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Penn State Report Released; Freeh: PSU Failed to Follow Federal Law; Romney Expected to Be Booed at NAACP; Robert Blake Interview Gets Combative; Penn State Football 2012; Facebook Makes It Easier For Kids To Handle Cyber Bullying; Florida's State Attorney Releases New Evidence in Zimmerman Case; Dispute Between DirecTV and Viacom Continues

Aired July 12, 2012 - 09:00   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning to you. I'm Carol Costello. We start with breaking news in the CNN NEWSROOM. In just seconds, a 200-page report will be posted online. It involves Penn State and how it handled the child rape accusations against Jerry Sandusky.

As you know, this scandal tarnished the legacy of a beloved football coach, damaged Penn State's reputation, and left the lives of many of its victims shattered. This internal review conducted by former FBI Chief Louis Freeh will be posted on the Web site, thefreereportonpsu.com. Now this report was paid for by Penn State, and it is expected to be scathing.

CNN is bringing you all of the angles to the story from Penn State and beyond. Susan Candiotti is in Philadelphia, along with CNN contributor Sara Ganim. Her Pulitzer Prize-winning reports helped bring much of this to life.

Jason Carroll is on the Penn State campus and we will take you through the legal fallout from today's developments with legal analysts Jeffrey Toobin and Paul Callan.

But first let's go out to Philadelphia and to Susan Candiotti.

Has the report been posted yet, Susan?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I've just been emailed the opening remarks of former FBI Director Louis Freeh. Haven't had a thorough chance to read it, but I can give you just a couple of bullet points. We know that this report is supposed to be around 200 pages long.

And Louis Freeh reveals in his opening remarks that are prepared that during the course of his investigation, that started last November, he has reviewed 3.5 million e-mails and documents and has interviewed more than 400 people during the course of his investigation.

Now remember this is not a criminal investigation. He was hired by Penn State's Board of Trustees to look at Penn State's role in the Sandusky scandal. To find out exactly what Penn State may have done wrong and this is supposed to be a no-holds-barred report. I have, Carol, our producers going through his opening remarks now for additional information. But we know that he is taking a very hard look at what Penn State officials knew or should have known about events leading up to the scandal.

We can also tell you in his prepared remarks that Louis Freeh, I was just told, was not able to interview the Vice President Gary Schultz, Penn State at the time, and then Athletic Director Tim Curley. Now remember both of those men have been charged by the state of Pennsylvania with perjury, lying to a grand jury, and failing to report a case of suspected child abuse -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Susan, just a few questions because I know you want to go and read this report along with our team of producers who are also reading that report right now. Why Louis Freeh? Why did Penn State hire Louis Freeh conduct this investigation?

CANDIOTTI: Well, certainly his credentials speak for themselves -- for itself. He was longtime director, of course, head of the FBI. This is someone who is used to looking into various investigations of a criminal nature. But also he has a background and has served on a board of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. So he certainly has a background and has said that he cares very deeply about the exploitation of children. So he comes with those credentials in mind.

He had a lot of work to be done. He certainly was going to be looking at whether Penn State followed his own procedures, and he has said this publicly, for handling allegations of sexual misconduct, especially involving children -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Susan, I'm going to let you go because I know you want to get to reading that report that's being slowly posted online.

Susan Candiotti, we'll get back to you. She's from Philadelphia.

Over the next two hours, you're going to be hearing about all of the key players surrounding the Penn State scandal, among them, Joe Paterno, the legendary head coach that was dismissed in the wake of the charges. In a statement released today, Paterno's family calls him, quote, "highly principled," and says select e-mails have been leaked in an attempt to smear his name.

We'll also hear more about Jerry Sandusky, Paterno's longtime assistant, who was convicted last month on 45 counts of child sex abuse. He now sits in a Pennsylvania jail awaiting sentencing. His lawyers about to appeal that conviction.

And then there's Mike McQueary, you remember him. He's the graduate assistant who worked for the Penn State football team. It was McQueary who told school officials he saw Sandusky molesting a boy in a campus shower as far back as 2001. And one of the officials that McQueary went to the -- went to with that information was Athletic Director Tim Curley. Curley is now on live from Penn State. He is awaiting his own trial. He faces charges of perjury for lying to a grand jury and failing to report suspected child abuse.

Hundreds of people were interviewed by the Freeh committee, and that includes students. One of those now former students is here today. His name is T.J. Bard. He was Penn State's student body president. He sat in on meetings with the Board of Trustees. He also worked closely with the university president at the time and those two administrators who are now accused of lying to a grand jury about what they knew.

