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CNN Saturday Morning News

Outrage Over Nurse Suicide; High Court Tackles Same-Sex Laws; Chemical Weapon Fears Boost Syrian Crisis; How the Fiscal Cliff Affects You; Exercising During the Holidays; Aleppo Streets Are a War Zone; Chemical Weapon Fears Boost Syrian Crisis; Good Books, Good Prices Equals Success; 100 Places to Eat Like a Local: Bangkok, Thailand; High Stakes Heisman; Army-Navy Rivalry

Aired December 08, 2012 - 11:00   ET

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

RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: From the CNN Center this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING. It is Saturday, December 8th. Good morning, everyone. I'm Randi Kaye.

Anger and outrage are growing over the shocking death of a nurse who was fooled by a radio prank. Now the London hospital where the woman worked is speaking out about the tragedy.

Many states have had their say, now the highest court in the land agrees to take up same-sex marriage. Gay or straight, the ruling could have wide ranging implications on America.

The Pentagon is making preparations in the event it's ordered to strike Syria. We'll explain what the U.S. military is doing and how quickly action could be taken if Syria stages a chemical attack against its people.

First, to London and new developments in the tragic suicide of a nurse who was caught up in a prank phone call. The nurse, Jacinta Saldanha, killed herself Friday after she was fooled into giving confidential information about Prince William's pregnant wife, while the Duchess was in her care.

A short time ago, King Edward VII Hospital where the nurse worked released a statement. It reads in part, "It was extremely foolish of your presenters even to consider trying to lie their way through to one of our patients, let alone actually make the call." It went on to call the actions of the Australian radio station quote, "appalling".

Let's get more reaction from senior international correspondent Matthew Chance.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well a lot of sadness, but also a lot of anger as well being directed against the radio station in Sydney, Australia and the two deejays that carried out this prank call to this hospital here, the Edward VII in central London.

A lot of that social media pages like Facebook have to be taken down because of messages of abuse from around the world that have been posted on them. Also, the CEO of the company that owns the radio station has issued a public statement as well, expressing his regret and sadness, but also indicating that he does not think that legally there was any laws broken by the two deejays. They've been suspended, though, and the show has been taken off the air until further notice.

Take a listen though, to what that CEO had to say earlier.

RHYS HOLLERAN, CEO, SOUTHERN CROSS AUSTEREO: No one could reasonably foresee what actually happened in this case. It's incredibly tragic. Every one of us are deeply saddened. We're incredibly sad for the family and that's the focus.

CHANCE: Well the family of the dead nurse, Jacinta Saldanha have asked for their privacy to be respected here in Britain, but there are family members as well that live elsewhere and they have been speaking to the -- to the media. The sister of the nurse lives in the southern Indian state of Karnataka and she's spoken to the media there.

Take a listen to what she had to say about her sister's tragic death.

CEROLIN D'SOUZA, SISTER OF JACINTA SALDANHA (through translator): She has left us. We were wondering what happened, whether she met an accident when she was returning home from the hospital. Yesterday she was to come home, whether it was an accident between the hospital and home. Because she was supposed to return home to her children and husband. When I asked what happened, he was not able to communicate and he broke down.

CHANCE: Well the media reaction here in Britain has also been shock. The front pages of some of the country's biggest newspapers carrying the story, this one the "Daily Mirror", "Kate's agony over hoax nurse's suicide". "The Daily Mail", also a very popular newspaper in Britain; "Kate, our sadness at suicide of prankness calls". And finally "The Sun", the best selling newspaper in the country, "Kate's shock as hoax nurse kills herself".

A reference there of course to the fact that both the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have issued a statement expressing their sadness and regret; talking about how wonderfully they were looked after by the staff here all along. And saying that their thoughts and prayers are with the family of the nurse who apparently committing suicide. The whole really could not have predicted how this relatively uplifting story of a royal baby could have taken such an ugly and tragic turn.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Central London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: In Washington, the Supreme Court will soon take on one of the most divisive social issues of our time, same-sex marriage. Just a few months from now, the high court will hear arguments on two legal cases that could radically alter the legal definition of marriage in a America. The ripple effects would spread far beyond the gay community.

