June 2008 - Posts
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
As we often try to do around here, we hosted a noted energy expert today for an informal lunch and editorial board meeting. Daniel Yergin came by, and was very generous with his time and opinions. He was quoted over the weekend in a New York Times piece on the current situation in Nigeria, and testified before Congress just days ago. He's a veteran of the energy wars -- and by temperament and experience he remains optimistic that technology will emerge to help us with our problems (he is quick to point out it will take more than technology alone). That is a gross oversimplification of the long and nuanced presentation he gave (answers to our non-stop questions), but as experts go in this vital field, he has seen it all, over two generations of American life -- from the gas lines of the mid-1970's... to the gas lines I saw while driving the family on the Jersey Turnpike this weekend.
The New York Times and the New Yorker magazine have both contributed to the renewal of the discussion of the war in Afghanistan. I feel as if our trip there was timed well to coincide with an increase in attention to that conflict, where we just learned that the number of coalition troops who died exceeded the U.S. death toll in Iraq for the second straight month. Our focus aired last week, in the story we hand-carried back from the field and , on the whereabouts of Osama Bin Laden, is also proving timely. A lot of people have asked about the trip, and how I found the Americans in the fight. I found morale to be high -- highly-motivated soldiers who believe in the mission and the people (and history) of Afghanistan. I heard many open complaints about resources -- specifically, not having enough because of the drain that Iraq represents.
We're working on what we think is a very solid Monday night broadcast -- for a number of factors, a lot of our stories have to do with the environment tonight. We hope you can join us.
By Michelle Kosinski, NBC News correspondent
A few weeks ago, on a flight over the Pacific, I was surprised to be handed a menu-- with a gleaming photo of a lionfish on the cover. It wasn't actually ON the menu that night, but it reminded us that the formidable fish with the mane of poisonous spines and a seemingly boundless appetite of its own, is actually a food item on the other side of the world, and decidedly NOT an environmental menace.
Over here in the Atlantic, not so much.
Scientists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, among other entities studying the issue, have made lionfish Priority One, in the battle against invasive species. A rapid response plan is being crafted, to deal with them in our waters.
Avid divers, who know the reefs off Florida and the Bahamas, tell the story: A few years ago, they were somewhat awed to suddenly see the gorgeous specimen show up outside the Pacific. A fluke, they thought... maybe someone had released one from an aquarium, once they realized it would devour all the other pet fish in short order. Irresponsible to release them, but no real harm done-- they thought.
CONTINUED >>
By Lester Holt, NBC News anchor
Coming off a week that saw oil top $140, and the Dow sliding towards bear market territory, our colleagues at CNBC are releasing a poll this evening that shows, among other things, an overwhelming majority of Americans think the economy is in fair or poor shape. There are also new indications of the brewing economic trouble; high gas prices and real estate woes are now beginning to take a toll on the wealthy. We'll have more findings from that poll on Nightly News tonight as we try to explain all the forces eating at the economy, and why turning the corner toward recovery seems so difficult.
On a related note, the price of crude oil is affecting drivers in more ways than just the cost of gasoline. Savannah Guthrie is working on a piece for tonight about why we all may be facing more uneven and bumpy road surfaces as we drive this summer.
Michael Okwu continues his reporting on the Northern California fires, and the growing threat they pose to public health. Air pollution levels are high and it is having a profound effect on how many Californians are going about their lives.
We will also be looking at the science of speed and the controversy over the swim suits American athletes may be competing in at the summer Olympics. Some say they provide an unfair advantage, and NBC's Leanne Gregg will explain why.
I hope you'll join us for NBC Nightly News.
Editor's note: For a look inside the new planetarium, watch the video below.
By Denise Baker and Ron Mott, NBC News
I was the kid who missed all the class trips to the Adler Planetarium in my hometown of Chicago, so I learned alot of things while producing this story. I learned that planetarium domes don't open up and present a magnified view of the sky. (Yes, I now know, that's an observatory.) I also learned that it's extremely relaxing to recline in the dark and watch images of galaxies digitally projected with music tracks in stereo surround sound. But the most important lesson I will take away from this story is that dreams don't have to bow to limitations.
Despite her visual challenges, Kris McCall chased her dreams and now shares them with thousands of others. She credits her mother who fought to keep her in mainstream classrooms, and her 14-year-old daughter Kira Celeste, who keeps her grounded. I came up with the title "Star Lady" for this segment before we traveled to Nashville to tape the story. After meeting Kris McCall, I can say she is that and so much more.
CONTINUED >>
By Lester Holt, NBC News anchor
The elements have stolen the headlines more times than I can count these past two months. From an especially active tornado season, to massive flooding in the Midwest, to drought and wildfires in the west, and we’re only a week into summer. That's certainly a sobering thought in California where true to all the predictions, this has been an early and awful fire season. The Big Sur area, a popular weekend getaway with its art galleries and trendy inns, is under siege from a fire that has shutdown the famous Highway 1, and destroyed 16 homes. There have been at least a thousand wildfires reported this past week from the central California coast all the way to the northern tip of California. We're talking over 400 square miles that have been charred. NBC's Michael Okwu is reporting that story for us tonight.
Much farther east, nature has won another round against man in the flood battle along the Mississippi River. We'll tell you about one town's valiant effort to save their community, and how it came to an end just before dawn today.
CONTINUED >>
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
I'm typing this from our NBC News Washington Bureau. I'm in town to fulfill an obligation that was on Tim Russert's calendar -- as we all scramble to fulfill obligations and plug the many holes that his passing leaves behind in our lives and work. One good sign: our colleagues here in this bureau who work so hard to pump out so much television week in and week out -- are starting to take a little time off, sporadically -- letting up a bit from the non-stop tempo of recent days and weeks. We have plenty of folks to cover every story and guarantee that not a beat gets missed -- it's just cheering to see healing and the return of a few smiles to this great place. Besides, I got to see David Brooks in the hallway, talked about this past Supreme Court term with the great Pete Williams (no relation -- in family name or greatness) and watched just now as Pat Buchanan walked in from the parking lot. I take my excitement where I can get it.
Tonight we have a tale of Democratic Unity, a story on climate change, Tom Brokaw's interview with Bill Gates, an extraordinary woman to introduce you to (we discovered her in Afghanistan) and then I'm off for a battery-recharging day on my beloved home turf, the Jersey Shore. Please join us tonight and again on Monday. Have a good and safe weekend.
