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Lighter Than Expected Resistances In Falluja; Arafat's Condition Has Worsened; Who Will Be Arafat's Successor?; "Starved for Perfection" Explores the Dangerous Trend of Eating Disorders

Aired November 09, 2004 - 05:30   ET

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

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. Welcome to the second half hour of DAYBREAK. From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Now in the news -- there is late word this morning that Yasser Arafat condition has worsened. Hospital officials in Paris say the Palestinian leader has now fallen into a deeper coma.

It is day two of the Falluja offensive in Iraq, and so far, U.S. troops have faced less than expected resistance. Nonetheless, troops pounded insurgent targets overnight, dodged bullets and destroyed booby traps.

As the battle rages in Falluja, President Bush and his wife will make a bedside visit to soldiers wounded in Iraq. They'll stop by Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington later this afternoon.

And in California today, let the lawsuits begin. Hundreds of lawyers plan to meet to lay the groundwork for a nationwide lawsuit involving Vioxx drug maker Merck. Lawyers are representing people who got sick or died because they used the arthritis pain reliever.

Chad?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Am I going to have to bring you some coffee, Carol?

COSTELLO: I had to cough through all of that. I have some water.

MYERS: I'll talk as long as I can, you enjoy.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: More now on Yasser Arafat, whose health has taken a turn for the worse this morning. For the latest let's go to Paris and CNN's Jim Bittermann.

Good morning, Jim.

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Are you guys still there?

COSTELLO: Jim, can you hear me?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE).

COSTELLO: I don't think Jim can hear me.

Jim Bittermann cannot hear me, but we did get word this morning from Paris doctors that Arafat's condition has worsened. In fact, they say he slipped into a deeper coma.

As for what that means, we're going to have to back to Jim Bittermann, when we get him back up live.

U.S. forces pushed forward with their offensive in Falluja for a second day. Take a listen to the battle.

U.S. troops pounded insurgent targets, dodged sniper fire, and destroyed booby traps. Their goal is to oust hardcore militants and re-establish government control before Iraq's January election.

While the attention is focused in Falluja, violence is breaking out north of Baghdad. Three people killed in a suicide car bomb attack near Kirkuk. And four insurgents were killed when insurgents attacked two police stations near Baquba.

U.S. forces in Falluja are facing lighter than expected resistances. Some U.S. commanders say some insurgents slipped away, but others have moved in. Still the Pentagon expects things to heat up. Here's our Pentagon Correspondent Jamie McIntyre.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice over): When the long threatened offensive finally kicked off U.S. troops were pumped.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah, we're going to smack the crap out of them. That would be nice.

MCINTYRE: With 10,000 U.S. Marines and soldiers and more than 2,000 Iraqi troops moving on Falluja, the Pentagon is confident the estimated 3,000 insurgents can be routed.

But Pentagon officials are downplaying any suggestion that battle for Falluja is a show down with insurgents.

DONALD RUMSFELD, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I would not think of it that way and I think it would be a mistake for anyone. Listen, these folks are determined. These are killers. They chop people's heads off.

GEN. RICHARD MYERS, JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: If there were a silver bullet, we would have shot that a long time ago. There is not a silver bullet. This is very challenging work.

MCINTYRE: The U.S. is highlighting the Iraqi role in retaking Falluja, even dropping Pentagon's name for the operation, Phantom Fury, for one picked by Iraqi's interim prime minister, Operation Gone. There have been some reports of Iraqi troops deserting or failing to report for duty. But the Pentagon insists it is an isolated problem.

RUMSFELD: I think what one ought to expect is that from time to time we're going to see this type of thing. And on the other hand, there have been some commando units and some RAD (ph) control elements and some regular Iraqi forces, and some police forces, that have done a very good job.

MCINTYRE: The other big question is whether the insurgents and their leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi will melt away and regroup somewhere else.

GEN. GEORGE W. CASEY, MULTI-NAT'L FORCE, IRAQ CMDR.: I suspect that they'll try, but I don't know that we'll let them.

MCINTYRE (on camera): Last time, the Falluja offensive was halted after Iraq's governing council objected to the heavy casualties and civilian deaths inflicted by U.S. Marines. This time the Pentagon says Iraq's interim prime minister, Ayad Allawi, has agreed to finish the job no matter how messy it gets.

Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: All right, we have Jim Bittermann's audio problems worked out. So let's head back to Paris to see exactly what condition that Yasser Arafat is in this morning.

Good morning, Jim.

BITTERMANN: Hi, Carol.

