time because it's all they could get. They are underemployed.
It includes people who aren't looking this second for work. They are available to work, but within the last year at some point they tested the waters and couldn't get something. Those people are called marginally attached.
Those people are included there too. It's 15.1 percent. If you look at African-Americans, it's more than 20 percent. If you look at Hispanics, it's more than 20 percent. I mean, looking at different groups of people, it's young people, very, very high number as well.
So you look at that 8.3 number, and remember it's a very dynamic, big labor market. And the situation could be different for you depending on where you live and who you are.
COSTELLO: Gotcha. Christine Romans in New York this morning.
ROMANS: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: Let's talk about Iran now and growing concerns that it's secretly developing nuclear weapons. New satellite images show Iran may be carting away evidence from a suspected nuclear site just south of Tehran.
This morning world leaders at the United Nations called for more inspections of that military complex you're looking at. That's where the agency's nuclear watchdogs believe work may have been done on developing weapons.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YUKIYA AMANO, DIRECTOR GENERAL, IAEA: Iran is not telling us everything. That is my impression. So we have to -- we're asking Iran to engage with us proactively and Iran has a case to answer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Barbara Starr is at the Pentagon for us. So Barbara, why is this site such a concern and how much does the U.S. trust Iran? I would say not very much.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: I think you're exactly right. Look, the director general really laid it out there, a little bit diplomatically, but he was very specific. They want to hear more from Iran about what they are up to at this site that we showed the satellite photo of.
What the inspectors believe, what U.S. intelligence believes, is that Iran did some explosives testing, some very high tech testing of explosives that would be used in a nuclear trigger to trigger a nuclear bomb.
It's very technical, very specific work, and Iran hasn't let inspectors into this site since 2005. Now suddenly, they say they might let inspectors back in. But the satellite evidence that nobody has exactly seen in the public yet, seems to show, we are told, that there's been some cleanup work done.
So a little coincidental perhaps that cleanup work, and now they're letting inspectors back in for the first time since 2005, that's the problem right there. It's a cat and mouse game with Iran.
The U.S. and the inspectors feel, and they really wanted it sorted out at this point because it couldn't be more serious. Israel looks at this and believes Iran is well down the road to making a nuclear weapon. The U.S. is concerned about it.
They have to somehow determine what Iran is really up to and where it stands on all this.
COSTELLO: There's lots of concern that Israel may act. In fact, one U.S. senator, after meeting with the Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, she says the U.S. ally is ready to strike now. This is Barbara Feinstein.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SENATOR DIANNE FEINSTEIN (D), CALIFORNIA: I believe that Israel will attack. I believe it's important that diplomacy be given an opportunity. Israel believes they are prepared to handle it. Now, what happens after an attack is another story.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: So, Barbara, why does the senator believe Israel will attack?
STARR: Well, look at who's talking there, Carol. As you and everybody else knows, Senator Feinstein is the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee. She has direct access to the most sensitive intelligence information.
She spoke with Israeli leaders when they are in town this week. She's getting some of the most current information. So if she says this, one can only assume she's got good reason to believe it.
Israel believes fundamentally that Iran is well down the road towards assembling the ability to make a nuclear weapon. They want to stop Iran before they get the capability. The U.S. position is a little bit further down the road.
The U.S. wants to stop Iran from getting a weapon, but doesn't really have that position of stopping them from getting the capability. It's a fine point. People can argue over it.
But the real bottom line is that Israel has a position that leads it to want to act more quickly against Iran than the U.S. does. The U.S. still very much hoping that sanctions work. COSTELLO: Barbara Starr live at the Pentagon.
Indy loses its hero. Peyton Manning is gone from the Colts. We'll talk about his emotional farewell with sports radio host, Dan Dockidge. That's coming your way next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: In Syria, more explosions and bursts of gunfire rocking the country today. Opposition activists say government troops killed at least 56 people today.