T.J., thanks for being here today.

T.J. BARD, PSU SCHOOL BODY PRESIDENT, 2011-2012: Thanks for having me back, Carol.

COSTELLO: First of all, T.J., what was it like to be interrogated by Freeh's investigators?

BARD: It was an extremely thorough process. I was interviewed for over two hours. It was really, really in depth. They asked a lot of questions specifically concerning what I knew about Joe Paterno, the football program, my impressions of the football program at Penn State, and then obviously the Board of Trustees. Kind of what is the impression of the Board of Trustees within the university.

My role as a student representative to the board of trustees. And then obviously my relationships with Gary Schultz, Tim Curley, and the senior administrators at the university.

COSTELLO: Well, let's talk more about that. Because as you said, you worked closely with the athletic director, Tim Curley, and the Vice President, Gary Schultz. Were you with them when the Sandusky story broke?

BARD: No. I actually two days before the story broke, I had flown back from Philadelphia with Gary Schultz. And it was one of those things that that morning, when the scandal broke, I woke up and I read the news that both Gary Schultz and Tim Curley had been arrested on charges of perjury. And then I slowly as I looked into it, I saw this name Jerry Sandusky. A name that I had never seen before.

To be honest, I had never heard of the man before these accusations came out. So it was to say surprising is definitely an understatement for me.

COSTELLO: Well, tell us about these two men's characters. Because there's an impression out there in the public right now, since they are charged with perjury, that they covered this up because of the football program at Penn State. What is your impression of Mr. Schultz and Mr. Curley?

BARD: It's something that's always been -- it's been difficult for me to really kind of take in since the allegations have been made and the charges have been brought. Gary Schultz has served the university for years. Almost two or three decades as the senior vice president of finance and business. Someone that I have worked with. And Tim Curley was a highly honored athletic director. And it is very, very surprising to hear that anything like this were ever to happen. But fundamentally, what it comes down to is the safety of children. If in any way someone knew that children were in danger, even had the slightest inkling that children were in danger and did nothing about it, it's absolutely disgusting to me. And I hope that's not the case. And I hope from working with them that I would be thoroughly surprised if they did know. And chose to cover it up. But if the report today shows that there was some sort of information, they knew it, and they did nothing about the potential endangerment of children, then I will be very, very disappointed and very upset.

COSTELLO: Donations to Penn State. Second highest in its history. Something like $203 million. Does that surprise you?

BARD: It doesn't at all. There's one thing -- there's many things that are great about Penn State, but one of the greatest things is our pride in the university. Our alumni, our students, spend hundreds and thousands of people across this country and across the world. And we have a deep pride for our university that spans more than the actions of a few. We have 158 years of history. And it's something that we take a lot of pride in, regardless of the actions of five or six individuals at our university. We never wanted to let this define us, and we will never let the actions of these individuals define us.

COSTELLO: T.J. Bard, I hope you'll stick around. Thanks for talking to us right now. But we'd like to rejoin you later in the next couple of hours on CNN. Thanks so much.

BARD: Thanks again, Carol.

COSTELLO: Thank you, T.J..

Just moments ago, we got this new statement from Louis Freeh. Of course, he is the guy in charge of this internal investigation into Penn State and what officials knew or didn't about Jerry Sandusky. Quote, "Our most saddening and sobering finding is the total disregard for the safety and welfare of Sandusky's child victims by the most senior leaders at Penn State. The most powerful men at Penn State failed to take any steps for 14 years to protect the children who Sandusky victimized."

That's a pretty damning statement. Also awaiting details in Philadelphia, attorneys for Sandusky's victims. Including Tom Kline, who represents victim number five. Victim number five was 11 years old when he met Sandusky through the Second Mile charity. He told jurors about one visit to the Penn State campus with Sandusky. And victim number five said they were in the sauna when Sandusky exposed himself.

Attorney Tom Kline is here now. Welcome, Tom.

TOM KLINE, ATTORNEY FOR SANDUSKY VICTIM: Good morning.

COSTELLO: You just heard me read that latest statement from Louis Freeh. What went through your mind? KLINE: It was precisely what I thought that Mr. Freeh would find. I have been deep into this investigation for a while. And Mr. Freeh found the obvious, which was in 1998, there was an incident of a boy in a shower. It was investigated by children and youth services. I have been waiting to learn that Penn State, the coaching staff, Mr. Paterno, and higher-ups knew about it. We now know that they did.

