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CNN Saturday Morning News

Penn State Prepares for First Game Without Paterno; Reaction to Penn State Scandal From Obama; Interview With Penn State Student Paper Editor Dave Cole; Kidnapped Baseball Player Rescued; Japanese Veterans Reflect on World War II; Getting Kids Interested in Math and Science; Getting Young People Interested in Tech; President Launches Asia Pacific Tour; Exam Tension Hits Fever Pitch; The Future of Firefighting; African-Americans Take on Silicon Valley

Aired November 12, 2011 - 08:00   ET

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

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Good Saturday morning to you all.

We are going to see something in a few hours that we haven't seen in 46 years. Penn State will play a football game without Joe Paterno as head coach after a week of alleged sex abuse really shocked the country, shocked the campus. Everybody is weighing in today -- students, alumni, parents, even President Obama. We'll let you hear what they all had to say.

And a Major League Baseball player pulled from his home in the middle of the night by armed men, but now we're told he's been found alive and safe.

And have you ever seen kids this excited about taking a test? Not just any test. We're talking about the ACT or the SAT equivalent. An entire country shuts down to do everything they can to help these students ace the tests. We're taking you to South Korea this morning in our "Passport."

Let's start this morning on the campus of Penn State University. You remember, it was just a couple of days ago, thousands of students were getting together on the campus and they were rioting. Well, last night, thousands of students got together at State College, Pennsylvania, for this, a candlelight vigil to support the victims of the sexual abuse scandal.

Now, this is the same place, the same spot, where this vigil is taking place, is exactly where students were rioting in support of fired football coach Joe Paterno. Again, that was just a couple of days ago.

Penn State's new president says he will appoint an ethics officer that will report directly to him. Rodney Ericson (ph) is now the interim president. He replaced Grant Spanier who was fired this week for his handling of the scandal.

Also assistant football coach Mike McQueary (ph) is now on administrative leave. He is the one who reported seeing the alleged sexual abuse incident. He reported it to Paterno back in 2002. The school saying now that McQueary has received multiple threats. Also, Jerry Sandusky, the former coach at the center of this scandal, someone threw a couple of cinder blocks through this bedroom window. Sandusky still lives in State College. He wasn't at home at the time.

Back on campus, though, the game will go on. Penn State playing Nebraska at noon today. It's the Nittany Lions' final home game. Students are being encouraged to stage a blue-out which Mike Galanos will explain a little more of that to us now.

Good morning to you once again, Mike.

MIKE GALANOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, T.J.

beautiful morning here in State College. You can hear the sights, sounds of college football. The band's warming up behind me. You begin to get ready for a game, but it's different. It's not business as usual.

And you mentioned one thing that going to be different. It's going to be a blue-out for the students. Number one, the color blue represents child abuse awareness because the color blue can often be the color of neglected bruises of those children.

And that's the color we saw last night. You talked a little bit about that candle vigil that we had a chance to attend. It was solemn. It was really a beautiful experience to be a part of. Thousands of students there lighting the candles because they wanted to change the message. The message coming from Penn State a few nights before was mayhem in the streets. The message last night, let's put the victims first and all begin to heal.

Let's listen to that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JESSICA GOLD, PENN STATE STUDENT: It's so important to put the victims first. I think they've gotten really lost in all of this. All the media attention has been focused on Sandusky and the university and our reactions and it should be focused on helping these victims and stopping this from happening again.

PATRICK JOHNSON, PENN STATE STUDENT: This wasn't about Joe Paterno. This wasn't about Spanier. This was about anything going with them. This was about the victims and us trying to help raise awareness of what we're doing, how we're feeling right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GALANOS: And that's the change of perspective, really, T.J. that's gone on. Victims first. They came together last night, many students, thousands of students now. The focus turns to the game and we'll see what kind of atmosphere it is. I don't think anybody can really predict right now.

HOLMES: Mike Galanos for us on campus, thank you so much. We'll be checking in. He'll be reporting throughout the day. Four minutes past the hour now.

Here's what Scott Paterno, son of Joe Paterno, is saying now on his father's behalf. We got this statement late yesterday. It says quote, "Like everyone who has watched this story unfold, my father is experiencing a range of powerful emotions. He is absolutely distraught over what happened to the children and their families."

He goes on to say, "He also wants very much to speak publicly and answer questions at this stage, however, he has no choice but to be patient and defer to the legal process," end quote.