As always, we can't verify that number because the government bans most foreign reporting, but now an insider is speaking out. A high ranking government official defects and joins the revolution.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ABDO HUSSAMELDIN, SYRIAN DEPUTY OIL MINISTER (through translator): For this I decided to join the voice of the righteous despite the notion that this regime will burn my house, harass my family, and ruin many lives.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Nic Robertson is monitoring the situation from Beirut, Lebanon. Nic, first of all, who is this man and how important to the rebels is his defection?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's important to the rebels. It shows signs that there are cracks in the regime. His defection is unlikely to bring down the regime, but it is the most senior person that we're aware of so far to split with the regime and certainly come out publicly and say he's joining the opposition. So it will be a worry for Bashar Al-Assad.
It's going to send a serious message to people in that part of society, the businessmen, the sort of middle class. The support for the government is cracking and waning, and people are beginning to move away from it.
So it won't bring down the government. It will certainly boost morale for the activists and opposition and perhaps send an important message to the business community about which side -- the fact that they need to begin to choose sides -- Carol.
COSTELLO: We're hearing of terrible humanitarian abuses, and we know the head of the U.N.'s emergency relief services has met with top government officials, but is she getting any information?
ROBERTSON: It's not clear. Interestingly, after she met with the officials yesterday, Valerie Amos, the U.N.'s chief humanitarian representative, didn't have a joint press conference.
And often in these situations, there will be a joint press conference if there are issues that have been agreed upon and it seems to indicate there weren't any issues agreed upon. She was told by the foreign minister she could go wherever she wants in the country.
But she hasn't been allowed so far -- according to her team, she hasn't been allowed into any opposition areas. Exactly what is being discussed, we don't know.
Reports from activists today in the city of Homs, the city that Valerie Amos, the U.N. representative, visited yesterday, that a family of 44 people have been found killed by government forces. We can't verify that, but what's what activists are telling us -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Nic Robertson reporting live from Beirut for us.
Indianapolis loses Peyton Manning. Did you see the press conference? This guy has class. He could teach a class on class. We'll talk about his emotional farewell with sports radio host Dan Dakich. That's coming your way next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Talk about class, Peyton Manning should teach a class on class. Did you see it? The emotional farewell by the face of the Indianapolis Colts franchise. If you didn't see it, here's Peyton Manning saying good-bye to a city he clearly loves.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PEYTON MANNING, FORMER QUARTERBACK, INDIANAPOLIS COLTS: It truly has been an honor to play in Indianapolis. I do love it here. I love the fans, and I'll always enjoy having played for such a great team.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Dan Dakich hosts an afternoon show on ESPN 1070 The Fan in Indianapolis. Thank you for joining us this morning.
In watching that press conference, he's standing beside the owner who had to let him go. They're both crying, and they both seem to understand this had to happen for the greater good. You don't often see that these days.
DAN DAKICH, ESPN 1070 THE FAN: Jimmy Irsay will cry when he sees a new puppy, but not so much Peyton. Peyton will get mad after games, after particularly losses, or maybe on the field at a teammate, but you don't see that kind of emotion.
I think what you saw there was a guy that legitimately loved his teammates, legitimately loved the organization he played for, and he legitimately loves the town that he lives in.
You know, there's a Peyton Manning Children's Hospital here that he's donated not only money to, but a ton of time. He's been all over the community doing a ton of things, both privately and publicly, and he's a guy that loves this town.
COSTELLO: I know that on your radio show yesterday you asked fans to call in and share their favorite memory, their most beloved memory of Peyton Manning. Was there a common theme?
DAKICH: Well, people -- you know, obviously, the Super Bowl was their memory, but the prevailing feeling was sadness. People understand this had to happen. The $28 million had to be paid by Friday. They paid him $26 million last year.
It gets a little confusing, but if they pay the $28 million, it activated a four-year deal, which was really going to hamstring the Colts in terms of cap space for signing other people. And Andrew Luck, the first pick of the draft, is considered the best prospect since Manning.
I think people understood it, but it's still a huge sense of sadness and a bit of a sense of loss. It was very, very odd yesterday listening to people talk about a guy who's only in his 30s, still healthy, but as if he had passed away. It was that kind of mood here at least on my radio show and the other local shows.