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
The headline on the Reuters News Agency wire story this afternoon was fairly declarative: SCIENTISTS SAY MARTIAN SOIL COULD SUPPORT LIFE. Alrighty then.
This on a day when the Supreme Court defined the Second Amendment for us, and Goldman Sachs put out a "sell" rating on General Motors. That's General Motors. That's a first.
We also learned today that we've lost a part of U.S. military history, with the death of Chuck Dryden.
This is no time to turn away. Take a day off from the consumption of news, and you're going to miss something big. Like Luke Russert on Larry King last night, and the new pieces of "public art" here in New York that we'll show you tonight.
I saw a screening of Gonzo last night. Anyone with even a passing interest in Hunter S. Thompson should try to see it. I was surprised to find that Nightly News plays a cameo role in the film -- among others much more notable, including Tom Wolfe and Jimmy Buffett and Jann Wenner, all three of whom were on hand last night.
We are watching the financial markets closely. All 30 of the Dow stocks are currently lower, and oil has set another record. One analyst wondered today whether we're "on the edge of an abyss" concerning major U.S. corporations and their role in the economy.
It's an eventful Thursday here in New York. We hope you can join us this Thursday night.
By Janet Shamlian, NBC News correspondent
It's only an hour from New Orleans by helicopter but it feels farther. For the last day or so, I've been working, eating and sleeping on an oil platform floating in thousands of feet of the bluest gulf waters I've ever seen. It's much like a factory; I've been wearing steel-toe shoes, and hard-hats are standard issue.
As isolated as it is from just about everything, offshore oil and gas platforms like Genesis are at the center of the debate over energy right now. This trip enabled us to talk to those on the front lines for a nuts and bolts look at the process itself.
I was alongside a young engineer as he siphoned a cup full of oil from a well for testing. It was warm--just out of the ground, thousands of feet below where we stood. In the middle of the night, rig workers used a drill to repair a well that suffered damage during hurricane Rita. I didn't actually see that one, but I sure could hear it. Right now, I'm working in an office that could be in any American city except for the view of endless water out the window and the vibration from a helicopter landing on its pad two levels above me.
We'll spend one more night here before heading back to New Orleans in the morning. The workers we've met will stay until their two week tour is up.. heading home for an equal amount of time before Genesis calls them back.
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
Having spent last evening and a good part of the day with my buddy Richard Engel (and in keeping with this week's theme of highlighting the work of others), allow me to remind everyone to buy Richard's superb new book. He's here in this country for a bit longer on book tour, and I highly recommend it.
In political circles, a recent column by Richard Cohen is receiving a lot of comment -- some of it having to do with Cohen's courage in writing it, in addition to his central point, which is central to the current campaign.
We have a number of important stories tonight -- climate, fires, the Court, Africa, the economy -- and more of our reporting from our last trip. We hope you can join us.
By John Rutherford, Producer, NBC News, Washington
With their diverse backgrounds, they could have been characters in an old World War II novel, but their lives were very real, and so were their deaths.
Michael Washington was the son of a Seattle firefighter. Michael Patton recently married his high school sweetheart back home in Fenton, Mo. Dawid Pietrek was an immigrant from Poland. Layton Crass loved to mimic Jim Carrey growing up in eastern Indiana.
"I couldn't help laughing at the kid," Crass' mother told pal-item.com.
The four members of the 1st Marine Division died instantly when a roadside bomb tore through their Humvee on June 14, the latest casualties of the increasingly bloody conflict in Afghanistan.
"They didn't know what hit 'em," Crass' father said.
They are among 18 American combat deaths so far this month in Afghanistan, compared to 12 in Iraq. Last month, for the first time, the number of coalition soldiers killed in action in Afghanistan exceeded the death toll in Iraq.
"They've increased in an absolute sense, but more significantly, they're now higher than they are in Iraq, and of course that gets everyone's attention," NBC Military Analyst Jack Jacobs said in an interview.
CONTINUED >>
By Martin Fletcher, NBC News correspondent
What to do when a young man, with a student's fine fingers, in a land of rough farmers and mountain men, breaks down and cries that he just wants to go home to his mother and father?
The name Hamza is not his real name, but it's the name this alleged suicide bomber goes by. He's an Afghani who says he spent eight years studying Islam in a Pakistani Madrass, that he did a favor to an Arab, and now he's in jail in Kabul, facing a possible death sentence, or decades in a smelly prison.
When he walked into the room, a tiny prison cell, his wrists red and swollen from the metal handcuffs, his eyes shyly averted, I could only think - what a dope! He didn't have to say a word for me to understand. I've met a number of failed suicide bombers, in prisons around the world, and they mostly have the same kind of story: young men sold on paradise by radical Islamic fighters. The men who give the orders wouldn't kill themselves; after all, they're too critical for the struggle, but are happy to send naïve young people to their deaths. And here was another victim.
As Hamza told his story, and talked about his old parents who need him, tears coursed down his cheeks and he gulped back sobs. He's 28, six years older than the other guy we spoke to, Abdel Marouk, who was much more hard-core. He admitted freely that he belonged to Al-Qaeda, wanted to be a suicide bomber, explained why in a coherent, calm manner, and will certainly soon be killed: that's the way it is in Afghanistan.
But Hamza? I felt that I understood him, but that he was doomed. He said that an Arab trained him for two days on how to operate a video camera, and then asked him to go to Afghanistan with Marouk to film an explosion: a landmine in the road. I believed him when he said that he was tricked. But what I believe doesn't matter because the Afghani interrogator didn't believe him. The security official said that Hamza, like Marouk, was an al-Quaeda fighter who had fought in Iraq, trained in Pakistan, and had been on his way to kill Americans in Afghanistan.
When Hamza left the little cell, his head bowed, his eyes glistening, I shook his handcuffed hand and wished him luck. His eyes locked briefly onto mine, searching for encouragement, for a sign that he had a future, but I could only look away.
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
I think constantly about the struggle between optimism and pessimism as a world view.
Luke Russert held up a glass of water ("half full," he was sure to point out) at his father's memorial service to illustrate Tim's view of the world -- and yet, every day we're surrounded by evidence that the evidence is piling up to the contrary.
