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CNN Saturday Morning News
Oprah to Interview Lance Armstrong; Legal Ramifications of Armstrong Admitting Drug Use; Flu Epidemic in U.S.; Debate on Guns in Schools; Football's Link to Brain Damage; Drug Testing in Baseball; Innovative Chicago Chef; Reshat Mati: World Champion Teen; Golden Globes Contenders
Aired January 12, 2013 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. I'm Randi Kaye.
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Victor Blackwell, 8:00 here on the East Coast. Thanks for starting your day with us.
KAYE: We start with the Lance Armstrong bombshell, "USA Today" reporting that Armstrong will admit to doping on Monday in an interview with Oprah.
BLACKWELL: The paper says Oprah will go to Armstrong's home in Austin, Texas to get the details. Now Armstrong has denied using drugs in the past, so his admission could have serious consequences. This morning I spoke with the man who broke the story, Brent Schrotenboer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRENT SCHROTENBOER, USA TODAY (via telephone): As to why is he doing this now? The evidence came out against him, as massive file of evidence came out against him in October, and in the three months since then, he's been keeping a pretty low profile.
And I think he's been deciding what to do about it. He's kind of cornered himself because for many years now he strenuously denied these doping allegations. And with all the evidence that's come out against him, it's hard to deny it anymore. And he's making a calculated decision for himself personally and it's also, I think, a business decision for him because it's affecting his charity Livestrong. All of his sponsors have fired him.
I think when he goes out in public now, he's getting a little bit different reception than what he used to get in that, you know, everybody knows now that if you believe the evidence that he did dope and lie about it for many years. And so, this is really a personal decision for him and also a calculated business decision for him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: Nick Valencia joins us now to talk more about this. All right, so Nick Valencia, good morning.
NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.
KAYE: Let's say this is true, he does come clean and admits to doping. Legal ramifications?
VALENCIA: It has the potential to be very damaging for Lance Armstrong. It could be that he faces criminal charges from all this Randi and Victor. There have been reports from "USA Today" and others that he has reached the statute of limitations for this testimony that he gave under oath in 2005.
Having said that, there is a counter lawsuit, a libel lawsuit from Boyd Landis (ph), who was his teammate at the U.S. Postal Service. He's accused of being the brazen ring leader of this doping scheme on this U.S. Postal Service. This counter lawsuit, the USDOJ could attach themselves to this. If they do, that's potential for major criminal charges against Lance Armstrong.
BLACKWELL: I was in Austin when he was last out in public at the Livestrong event. The Livestrong reporters loved Lance Armstrong and they told me we support him whether he doped or not. What does this mean, though, for the organization?
VALENCIA: There's a legion of fans, as you just referenced, there's a legion of fans that look up to him as a hero, an icon. Even if it does come out that, as is reported, comes clean in this confession to Oprah Winfrey, if this confession comes out, people are still going to have his back, Victor.
There's a lot of people that see him as a cancer survivor, as a hero. They don't care whether or not he doped. But there are rumors that Livestrong and the leadership at Livestrong did sort of force him into this confession because it's been so damaging to this charity that he started.
KAYE: You know, what's interesting though is nobody's really going to be able to forget -- he really went on the attack.
VALENCIA: Yes.
KAYE: When he was accused, he came out swinging.
VALENCIA: A lot of people think that what he did in terms of bullying the people that accused him of this alleged doping was worse than the actual act itself. He would go on character assassinations, vilify people that even mentioned that he looked towards performance- enhancing drugs. So a lot of people are still angry about him.
In fact, he filed counter lawsuits against the USADA, the U.S. anti- doping agency as well as a report from the Sunday "Times," they're looking to recover $500,000 from him in a counter libel lawsuit. He won a lot of money trying to defend his name and there are people that are looking to get that money back.
KAYE: If he was doing it, if, you have to wonder why he went on the attack like that and now this.
VALENCIA: And now this confession.
KAYE: Nick, thank you. BLACKWELL: Now more on the deadly flu outbreak that's sweeping the country. So far this season 20 children have died. CDC reports that 47 states are reporting widespread flu activity.
Earlier, I spoke with Dr. Jeffrey Oyler of Piedmont Hospital here in Atlanta about what he is seeing in his offices.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. JEFFREY OYLER, ATLANTA'S PIEDMONT HOSPITAL: We're seeing about 20 to 25 percent more patients in our emergency department daily. We had 30 positive influenza screens in the month of November. It ticked up to 80 in December. And we're on track in January as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: One of the signs of the cold or flu is sneezing. It's also one of the easiest ways to spread the illness. Exactly how does the sneeze spread those nasty germs? I took a ride on a New York City subway to find out. And fair warning, you are definitely going to want to wash your hands after this one.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE (voice-over): We asked Dr. Len Horowitz to ride the rails with us and help us understand the power of a single cough or sneeze. All it takes is one good ah-choo to send over 40,000 droplets barreling in your direction at about 100,000 miles an hour. They can quickly make dozens of commuters within a few feet very sick. If a person used his hand to cover their sneeze, look out.