COSTELLO: And you talk about Andrew Luck. I mean, what kind of reception will this kid have?
DAKICH: I think he's going to have a great reception. I think people are excited about him. They know about him. He's always handled himself with such class, a lot like Peyton. Actually, Peyton's family and Luck's family are friends.
Peyton's dad was a starting quarterback late in his career, and Oliver Luck, Andrew's dad, was his backup. So they've known each other for a long time. People are excited about Andrew Luck. There's no question.
But as all sports fans know, winning is a great panacea. If Andrew Luck can come in here, improve the team, we see improvement, there's momentum, it will be great.
Now a couple of years from now, if they lose, it's a tough thing to replace Peyton Manning and all the winning that they did. We shall see, but I think initially, people are very excited about Andrew Luck.
COSTELLO: It will be even more interesting if Peyton Manning gets his wish and gets another Super Bowl, and he wins with another team. Dan Dakich, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it.
DAKICH: My pleasure, thank you.
COSTELLO: John McCain is beating the drum for military action in Syria, but do we have an appetite for more military intervention? Our "Political Buzz" coming your way next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Checking our top stories now. The House plans to vote on a bill today to streamline small business investment. The Jobs Act marks a rare agreement between the Obama administration and House Republicans. Toyota is recalling 680,000 vehicles for two separate problems. The biggest recall involves air bags in 2005 to 2009 Tacoma trucks. The other is for faulty brake lights in some sedans and crossovers.
If you have a problem with your GPS over the next few days, blame the sun. A solar flare is hitting the earth and could cause some big problems with electronics.
"Political Buzz" is your rapid fire look at the best political topics. Three questions, 30 seconds on the clock. Playing with us today is Democratic strategist, Robert Zimmerman. Chris Moody is a political reporter for Yahoo! News, and CNN contributor, Will Cain is with us.
So gentlemen, first question, John McCain has been beating the drums for more action, military action on Syria. Here's a bit of what he's been saying.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SENATOR JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: If we can do something about it, and we can, we should unilaterally -- excuse me. Not unilaterally. No boots on the ground. With other nations who will join us if we lead, and we can bring this to a halt.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: OK, so no boots on the ground. But the question today, do Americans have any kind of appetite for any kind of military action right now, Chris?
CHRIS MOODY, POLITICAL REPORTER, YAHOO! NEWS: Well, I think, if you look back at Libya, just a year ago, it didn't make much of a blip nationally. There was no anti-war movement that rose up after that. So I think people wouldn't necessarily be paying much attention so long as there weren't boots directly on the ground there, if there was a strike with other countries.
I think there -- it would go off and people wouldn't -- wouldn't necessarily notice it that much here in the United States. Although it's true that people don't necessarily have an appetite for more foreign wars. But I'm not sure it would make much of an impact on the conversation.
COSTELLO: Got you. Robert.
ROBERT ZIMMERMAN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: I'm always so inspired by how our country steps up for humanitarian issues around the world, even if we're facing crises at home. So I think we would stand together as a country to help alleviate the crisis in Syria and step up for the refugees and the victims of Assad's regime.
The issue is how to do it? And of course we're dealing with a much more sophisticated military than exists in -- that exists in Libya and we're dealing with a coalition of opposition that's not united. That's the challenge. And the President has been doing an effective job with Secretary Clinton in terms of building a coalition.
COSTELLO: Got you. Will?
WILL CAIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well to answer your question directly, Carol, is Americans do not have an appetite for doing anything in Syria. There's a month old CNN/ORC poll that says 75 percent of Americans feel no responsibility to intervene in Syria.
Now Chris said something that I think really needs to be reflected on. He said it might not be a blip on the radar. I think that's extremely presumptuous based upon a short-term outcome in Libya. We shouldn't go into any war, any military action with the presumption that it might not be pretty bad. And I think Americans understand that. And by the end what's the end -- by the way what's the end goal? Libya is not over. We'll see how this plays out.
COSTELLO: All right. Let me play you guys a bit of the trailer from the Sarah Palin HBO movie that debuts this week. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not sure how much she knows about foreign policy.
