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CNN Live Today

President's Agenda; Music Migration

Aired February 08, 2006 - 11:30   ET

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

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush today urged governments around the world to stop the violence that has been sparked by the caricatures of Mohammed. This hour, though, the president is turning to his attention to his budget proposal. He is in Manchester, New Hampshire for a speech, and that's where we find our White House correspondent Dana Bash traveling with the president today.
Dana, good morning.

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.

And the president has a tough task for him here in New Hampshire. As you mentioned, he's going talk about the budget. But we're told that he's going to try to make the case, make the promise that this budget shows fiscal restraint. That is going to be a tough sell, especially among some anxious, even angry Republicans, and especially here in the traditionally libertarian or small government state of New Hampshire, who simply look at the number, $2.77 trillion, look at the deficit, $423 billion, and say, what is happening with our Republican representatives -- our Republican president back in Washington?

But, Daryn, as you mentioned, before coming here, before turning to the homefront, Mr. Bush was back in Washington in the Oval Office, where for the first time he dove into the controversy over the cartoon depicting the Prophet Muhammed.

There, sitting next to a Muslim leader, the king of Jordan, Mr. Bush condemned the violence.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRES. OF THE UNITED STATES: We reject violence as a way to express discontent with what may be printed in the free press. I call upon the governments around the world to stop the violence, to be respectful, to protect property, protect the lives of innocent diplomats who are serving their countries overseas.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now in that statement back in Washington, you could tell, Daryn, the president was trying to walk a very fine line, condemning the violence, of course, but then still talking about the belief in a free press, saying that with freedom comes the responsibility to be thoughtful about others.

As of last night, it was unclear in talking to Bush officials whether the president would talk about the cartoon and the riots and how far he was going to go, but it was clear the president couldn't avoid talking about it, especially given the fact that he was sitting next to King Abdullah of Jordan. It was the opportunity, perhaps, to speak with one voice that the White House didn't want to pass up -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Dana Bash, live in New Hampshire, thank you.

We'll have you listen in and we'll listen as well to what the president has to say and bring our viewers the highlights.

Thank you, Dana.

(NEWSBREAK)

KAGAN: Coming up, buffing up for the team. A lot of kids turning to steroids, and today a new initiative to protect the health of our children.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: I want to show you live pictures of something we're watching right now. In Manchester, New Hampshire, President Bush is speaking there. There we go. There's our picture. He is speaking there today, and we are monitoring it. If you would like to listen, just go to your computer, CNN.com/Pipeline. We'll have that live streaming video for you, and you can listen in, or just stay with us and we'll bring you the highlights as well.

We've been talking a lot of music today. And technology, no doubt, changing the way we listen to music. A lot of people are logging on to listen. We have got iTunes. It's approaching its billionth download. So we thought Grammy week was a time to step back and take a look at the music business.

"Wired" magazine contributing editor Jeff Howe joins us live from New York now.

Jeff, good morning.

JEFF HOWE, "WIRED" MAGAZINE: Good morning.

KAGAN: So this is really changing the way we listen to music.

HOWE: Yes. It's actually going full circle. The story right now is the return of the single, yet except instead of 45s, you're seeing MP3s.

KAGAN: MP3, and I know I've started using iTunes. I don't think I'll ever buy an album again. Why buy all those songs that you don't like?

HOWE: That's right. As a friend of mine in the industry used to say, they were always marketing single cans of Coke, but they'd only let you buy a 12 pack. So technology comes along that lets you buy the single can of Coke, what are people going do?

KAGAN: Well, what people are going do is empower the consumer. It's good for the consumer, but is it good for the music industry?

HOWE: You know, on one hand, you can say that they are finally competing with illegal downloading, although it's worth noting that illegal downloading is still rising, although much slower.

But on the other hand, the rise in digital singles, and there really has been an uptick, 150 percent last year alone, it's not great economics for the artists, or the labels or anything else. The artist will make a quarter on a digital single, whereas they would have made $2 on the CD.

KAGAN: So when we look ahead to the Grammys tonight is a category like album of the year, is that just outdated?

