crosby was warmed up and in the back seat of a nice toasty police car. last we heard, crosby and the firefighters were just fine. well, thanks for watching, everybody. want to wish you a happy holiday. safe travels. safe travels. "around the world" starts now. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com a an hair row zg rescue airlifts americans out of the violence in south sudan. now a warning from president obama. the united states may get more u.s. troops involved. >> the offensive tweet that angered people worldwide. one exec now fired and apologizing. a global company doing some damage control. >> and a massive winter storm knocks out power to hundreds of thousan thousand of people. now another storm poses more problems. i'm suzanne malveaux. >> i'm michael holmes. thanks for your company today.

we are looking very closely today at a part of the world where the united nations is afraid all out civil war will break out at any time. >> this is the youngest nation in the world. we're talking about south sudan, just two years independent from its neighbor sudan. but in just the past week, hundreds of people have died across the country, armed rebels, government troops are fighting them. there is an ethnic aspect to all of this. there are people getting caught up in between. >> now the united states and many other countries pulled their citizens out of south sudan over the weekend and u.n. bases there are now flooded today with people who can't go home because of the violence. president obama says he might take further action to to support the american people and interests in south sudan. now, he said that after three u.s. military airplanes were fired on while trying to get people to safety. four u.s. troops were actually

hurt in the incident. >> we just found out a few minutes ago that the special united states envoy to south sudan has arrived in juba in that the country. we're told he's trying to head up efforts to end the conflict there diplomatically. so far not working >> at the same time, the head of the united nations says he is diverting peacekeepers and supplies from other missions in africa to help out in south sudan. want to bringing in frederik pleitgen in new york today. talk about this. this is a country that has seen very little peace in its young survival, in its young stages here. now we're talking about things getting worse. how do you turn this around. >> essentially what's happened here, this is a conflict between two men, between the president and the former haven't that's now turning into an ethnic conflict. of course, like in many places you've had ethnic places between tribes in that country for a very, very long time, also

massacres in the past and now this political feud is bringing all of this forward and is making all of this worst and is leading to all this conflict going on. as you said, the situation goes more volatile by the day. the latest thing that's happened is apparently the rebels have taken very key areas including the main town in the main oil producing area. south sudan gets almost all its country's revenues from oil. the government is talking about launching a counter offensive. i know the american envoy donald booth has landed on the ground to try to mediate between the two sides. it's looking more like escalation than anything else. this is a volatile country in a volatile part of africa, suzanne. >> fred, you were talking about summary executions as you say. there are ethic killings involved, tit-for-tat. the humanitarian situation is con founding a lot of people. a lot of people have fled and gone to u.n. bases for help. what's being done about them.

>> it's catastrophic. it could get a lot worse. about 45,000 people the u.n. estimates have actually fled on to u.n. bases, but of course, those bases are not really protected. the u.n. mission was having a lot of logistical problems before all of this happened. there was one u.n. base as you know that was attacked last week where two u.n. peacekeepers were killed, and also people who fled to the bases. the u.n. is now pulling it soldiers it has in neighboring congo to try and beef up security around those bases. as you said, the u.n. says it's flying all nonessential staff out of the country into uganda but also made very, very clear they are going to do their best to keep protecting the civilians therein 0 the grounds because what they want, what they don't want under any circumstances is for these ethnic tensions to get worse and for there to be any sort of massacres between these two tribal factions. that could very easily tear the country apart. >> tell us what the president is referring to when you talk about

u.s. assets and u.s. interests inside of south sudan. i mean, what is the u.s. angle here when it comes to the involvement? and potentially boots on the ground? >> well, i mean it, certainly the u.s., of course, first and foremost wants to keep this country together. when you talk about u.s. assets, the one thing he's mainly talking about is the u.s. embassy on the ground. there's smaller u.s. business assets there, as well, but at this point in time, the belief is that pretty much all u.s. citizens have now left the country. buff the president has been very clear. they put a couple dozen u.s. troops on the ground to help protect the embassy because the situation in juba had become very volatile. he will put more assets on the ground including additional troops but only to protect american interests. it's made very clear, the white house has this does not mean the u.s. is getting involved in this conflict. however, at some point in time, it might be difficult to sustain that position because the u.n. is calling for additional

