all that over a sidewalk. what sent elbows swinging during a city council meeting in florida. this includes one senior citizen, too. plus, drug lords' girlfriend. she tells how she was shot and still lived to write a book about the experience. new video about the heart-stopping story that had so many glued to the tv. the missing boy and the balloon.

the balloon broke free yesterday. at that point the family thought they lost the balloon, then they worried that six-year-old falcon heene was alone on board. this morning his dad told our sister station, cnn, what he thought when the balloon finally came down and falcon was not on it. >> it was the worst day i ever had in my life because all i could think of was perhaps he had fallen out and somebody that was here suggested he maybe jumped out. we're kind of hopeful, maybe, that might have occurred. >> this all started when the boy's brother said he had seen the six-year-old climb inside the balloon before it took off yesterday morning. police and military helicopters tracked the balloon for 50 miles. falcon was hiding in the end in the attic the whole time. he said he hid after the balloon took off because he was afraid his dad would yell at him. a lot of you are messaging us

about this story. we'll have your reactions coming up in just a little bit. stick around for that. 95% of lasik surgery patients are very happy, but the agency is getting concerned about the other 5%. yesterday the agency opened up the truth about lasik surgery. the most common complaints are dry eyes, plus the lasik is so new, nobody nds if there are any long-term worries. the f-16 collided with another jet during trachk exercises. they hit each other on the california coast last night. one of the jets landed safely but the location of the pilot and other plane still is not known. the air force has been doing tests at night so pilots can train with night vision equipment. so they're looking again at this moment. this wasn't your usual, old, boring city council meeting. >> hey, hey, hey. enough! enough! >> these guys were fighting

about a decision to privatize a city sidewalk in st. petersburg, florida. >> no! >> now, the guy in the yellow shirt there is 76 years old and the brother of one of the councilmen. the other is 51 years old. both were arrested for disorderly conduct, which is a misdemeanor. they are now free on bond. but brawling on the floor there in the courtroom. more trouble for a key u.s. ally in the war on terror. nuclear missile equipped pakistan gets hit with another suicide bombing. in a deadly attack in pakistan, a woman blew herself up during a coordinated suicide attack that killed at least 13 people. that's from the associated press. the blast destroyed part of a police station and a mosque in the northwest region near the afghanistan border. taliban presence is strong there. we need to tell you about a new h1n1 warning this morning. the fda says absolutely do not

buy any treatments you see for sale on line. the agency says it's testing products found on the internet that claim they can help. so far none of them have been approved in the u.s. bottom line, always talk to your doctor. so the president was in new orleans yesterday and he faced krilt i cans that said federal aid for hurricane katrina has not improved since he took office. take a lirsten. >> i expected as much from the bush administration, but why are we still being nickel and dimed in our recovery? >> look, we are working as hard as we can as quickly as we can to process through many of these issues. >> well, protestors greeted president obama at a democratic fundraiser in san francisco thereafter. that happened yesterday. some were anti-war protestors from code pink. there were also health care reform protestors. in all, about 1,000 people showed up in those protests.

smoking bans in restaurants, bars and other places may be protecting the hearts of non-smokers. that's from a new study by the institution. it uses pueblo, colorado as an example saying hospitalizations for heart attacks there dropped 41% in three years after workplace smoking was banned. but many businesses have been against the ban saying they're bad for business. it's the weekend, almost. some have already started. bob van dillen is here, our meteorologist, to talk about the northeast. we had trouble there yesterday. >> and today. >> and more, huh? >> and tomorrow, too. we're watching a jet stream come from the south and go toward the northeast. when that starts to happen, you get a nor'easter starltit to go develop and we have one now. it's not that powerful, but it's enough to get snow going and it's still going now.

northern part of new york state, lighter when you get to philly, new york and boston. temperatures are safely above freezing, but you get into interior sections of pennsylvania, poconos getting just the outskirts of the allegheny. let me take you live to new york city, though, because if you're traveling in the big apple today, you have delays of over an hour right now. that's because of the cappiello clou -- low clouds out of the east. we've got the playoff game tonight, angels versus yankees. it's going to be tough to get that one in. it's going to be cool. parts of florida, that's sliding down into central florida. tampa, you can see some thunderstorms there going on up into the orlando metro area. it's been hot. into the 90s. today a little cooler for you,

but showers off and on all day long today. >> i wonder if the angels will be able to handle it in new york. >> you mean the weather or the yanks? >> both of them. >> i don't know if they're playing tomorrow, but it's bad weather all weekend, unfortunately. if the whole balloon boy incident was not embarrassing enough, he had some, well, upsetting moments, shall we say, on live tv this morning. plus we got the markets. you know, we're celebrating 10,000 but down 105 at the moment. investors looking at ibm and ge results. we'll have more on the market, plus business for you, coming up.