Scott Paterno added that his father will cooperate with the grand jury's investigation and that his father has retained an attorney. The lawyer is advising the Paternos not to make any more public comments.

A lot of people are talking about this case. Last night on "AC 360" the psychologist who is treating one alleged victim spoke about his client's state of mind. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL GILLUM, PSYCHOLOGIST: Obviously, any individual that sustained this kind of abuse, they typically suffer from anxiety, depression. There are a lot of concerns. It's very humiliating to have to not only experience this, but then to, you know, have to discuss it with law enforcement. It's difficult, then, to be fearful or live in fear that others may determine who you are, your identity and they may or may not approach you about it.

Again, very awkward, very embarrassing, for the individual. Even though he's a hero, it's not necessarily something that everyone understands or appreciates.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Yesterday on "Good Morning America," the mother of the boy identified by a grand jury as victim number one says her son didn't know how to handle Sandusky's alleged sexual advances. Sandusky attorney says his client is innocent.

President Obama weighing in on this abuse scandal as well. The president was attending the carrier classic last night. You may have seen this college basketball game that took place on the SS Carl Vinson on an aircraft carrier. He was asked about it by an ESPN reporter.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Obviously the whole situation is heartbreaking and we think first and foremost of the victims of these alleged crimes. But I think it's a good time for us to do some soul searching; every institution, not just Penn State, about what our priorities are and making sure that we understand that our first priority is protecting our kids. And you know, we all have a responsibility. We can't leave it to a system. We can't leave it to somebody else. Each of us have to take it upon ourselves to make sure that our kids have the love and support and protection that they deserve.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: President then went on to fly to Hawaii after the game. He's there hosting the APEC summit, Asia-Pacific nations attending. We'll have a live report from Hawaii coming your way at the bottom of the hour.

Also, reaction to the Penn State story, former Dallas Cowboys head coach and ex-Oklahoma Sooners head coach Barry Switzer, talking to "The Oklahoman," the newspaper, about the Penn State scandal.

Listen to what he had to say. He said quote, "Having been in this profession a long time and knowing how close coaching staffs are, I knew that this was a secret that was kept secret. Everyone on that staff had to have known, the ones that had been around a long time. There are more people culpable than Joe Paterno and the athletic director. There are so many other people that have thought I could have done something about this, too, that didn't come forward. That's the tragedy of it all," end quote.

More from Penn State and the campus in a few minutes. Talking to the editor of the school paper there about this scandal. He's joining me in just a few minutes from now.

Eight minutes past the hour, and a Major League Baseball player kidnapped in Venezuela has now been rescued. "The New York Times" reports that security forces swept in by air to rescue Wilson Ramos from a mountainous region. Ramos, who plays with the Washington Nationals was taken from his home by armed men on Wednesday. A Venezuelan official says President Hugo Chavez himself gave the go- ahead for the rescue mission. The kidnappers never made ransom demands and have not been found.

Let us say good morning to our Reynolds Wolf. That's a very weird story, people hear that a major league player kidnapped but it's not out of the ordinary for this to happen in Venezuela.

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Not at all. Thank heavens he's all right and what a terrifying prospect. No question about it. Speaking of scary stuff, people driving along parts of Interstate 80 may have a really tough time today, especially I-70, you might have a tough drive making the drive from Denver going over the (INAUDIBLE) into the central Rockies. The reason why it's going to be frightening, heavy snowfall. Highest elevations may see three to four feet of snow, coupled with that some very strong winds, tropical storm force winds, T.J., with some gusts approaching 60 miles an hour. We're going to talk about that coming up.

HOLMES: All right Reynolds, thank you. We'll see Reynolds plenty throughout this morning. After the break, though -- a quick break -- we're going to go back to Penn State talking to a student there, someone who works with the school newspaper, editor of the paper. This is not just another football game today. It's the end of one era and maybe marking the beginning of a new chapter at Penn State. The student joins me next. Stay with me.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: We're 10 minutes past the hour and we're going to head back to Penn State. It's game day. Today was a big game, Penn State, eight and one on the year, going up against Nebraska. But now people are going to be paying attention to this game for a lot of the wrong reasons. You know, about the attention that's been brought to the campus now after this child abuse scandal broke.

Well, one Penn State student who's also the editor of the school paper, Dave Cole, joins me now from State College.

Appreciate you taking time. I know it's been a tough week for all of you all. I was talking to one of our reporters there a short time ago and what to expect today. He said, we really don't know and the students don't either.

What do you expect to happen today at this game?