CNN crime and justice correspondent Joe Johns explains exactly what's at stake.

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Randi, after weeks of speculation, the court decided to take up two cases on the issue of same-sex marriage.

The first one is about the Defense of Marriage Act, Windsor against the United States. Edith Windsor and her partner Thea Spyer were married in Toronto, Canada in 2007. Spyer died in 2009 in New York at a time when New York recognized same-sex marriages that had been performed outside the state.

When Spyer died, Windsor was required to pay $363,000 in federal estate taxes on her inheritance that she would not have had to pay if federal law had given their relationship the same status that opposite sex marriages get.

So a pretty clean case here and even the Obama administration has already said it doesn't think the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act can withstand a legal attack.

The second case the court decided to take on is Proposition 8, the California ballot initiative, adding a state constitutional amendment in 2008 that said only marriage between a man or woman is valid or recognized in California. It overturned a court ruling that said same- sex couples have a right to marry.

The cases are likely to be heard in March and decided sometime in June -- Randi.

KAYE: Thank you Joe.

In Egypt, President Mohamed Morsi is calling for talks to end the political crisis in the country. But the opposition is calling for a boycott of that meeting. At least six people are dead after protests turned violent over the past several days. Anti-Morsi supporters are demonstrating against the president and the new Constitution. They say Morsi has given himself too much power, but the president says the powers are only temporary and will become void once the new constitution is adopted.

Now back to the U.S. and the controversy over the Benghazi attack. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will testify at an open congressional hearing. Her testimony will follow the release of a report by the State Department's accountability review board. The State Department has been under fire for its handling of the terror attack on the U.S. consulate in Libya.

The Syrian crisis could reach a new level with concerns that the Syrian regime could possibly use chemical weapons. We'll tell you how the U.S. is reacting.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: The fighting in Syria is intensifying around the Damascus airport. Reuters reports the government still controls the airport, but rebels say they are blockading it from most sides. Meanwhile, the international community is worried President Bashar al- Assad's troops might launch a chemical weapons attack. Syria says it won't use chemical weapons against its own people, quote, "even if it had them". The U.S. says any use of chemical weapons would be completely unacceptable.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, SECRETARY OF STATE: We have sent an unmistakable message that this would cross a red line and those responsible would be held to account.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If you make the tragic mistake of using these weapons, there will be consequences and you will be held accountable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Right now, the U.S. is just watching to see if Syria is planning to use those chemical weapons, but at what point might the U.S. decide to take action?

Barbara Starr has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With the U.S. now believing the Syrian government has chemical-filled bombs, CNN has learned the Pentagon is secretly updating military strike options for President Obama in the event he orders action. A senior U.S. official tells CNN a strike could be carried out with the ships and aircraft already stationed in the region.

The planning is being driven by the latest intelligence, which U.S. officials say shows sarin gas has been loaded into aerial bombs and at least two locations near airfields. Syria seems to have crossed the line drawn by the President last August.

OBAMA: A red line for us is we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized.

STARR: This week, that line seems to have shifted with warnings from the President, Secretary of Defense Panetta and others focusing on what happens if Assad uses the weapons.

JEFF WHITE, WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEW EAST POLICY: See these lines becomes sort of pink lines, right? You know they're not drawn with a fine pencil. And they move around a little.

STARR: Military options for striking Syria spell out the case for why an attack might be called for. U.S. officials say there are multiple reports, more than just satellite imagery, confirming the aerial bombs. The regime is getting more desperate in recent days as fighting has raged around Damascus, leading to worries al-Assad could order a deadly strike that could kill thousands.

And unlike Iraq before the U.S. war, Syria's chemical weapons program is openly acknowledged by that government.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These weapons are meant to be used only and strictly in the event of external aggression against the Syrian Arab Republic.