In 2001, there is the much publicized and well-known incident with Mr. McQueary in the shower. The e-mails, which CNN reported on recently in advance of the report, are a centerpiece of this report. And the bottom line is that there was a callus and reckless disregard for the children victims. My young man who I represent was a child of 13 years old who was taken to the shower and molested by Jerry Sandusky just six months after the 2001 McQueary incident.

And Freeh sets today that the higher-ups at Penn State were responsible. And it's frankly something I have known all along.

COSTELLO: And one of those higher-ups, of course, may be Joe Paterno, head football coach at Penn State for many, many years, a legend. His reputation might be shut once all of the evidence comes to light. The Paterno family, they've been trying to preempt this, and they released this op-ed that Joe Paterno wrote before he died.

It was never published but given to Penn State football players. And I'm just going to read you a bit of that. It says, "This is not a football scandal and should not be treated as one. It is not an academic scandal. It does not in any way tarnish the hard earned and well-deserved academic reputation of Penn State. That Penn State officials would suggest otherwise is a disservice to everyone of the over 500,000 living alumni."

But there is some evidence that suggest Paterno had a hand in covering up the Sandusky affair. So do you expect to hear more damning stuff against Joe Paterno today once this entire report comes to light?

KLINE: Well, I like many are going to read the report carefully. None of what we find surprises me. The thing that I am most interested in looking at regarding Mr. Paterno is how the 1999 so- called resignation of Mr. Sandusky, a prominent defensive line coach at one of the most prestigious football programs in America, how he all of a sudden resigned. How the Paterno family says that this is not about football. It's about Penn State, and Penn State was about football. That's one thing we know.

There was a corrosive atmosphere at Penn State. And Mr. Paterno was in the center of it. Mr. Paterno knew that he had a child predator on his hands, and he did nothing about it. And he can't escape responsibility. It's a shame that we're talking about Mr. Paterno when he's no longer with us. But the facts are the facts. And Mr. Paterno did nothing to protect young men. He could have done so much more, as could have the president of the university and the athletic director to stop the incident, which happened in August of 2001, where my young man as a boy was molested.

So I understand that the Paterno family is in a damage control mode. But the facts aren't going to change.

COSTELLO: I -- there's going to be more lawsuits filed against Penn State. And I'm sure those -- that's going through your mind as well. So you'll be listening to what comes out of this report, and you'll decide on what kind of lawsuit, how much damages you'll ask for based on the facts in this report?

KLINE: My interest has been first and foremost public accountability as well as admission of culpability by Penn State. We'll see the Penn State trustees' reaction to this. Penn State has said they want to settle these claims. But any settlement of the claims will involve a thorough evaluation, maybe going beyond what Mr. Freeh has to say. I noticed in his public statement that he talks about the trustees, there being no direct knowledge of the -- by the trustees of what happened here.

But we need to go further and figure that out as well. I'm less interested today -- in fact, I'm not interested today in talking about dollar amounts. I'm interested today as is America in the culpability of Penn State and finding out what went so terribly wrong so that it is a roadmap for other American institutions.

That's what I'm really interested in.

COSTELLO: Tom Kline, thank you. I know you're going to be with us for the next couple of hours on CNN. Thank you so much for taking the time to join us this morning.

Again, if you're just joining CNN -- big breaking news today involving Penn State. A 200-page investigation conducted by Louis Freeh, the former FBI guy, will be posted online. Actually, part of it is posted right now. It's 200 pages long. We have a team of producers going over that report because we do have the hard copy.

Louis Freeh issued a statement just moments ago, and "I'm going to read it to you. He says, quote, "The most powerful at Penn State failed to take any steps for 14 years to protect children who Sandusky victimized. Mr. Spanier, Schultz, Paterno and Curley never demonstrated, through actions or words, any concern for the safety and well-being of Sandusky's victims until after Sandusky's arrest."

We're going to have much more from that report, because as I said we have a team of people poring over it. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

COSTELLO: And back to our big story today.

The report on the Penn State sexual abuse scandal is now available to you, the public. It is posted online at thefreehreportonpsu.com Web site. More than 400 people were interviewed for this probe, which was paid for by Penn State, and led by former FBI director Louis Freeh.

CNN's Susan Candiotti is combing through all of the details, along with our CNN contributors, Sara Ganim, of course, she's been on this story from the very beginning. Also, a team of producers is helping to go through that huge report because I said, it's 200 pages long.

Of course, we'll bring you the latest developments as we get them in to CNN.

We want to talk about other top stories this morning, though, at 19 minutes past the hour.

