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CNN Live Today
Hundreds Killed in by Floods in Dominican Republican, Haiti; Kansas Student Wins National Geographic Bee
Aired May 27, 2004 - 10:30 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.
DARYN KAGAN, ANCHOR: I'm Daryn Kagan. Let's check the headlines right now.
Pope John Paul II today called torture an intolerable act of lawlessness. It was his first public condemnation since the scandal over U.S. soldiers mistreating Iraqi prisoners.
Although the pope did not mention Iraq specifically, the timing is significant. President Bush is scheduled to meet with the pope next week at the Vatican.
The prisoner abuse scandal reportedly will lead to more soldiers facing criminal charges. A senior Army official tells "USA Today" that five more soldiers have been identified in the abuse photos and will probably be charged in coming weeks. Seven soldiers have already been charged, and seven others have been reprimanded.
New Mexico's Capitan Mountains, the Peppin fire continues to burn out of control and has now blackened about 25,000 acres. A dozen cabins have been destroyed since the blaze was sparked by lightning 12 days ago. Another wild fire about 50 miles away, the 5,200-acre fire, the Lookout Fire, is about 90 percent contained.
And we're going to show you a picture here, a live picture of the newest aircraft carrier in the U.S. fleet. Well, it's out there. There's the helicopter, but the nuclear powered USS Ronald Reagan, it departs Norfolk for its permanent homeport of San Diego. We'll get a picture of the actual ship coming up.
The Reagan will replace the USS Constellation, which was retired last year.
We are at 33 -- there we go. There is a picture of the actual ship. Thanks to our affiliate, WAVY, for providing that.
All right, at 33 minutes past the hour. More than 500 people are now dead from flooding in the neighboring nations of the Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
Many of the victims were killed when rushing water swept away their homes in the middle of the night.
Our Susan Candiotti is covering the story. She joins us by videophone from the Dominican capital of Santa Domingo -- Susan.
All right. Well, we're going to work on getting Susan up live. Meanwhile, she did file a report earlier. Let's take a look at that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a riverbed that's become a burial site. When Sunday's storm roared through in the dead of night, rushing water consumed everyone and everything in its path.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's bad. Very, very bad.
CANDIOTTI: Hundreds are dead. Many remain missing in the Dominican Republic and neighboring Haiti. At least 300 bodies recovered in Jimani on the Dominican side. Those who could not be identified have been moved from temporary morgues to common graves.
(on camera) Residents here paint a devastating picture, describing the streets of had Jimani became a river of death.
(voice-over) Gerald Gotel (ph) appears dazed as he picks his way through muck next to his mud-filled home. His 9-month-old daughter Yvonne was swept away by the raging flood.
"They can't find her anywhere," says her mother.
Around every corner, more despair.
This woman says she was sleeping when the water rose as high as eight feet. She describes bodies piled everywhere.
Throughout Jimani, a struggle to salvage belongings. Here, a man desperately trying to wash the mud from a mattress. People take turns drawing water for cleaning.
Civil defense workers and the Red Cross working to bring in drinking water, food, shelter. For Gerald (ph) and Geraldine Dotel (ph), an effort to start over, getting rid of mud, holding on to the memory of a lost child.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: And once again, that's Susan Candiotti, reporting from the Dominican Republic. We're going to work on getting her report up live just a bit later this morning.
But you can see new -- more video and pictures of the flooding on our web site. Just go to CNN.com/world.
The votes have been counted, and a dramatic contest. Unless you've been hiding under a rock somewhere, you know that Fantasia is the new "American Idol." We'll have more on her big win, also ahead.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEX TREBEK, HOST, "JEOPARDY": The shower. A city in the northwest frontier province of Pakistan has had strategic importance for centuries because of its location near what historic pass? (END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: Do you know the answer? If you're a regular CNN viewer, you just might. It was the final question at the national geography bee. We'll have the answer and the winner just a little bit later.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Some political news for you here.
John Kerry is putting to rest any speculation that he will delay accepting the Democratic nod for president. Kerry says he will accept the nomination at the Democratic convention in Boston and July.
Under federal campaign rules, both Kerry and George Bush will each be limited to spending $75 million after they accept their nomination. So you do the math. The Republicans have their convention in September. Kerry is now going to have to stretch his money out longer than the president will.