STARR: But the President will also be warned of the risks. Civilians could be killed by a deadly release of gas if the sarin isn't all destroyed. Syrian air defenses could bring down U.S. pilots if fighter jets are used. The regime could move its chemical weapons even minutes before an attack.

(on camera): And if the weapons start moving around, that poses another dire consideration. Officials worry that terrorists could then move in and try and seize control of this deadly arsenal.

Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Well your paycheck could take a hit in January. If our elected leaders don't do something about that looming fiscal cliff. And that is just the beginning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Welcome back. 16 minutes past the hour.

No one can be sure if the White House and Congress will steer the country away from that so-called fiscal cliff, which now is just 24 days away. But it's probably a good idea for you and your family to be prepared just in case.

Earlier, I spoke with Stephanie Ruhle of Bloomberg TV about what could happen if the deal is not reached.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHANIE RUHLE, ANCHOR, BLOOMBERG TV: You know, people talk about the cliff like it's this major event, which it is, but almost like a Y2K, like what are things going to look like January 2nd? From a paycheck perspective, you will see less money in your paycheck if we do fall off the cliff.

But as far as the economy goes, it's not really a cliff, one specific act. It's going to be more like a slope and we are going to see most likely an economic slowdown where jobs are going to slow down because we're not going to see companies expand. We're not going to be seeing them grow.

And this economy that we've been hoping to see in recovery could really head in the other direction. We can really face a recession, but it's not something we're going to see January 2nd, 3rd and 4th. It's really over the long haul.

KAYE: And people, you know, they hear you say smaller paychecks. What about the payroll tax hike? RUHLE: Listen, it's a negative. People need to prepare that come the New Year, they are going to get less money in their paychecks. And for those who hadn't had a long time for a very long time or living paycheck to paycheck, this is a big issue.

Earlier this week, we spoke to the governor of Pennsylvania, who said people are pouring in, reaching out to their local legislatures saying help us -- help us get some compromise and some resolution because in this economy, people simply can't afford it. And it is January 2nd right after the New Year when it's going to affect paychecks.

KAYE: Yes.

RUHLE: And one of the things, Randi, that is so disappointing is, this fiscal cliff didn't come out of nowhere. We've known it was coming, it was rolling our direction. But one of the things frustrating Americans is it seemed like the cliff was being ignored or just put on hold while the campaign was going on. And it was the day after the election, we saw the Dow drop 300 points and suddenly everyone woke up and said we have to face this cliff.

And the question is, can they really address these issues in the next 24 days with the President heading for vacation and Congress about to go home?

KAYE: Yes.

RUHLE: It doesn't feel good.

KAYE: No. And in terms of, you know, we're waiting, of course, to find out if we're going to go over the cliff, but we're already seeing the effects of it, aren't we? I mean we have a lot of Americans without jobs and just the fear of going over the cliff is even affecting that right, because it's affecting hiring.

RUHLE: Without a doubt. You wonder is it affecting big business or small business. Well, corporate CEOs are simply sitting on their hands. You are seeing U.S. corporations with more money on their balance sheet than they've had in years.

But the fact that they're facing more health care costs to pay out to their employees, they don't know what the tax climate is going to look for them. They're simply not growing their business, we're not seeing innovation. And that's what creates jobs. That's what gets these companies doing well, it improves what they're doing in the equity markets.

And then for small businesses, if big businesses don't do well, small businesses don't. If people don't have jobs, if they're not making more money, they're not in those businesses. They're simply not spending.

KAYE: What do you make of those who say, you know what, maybe it is better that we do go over the cliff? I mean, some say, you know, we're not getting the job done unless we really feel the pain. RUHLE: Those are people who really have long-term views and that may be a resolution. Earlier this week, we spoke to Barry Sternlicht of Starwood Capital, who said we simply need to simplify our tax code and start from zero. But actually getting there, Randi, starting -- getting back to zero, it's almost impossible.