HOWE: No, I don't think so, but it's changed economics. The albums that are nominated for album of the year have sold three to five million units, whereas, you know, even just four or five years ago, the tenth highest selling album would have sold that. So they're selling less. What we're seeing is a fraction of interest in music.

KAGAN: And how do you see it?

HOWE: More and more -- you see more and more albums selling, say, 100,000 to 200,000 units, and fewer selling, you know, in the multi, multimillions. People are discovering bands online, through TV shows, like "The OC," and so there's more and more people listening to sort of their own niched music.

KAGAN: Just like we've seen with television. More channels, so the ratings get smart, but in the end the consumer has more power because they have more choices.

HOWE: That's right. It's a good thing for consumers.

KAGAN: So where is this going? Take us five years in the future.

HOWE: Boy, I think that's tough. I think that, you know, the horse I'm backing are smaller independent labels that are consciously structuring their business models around ringtone, around digital singles, around merchandise like T-shirts which has never -- you know, which is doing as well now as it ever has. Around getting a cut of ticket sales, which traditionally labels haven't had an interest in. I think that it's a really exciting time to be a music lover. It's a really scary time to be making money off of music.

KAGAN: Or to be trying to do that.

HOWE: Right.

KAGAN: Jeff Howe from "Wired" magazine, thank you for giving us a glimpse of today and the future.

HOWE: Thanks for having me.

KAGAN: On the our this Grammy day. And we'll take a break. We are back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Let's get to our "Daily Dose" of health news. Patient advocates are calling on doctors and insurers to get serious about depression. Research out just this morning says the medical community's approach to mental illness remains reactive and crisis- oriented.

The group Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance called today for preventative, proactive treatment. They say the public needs to wake up and see depression for what it really is, a serious illness, just like heart disease or cancer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PROF. ELLEN FRANK, UNIV. OF PITTSBURGH SCHOOL OF MED.: The state of depression in America is a national disgrace, the consequences of which are measured not just in disability and dollars, but in pain, anguish and unnecessary death. Let's be clear about this. The depression we are talking about here today is not just the blues. It is a serious illness that can be fatal if not treated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: The study estimates that depression costs the U.S. economy $83 billion each year.

"Sports Illustrated" is teaming up with government leaders in an effort to prevent steroid use among high school athletes. The magazine, we should tell you, is owned by CNN's parent company Time Warner. They had a news conference with its initiative that is scheduled in the next hour.

Our Dan Lothian examines what tempts young athletes to take steroids and also the possible deadly consequences.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was the boost 17-year-old Taylor Hooten of Plano, Texas, thought he needed in order to take his baseball skills to the varsity level.

DON HOOTEN, FATHER: Taylor was on the starting lineup in his junior year.

LOTHIAN: He says his son started taking steroids, just like nine other student athletes at this competing high school have admitted doing.

HOOTEN: I've had the kids in our area, in Plano, tell me that at least a third of the young men that are showing up on Friday night to play football are juicing.

LOTHIAN: Sports medicine experts like Dr. Lyle Micheli of Children's Hospital in Boston say steroid users are getting younger and younger because of increasing pressures.

DR. LYLE MICHELI, CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL, BOSTON: Some of these kids are not in a position to draw the line. They just will do whatever it takes, they think, to compete.

LOTHIAN: Earlier this month in Madison, Connecticut, six athletes from Daniel Hand High School were charged with possessing steroids. One is accused of selling the pills, bought, police say, while on a family trip to Mexico. An alert teacher turned them in.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She was paying close attention to both the actions and the words of the students.

LOTHIAN: Other school districts are now responding aggressively to this problem. But CNN found teens who aren't deterred by threats or harmful consequences.

(on camera): And where better to find out what teens are saying about steroid use than on the Internet? Chat rooms drowning with dialogue, some of it graphic, from young men who say they're 15, 16, 17 years old, and they're upset with building the perfect body. Like this one, who says he's willing to try almost anything.

(voice-over): One complains of the bad job he did injecting himself. Another describes how he bled more than usual. This one brags about the attention he's getting from girls impressed with his new overnight physique. And a complaint from one about his bad acne, a result of juicing.