At the top of the hour, we're going to get a new look at the case against George Zimmerman. The Florida state attorney will release new evidence to Zimmerman's legal team that should include FBI interviews with more than 30 people relating to the shooting death of Trayvon Martin.

We have a team of CNN producers there too. They're going to scour those documents. They also will bring you the new developments in the George Zimmerman case.

Also, one day after Mitt Romney, it's Vice President Joe Biden's turn to address the crowd at the NAACP convention in Houston. Biden will deliver the keynote dress in just about an hour and 15 minutes from now. When Biden starts talking, of course, we'll bring that to you live.

In Florida, the president of Florida A&M University has resigned, more than seven months since a student died in a hazing scandal. James Ammons says he is going to retire. The family of Robert Champion filed a lawsuit against the school's board of trustees this week. Champion, a drum major, died during an apparent hazing incident on a bus last year. Fourteen suspects charged in the case.

In money news, home foreclosure filings jumped 9 percent in just the last three months. According to a new realty report, more than 1 million homes filed for foreclosure so far this year, but the numbers do show a slight improvement over last year.

In weather, parts of southeast Texas underwater today. You're looking at Bay City, where several inches of rain triggered heavy flooding across many areas. For other Texans, the rain is a welcome relief. Temperatures should stay below 90 degrees today, but more rain is expected.

Looks like NBA superstar Dwight Howard will stay put for now. After two weeks of negotiating, the Brooklyn Nets could not reach a deal with the Orlando Magic's all-star center. The Nets instead resigning Brook Lopez to a huge deal. Howard still has one more year left on his contract.

And check this out. We're getting a new view of that fireworks mishap in San Diego on the Fourth of July. Wow. This video was posted on YouTube.

You can see the fireworks display going off all at one time. Because of a technical glitch, the 15-minute show was reduced to about, oh, 15 seconds. It was a darn good finale. It just started too soon.

You may see some changes on Facebook this morning. A new button will help cyber bullying with just a few clicks.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: This morning, Facebook is rolling out changes to make it easier for kids to handle cyber -- for kids to handle cyber bullying online. So what does that mean for Facebook, now a public company and its users?

Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange to explain.

Good morning.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

So, Facebook is teaming up with researchers at Yale, at Columbia, and Berkeley, to come up with the changes. This was presented by the way yesterday during its compassion research day. Now, what this is about is how kids can report inappropriate content. The change is specifically targeted for those 13-year-old and 14-year- olds who are the youngest age that the site actually allows.

And if they see anything mean or threatening, anything posted like this, they can now click something that says, this post is a problem. That actual phrase replaces the old, quote, "report button" which was kind of seen as to formal and a little cold.

So, once they click that new button, they are taken through a series of casually worded questions to help the child sort through emotions and determine how serious the problem is. And after that, they get a list of suggestions either to send a message to the person who made the post or get help from an adult. It's also -- they are also given links to help anyone who may be feeling suicidal.

And, you know, Carol, kids spend so much time online -- Facebook really trying to put more support options out there for those feeling bullied on the site -- Carol.

COSTELLO: And that's a good thing.

Alison Kosik, reporting from the New York Stock Exchange.

Once again, President Obama is not going to speak at the NAACP convention. Vice President Joe Biden will talk instead. And that has some people thinking that the president is giving black leaders the cold shoulder.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: OK. We've been telling you about that Penn State investigative report, 200 pages of a complete investigation conducted by the former FBI guy, Louis Freeh. It's posted online now.

Susan Candiotti has been poring through it.

What have you found out, Susan?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol.

Just barely scratching the surface, but I can tell you, the headline, this is blistering. It talks about a cover-up by the top officials at Penn State university, and specifically including coach Joe Paterno, the former vice president Gary Schultz, athletic director Tim Curley, and former president Graham Spanier.

I'm going to give you some key bullet points here.

It says four of the most powerful men at Penn State failed to take any steps for more than a decade to protect children who Sandusky victimized. It named Spanier, Schultz, Paterno and Curley -- says never demonstrated through actions or words for the safety and well- being of Sandusky's victims until after Mr. Sandusky's arrest. It talks about how these officials and others knew about Sandusky and allegations against him at the very least going back to 1998.

And it says to avoid bad publicity that they concealed critical facts, ignored red flags, and concealed critical information. And there is much more than that, Carol.

COSTELLO: Susan, just a question for you before you go.

Graham Spanier, the former president at Penn State, is mentioned as part of this alleged cover-up. He hasn't been charged with any crime. Could he be in light of what you just read to us?