So, even in the long term, if it helps the country organically grow, it's very difficult to get there and very few people want to see us fall off the cliff. They want to get us back into an economic recovery. They want the U.S. equity markets to improve because that affects your 401(k). If affects your pension. It affects real people today.

KAYE: Yes, 24 days and counting. Stephanie Ruhle, nice to see you again. Thank you.

RUHLE: Great to see you, Randi.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Enjoy the holidays, but don't forget to stay active. A fitness expert demonstrates some easy ways to burn off those extra calories at home.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: All right. The first day of winter less than two weeks away now, and the holidays are quickly approaching, which means cold weather, big meals and a whole lot of yumminess like those desserts. So who has time to hit the gym? Well, that's why we're going to show you how to burn off some calories around your home and without any equipment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: With us now is Desiree Nathanson. She's a certified nutrition expert, former Miss Fitness of New Mexico and the official personal trainer of the Atlanta Hawks cheerleaders. All right. So you say that people shouldn't worry about hitting the gym.

DESIREE NATHANSON, FITNESS AND NUTRITION EXPERT: No, no. you just want to focus on being less sedentary. You want to move when you can. It's not about necessarily getting to the gym and getting on a treadmill or elliptical machine. You just want to move. So if you have a desk job, you want to get up every hour, move around a few minutes a day.

If you sit a lot. You really want to stand up when you can because I feel like we're going to evolve into this hunch-backed society.

KAYE: Yes, we all do that. Great, exactly.

NATHANSON: So you want to focus on standing up, engaging the core and just moving around when you can.

KAYE: Well, I know you brought a few props with you today.

NATHANSON: I did. KAYE: And one of them kind of scares me. It's a broom. What are we doing with that?

NATHANSON: We're going to be cleaning.

KAYE: Ok, good.

NATHANSON: With the broom, you can do several things. One basic move you can do, put the broom behind your neck. You want to stand feet shoulder-width apart, engage your abs and you're just going to twist side to side. So we're going to work our obliques here, just with a broom so you can be sweeping, and then in the middle of sweeping, just pick up the broom and do some obliques.

KAYE: So you don't need those expensive bars that are at the gym. You can use that.

NATHANSON: Exactly.

For just a couple of dollars, you can also do a squat and press. So holding the broom in front of you, squat down and press up. Squat down and press up. So there's lots of things you can do with a broom.

KAYE: Besides cleaning. I don't like to clean, so the broom is good for other things.

What about -- I see you also brought a couple of cans of something over there.

NATHANSON: Yes.

KAYE: And water bottles.

NATHANSON: Cans of soup. Water bottles can also be used.

KAYE: And what do you do with those? Curls?

NATHANSON: You can do many -- yes -- you can do so many different exercises. Curls, of course, are one of them. I like focusing on exercises for the back part of the body.

KAYE: The favorite part right there.

NATHANSON: Exactly. So you can do something called tricep kickbacks. You want to stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent back, flat upper arms parallel to the ground and just press the cans back.

KAYE: And you can see right there the muscle. That's my favorite muscle. I don't know about you at home, but that is the muscle to get.

Ok, what about a chair? You can actually get a workout while you're sitting in a chair?

NATHANSON: Yes, you can do so many things. If you do have a desk job, you can take this break every hour, on the hour just do a few different exercises. One thing you can do is dips. You can either do a more beginning exercise would be just to push yourself up off the chair. You can also take yourself to the edge of the chair and do your dip here's, again, working our triceps is what we like.

You can also do squats. So just standing up, sitting back down, touching your butt to the chair and standing back up.

KAYE: That's great.

NATHANSON: And then push-ups, of course, you can do here because getting on the ground at your office might be a little awkward.

KAYE: Yes, people are going to wonder.

NATHANSON: Yes. You can just do push-ups on the back of the chair. Like that.

KAYE: Nice.

So what if somebody want to, you know, they look at these and they're like, ok, that's good. But what if somebody is more advanced and they want something more demanding?

NATHANSON: Well, a few exercises you can do. One is called a burpee. I don't know if I can demonstrate it here. It's hard.