(on-camera): So if someone sneezed and then grabbed this pole to hang onto, they're going to leave germs behind. And then say I come along to hold onto this pole, I'm going to pick up those germs without even knowing it. Then say maybe I come over here to sit down and I touch my hand to the seat, well, I'm going to leave those germs behind for the next unsuspecting commuter and it spreads from there.
(voice-over): And Dr. Horowitz, a specialist in respiratory illnesses, says germs are so hardy, they can survive overnight.
DR. LEN HOROVITZ, LENOX HILL HOSPITAL: The viral particles can stay alive for up to 24 hours. Someone tomorrow morning gets on the subway, touches it, touches their face, introduces it into their body and they've got it.
KAYE: That could mean hundreds, maybe even thousands of people end up sick.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I carry my hand sanitizer in my purse.
KAYE: Some riders touch their face, rub their eyes, maybe even eat before ever washing their hands.
HOROVITZ: When you touch your face, you're essentially smearing the germ on to your face. Any opening, your nose, your mouth, your eyes, is a place where the germ can get into your body and start to incubate and multiply and cause infection.
KAYE: Just because a sneeze occurred on the subway doesn't mean the germs stay there. Say the person who sneezed stops at the metro card machine to buy a subway card before leaving the station. He's going to leave those germs right on that machine for the next person.
And it's not just subway riders. Anyone commuting by car or foot may use a germ-covered hand to open an office door or office refrigerator. Maybe they're even sharing your computer. Yuck.
In a world where germs are the enemy, it's time to suit up for battle and keep your soap handy.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KAYE: And we are always suited up for battle here.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
KAYE: We have Purell on everything single desk in our newsroom. Wait for somebody else to open a door.
BLACKWELL: Can you get that for me?
KAYE: It's gross.
BLACKWELL: The idea that the germs stay for eight hours, that's the scary part.
KAYE: They can live on a subway pole, in a car or whatever it is you touch, depending on how you commute. Yes, you really don't want to think about it. Just wash your hands a lot.
BLACKWELL: The 66,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan may be headed home sooner than expected. Afghan President Hamid Karzai met with President Obama in Washington yesterday and he and Mr. Obama agreed to a complete transition of combat operations by the end of 2014.
President Obama is considering keeping some troops, possibly 3,000 to 9,000 in place after 2014 for counter terrorism and training, but only if they get immunity from prosecution and Karzai signaled he may be willing to do that.
KAYE: We have new information on the prosecution scandal that rocked the Secret Service last year. Three U.S. soldiers will be punished for their involvement in the scandal. The military says the soldiers will forfeit part of their salary and two will have more than a month of extra work.
Remember, several Secret Service agents, U.S. troops and Federal drug officials were accused of wild partying and bringing prostitutes to their hotel rooms in Colombia last April prior to President Obama's arrival there.
BLACKWELL: The White House is saying no to a new construction project that could add an unknown number of jobs. That project, building a death star. Yes, like the one as in the "Star Wars" movie. The idea was posted as a petition on the White House website. It received more than 30,000 signatures which means the administration had to comment and it did with this official statement, saying the administration does not support blowing up planets. That's the end of it. Of course, that's what you build a death star for. The White House also balked at the $850 quadrillion price tag.
KAYE: We have much more ahead this hour.
BLACKWELL: Here is what's coming up.
KAYE: Imagine a rapist going free because of one employee's incompetence. Now multiply that by 800. We'll explain.
What will the White House decide when it comes to gun control? All morning long, we'll put the proposals and the push back in focus.
He is being called the next phenom of mixed martial arts and he is only 13. The Albanian bear joins us live.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLACKWELL: In Washington and cities and towns across the country, guns right now are the hot topic. Everyone is looking for a way to prevent attacks like the one in Newtown and the 30 gun-related homicides that happen in America every day. We're focusing on that debate this morning.
Joining me now is John Lott Jr. He's a gun rights expert and author of the book "More Guns, Less Crime." It's not just the title of your book, John. It's good to have you with us.
JOHN LOTT, JR., AUTHOR, "MORE GUNS, LESS CRIME": Thank you.