JULIANNE MOORE, ACTRESS: You can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh my God, what have we done?
MOORE: It wasn't my fault. I wasn't properly prepped.
I miss my baby. I miss sleeping with my baby.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She's on the verge of a complete nervous breakdown.
MOORE: You're telling me what to say, what to wear, how to talk. I am not your puppet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Ok so this movie has generated a lot of talk, a lot of controversy. What I want to ask all of you, is all this fussing going to make people want to see the movie -- Robert.
ZIMMERMAN: I think they will want to see it. I think they should see it. First of all, HBO has a well-documented history under Richard Plepler's leadership of producing brilliant docudramas, like the series on John Adams or "Earth to the Moon" or "Recount". This is in that great tradition.
Secondly, it's based upon serious factual analysis done by two brilliant reporters, Mark Halperin and John Heilemann. I -- I was -- I'm a well-document detractor of Sarah Palin. I walked out feeling somewhat sympathetic to her.
COSTELLO: Will?
CAIN: From a sheer strategic standpoint, yes all this fuss will probably make people go see it more, watch it on HBO. Because we're talking about it for example right now on CNN. I don't know if it makes me want to see it more because I feel like I'm going into something with a skeptical eye on how fair it will be.
But I will watch it for this reason right here Carol because of "The Wire" and "Game of Thrones" and "Deadwood" and all the other series that HBO has put together that are absolutely incredible. I'm assuming creatively, dramatically it will be pretty good.
COSTELLO: I'm telling you I saw the movie. It held my interest through the whole thing. Chris, your opinion?
MOODY: Well, we all know the best way to get someone to see your movie is to have someone high profile, here Sarah Palin to tell people not to see your movie. I think it's great publicity for it whether they -- they like it or not. But I mean, it's no surprise that she would be nervous about how she'll be depicted given the past, how the media has depicted her and she's been depicted in popular culture.
But you know I've read some early reviews that said it makes you feel fairly sympathetic to her in certain ways. So I think we might be surprised. She may be saying that it's going to be terrible, don't watch it, but let's give HBO a chance to check it out.
COSTELLO: All right, you're "Buzzer Beater" now 20 seconds each so here's your third question. Take a look at this. This is a 15- story hotel in China that went up in six days. That's all it took. Six days. Here in the United States, we can't even agree on building highways and infrastructure. Is this how we should get things done in the USA -- Will.
CAIN: What quickly? Listen, I think this is actually somewhat symbolic. There is a Barclays' report that came out -- Barclay's Bank report came out just a few weeks ago said there's a direct correlation between skyscraper booms and following property bubbles in recession. So this may not be such a good thing here as an indicator of the future for China.
COSTELLO: Chris.
MOODY: You've got to think of this as one giant Ikea dresser. It was prefabricated, they had the parts. They put it together. Look I can't even put together an Ikea chair in six days so I'm pretty impressed.
But -- but I think, if a guy like let's say Donald Trump wanted to have a competition here and build something quicker and he had the prefabricated materials, I think he could pull it off as well.
COSTELLO: Robert.
ZIMMERMAN: You know the issue is not that it was built in six days, let's see how long it stands. I don't accept the conventional thinking that China is beating us. We are still the economy that the world envies. We are the destination of the world.
And ultimately, if you look at China's problems with their infrastructure, with their environmental problems, with the fact that they have a tremendous poverty amongst their people, I don't think they're an economy to envy and I would never discount our strength in our economy.
COSTELLO: Thank you for playing today. Robert Zimmerman, Will Cain and Chris Moody. We appreciate it.
Apple is in trouble with the Feds. The Justice Department reportedly preparing to file lawsuits against Apple and five book publishers. We'll have that story for you ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: The first television show to focus on Arab-American Muslims will not be back for a second season. "All-American Muslim" earned critical acclaim, but conservatives did not like it.
A.J. Hammer, the host of "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT," joins us from New York. So what really killed the show, A.J.?