countries to try and get hardware on the ground to help the u.n. conduct its mission, things like helicopters to fly the peacekeepers from congo over into south sudan. very, very worried about the situation, but right now, the u.s. is saying it wants to protect all the things that are of american interests there, not getting involved in the conflict at this time. but again a very, very volatile situation on the ground there, guys. >> thanks so much. fred pleitgen at the u.n. the civilian population caught in the middle. >> president obama saying look, making it very clear it is going to be a very limited role with u.s. troops because a lot of americans very wary about getting involved. >> they're not going to get involved. the u.n. have got to do something because people are dying every day as we're seeing right across africa. let's move onto the formerly nba star dennis rodman making headlines again for his relationship, an usual unusual one with the north korean leader kim jong-un. >> he will just wrapped up a five-day trip to pyongyang where

he was training the country's basketball team, and rodman did not meet with kim this time. his basketball diplomacy hasn't done anything to ease tensions in the korean peninsula. this third trip came on the heels of kim jong-un's powerful uncle. >> some people saw that execution as a sign i have north korean instability under the young leader. south korean intelligence suggests that may not be the case. anna coren. >> new details have emerged over the purge and execution of the uncle of north korean leader kim jong-un. shedding new light on the political situation inside the her mit kingdom. according to the national intelligence service here in south korea, it believes that jong sung that he can, his mentor and second in command was not executed over a power struggle but rather a conflict of interests. involving coal and trade deals that violated the supreme

leadership. they believe des theories that kim was trying to consolidate power, the young supreme commander's position is stable and he's firmly in control. this information comes as former nba star dennis rodman flew out of pyongyang after a five-day visit to north korea where he was training the national basketball team. they're preparing for an exhibition match next month to celebrate the birthday of kim jong- jong-un. surprisingly he did not meet with kim but said the trip was awesome and that he's looking forward to returning for the big game on theth of january. rodman has yet to name the american team made up of former nba stars. there are reports that some of the players are concerned about their safety and have yet to sign on. rodman says there is nothing to worry about and that he will be announcing the team shortly. back to you. >> all right. anna, thanks so much. anna coren there. >> the man who invented the world's most widely used military grade assault rifle has

died. mikhail ca lishny cov created the automatic weapon more than 65 years ago. the design hasn't changed much since. he named the rifle after himself, became the standard issue rifle for the soviet army. >> initially called the ca lashny cova automatic ca lishny cov. he described other weapons, as well. none were as successful as the ak. there's an estimated 100 million ak-47 rifles in the world today. they're famed for their reliability. >> you describe this one. >> oh, yeah, even the occasional tv reporter gets a chance to fire an ak-47 if he's in the right place and right time. on this occasion at a training session for afghan forces, ca leshny cov, 94 years old. he died in russia in the town where the rifle is still made. at the reportedly had been sick for some time. >> all right. take you now to berlin. he wentz from the richest man in

the country to the most famous political prisoner. for the first time in ten years, dissident mick cal courtkovsky is now speaking out in an interview with christiane amanpour. >> a long time opponent of the russian government in particular vladimir putin. he was consisted on tax evasion and fraud charges back in 2005 but russia faced international criticism over his imprisonment. he and many others considered him a political prisoner. >> on saturday he was reunited with his family after president putin signed an amnesty decree amid mounting pressure for his release. during his first sitdown interview, he talks about his life behind bars. >> was there a deal for your release? did president putin or his people say on then condition, we will release you? were there any conditions laid?