BLACKWELL: You argue that more concealed weapons actually does lead to less crime. So I assume that you're squarely behind the NRA's suggestion of having armed guards at every school. Are you?
LOTT: No. I think it's a little bit more complicated than that. The problem is when you have a uniformed arm guard is that they'll be the first target often that's there. It's going to be a costly proposal and it's fairly limited in terms of what it can do. There are cases where armed guards have slowed attacks, allowed people to escape. But I think in terms of cost benefit, it's not the best solution.
I think the best solution is to go back to where we were in the country prior to the end of '95, when we allowed permit holders to be able to go and carry concealed handguns on school property. There's some states that allow that now. The states allowed concealed carry back in '95 and earlier, allowed it at that time. We have a lot of information on how well that worked. There's not one problem that I know of or that anybody has been able to show with any of those people carrying permits at that time.
BLACKWELL: I think there would be a lot of people who question your assertion that there are no problems with people who carry permits at that time. I'm glad I'm having you on --
LOTT: Give an example.
BLACKWELL: I've seen other interviews where you have been on.
LOTT: Right.
BLACKWELL: And not been able to finish a sentence. I want you to tell me why more guns equals less crime.
LOTT: Well, every place that there has been a ban for guns, whether it be in DC or Chicago in the United States or around the world, where we've had island nations even, when you ban guns, we've seen increases in murder rates all the time. You look at these multiple-victim public shootings. With just one exception, since at least 1950, every single one has occurred where guns are banned. Take the Aurora, Colorado, shooting from last July as a good example. There were seven movie theaters within a 20-minute drive of the killer's apartment that were showing the premiere of the Batman movie. The killer didn't go to the movie theater that was closest to his home. He didn't go to the movie theater that had by far the largest auditorium in the state of Colorado. Instead he went to the single auditorium that posted signs banning permit concealed weapons. You see that time after time.
BLACKWELL: Here is my question, John because what you're giving me is post hac ergo propor hac. It is in the classic fallacy of after, therefore, because of. You're giving me fact A, guns are banned. Fact B, a shooting happened. What you're not giving me is the direct correlation between the strict laws and the complete tie to the shooting.
Do you know -- have you spoken with James Holmes? Do you know he went to that theater because of the gun ban or because he could park close to the back door or because he could go through one set of double doors instead of three? How do you draw the direct correlation? You're just giving me two facts and saying, look, it must make sense. Draw the correlation for me.
LOTT: Sure. Take the Columbine shooting for example that's been talked about a lot. Dylan Klebold we know was strongly against the concealed carry law there. Doug Dean, the former speaker of the state house there said at the time that Klebold was writing state legislatures, opposed to the concealed carry there. He was particularly upset about the fact that they would allow concealed carry on school campuses that upset him.
And one thing that's completely ignored by people, the very day of the Columbine attack occurred, the very day that the concealed carry law was scheduled for final passage in the state legislature there.
BLACKWELL: And again, you're giving me a list of facts. I need you to give me the direct correlation. You haven't even used the word because in your list of these facts. What I'm asking you when you say where guns are banned, there is an increase in crime. In many places, that is true. Unfortunately for you, in Australia and in the U.K. where gun laws are strict, the gun crimes have decreased year to year recently. LOTT: No, no, that's not true. You can go to the home office in the U.K. and you'll see immediately after the '97 ban on handguns, the murder rate soared there.
BLACKWELL: And that was 1997? It's 2013.
LOTT: January '97, right. If you go and look, you can graph it out. I have it on my website. You can go to the home office documents yourself and you'll see that there was immediate huge increase there and it's still higher now than it was before the ban was put into place. You look at DC and Chicago. I mean, DC, before its ban, ranked about 20th in terms of the top 50 cities in terms of murder rates. After the handgun ban went into effect, DC was either number one or number two half the years the ban was in effect. It was in the top four for two-thirds of the time. Immediately after the ban and more importantly, the gun lock laws were eliminated in DC, DC's murder rate has fallen by 52 percent in four years. That's a huge drop. And it started right when --
BLACKWELL: We have to wrap up because we're low on time but I think it's great to have this conversation sometimes without the emotion and I like that you bring the facts.
LOTT: I agree.
BLACKWELL: and just the logic. However, you're giving me fact A, fact B and not drawing the direct correlation. You're asking everyone to make that jump that crime stats are based on the laws in that community. But I know this conversation will continue. I thank you for coming on.
LOTT: Thank you very much.