Those of us who are raising children have even more reason to fret over the world that we will hand them someday. Never have I seen a recitation of the ills of our current existence like the one I link to here. It's the work of two Associated Press writers; it appeared over the weekend.
How you react to the story may indicate how you view the world -- and the water glass. Take a look and tell me what you think.
And in your spare time: I hope you can join us for tonight's broadcast.
By Michelle Kosinski, NBC News Correspondent
One after the other, trucks rumble into the dusty lot behind Cal Tigchelaar’s sprawling complex and dump mountains of garbage at his feet.
Ah, the sweet smell of success.
It smells pretty fierce actually, and we gag a little in the heat of the late suburban Chicago spring. All the while, watching in amazement the sheer volume of it all.
And it's not really garbage--definitely not in Cal's eyes. He's a little sensitive about that word.
"Recyclables," he corrects us, when one of us slips and calls his endless pile of odds and ends "trash.” To him, it amounts to a gold mine.
He started his company years ago as a garbage collection service and then, slowly, perceived a new market opening up before his eyes. Asia wants our trash: paper, plastic, metal. They want a lot of it. More than we can even supply.
And China, India, and surrounding countries are willing to pay unprecedented prices for it.
CONTINUED >>
By Mara Schiavocampo, NBC Nightly News digital correspondent
In the last few years border control has become a big issue, though recently it's been pushed off the radar by the three E's: Economy, Election, Engagement in Iraq (ok, so maybe the last 'E' is a creative stretch).
How big is the decline? Border arrests are down 17% so far this year. They were down 20% in 2007. When fewer people are arrested we can assume fewer people are attempting to cross.
Why? First, U.S. Border Patrol is beefing up its force.
By the end of the year there will be an estimated 18,000 agents (double the size of the force in 2001), making Border Patrol the largest armed law enforcement agency in the nation.
Second, potential migrants are discouraged from crossing because the ailing U.S. economy means jobs are scarce. Also, deportations are up almost 60% since 2005. Some potential migrants are adding all of this together and deciding it's just not worth the trip.
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
Today's luncheon in the Rainbow Room here at 30 Rock had been on my calendar for months. The Newhouse School at Syracuse University conferred upon Tim Russert its Mirror Award for Lifetime Achievement. Along with many others in the industry, I took part in an advance-produced videotape tribute for Tim -- I did that on the day before I left for Afghanistan. The only thing missing from today's lunch was the honoree himself. Instead, I accepted the award on his behalf, and made sure it will be sent to his widow and son.
There is one story from backstage at the Kennedy Center on the day of the Memorial Service that deserves repeating: it happened in the green room, a collection of black leather couches where all eight speakers sat chatting before the program. Mostly, we were going through our notes and remarks, writing and re-writing -- greeting old friends and visitors backstage -- a combination of laughter and tears, and we all piled on Maria Shriver when she arrived a bit late. The most extraordinary moment came when Sister Lucille of Buffalo sat down next to Former New York Governor Mario Cuomo. She greeted him in Italian. He responded. They proceeded to engage in a spirited conversation, employing not a word of English. It was great to watch...and I never did ask Sister Lucille what it was they were talking about! I couldn't help but remark to Mike Barnicle that the one guy who would have loved that moment -- and re-telling that story -- wasn't there to witness it.
I'm so happy for our NBC News family, and especially for all of my friends in the Washington bureau, that Tom has come forward to host Meet the Press throughout this political season. It means a lot to everyone, especially the incredible Meet the Press editorial and production staff, who somehow were able to put together a broadcast this past weekend.
The work of this broadcast goes on. Tonight we have many fronts covered, including a story I was writing on that Friday night in Afghanistan when I got the call about Tim. We'll also cover the oil situation, the floods and the death last night of the comedy iconoclast George Carlin.
We're glad to be settled back in New York, and I hope you can join us tonight and all this week.
By Lester Holt, NBC News Anchor
All eyes this weekend have been on Saudi Arabia where oil producers and oil company bosses met in an emergency summit to discuss soaring energy prices. The upshot of the meeting is that the Saudis have agreed to increase production if the market needs it. It is probably safe to say that the vague pledge falls short of what price weary American drivers were hoping to hear; we'll know for sure when the oil markets open tomorrow. In the meantime, Kevin Tibbles is talking to the experts and on Nightly News, he will have much more on that meeting and what it could mean for you at the pump.
Water is our other big story. There’s still too much along the Mississippi River, though things today are looking better. And in California there is not enough water. Hot temperatures, coupled with a drought, have created dangerously dry conditions. As a result, there have been lots of wildfires erupting. We'll have reports from both places.
Overseas, NBC's Stephanie Gosk reports on the intimidation of opposition supporters in Zimbabwe, and the sudden withdrawal of the opposition leader from the runoff election in which he was to challenge Robert Mugabe for the presidency. CONTINUED >>
By Lester Holt, NBC News Anchor
The Midwest flooding is a regional tragedy, but it is increasingly having a national impact. Millions of acres of farm land have been ruined, and barge traffic that moves all manner of products on the Mississippi River, has been brought to a standstill. On tonight’s broadcast we'll have the latest on the fight to hold back the waters, as well as the latest flood forecast. We will also focus on the disruption of commerce that Americans far outside the flood zone may be feeling in the weeks to come.
This being an election year, it is no surprise that the flooding has become an issue in the race for the White House. NBC's Lee Cowan will be reporting that Barack Obama has used the disaster as a point of attack on John McCain over a position he once took on a piece of flood control legislation.
Heat is the big story we're covering out west where triple-digit temperatures up and down the California coast are creating a serious health threat, and putting very heavy demand on the power grid.
CONTINUED >>
By Ann Curry, NBC News Anchor
This morning's report in the New York Times, saying U.S. officials believe Israel has carried out a major military exercise for a potential bombing attack on Iran should have every other news organization scrambling.
More than 100 Israeli F-16's and F-15's were involved, according to the Times, carrying out long range strikes over the Mediterranean, and Greece, last June.
A high ranking cleric in Iran reacted, saying both the U.S. and Israel would receive a "strong slap in the face" if such an airstrike were to happen.
Also in reaction, oil prices rose three or four dollars a barrel at one point today.