CANDIOTTI: Well, it's entirely possible. Remember, this is not a criminal investigation that was conducted by former FBI director Louis Freeh. He was hired by Penn State for an internal review.

But is Louis Freeh's investigators who turned up more than 3.5 million documents, including emails that were turned over, many of those, to state investigators as part of their ongoing criminal investigation. There could be additional charges. And in fact, it is possible, sources have told us, that this might also result in charges against the former president of Penn State, Graham Spanier.

Certainly there could be a lot of fallout from this. We know that victims' attorneys, for example, are poring through this document as well and it could be used as part of their expected lawsuits.

You know, it talks about a striking lack of empathy, as they put it, for child abuse victims by most senior leaders at the university, and the failure by the board of trustees to exercise its oversight of these various actions and incidents.

COSTELLO: Unbelievable. Susan Candiotti, I know you want to read more of that report so I'm going to let you go.

We want to go to Penn State now because that's where our Jason Carroll is.

Jason, you have been hearing this -- and it says that administrators had a striking lack of empathy for these children.

What's the reaction on campus?

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, in speaking to just a few students and some of those here in the community, a lot of people were expecting this report to be extremely critical of administrators. They knew that was coming.

Despite that, though, what we found is a number of people still have an incredible amount of support for Joe Paterno. They feel as though he's being made a scapegoat.

Once again this morning we had a brief opportunity to speak to just a few people here, some students, some folks in the community.

I want you to listen to what they had to say just moments before the Freeh report actually came out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)

BETHANY YUN, RECENT PENN STATE GRAD: I know that it definitely had a lot of impact on students. There was a lot of gatherings, especially in Old Main when it first happened.

And I think that everyone just hopes for the best. They want fairness for everyone overall. They don't want blame on just, say, Joe Paterno or just one person. They'd like to see fairness equally.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, I think from the very beginning, Paterno was made a scapegoat. I believe that some people are guilty, but I think it's a very few. And I think that the football program really had nothing to do with this. It was entirely a few people in administration.

(END VIDEO CLIPS)

CARROLL: And as you know, Carol, we also have an op-ed that was actually never published, written by Joe Paterno just about a month or so before his death, where he basically defended his actions, defended Penn State, defended the football program here at Penn State, saying that this was not a football scandal.

I want to read to you just a brief excerpt from that op-ed that was never published. This is Joe Paterno's own words. He said, quote, "Regardless of anyone's opinion of my actions or the actions of the handful of administration officials in this matter, the fact is nothing alleged is an indictment of football."

And so, Carol, until the very end, Joe Paterno was defending the program, the football program, that he built here -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Jason Carroll, we'll get back to you. Thanks so much.

Let's move on to the world of politics now, shall we? Vice President Joe Biden, he'll appear at the NAACP conference in Houston.

Mitt Romney did that yesterday. And you probably weren't completely shocked that Romney was booed at the NAACP.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm going to eliminate every nonessential expensive program I can find. That includes Obamacare. And I'm going work to reform and save --

(BOOS)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Well, it turns out Romney wasn't so surprised he was booed either. Listen to what he told Republican-friendly FOX News afterwards.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROMNEY: I expected that, of course. But, you know, I'm going to give the same message to the NAACP that I give across the country, which is that Obamacare is killing jobs.

(END VIDEOI CLIP)

COSTELLO: And as the day went on, his remarks became more aggressive. At a fundraiser in Montana, Romney told supporters, quote, "I want people to know what I stand for and if I don't stand for what they want, go vote for someone else."

He continued, "If they want more stuff from government, tell them to vote for the other guy -- more free stuff. But don't forget nothing is really free."

If Romney's goal was to build bridges, he kind of blew them up by the time he got to Montana.

So, let's talk about that with right-leaning CNN contributor Will Cain, he's in New York, and on the phone, CNN political analyst, Roland Martin, he lean lefts. He's actually in Houston attending the convention.

Welcome to both of you.

ROLAND MARTIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST (via telephone): Glad to be here.

WILL CAIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: On the phone, we can't -- we can't get Roland's pretty face?

COSTELLO: He is inside the convention hall.

MARTIN: We have massive thunderstorms in Houston. We can't have lightning in the satellite pole go up in the area.

COSTELLO: Roland provides enough lightning himself.

OK. First question, "The Independent Journal" writes, "Romney branded himself as the serious adult, a strong leader."

Is that how he came off when all is said and done at the NAACP, Will?