DAVE COLE, EDITOR, "ONWARD STATE": Well, thanks for having me, T.J.

Definitely it's a tough, a tough time, and I think that, you know, the one certainty here is that we don't know what to expect and I think that's been true all week long. From rioting to phenomenal event last night with the candlelight vigil and I think I hope for the best. I think that tonight perhaps we can see at least the first semblance of a silver lining with this whole incident. Perhaps maybe we can have donations put forth to victims and charities that represent abused victims. I think that's a very, very important thing that can come out of this tragedy. I really do.

HOLMES: Dave, did you -- I'll ask you personally, maybe some of your friends in your circles, were you all embarrassed by this episode and how some students behaved after Joe Paterno was fired and the rioting you saw two days ago?

COLE: Well, certainly, T.J. There's no question that people were frustrated and people are angry. And I think that how you respond from a tragedy says a lot about you, and I think that is why a lot of us, a certain majority of Penn State and the definitely those in the national media, were very disappointed. And I would argue critical of the response that many, a few Penn State students demonstrated on Wednesday night with the rioting. It was just absolutely destructive.

HOLMES: Would you say for sure -- we haven't seen that kind of rioting and violence, certainly a beautiful showing last night with the vigil, but around campus, have you seen really that anger start to subside a bit? COLE: Well, I think that people want to move on. I think that you're seeing a lot of individuals who have this sort of initial response of very -- of sheer frustration and anger towards the administration and in large part towards the national media and I think that some of it represents a disappointment in people that they feel that they were surprised and caught off guard before information was out there and I think that individuals are looking to move forward.

That's just really what I've heard from a lot of people. I want to put this behind me. I want to move on with my semester. I want my senior year. I want my junior year. I want my sophomore year to move forward and I think those are the sentiments of a lot of people.

HOLMES: You talk about this anger. We're showing some of the pictures I believe that you took here, what's been happening on campus, but how much of the anger, maybe even your own personal anger and other students, has been directed at Joe Paterno?

COLE: Well, interestingly, I think that Paterno obviously is a titan. He's an icon. I know personally I have a bit of a bias due to the fact that I grew up down the street from Joe Paterno and he meant so much to me as a child growing up and I looked up to him and I think that students are -- are frustrated and just so saddened by seeing an icon, in any way, being involved with the situation.

I think people agree and disagree as to his involvement and whether he should have been fired, but I think everybody is universally across the board, everyone is really just saddened by the fact that he's been involved in this case. I think it's just disappointing to everyone.

HOLMES: I'll wrap on your personal feelings, then. You grew up, like you said, down the street from him. He's an icon. Do you think he should have been fired?

COLE: I -- again, you know, Joe Paterno is -- is State College. He is an icon, a titan and I think that, you know, in this whole matter, I was just so saddened to see the national media and newspaper - if you pick up a newspaper across the country, Joe Paterno's face was on it, even after -- even from Sunday on, when, really, Jerry Sandusky is the one responsible and others who failed to do their job, and I'm not saying Paterno didn't have a role in this.

But I think that at the board of trustees said that Paterno, there needed to be more facts to come forward about Paterno before they made a decision, before they made a decision about the case and then firing Joe Paterno.

And I think we were all shocked, absolutely shocked to see that happen, at least so soon, maybe four days after these allegations first came out, and I think there was a sense of shock and personally I -- I love Joe Paterno and I looked up to him my entire life and I'm saddened by what happened. Whether I felt he should have been fired, I don't believe he should have been fired yet. That's my belief.

HOLMES: All right. Dave, I know it's been a tough time, a tough week for all of you. All of the attention you all have gotten, but, still, as you all say, we are Penn State, and maybe this is an opportunity a lot of people are going to be watching you today. Sounds like you all are trying to put on really a nice display for child abuse victims and really starting to move forward at Penn State.

So good luck to you, the entire student body, and we will all be watching today. Thanks so much, Dave.

COLE: Thank you, T.J.

HOLMES: All right. Much more reaction from the Penn State campus coming up at the top of the hour.

We're at 17 minutes past the hour now. Coming up, we're going to be joined by our Mario Armstrong. He's going to tell us what is going on and what it's going to take to prepare students to be the next Steve Jobs.