In fact, things seemed to have worsened over night. We just got a briefing from General Christian Estripeau, who is the keeper of information here at the military hospital.

He tells us that in fact, that Yasser Arafat has slipped into a deeper coma. And that his condition has worsened and that they're offering no prognosis, which is the first time we're hearing that sort of thing. It sounds very, very dire, indeed. We have been hearing for the last five days here that Arafat's condition has been stable. Not it appears that it has worsened overnight and extremely bad I would say.

And there is a delegation in town that is trying to get to the hospital to see Arafat. They are right now at the French foreign ministry. We're expecting to see them here right after that meeting at the French foreign ministry.

We're not sure that they're going to get in, now especially with the worsened health of Arafat. If they are going to get in to actually see President Arafat directly, but they at least will have a chance to talk to the doctors here at the hospital when they come -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Suha Arafat, Arafat's wife, does not want them to see her husband. Why exactly is that?

BITTERMANN: Well, she said pretty clearly 36 hours ago, on Al- Jazeera, the Arabic news network, her feeling is there is a plot against her husband. And that the people that are coming here to see him, in fact, may be responsible for that plot. She called them revolutionaries. So, I think that her feeling is that the people here are plotting to push her husband aside.

Now, if indeed his condition has worsened to the point where he can no longer carry out his duties as president, and from all sounds and all appearances, that is the case. Then he will be excluded from any kind of power arrangement. The men that are here are the ones who would take over, including the speaker of the assembly, who would take over for 60 days to organize an election. The number two in the PLO is here, as well as the prime minister.

So, these men want to know what exactly the state of the health is. And I think they are going to leave here today knowing precisely what is going on -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Jim Bittermann, live in Paris. Thank you.

Arafat's responsibilities are already being divvied up among Palestinian officials. You heard Jim allude to that. But the question remains: Who will be his successor, and what does that mean to the Middle East peace process? For answers, let's head to Ramallah to talk to Political Science Professor Saleh Abdel Jawad.

Good morning.

DR. SALEH ABDEL JAWAD, PROFESSOR, BIRZEIT UNIVERSITY: Good morning.

COSTELLO: First of all, what do you make of this situation between ...

JAWAD: Good morning?

COSTELLO: Can you hear me?

JAWAD: Yes.

COSTELLO: I just wanted to ask you ...

JAWAD: Yes, I can.

COSTELLO: I just wanted to ask you first off what you made of this situation in Paris, between Arafat's wife and this delegation that wants to see him?

JAWAD: I think it is very legitimate to this delegation to visit Arafat. And we think, here, in general that Suha Arafat's declarations were inappropriate. And she, of course, is his wife, but she doesn't have any political position to determine who is going to visit the president or not.

So, in general, we have a leadership and some of these leaders are elected, and representative.

COSTELLO: Where are her concerns coming from?

JAWAD: Her concern?

COSTELLO: Yes.

JAWAD: We don't know. Nobody really knows exactly the motivation of her, you know, speech to the Palestinian people. But in general, people think it is something related to the question, mainly, of financial issues. But as I said, normally, her reaction was received here in a negative way.

COSTELLO: Who should take over for Yasser Arafat?

JAWAD: I think for the moment, the most powerful candidate is Mahmoud Abbas/Abu Mazen. He is the secretary general of the PLO, he was a primary (ph) minister, and he is one of the founding leaders of Fatah. So, I think he is the man.

Now, Abu Mazen, he is someone who is not power hungry and he is also and old - relatively. So, I think this will be a transitional period, which will be determined mainly through elections.

COSTELLO: Are the Palestinian people on board with that decision, if that decision comes?

JAWAD: Which decision?

COSTELLO: If Mahmoud Abbas becomes....

JAWAD: That Abu Mazen will be the ...

No, I don't think so. I don't think so. Of course, I mean, every time you have, you know, supporters of one man, and enemies of the same man, but there is a feeling. If we want a real, let's say, advance in the peace process Abu Mazen maybe is the best man for this job.

However, Abu Mazen's efforts will be determined mainly by a United States pressure on Israel. Let's remember that Abu Mazen was already a prime minister last year. And the Israelis sabotaged his, you know, his let's say chances, by declaring that he is a pro-Israeli or that the Israelis are very happy to deal with him. And also by continuation of the assassination (ph) policy, which undermined his -- him, personally, and his government.

If I have a message to say, I think, the American administration has to really do something and to understand that unconditional support to Israel is making even Sharon's situation difficult. Because the ultra-right in Israel think that if the Americans are in our pockets, why to give concessions to the Palestinian? So, I think Abu Mazen, for me, is the best candidate now to the successor to Arafat. But as a condition, we have to see an American intervention very, very soon.