But Kerry indicated his final decision was not about the money.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Why should one party be at a one-month disadvantage? I think it's a silly rule, but I decided personally in the end, my gut told me that I wanted to do what I thought was right, which is accept the nomination in Boston.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: Let's take a look at some other stories from across America.
First, Oregon. A federal appeals court has handed a victory of sorts to supporters of the only assisted suicide law in the U.S. The court dealt a second law to Attorney General John Ashcroft, who sought to hold doctors legally liable for prescribing lethal overdoses to terminally ill patients. Oregon voters had twice approved that law.
And check out this torpedo-shaped vehicle. It might be on the road to the future. And high school whiz kids are charting the course.
Science students in Reo, Indiana, spent two years building this car. It gets an amazing 2,400 miles to the gallon. The teens beat out 49 other high school and college teams. They now go on to a national competition.
And so much for happily ever after. A new study suggests that older women are more likely than older men to ask for a divorce. According to the survey by the American Association of Retired People, two out of every three divorces after age 40 are initiated by the women. That seemingly debunks the popular belief of older men shopping for younger wives. Well, perhaps they go shopping for the younger wife after the older woman leaves them.
All right. A younger man is on our docket this morning. A 14- year-old who knows the world like the back of his hand. Coming up, you'll meet the national geography bee champion.
And this is also what we're working on for next hour.
(BEGINVIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Ahead on CNN, the most trusted name in news.
At 11...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm hoping that he's not involved in any of this stuff.
ANNOUNCER: What do U.S. authorities know about the terror suspects, and what should the public be looking for?
Plus, another terror suspect arrested in Britain. We'll have the details.
And at noon, new developments in the Kobe Bryant trial.
Stay with CNN for complete coverage.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TREBEK: Andrew, you wrote down the Khyber Pass and Matthew wrote down the Lhakla Pass. The correct response is the Khyber Pass, and that means that Andrew Wozniak (ph) from Kansas, congratulations, young man. You are the 2004 -- stand up. You are the 2004 National Geographic Bee champion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: Well, the good news is he got the question right, but Alex Trebek got his name wrong. The next geography question this morning, where in the world is Andrew Wojtanik?
The correct answer, New York City. Andrew is with us to talk about his big win.
And I did say your name right, correctly? Wojtanik?
ANDREW WOJTANIK, WINNER, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC BEE: That's right.
KAGAN: I want to get that right. Congratulations.
WOJTANIK: Thank you.
KAGAN: So that winning question about the Khyber Pass, was that -- was that just kind of a give me for you? Did you know that off the top of your head?
WOJTANIK: Yes, I had heard that before with all the war in Afghanistan and everything.
KAGAN: That's true. It has been in the news quite a bit.
Is this -- this is not your first time trying to win this thing?
WOJTANIK: Right. I've been at it for three years. This is my second time in nationals.
KAGAN: So third time is the charm. What did you learn the other two times that helped you win this time?
WOJTANIK: Oh, I didn't really know anything about geography and, now, I'm thankful that I knew what the questions were like and how to answer them.
KAGAN: And I understand you put together your own study guide. Might you sell that to kids that want to win in future years?
WOJTANIK: Possibly.
KAGAN: Not possible? You have to kind of come up with your own way, your own method of studying?
WOJTANIK: Right. I've made a book that's 430 pages long, and it has all 192 countries in it. And it has -- lists all of the mountains and the rivers and everything you need to know for the geography bee.
KAGAN: So along the way to winning it at all, you did miss a couple of questions. Were those things you didn't think to study for, or did you just forget them?
WOJTANIK: A couple of them -- One of them, I had never really heard of, and the other one was just really wasn't what I was studying. It was a different concept.
KAGAN: But apparently that wasn't a problem because here you are as a winner of the national geography bee.
I was wondering. I was looking at the picture of the finalists. Was there about ten people at the end, 10 to 12? And they were all boys, and that tends to happen with the geography bee. What do you think it is about geography and boys? Why are there no girls?
WOJTANIK: There seems to be more interest in -- with the boys, and the girls just aren't interested. They're only four out of the 55...
KAGAN: Really.
WOJTANIK: ... that were in the nationals were girls.