since the whole balloon boy story unfolded yesterday, falcon heene has been on countless tv programs and this morning maybe just got the best of the little guy. he walked out of an interview

and got sick just off camera. during a live interview with nbc, he got sick with the camera right on him. we'll have that story, including your reactions to what happened with the balloon boy and what happened overnight. she's fighting to public sh her pictures, but the school won't use it because she wore a tuxedo. there is no policy about yearbook photos and the principal said he would not comment. the deaths in the sweat lodge in arizona is now a homicide investigation. a sweat lodge is used as a retreat, as you know. sheriffs are looking into how the sweat lodge was built. authorities do not have all the facts and the word homicide is inflammatory. joy behar talked to actor and comedian richard belzar

about racism. >> people skirt the issue of racism quite a bit. they like to think it's not an issue, but in a way, it is, isn't it? >> you still see health problems among the blacks, hispanics and poor people that people of means don't have those problems. there is so much discrimination that's just built into the fabric of america. >> catch the joy behar show at 9 9:00 p.m. eastern for great interviews and views. we've been watching the stocks. if you look at the lower right-hand corner, we're down at 112 in trading right now. disappointing news about the earnings of two companies, bank of america and general electric. general electric has their fingers in just about everything we buy and sell in the united states. also got a lot of exposure in the financial sector, so that could be hurting them as well as

why the market is reacting. they reported earnings dropped 44%, so that's pretty big. then it's bank of america that reported a loss of $2 billion in the most recent quarter, in part due to some bad loans. that news comes one day after bank of america revealed that ceo ken lewis will receive no salary or bonus this year. the bank said he agreed to forgo his $1.5 million salary. he'll still get about $69 million in benefits from the company when he leaves. the federal reserve says industrial production, that rose for the first straight month as automakers ramped up production of cars. auto parts rose more than 8%. so those factories are getting used more. walmart and amazon, they are battling it out to win over book lovers. walmart struck first, cutting

on-line previous prices of hardbacks to just $10. amazon matched that, walmart went to $9, walmart matched that. a list price of the sarah palin book is 28.99. the walmart price, down to $9. casey anthony is back in court. her attorneys want the murder accusation thrown out and they're asking for a dismissal. she is accused of killing her two-year-old daughter. we'll have more on that. stay with us.

right now casey anthony and her lawyers are in court for a key hearing. remember, she's accused of killing her two-year-old daughter, caylee. beth joins us from "in session" joins us from atlanta. beth, we understand the focus of this hearing has changed a bit. fill this in for us. >> i've been a lawyer for over two decades. the destruction or failure to preserve or destruction of critical evidence and the defense wants to dismiss the case saying the whole crime scene, which is that wooded area, didn't look anything like what it looked like when the police started working it by the time the defense got ahold of it. >> it's ending right now, it looks like. you were telling us it was just about to end when we were on the break. >> yes, the hearing has just ended. it was about 30 minute in length because they had this big

argument, the motion to dismiss. that will be set at a future date. but the judge did grant a defense motion to amend his order about access to photos of the remains of caylee. the defense has argued that their experts cannot properly evaluate the crime scene, her remains. looking at those photos on a secure server where they can't reproduce or print the photos and the judge is going to let them put it on a disk and send them to experts all over the country. that's a big win for the defense. they need to do that to prepare for their case. >> folks who are remembering this case is, one, they're now moving towards people of interest that may have killed caylee, right? >> yes, the defense insists she did not kill her daughter. and how she died, did she drown and her body was disposed of, or did somebody deliberately kill her? there is evidence for the

defense to work with in supporting that somebody else may have killed her. and also that her body was placed where it was found after casey was locked up. she's been locked up since october 14, 2008, and the remains were found december 11th, 2008. >> so one other piece that happened over the weekend, there's that 48 hours mystery, right, that came out. it had to do with duct tape. what was that about? >> well, in reports that were recently released, the defense learned that there is a lab technician's dna on some of the duct tape that was found on the remains of caylee anthony. so it was contaminated by a lab technician. also they say there was residue in a little built of a heart shape in the mouth area, like maybe a sticker was put on it. that was destroyed in the testing of the duct tape and they didn't photograph the residue, so now it's the person's who saw it word rather than a photo to corroborate or support the testimony, and there's also partial dna on the