COSTELLO: Professor Saleh Abdel Jawad, joining us live from Ramallah this morning. Thank you so much.

Emotions in the Scott Peterson case run high, in four minutes, as they deliberate are the jurors proving to be a house divided? Looks for a dramatic day in court ahead.

And in seven minutes, the marketing ploys used to get our attention. Just how far are advertisers going? We'll take a look.

And that gets us to our e-mail question of the morning. Product placement: Does it work for you? Tell us your thoughts, daybreak@cnn.com.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports, it is 5:46 Eastern. Here's what all new this morning.

It is day two of the Falluja offensive. Some 10,000 U.S. forces are plowing forward, along with about 2,000 Iraqi forces. They have been pounding insurgent targets, dodging sniper fire and destroying roadside bombs along the way.

NBA star Kobe Bryant's accuser may dump her civil lawsuit in Colorado and sue him in California instead. One of her lawyers says Colorado's strict limits on financial damages makes it hard for a plaintiff to win more than $733,000 in damages.

In money news, a criminal investigation into Boeing is reportedly expanding. "The Wall Street Journal" is reporting the probe will not just focus on dealings with the U.S. Air Force, it will also include a $100 billion Army program Boeing oversees.

In culture, a commemorative stamp honoring the late President Ronald Reagan will be unveiled today, at his presidential library and museum in California. But you can't buy the stamp just yet. It won't be available nationwide until February.

In sports, the New York Jets will start the second half of the season without quarterback Chad Pennington. He is now out with a strained rotator cuff.

And ooh, they are having a good season, too, Chad.

MYERS: They sure were until last weekend. Obviously, when he went out.

COSTELLO: Yes.

MYERS: They are saying two to four weeks, maybe, for him? We'll see.

COSTELLO: He's out!

MYERS: Is he out, for the whole season?

COSTELLO: Yes.

MYERS: That's an update. That's too bad for the Jets, man. They were doing so well.

(WEATHER FORECAST)

COSTELLO: We're going to do this story before we get to product placement, though.

After several days of deliberations the jurors in the Scott Peterson trial may be running into trouble. But the judge has issued a stern warning and the jurors are now prepared to start again.

CNN's David Mattingly filed this report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Called back into court on their third full day of deliberations, jurors in the Scott Peterson murder trail, according to observers are showing signs of division.

Judge Al Delucchi had to instruct the jurors a second time. He told them they are to be non-partisan and impartial judges in the facts of the case. He cautioned jurors against expressing strong opinions so early in the process.

CHUCK SMITH, LEGAL ANALYST: It basically tells them, hey folks, get along. Keep talking. Don't become entrenched in your positions. Consider the views of your fellow jurors, and try to reach a verdict.

MATTINGLY: The possibility of a struggle in the jury room at such an early point in the deliberations does not bode well for prosecutors seeking a conviction. It is a potential problem compounded by the Monday morning arrival of Scott Peterson's boat. The jury had requested to re-examine the boat.

But Peterson's defense attorney Mark Geragos unsuccessfully demanded a mistrial when jurors climbed inside the boat. And at least one of them, rocked it from side to side.

JIM HAMMER, LEGAL ANALYST: The question is, were they simply examining it, or where they doing an experiment? If it turns out this was an experiment, that can be a fatal error. So, although Geragos sounds angry. He has got to be the happiest lawyer in that courtroom now. Because if it goes badly and there is a conviction, he has a ripe issue on appeal.

MATTINGLY: The jurors could have been trying to determine if were possible for Peterson to dump his wife Laci's body weighted with cement anchors into San Francisco Bay, an act the defense claims would have caused the boat to capsize.

The judge rejected a request from Geragos to show the jury a tape made by the defense demonstrating their point.

MATTINGLY (on camera): The jury left for the day asking to see more information when it returns tomorrow. In particular, the recorded phone conversations between Scott Peterson and his one-time girlfriend Amber Frey. Just one sign that this jury, regardless of whatever problems it might be having, is continuing its thorough examination of the facts in this case.

David Mattingly, CNN, Redwood City, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Judges comments to the jurors, the boat rocking incident. How is it all playing out? We'll talk more about the Peterson trial with out Legal Analyst Kendall Coffey. He is up in the second hour of DAYBREAK.