>> translator: it's rather was the reverse. mr. putin on a' number of times publicly said that he was ready to consider the question of my pardoning. but i had to say that i was guilty for that. that was an absolutely unacceptable condition for me. >> do you forgive vladimir putin? >> translator: i would put it differently perhaps. i don't think that revenge would be any rational behavior. and something that is rational

behavior i can always deal with. >> that was cnn's christiane amanpour. you can see more of her interview with him today at 2:00 p.m. today on "amanpour." >> here's more of what we're walk working on this hour for "around the world." >> oh, jesus. >> ouch. hundreds of thousands of people without power right now because of a dangerous winter storm and yet another one threatens to make it a very dark christmas. >> happiness is killing things. papa papa pa. >> camouflage and shotgun shells, "duck dynasty" of course, a big business. now one company is apologizing to its customers for taking dynasty items off its shelves. this controversy not going away anytime soon. also, a special holiday visitor drops in to see us. if you have kids, you know this guy. and that girl, as well. they're talking about the elf on

the shelf. we've got the co-creator of this widely popular phenomenon coming to join us to talk about how and where it all began. he's everywhere. >> everywhere. look in the newsroom too. >> get off the set. [ male announcer ] this december, experience the gift of unsurpassed craftsmanship and some of the best offers of the year at the lexus december to remember sales event. this is the pursuit of perfection. when my son was born, i remember, you know, picking him up and holding him against me. it wasn't just about me anymore. i had to quit. [ male announcer ] along with support, chantix (varenicline) is proven to help people quit smoking. it reduces the urge to smoke. chantix didn't have nicotine in it, and that was important to me. [ male announcer ] some people had changes in behavior, thinking or mood,

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welcome back. here's some of the stories making news around the world right now. toronto dealing with one of the worst ice storms in that city's history. that i can a look what it looked like on sunday. >> hundreds of trees caved because of the weight of the ice. you can see it there. more than 250,000 people, they lost electricity as freezing rain brought power lines down. 200,000 still don't have power. toronto's mayor rob ford, he's been in the news a lot lately for smoking crack cocaine you right recall. he's weighing in on all this saying he decided not to declare a state of emergency. >> we believe that the worst weather is over. we were concerned last night with the high winds and freezing temperatures. that did not happen. shelters are up and running.

everyone is okay. it's business as usual here at city hall. we're expecting all employees to show up. >> and ford said several hundred people took advantage of warming centers that they set up in the city. he does expect that the power will be restored for everyone by christmas. hope so. >> people across england and scotland also dealing with the strong storm threatening to disrupt holiday travel plans. the rail service is warning of delays, cancellations because of wind gusts up to 80 miles per hour. there's also flooding, as well. some ferry service also being affected. 13 million people are expected to travel by car or bus, just over the next three days. >> they're going to be dealing with some major delays, and that's going to be also affecting europe. chad meyers, what's behind it all? >> this is a huge storm, a low pressure in the north sea. this is a biggie. the pressure of this storm is equal to a category 3 hurricane. no kidding. 941 pressure and there's another storm coming in two more days.

two storms for the uk and for wales. this is a big effect here. we are going to have waves of 40 to 50 feet along this coast, the west coast of from wales all the way back down toward the uk. a little bit farther away from london. we're not going to get the significant action in london. wind gusts of 0 miles per hour. think about that when you push the waves against the rocky shores. we'll see rainfall and snow in the higher elevations just north of dublin and north of glasgow, the wind, as well. this is wind gusts tonight. there are a lot of planes on the way to this area for tonight's landing. we have 60-mile-per-hour winds in london. i don't believe we'll get them all on the ground when you have winds like that. this is the flight explorer. planes on the way over to america at this point in time. later on they go the other direction. but a lot of people i believe probably won't be going to the

area. may have to divert planes back toward paris. it's going to be a long time to get there and probably some of the ferries won't get across the channel at all the next couple days. >> 50 foot waves. >> >> absolutely. literally waves the size you would get with a hurricane because the winds are that strong out there. >> they've got all the north sea activity there. going to have a lot of impact. thanks so much. >> of course, be careful what you tweet. that is the hard lesson being learned by a pr executive after an offensive tweet about aids went vifrl that she sent. this morning, she is out of a job. up next, we'll tell you what she said that ignited a social media firestorm. mine was earned orbiting the moon in 1971. afghanistan in 2009. on the u.s.s. saratoga in 1982. [ male announcer ] once it's earned, usaa auto insurance is often handed down from generation to generation