A.J. HAMMER, HLN HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Well, Carol, TLC won't give us any reason publicly, but in the end what really killed the show were the ratings. The series lost almost half of its viewership from the premiere episode to the finale, from a reported 1.7 million viewers to 900,000. And it's really that downward trend that matters so much -- so much more than the number of people who were actually watching the show at the end of the season.
The question is did the attacks on the show in any way compel TLC to make the decision to not renew it? The show lost a major sponsor when Lowe's pulled out after some groups complained the "All American Muslim" was Islamic propaganda. But there was also the thinking that the backlash to that move should have actually helped to keep the show around.
And TLC does not shy away from controversial topics at all. It airs shows like "Sister Wives", "Toddlers and Tiaras"; those shows have attracted a lot of criticism that quite frankly many people feel seems more justified than anything that was directed at "All American Muslim".
And I should point out Carol the entire season was only eight episodes. It's not a real strong commitment to start with from TLC.
COSTELLO: Got you.
Let's talk about Whitney Houston. Her will has reportedly been filed. What's in it?
HAMMER: Well appropriately enough, it looks like Whitney's daughter Bobbi Kristina will be benefitting from the will. We're still trying to get our hands on this actual document but Bobbi Kristina is reportedly getting the bulk of the estate in a trust. They'll give her some money when she turns 21, more at 25, and access to everything when she turns 30. Bobbie Kristina is only 19 now.
The will also reportedly allows her to access some funds early for specified reasons, like paying for education or starting up a business. And when you think about it, you know the money, the jewelry, all of Whitney's possessions, certainly valuable but probably the most important part are the rights to Whitney's music. And if Bobbi Kristina can manage all of that well, it will hopefully keep her financially secure for a long time to come. And Carol, just in case you were wondering, her ex-husband Bobby Brown reportedly did not get a dime.
COSTELLO: All right. A.J. Hammer, thank you. You want information on everything breaking in the entertainment world, A.J.'s got it tonight on "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" at 11:00 Eastern on HLN.
We've seen Rush Limbaugh get slammed for calling a college student a "slut". We've seen his advertisers bail. But Bill Maher uses similar, at times, worse language without the backlash. Is there a double standard here? We're going to talk about that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Rush Limbaugh's "slut" comments are now infamous, we've seen a wave of criticism. The National Organization for Women wanted him to be fired. More than 40 advertisers have left his radio show. But comedian Bill Maher is on Limbaugh's side even though he's hardly a ditto head. Maher recently tweeted, "Hate to defend Rush Limbaugh, but he has apologized. Liberals looking bad, not accepting. Also hate intimidation by sponsor pullout."
Problem is Bill Maher has his own woman problem, but his rather vile comments targeted Republican women, like Sarah Palin.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL MAHER, HOST, "REAL TIME WITH BILL MAHER": Sarah Palin finally heard what happened in Japan, and she's demanding that we invade tsunami. Oh, speaking of dumb (EXPLETIVE DELETED) --
She's not qualified to be the mayor of Wasilla. This is a Category 5 moron we have on our hands.
If Bachmann and Palin get in, that's two bimbos.
That's a real Beavis and Butthead we've got there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: So let's bring in Howard Kurtz of "Newsweek" and CNN's "RELIABLE SOURCES". Thanks for being with us.
HOWARD KURTZ, CNN HOST, "RELIABLE SOURCES": I was wondering which part you were going to bleep, Carol.
COSTELLO: I know. There's so much material there, we had to pick and choose. And we had to bleep a lot. The question this morning, is there a double standard going on here?
KURTZ: To some extent, there is. Liberals kind of shrug their shoulders when Bill Maher uses that kind of language as well. He's just a comedian. One distinction here is that Bill Maher, in going after people like Sarah Palin or Michele Bachmann, you know, he's picking on big girls, so to speak. They're politicians. They're in the arena. They're used to fighting back.
Rush Limbaugh's big mistake here was using that kind of language against a 30-year-old law student nobody ever heard of. It seemed like a bullying tactic because she was not somebody who's a public figure.
COSTELLO: There are some out there and some nonpartisan groups who say Bill Maher just donated $1 million to one of President Obama's PACs. They're saying that President Obama shouldn't accept that. After all, President Obama called Sandra Fluke and told her that her should be proud over these comments by Rush Limbaugh.