All right, now, let's talk about advertisers. More and more of them are coming up with clever ways to push their products. We are bombarded with ads almost every where we go. Tonight, the PBS program, "Frontline" exposes the inner workings of the marketing and advertising industries. They outline some of the ways advertisers get their message out and persuade us to buy. Because you know so many people are TiVoing now, Chad.

MYERS: Yes.

COSTELLO: You don't have to watch the commercials. So advertisers have to come up with more clever ways to get their product placements inside TV shows.

MYERS: I watched an entire football game in 45 minutes the other day. TiVo, missed all the huddles and everything.

COSTELLO: It is great, but there is probably some product placement within that football game.

MYERS: Oh, sure.

COSTELLO: The name of the stadium, right?

MYERS: Sure.

COSTELLO: So, they are trying all sorts of ways.

MYERS: So, like this can of hairspray.

(LAUGHTER)

We don't do that.

COSTELLO: You gave away our secret.

Anyway, we've been asking for your e-mails this morning, whether product placement really works because this "Frontline" show is going to say most consumers are really turned off by it. So, are our viewers.

MYERS: Brett, from Wyoming, says: "I'm not one of those people who is influenced by objects seen on TV. Nothing will help me make buy that they are trying to peddle. Where can I buy one of your mugs?"

COSTELLO: We love that.

This is from Jason in Columbia, Missouri. He says: "Although the ads on TV may be amusing at times, for the most part, they make no difference in what I decide to choose. I believe in quality over flash."

MYERS: A lot of folks, even Ralph, in San Antonio, saying that it just doesn't work and in fact they are boycotting some of the things that they actually see on TV.

"It may not work for me all of the time, but I can assure you it works some of the time. If it didn't companies wouldn't be so extremely willing to pay for all of these products in movies and TV shows."

I think he's right.

COSTELLO: Absolutely. That is a good one.

Stephen from San Jose, California, writes: "It sure works on our kids. You walk into any store and all the well-placed, brightly packaged sugar products are the first thing they run for. It is no real mystery why we have a nation of overweight, hyperactive children. The mystery is why doesn't anyone notice or complain?"

We're starting to, that is the good news there. But yes, even in cartoons, there is product placement.

MYERS: Maybe we should have product placement of like, treadmills.

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: Exactly. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: I may surprise you, but there are several Internet Web sites out there that actually encourage potentially deadly eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia. This morning, we begin a series of reports called "Starved for Perfection: Thin At All Costs."

CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta explores the price people pay when they become obsessed with being thin.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice over): How do you purge faster? Or quieter?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice over): Don't take breaks between purges. Try using a spoon instead of your fingers.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The messages, the advice they trade on the Web, haunting.

MARNA PALMER, IN RECOVERY: The 12 and 13-year-old girls that would come on saying I'm so fat, please teach me how to be anorexic. Teach me how to be bulimic.

GUPTA: The teachers -- Web sites called Pro Ana and Pro Mia, means pro-anorexia and pro-bulimia. Thousands of them on the Web conferring a new and dangerous message about eating disorders. Saying that they are actually a good thing.

LYNN GREFE, NAT'L EATING DISORDERS ASSOC.: Encouraging people to be ill is really what it is and it is like a secret cult. It is like a secret. It is a secret society and word spreads around and people have a lingo now.

GUPTA: And like cults, Pro Ana sites have their own language. Like "thinspiration," photos of emaciated models, and referring to anorexia and bulimia as a lifestyle, not an illness.

Twenty-two-year old Marna Palmer was a regular visitor to sites like these. She's battled eating disorders since she was 13.

PALMER: It was laxatives, spending four hours a day at the gym. At my worst, I was throwing up seven or eight times a day.

GUPTA: Her life and her thoughts have always been a constant obsession about food.

PALMER: I honestly don't know what normal people think about. That is something that is just incredibly mind boggling to me. To be able to think about something other than food and working out and comparing yourself to the other girls.

GUPTA: Even as she recovers today, Marna understands why girls who aren't in recovery resort to Pro Ana Web sites.

PALMER: When you feel like you can't talk to anybody and you don't want to get treatment, then these girls understand.

GUPTA: Some Web sites provide a crutch by being outlets for people to talk about something usually held in secret.

GREFE: We need to guide all these people to treatment. Get them off the Web site, or put them on the Web site to find where they can get help.

GUPTA: Marna admits that she is till relies on some Web sites to support her recovery. But she his also in therapy and taking anti- depressants. Until she can figure out a way to beat her eating disorders once and for all. Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Our "Starved for Perfection" series continues tomorrow on DAYBREAK. We'll look at the so-called "perfect pregnancy." As some women go to extremes to avoid natural weight gain when they have a baby.