BLACKWELL: Next hour, the other side of the debate, we'll talk to a reverend about gun control and whether the clergy should play a role in this political discussion.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Good morning, Washington, D.C. Foggy around the White House there, but nice looking shot, trying to bring you that this morning. Hopefully, the fog will lift and it will be a beautiful day in Washington. Glad you're with us here on CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
Let's talk sports, shall we?
BLACKWELL: Let's do that.
KAYE: A little bit of sports news, what caught our eye this week certainly the story of Junior Seau, very sad story, of course. You may recall he committed suicide last May. His family agreed to have his brain tested, long-time football player, 43 years old. It turns out that he has what's called CTE, which is something that, you know, has caused him a lot of pain over the years and Alzheimer's-like symptoms, depression, forgetfulness, aggression, all kind of things like that. It all comes down to getting hit in the head. BLACKWELL: It came to his job. He gets hit in the head as a player on this team so many times. And we know that over his career, the blows to the head have, indeed, caused this brain disease, played pro football for 20 years before his suicide. His family donated his brain to science. Hopefully, we'll learn more about this disease and how it relates to blows to the head.
KAYE: Yes. And he's not the only one.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
KAYE: There's a lawsuit against the NFL brought by other players because of this very thing.
BLACKWELL: Let's go to baseball and drug testing. Players have now agreed to in-season random testing for HGH. I mean, first -- this is the first American pro U.S. league to test for HGH, the human growth hormone. For seasons and seasons year after year, the players said no. We're not going to do this,, but now they've given in.
KAYE: They were doing it during the off season?
BLACKWELL: Yes. They were doing it in the off season.
KAYE: So now they're going to do it now. It's a blood test. I guess it's going to take place before the games and we'll see what's in their system.
BLACKWELL: We know that the announcement of the hall of famers, not having Roger Clemens, Barry Bonds or Sammy Sosa, because of the doping, has really put a black eye on that sport. And hopefully, this will clear up something.
KAYE: We'll see. And Tiger Woods, boy oh, boy, making headlines again. He's not going to be playing in a golf tournament, by the way, in Qatar. Apparently he was demanding big money, $3 million. I guess that's what he asks for when he -- it's his appearance fee. The folks there and the fans there just said uh-uh, not worth the price tag there.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
KAYE: And they didn't buy it. They didn't buy in.
BLACKWELL: Here is why. He demands $3 million. The prize for winning this was $2.5.
KAYE: Yes.
BLACKWELL: So you could play all day and not win as much money or go home with as much money as Tiger because he just showed up.
KAYE: I'm sure that they maybe would have given him a little less money. Who knows? He still could have had this beautiful tournament to play in, but no. He once made something like $17 million for doing something like this. High demand, I guess, when they want you. BLACKWELL: Good work if you can get it.
KAYE: Yes.
BLACKWELL: There are hundreds - something serious now -- hundreds of rape cases in New York City are being reviewed all because of the work of one lab tech. What that worker is accused of doing.
KAYE: But first, a Chicago chef is creating a stir with customers over his creative food art. He is using unexpected tools in the kitchen to create progressive American cuisine. CNN's Gary Tuchman explains in this week's "Start Small, Think Big."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Chef Grant Achatz is known for creating food art at his world famous restaurant Alinea in Chicago. He uses modern tools, even laboratory equipment in the kitchen to push food forward.
GRANT ACHATZ, CHEF/OWNER, ALINEA: Alinea was founded on innovation, constant evolution and expression of creativity. Historically, eating was about nourishment. We wanted to elevate that to an art form.
TUCHMAN: To do that, Achatz uses equipment like the anti-griddle to freeze food instead of cook it.
ACHATZ: This surface is really very hard, but this surface is cream.
TUCHMAN: And the rotary evaporator.
ACHATZ: We use it for extracting flavor, aroma and clarifying liquids.
TUCHMAN: He has a volcano to capture certain aromas and liquid nitrogen to freeze food and create drama.
ACHATZ: We've changed the culinary landscape in that we can manipulate certain ingredients that were never before able to be manipulated.
TUCHMAN: He thinks beyond the plate, dishes like the shellfish black, edible balloon and chocolate mat. At his cocktail lounge, the Aviary, a super chiller creates ice for drinks like this one, called an old fashioned. It's anything but.
ACHATZ: New technology, new possibilities. We're always looking at that, always.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Bottom of the hour now. Welcome back, everyone. I'm Randi Kaye.
BLACKWELL: I'm Victor Blackwell. Thanks for starting your morning with us. Here are five stories we're watching this morning. Our number one story is the flu outbreak that is sweeping across the country. New numbers from the CDC show a bit of good news, though. The spread appears to have slowed in some areas, but officials don't yet know if the season has peaked. So far, 20 children have died and state reports show that dozens of adults have also died.