duct tape that is only a partial, but it excludes casey, caylee and cindy anthony. >> our good friend over at "in session," beth carlos. that exfoliation thing didn't happen. thanks so much. a 12-year-old cancer survivor is icnspiring them. here's rafer, how you doing? >> good. how are you? >> good. >> i know you like college football, and this team has been very impressive in all of college football. the cincinnati bearcats tell us their inspired play comes from this young man, 12-year-old mitch stone who is battling a brain tumor. last night the bearcats kept it rolling. the eighth ranked team beat

south florida, and he's boosting their spirits to fight cancer. the teammates tested positive for a similar flu strain, influenza a, and he was sick for three days. he seechms okay now, though. >> you got the coot heies and i don't want to be around you now. >> are you contagious? >> no, i think i'm over it now. if you get sick, i guess i'm contagious. lebron surprised his teammates by showing up thursday after he dropped a 300-pound weight on his throat.

he still can't speak. john wooden turned 99, the greatest coach of all time. he molded his young players to be good people as well as good people. one of his famous quotes, never mistake activity for achievem t achievement. that's it for this hour. take a look at this horse rescue. sparkles here was trapped in that hole in the blazing heat for more than two hours. it happened southeast of phoenix. vets showed up to give her medicine, to keep her calm, and fire crews sprayed her to keep her cool as well until she was finally pulled out. sparkles made it, though. now we know the so-called balloon boy was fine. in fact, he was not in the balloon at all as it flew across colorado, but this story had our full attention yesterday, and you really had a lot to say about this.

we'll read your comments in just a little built. 

i was in the attic and he scared me because he yelled at me. that's why i went in the attic. >> that was six-year-old falcon heene who was hiding. police were chasing a runaway balloon thinking he was alone on board that thing. the whole thing played out on live tv yesterday, the family insisting the episode was not a stunt and they're just glad the boy is okay at the moment. of course, that story getting a lot of attention. now to a woman who blew herself up during a coordinated suicide attack that killed at least 13 people.

the associated press reported the blast destroyed part of a police station and a mosque north of pakistan near the afghanistan border. taliban presence is strong there and this is the latest in a line of deadly attacks in a very important u.s. albuquerqly in a terror in the southeast. the balloon boy held everybody captivated yesterday as it developed on tv. this is not the first time that family has gotten national attention. the dad is a former tv weather guy. according to their myspace page, they're known for storm chasing and conducting science experiments together as a family. he said nobody has ever been put in harm's way. they used to be on reality tv. this is video of them a on the 100th episode of "wife swap" in march. the woman who swapped with the heene family on the show talked about this balloon ordeal.

take a listen. >> i think that he was scared because the flying thing went up. i think he might have been scared of how his father would react, you know, to it. so he may have been responsible for the ship, the flying balloon to go up. >> well, the heenes have even submitted ireports to cnn in the past, our sister network, including this one that shows them chasing hurricane gustav. if you have any comments, send them to cnn.com/robin. a blogger said -- and then there is also this from blogger frankie.

if you'd like to join a conversation, cnn.com/robin. new this morning for you, a strong earthquake rattling parts of indonesia. they've had a lot of these lately that we've been telling about. this latest one had a magnitude of 6.1. it was not strong enough to cause a tsunami. there are no injuries or damage reports so far in that incident. >> they want a justice of the peace to resign when he would not give a marriage license to an interracial couple. he says he's not racist but most interracial marjsz don't last. >> he said 95% end up in divorce, but how many marriages last, white or black?