DAYBREAK will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired November 9, 2004 - 05:30   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. Welcome to the second half hour of DAYBREAK. From the CNN Global Headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Carol Costello.
Now in the news -- there is late word this morning that Yasser Arafat condition has worsened. Hospital officials in Paris say the Palestinian leader has now fallen into a deeper coma.

It is day two of the Falluja offensive in Iraq, and so far, U.S. troops have faced less than expected resistance. Nonetheless, troops pounded insurgent targets overnight, dodged bullets and destroyed booby traps.

As the battle rages in Falluja, President Bush and his wife will make a bedside visit to soldiers wounded in Iraq. They'll stop by Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington later this afternoon.

And in California today, let the lawsuits begin. Hundreds of lawyers plan to meet to lay the groundwork for a nationwide lawsuit involving Vioxx drug maker Merck. Lawyers are representing people who got sick or died because they used the arthritis pain reliever.

Chad?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Am I going to have to bring you some coffee, Carol?

COSTELLO: I had to cough through all of that. I have some water.

MYERS: I'll talk as long as I can, you enjoy.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: More now on Yasser Arafat, whose health has taken a turn for the worse this morning. For the latest let's go to Paris and CNN's Jim Bittermann.

Good morning, Jim.

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Are you guys still there?

COSTELLO: Jim, can you hear me?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE).

COSTELLO: I don't think Jim can hear me.

Jim Bittermann cannot hear me, but we did get word this morning from Paris doctors that Arafat's condition has worsened. In fact, they say he slipped into a deeper coma.

As for what that means, we're going to have to back to Jim Bittermann, when we get him back up live.

U.S. forces pushed forward with their offensive in Falluja for a second day. Take a listen to the battle.

U.S. troops pounded insurgent targets, dodged sniper fire, and destroyed booby traps. Their goal is to oust hardcore militants and re-establish government control before Iraq's January election.

While the attention is focused in Falluja, violence is breaking out north of Baghdad. Three people killed in a suicide car bomb attack near Kirkuk. And four insurgents were killed when insurgents attacked two police stations near Baquba.

U.S. forces in Falluja are facing lighter than expected resistances. Some U.S. commanders say some insurgents slipped away, but others have moved in. Still the Pentagon expects things to heat up. Here's our Pentagon Correspondent Jamie McIntyre.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice over): When the long threatened offensive finally kicked off U.S. troops were pumped.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah, we're going to smack the crap out of them. That would be nice.

MCINTYRE: With 10,000 U.S. Marines and soldiers and more than 2,000 Iraqi troops moving on Falluja, the Pentagon is confident the estimated 3,000 insurgents can be routed.

But Pentagon officials are downplaying any suggestion that battle for Falluja is a show down with insurgents.

DONALD RUMSFELD, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I would not think of it that way and I think it would be a mistake for anyone. Listen, these folks are determined. These are killers. They chop people's heads off.

GEN. RICHARD MYERS, JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: If there were a silver bullet, we would have shot that a long time ago. There is not a silver bullet. This is very challenging work.

MCINTYRE: The U.S. is highlighting the Iraqi role in retaking Falluja, even dropping Pentagon's name for the operation, Phantom Fury, for one picked by Iraqi's interim prime minister, Operation Gone. There have been some reports of Iraqi troops deserting or failing to report for duty. But the Pentagon insists it is an isolated problem.

RUMSFELD: I think what one ought to expect is that from time to time we're going to see this type of thing. And on the other hand, there have been some commando units and some RAD (ph) control elements and some regular Iraqi forces, and some police forces, that have done a very good job.

MCINTYRE: The other big question is whether the insurgents and their leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi will melt away and regroup somewhere else.

GEN. GEORGE W. CASEY, MULTI-NAT'L FORCE, IRAQ CMDR.: I suspect that they'll try, but I don't know that we'll let them.

MCINTYRE (on camera): Last time, the Falluja offensive was halted after Iraq's governing council objected to the heavy casualties and civilian deaths inflicted by U.S. Marines. This time the Pentagon says Iraq's interim prime minister, Ayad Allawi, has agreed to finish the job no matter how messy it gets.

Jamie McIntyre, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: All right, we have Jim Bittermann's audio problems worked out. So let's head back to Paris to see exactly what condition that Yasser Arafat is in this morning.

Good morning, Jim.

BITTERMANN: Hi, Carol.

In fact, things seemed to have worsened over night. We just got a briefing from General Christian Estripeau, who is the keeper of information here at the military hospital.