Before we get to that, bring you some images from a world at war. He served in World War II. Watch this. His brother's plane came down in a ball of fire, but there's a twist to this tale.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Eighteen minutes past the hour now. He is one of seven brothers. They all served in the military. But get this, not all of them wore the same colored uniform. That is today's "Veterans in Focus."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DON OKA, WORLD WAR II VETERAN: To me, memory (INAUDIBLE) when I was a soldier in World War II, all of us served. There were seven brothers, seven soldiers. Five of us from the United States and two against us, because they were stranded in Japan when the war came. They're all American citizens born here in the United States. World War II I served and took basic infantry training. When the (INAUDIBLE) came, I was training to go (INAUDIBLE) It was a Japanese language school.

We were language specialists. We would translate, interpret and interrogate the prisoners. Often I drew a cartoon to make people laugh. These cartoons are drawn on a young soldier in there. It was about me. The island, I landed in 1944 and our job was to take care of the civilian captives, the thousands of Japanese and also Koreans. This is my younger brother, served in Japanese military, came to the (INAUDIBLE) islands when I was serving there.

I saw the plane, but I didn't know it was him until after the war was all over. He died in the bombing of (INAUDIBLE) island, Christmas Eve 1944. Even today I sometimes think about it, and what a waste. I wish he were alive. (INAUDIBLE) another brother just called to do the job, and we did it. Veterans Day is important to me because that's the date to celebrate what we have accomplished.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: We'll be seeing more stories of service, struggle and success of our men and women in military. Join us for a special "VETERANS IN FOCUS" today, 2:30 Eastern time right here on CNN.

And up next, our tech guru Mario Armstrong talking about how to prepare young students to be the next Steve Jobs. And my parents did not prepare me, man.

Also, a little later this morning -- I'm sure you did this, too, when you were a kid, right before you took a test! Yes, students cheering before they took a college entrance exam. What in the world is this about?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WOLF: The nerve of some --

HOLMES: The nerve of who?

WOLF: Unbelievable.

HOLMES: We just found out, one of our crew is going to be leaving us soon, but she just got here. She got promoted already. She's been here since June, got promoted already.

WOLF: I bet she just doesn't like working with you. I know I don't. I think that's part of what it is.

HOLMES: Why haven't you been able to get off this shift?

WOLF: I've been trying so hard. I'm just teasing. Congratulations to our dear friend. That's great. Moving on, moving up. That's good stuff.

HOLMES: All right. What are you moving on up to now?

WOLF: How about a massive winter storm with winds that are going to be the equivalent or actually stronger -- equivalent, tropical storm force winds (INAUDIBLE) could be topping 60 miles an hour with a lot of snow, maybe one to two feet, the highest elevations up to four feet in some places.

HOLMES: Any travel problems today?

(WEATHER REPORT)

HOLMES: Reynolds, thank you, kind sir. We'll see Reynolds plenty throughout the morning.

We're getting close to the bottom of the hour now. Tonight at 8:00 CNN Eastern time, CNN presents a black in America special "THE NEW PROMISED LAND: SILICON VALLEY." Soledad O'Brien will introduce us to eight entrepreneurs who followed their dreams in Silicon Valley and a big challenge for America is to find the next Steve Jobs.

The big part of that is getting kids excited about classes and careers in science and technology. Good luck with that, Mario. Our digital lifestyle expert, Mario Armstrong.

It's hard to get them into this stuff.

MARIO ARMSTRONG, CNN DIGITAL LIFESTYLE EXPERT: It's easier than people think. I think what's going on is, we're pushing so many of our kids into technology. Get it, get it, get it. Do science, do math.

And kids don't understand the connection. They're not relating to the relevancy of why. What I'm saying to teachers and adults and caregivers across the country on these tours when meeting with kids, is push their passions.

What you want to do is really, sit back, identify the kid's passion and then find the science and the technology that's in that passion and you will find kids more interested in learning the science of passion.

HOLMES: Give me example. A kid has a passion for what astronomy or for music or -- how do you do that?

ARMSTRONG: That's right, so, OK music would be a great one. A lot of kids maybe want to be musicians or create music. Well that opens up a discussion for sound engineering. It's OK for you to just create music, but what's it like to actually know the science behind the sound of music? What if you want to score a film? What if you want to be able to create music for a video game? Those are real jobs with real salaries that involve technology backgrounds.

But what if you were into sports? You could look at the first down yellow marker in football. Instead of having a conversation with a kid saying, let's talk about augmented reality, you talk about the sport of football and say you know that first down marker? Yes. That's technology. Let's talk about that technology and now had actually works and then you have a kid interested in that discussion.