So why is this report not playing big on the news cables and wires?
I worry news organizations are sensing that as Americans become increasingly self focused, struggling with worries about the economy, we are less interested in the troubles of the world.
We don't have to look back too many years to see the folly of this sort of myopia, so let us all hope we are instead rising into a citizenry that can handle the truth all over the world, if for no one else, our children.
We will tonight tell you about the economy, and there is indeed news about Ford delaying production of its once biggest selling truck because of diminishing sales, and also news about the ways people are learning to stretch their dollars.
But in our reporting tonight, we will also tell you what Israeli airstrikes on Iran would mean to the stability of the world.
Whether you want to know it or not, you should.
by Truus Bos, NBC Producer, London
The British government has announced a $200 million program to make 12 English towns more bicycle-friendly. Bicycling has become much more popular here, but cyclists in London and other cities find themselves dodging cars and breaking traffic rules because few special lanes exist for them. The money will be spent on creating cycle-renting schemes like the one in Paris, building dedicated cycling lanes and bike parking facilities, and cycle training. The aim of this program is to get more people to build exercise into their daily lives and tackle growing levels of obesity in the UK.
I grew up in Holland, where everyone learns to bicycle shortly after they learn to walk. My mother bicycled until she was well in her 70s and her vision started failing. I haven't lived in Holland for some time now, but when I was working there recently I noticed some odd bicycles I have never seen before. I saw a two-generation red tandem bike leaning against a canal house and a small "bakfiets": a bike with an open box between the handlebar and the front wheel. Versions of these were around when I was growing up there, but these were new and different and used for different purposes.
CONTINUED >>
By Ann Curry, NBC News anchor
On this day forward after saying goodbye to NBC News' mighty moral compass, Tim Russert, you can see the wear on the faces of our Nightly News staff back in New York.
Looking at us you can see we are transforming, each one of us doing our best to shore up ourselves and this lost cornerstone in the house of NBC News.
As we launch again into our daily battles for facts and questions and leads and as importantly, clarity over the direction this network should go, we have in our pockets the benefit of being able to ask ourselves, what would Russert do?
Anyone who knew him well enough to have an answer for that question should feel lucky. We have a chance to be inspired to be better parents, and better human beings, and also better at this job of informing with the truth, whether in our edit rooms, our editorial meetings, or executive offices.
However unworthy we feel we are to rise and grab the baton we are now being given, we at least can see the path before us, paved by one of the greats of our time.
What would Russert do?
Run, strong and sure toward our duty to give people the quality of journalism they deserve, taking care of each other along the way.
"Go, go, go," Tim would say, pumping his fist.
Brian Williams is among the eulogists at Tim Russert's memorial service, which ends shortly before air time. He will thus be unable to post today.
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
I write this on the sad train ride to Washington. A trip I wish I didn't have to make. Those of us who are members of the NBC News family are in for two excruciatingly sad days ahead.
But much more importantly -- speaking for the New York-based delegation that is today southbound by plane and train: we have an important role to provide comfort and support to those who need it most, the Russert family and our beloved friends and colleagues in the Washington bureau. They are a close-knit bunch. I was once a member of their ranks (now ex-officio, I guess) and I know the place and the people all too well. A lot of us have flown a lot of miles together and endured what seemed like various crises at the time. Nothing like this.
In talking to Tom Brokaw yesterday, I realized neither of us has yet caught our breath. It's still not there -- totally depleted since that afternoon when the word arrived. There are hundreds of us, all walking around the same way, pretending to function, not really caring about much else for now. CONTINUED >>
By John Rutherford, Producer, NBC News, Washington
Judith O'Connor was only three months old when her father disappeared on a bombing run over Germany in World War II.
"I grew up thinking every day he would come home," Judith said in an interview. "I used to look at people who I knew were his age, thinking maybe he had amnesia, maybe he's back, maybe he has another family."
But Staff Sgt. Francis Larrivee never came home to Laconia, N.H. His remains were recovered a few years ago from beneath a farm field in eastern Germany and buried last Thursday at Arlington National Cemetery, along with the remains of his crew mates aboard their crippled B-24J Liberator. CONTINUED >>
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
I've heard the word "cornerstone" more than once today. It has been used to describe Tim Russert's role in our lives and our organization.
We are back from Afghanistan, by way of a long and circuitous route. I kept saying on the journey back that I just wanted to get home -- to my family, to my work family and to this newsroom.
Tomorrow I will go where we are all perhaps most needed: to visit our friends in the Washington bureau. These are dark days indeed. We have suffered a terrible blow, a colossal loss, and it's still so very fresh.
I hope you all got to see Meet the Press. I hope you all get to see what Luke Russert said on Today this morning. And how he said it. All you need to know about Tim and his wife Maureen as parents was on display this morning in the demeanor and command displayed by that terrific young man.
Our broadcast will originate from Washington on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. Please forgive us if we are so much as one notch under perfect this week, as we are struggling to do our jobs, cover stories, do the writing and producing and get it all on the air -- while missing and mourning our North Star.
Over time, we will also broadcast the work we were planning to air from Afghanistan. Tonight we'll air the interview with the American four-star commander. On this coming Friday night, we'll air the story I'd planned on airing last Friday night. In fact, I was in the middle of writing it when the phone call came from New York that Tim had collapsed in Washington. It's still in my computer, half-written, just sitting there. The time stamp on it represents the moment time stood still for all of us, as the wave of bad news crashed down upon us--from Washington to New York to Bagram Air Field.
Thank you, all of you, for the outpouring of support and condolences. We are obviously single-minded in our support for Tim's family members -- that, right now, is our only concern. We'll be alright -- the sun will come up tomorrow -- but we'll be without the man who cast such a formidable shadow around here, as a beloved figure in this organization.
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
We are dealing with the worst news imaginable here on the other side of the world in Afghanistan.
Tim Russert is gone.
He was a giant in our company, in our lives, and in the combined fields of journalism and politics.
He was my friend for many years, and my on-air partner during the most exciting political year in generations.
The members of Tim's NBC News family are thinking only of the members of Tim's own family in the wake of this staggering, overpowering and sudden loss.
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
We are working out of an aircraft hangar at Bagram Air Field in Afghanistan. Behind us are Apache Longbow helicopters, and behind them is the flightline and primary runway.