It's just -- at the spelling bee, you know, it's mostly girls. Girls are more -- they like to go to the spelling bee more, because they're more interested in reading and writing, rather than learning geography, is what I've heard.
KAGN: How's your spelling?
WOJTANIK: OK.
KAGAN: OK. We're not going to see you as the national spelling bee champ.
WOJTANIK: No.
KAGAN: But that's fine. You win $25,000 scholarship for college, which still is a few years away. You're still in middle school or just finishing up eighth grade?
WOJTANIK: That's right.
KAGAN: And so when you get -- are you kind of thinking college? Gee, are you thinking ahead to that yet? Where that might -- where you might spend the 25 thou?
WOJTANIK: I -- I would think Notre Dame is my...
KAGAN: Notre Dame!
WOJTANIK: ... where I'm aiming just because I like football!
KAGAN: Football! Well, hopefully they'll kind of get their team a little bit better by the time you get there in about four or five years.
WOJTANIK: Hopefully.
KAGAN: Then, past college, any plans for when you grow up, what you want to be? A cartographer, perhaps?
WOJTANIK: Well, maybe like a journalist to travel around the world. That's kind of my dream, possibly for "National Geographic."
KAGAN: Well, you know, there's "National Geographic." I know they sponsored your bee, but you know, here at CNN, we might have a few opportunities for you to see the world. We need bright, young people.
WOJTANIK: Maybe you can hook me up.
KAGAN: Well, I'll hook you up. You send an e-mail, and we'll get you all set.
In the meantime, you have a lot of publicity to do and celebrations, and going home to Lakewood Middle School in Overland Park, Kansas. Congratulations!
WOJTANIK: Thank you.
KAGAN: Enjoy the prize and enjoy being the champ. Andrew Wojtanik joining us, the national geography bee champion.
The battle for the big prize is over. Straight ahead, the newest to be named an American Idol.
And coming up in the next hour of CNN LIVE TODAY, Mr. Bill is back. He has an important message. Find out what that is.
CNN LIVE TODAY returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Congratulations to the final two. Some 70,000 "American Idol" wannabes failed to make it to the final spotlight of the national televised talent show.
Last night, though, on prime time one more dream collided with reality television.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RYAN SEACREST, HOST, "AMERICAN IDOL": The winner of "American Idol" 2004 is Fantasia Barrino.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: And Fantasia is now assured a recording contract and even more immediate fame. Sixty-five million votes were cast for the finalist either by telephone or by text message. Congratulations to her.
By the way, you're going to have a chance hear directly from Fantasia and the runner-up, Diana DeGarmo. They will be Larry's guests on Friday. That's beginning Friday night at 9 p.m. Eastern and 6 Pacific.
And for more on "American Idol" and the latest entertainment, visit our news site. That is very simple: CNN.com/entertainment.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: Bill Cosby makes another public appearance after his speech at Howard University sparked a national controversy. Hear what Cosby has to say to his critics.
And for all the men out there that are tying the knot or plan to some day, we have tips on everything from the proposal to the honeymoon, from a guy's perspective. Ladies, it is different than how we plan the whole thing.
The second hour of CNN LIVE TODAY begins right now.
And we begin with the latest developments we're following at this hour.
A radical cleric is in custody in Britain and wanted in the U.S. An 11-count indictment last hour accuses Abu Hamza of providing support to al Qaeda and aiding a deadly kidnapping in 1998 in Yemen. The U.S. wants to extradite him.
Police in Slovakia say they have found two bags of explosives near a building where NATO officials are supposed to meet tomorrow. An interior minister spokesman says the explosives were found under a box of trash. More than 300 NATO paramilitary officials, current military officials, begin a five-day session Friday in the Slovak capital.
The family of Michael Jackson's accuser is filing a claim against the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services. That move seeks to protect the family's right to sue the agency. It stems from the leak of a confidential report that called their molestation allegation against Jackson unfounded.
Jackson has pleaded not guilty to those charges.
A decision is expected today on the state of University of Colorado football coach Gary Barnett. The school's football program was rocked by allegations of sexual misconduct.
A commission concluded that sex and alcohol were used in recruiting but found no evidence that officials knowingly sanctioned the practice.