KURTZ: Well, technically speaking, it's not up to President Obama to accept or not accept this money because it went to his Super PAC, which is supposedly independent, although I know that those distinctions are really turning out to be a joke.
But beyond that it does show you, with Maher putting himself more into the political arena by giving the big bucks to a committee dedicated to helping the President, it does give the Republicans ammunition to say you should distance yourself from these guy, especially you liberals who are all so upset about the language that Rush used.
But one distinction here -- and Sarah Palin, in fact, is calling on Obama to do that. One distinction here is that you talked about -- or somebody said liberals -- Maher said that liberals should accept Rush's apology. The person who needs to accept Rush's apology, and who he has not personally called is Sandra Fluke.
COSTELLO: That's true. The other distinction that Bill Maher made. He says, his show is on HBO, and that's a lot different than the public air waves that Rush Limbaugh broadcasts on.
KURTZ: That seems pretty weak to me. So the fact that he uses that kind of language on a premium cable channel, and Rush uses it on over the air radio waves, I think that's pretty lame.
COSTELLO: Howie Kurtz, thank you for being with us. We appreciate it.
KURTZ: Thanks.
COSTELLO: Apple's making news today, but not for its flashy products. A report says the Justice Department is preparing to sue Apple over setting the price of e-books. Feds are targeting publishers too. That story's coming your way next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Apple is making headlines again today, but not for its flashy new products. Apple and several major book publishers are reportedly in hot water with the justice department, which accuses them of raising the price of electronic books, collusion, don't you know it?
Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange. So will the Justice Department take action?
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, the "Wall Street Journal's" reporting that the DOJ plans to sue Apple along with five publishers, including Simon and Schuster, Penguin, Harper Collins, and McMillan. The DOJ reportedly saying that these publishers allegedly teamed up with Apple to fix the price of e-books.
Now, the "Wall Street Journal" kind of says that Apple is kind of the ring leader in this, telling publishers to set the book prices so they get what they want, meaning a higher price on these books, and then Apple would get its 30 percent cut. Now, Apple reportedly stipulated to publishers as well that they had to offer that same price to other retailers, meaning publishers couldn't offer lower prices to rivals.
So it's this alleged collusion to keep prices high, Carol, that caught the DOJ's attention -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Ok. So now it's caught the DOJ's attention. So what happens next? Will somebody cave? Will e-book prices go down?
KOSIK: These are all great questions. And you know what; there is a possibility that prices could go down. You know what; it is a little too early to say. The "Wall Street Journal" says that some publishers who are accused in this are in talks to come up with a settlement instead of taking the matter to court where there would be an expensive, drawn-out legal battle.
And if publishers and Apple go back to this old model, it would actually be the retailers, not the publishers, who would set the price on books. Now it's questionable whether that would happen because retailers typically discount. You think about what Borders did. Borders used to offer 30 percent off new hard covers, and Barnes and Noble gives you 10 percent off if you're a member.
But the problem with this now is that e-books, as you know, Carol, they're growing more and more popular. Apple is a giant in the industry, and it has a lot of pull.
So when it comes to pricing, the old model of pricing books is kind of being thrown out the window in favor of coming up with a new model for the digital age. So really a lot of unanswered questions at this point, Carol.
COSTELLO: Alison Kosik live at the New York Stock Exchange.
Stories we're working on later today in the CNN NEWSROOM.
At 11:00 Eastern, First Lady Michelle Obama attends the International Women of Courage Awards hosted by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
At 4:00 p.m. Eastern time, Treasure Secretary Timothy Geithner visits the Dallas-Fort Worth area. He'll stress the importance of infrastructure development and also take part in a roundtable discussion on the economy.
At 5:35 Eastern President Obama and the first lady will dine with donors who won a contest sponsored by his re-election campaign.