the u.s. did not back a controversial report that basically accuses israel and hamas of war crimes. the u.n. council endorsed the report today and is sending it to the general assembly. this calls for israel and hamas to i understandependently inves. right now crews are searching the at lank for an f-16 that collided with another jet during training exercises. they hit each other on the california coast last night. one of the jets landed safely, but the locations of the pilot and the other plane still is not known. the air force has been doing tests at night so pilots can train with night vision equipment. a skurecurity camera in a tn

station, a train hits the baby stroller. you hate to see this. you see the stroller just roll off the platform there. the mother runs after it. we blurred some of this video. they say the baby was strapped in this stroller and that's bwht saved his life. we get a lot of really interesting video, but when you see this, your heart just -- >> they need to put a bar around the ground so the wheel hits it and it stops. do something. i'm sure that's happened before. >> you've been telling us about early season snow in the northeast. >> right. east florida, record-breaking heat. here comes the cold front. you see waves of showers riding

along the peninsula. for the weekend, back into the 80s as the rain and thundershowers continue to move on throw. here's the tampa region. you can see a nice line developing right around the bay. that is moving toward the east, so you'll watch that develop later in the day. we're still looking for that f-16 off the coast of charleston, showers and thunderstorms coming this morning. right now things seem to be okay. we have a wave of energy driving down into minneapolis. that's going to get into the cape hatteras area later on toechblt, that's how fast it's moving. when it happens, it will bomb out another area of cappiellow . showers not really a concern, it's more the snow when you get into parts of northern pennsylvania. if you're doing any traveling at all, little going to be a tough go right around d.c. winds coming out of the east

today, low clouds off and on. it looks really nice now, but this weekend you'll see one other area of cappiellow pressu by. >> the breeze not bad right now. it could pick up later today. >> you told me about they're looking for that missing pie locality, but weather doesn't seem to be a major issue. >> it was 40 miles off the coast. we had some thundershowers out there, but i think more developed for the afternoon, so let's hope for the best. survivor richard hatch has survived another challenge, and this one lasted three years behind bars. but first, some call it hotlanlt a or htl. he takes us to one of the coolest places in one of the hottest cities in the south. >> hi, my name is kela. my city is at lant a.

i'm going to show you some of my best kept secrets. we are in the atlanta cup cake factory. they have the best cupcakes in town. it's small, it's cute, and has a great atmosphere. it's not very well known yet, but it's going to be on the map quickly. agatha's is a dinner mystery theater. you eat, you solve a mystery. i have people who will join us in choruses. it's really fun. the anis cafe and bees tristro

prince albert of monaco. >> i've shown you my city. go to ireport.com/mycitymysecret.

we're expecting the judge in the casey anthony case to rule today in the motion to dismiss all charges against her, but he wants more time. in a hearing that wrapped up half an hour ago, casey anthony was there. lawyers say the prosecution did not do a good job providing critical evidence so it should be thrown out. that hearing ended just about 20, 25 minutes ago. survivor winner richard

hatch is back home in long island. he was released from jail this morning after serving time for not paying the taxes on his reality show winnings. jennifer westhoven is off today. in business news, though, for you, a new survey suggesting few of us will see our finances improving any time soon. according to the university of michigan, most believe the economy is start to go improve and unemployment will begin to bottom out. but they have a dismal outlook on their own personal finances. so if you want to book airline tigckets for the holida this year, expect to pay a little more. flights are going up each day. last year people who booked last minute got some great deals because airlines were caught off guard by big drops in demand.

don't expect that this year. all that data that disappeared from t mobile sidekick cell phones last week, earlier t mobile said the data was probably gone for good. but the dangerous subsidiary who makes the phones for t mobile said it has found this data and they will return it soon. it seems like everyone is talking about the little boy in the balloon from yesterday afternoon. our own chuck roberts is here to talk more about falcon heene and his family. our friend chuck roberts, you were following this story from beginning to end. and today that is the story you are going to get lots of people's views on. you're going to get them on the phone and talk to them. >> yesterday we were operating under the assumption that only two boys were outside at the launch, the family was inside and one of the boys runs inside and says, falcon is in there, falcon is in there.

now we've got tape, and let's roll it, of the actual launch. it turns out the whole family was there standing around, so how come the larimer sheriff was pral operating under the false belief that the family wasn't there and we're going on the one boy's story that the boy was inside? so what do you think? is it a hoax? should the family have to reimburse the national government? the faa was involved, the military was involved. e-mail at cnn.com/robin or go to facebook. also, stay tuned. at noon, in just an hour and 15, we're going to talk to the host of the show "wife swap." sherry silver will give us a little insight on the heene family, what they're you will about. >> and yesterday falcon said it

was for the show. >> yeah, who knows what he means. his father contradicted that. >> at least he's all right. jon gosselin has to go to court. we just learned somebody is suing the reality show dad.