Every so often, pairs of F-15's, F-16's and A-10's take off into the night sky. Two F-15's left here a few minutes ago, in a big hurry to get somewhere. They lit their afterburners -- and if you've ever seen a nighttime takeoff you know it's an extraordinary sight -- the cone of blue flame stretching out from each engine, almost as long as the aircraft itself. If there's a takeoff during the broadcast, it will be interesting -- as talking (and being heard) becomes briefly impossible when they're on their way into the sky. We'll deal with that when the time comes.
About the helicopters you'll be seeing behind me: they are incredible machines. I've seen them in action in Iraq. They are fitted with a deadly chain-drive gun under the nose, and missiles on the rails on each side. They are fast and contain a lot of technology; their ability to track multiple targets from vast distances gives them the element of surprise--when they work right. CONTINUED >>
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
This was not an average day. Sustained only by Coke, coffee and adrenaline, I don't think there is a member of this team operating on more than 3.5 hours of sleep over the last 36 hours, and today we covered a lot of ground -- we are trying to power our way straight through to our 3am local airtime, and I'm genuinely hoping my eyes don't seal up first. At least we get to spend tomorrow night in sleeping bags at an airbase.
I took a lot of notes on our travels today (there are new photos of our day, including one of me in the back of a military SUV that came equipped with an ammo box full of 30-shot clips of M-4 rounds -- it made for a great armrest), which will have to wait for a later date to compile and put into narrative travelogue form.
I've flown in Blackhawk helicopters over some pretty hairy territory, but today was the first time I've been asked for my blood type prior to takeoff. It turned out to be an uneventful flight (except for the 50-knot crosswinds whipping through the rear of the aircraft, where we were, flying with the doors off, making any shooting of videotaped conversations impossible) to an interesting place -- a Special Forces outpost you'll see on the broadcast tonight. A highly-motivated American major has a starring role in tonight's piece, and you can decide for yourselves about the new American/Afghan initiative in this war in Afghanistan.
I'm off to dunk my head in the sink and start writing -- we hope you will join us to see the results of our day -- and the other reporting we have on the day's news, including the tornado in Iowa (one of over 50 yesterday) and the ongoing and awful flooding in Iowa and elsewhere. Also, today's Supreme Court decision (even the way it was handed down) was a big one. We'll look for you from Kabul tonight -- and tomorrow night: from points north.
Photos by Subrata De/NBC Nightly News
By Martin Fletcher, NBC News correspondent, in Afghanistan
What a crazy kaleidoscope of images! The last time I was here was to spend Christmas with the American troops in Jalalabad. There, it was predictable and organized to a T. This time I’m spending my time with the Afghanis and it’s chaos: colorful, fascinating, enchanting.
In four days Paul, Dave and I have:
--hitched a ride on the world’s oldest truck, which wheezed up a modest gradient at six miles per hour, while the driver took three minutes, hands off the wheel, to light his cigarette;
--squeezed inside a tiny prison cell to talk to two suicide bombers who wanted to blow up American construction workers, but were caught: one ended the interview in tears;
--admired blind women learning to knit with wool donated by Americans;
--chatted with female art students whose main motif was eyes – the eyes of women peering through hoods or holes in walls to the outside world;
--watched as girls, who were banned from school by the Taliban government, devoured learning in a classroom where teachers earn 70 dollars a month;
--followed the charming ex-mayor of Mountain View, California as she goes about her daily round of doing good in Kabul;
--argued with corrupt cops who routinely demand money but waved us on our way;
--sipped tea with wrinkled, bearded Afghanis overlooking a cattle market, as trucks thundered by on Afghanistan’s new ring road;
--and above all, enjoyed every minute of this crash course in Afghani life.
You’ll see the results on our series of reports with Brian.
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
I'm sorry that we could not preview our visit or announce it in advance in any way -- but we're here, in the capital city of Kabul.
We inserted into Afghanistan via Dubai, which is a trip in itself, and makes for a jarring comparison -- flying from a land of such opulence and unrestrained spending and construction, into this comparatively troubled and primitive nation.
We flew aboard Pamair, which was an adventure. The bus took us out onto the tarmac, where we first laid eyes on our transportation. Approaching the aircraft, the cables from the fuselage to the tail gave away its vintage: it was clear this was one of the first 737s to roll off the Boeing assembly line in Seattle. The engines appeared to be originals -- the old Pratt and Whitney JT8Ds -- that had been fitted with the "hush kit" extenders that many commercial carriers had to use to meet noise limits at various airports.
Inside, it was more like an aircraft museum -- a lot of the fixtures and furnishings dated back to the LBJ era. I could not find the usual manufacturer's plate on the door or door frame, which would have given me the exact age of the aircraft. Stickers over some of the instruction lights indicated it was once in service in a Portuguese-speaking country, much earlier in its life. CONTINUED >>
By John Rutherford, Producer, NBC News, Washington
Army Spc. Freddy Meyers was shot in the head and actually died three times on the way back to his forward operating base in Iraq last year.
"My life flashed before my eyes and I saw my wife and I thought about her being alone and I guess I just grunted and I woke up to see a doctor doing CPR on me," he said in an interview.
The bullet shattered his skull and sent skull fragments into his brain. The 21-year-old from Greenville, Ohio, was evacuated to the National Naval Medical Center outside of Washington, DC, and has spent the past 13 months being treated for traumatic brain injury.
"I actually had to relearn how to walk and talk and everything," he said. "It's pretty intense retraining." CONTINUED >>
"NBC Nightly News" anchor and managing editor Brian Williams has arrived in Afghanistan. Williams will anchor and report live from the region starting today and continuing for the next several days. For security reasons, NBC News is not announcing any details of the travel schedule within the country in advance, except to say that he'll be spending time with U.S. forces engaged in the fight against the Taliban.
Veteran NBC News correspondent and Tel Aviv bureau chief Martin Fletcher is accompanying Williams on the trip. Fletcher and his team arrived in Afghanistan a few days earlier to begin their reporting.
In addition to reporting for "NBC Nightly News," reports from Afghanistan will air on "Today," MSNBC, and msnbc.com. Also on msnbc.com, Williams and the producers traveling with him will blog on the Daily Nightly throughout the trip.