HOLMES: Actually, how does that thing work, Mario? I'll ask you about that later. But do we need and we know to a certain extent kids are attracted to stars. Big named celebrities sometimes, but were you know this from sports and movies and entertainment. So star technology, we can put up Mario Armstrong and this is the guy you can be. But other than you --

ARMSTRONG: Yes. I'm not the star. Really the people that are behind the scenes people that aren't on the camera. So people like Jerome Solomon. This guy is a phenomenal star. He works for Lucas Arts. He's been an animator, programmer, designer, all involved in the transformers movie. So that's huge.

You have people like Clarence Wooten (ph). Clarence Wooten is a serial entrepreneur. This is a guy who built a company back before the dotcom bust, sold it for close to $30 million and has now launched two more companies where he's hiring people and so our kids need to know that these role models exist. We can start shaping who they really look up to as future stars.

HOLMES: And what -- what is this you got going on with the "Black in America" special tomorrow?

ARMSTRONG: Yes so tomorrow, this is big, T.J.

HOLMES: Yes.

ARMSTRONG: So tomorrow we are doing a live screening at -- a live broadcast viewing party at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. So if you live in the Maryland, D.C., Baltimore area, we want you all to come out.

But if you don't, we are webcasting a live panel discussion online. We're talking a three-camera shoot. I have like five panelists. This is going to be a star-studded town hall with people that are successful minority technologists and venture capitalists and investors; all in one panel to share information with you on how you can move your dreams, your ideas forward in today's 21st economy, to be the next Steve Jobs.

HOLMES: Good stuff.

ARMSTRONG: So -- they've got to go to the Web site man, MarioArmstrong.com. I really appreciate that, T.J. because this is big information; we're doing it free because we just want to get it out to the people.

HOLMES: Good stuff Mario.

ARMSTRONG: MarioArmstrong.com.

HOLMES: MarioArmstrong.com. Mario we always appreciate you. And our viewers know you can catch Mario right here every Saturday.

ARMSTRONG: Thanks T.J.

HOLMES: And gives us the very latest in technology and also news you can use and certainly the thing you just talked about today you can be a part in -- MarioArmstrong.com.

Well were at the bottom of the hour now. Up next, the President is in Hawaii. We'll tell you what this trip actually could mean, though, for jobs, trade, as well as the economy.

Also husbands, you know, we screw up often. Ok? Well, we try to -- we try to make up for it. One Florida man, he takes us to a whole new level. He takes it to a local landfill. We'll explain a costly mistake he made and his crazy solution. That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: We are just past the bottom of the hour on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING. Welcome back, everybody. I'm T.J. Holmes. Thank you for spending part of your day here with us.

So the President is starting off a nine-day trip through the Asian- Pacific region. The tour comes at a key moment for the U.S. economy. The President is in Hawaii right now, his birthplace, of course. He's home, but this is not exactly a vacation. He is going to be talking trade, expanding U.S. exports. This is the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit or APEC. The President hosting world leaders.

Dan Lothian is there in Honolulu this morning. And Dan, good morning, and you know, viewers, Americans, have become numb sometimes to these summits.

DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

HOLMES: They see these picture, world leaders' meeting. What can we expect to get out of it? Usually not much?

LOTHIAN: Well, you know, that's right. I mean, I think that you have the world leaders get together. You're expecting magic to happen, but it's not that. It's usually the beginning of a long process where you have these discussions, face-to-face discussions and then it blossoms into a relationship, at least that's what the U.S. is hoping.

You know, especially in the wake of what we've been seeing happening in the Euro Zone, the problems in Greece, the problems in Italy, and so what the U.S. government and certainly U.S. corporations want is for increased trade with a region that has been doing quite well. There's a lot of opportunity that the U.S. sees in these various Asian countries. And so that's what they're hoping to develop here.

Hopefully it will lead to increased trade. So the President will also be having some of these sideline meetings with the leaders of China, Russia, and also Japan.

And in addition the President will be sitting down with some of the top CEOs from companies like Caterpillar and Boeing. Again, talking about how can the U.S. benefit from some of the opportunities that lie in the Asia-Pacific region?

HOLMES: And he is just getting started. This is just stop number one. I guess you could call San Diego yesterday for the game was stop number one.

LOTHIAN: Right.

HOLMES: But still the President -- the APEC summit is just the beginning.

LOTHIAN: That's right. This is just the beginning. From here the President will also be going to Australia and then to Indonesia again where the talk will continue to be on the economy. But one other thing, if I can take a little turn back before the President came here as you pointed out, he was in San Diego. He was attending the Carrier Classic, and that's where we heard for the first time the President weigh in on the controversy at the Penn State.