But officials also add that it's not too late to get the flu shot, which can help prevent or lessen the flu's effects.
A new bombshell report about Lance Armstrong; last week it came out that the cyclist may admit to doping. But now "USA Today" is reporting that it'll go down Monday with Oprah. "USA Today" says the announcement is both a personal and business decision that he has been cornered into because of all the evidence against him.
BP has settled with as many as 100,000 plaintiffs who claim they were sickened or hurt by the 2010 Gulf oil disaster. A federal judge in New Orleans signed off on the deal yesterday. That the medical settlement covers clean-up workers and residents who live near the spill zone. A BP spokesman says the company is, quote, "pleased with the settlement".
The body of a $1 million lottery winner will now be exhumed for testing after it was discovered he in fact died of cyanide poisoning. Urooj Khan won the prize in June and was dead just one month later. Now so far, no arrests have been made.
An attorney defending an alleged rapist in Steubenville, Ohio, is asking a court to move the trial to another location. He also wants to postpone the trial and close it to the public. He says it's because of the publicity of the case, possible threats to witnesses and the safety of the defendants. Two high school football players are accused of raping a 16-year-old girl after a night of partying.
KAYE: More than 800 rape cases in New York City are being scrutinized by the medical examiner's office. A lab technician may have mishandled critical DNA evidence. Let's bring in CNN legal contributor Paul Callan to talk about this. Paul, good morning to you.
PAUL CALLAN, CNN LEGAL CONTRIBUTOR: Good morning.
KAYE: This sounds like a real mess. I mean, there is talk that this lab tech, who hasn't been identified, overlooked evidence, botched chemical tests, possibly even cross contaminated nearly a dozen rape kits. I mean isn't there some type of protocol to prevent one tech from causing such confusion?
CALLAN: Well, it's a major scandal, Randi. And you know this -- the New York ME's office prides itself in DNA technology, you know they were involved in identifying thousands of remains from 9/11 using DNA technology.
And now this particular lab technician handled some 800 cases that are being looked at over a ten-year period and they're discovering a lot of errors in her work. And of course, you know juries look at this stuff as the gold standard of guilt or innocence, DNA. And if you now establish that there are problems, it's going to cause issues in court.
KAYE: Yes.
(CROSSTALK)
KAYE: Let's -- let's talk about DNA. Because it certainly has testing -- testing DNA has certainly become better over -- over the years. I mean you were a prosecutor and you also worked defense. Put into context how much lawyers may rely on DNA evidence. I mean it's really -- it's been used so often to either convict or exonerate someone.
CALLAN: Well yes and it's particularly used in rape cases where sometimes the man and the woman -- you know there's a dispute about whether the rape actually occurred. And of course, semen can be used, blood can be used to link the rapist to his victim. And some of these cases that the New York ME's office is looking are in fact rape cases.
And you started out with the question, how can we prevent this from happening; I think you need strong regulation of these labs. We're looking at this story. Now it's kind of shocking because it's happening in New York with such a huge medical examiner's office.
But you know in researching this, it's happened in Texas. It's happened in Virginia. It's happened in North Carolina. In the famous O.J. Simpson case, there was an allegation that DNA samples had been mixed up. And that probably contributed to the acquittal in that case.
So this has to be regulated carefully. You need top-quality lab assistants and their work has to be regulated and not 10 years later. Remember she worked for 10 years --
(CROSSTALK)
KAYE: Yes.
CALLAN: -- and only now are these errors being discovered.
KAYE: So let me ask you about it -- is there any way to safeguard against human error. I mean, because there's talk now of using what's called low copy number DNA which is transmitted only by touch. I mean what's this about? And would this be more of a safeguard?
CALLED: Well no, I don't think low copy DNA would solve the problem. Low copy DNA techniques would allow you to save a sample, you know even if you have a microscopic or a very small amount of the sample available as a result of contamination by human error you can still test adequately.
But in this case, what the technician is accused of doing is missing samples completely. For instance, she would be given a garment that had either blood or semen on it and she wouldn't find anything on it.
(CROSSTALK)
KAYE: Which is exactly what she's supposed to be trained to find. CALLAN: Exactly. And when they retested a couple of these documents -- these items of garment, they found DNA samples that, in fact, identified rapists. Now, fortunately, one of the guys was already incarcerated, a sex offender. And the other was somebody who had already had been convicted. So no innocent person, says the ME's office --
(CROSSTALK)
KAYE: Yes.
CALLAN: -- has been affected by this. But it's something to look at. And jurors are going to look at it now and say, hey, do we have to worry about this DNA evidence?