Williams has made four trips to Iraq during the current war. During his first trip early on in the U.S. invasion effort, Williams was traveling with the U.S. Army south of Najaf when his Chinook helicopter was forced down due to enemy fire. His traveling team was rescued and surrounded protectively by an Army armored mechanized platoon and was able to fly out to safety days later. Williams later became the first NBC News correspondent to reach Baghdad during the invasion and he also covered the Iraqi elections in March 2007.
By Ann Curry, NBC News Anchor
In tonight for Brian Williams, who is on assignment, and we are working to make sense of some stunning images today:
From Sudan video of a large plane as it burns out of control, split in two, on the tarmac in Khartoum today. Hundreds were aboard, and there are reports of many casualties. (Ironically this is happening on the same day the UN announced it is cutting back critical humanitarian food flights to Sudan, specifically to Darfur, because of funding problems, which would also mean casualties.)
From Lake Delton, Wisconsin comes video of homes cracking in half, as flash flooding swells and erodes their foundations, ripping apart pipes, causing raw sewage to head toward the Wisconsin River. People are heading to high ground as more rain is predicted there, while a heat wave stifles the Northeast. And from the weird file, snow covers parts of the Northwest.
CONTINUED >>
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
I'm preparing for an interview with Senator McCain, so this will have to be brief. We're closely watching the flooding in the mid-section of the country. New York is set to break an 80-year-old high temperature record, and it is withering on the sidewalks of this City today. This promises to be another eventful week, and work awaits.
We hope you can join us for tonight's broadcast.
By Rich Gardella, NBC News producer
While the mortgage industry claims it's working to prevent foreclosures, on tonight's broadcast, Lisa Myers reports that the numbers show that many people whose mortgage loans have entered foreclosure are not getting long-term relief to help them save their homes. We'll also have several web-only reports that offer a detailed look at mediation services, loan counseling, what Iowa learned from the farm foreclosures of the 1980s and what public servants who are working in the trenches make of the current crisis.
Are you in that situation? Are you behind on your mortgage payments, or already in foreclosure? Or have you just experienced a life change which will affect your ability to pay? Consumer advocates, loan counselors and government housing officials support these recommendations about what to do:
1) Ask for help. Don't wait.
2) Contact your loan servicer. Check the servicer's website to see what help is available for borrowers needing assistance.
3) Contact a mortgage help hotline, your state's department of housing and/or a HUD-approved mortgage loan counseling service.
4) Get a HUD-approved counseling service to take your case and work with your servicer to try and get it resolved without foreclosure.
Avoid foreclosure services that charge you a fee. HUD-approved counseling agencies are generally free of charge.
5) Ask the counselor about the possibility of getting a loan modification -- changing the terms of your existing loan to terms you can afford.
6) Attend a foreclosure prevention workshop event in your area to get additional information face-to-face.
7) Don't apply for more credit.
CONTINUED >>
Editor’s note: Tonight Nightly News will air its annual tribute to graduating college students. Here’s a blog entry from Robin Skolnick, reflecting on her daughter’s high school graduation.
By Robin Skolnick, Nightly News tape producer
One of my favorite Nightly News traditions is the annual college graduation piece. It's a lovely montage of sound and music and, always, a “lump in your throat” moment.
My own lump in the throat moment comes soon, when my daughter graduates from high school.
As she looks forward, it's hard as a parent to not look back. Pulling baby pictures for her high school graduation ball is really what got me started.
CONTINUED >>
By Lester Holt, NBC News Anchor
I'm almost afraid our economy headline today won't be news to a lot of you. The average price of a gallon of regular gas has just hit $4. Many of us have been paying well over 4 bucks for several weeks now. The operative word is "average," reflecting the fact there are some parts of the country where prices are simply outrageous as opposed to staggering. All of this is changing our driving behavior. I've been checking the tire pressure more often, and trying to avoid those rabbit starts when the light turns green. A very hard habit for a Manhattan driver to break, I might add. Tonight we'll look at what this is doing to Americans and the lengths some of us are going to save some cash at the pump. Jim Forman will be reporting this story for us and I'm told he will include a clip from a 2004 newscast in which we hear drivers complaining about the soaring price of gas. When you hear the price we were griping about back then you'll either want to laugh, or cry.
Weather continues to be the other big headline, not only today but seemingly every day these last few weeks. There have been drownings associated with the massive flooding in Indiana, more tornadoes in the news and some very hot early June temperatures from North Carolina right through New York City.
Now that the fall matchup has been decided, Lee Cowan will set the stage for a presidential election campaign that will offer voters a very clear choice. Lee will show us point by point how John McCain and Barack Obama differ on virtually everything, not only generationally, but on issues from war to health care.
We'll report on First lady Laura Bush's unannounced trip to Afghanistan and follow that with more of Jim Maceda's reporting from the region. Tonight Jim looks at poppy farmers who are being forced to stop fueling opium production, only to face a choice few parents in this country could ever imagine.
Thanks for reading the blog. Have a good Sunday, and I hope we'll see you later for Nightly News.
By Lester Holt, NBC News Anchor
The last man standing in the battle for the Democratic presidential nomination is in fact, a man. As Hillary Clinton declared her firm support for Barack Obama, she opened up about the "glass ceiling" of the White House and her role as the first viable female contender for the job in a way she hasn't for much of her 17 month campaign. She also spoke about the history-making nature of both campaigns, and of course, about the need for Democratic unity. If you missed the speech, you can watch it, from beginning to end, on our Web site, nightly.msnbc.com. Ron Allen will also have key portions of it in his report tonight. Ron will examine the early reaction to her remarks, including what Barack Obama said, and more on Senator Clinton's pointed message to white, female voters.
Spring has dealt lots of rough weather to so much of the country, and our Mark Potter will tell us about the latest troubles, which include severe flooding in Indiana, and the start of a summer-like heat wave in much of the East.
Our friend from NBC Sports, Bob Costas will come on tonight to share his thoughts about the passing of legendary sportscaster Jim McKay. Many of us have vivid memories of Saturday afternoons parked in front of the TV, watching ABC's "Wide World of Sports," and hearing McKay's voice in the open, uttering those classic words, "spanning the globe." We'll tell you more about the life and career of this remarkable broadcaster on the program tonight.