CAIN: Yes, I do think so. I think he came off as something more than a serious adult, Carol. I think he came off as something he has never been accused of, and that is consistent. For once, it seemed like he didn't take the temperature of the room. He didn't seem like he stuck his finger in his mouth and the air to test the winds around him.

He gave a message that he would have given anywhere -- one about Obamacare, one about government spending, one about government growth. And I think he should be applauded for that, for that consistency in his message. It's not something he is commonly accused of.

COSTELLO: Roland, did Romney walk into that NAACP convention trying to prove a point, not to black leaders but to his base?

MARTIN: Well, first of all, no one can actually assess that, because unless you have talked to him or his people to say that's what they were trying to do. So anybody trying to say that is all based upon speculation, and just throwing up, you know, their finger in the wind.

Bottom line is, he talked about -- he said clearly there are some things we're going to agree on, some things we're going to disagree on, and the ability to be able to work together.

But I do believe, though, that his comments after the fact basically blew that out of the way, because when he talks about free stuff, and again he talks about "they" -- I mean, come on. Look, this ain't my first rodeo. We understand, you know, the coded language and things along those lines.

And it made no sense because it's not as if the NAACP members are the only people out there who support the Affordable Care Act.

COSTELLO: Go on, Will. I hear you.

CAIN: Well, yes. I mean, I -- Roland and I have had a little back and forth about this. But I think he's just -- if you're looking for coding in the pronoun "they" and the consistent message that government gives away free stuff and nothing is really free, I think you're really, really stretching it. I think you're stretching the limits of credibility.

I don't see any coding in that message. I'm sorry. And I just think it's a huge stretch.

MARTIN: Will, the difference between you and I is I don't look for it, but I know exactly when I see it. And when you follow that up, when you were just talking about the NAACP -- look, we get it. And, again, this goes back years. I understand and get coded language. I know exactly what it means.

You probably don't because you don't have that particular experience. But I get it. Look, man, I went to a conservative school. I know what I hear in conversation. I know what I hear from people.

I hear coded language whether you're a white politician or a black politician. I get it, and I see it, and that's exactly what he did yesterday. And what I'm saying is, it was unnecessary.

What I would love to hear Romney talk about is corporate welfare. That's free stuff.

CAIN: But, Roland, here's the deal --

(CROSSTALK)

COSTELLO: Wait, wait. Let will have his say. Last comment, Will. Go ahead.

MARTIN: -- corporate welfare. Talk about that free stuff.

COSTELLO: Will?

CAIN: Roland, I get it, that you you're saying that you hear stuff that I don't hear, which I think is a convenient thing to say, by the way, when all we can do is read the transcript.

MARTIN: It's the truth.

CAIN: Hold on, Roland. Hold on. If I took that transcript that you talked about, using the "they" and the free stuff and I applied it to, say, the progressive caucus of Congress, and Romney was talking to the same group, it would sound exactly the same. The same words would be used. There's nothing tailored here.

MARTIN: Will, trust me -- conservatives, Republicans, Democrats, liberals, they all know coded language. We get it.

And it's not convenient. It's a reality. And your reality is different from mine because your experience is different from mine.

COSTELLO: OK. We're going to have to leave it there, unfortunately, because I know this conversation will go on behind the scenes.

Will Cain --

CAIN: I hope so.

COSTELLO: Yes, definitely.

Will Cain, Roland -- Roland Martin, Will Cain, thanks so much.

CAIN: See you guys.

MARTIN: Thanks so much.

COSTELLO: See you.

Congressman Jesse Jackson. Let's talk about him. Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr., he hasn't been on the job for quite some time. And the explanation from his office seems only to raise more questions.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Today, we have a little bit more information about missing Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. Very little.

The Illinois Democratic -- the Illinois Democrat's office says he is suffering from a mood disorder. Here is the statement from the unidentified physician supposedly treating Jackson: "The congressman is receiving intensive medical treatment at a residential treatment facility for a mood disorder. He is responding positively to treatment, and is expected to make a full recovery."

So what exactly does that mean? I don't know. Who knows?

Ted Rowland is in Chicago to try to help us understand.

Good morning, Ted.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Carol.

That's the big question. This is a general term, mood disorder. There are several different areas of that.

Specifically what is he suffering from and what are -- the extent of his ailments right now? Is he going to run for re-election in November? When will he be back participating in House business?

And that's what you're seeing from Capitol Hill, questions from leaders yesterday and the day before, coming out saying, listen, we need more information, his constituents need more information. And I think that pushed a little bit the Jackson camp to release the statement.