KAYE: No, let's do it. Because these are really hard.

NATHANSON: Ok. This is actually one of the most efficient exercises. It's total body. You're working everything. You come down place your hands on the ground. Jump out, come in and jump up.

KAYE: Yes. Those are my favorites. I can do about two of those.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: It's not so easy, trust me. Desiree Nathanson, great to have her on, as always.

Life in Syria turned upside down. We'll show you what the front lines in Aleppo look like as the war there rages on.

And if you're leaving the house right now, just a reminder, you can continue watching CNN from your mobile phone. You can also watch CNN live from your laptop. Just go to CNN.com/TV.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: In Syria, more than 40,000 people have been killed since the fighting began 20 months ago. Daily life has been replaced with the sound of bullets and the streets of Aleppo have turned into a battleground. Senior international correspondent Arwa Damon has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For two months, the streets and allies of Amria have been a war zone, part of a bigger battle for control of Aleppo, Syria's largest city. Alhal, a father of four is one of the rebel fighters here.

This is our country, our homes that are being destroyed, he tells us. He used to sell thread. Now Alhal runs logistics for his unit.

(on camera): So what he is explaining to us is that this was street to street fighting, and it took his unit quite some time to advance, and right now they have the tractor here because they're trying to clear out this road so that ambulances and vehicles can begin to move through.

(voice-over): Blankets hang across one alleyway to block government snipers' line of sight. The shooting is coming from there. The sniper, one of the fighters points out. They take us further forward. Crawling through holes punched between buildings.

(on camera): They're just telling us that it's because of the snipers that they have to move through the various buildings like this.

(voice-over): It's an urban version of First World War trenches. They've edged forward by just one block. Going any further is back breaking work, a rebel dashes down the street carrying a makeshift rocket launcher. It's a plastic tube. e later displays the rocket.

(on camera): This is a homemade rocket that was manufactured by the fighters themselves in this very battlefield.

(voice-over): But they can't find the sandbags to stabilize the launcher. The weapons the fighters carry are spoils of war, captured from government forces. But they also make a promise.

There is a message we have, one of the older fighters vows. When this is over, the guns will be handed over. I am just fighting to see my house down the road, he says.

(on camera): It's hard to fully absorb the scale of the devastation here, how entire buildings seem to have folded down upon themselves. And then one continues to see traces of the lives of the civilians that call these buildings home, like the clothing that's just hanging right there. Or children's books like this one, the pages of it that we picked up from the rubble.

(voice-over): But this conflict can be surreal. Just a couple of blocks away, the local barbershop is open, as are a handful of other stores. Women crowd around us, eager to talk, but not be filmed.

Both sides have hurt us, wronged us, one says. Basic supplies are available here, although prices have skyrocketed. Bread, bread, we want it so badly, it's like a drug, this woman tells us. If someone has breakfast, they can't afford dinner.

Please have mercy, they beg. On the street, we meet four boys that ask if we think it's safe enough for them to go back home. They talk of tanks firing and seeing other children lose limbs. They say what they've witnessed has made them all decide to be doctors, to save the victims of war. Arwa Damon, CNN, Aleppo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: And the conflict in Syria may reach a new level with the possible threat of chemical weapons looming. Earlier, I spoke with former Senator George Mitchell. He's President Obama's former Middle East envoy. I asked him what the U.S. can do to solve the crisis in Syria.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEORGE MITCHELL, FORMER MIDDLE EAST SPECIAL ENVOY: I believe the United States should not intervene militarily in Syria. That's what I said. I do not favor standing aside. There are many other ways in which we can and have been involved, primarily diplomatically, economically, and supporting other of our allies who are providing direct assistance to the rebels in Syria.

But I want to remind people, we just finished a 10-year war in Iraq, we're trying to end a 12-year war in Afghanistan. A military intervention by the United States now, to have a third war in the Middle East going, I think would be a mistake and it wouldn't solve the problem. That's the central issue.