Take a listen of what the President said during an interview on ESPN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: Obviously the whole situation is heartbreaking and we think first and foremost of the victims of these alleged crimes. But I think it's a good time for us to do some soul searching; every institution, not just Penn State, about what our priorities are and making sure that we understand that our first priority is protecting our kids.

And you know, we all have a responsibility. We can't leave it to a system. We can't leave it to somebody else. Each of us have to take it upon ourselves to make sure that our kids have the love and support and protection that they deserve.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LOTHIAN: Of course, the President was there marking Veterans Day. An important period, the President says, to salute all those who have sacrificed for their country, but the President also laying out what he and his administration are doing in order to make sure that these veterans, these troops who return from overseas are able to find jobs -- T.J.

HOLMES: All right. Dan Lothian for us, in Honolulu with the ocean and the waves, providing the background.

LOTHIAN: That's right but you can't see it.

HOLMES: I can't see it.

LOTHIAN: Yes, it's beautiful. In a few hours.

HOLMES: But we hear it. Oh my goodness. All right, Dan Lothian, always good to see you. Thanks so much.

Now we're at 38 minutes past the hour now. I'm going to turn to Herman Cain and Anita Hill? Herman Cain is refusing to respond to questions about something he said about Anita Hill. It happened at a campaign event in Michigan. Hill's sexual harassment allegations against then Supreme Court Clarence Thomas in '91 made national headlines as you may remember.

But listen to Herman Cain and his comments about Anita Hill.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you hear the latest news today? Anita Hill is going to come out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is she going to endorse me?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Well, Cain's stumbles have opened up the race for the Republican presidential nomination.

And our Paul Steinhauser now reports there's no clear-cut leader in the Iowa caucuses, not too far away.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Hey good morning, T.J. You know with just over seven weeks to go until first votes in the primary caucus season new polls indicate there is a crowd at the top of the field.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It is a wide open race.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STEINHAUSER: And Newt Gingrich you know he has a point. Check out the new survey from McClatchy/Marist. The former House Speaker is just four points behind Mitt Romney in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. But when you take into the account the survey sampling error guess what, Gingrich, and the former Massachusetts Governor are basically all tied.

And a new CBS polls indicates a three-way battle for the top spot between businessman Herman Cain, Gingrich and Romney.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There's this funny thing about democracy which is you have competition. It might be easier for me if I didn't but I -- I do have competition, and I will face other people who will do well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STEINHAUSER: Another takeaway from both polls, Republicans haven't made up their minds. Nearly one-fifth of them in each survey say they are still undecided when it comes to which candidate they're backing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GINGRICH: I think that the American people are looking, asking questions, thinking about it. And I think it will stay wide open, you know, until January.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STEINHAUSER: While Cain is right up there at the top, if you dig deeper, the polls indicate the sexual harassment allegations he's facing and denying may be starting to hurt as his support among Republican women appears to be dropping.

Tonight, all the major candidates face-off on the same stage in a debate in South Carolina, the focus is foreign policy and national security. The candidates will tangle again in a week and a half at a CNN debate right here in Washington -- T.J.

HOLMES: All right. Thanks there to our Paul Steinhauser. Herman Cain is speaking here in Atlanta today at a young Republicans event. We'll bring you some of that live when it starts that's in our 10:00 Eastern hour. Also, take a look at this. Something you do not see every day, or any day for the most part; students cheering, singing, happy, right before they take a college entrance exam, one of the most important days of their young lives. And it's in our "Morning Passport". That is next.

Stay with me.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Well, about 16 minutes until the top of the hour.

Nadia Bilchik again for our "Morning Passport". You just don't see this in the United States, do you?

NADIA BILCHIK, CNN EDITORIAL PRODUCER: No. Around 700,000 South Korean students took their CSAT which is their College Scholastic Aptitude Test.

HOLMES: But they're excited about it. Look at this, see this?

BILCHIK: Well, they're excited, they are nervous, they are supportive of each other because this is such a big deal, T.J. So much depends on the results they get from this test. You're even seeing a police escort there. There's a special number you could call if you thought you were running late, a 911 number to get a police escort.

HOLMES: Wow.

BILCHIK: Ant there are the concerned parents. The parents and other friends who are cheering them on, because the results of this test depends on will you get into the college of your choice? Now there's three main colleges you want to get into: Seoul National, Korean Uni and Yonsei which spells the acronym SKY.