But like you say, it almost brings up more questions. Yes, it does answer some of the things that were out there. There were rumors that he was in drug and alcohol treatment. They said, no, that is wrong.

There were rumors he tried to commit suicide. His father, Reverend Jesse Jackson, said, no, that's wrong.

But the question still remains, what's his condition, and when will he be able to go back to work.

COSTELLO: Well, that's the question. Some in his own party are saying if you can't go back to work anytime soon, then just resign so we can get back to business.

ROWLANDS: Right. And get a game plan in for November, in that -- and don't lose that seat. You know, there's some pragmatic political questions here that need to be answered from the party. So you wonder, there must be a disconnect obviously between the party leaders and the Jackson camp because they are coming out publicly.

And I'm sure their first route was behind closed doors to try to find out what was going on. When that didn't work, they came out publicly demanding answers -- meaning there's a disconnect there.

COSTELLO: Well, does anyone have a good guess about what exactly a mood disorder is?

ROWLANDS: Well, not specifically in his case. And that's the question. There are different degrees of different ailments with mood disorders. You're talking about depressive disorders, bipolar disorders come under mood disorders. But there are varying degrees in each category.

This could be something -- and the statement says, according to this doctor, that like you said is supposedly treating him, this unnamed doctor, that he is responding and that he will make a full recovery.

If that's the case, many people say, well, let's hear from the doctor, and let's just get it out in the open so that it will allow people to take a deep breath and say, OK, he's having a little problem but he'll be back. He'll be running in November and there will be no problem here.

But this mysterious way that it's being handled by the Jackson camp really has people asking for more answers that they are just not getting.

COSTELLO: Ted Rowlands, reporting live from Chicago -- thank you.

Actor Robert Blake went on Piers Morgan last night to talk about his long career and about his new book. Oh, but when the subject turned to the mystery of Robert Blake's wife's murder, ooh, it got ugly.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PIERS MORGAN, CNN ANCHOR: I didn't call you a liar.

ROBERT BLAKE, ACTOR: You said I might not be telling the truth. What the hell is the difference?

(CROSSTALK)

BLAKE: I don't want to take this anyplace special.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And that is just the beginning. More fireworks later.

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COSTELLO: Piers Morgan's interview with actor Robert Blake -- it was raw, it was emotional and well, it started out friendly. Then the one-on-one took a combative turn, let's say, when Piers questioned Blake about the 2001 murder of his wife. Blake was acquitted of killing her in 2005 and then later found liable in a wrongful death civil suit.

"SHOWBIZ TONIGHT's" A.J. Hammer has the most tense exchanges for us. And it was wild.

A.J. HAMMER, HLN CO-HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Yes. It was really contentious at times mostly coming from Blake, Carol. He went on the show to promote his new memoir called "Tales of a Rascal," but Piers did try to get Blake to open up about the murder of his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley, perfectly acceptable questions in so many people's minds.

Well, here is just one of the very combative exchanges between the two of them last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLAKE: You're just like the cops. There's no place to get. Keep him in jail until he dies because everybody who's dead is guilty. Why would I marry her if I was going to kill her? I mean, I was worth $25 million. I could have hired somebody to kill her when she was in Tibet or someplace.

She drove all over the country. She was out selling and doing -- I could have hired somebody to follow her for 10 months and make her disappear so nobody could ever find her, for Christ's sake. I would go out to dinner with her to kill her? What the (EXPLETIVE DELETED) is the matter with you?

MORGAN: I didn't say you killed her.

BLAKE: You didn't say I didn't. And you said it's all very interesting. What the (EXPLETIVE DELETED) is so interesting about it? Why don't you ask me some really interesting questions?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HAMMER: And he went o on Carol to say this was boring, boring, boring. I think these are the questions that people were looking to have answered. And I think Piers was doing it well last night.

COSTELLO: Wow, it was -- it was pathetic in a way too, A.J. Blake said he was -- he was angry. He had no Hollywood friends. He said his only consistent source of love came from his fans. And at one point he even talked about a dream of a big screen comeback and he was almost crying.

HAMMER: Yes he got very emotional about the whole thing. I want you to take a look at this exchange where Blake tries to explain why he was getting so worked up. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLAKE: There's no question that I'm very thin-skinned and I'm frightened. And there's no question -- (EXPLETIVE DELETED) -- wait a minute -- there's no question that I take things that you say too seriously and too much to heart. And I do misrepresent what people say to me because I know I'm still hurt and I may be hurt for the rest of my life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HAMMER: Now, Piers did ask Blake who he thought killed his wife? Not surprisingly Carol he didn't get anywhere with that line of questioning either; and really regardless of what you think here's a man who has been through a whole lot.