Barnett told the Associated Press last week he expects to keep his job.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired May 27, 2004 - 10:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, ANCHOR: I'm Daryn Kagan. Let's check the headlines right now.
Pope John Paul II today called torture an intolerable act of lawlessness. It was his first public condemnation since the scandal over U.S. soldiers mistreating Iraqi prisoners.
Although the pope did not mention Iraq specifically, the timing is significant. President Bush is scheduled to meet with the pope next week at the Vatican.
The prisoner abuse scandal reportedly will lead to more soldiers facing criminal charges. A senior Army official tells "USA Today" that five more soldiers have been identified in the abuse photos and will probably be charged in coming weeks. Seven soldiers have already been charged, and seven others have been reprimanded.
New Mexico's Capitan Mountains, the Peppin fire continues to burn out of control and has now blackened about 25,000 acres. A dozen cabins have been destroyed since the blaze was sparked by lightning 12 days ago. Another wild fire about 50 miles away, the 5,200-acre fire, the Lookout Fire, is about 90 percent contained.
And we're going to show you a picture here, a live picture of the newest aircraft carrier in the U.S. fleet. Well, it's out there. There's the helicopter, but the nuclear powered USS Ronald Reagan, it departs Norfolk for its permanent homeport of San Diego. We'll get a picture of the actual ship coming up.
The Reagan will replace the USS Constellation, which was retired last year.
We are at 33 -- there we go. There is a picture of the actual ship. Thanks to our affiliate, WAVY, for providing that.
All right, at 33 minutes past the hour. More than 500 people are now dead from flooding in the neighboring nations of the Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
Many of the victims were killed when rushing water swept away their homes in the middle of the night.
Our Susan Candiotti is covering the story. She joins us by videophone from the Dominican capital of Santa Domingo -- Susan.
All right. Well, we're going to work on getting Susan up live. Meanwhile, she did file a report earlier. Let's take a look at that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a riverbed that's become a burial site. When Sunday's storm roared through in the dead of night, rushing water consumed everyone and everything in its path.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's bad. Very, very bad.
CANDIOTTI: Hundreds are dead. Many remain missing in the Dominican Republic and neighboring Haiti. At least 300 bodies recovered in Jimani on the Dominican side. Those who could not be identified have been moved from temporary morgues to common graves.
(on camera) Residents here paint a devastating picture, describing the streets of had Jimani became a river of death.
(voice-over) Gerald Gotel (ph) appears dazed as he picks his way through muck next to his mud-filled home. His 9-month-old daughter Yvonne was swept away by the raging flood.
"They can't find her anywhere," says her mother.
Around every corner, more despair.
This woman says she was sleeping when the water rose as high as eight feet. She describes bodies piled everywhere.
Throughout Jimani, a struggle to salvage belongings. Here, a man desperately trying to wash the mud from a mattress. People take turns drawing water for cleaning.
Civil defense workers and the Red Cross working to bring in drinking water, food, shelter. For Gerald (ph) and Geraldine Dotel (ph), an effort to start over, getting rid of mud, holding on to the memory of a lost child.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAGAN: And once again, that's Susan Candiotti, reporting from the Dominican Republic. We're going to work on getting her report up live just a bit later this morning.
But you can see new -- more video and pictures of the flooding on our web site. Just go to CNN.com/world.
The votes have been counted, and a dramatic contest. Unless you've been hiding under a rock somewhere, you know that Fantasia is the new "American Idol." We'll have more on her big win, also ahead.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEX TREBEK, HOST, "JEOPARDY": The shower. A city in the northwest frontier province of Pakistan has had strategic importance for centuries because of its location near what historic pass? (END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: Do you know the answer? If you're a regular CNN viewer, you just might. It was the final question at the national geography bee. We'll have the answer and the winner just a little bit later.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(STOCK REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Some political news for you here.
John Kerry is putting to rest any speculation that he will delay accepting the Democratic nod for president. Kerry says he will accept the nomination at the Democratic convention in Boston and July.
Under federal campaign rules, both Kerry and George Bush will each be limited to spending $75 million after they accept their nomination. So you do the math. The Republicans have their convention in September. Kerry is now going to have to stretch his money out longer than the president will.