In your "Daily Dose" of health news, some new research shows women who used estrogen alone as hormone replacement therapy after menopause had a lower risk of developing breast cancer. That reduced risk lasts up to five years after they stop taking the hormone. This research was a follow up to a landmark study that began back in 1993 that looked at the risks of two hormone and one hormone therapies after menopause.
Mitt Romney adds to his war chest. His campaign says he took in $11.5 million last month, but another candidate was not far behind in the money race. Your political ticker coming your way next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Checking stories cross-country now.
In Christiansburg, Virginia, officials with the Virginia Tech University are telling a court what the school did and did not do minutes after the first report of a shooting on campus in April of 2007. A lone gunman killed 32 people that day. The families of those two students are suing the school.
In Henryville, Indiana, we're the getting our first look inside the high school damaged by a 175-mile-per-hour tornado -- that was the wind speed -- that also ravaged the town last week. Repair crews are working 24/7 to get the school ready for students to return in August.
And an incredible story from San Antonio, Texas. A 5-year-old kindergarten student saved his friend's life when he started choking on a chip during lunch at school. The little boy never learned first aid but instinctively used the Heimlich Maneuver, something he says he might have seen on television.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nicholas was choking, and I saw his face turn red, a big Cheetoh. He was choking on a big Cheetoh.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thanks for saving my life, buddy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: That was so cute. Ok. Let's talk politics now. Rick Santorum says it wasn't me. He says he's not asking anyone to drop out of the race. Our political director Mark Preston joins us now. Honestly, Mark, if someone does leave, I don't see Santorum stopping him.
MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: No. You know, what's interesting about this whole debate about the Republican presidential race is, if someone is to leave the race, whether that's Rick Santorum or Newt Gingrich, it's really going to shake up things where they stand right now.
A lot of people are talking about the inevitability of Mitt Romney becoming the nominee. But if Newt Gingrich gets out of the race and throws his support behind Rick Santorum, the race could be turned on its head again. But Rick Santorum, in fact, was asked this yesterday. Does he want to see Newt Gingrich get out of the race? He says no. He's not going to tell anybody to get out of the race.
Interestingly enough, a couple of his backers are asking Newt Gingrich to do so. In fact, the Super PAC Red, White, and Blue has called on Newt Gingrich to get out of the race as has Richard Vivieri (ph) who is a very prominent social conservative who's backing Rick Santorum. So in some ways Carol, Rick Santorum does not have to ask Newt Gingrich to get out of the race. He's got friends that will do that for him.
COSTELLO: But even if he did, what could he say to Newt Gingrich to make Newt Gingrich change his mind about continuing his race for president?
PRESTON: You know, I don't think there's much he could say. But let's just flip the coin and say, if Mitt Romney was able to convince Rick Santorum to get out of the race, Mitt Romney then could potentially help Rick Santorum erase any campaign debt, if Rick Santorum has any. He could also possibly offer Rick Santorum a position in his cabinet or his administration if he were elected.
So a lot of people are wondering if there are some talks going on behind the scenes -- which I don't think there are right now -- between Mitt Romney or supporters of Mitt Romney to try to get Rick Santorum out of the race.
COSTELLO: Fascinating.
Ok. Let's talk about fund-raising. Man, so Mitt Romney raised, what, $11 million?
PRESTON: Yes. $11.5 million just in the month of February, which is not chump change. But not to be outdone by that, Rick Santorum raised $9 million. Now, bottom line is campaigns in politics are fueled by money. And I know people don't like to hear that, but, in fact, that is true.
Just yesterday we were on a conference call with the Obama campaign, and that question came up. We asked how much did President Obama raise? You know what they told us, Carol? They wouldn't tell us, surprisingly. They're going to release that on their own.
COSTELLO: I bet it's a lot, though, huh?
PRESTON: I bet you it is a lot. He did 100 fund-raisers in less than a year so far for this re-election campaign.
COSTELLO: I think that's a record, isn't it?
PRESTON: I think it is too. And he did it in 11 months. So amazing.
COSTELLO: Unbelievable. Mark Preston, thanks.
PRESTON: Thanks, Carol.
COSTELLO: Let's head one floor down now and say hello to Kyra Phillips.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks so much, Carol.