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executive is apologizing for an offensive tweet that tore through the social media world. and landed her in some big trouble. >> indeed. her name is justine sacco.

she says her decision to accepted out this tweet on friday was in her words, careless. here's the tweet. going to africa, hope i don't get aids, just kidding. i'm white. sacco sent that tweet out just before she began a 12-hour flight to south africa and over the weekend, she was fired. this was not the first time sacco said aid something controversial. our cnn's pamela brown has the story. >> suzanne, and michael, it's highly unusual that a publicist would be at the center of a publicity firestorm but that happened to justine sacco. 53 characters is all it took for her to lose her job. in fact, it's not the only controversial tweet. it's one of several tasteless tweets on her now disabled twitter account. >> social media is calling it the tweet heard around the world. going to africa, hope i don't get aids. just kidding. i'm white. now three days after an a pr

exec justine sacco sent out that tweet she is out of a job and apologizing. on sunday she issued this statement saying "words could not express how sorry i am and how necessary it is for me to apologize to the people of south africa who i have offended due to a needless and careless tweet for being insensitive to this crisis and to the millions of people living with the virus, i am ashamed." she was hid of pr for iac owned by dairy diller that operates "the daily beast," college humor and match.com. on saturday, the company says sacco is no longer a good match, firing her. the now former pr exec found herself the target of a social, media mob on friday sending out that tweet right before logging 0 offline while on her 12-hour flight from london to native south africa. >> not only is this a publicist's worst nightmare, any public figure's worst nightmare.

it's like putting toothpaste back in the tube, you can't take it back. >> the #has justine landing yet trending worldwide. one guy even eight waing her arrival at the cape town airport. a trial by twitter as many are calling it, according to her linked in page, sacco was also formerly a publicist for the wwe and on her now disabled twitter page she has a kch of vulgar now cleted tweets like i had a sex dream about an autistic kid last night and i can't be fired for things i say while intoxicated right. leaving many to wonder how she couldn't manage her own ensocial media. >> one tweet, one statement is all it takes in the world of twitter and social media to cost somebody their career. >> if there is any could that can come from this, it appears more attention has been focused

on aids relief charities. someone actually registered the he the domain name justine sacco.com and linked directly to aid for africa relief website. at least there is some good coming from this. suzanne and michael. >> all right. pamela brown, thank you. >> committing twitter side. >> cracker barrel scrambling to put "duck dynasty" merchandise back on store shelves. it is now apologizing to customers. going to city you how thester store's attempt to avoid controversy has actually had the opposite effect. [ female announcer ] there's one thing dave's always wanted to do when he retires -- keep working, but for himself. so as his financial advisor, i took a look at everything he has. the 401(k). insurance policies.

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♪ welcome back. the restaurant chain cracker barrel reversing a decision to stop selling selected "duck dynasty" merchandise. >> cracker barrel pulled the products after controversial comments about race and homosexuality by did the show's lead character but customers demanded that the store resume selling the t-shirts, key chains, all that good stuff they do. richard quest is joining us to talk about all of these things. so first of all, give us a sense

of the company itself, like the reversal, how did they manage this, the whole messaging behind it. >> they were very blunt and open minded about it and open about it. they simply said we took the products off the shelf because we didn't want to offend anybody because of the comments from the -- from the star of the show. and then they said now we realized we've done exactly what we didn't want to do. so what does it tell us? and what we're watching are companies doing do we, don't we. if we do, what happens? and going backwards and forwards. this is fascinating because here you have it played out in realtime. >> how much does it cost them to do this little dance? >> forget the money side of it. cracker barrel, that's really rather small change. it's the reputation is issue. they thought they were doing the right thing by taking them off the shelf. they now realize they shouldn't have done it because some people said -- and this is what