But Kerry indicated his final decision was not about the money.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Why should one party be at a one-month disadvantage? I think it's a silly rule, but I decided personally in the end, my gut told me that I wanted to do what I thought was right, which is accept the nomination in Boston.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: Let's take a look at some other stories from across America.
First, Oregon. A federal appeals court has handed a victory of sorts to supporters of the only assisted suicide law in the U.S. The court dealt a second law to Attorney General John Ashcroft, who sought to hold doctors legally liable for prescribing lethal overdoses to terminally ill patients. Oregon voters had twice approved that law.
And check out this torpedo-shaped vehicle. It might be on the road to the future. And high school whiz kids are charting the course.
Science students in Reo, Indiana, spent two years building this car. It gets an amazing 2,400 miles to the gallon. The teens beat out 49 other high school and college teams. They now go on to a national competition.
And so much for happily ever after. A new study suggests that older women are more likely than older men to ask for a divorce. According to the survey by the American Association of Retired People, two out of every three divorces after age 40 are initiated by the women. That seemingly debunks the popular belief of older men shopping for younger wives. Well, perhaps they go shopping for the younger wife after the older woman leaves them.
All right. A younger man is on our docket this morning. A 14- year-old who knows the world like the back of his hand. Coming up, you'll meet the national geography bee champion.
And this is also what we're working on for next hour.
(BEGINVIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: Ahead on CNN, the most trusted name in news.
At 11...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm hoping that he's not involved in any of this stuff.
ANNOUNCER: What do U.S. authorities know about the terror suspects, and what should the public be looking for?
Plus, another terror suspect arrested in Britain. We'll have the details.
And at noon, new developments in the Kobe Bryant trial.
Stay with CNN for complete coverage.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TREBEK: Andrew, you wrote down the Khyber Pass and Matthew wrote down the Lhakla Pass. The correct response is the Khyber Pass, and that means that Andrew Wozniak (ph) from Kansas, congratulations, young man. You are the 2004 -- stand up. You are the 2004 National Geographic Bee champion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: Well, the good news is he got the question right, but Alex Trebek got his name wrong. The next geography question this morning, where in the world is Andrew Wojtanik?
The correct answer, New York City. Andrew is with us to talk about his big win.
And I did say your name right, correctly? Wojtanik?
ANDREW WOJTANIK, WINNER, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC BEE: That's right.
KAGAN: I want to get that right. Congratulations.
WOJTANIK: Thank you.
KAGAN: So that winning question about the Khyber Pass, was that -- was that just kind of a give me for you? Did you know that off the top of your head?
WOJTANIK: Yes, I had heard that before with all the war in Afghanistan and everything.
KAGAN: That's true. It has been in the news quite a bit.
Is this -- this is not your first time trying to win this thing?
WOJTANIK: Right. I've been at it for three years. This is my second time in nationals.
KAGAN: So third time is the charm. What did you learn the other two times that helped you win this time?
WOJTANIK: Oh, I didn't really know anything about geography and, now, I'm thankful that I knew what the questions were like and how to answer them.
KAGAN: And I understand you put together your own study guide. Might you sell that to kids that want to win in future years?
WOJTANIK: Possibly.
KAGAN: Not possible? You have to kind of come up with your own way, your own method of studying?
WOJTANIK: Right. I've made a book that's 430 pages long, and it has all 192 countries in it. And it has -- lists all of the mountains and the rivers and everything you need to know for the geography bee.
KAGAN: So along the way to winning it at all, you did miss a couple of questions. Were those things you didn't think to study for, or did you just forget them?
WOJTANIK: A couple of them -- One of them, I had never really heard of, and the other one was just really wasn't what I was studying. It was a different concept.
KAGAN: But apparently that wasn't a problem because here you are as a winner of the national geography bee.
I was wondering. I was looking at the picture of the finalists. Was there about ten people at the end, 10 to 12? And they were all boys, and that tends to happen with the geography bee. What do you think it is about geography and boys? Why are there no girls?
WOJTANIK: There seems to be more interest in -- with the boys, and the girls just aren't interested. They're only four out of the 55...
KAGAN: Really.
WOJTANIK: ... that were in the nationals were girls.