Acne, doctors say, is just one of the milder side effects, which can range from mood swings to liver problems to growth issues.

MICHELI: For kids taking this, say, in middle school, when you're still growing, they may lose growth in the process.

LOTHIAN: But back in cyberspace, where teens often obtain steroids, this apparent adult sings the praises of juicing, saying concerns are overblown.

Tell that to the father of Taylor Hooten. The Texas 17-year-old committed suicide in 2003. His family blames depression linked to steroid withdrawal.

Some of America's young athletes redefining the meaning of the phrase no pain, no gain.

Dan Lothian, CNN, Boston.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAGAN: And CNN will have much more on the "Sports Illustrated" initiative during LIVE FROM. That begins at 1:00 p.m. Eastern.

A huge government study on reducing fat in the diet has produced, actually, some disappointing results. The study involved nearly 50,000 mostly overweight, post-menopausal women. Researchers compared women who reduced fat in their diet to those who didn't. After eight years, there was very little difference in rates of cancer and heart disease.

Scientists say the women may have changed their diets too late in life to make a difference, and they point out that there was no distinction made between the so-called good fats and bad fats.

For your daily dose of health news online, log on to our Web site. You'll find the latest medical stories, special reports and a health library. The address, CNN.com/health.

We're going to check in on weather and business and other news just ahead.

And what are your plans for today? I'll bet it won't compare to this group. They're flying by the seat of their pants and we really mean they are flying by the seat of their pants.

We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: President Bush is speaking in Manchester, New Hampshire, today. Let's listen in for a bit.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

BUSH: ... you're uncertain as to what the tax code is going allow you to do. Congress has got to understand that the CEOs of companies that are investing to make our life better can't make sound decisions with uncertainty in the tax code, and so they've got to make the research and development tax credit permanent.

And so there are some ways to make sure that we remain competitive, and I'm going on work with members of Congress to make sure we get these initiatives passed.

Today I want to focus on the budget strategy. We're on our way to cutting our deficit in half by 2009. And I'm going to give you some ideas as to how we can do that. The budget strategy has three parts. The first part is to promote economic growth by keeping taxes low.

(APPLAUSE)

The second part is to restraint spending.

And the third part is to insist that federal programs produce results. And that may sound odd to you. But I'm going to tell you how we have an interesting idea as to how to promote results-oriented programs in Washington D.C.

First, we're going keep the taxes low to make sure the economy grows. My philosophy is this, when Americans are allowed to keep more of their own money to spend, and save and invest that helps the economy grow. And when the economy grows, people can find work. If entrepreneurs have more money in their pocket, they're going use it to expand their businesses, which means somebody is more likely to find work. If consumers have more money in their pocket, they are likely to demand additional goods and services. And in a marketplace economy when someone demands a good or service, somebody meets that demand with product or the service. And when that demand is met, it means somebody is more likely to find work.

Cutting taxes means jobs for the American people. We're confident...

KAGAN: We've been listening in to President Bush. He's speaking in Manchester, New Hampshire, talking about his budget proposal that was made public earlier this week. The president pushing lower taxes, restrained spending and what he says are results-oriented programs with federal programs.

Critics say too much is being spent on the military and not enough on the poor.

Speaking of money, let's check in on the markets. Before I do that I want to tell you if you would like to keep listening to President Bush, just go to CNN.com/pipeline and you will have live continuing streaming there.

(MARKET REPORT)

(WEATHER REPORT)

KAGAN: Four-hundred sky divers, five airplanes, 83 seconds to the ground. A group of daredevils say they set a world record today. All 400 linked hands during a freefall over Thailand. Only a few seconds, but we'll take it. Look at that formation. The stunt honors the Thai king's 60th anniversary on the thrown. Congratulations to the king, and congratulations to all the skydivers that made it safely to the ground.

I'm Daryn Kagan. International news is up next. Stay tuned for YOUR WORLD TODAY, and then I'll be back with your latest headlines from the U.S. in about 20 minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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