We have also asked Mike Taibbi to help us understand the psyche of urban daredevils like the men who scaled the 52-story New York Times building this week with just their bare hands. Is it all about attention, (which they've gotten plenty of), or something more? Thanks for stopping by, I'll see you later on the Nightly News.
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
I didn't want anyone to think I didn't exist (after failing to show here yesterday), like in the old Soviet Union, where they denied there was any problem with the boss while playing martial music on the radio non-stop.
Yesterday, my time and attention were taken up by the death of the great Jack Lucas, and the brief retrospective on RFK that closed our broadcast. A member of the Kennedy family was kind enough to call us to thank us after the broadcast. A longer version is available on the website and I commend it to everyone's attention. It's the work of veteran producer Andy Franklin, a friend of this blog and a walking repository of the miles of film and tape in our NBC News archives.
I've been nervously watching the storm situation this afternoon -- a tornado briefly threatened the town of Rolla, Missouri, which I came to know well while I lived in the state.
We are preparing for a rather tough travel schedule in the weeks and months to come, so much of today was taken up by meetings -- and now here we are preparing for airtime tonight, having already done a special report on the network about the oil and financial markets.
I hope everybody has a good and safe weekend, and I hope you can join us tonight and again on Monday.
editor's note: Brian is in the middle of scripting two pieces for tonight's broadcast so he won't be posting today. He asks that you take a moment and read about Jack Lucas (see the blog below) and hopes you'll join him tonight on Nightly News.
Last year, for 110 straight days, we featured a different living recipient of the Medal of Honor. These are the men who have received their nation's highest military honor.
We are re-posting this entry of Jack Lucas, who died today in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. He was 80 years old.
Brian is a board member of the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation. The words and photos are courtesy of Artisan Books, publishers of Medal of Honor: Portraits of Valor Beyond the Call of Duty by Peter Collier with photographs by Nick Del Calzo.
JACK H. LUCAS
Private First Class, U.S. Marine Corps 1st Battalion, 26th Marines, 5th Marine Division
Jack Lucas was a cadet captain in the military school where his mother had enrolled him after his father’s death when he heard radio reports of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The next day he promised his mother that if she let him enlist, he would come home after the war and finish his education—but he wound up forging her signature on the consent form because she would have to lie for him. Lucas, big for his age, told the Marine recruiters he was seventeen. Shortly before being sent to the training center at Parris Island, South Carolina, he turned fourteen. CONTINUED >>
By Kevin Tibbles, NBC News correspondent
There is nothing like the roller coaster ride of "tornado season" in the Midwest... that 'nail biting-thunder and lightening-come to you know who-roller coaster ride' that often leaves small communities flattened and lives torn asunder. Since moving to the region some time ago, I have been transformed into a storm chaser of sorts.
We spend a lot of time here in the Chicago bureau watching the multi-colored blobs (usually red...sometimes fuchsia!) wreaking havoc on our computer and Weather Plus TV screens. Will a tornado hit? Where? How big? We then sit around a wonder what to do about it.
Last night, it was determined I should travel to Omaha...'just in case'. So off I headed to O'Hare airport on an ominous looking evening, listening to weather reports along the way.
Something was clearly out of sorts...the flight was leaving on time!
But, once we left the gate, my hundred or so fellow passengers and I sat on the runway for some time before taking off.
Here's where it gets good. After take-off ...as we're innocently winging our way to the town that Warren Buffett built...the captain tells us Omaha is now shut down due to weather. My seatmate leaned over and said his wife had told him before we got airborne that the TORNADO SIRENS were going off.
Well, I guess I picked the right location... except...we weren't going to Omaha anymore. Now, as the pilot explained, we were headed for Kansas City.
Out the window I could make out the shape of angry clouds, highlighted by blasts of lightening.
Kabooom!!! There was a huge bang (or at least what felt like a huge bang to this frequent flyer)...the plane lurched up and down....and back and forth.
I looked across the aisle; the guy was clinging white knuckled to his seat. I looked down...so was I.
Who knows that it was, lightening, wind, whatever...I didn't like it.
We were then told that Kansas City was also shut down!!! Meanwhile, the flight attendants were busy rushing up and down the aircraft attending to freaked passengers (not me of course)...and trying not to look freaked themselves.
We were headed back to O'Hare the pilot said. Oh great, I thought.
Out the window was what would have been the most spectacular lightning show ever. It would have been much better if I were on the ground, but instead I was 20 thousand feet up in the middle of it...trying to look like a tough TV guy.
We lunged, lurched and shook all the way down. I was humming a Beatles tune about a paper bag on one's knee.
Man, when we landed with a gentle thud...I was never so happy to hear someone to tell me to "Please remain in your seat until the captain has switched off the seatbelt sign and the plane has come to a complete stop in front of the terminal building. Please be careful opening overhead bins as items may have shifted...blah blah..."
Yes, I was back on terra firma...
By Robert Bazell, Chief science correspondent
Tonight we present another part in our series “Confronting Cancer," this one by my colleague Roger O’Neil, about a man with lung cancer who is struggling to play in the U.S. Open golf tournament.
There is always a lot to say about cancer and we can only tell a few stories each time. My apologies to everybody who didn’t see coverage of a subject they would have liked. Please send in suggestions for what we should cover in future stories. They are always most welcome.
The series started on Sunday while I was attending the world’s biggest gathering of cancer specialists, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago, and was briefly interrupted on Monday when we found out Senator Edward Kennedy was undergoing surgery for his brain tumor.
While I was in Chicago I wrote a column about the eternal question in medical journalism: Are We Winning the War on Cancer? No need to repeat those arguments, but one statistic jumped off the page at me in this presentation from the American Cancer Society.
Between 1950 and 2005 (the last year for which data are available) the death rate in the U.S. from cancer -- adjusted for the aging population -- has declined 15 percent. Almost all of that decline is likely due to fewer people smoking. By comparison, over the same period, the death rate from heart disease dropped by 64 percent! Obviously, we can’t talk of much of a victory in the war on cancer.
Some people are starting to talk about a second war on cancer, a Marshall plan, an Apollo program -- whatever metaphor you chose. Brian and I had a conversation about some of the issues involved as part of the project Standup2Cancer sponsored jointly by ABC, CBS and NBC.
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
This will have to be it today: as I just bolted from the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel after interviewing Barack Obama.
