The Daily Nightly

Answering a mother’s call

Ian Sager — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 21:30:00 GMT

By Mark Potter, NBC News correspondent

Tonight's report on Nightly News about the ravages of prescription drug abuse is in response to a powerful phone call from a mother in Kentucky.

The day after we aired a report in May about pain clinics in Florida supplying prescription painkillers to drug addicts and dealers from around the Southeast, I got a call on my cell phone while driving to work at our Miami office.

The caller was Lynn Kissick of Morehead, Kentucky, who saw our report and then took the initiative to reach out to the Broward County Sheriff's Office in Ft. Lauderdale, where we had done much of our reporting. Lynn was determined to find me, and asked if the deputies had my phone number. Because I had left several of my business cards behind, they were able to give it to her.

When the phone rang, I heard a quiet voice on the line ask if I was the man who had done the pain clinics report. When I confirmed it was I, she said, "There’s another side to that story. Those pain pills are killing off the younger generation here." She had my full attention.

Sadly, Lynn Kissick and her husband Sam (right, above) know all too well about the dangers of prescription drug abuse. Their 22-year-old daughter, Savannah (below, left), died on New Year's Day from an overdose of oxycodone painkillers and sedatives. A friend, Karen Shay, had also lost her 19-year-old daughter, Sarah, to a lethal mix of methadone and sedatives. Many other families in town, Lynn said, were also struggling with the losses of their loved ones, or with the horrors of addiction.

It didn't take long to confirm that Lynn was right. Coroners, law enforcement officials, drug rehabilitation counselors and other parents all used the word "epidemic" to describe the prescription drug abuse problem. The Kentucky Bureau of Vital Statistics reported that at least 485 people had died there from prescription overdoses last year alone. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration said nearly 7-million Americans abuse prescription medication.

In meeting Lynn, Sam and Karen, we found parents who are struggling with devastating personal losses. But we also found them to be fiercely determined to warn others about the dangers of this scourge and to urge officials to crack down harder on the illicit suppliers of prescription drugs.

Tonight's story is their story. That phone call has been answered.

Web only video: Coroner: Prescription drugs 'killing our young'

Video: Teen prescription drug abuse an epidemic?

A summit awaits

Ian Sager — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 19:59:00 GMT

By Lester Holt, NBC News Anchor

East-West relations have thawed considerably since the Cold War, but like summit meetings of old, when President Obama and Russia's President Medvedev sit down in Moscow tomorrow, the control of nuclear weapons will still be on the table. Our Chuck Todd is already in Moscow and will have much more on the summit and the commander in chief’s agenda.

The police in Nashville offered up a bit more information today about the murder of former NFL quarterback Steve McNair and the 20-year-old woman who was found dead with him. Ron Mott is working that story for us.

In addition, we'll check in with Andrea Mitchell up in Alaska where she is trying to fill in the puzzling blanks regarding Alaska governor Sarah Palin's decision to resign from office.

Thanks for checking in. I hope you'll catch us later for NBC Nightly News.

A gray day in a gray city

Ian Sager — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 16:57:00 GMT

By Albert Oetgen, Managing editor, NBC News, Washington

Moscow – It’s a very gray day in this very gray city.

A planeload of reporters arrived here this afternoon in advance of President Obama's first trip to Russia as Chief Executive, full of anticipation and American preconceptions about this vast and complicated land.

As the 767 banked on its final approach to Vnukovo Airport, acres and acres of dull concrete high-rise apartment buildings loomed in the distance, echoes of Soviet-era regimentation and Cold War discipline, reminders that the blinding speed of change in the 21st Century – of any century – can never erase the indelible effects of history and experience.

Inside the terminal, reporters were hustled through customs. Efficient uniformed clerks rarely made eye contact, conjuring the persistent, lingering feelings of mistrust that aging baby boomers learned during the early days of the Cold War when, as impressionable schoolchildren, they were taught the absurd lesson that crouching under classroom desks could somehow protect them from nuclear fallout.

The walk from customs to the buses (to take the press corps to a downtown hotel) involved a series of 90-degree turns monitored by escorts. The route snaked through a small crowd of Muscovites waiting for family and friends to make their way out of the maze of corridors leading to the airport gates. One of turns made no sense. There was a clear diagonal shortcut through the crowd, but when two reporters tried to take it, armed police instantly materialized, herding them back onto the pre-assigned route with the brutal efficiency and mind-numbing lack of imagination that over-empowered Transportation Safety Administration police display every day In American airports.