It wouldn't solve the problem. You said 40,000 people have died in your preparatory report here. That's true. That's a terrible tragedy every one of them. But five million people have died in the Congo. Should we intervene there? Of course not.

People want us to intervene in Somalia, in Sudan, other places. We have to be very careful about starting wars in far flung place every time there's a serious tragedy.

KAYE: The conflict though, as you know, has already spilled over the borders in Turkey and Lebanon. You talk about getting involved. If not the United States, who does need to get involved militarily?

MITCHELL: Well, I don't think it's going to be resolved by outside military intervention. One of the problems in Syria was the problem in Lebanon, a problem in other parts of the Middle East, is that these conflicts are extended and continued by outside actions, in effect proxy wars being fought by neighbors who pour arms and money into the region.

Right now, Iran is pouring millions of dollars and a lot of people and arms into Syria to prop up Assad's regime. Governments are doing it on the other side. I think that the regime will fall.

I think there's going to be a very long and difficult internal struggle for governance after that occurs and we should be preparing the ground, as I think the administration is trying to do for a unified opposition force that will bring about change peacefully after Assad's regime fall. But I repeat, direct American military intervention, in my judgment, will not solve the problem and will entangle us yet further in conflicts in far flung countries where it's very difficult to sustain support in this country.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Once again, that was George Mitchell, former senator and former Middle East envoy for President Obama.

Former South African president, Nelson Mandela is in the hospital. A government statement says he was admitted to a hospital today to undergo testing. It says Mandela is doing well and the tests are just routine for someone his age. Mandela is 94.

If you think people are only reading books on tablets, well, think again. How one traditional bookstore is making more money than ever, the secret next in our "American Journey."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: As the holiday as approach, how are some businesses able to keep their doors open while others are failing? Tom Foreman went looking for some answers in today's "American Journey."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Amid the bustle of Broadway, against the bad economy and the crushing competition, at the Strand, the show goes on. Started more than 80 years ago, this independent bookstore has beaten the odds, surviving the great depression, World War II.

And Fred Bass, who was a baby when his dad started the Strand, says the store is enduring these tough times too.

FRED BASS, OWNER: Mainly by having good books and good prices. Lately, we have been selling a lot of new books at discount, but it is mostly used books or bargain books that we sell or out of print books.

FOREMAN: The Strand's eclectic approach allows it to appeal to a broad array of clients hunting the trivial and treasured on its shelves like this rare signed copy of Ulysses by James Joyce.

BASS: What are we selling this one for? What, $25,000, a bargain, really.

FOREMAN: But the Strand's success is about more than inventory. Employees top to bottom must possess a deep knowledge of books, and embrace the idea that they're maintaining a business, yes, but also a community.

BILLY MOWBRAY, EMPLOYEE: There is just a comfort here where people feel willing to open up and to have 30-minute conversations with you in the aisles, even when you probably should be working. FOREMAN: The Strand has kept up with the times too. To compete with megabookstores and internet retailers, it now offers almost all of its books online. Still, it could be argued that in these days of everything moving faster, the Strand's winning edge really comes from going slower.

IRIS LEVY, CUSTOMER: There is something about being able to just browse through all these aisles and hold a book and read a book and look at a book. That's wonderful.

FOREMAN: The bottom line of all this, even with the economy down, sales at the Strand are up. And another great season of holiday shopping is going on the books. Tom Foreman, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Another huge retailer, amazon.com, seems to be taking over the shopping world. Tom Foreman takes a look at Amazon's big plans today at 2:30 Eastern on "In Focus."

Tonight's awarding of the Heisman Trophy will be life changing for one of college football's greatest players and it could be historic for the Heisman itself.

Well, when traveling to other cities and countries, the best way to get a real taste of the place is through local food. CNN I-Report has teamed up with "Travel & Leisure" magazine to create a global list of 100 places to eat like a local. Here is CNN's Dan Rivers in Bangkok, Thailand, with a sample.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAN RIVERS, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Dan Rivers in Bangkok, and when I want to eat local on a rainy afternoon, there's nothing better than Wung Li. They do amazing seafood here. Rice, what else would you suggest? Do you have any prawns? My favorite dish is crispy pork. How do you get the pork so crispy?