tlc is suing reality tv dad jon gosselin. they said he has not lived up to his contract with "jon and kate plus eight." that's the show they had with their sextuplets. and jon has not made any public appear aances or statements. no word yet from jon gosselin. three hikers were stranded on a ledge above a waterfall. they say they were stuck there for three days. people were searching here at california kings canyon national park. a rescue helicopter finally spotted them. they lit a fire so they would be seen. they survived by rationing what little food they had.

a simple gesture at a high school football game is causing a whole lot of commotion at a small town. rafer weigel with that story and more. how old is this kid? >> he's only 17 years old. i know they're trying to cut down on celebrations. this, in my opinion, is going too far. r.j. davis from georgia considers himself to be a religious man. after he scored at a game, he pointed to a sky, saying he was giving thanks to god. the ref penallized the team, saying he can't celebrate in an excessive way. maybe he held it too long. davis says he'll do it again next time he scores and they play again tonight. rush limbaugh blasted al sharpton and jesse jackson on his radio show from being kept out of buying into an nfl team. >> of course, the two

racehorses, reverend sharpton and reverend jackson got involved, and i got a call on tuesday night from dave saying, i'm sorry, i have to ask you to withdraw. we are moving on. no more head banging from this crazy guy, owen schmidt. he banged his head until it was bleeding. he said he would not do it anymore. we're assuming he was told not to by the coaches. he did the same thing in west virginia. john glen trailing by one. they have a field goal block. clinic blocks it. they celebrate thinking it's over. well, the ball didn't cross the line of scrimmage, so again's coach says, go, go, go, run it in. so they run it in. all the players have left the field. the refs confer, that's a touchdown, kids. so plymouth is protesting.

they won't even put the score on their web site. they say the ref blew the whistle, but if he blew the whistle, they wouldn't hesitate putting it on their web site. that's sports. i another story. that's sports. >> i would hate to be in that locker room after saying, what were you guys saying. >> they're still mad and it's been like two weeks. toyota has had two massive recalls in the past month. one involved a faulty cruise control device they were telling you about yesterday. the other one has a very simple fix you can do at home. hln money expert clark howard has some easy to use tips that could keep you safe on the road. >> by now, i hope everybody in america who has a toyota or a lexus made between 2004 and 2010 has checked to see if your vehicle is one of the ones affected by one of the oddest recalls of all time. 4 million vehicles, approximately, were recalled because the driver format could cause you to be in an accident

and possibly even cause a fatal wreck. it's weird, isn't it? and the remedy, so simple. you pull out the floor mat on the driver's side and you let your carpet get dirty in the car. but most recalls aren't so simple as that. the shocker, though, that most of the time, even when there's a recall involving serious safety stuff, people don't respond, don't take their cars or trucks to the dealer. i want you to take care of it, especially if it's steering, braking, something like that. there's a website you can learn what's going on with your car, autosafety.org. check it out. i'm clark howard. check me out at cnn d cnn.com/clarkhoward. >> catch him at noon and 4:00 eastern right here on hx will know. if you're a big fan of "the simpsons," join the wacky family on the small screen. your big chance starts today. dd

right now on "showbiz tonight," jessica's fat fury. jessica simpson strikes back today at a disgusting fox football cartoon making fun of her weight. >> hey, tony, is jessica around? we could use a defensive tackle! >> tonight, jessica's furious response. and stars dealing with their own weight battles rush to jessica's defense. tonight, brace yourself for a

heated "showbiz tonight" great debate, is jessica simpson's weight fair game? the great cougar debate. tonight, courteney cox dishes brand-new shocking advice. the star of tv's hit show "cougartown," on how older women can get younger guys. but is courtney just making women look desperate? plus, is jon and kate's divorce hurting kids? tonight, the disturbing evidence that their nasty public split could be affecting kids everywhere. tv's first most provocative entertainment news show starts right now! hello. i'm a.j. hammer broadcasting tonight and every night from new york city. >> hi there, everyone. i'm brooke anderson, coming to you from hollywood. and tonight, jessica fat fury.

jessica simpson, mad as heck and she's not going to take it anymore. simpson is responding today for the very first time to a nasty, ugly, and allow me to say, disgusting animated spoof of her making fun of her weight. and what made it especially outrageous is that it ran on a boy's club-like nfl pregame show on fox. very funny, guys. how would you like it if the cartoon was making fun of your wife or your daughter? well, simpson is silent no more. stars are coming to her defense. and i can tell you, these latest developments made for big news breaking today. >> reporter: it's a fierce battle between titans of the gridiron. on defense, singer, actress, and former nfl girlfriend, jessica simpson. she's hitting back, hard, against a very offensive line. specifically, a line uttered in this animated fox sports cartoon. >> man, i still can't believe tony dated jessica simpson. even after she blew up bigger than flozell adams.