KAYE: Absolutely.
CALLAN: You know it's the gold standard and maybe the gold standard is losing its luster.
KAYE: Well, we'll see what happens with this one. Paul Callan thank you so much. Enjoy your Saturday.
CALLAN: OK. Thank you. You, too, Randi.
KAYE: Thank you.
BLACKWELL: President Obama nominates some new cabinet members. The academy nominates some great performers. And in case you missed it all, here is a look back now at the week that was.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Former Senator Chuck Hagel may need those war survival skills?
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Chuck Hagel's leadership of our military would be historic.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is an in-your-face nomination by the President.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Two nightmarish incidents are now under investigation.
RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A fuel leak is always a serious matter.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is unacceptable.
BRENT MUSBERGER, SPORTSCASTER: What a beautiful woman. Wow.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think the media has been really unfair to him.
BLACKWELL: A beautiful woman, a few ugly plane problems and more petty politics ruled this week that was, one that began with some key cabinet picks like Chuck Hagel.
OBAMA: I came to admire his courage and his judgment, his willingness to speak his mind, even if it wasn't popular.
BLACKWELL: It turns out he's not too popular with some.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Chuck Hagel, if confirmed to be Secretary of Defense, would be the most antagonistic Secretary of Defense toward the state of Israel in our nation's history.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Profoundly wrong on some of the biggest national security threats confronting the United States today.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The mechanical problems just keep rolling in for Boeing's 787 Dreamliner.
BLACKWELL: More like a nightmare. Three of Boeing's brand new planes suffered a slew of issues.
SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A fire and leaking fuel error message related to the plane's breaking system.
QUEST: Are these the little glitches that Boeing says they are, or is there something else that's happening?
BLACKWELL: No. Boeing says just growing pains. But airlines are growing impatient.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They have a quality problem. And this quality problem should be resolved.
BLACKWELL: Speaking of problems.
MUSBERGER: Wow, I tell you quarterbacks, you get all the good-looking women. What a beautiful woman.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wow.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Whoa.
BLACKWELL: That's legendary sportscaster Brent Musberger oozing over the 23-year-old girlfriend of Alabama's quarterback during the BCS championship game.
WHOOPI GOLDBERG, CO-HOST, "THE VIEW": Musberger, chill out, baby.
BLACKWELL: Yes some thought it was kind of creepy, but not the beautiful woman herself.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The fact that he said that we are beautiful and gorgeous I don't see why any woman wouldn't be flattered by that.
BLACKWELL: Hey, while we're talking sports, this year's baseball Hall of Famers are -- no one. Well, three who died will get in. But Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa all shut out of Cooperstown this year. Because let's face it -- you can't be linked to doping and expect enshrinement, right?
Meantime, nominees for this year's Academy Awards were announced, "Lincoln" leads the pack with 12 nods, "Twilight" is second with 11. Yes, just kidding. That's Razzie nominations. "Twilight" for worst -- well, everything -- hey at least they got recognized for something.
And that's the week that was.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAYE: They call him "Punch Baby" for a reason. We'll introduce you to a world champion fighter. And you will not believe how old he is.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KAYE: Welcome back. 41 minutes past the hour now.
He has done more with his time on this planet than some people do in a lifetime and he is just 13; Reshat Mati has all kinds of nicknames from "Punch Baby" to the "Albanian Bear". But "Champion" might be the one that he hears the most.
Reshat Mati joins me now live from New York. Thanks for being here Reshat. Good morning.
RESHAT MATI, 13-YEAR-OLD MMA FIGHTER: Good morning.
KAYE: I want to talk to you about your fighting, but I really want our viewers to get a good look at you in action. So I want to show some of this video. It was shot by Thinker. And it shows you here, in the ring. I mean you do not stop. You're quick. You're a national boxing champion. You're a seven-time North American submission champion. You're a junior Olympic boxing champion. I mean, I'm looking at you taking -- look at you take on your instructor there.
So tell me, as we look at this, I mean, why fighting? What do you like about it so much? And how did you get so good at it?
MATI: Oh well, my dad said when I was a little baby, I -- I used to punch a lot. And well, after I tried some two sports, I really didn't like -- depending on one person if he messed up, the whole team were messed up. But you know in boxing, if you mess up, it's your fault. But I like if you win, you know that you're the person that won.
KAYE: You look so brave, though. I mean, you really take these people on, even the adults. I mean, what are you thinking about when you're in that ring and when you're fighting?
MATI: Well when I'm in the ring, I usually feel two things. I have to feel mentally and physically able to compete. But also if you compete and you're like not able to like physically prepare, I still try to fight.