It's just -- at the spelling bee, you know, it's mostly girls. Girls are more -- they like to go to the spelling bee more, because they're more interested in reading and writing, rather than learning geography, is what I've heard.
KAGN: How's your spelling?
WOJTANIK: OK.
KAGAN: OK. We're not going to see you as the national spelling bee champ.
WOJTANIK: No.
KAGAN: But that's fine. You win $25,000 scholarship for college, which still is a few years away. You're still in middle school or just finishing up eighth grade?
WOJTANIK: That's right.
KAGAN: And so when you get -- are you kind of thinking college? Gee, are you thinking ahead to that yet? Where that might -- where you might spend the 25 thou?
WOJTANIK: I -- I would think Notre Dame is my...
KAGAN: Notre Dame!
WOJTANIK: ... where I'm aiming just because I like football!
KAGAN: Football! Well, hopefully they'll kind of get their team a little bit better by the time you get there in about four or five years.
WOJTANIK: Hopefully.
KAGAN: Then, past college, any plans for when you grow up, what you want to be? A cartographer, perhaps?
WOJTANIK: Well, maybe like a journalist to travel around the world. That's kind of my dream, possibly for "National Geographic."
KAGAN: Well, you know, there's "National Geographic." I know they sponsored your bee, but you know, here at CNN, we might have a few opportunities for you to see the world. We need bright, young people.
WOJTANIK: Maybe you can hook me up.
KAGAN: Well, I'll hook you up. You send an e-mail, and we'll get you all set.
In the meantime, you have a lot of publicity to do and celebrations, and going home to Lakewood Middle School in Overland Park, Kansas. Congratulations!
WOJTANIK: Thank you.
KAGAN: Enjoy the prize and enjoy being the champ. Andrew Wojtanik joining us, the national geography bee champion.
The battle for the big prize is over. Straight ahead, the newest to be named an American Idol.
And coming up in the next hour of CNN LIVE TODAY, Mr. Bill is back. He has an important message. Find out what that is.
CNN LIVE TODAY returns.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAGAN: Congratulations to the final two. Some 70,000 "American Idol" wannabes failed to make it to the final spotlight of the national televised talent show.
Last night, though, on prime time one more dream collided with reality television.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RYAN SEACREST, HOST, "AMERICAN IDOL": The winner of "American Idol" 2004 is Fantasia Barrino.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: And Fantasia is now assured a recording contract and even more immediate fame. Sixty-five million votes were cast for the finalist either by telephone or by text message. Congratulations to her.
By the way, you're going to have a chance hear directly from Fantasia and the runner-up, Diana DeGarmo. They will be Larry's guests on Friday. That's beginning Friday night at 9 p.m. Eastern and 6 Pacific.
And for more on "American Idol" and the latest entertainment, visit our news site. That is very simple: CNN.com/entertainment.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: Bill Cosby makes another public appearance after his speech at Howard University sparked a national controversy. Hear what Cosby has to say to his critics.
And for all the men out there that are tying the knot or plan to some day, we have tips on everything from the proposal to the honeymoon, from a guy's perspective. Ladies, it is different than how we plan the whole thing.
The second hour of CNN LIVE TODAY begins right now.
And we begin with the latest developments we're following at this hour.
A radical cleric is in custody in Britain and wanted in the U.S. An 11-count indictment last hour accuses Abu Hamza of providing support to al Qaeda and aiding a deadly kidnapping in 1998 in Yemen. The U.S. wants to extradite him.
Police in Slovakia say they have found two bags of explosives near a building where NATO officials are supposed to meet tomorrow. An interior minister spokesman says the explosives were found under a box of trash. More than 300 NATO paramilitary officials, current military officials, begin a five-day session Friday in the Slovak capital.
The family of Michael Jackson's accuser is filing a claim against the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services. That move seeks to protect the family's right to sue the agency. It stems from the leak of a confidential report that called their molestation allegation against Jackson unfounded.
Jackson has pleaded not guilty to those charges.
A decision is expected today on the state of University of Colorado football coach Gary Barnett. The school's football program was rocked by allegations of sexual misconduct.
A commission concluded that sex and alcohol were used in recruiting but found no evidence that officials knowingly sanctioned the practice.
Barnett told the Associated Press last week he expects to keep his job.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