companies across the globe, our own company, every company is now facing in this new era. the only difference here was it was a printed article. it wasn't sort of a social media, but the reaction came from social media. >> that's the problem is the speed with which things happen. >> yes. >> the companies react and sometimes its very knee jerky. >> you say it's knee jerky. they think that's what needs to be done. but what should the company have said? well, i was looking at the "duck dynasty" website before i came on. if you look at the number of companies whose products are on their website, from armor, underarmor, all of these products on their website where they say we use their products, in from one of those companies, they have that dilemma and debate. do we, don't we. >> do they have an investment here, all of those companies whether it's their reputation or not to get on board to get the series back on the air?

>> well, if only it were that will simple because they don't know. they're gambling. look, let's take a & e who make the series. their first question is, oh, my lord, what do we do here. >> if we keep him on, do we get a backlash? if we don't do we get a backlash. now the story's gone to the next level. they may lose him. i'm almost guessing there's a clause in the contract. but the rest of them can't get out of it. because they are under contract. and -- and the program is the slot machine that's creating the profits for duck commander. >> when it comes to that show though, when the company's making that decision as a corporate entity, a & e in this case, this guy and the audience that watches this guy, they knew exactly who he was. and his attitudes were. does that impact their decision to pull off the guy knowing they're probably not offending anyone because they're the ones

who know him anyway. >> there's probably a difference between him saying the comments that he said on his program and saying them in an article in gq. the question, of course, now being raced is, there was a publicity person from gq at the interview. >> a & e or gq? >> from a & e. >> they all new before it became public. >> they got what they bargained for. the potatoes become too hot to mix metaphors completely and now the cat's out of the bag. another one. and in the process, everybody else, the collateral damage are these companies do we, don't we. >> we got to let you go. >> time has flown to put another one in there. >> believe me, this is not a story that's going to go away. >> i an stitch in time. questy, always a pleasure. do pop back. >> lindsay vonn. >> he'll be appearing here all week. >> we got to move on. lindsay vonn's olympic dreams still alive. still dealing with knee issues.

she had another setback in france. she lost her balance, missed a gate during the weekend race. she said the same knee she had surgically repaired completely gave out. >> the she was in pain obviously afterwards. and as you just saw there, tiger woods was on hand. first time he's been there to watch his now girlfriend compete. >> two women who spent nearly two years in a russian prison being critical of president vladimir putin, today they are free. they're the members of the punk rock bad pussy riot whose political expression got them in hot water. [ speaking foreign language ] >> that is the demonstration that they did inside what is a revered cathedral in moscow, can offended a lot of people. they were arrested and found guilty of holliganism and two band members received two-year sentences. diana magnay is in siberia right now, the police where one of

those women walked out. tell us about this whole amnesty thing, part of why they were released and what they have said since they got out. they're unrepentant, activism is in their blood. >> activism is in their blood. i talked today to nadia who is the sort of lead in this group. and she said that the genesis of the group had come about at put tip's re-election in 2011. and she obviously was the one who spearheaded the pumping prayer in the cathedral, and for that, they were then sent for two years into a penal colony where she described the conditions as akin to slavery where they were worked 16, 17 hours a day. they never got more than four hours sleep. she said they were treated like cattle, they had no hygiene at all. they were like filthy animals. so a terrible, terrible

conditions and in september, she went on a hunger strike and became so ill she was trfred from the penal colony where they was then to this town in the middle of siberia to a hospital. and she's just been treelsed today, part of a much bigger amness that that president putin and his duma implemented last week. she qualifies and the other band member who was jailed also qualifies because they were both mothers. i caught up with her just as she was about to go and talk to her grandmother for the first time. she told me she felt similar to mikhail khodorkovsky in terms of wanting to use her freedom to try and promote the plight of those who are still inside and i asked her a few questions. let's take a listen. >> can you imagine joining forces with khodorkovsky? is that something you might do? >> translator: no doubt i'd be happy to do that. it would be a very productive relationship. >> and what about a boycott of