He tells us that in fact, that Yasser Arafat has slipped into a deeper coma. And that his condition has worsened and that they're offering no prognosis, which is the first time we're hearing that sort of thing. It sounds very, very dire, indeed. We have been hearing for the last five days here that Arafat's condition has been stable. Not it appears that it has worsened overnight and extremely bad I would say.

And there is a delegation in town that is trying to get to the hospital to see Arafat. They are right now at the French foreign ministry. We're expecting to see them here right after that meeting at the French foreign ministry.

We're not sure that they're going to get in, now especially with the worsened health of Arafat. If they are going to get in to actually see President Arafat directly, but they at least will have a chance to talk to the doctors here at the hospital when they come -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Suha Arafat, Arafat's wife, does not want them to see her husband. Why exactly is that?

BITTERMANN: Well, she said pretty clearly 36 hours ago, on Al- Jazeera, the Arabic news network, her feeling is there is a plot against her husband. And that the people that are coming here to see him, in fact, may be responsible for that plot. She called them revolutionaries. So, I think that her feeling is that the people here are plotting to push her husband aside.

Now, if indeed his condition has worsened to the point where he can no longer carry out his duties as president, and from all sounds and all appearances, that is the case. Then he will be excluded from any kind of power arrangement. The men that are here are the ones who would take over, including the speaker of the assembly, who would take over for 60 days to organize an election. The number two in the PLO is here, as well as the prime minister.

So, these men want to know what exactly the state of the health is. And I think they are going to leave here today knowing precisely what is going on -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Jim Bittermann, live in Paris. Thank you.

Arafat's responsibilities are already being divvied up among Palestinian officials. You heard Jim allude to that. But the question remains: Who will be his successor, and what does that mean to the Middle East peace process? For answers, let's head to Ramallah to talk to Political Science Professor Saleh Abdel Jawad.

Good morning.

DR. SALEH ABDEL JAWAD, PROFESSOR, BIRZEIT UNIVERSITY: Good morning.

COSTELLO: First of all, what do you make of this situation between ...

JAWAD: Good morning?

COSTELLO: Can you hear me?

JAWAD: Yes.

COSTELLO: I just wanted to ask you ...

JAWAD: Yes, I can.

COSTELLO: I just wanted to ask you first off what you made of this situation in Paris, between Arafat's wife and this delegation that wants to see him?

JAWAD: I think it is very legitimate to this delegation to visit Arafat. And we think, here, in general that Suha Arafat's declarations were inappropriate. And she, of course, is his wife, but she doesn't have any political position to determine who is going to visit the president or not.

So, in general, we have a leadership and some of these leaders are elected, and representative.

COSTELLO: Where are her concerns coming from?

JAWAD: Her concern?

COSTELLO: Yes.

JAWAD: We don't know. Nobody really knows exactly the motivation of her, you know, speech to the Palestinian people. But in general, people think it is something related to the question, mainly, of financial issues. But as I said, normally, her reaction was received here in a negative way.

COSTELLO: Who should take over for Yasser Arafat?

JAWAD: I think for the moment, the most powerful candidate is Mahmoud Abbas/Abu Mazen. He is the secretary general of the PLO, he was a primary (ph) minister, and he is one of the founding leaders of Fatah. So, I think he is the man.

Now, Abu Mazen, he is someone who is not power hungry and he is also and old - relatively. So, I think this will be a transitional period, which will be determined mainly through elections.

COSTELLO: Are the Palestinian people on board with that decision, if that decision comes?

JAWAD: Which decision?

COSTELLO: If Mahmoud Abbas becomes....

JAWAD: That Abu Mazen will be the ...

No, I don't think so. I don't think so. Of course, I mean, every time you have, you know, supporters of one man, and enemies of the same man, but there is a feeling. If we want a real, let's say, advance in the peace process Abu Mazen maybe is the best man for this job.

However, Abu Mazen's efforts will be determined mainly by a United States pressure on Israel. Let's remember that Abu Mazen was already a prime minister last year. And the Israelis sabotaged his, you know, his let's say chances, by declaring that he is a pro-Israeli or that the Israelis are very happy to deal with him. And also by continuation of the assassination (ph) policy, which undermined his -- him, personally, and his government.

If I have a message to say, I think, the American administration has to really do something and to understand that unconditional support to Israel is making even Sharon's situation difficult. Because the ultra-right in Israel think that if the Americans are in our pockets, why to give concessions to the Palestinian? So, I think Abu Mazen, for me, is the best candidate now to the successor to Arafat. But as a condition, we have to see an American intervention very, very soon.