NATTANUN ARUNTHANAWNG, RESTAURANT OWNER: Leave it one hour then we clean it and then make it dry. Make it dry first and then deep fry with oil.

RIVERS: This soup here, very famous.

ARUNTHANAWNG: Yes, with mushroom and lemon and a little bit milk.

RIVERS: And it's quite spicy as well.

ARUNTHANAWNG: Spicy, chili. We have many, 200 different on the menu.

RIVERS: Two hundred different recipes on the menu. So it's very popular. Why is it so popular? Why so many people come here?

ARUNTHANAWNG: Cheap and fresh, and delicious.

RIVERS: Right. So those places in guide books are for tourists. Go to Wung Lee if you want to eat like a local.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: That looked pretty good. I-Reporters, here is your chance to help us create a food lovers map of the world. All you have to do is go to ireport.com/100places, send us a photo of your favorite restaurant and the dish, tell us why it's special, how you discovered it.

The definitive list of 100 places to eat like a local will be revealed in March and some I-Reporters will be on that list, so stay tuned, you might be one of them.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Excitement is building for tonight's awarding of the coveted Heisman Trophy. This year could be one for the record books. The front-runner for college football's most prestigious award is Texas A&M freshman quarterback Johnny Manziel or Johnny Football as they call him.

If Manziel wins, he will become the first freshman in the Heisman 77- year history to take the top honor. Now the two other finalist are Manti Teo, the Notre Dame linebacker, helped lead the fighting Irish to its first undefeated year in more than two decades.

And Kansas State's quarterback Colin Klein. He came in this year as the leader in the Heisman race before Manziel's late push. Another college football tradition continues hours from now in Philadelphia, Army versus Navy. Unlike other match ups, its significance won't be about points scored, but the symbolism behind this annual event.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This game represents more than just a football game. It represents a lot of what is good in our country.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a big deal. Our guys dream about this, think about this from day one.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everything about the naval academy is beat army.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have two schools with great respect for each other. On this one day they set aside the respect in the spirit of competition.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You run through the tunnel. One half is Navy and the other half is Army.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are many people around the world watching the game.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's no career in the NFL, big time money, media recognition, just guys tackling like they were back in high school playing football.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If both records were 0-10 going into it we would have the same intensity if we were undefeated.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't hate each other. We dislike each other when we're playing but when the game ends we're brothers in arms.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: After the game you hug them. You know what they are about to endure. Every one of us is going to serve our country. We'll be put in harm's way whether on a ship, on the ground or in an airplane.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not only will they battle so hard against each other in this game and be on the same team after this, but a lot of times they count on each other to save each other.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you ask every man on our team, service to our country and protecting America is something that we value greatly.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: CNN "NEWSROOM" starts at that time top of the hour. Joe Johns is in for Fred today. How's are you?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Good, trading e-mails with her. She is doing great.

KAYE: Good. She's got the twins at home.

JOHNS: Absolutely and not at work.

KAYE: Exactly, but you're here.

JOHNS: That's right.

KAYE: You have an action-packed afternoon for us.

JOHNS: Absolutely. We're going to pick up on the issue of same-sex marriage, that case the Supreme Court decided to take and one of the questions we want to ask -- we were talking about this just yesterday in Washington, is whether the court actually gave itself a bit of an out in case they didn't want to reach the merits of the Defense of Marriage Oct. Maybe they gave themselves a way to not decide the issue.

KAYE: I know you're going to be watching that one.

JOHNS: Absolutely. You got that right. Let's see, what else? We're talking about the pope today. The pope is on Twitter.

KAYE: Right. He's writing books. He's on Twitter. He's very busy.

JOHNS: How's that going to work out for him, right? We talked to his senior communications adviser in Rome and one of the questions you have to ask if the pope is an iPhone guy or a Blackberry guy.