KAYE: And your dad teaches you the moves. His father taught him the boxing moves and your dad is very much on your mind in the ring as well, right? MATI: Yes.
KAYE: Is there a lot of pressure?
MATI: It kind of is. Because when he comes, he like -- I have to like win it, but at the same time I want to win myself. But I also want to make him proud of what I'm doing for most of my life, which is boxing, wrestling, jujitsu.
KAYE: And you've already accomplished so much, as we mentioned. I mean you've won so many championships. Do you see yourself staying with fighting I mean or do you want to try another sport? Or is this it for you?
MATI: Honestly, I think I actually want to continue boxing and stuff because I -- I kind of like it. I like it better than other sports.
KAYE: What do your friends think of what you do?
MATI: They think it's amazing how I box because a lot of them like football and other -- all the team sports. But individual sports I think it's amazing how you're the only person that's like trying to win.
KAYE: Yes. So when there's a fight in the schoolyard, are you the one who settles it? Do you even have time for school with all that you're doing?
MATI: I don't -- Usually I don't like to fight in school. It's not the right thing to do. But certain time or situation, I'll fight, honestly. I try to like avoid until I try to go into the ring. That's the only time I'm fighting.
KAYE: How do you balance school work with everything you're doing? There's probably a lot of kids who say, hey, I want to do something like that, but who has the time? I have to study.
MATI: Since I go to high school now, I do my homework sometimes at school, sometimes during my lunch period. I go home. I eat. I do my homework and after I'm done with that, I go to training.
KAYE: Wow. That's a lot of work.
MATI: Yes.
KAYE: And a lot of dedication. Reshat Mati, we wish you well and we're going to continue to follow your career. Thank you.
MATI: All right. Thank you.
BLACKWELL: Wow. The Golden Globes, they are tomorrow night. And the hosts of the show -- Tina Fey, Amy Poehler -- they're bringing something new, an official drinking game. We'll explain.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KAYE: When traveling to other cities and countries, the best way to get a real taste of the place is through the local food. CNN iReport has now teamed up with "Travel & Leisure" magazine to create a global list of 100 places to eat like a local. Here is CNN's Anna Coren in Beijing with a sample.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANN COREN, CNN INTERNATIONAL: Hi, I'm Anna Coren in Beijing. When I want to eat like a local, I come to YaoJi (ph). Let's go on a tour. Come with me.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Got corn cakes here and some brown sugar rolls here.
COREN: OK. And what are we going to order?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We'll be ordering noodles and some --
COREN: OK. Sounds good. Good.
Mrs. Yao (ph) has owned this place, YaoJi for 30 years, which is quite extraordinary. And she's sitting down with us now. I want to ask her about this food. What is so special about this food?
YAO YAN, OWNER YAOJI CHEOGAN RESTAURANT (through translator): My restaurant is famous. Our food is made with care and it really has the old Beijing flavor.
YAO LONG, CHEF (through translator): The Forbidden City had a dish called stewed pork. Ordinary citizens changed the recipe over time and started using intestines and organs.
COREN: Now, this is the dish if you want to come here. It's called gulu (ph). It is heart, intestines and liver. It has an interesting smell to it but I'm assured by the chef that it's very nutritious, very good for you.
This place is known for pig's liver, chicken's heart, or cow intestines. But I feel a bit more adventurous. I'm going to go for the noodles. Tasty
So if you want to be a tourist, go to the places in the guide book. But if you want to be a local, eat like a local then come to YaoJi.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: All right, iReporters, here is your chance to help create a food lover's map of the world. Go to iReport.com/100places. Send us a photo of your favorite restaurant and dish and why it's special and how you discovered the place. The definitive list of 100 places to eat like a local will be revealed in March and some iReporters will be on that list. Stay tuned to see if you will be one of them.
We'll be back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CONAN O'BRIEN, TALK SHOW HOST: The movie "Lincoln" received 12 Oscar nominations. That's right. Yes. Yes. You know what that means. Sequel -- huh? "Lincoln 2: the Lincolning".
"Lincoln 2: Breaking Dawn"; "Weekend at Abe's".
O'BRIEN: "Weekend at Abe's".
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Hey, the Oscar nominations were this week and there were some snubs and some surprises. Here is a look at some of the nominees for best picture.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They think we're all going to drown down here, but we aren't going nowhere.
RUSSELL CROWE, ACTOR: Prisoner 24601, your time is up and your parole's begun. You know what that means.
HUGH JACKMAN, ACTOR: Yes means I'm free.