COSTELLO: Professor Saleh Abdel Jawad, joining us live from Ramallah this morning. Thank you so much.

Emotions in the Scott Peterson case run high, in four minutes, as they deliberate are the jurors proving to be a house divided? Looks for a dramatic day in court ahead.

And in seven minutes, the marketing ploys used to get our attention. Just how far are advertisers going? We'll take a look.

And that gets us to our e-mail question of the morning. Product placement: Does it work for you? Tell us your thoughts, daybreak@cnn.com.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports, it is 5:46 Eastern. Here's what all new this morning.

It is day two of the Falluja offensive. Some 10,000 U.S. forces are plowing forward, along with about 2,000 Iraqi forces. They have been pounding insurgent targets, dodging sniper fire and destroying roadside bombs along the way.

NBA star Kobe Bryant's accuser may dump her civil lawsuit in Colorado and sue him in California instead. One of her lawyers says Colorado's strict limits on financial damages makes it hard for a plaintiff to win more than $733,000 in damages.

In money news, a criminal investigation into Boeing is reportedly expanding. "The Wall Street Journal" is reporting the probe will not just focus on dealings with the U.S. Air Force, it will also include a $100 billion Army program Boeing oversees.

In culture, a commemorative stamp honoring the late President Ronald Reagan will be unveiled today, at his presidential library and museum in California. But you can't buy the stamp just yet. It won't be available nationwide until February.

In sports, the New York Jets will start the second half of the season without quarterback Chad Pennington. He is now out with a strained rotator cuff.

And ooh, they are having a good season, too, Chad.

MYERS: They sure were until last weekend. Obviously, when he went out.

COSTELLO: Yes.

MYERS: They are saying two to four weeks, maybe, for him? We'll see.

COSTELLO: He's out!

MYERS: Is he out, for the whole season?

COSTELLO: Yes.

MYERS: That's an update. That's too bad for the Jets, man. They were doing so well.

(WEATHER FORECAST)

COSTELLO: We're going to do this story before we get to product placement, though.

After several days of deliberations the jurors in the Scott Peterson trial may be running into trouble. But the judge has issued a stern warning and the jurors are now prepared to start again.

CNN's David Mattingly filed this report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Called back into court on their third full day of deliberations, jurors in the Scott Peterson murder trail, according to observers are showing signs of division.

Judge Al Delucchi had to instruct the jurors a second time. He told them they are to be non-partisan and impartial judges in the facts of the case. He cautioned jurors against expressing strong opinions so early in the process.

CHUCK SMITH, LEGAL ANALYST: It basically tells them, hey folks, get along. Keep talking. Don't become entrenched in your positions. Consider the views of your fellow jurors, and try to reach a verdict.

MATTINGLY: The possibility of a struggle in the jury room at such an early point in the deliberations does not bode well for prosecutors seeking a conviction. It is a potential problem compounded by the Monday morning arrival of Scott Peterson's boat. The jury had requested to re-examine the boat.

But Peterson's defense attorney Mark Geragos unsuccessfully demanded a mistrial when jurors climbed inside the boat. And at least one of them, rocked it from side to side.

JIM HAMMER, LEGAL ANALYST: The question is, were they simply examining it, or where they doing an experiment? If it turns out this was an experiment, that can be a fatal error. So, although Geragos sounds angry. He has got to be the happiest lawyer in that courtroom now. Because if it goes badly and there is a conviction, he has a ripe issue on appeal.

MATTINGLY: The jurors could have been trying to determine if were possible for Peterson to dump his wife Laci's body weighted with cement anchors into San Francisco Bay, an act the defense claims would have caused the boat to capsize.

The judge rejected a request from Geragos to show the jury a tape made by the defense demonstrating their point.

MATTINGLY (on camera): The jury left for the day asking to see more information when it returns tomorrow. In particular, the recorded phone conversations between Scott Peterson and his one-time girlfriend Amber Frey. Just one sign that this jury, regardless of whatever problems it might be having, is continuing its thorough examination of the facts in this case.

David Mattingly, CNN, Redwood City, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Judges comments to the jurors, the boat rocking incident. How is it all playing out? We'll talk more about the Peterson trial with out Legal Analyst Kendall Coffey. He is up in the second hour of DAYBREAK.

All right, now, let's talk about advertisers. More and more of them are coming up with clever ways to push their products. We are bombarded with ads almost every where we go. Tonight, the PBS program, "Frontline" exposes the inner workings of the marketing and advertising industries. They outline some of the ways advertisers get their message out and persuade us to buy. Because you know so many people are TiVoing now, Chad.