HOLMES: Now why those three? Why are those --

(CROSSTALK)

BILCHIK: Why those three because they are the Ivy Leagues of South Korea.

HOLMES: Yes.

BILCHIK: But the test here takes around eight hours.

HOLMES: Wow.

BILCHIK: The SAT in America is around four. Three hours, 45 minutes. Jets are even grounded during this time so there isn't additional noise and distraction. There's urge to say no honking of horns. Parents even say special prayers at meetings; they go to temples with pictures of their children.

Even the stock exchange open -- will open later and end earlier. So it can facilitate this exam and there are even good luck rituals. Rituals like they'll -- children will eat sticky rice cakes so that the knowledge sticks. Parents won't give them porridge because porridge is considered to mix together and they don't want a muddled brain.

But there's a lot of pressure, T.J.

HOLMES: Yes that is a lot.

BILCHIK: Can you imagine? In around 2009, they say there was something like 200 suicides; in 2010, around 150. So much additional tutoring takes place, that parents spend around $200,000 on additional tutoring that the current administration has said no classes after 10:00 p.m. Children need to rest.

HOLMES: You told me earlier, literally, their whole live are depending on this? Not just school --

BILCHIK: So much depends on this test. What university? Who you marry?

HOLMES: Who you marry.

BILCHIK: Can you imagine that? Also, again, what job you're going to get? The pay scale. And it's a society grounded in Confucianism, which means that your social status is dependent on your level of academic achievement.

HOLMES: Wow.

BILCHIK: So a lot of pressure. And I know Sanjay Gupta did something early on creativity. The question is does this lend itself to creativity?

HOLMES: But you know some of the results, I mean, some of the negative results, of course, the suicides and the pressure, but 80 percent of the kids in that country go on to college.

BILCHIK: Yes, but will they be the next Steve Jobs that comes from South Korea is the question?

HOLMES: Nadia Bilchik with our "Morning Passport". Thank you, as always.

We're about a quarter of the top of the hour now. And using science fiction now to fight fires: heat vision masks that will help firefighters see the world in an entirely different way.

Stay with us on this CNN SATURDAY MORNING.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Well, as we get close to the bottom of the hour, I want to share with you now a new way to help firefighters do their job. It's called the bionic vision.

Our Reynolds Wolf out once again, doing some reporting for us takes a look in today's "Start Small, Think Big" story. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WOLF (voice-over): Raging flames. Rooms full of smoke, working conditions of firefighters.

CAPT. STEVEN FLOYD, SAVANNAH FIRE DEPARTMENT: You can't see anything. You can only hear things but it's still very confusing. Complete blackout.

WOLF: It's hazardous situations like this that they train for.

(on camera): But perhaps the thing that could really make a tremendous difference in the life and safety of the firefighter is the equipment they use. And that's especially true when we're talking about the masks that firefighters use. But thanks to some new technology, firefighters are going to be able to see the world in an entirely new way.

(voice-over): This new high-tech mask gives first responders data about their surroundings. It's a vision of the future. Inventor Joseph Juhnke is trying to finally bring it to life.

JOSEPH JUHNKE, TANAGRAMS PARTNERS: I didn't see it. A whole bunch of great authors saw it. Science fiction authors are fabulous in that they have to -- they get to make this stuff up and we get to make it happen.

WOLF: Giving firefighters information everywhere they look.

JUHNKE: Our job was really to kind of give them back their senses. All they have to do is put it on and display.

WOLF: Firefighters will be able to see oxygen levels, temperatures and exit paths. It will even allow them to see what's happening with the rest of their team.

(on camera): This new technology, a total difference maker?

FLOYD: Absolutely. To be able to see and then be able to also not only see where I'm at but to communicate with my team members, that's a big relief.

WOLF (voice-over): Technology that could be just the beginning.

Reynolds Wolf, CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Ok. We're going to do this now but we have another segment. We have to get to the people.

WOLF: It's a segment in the making. It's something that truly organic. It just popped up here on the floor. It's good stuff.

HOLMES: Yes. How about women taking their husband's last name? It's going to be a good one later. But did you see -- have you been watching the Australian open or at least keeping up with what was happening?

WOLF: No. That makes us fine. Go right ahead with it.

HOLMES: Tiger Woods, we thought this was the comeback. But here we are talking about another setback. He was actually leading after the first two rounds of the Australian Open and then he bogeyed three holes. He dropped down to eighth place. Seven strokes behind the leader.