Imperialist powers, it turns out, have much in common, regardless of the current state of their affairs or the mercurial patterns of history. The grayness of Moscow and its uniformed police tracks perfectly with the Washington summer to date.

Freedom's cost

Daily Nightly Editor — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 20:11:00 GMT

By Lester Holt, NBC News Anchor

Happy July 4th, I hope you are enjoying this day.

Earlier this week a friend of mine, a decorated military veteran, passed along an e-mail that's been making the rounds. It describes the steep price many of the original signers of the Declaration of Independence paid; torture and imprisonment to the shedding of blood on the battlefields of the Revolutionary War. The point of the e-mail was that amid our July 4th celebrations and gatherings, we should each take a minute to remember that our freedoms are not free.

We're putting together a broadcast tonight that will include more on Alaska Governor Sarah Palin's stunning announcement that she is stepping down at the end of the month. There has also been another death connected to an apparent serial killer in a small South Carolina town.

I hope you will join us later for NBC Nightly News.

Alaska surprise

Sam Singal — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 20:07:00 GMT

By Lester Holt, NBC News anchor

It's suddenly becoming a busy Friday, with late word Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is resigning from office. This opens up a host of questions about what's behind the timing and what's next for a woman who's been seen as a formidable force in national Republican politics.

We're also finally getting some firm guidance as to plans for a Michael Jackson public memorial.

Brian is taking the holiday off, and I will see you later for NBC Nightly News.

A new day in Mississippi

Sam Singal — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:01:00 GMT

By Mark Potter, NBC News correspondent

Philadelphia, MISS. -- In the 1960s, when he was a child, James Young used to hide behind the couch in his family home as armed Ku Klux Klan thugs prowled through town terrorizing blacks after nightfall. Decades later, Young was elected the first black mayor, by a multi-racial majority in a much different time and place. His swearing in was this morning. "It's just unbelievable that it could happen to me," he said. "Who would have thought that I would be the mayor of Philadelphia, Mississippi?"

Although Philadelphia has changed dramatically since the '60s, much of the world still remembers it as the site of one of the worst moments in the history of the U.S. civil rights movement. In June, 1964, three young civil rights activists-- Andrew Goodman, James Chaney and Michael Schwerner-- were murdered on a dark and lonely road by Klansmen, after the three had come to town as part of the Freedom Summer movement, an effort to register blacks to vote. (See archival video from iCue here.)

The killings threw a harsh national spotlight on Philadelphia and led to an intense FBI search for the bodies and the killers, which was dramatized in the 1988 movie, "Mississippi Burning."

Philadelphia is intent on revising its image and washing away the stain. "I've always believed in this town, this community and know that there was an underlying decency," said Jim Prince, the publisher of the Neshoba Democrat, the local newspaper. "I think you've seen that sort of decency raise up here in electing James Young."

"The community has emerged together to make things better for everybody in Philadelphia," said Nettie Cox, a long-time resident and political activist who is African-American.

Watch an interview with James Young

Mayor Young, who is also a minister at an area church, agrees that times have changed for the better and that his election is an important symbol of that. "It's a heart change. Has every heart changed? No. But the majority are moving in the right direction."

With his election in a town that is 55 percent white, Young insists he will govern fairly and represent everyone here. The memory of the slain civil rights workers weighs heavy on him. "We can't forget what they gave up and sacrificed, their families. It's a constant reminder."

That memory is also why so many people from around the world have been electrified by Young's election. He has been called from all over the United States, Europe and Japan. "After listening to so many calls and e-mails from elderly, white, black crying on the phone and me being choked up because they're crying, and the more they do it, the more I realize, my God, this is something extraordinary that happened before us," he said.

Watch the NBC Nightly News report here.

A tyrant's last comments

Daily Nightly Editor — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 21:50:00 GMT

By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor

I found this to be the most amazing piece of journalism I ran across today -- believe what you will of Saddam's comments, but if true, it certainly changes the arc of history a bit and clears up some fictions, perhaps. It's well worth a read.

Great posts from all our readers last night. I join you in mourning Karl Malden -- what a giant. I was glad to see that most of those who took a "swing" at the issue agreed with me on grunting in tennis -- except for Sam Maier, who committed the ultimate e-mail sin, the incomplete dis! Sam, I get that it was intended as a dig, but help a brother out...what did you mean? I can take a punch...I just didn't know how it was supposed to hurt.