the olympics, of the sochi olympics? is this something you think people should do on ethical reasons? . >> translator: the situation in russia is really sad. the political regime in russia is leading the country to a collapse. so of course, if western countries wants to show a strong ethical position, then they need to boycott the games. >> nadia feels, michael, that the olympics were really an excuse for putin, a pr stunt, this amnesty is a pr stunt ahead of the olympics because the west has criticized russia so much for its human rights record and pussy riot and the arctic 30 have all been held up as examples of how this country tramples on the rights of people, especially people within its prison system. she calls the amnesty just a pr stunt, but also interestingly, michael, a gesture of weakness on the part of president putin,

she said. >> diana magnay there in siberia. a second mission to repair the international space station has now been delayed after water leaks into an astronaut's space suit over the weekend. up next, we're going to talk about what kinds of dangers astronauts face in tomorrow's missions.

repair the international space station has been delayed until tomorrow. on saturday astronauts rick mastracchio and mike hopkins success dpli removed a broken pump but it needs to be replaced. >> the five-hour mission was actually cut short when that is trackio complained of cold feet after water leaked into the space suit. here to talk more about this is astronaut ron guerin joining us from houston. you know, you've repaired that broken pump. how tough is that? you know, you've got 35-year-old space suit to blame for this in a way. what kind of can problems does that is cause? >> well, you know, when we go out on a space walk, our space suits are really self-contained space ships. and there is a lot of moving parts, a lot of things that protect us for one thing but also make our job a little

difficult. one of those things is the pressure in the suit itself. everything, every time we grab something with our hand or move we have to fight against the pressure of our suit. and those suits when you put all the tools on it and all the equipment, they could be up to 350 pounds. obviously in space, they're weightless but we're still moving that mass around and still have to deal with that. it really is a very fatiguing, physically fatiguing adventure out there in space when you're on a space walk. >> ron, tell us about that because you've actually had that experience for those of us who couldn't even imagine what it's like, give us a sense why that is so important that you have that -- that the liquid stays out of the suit because you had the italian astronaut nearly drowning after a space helmet filled with water. describe why that's so important and what is it like. >> one of the things we're concerned about on a walk is keeping the astronauts cool. because you're doing all that work and there's nowhere for the heat to go. so we have cooling systems within the space suit and basically we're wearing long

underwear with tubes that go through it. in those tubes is cold water ta keeps us cold. and in the case of luca parmitano's suit, we think there's not a smoking gun yet, we don't know exactly what happened but we believe some of the coolant, the water used to cool him leaked out into the suit and ended up in the helmet. that became a very dangerous situation. >> they put a snorkel in now in case that happens. again, something that i wasn't aware of and a lot of people might not be, there aren't that many of these suits. it's not like you get online to amazon and get another one. >> no, exactly. we have have a limited number of suits on board. right now, the crew is basically mixing and matching and making sure that rick mastracchio's suit is properly sized for him when he goes out the door since they're switching into a different suit. >> ron guerin, thanks you so much. really appreciate it. >> my pleasure. >> we're also getting new information about the

situationings in south sudan and possible u.s. military involvement in helping evacuate americans. that's up next. eker of the subl. you can separate runway ridiculousness... from fashion that flies off the shelves. and you...rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle... and go. you can even take a full-size or above, and still pay the mid-size price. (natalie) ooooh, i like your style. (vo) so do we, business pro. so do we. go national. go like a pro.