Again, he's still getting himself ready after injury and after scandal and after a lot of stuff, but he looked good there for a couple of rounds, but he ended up falling off (INAUDIBLE).

WOLF: Little glimpses of who he used to be.

HOLMES: Yes.

WOLF: Speaking of golf, golf is a long career. Look how long Arnold Palmer played.

HOLMES: Actually swinging all the way into his 70s. That's a long time.

Some of the NBA stars might be in their 70s before the league gets up and playing again. We're still standing by for the possibility of a season. They're looking at a possibility of a 72-game season that would start December 15th.

The commissioner has put a deal on the table, but the players have not taken it. Both sides still deadlocked over splitting revenue; players' union meeting against on Monday or Tuesday to consider the offer that the league has on the table.

Also the other -- basketball is being played on the college level, on an aircraft carrier.

WOLF: It's amazing.

HOLMES: I heard the idea. I thought it was cool. This was months and months ago. But then to see it in practice yesterday was awesome. This is USS Carl Vinson.

The Carl Vinson, you may remember, played a role, the same ship that buried bin Laden's body at sea now hosting the most storied programs in the country for a basketball game.

WOLF: I don't care who you are, this is just one of those kind of factors, great for the troops more than anyone else, to show appreciation for their efforts. You know less than one percent of the United States population serves in the Armed Forces. It is a completely volunteer force. And to see them out there, to see them get this kind of honor is amazing.

HOLMES: All right. Well, in a little bit, I know a lot of you all have your thoughts on football today. Reynolds is going to have the forecast, let us know if weather is going to be an issue for any of those games today. He'll have that for us in just a bit.

Reynolds, thank you buddy. We will see you again here shortly.

WOLF: Ok, man.

HOLMES: What would you do, what would you do, folks -- what would you do if you made a $10,000 mistake? We've all made mistakes. But a $10,000 mistake? One man certainly did that but he's going out of his way now digging through tons of trash to try to correct that mistake. Ah, the things men do.

Stay with me.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

Well, Silicon Valley, the Promised Land for tech entrepreneurs, but minorities often have trouble even getting a foot in the door. CNN's special correspondent Soledad O'Brien showed us how African-Americans are working hard to close that gap.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NAVARROW WRIGHT, CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER, INTERACTIVE ONE: UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So right now all you should be thinking about is how do I execute on my idea?

SOLEDAD O'BRIEN, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One week after the Google event, the entrepreneurs have dinner with one of their mentors, Navarrow Wright, the chief technology officer for the Internet company, Interactive One. Navarrow was also one of the four dragons during the Google event.

(on camera): What was your take? Describe for me at the moment.

WRIGHT: I said to myself that they weren't ready. Everyone here is kind of looking at this environment of this incubator and saying I don't want to be the first person to tell this black person, that hey, they're not doing a good job. Right? So I guess to a certain degree that role's kind of fallen on me.

O'BRIEN: You're the black guy.

WRIGHT: I'm the black guy, yes.

Show of hands -- who thinks they did well? So nobody thinks they did well?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I did ok.

WRIGHT: I think you guys need to be a little bit harder on yourselves.

Let's be clear. My goal to say that is to not belittle anybody in this room. My goal to say that is that I need you guys and want you guys to understand the vastness of this opportunity. Right? You guys walked through Palo Alto to get here. This is probably the most black people who are in this town right now. Let's be honest. Right? So you need to understand it's the reality that you're in.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No one that walked into that room knew they were about to pitch.

WRIGHT: Let's say you walked in there and Mark Zuckerberg was in there saying, "Hey I want to hear your ideas." You're going to tell me that it's ok to say, "Well, I didn't know I was going to pitch to him and I shouldn't be ready?"

You can make those excuses and at the end of the nine weeks not be where you need to be but you have to recognize that the only person that was in control or at fault is yourself. It wasn't the Valley, it wasn't the investors; it was you.

Because you guys made the decision to come out here and it's bigger than you. If an investor is only seeing one African-American a year give a pitch, right? And you don't do well -- you not only affected you, you affected other people. It's that important.

I joked with Angela. There's a tag line. No whack demos on demo day.

O'BRIEN: For "In America", Soledad O'Brien, CNN, Silicon Valley.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: You can get more from Soledad O'Brien. You can tune in to a new "Black in America Special" "THE NEW PROMISED LAND: SILICON VALLEY" coming out this Sunday night, 8:00 Eastern.