JOAQUIN PHOENIX, ACTOR: What are you doing?
PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN, ACTOR: I am a writer, a doctor, a nuclear physicist, a theoretical philosopher. But above all, I am a man.
LEONARDO DICAPRIO, ACTOR: What's your name, boy?
CHRISTOPHER WALTZ, ACTOR: His name is Django Freeman.
DICAPRIO: Where did you dig him up?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is it. There's nobody else hidden away on some other floor. There's just us. We are failing.
JENNIFER LAWRENCE, ACTRESS: Are you going to walk me home or what?
BRADLEY COOPER, ACTOR: You mean me?
LAWRENCE: Yes, you. Are you going to walk me home?
COOPER: You have poor social skills. You have a problem.
LAWRENCE: I have a problem? You say more inappropriate things than appropriate things.
DANIEL DAY LEWIS, ACTOR: You stepped out upon the world stage now with the fate of human dignity in our hands. Blood has been spilled to afford us this moment now, now, now.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BLACKWELL: I've got a lot of catching up to do on movies. The Oscars are still more than a month away. We've got another big show coming up this weekend, the Golden Globes, Hollywood's second biggest night of the year.
Earlier, I spoke with entertainment correspondent Nischelle Turner, about tomorrow night's contenders.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN SHOWBIZ CORRESPONDENT: Coming up this week's announcement of the Oscar nominations.
Everyone will be looking to see how top nominee "Lincoln" is going to fair at the Golden Globes. Now the Steven Spielberg drama is going in with a total of seven nominations. It is the clear front-runner for best motion picture in the drama category but it's up against some stiff competition. Up against "Django Unchained", "Life of Pi", "Zero Dark Thirty" and "Argo". So that's a good list there of movies.
BLACKWELL: OK. So "Lincoln" is the front runner for best film in the drama category.
TURNER: Yes.
BLACKWELL: Let's talk about the best actors in the drama category. Is Daniel Day Lewis also -- is he a lock this year?
TURNER: You know, it's hard to say that anyone is a lock, because I think, especially in the best actor categories, there were so many strong performances this year that, to me, anyone could win and they would be justified. But Daniel Day Lewis is up for the movie "Lincoln" and he is up against Richard Gere for "Arbitrage" a little movie that not a lot of people saw but he was great in it; John Hawkes for "The Sessions", again phenomenal; Joaquin Phoenix in "The Master", that movie trailed off a little bit because it came out earlier. But that performance that he did was phenomenal.
And Denzel Washington in "Flight", which I think is his best performance ever. I never thought I would say that after seeing him in "Malcolm X". And you know Denzel Washington is, well, Denzel.
BLACKWELL: Yes. And he gets better and better and better with each film.
TURNER: Absolutely.
BLACKWELL: Let's now go to the actresses.
I hear Jennifer Chastain (SIC) is getting a lot of buzz, again another performance I haven't seen but in "Zero Dark Thirty" apparently she's doing pretty well.
TURNER: Yes. You need to spend an entire day at the movie theater Victor but yes --
BLACKWELL: I know. I know.
TURNER: She is. But this is a really competitive category this year so I think voters had some very difficult decisions to make. Now we're looking at Jessica Chastain for "Zero Dark Thirty" in this category. There's also though Marion Cotillard for "Rust and Bone", Helen Mirren is nominated for "Hitchcock", Naomi Watts for "The Impossible" and she is making a late strong push. She really wants to do well this award season. And also Rachel Weisz for Deep Blue Sea.
BLACKWELL: Tina Fey, Amy Poehler hosting this year. I want to play something for you. Listen why Tina says she thinks they're a perfect fit for this show.
TURNER: OK.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AMY POEHLER, COMEDIAN: Well, we decided to host because the Golden Globes seem like they're pretty fun.
TINA FEY, COMEDIAN: Yes. We've been to them before and it's a very kind of sloppy loud party and that seemed like our kind of thing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: Who doesn't love a sloppy, loud party, right? And they're going to actually help us have a sloppy, loud party at home with a drinking game for the show.
TURNER: Can I tell you how excited I am to see these ladies host the Golden Globes? This, I think, is going to be so much fun. And yes, everyone is talking about what we can expect from them.
They have kicked off this drinking game. Here are some of the rules. First of all, they say any time an actress cries during a speech, have a drink. Any time you see a person actively not listening to someone on stage, take a drink.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
TURNER: Any time someone says "I didn't prepare anything", drink.
There are going to be people, I bet you that are doing this at home. But I do think that the ladies would tell you if you're following these rules, wear lots of layers but also drink responsibly.