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the driver got everyone off the bus just in the nick of time. >> the bomb went off just minutes later as a bomb expert was trying to detonate it safely. he was not seriously injured. the israeli government says this is the first bus bombing in israel in more than a year. >> wow. punishing air strikes in aleppo, syria, have killed nearly 500 people in just a week according to the opposition. more than 90 on sunday alone. the government's helicopters have been dropping barrel bombs packed with explosives and shrapnel on that city. >> these bombs are so powerful, they can level entire buildings with one hit. they are packed with all sorts of things from ball bearings to glass to explosives to fuel. the opposition has been calling for a no-fly zone backed by western powers to try to stop the assad regime from using these things and harming civilians. >> we're learning more today

about the u.s. military's potential plans for a possible military involvement in the conflict in south sudan. our pentagon correspondent barbara starr has been working her sources. we have more details about what u.s. assets are going to be brought to south sudan and how they're used? >> we do just in the last few minutes, what we have learned is about 150 marines on their way to africa. they have been ordered there by the commander of the u.s. africa command which oversees operations in that part of the world. about 150 heavily armed marines will go to the nearby nation of djibouti on stand by for either reinforcing protection at the embassy or evacuating the americans still there as this is war rages out of control. thousands of south sudan he's trapped in the fighting. there is a lot of concern what will happen in the coming days. so the u.s. military getting ready, especially after what happened over the weekends.

we have more now about those four u.s. troops injured on saturday when they tried to be part of an effort to evacuate kit americans. we now know that the four injured were part of a navy seal team that had gone in. their aircraft came under fire as they were attempting to land. the most seriously injured navy s.e.a.l., his injuries were so severe, there was concern whether he would make it. he has. he was bleeding out. they put that aircraft flew 500 miles after it was hit backing to uganda. they put him on another plane immediately, flew him to nairobi, kenya. this many young man really was bleeding out we are told. and they feel it was -- it was really just amazing that they were able to save him on that 500-mile journey and get him medical care, at least three of the wounded now being shipped to a hospital. germany where they will get care, the most seriously injured navy s.e.a.l. awaiting evacuation.

suzanne, michael. >> barbara, thanks. >> miraculous. >> keeping an eye on things for us at the pentagon. can't say it often enough too, tough neighborhood. right next door the central african republic which has its own turmoil. >> brave soldiers. on to a happy story. recognizing this guy making the way around the world just in time for the holidays. there he is. his mission to tell santa who's been naughty and who's been nice. kind of like a spy actually. >> he is ubiquitous. we'll talk to the co-creator of elf on the shelf and talk about what is becoming a global phenomenon. open to ambition. open to bold ideas. that's why new york has a new plan -- dozens of tax free zones all across the state. move here, expand here, or start a new business here and pay no taxes for ten years... we're new york. if there's something that creates more jobs, and grows more businesses... we're open to it. start a tax-free business at startup-ny.com.

all right. we've got to wampb you here, you might want to get the kids out of the room for the next segment because this is a christmas sensation, a household name. we don't want to spoil the fun. it's kind of like a santa thing, as well. we've got this guy here, the elf on the shelf who made his way to the cnn headquarters this holiday season. >> he's been everywhere running the cameras. it's not that hard, see? sorry. >> he does it all. >> getting the evil eye from a couple of cameramen. this little fellow actually helps spread holiday cheer to children during the days leading up to christmas. he can direct, as well. . >> there he is. >> no comment there. hi mary.

this is a tradition based on a book by a co-author chanda bell. here's how it works. >> give us a sense -- you came up with this idea. it has become a global phenomenon now. letters getting to the elf on the shelf. you've got many, many projects coming out of this. explain to us. did you ever think this would catch on the way it has. >> i grew up with this tradition when i was a little girl, santa used to send an elf to our home and he used to watch and listen and report to santa. i have a twin sus ter and younger brother. he had plenty to say. so when i became an adult, i wanted an elf you know, to talk to santa for my own children. my mom and i wrote this book together based on our own family tradition. we had to get permission from santa claus. it's one of those special family things that the entire family can participate in. it's a family moment. >> there's rules, aren't there? >> there are. the elves are busy working when