Anyhoo -- I imagine this is getaway day for all those of you lucky enough with somewhere to go and relax and enjoy the July 4th weekend. If we don't see each other: have a happy and healthy holiday. Perhaps this, sent to me by a Medal of Honor recipient, will help you keep the true meaning of Independence Day in mind:

***

4th of July

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men
who signed the Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors,
and tortured before they died.

Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army;
another had two sons captured.

Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or
hardships of the Revolutionary War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes,
and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.
Eleven were merchants,
nine were farmers and large plantation owners;
men of means, well educated, but they signed the Declaration of Independence
knowing full well that the penalty would be death if
they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and
trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the
British Navy. He sold his home and properties to
pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British
that he was forced to move his family almost constantly.
He served in the Congress without pay, and his family
was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him,
and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer,
Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown , Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that
the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson
home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General
George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed,
and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed.
The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying.
Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill
were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests
and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his
children vanished.
So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and
silently thank these patriots. It's not much to ask for the price they paid.

Remember: freedom is never free!

I hope you will show your support by sending this to as many
people as you can, please. It's time we get the word out that patriotism
is NOT a sin, and the Fourth of July has more to it than beer,
picnics, and baseball games.

***

Keep our troops in your thoughts as well, past and present. I hope you can join us for the broadcast tonight.

What's that again?

Daily Nightly Editor — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 19:43:00 GMT

By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor

We're going to mark the anniversary of the Walkman tonight, and we came across a piece of writing from Hans Fantel in the New York Times, December 20, 1979. Can you imagine reading this passage today, about the effect of a personal stereo?

"The listener is sonically isolated and psychologically removed from his surroundings. Schubert on Conrail unquestionably helps in traversing the South Bronx."

Where to begin? The gender specificity of "his" surroundings? Conrail? Remember Conrail? You can still see the old logo on a couple of grizzled veteran engines along the track siding. Best of all, what did he just say about the South Bronx?

It's wildly unfair to apply modern standards to criticize a piece of journalism written in another era -- but my intent here is merely to show, using just 21 words, how much change there's been since then.

To another change: nobody used to grunt in tennis. Ever. While my theory is that it's a tributary of our societal trend toward the celebration of self (I will throw down over any challenges to my theory, but without grunting), it has reached ridiculous levels at Wimbledon this year. While I don't play or follow tennis, I thought former NBC Sportscaster Len Berman had some good, provocative reporting on the subject on his blog today.

We're preparing the broadcast for this Wednesday night, and we sure hope you can be with us.

Treating patients in need, without the bill

Daily Nightly Editor — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 22:02:00 GMT

By Kevin Tibbles, NBC News correspondent

Tonight's "Making a Difference" report doesn't come with bells and whistles. And, in my opinion, that is what makes it so special. It is a straightforward story about two longtime friends who grew up "without" on the streets of Chicago.

"I don't remember a time when I didn't know Charlie," says George Maltezos, a mental health counselor.

Maltezos and Dr. Charles Martinez are both in their seventies, both retired and both working harder than ever. That is, in part, because this inseparable pair never forgot what it was like growing up in households that could not afford healthcare. "Charlie" even tells the story of suffering a football injury as a kid and worrying about how his folks were going to pay for fixing him up. Sixty-odd years later that story still resonates.

So, after building successful careers in healthcare, neither one wanted to hang it in retirement. Instead, they've opened a tiny community clinic in a working class neighborhood. They treat patients in need, cajole specialists into donating services and badger the drug companies for low-cost prescriptions. And it doesn’t cost the folks who come to see them a dime. Thanks to George and Charlie, some four hundred people, who otherwise would likely go without any medical attention, are looked after. Getting a clean bill of health, without the bill.

For more information on the Old Irving Park Community Clinic, go to http://www.oipcc.org/

Being able to touch history

Daily Nightly Editor — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:14:00 GMT

By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor

Last weekend, I attended Mass at the same church in Rhode Island where John F. Kennedy was married. Having read about the family and the event for years, it was a thrill to sit beneath those old timbers, to inhale the atmosphere and see the interior and exterior, largely unchanged since that day when the young couple exited to huge waiting crowds. As a history buff, "tactile" history is what I love best: holding a letter signed by FDR, running your finger over the signature and realizing that's as close as you may get to some of our great historical figures. So: my favorite story in the morning papers -- all of the morning papers -- was this story in the New York Times -- about the places some of us pass by every day that played a role in history. I recently took a drive through London looking for known bullet and explosion pockmarks from WWII -- while it's not for everyone, it's great if it's what you're into.

Right now we're well into preparations for the broadcast. We hope you can join us. Tonight: Part two of Richard Engel's great reporting, and a Making A Difference report.