He was running late -- thankfully we were first among the three networks in the conga line questioning order today -- so as I left, Charlie Gibson was getting ready to take the seat across from the Senator that I occupied in a massive but warm and muggy hotel suite -- and then Katie Couric after him. 
Time is about to get dicey for both other anchors, and I sympathize with them, as there's nothing more stressful. As I write this, we are under 2 hours from air, and glad at least to be back in the newsroom.
So here we go: editing the interview for air -- we'll post the entire thing on the web at airtime -- and getting to a mountain of work and writing we must do before air.
By John Rutherford, Producer, NBC News, Washington
Dwan Fairbanks brought her children to Fort Snelling in Minnesota over the Memorial Day weekend to visit their step-father's grave for the first time. The four kids released balloons into the air with personal messages and cardboard hearts.
"What I wrote to my dad is that I love him and that he was a true hero to me," 9-year-old Kaitlin told WCCO.
Her 6-year-old brother David was more succinct, writing simply, "I love, Dad."
Their step-father, Army Spc. Jacob Fairbanks, 22, of Saint Paul, Minn., died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound on April 9, six months into his second tour in Iraq.
Dwan has trouble believing her husband took his own life, but she understands the pressure soldiers are under in Iraq.
CONTINUED >>
By Pete Williams, NBC News Justice Correspondent
Two recent developments involving an unlikely champion of Barack Obama have legal and religious circles chattering -- over who it is and what happened to him.
The first surprise is the identity of the supporter himself -- Pepperdine University law school professor Doug Kmiec, a star in conservative legal circles. Kmiec (pronounced "kuh-MECK") ran the Justice Department's influential Office of Legal Counsel during the Reagan Administration and later served as dean of the law school at Catholic University in Washington, DC.
A dedicated foe of laws and court decisions allowing abortion, he stunned colleagues by endorsing Obama on Easter Sunday. Explaining his decision on a Catholic web site, Kmiec wrote that he was, "drawn to Senator Obama's remarkable 'love thy neighbor' style of campaigning, his express aim to transcend partisan divide, and specifically, his appreciation for faith."
As for abortion, Kmiec described Obama as "not pro-abortion but of the view that the civil law best leaves this question to the mother in consultation with their own clergyman and doctor."
Though Kmiec was prepared for criticism from fellow conservatives, he was stung by what happened next. At a mass before a speech he delivered to Catholic business leaders in Southern California, Kmiec says, the priest stepped to the pulpit and blasted Kmiec for the Obama endorsement. Not only that, the priest denied him communion when his turn came to receive the sacrament.
A spokesman for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles says the priest acted improperly and without authority. Experts on church law are debating the action on canon law blogs, and most agree that the priest was wrong. Canon 915 of Vatican law provides that communion is to be denied to "those who have been excommunicated ... and others obstinately persevering in manifest grave sin."
Even Kmiec's harshest conservative critics stop short of accusing him of grave sin.
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
We have another long night ahead of us here on the broadcast. Tim Russert and I will be doing another of our famous round-robins, where we do fresh feeds of our broadcasts as the time zones take us to the West and into the evening, ending with our feed at 9:30 eastern time (for Seattle and Anchorage, among other places). Its' going to be a busy night, and already the story has changed several times today. Obviously our lead story is politics, but there are at least two economic stories today which would lead the broadcast on any other night.
While it feels like we've never been here before politically (and of course we haven't, exactly), I offer the following from the New York Times on June 7, 1984 as proof that we've been here before: Under the headline, MONDALE ASSERTS NOMINATION IS HIS; HART NOT GIVING IN, the lead (written by the young Howell Raines) is this:
"Walter F. Mondale claimed victory yesterday in the race for the Democratic Presidential nomination, and a number of party leaders united behind the former Vice President to urge his main competitor, Senator Gary Hart, to fold his campaign."
We are watching the news -- we'll report it tonight. We hope you can join us for what promises to be another interesting evening.
By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor
A few items over the transom on a Monday back at work: interesting data and findings about the news media today, and we'll see if any of them are employed by any of us.
Todd Purdum's article in Vanity Fair (Todd and I overlapped while covering the Clinton White House) is an interesting read, as is the Clinton response to it today.
What a sad weekend for us at NBC Universal -- and all those who love the history of film. The fire at Universal Studios took away a part of movie-making history that can never be replaced. I am selfishly glad I saw the back lot during a studio tour recently. What a heroic effort by Los Angeles firefighters -- and by the operator of a bulldozer, who was in the pit working to pile up the pieces of a still-hot fire -- while water was blasting past him in several streams. It was an incredible scene to watch play out yesterday, as I did on the website of LA-area television stations. I'm confident we will rebuild. At least we have our memories, and in most cases copies of the films most affected.
President Bush today awarded the Medal of Honor to an Army Specialist who gave his life to save four others. Please read his story if you can. This makes the fourth posthumous awarding of the Medal in the Iraq War.
We hope you can join us for tonight's broadcast. An early warning to our friends out West: while this puts us at cross-purposes with our friends in the Sports Division, we're not happy to say that our Western time zones won't all get to see Nightly News tonight, due to hockey coverage. However, we'll try to post our webcast version on our website early to make up for it. We'll be back at full strength tomorrow evening.
by Lester Holt, NBC News Anchor
Watching part of Universal Studios in Los Angeles go up in flames this morning brought a jarring sense of reality to a place that has given us so much fantasy, and yes, some spectacular special effects. The town square where Doc Brown raced his time-warping DeLorean in the Back to the Future movies was destroyed, along with the studio's famed "New York" street, and the "King Kong" exhibit. Also lost were tens of thousands of videotapes in the studio's video vault, though a treasure trove of film prints was saved. A lot of us, at one time or another, have had the chance to "peek behind the curtain" at this Hollywood fantasy world from the vantage point of a tram during one of those famous studio tours. We have a special appreciation for what was at risk. As most of you know, Universal Studios is part of the NBC Universal family, of which NBC News belongs. We'll cover the story with the proper distance, while reporting what we know about the fire itself and the history of the studio.
There is no shortage of political headlines to report tonight. We've got a full team covering Hillary Clinton's Puerto Rico primary victory, as well as the new delegate math brought about by that compromise over the votes in Florida and Michigan.
CONTINUED >>