santa sends them to your house. can't touch your elf or his magic might go. so it's very important rule especially once he has a name. that's how he comes to life. the elf linda stouffer cannot speak to children because he's busy working. i'm sure he would love to play but he can't. he's busy working. those are the only two rules and then families adopt the elf and integrate him into their christmas holiday. >> the other rule is being naughty. he's going to dub you in as we say in australia. >> the idea is to influence kids' behavior, to teach them what's naughty and nice by pointing out bad and good behavior the elf is doing. >> i'm so glad you said that because it's fun for families. it's a hide and seek game for children. it also is a way for them to exercise self-control. and i think that's important. you know, the idea that santa is watching goes back for decades. and now we know how he's watching. he's watching because the elf on the shelf sends the elf from the

north pole. it's important people understand how much children love these eves. you name it, adopt it into your family. you can regster your elf's name on our website and you get a letter from santa. it is something that's really special and unique to families all around the world. >> there's one in my house. and does have a positive impact, as well. >> good. >> are you interested in some of the, well let's say things he gets up to online? >> naughty and nice. >> adults have been doing all kinds of things. >> he's adventurous. >> i tell people all the time that elves match the personality of their family. but clearly our intent is to create meaningful family moments. this is about children spending time with tear siblings and their family. and just getting a chance to talk to each other. our kids are constantly telling us where they found the elf, what the elf was doing. so in our family, the elf is not quite as crazy as some of the things we hear about. >> we do see some of the naughty elf pictures, as well. there is something that you're

doing that is impacting just bringing clean water to kids and children around the world. based on the birthday elf of, as well. tell us about the new project. >> we have a new product called the elf on the shelf a birth day tradition. we had received letters from children all around the world wanting their special elf to many could back for their birthday. mom and i wrote this book about how your elf can come back and visit on your birthday. we were able to integrate a fabulous organization called charity water. >> where does the water go to? >> there are 20 underdeveloped countries that charity waterworks with. we have been able to partner with them specifically to build wells, bring clean drinking water to these communities. many times this affects the mother and children because they're the ones having to get the water miles and miles away. and it also prevents so many illnesses and sicknesses. it can be easily avoided. so santa claus donates $1 from

every book purchased for the elf on the shelf" a birthday tradition to charity water. we understand there are communities where all they want for christmas, you know, or for their their birthday is the chance at life and clean drinking water. that's what we're about. >> couldn't be a more simple thing that saves many.lives. that is clean water. chanda, thanks so much. >> this was my pleasure. merry christmas. have a good one. >> you've heard plenty of stories about parents in that moment before sleep going -- elf. >> elf anxiety. we've heard that. >> check on the elf. >> yes, check on the elf every night. thankfully, they usually make it from the north pole safe and sound. >> they do. they do. >> we're trying to come up with our own creative ideas michael and i. >> how fun. >> i want an elf that watches her every day. >> that does tend to help. it does. you guys got to give this ef a name. cnn needs a special name for their elf. >> work something out. >> bring a little christmas

magic. this is my pleasure. thanks for having me. >> good to see you. thanks so much. >> several story caught our attention today. photos, as well. take a look at this, the world getting ready for the big holiday, of course, on wednesday. that holiday. >> oh. >> i'll be here. >> stunning images out of the philippines. a star-shaped lanterns made to resemble the star of bethlehem made from bamboo and paper. very pretty. >> we're not quite sure what dressing up as a super hero has to do with christmas but what these workers did on their way to a christmas celebration in the u california was to dress up. >> what better way to celebrate the end of christmas shopping better than a spin on a carousel. >> doing 100 miles an hour. >> looks pretty fast to me. south bank in london. >> lovely. that thing is spinning around. >> thanks for watching "around the world." "cnn newsroom" starts right now. have a great afternoon. have a great afternoon. >> see you tomorrow.

-- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com right now, it's deadline day for people looking to sign up on the health care exchanges. get it done today or start the new year without coverage. and right now, retailer target is facing lawsuits and a possible federal government investigation over the $40 million credit and debit card numbers stolen in a massive security breach. and right now, taking sides in the "duck dynasty" controversy. one retailer that said it was trying to do the right things gets hammered. now it's changing course. hi there i'm brianna keelner washington. wolf blitzer is off. we start with today's deadline h