KAYE: Yes, there you go. What does he tweet about?

JOHNS: Really. Does he send e-mails and who gets them? KAYE: Who does he follow, more importantly? That's what I want to know. Does he follow Justin Bieber?

JOHNS: Yes, right. This afternoon, he has so far like 500, 600,000 followers. He's only following seven people.

KAYE: Exactly. You and I are not one of them.

JOHNS: That's right. We also want to talk about football. I heard you talking about football a minute ago. The thing that fascinates me is the undercurrent in professional football talking about getting rid of the kickoff, which definitely sounds like sacrilege to pro football fans. We want to see how it would work and why they want to do it anyway?

KAYE: That's part of the fun of it.

JOHNS: Well, maybe we want to get rid of injuries. I just don't know.

KAYE: There's got to be another way.

JOHNS: It would be rugby, I think.

KAYE: There you go. All right, you made all of that sound very exciting.

JOHNS: Yes.

KAYE: We'll see you in just a couple of minutes. All right, Joe, thanks.

The agency in charge of protecting the president is under investigation. This time after extremely sensitive information vanishes without a trace. The details when we return.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: The U.S. Secret Service is finding itself at the center of an investigation over a possibly damaging security breach. Tapes containing highly sensitive information were left behind on a subway.

CNN'S Brian Todd has more on the disappearance and the potential fallout.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Law enforcement and congressional sources tell CNN the U.S. Secret Service is being investigated for a potentially damaging loss of information. The data was on two back-up computer tapes, which contain very sensitive personnel and investigative information, according to our sources.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You lost the drive containing the identity of every agent.

TODD: It might remind you of the new James Bond movie "Skyfall" where the villains steal a device with top secret information on British agents. But in this case, our sources say, the tapes were left by a contractor on a train in Washington's Metrorail Subway system.

The incident occurred in February of 2008, but is now the subject of an investigation by the Department of Homeland Security's inspector general. That office is not commenting on why the probe is going on now. I asked former FBI counterespionage Agent Eric O'Neil about the loss.

ERIC O'NEILL, FORMER FBI COUNTER-ESPIONAGE AGENT: Some of the information could cause lives to be at risk if someone wanted to get at the families of high-level government worker or someone they perceived as someone who worked against a terrorist cell.

TODD: O'Neal is the agent who took down Robert Hanson, the FBI official who spied for the Russians. O'Neal is depicted by Ryan Phillippe in the movie "Breach." The Secret Service says no lives were endangered by the 2008 loss. No fraud occurred as a result. But how did this happen?

(on camera): According to our sources, the contractor was transporting two tapes in a pouch from Secret Service headquarters in Washington to a now closed data facility in Maryland.

The sources say the contractors got off a metro train and realized the pouch was left behind. The Secret Service and Metro police were contacted and an aggressive search took place, but one source tells us the tapes have not been recovered.

(voice-over): In a statement, the Secret Service said these back-up tapes were not marked or identified in any way and were protected by multiple layers of security. They could not be accessed without the proper equipment, applications and encoding.

(on camera): Still, why put sensitive information about agents or anything else on a removable disk?

O'NEILL: Well, part of the reason I think, once again, this is conjecture that in 2008, when this occurred, some of the information might have been on removable disks because that's how they transported information. We have leapt forward in technology since then.

TODD: But O'Neill has his own questions.

O'NEILL: Why did the contractor have it? Why wasn't it chained to his wrist with a handcuff in a case that he would, the second he stood up think I need to grab it.

TODD: I put that to a Secret Service official who did not answer directly, but did say protocols have been put in place to make sure this doesn't happen, again. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: CNN "NEWSROOM" continues with Joe Johns who's in for Fredricka today. Hello. I will hand it off to you. JOHNS: You bet. Thanks so much, Randi. Good work. Boy, you're the hardest working woman in television.

KAYE: It's some early hours, but we get through it.

JOHNS: You bet.