COSTELLO: I think he needs help. It's just --

HAMMER: Yes.

COSTELLO: Yes. A.J. Hammer, thanks so much.

Let's take a look at our "Top Stories" this morning. In just a few minutes we'll learn more about the case against George Zimmerman. The Florida State's Attorney will release new evidence to Zimmerman's legal team and the public. It should include FBI interviews with more than 30 people relating to the shooting death of Trayvon Martin.

We have a team of CNN producers who will scour those documents. Martin Savidge is among them. He's a reporter on the story. He will bring you all the new developments.

One day after Mitt Romney, it's Vice President Joe Biden's turn to address the crowd at the NAACP convention in Houston. Biden will deliver the keynote address in less than an hour from now. When Biden starts speaking, we'll bring his comments to you live.

The war between Viacom and DirecTV is heating up. Ooh it's ugly, DirecTV pulled all Viacom channels, including Comedy Central, MTV, and Nickelodeon over a dispute -- a dispute over subscriber fees. Now Viacom has pulled much of its online programming and that affects everyone not just those people who have DirecTV. One of the big complaints from DirecTV is much of Viacom's show can be seen online for free.

In weather news parts of southeast Texas are underwater today. This is Bay City where several inches of rain triggered heavy flooding across many areas. For other Texans the rain is well is kind of a welcome relief; temperatures should stay below 90 degrees today.

And this is just like a scene out of Jaws. A woman was reeling a fish when a shark jump out of the water and swallowed the --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (EXPLETIVE DELETED) It's all mine, it's all mine. (END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Oh you'd be cursing, too, wouldn't you?

This is Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Sarah Brame said she was afraid the bull shark was going to get her. Her family ends up catching it and then they let the shark go. Because what would you do with it? Mount it on your wall? I don't know. I wouldn't have bothered. But they are ok today.

A look at women's health around the world in today's "Health for Her". A just released Gallup poll found women worldwide are less satisfied with men with their health and are also more likely to experience physical pain, health problems, and sadness. Researchers found women's health lags behind men in Europe and Latin America but women are worse off in the former Soviet Union.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: All right. Jeff Fischel is here and you're looking at the report. This is the 200-page report that's been released online. This is Louis Freeh's report --

JEFF FISCHEL, HLN SPORTS: That's right.

COSTELLO: -- as to what went on in Penn State -- who knew what when. And it's very damning as far as Joe Paterno is concerned.

FISCHEL: Yes, you know, in the report it basically treats him as one of the powerful figures, one of the quote-unquote, "powerful men" at Penn State and it really paints a picture where he and the other leaders at Penn State were not only aware of what was going on but were covering it up.

And you know, you have to question now what happens next for the football program. Do we think about possible sanctions. At some point, if the report finds evidence of wrongdoing within the football program you know the NCAA will have to step in.

The NCAA said it's leaving the door open for an investigation and will look at the new report from Louis Freeh. Obviously based on what we have seen so far, you would have to think the NCAA could come down and come down very hard on Penn State.

Now if that happens, it would be punishing a new coaching staff. And remember Joe Paterno and his staff are gone. The new head coach is Bill O'Brien. He was off as a coordinator for the New England Patriots last season. So in essence, the NCAA could be punishing a group of coaches and players that had nothing to do with this, never saw any of this going on.

Remember O'Brien, it's his first job. He's never coached nor won nor lost a game. Joe Paterno won 409 games in his career so it's a different place for Penn State. And not to get too much into the x's and o's, of course, this team is rebuilding -- that's what O'Brien is facing in part because of so much controversy around this program. They got new players, new quarterback. He does not have a lot of experience. You have to wonder how much these young men respond as the new details of this investigation come out.

COSTELLO: Yes. Because you've got to think that it will affect their play anyway because of all the -- just the bad stuff coming out about Joe Paterno. And he is the football program at Penn State. You might say the football program had nothing to do with this as a culture --

FISCHEL: Right. Right.

COSTELLO: But I'm sorry -- Joe Paterno was football.

FISCHEL: Yes. And at some point the NCAA may have to say, you know what; we have to make sure this doesn't happen again, nothing like this ever happens again. One time I think ever back in the 1980's SMU got the death penalty. And you have to wonder if this might be something we'll see.

COSTELLO: We'll see.

FISCHEL: Ok.

COSTELLO: The next hour of CNN NEWSROOM after a short break.

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