MYERS: Yes.

COSTELLO: You don't have to watch the commercials. So advertisers have to come up with more clever ways to get their product placements inside TV shows.

MYERS: I watched an entire football game in 45 minutes the other day. TiVo, missed all the huddles and everything.

COSTELLO: It is great, but there is probably some product placement within that football game.

MYERS: Oh, sure.

COSTELLO: The name of the stadium, right?

MYERS: Sure.

COSTELLO: So, they are trying all sorts of ways.

MYERS: So, like this can of hairspray.

(LAUGHTER)

We don't do that.

COSTELLO: You gave away our secret.

Anyway, we've been asking for your e-mails this morning, whether product placement really works because this "Frontline" show is going to say most consumers are really turned off by it. So, are our viewers.

MYERS: Brett, from Wyoming, says: "I'm not one of those people who is influenced by objects seen on TV. Nothing will help me make buy that they are trying to peddle. Where can I buy one of your mugs?"

COSTELLO: We love that.

This is from Jason in Columbia, Missouri. He says: "Although the ads on TV may be amusing at times, for the most part, they make no difference in what I decide to choose. I believe in quality over flash."

MYERS: A lot of folks, even Ralph, in San Antonio, saying that it just doesn't work and in fact they are boycotting some of the things that they actually see on TV.

"It may not work for me all of the time, but I can assure you it works some of the time. If it didn't companies wouldn't be so extremely willing to pay for all of these products in movies and TV shows."

I think he's right.

COSTELLO: Absolutely. That is a good one.

Stephen from San Jose, California, writes: "It sure works on our kids. You walk into any store and all the well-placed, brightly packaged sugar products are the first thing they run for. It is no real mystery why we have a nation of overweight, hyperactive children. The mystery is why doesn't anyone notice or complain?"

We're starting to, that is the good news there. But yes, even in cartoons, there is product placement.

MYERS: Maybe we should have product placement of like, treadmills.

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: Exactly. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: I may surprise you, but there are several Internet Web sites out there that actually encourage potentially deadly eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia. This morning, we begin a series of reports called "Starved for Perfection: Thin At All Costs."

CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta explores the price people pay when they become obsessed with being thin.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice over): How do you purge faster? Or quieter?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice over): Don't take breaks between purges. Try using a spoon instead of your fingers.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The messages, the advice they trade on the Web, haunting.

MARNA PALMER, IN RECOVERY: The 12 and 13-year-old girls that would come on saying I'm so fat, please teach me how to be anorexic. Teach me how to be bulimic.

GUPTA: The teachers -- Web sites called Pro Ana and Pro Mia, means pro-anorexia and pro-bulimia. Thousands of them on the Web conferring a new and dangerous message about eating disorders. Saying that they are actually a good thing.

LYNN GREFE, NAT'L EATING DISORDERS ASSOC.: Encouraging people to be ill is really what it is and it is like a secret cult. It is like a secret. It is a secret society and word spreads around and people have a lingo now.

GUPTA: And like cults, Pro Ana sites have their own language. Like "thinspiration," photos of emaciated models, and referring to anorexia and bulimia as a lifestyle, not an illness.

Twenty-two-year old Marna Palmer was a regular visitor to sites like these. She's battled eating disorders since she was 13.

PALMER: It was laxatives, spending four hours a day at the gym. At my worst, I was throwing up seven or eight times a day.

GUPTA: Her life and her thoughts have always been a constant obsession about food.

PALMER: I honestly don't know what normal people think about. That is something that is just incredibly mind boggling to me. To be able to think about something other than food and working out and comparing yourself to the other girls.

GUPTA: Even as she recovers today, Marna understands why girls who aren't in recovery resort to Pro Ana Web sites.

PALMER: When you feel like you can't talk to anybody and you don't want to get treatment, then these girls understand.

GUPTA: Some Web sites provide a crutch by being outlets for people to talk about something usually held in secret.

GREFE: We need to guide all these people to treatment. Get them off the Web site, or put them on the Web site to find where they can get help.

GUPTA: Marna admits that she is till relies on some Web sites to support her recovery. But she his also in therapy and taking anti- depressants. Until she can figure out a way to beat her eating disorders once and for all. Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Our "Starved for Perfection" series continues tomorrow on DAYBREAK. We'll look at the so-called "perfect pregnancy." As some women go to extremes to avoid natural weight gain when they have a baby.

DAYBREAK will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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