>> hey! >> reporter: "showbiz tonight" can tell you, an animated short making fun of jessica's weight has blown up into the super bowl of weight controversies. one that also has other celebrities screaming from the sidelines. >> the camera adds weight. i don't get it. >> reporter: in a brand-new twitter post, jessica simpson fires back at this sketch, sponsored by burger king, that aired on fox nfl sunday. >> hey, tony, is jessica around? we could use a defensive tackle! >> reporter: the clip makes fun of jessica and her ex-boyfriend, dallas cowboys quarterback tony romo, with several jokes about simpson's weight. >> unlike tony, at least jessica comes up big when it counts. >> reporter: and now jessica simpson is blowing the whistle and calling a penalty on the sketch. in her tweet, jessica writes, quote, i will never understand why people attack for a laugh. own your beauty and don't listen to the judgment.

>> it was just in poor humor. i mean, they might as well have just done yo mama jokes right there. >> reporter: fox has apologized for the animated sketch, telling "showbiz tonight" it was insensitive and a poor attempt at humor. and burger king tells "showbiz tonight" it had nothing to do with the sketch's content. but some people aren't forgiving. >> how brutal can the media be about press and these people making fun of jessica. >> reporter: on hln's joy behar show, joy and sitcom star valerie bertinelli, a jenny craig spokesperson, also weighed in on the jessica simpson controversy. >> the poor girl. she put on maybe -- she doesn't even look heavy to me. >> maybe five pounds, and the camera adds weight, i don't get it. she's a very beautiful young women. >> reporter: megan mccain, daughter of former presidential candidate, john mccain, has taken her share of cracks about her weight. she's also defending jessica simpson. in the dailybeast.com, mccain writes, quote, the segment was disgusting for many reasons and very damaging to the body image

epidemic that is assaulting young women in america. my only answer is, refuse to take it. i refuse to be bullied and i refuse to let jessica simpson be bullied. >> doesn't it seem very high school? you've got the football team, jessica's the cheerleader, she can't get on the top of the pyramid anymore, so here comes megan, student body president. she's going to fight for her. >> reporter: "showbiz tonight" can tell you this sketch is far from the first time jessica simpson has been mocked about her weight. ♪ last january, when concert video of a curvier than usual jessica simpson showed up online, tmz had a headline, this is how she rolls. and this "new york post" cartoon showed an exaggerated simpson character dumping romo for ronald mcdonald. and now that burger king and fox sports have taken a shot at her, it's clear simpson finds these jokes out of bounds.

>> she's trying to use this as an opportunity to get the message out that she's not letting these kind of jokes get to her and that nobody else should be paying attention to them either. >> so a lot of people upset by the jessica simpson weight slam, but taking shots at jessica's weight because she's a star, is that a clean hit? coming up on "showbiz tonight," the great jessica simpson weight debate. tonight, a brand-new disturbing development in the jon and kate divorce fallout. "showbiz tonight" can now reveal that their nasty split could be hurting the kids. no, not their kids, your kids. so many people watch "jon & kate plus 8" as a family, but now that the gosselin family has completely melted down, there are some troubling signs that other families could actually be affected. from jon's alleged womanizing ways to their big money showdown over who took what from their joint account, it's enough to make an adult's head spin, but what about kids? with me here in new york, robi ludwig.

she's a psychotherapist. also with me tonight, midwin charles, an attorney who runs midwin charles and sorbetassoci. here's the deal. we get hundreds of calls coming into "showbiz on call" every day, but when diana called in, you have to listen to how she says jon and kate's reality drama is affecting her family personally. >> caller: this jon and kate thing is really hitting home now. my poor child that watches this show and is now old enough to watch the news, because i watch showbiz every night and now my child is saying in tears, literally in tears this morning, feeling sorry for these kids, that they shouldn't have to be on tv and that their mom and dads are being mean. and this is terrible! kate's terrible. and they just need to sit down and go to counselinging and forget about the tv and the money and be a family. this has gotten way out of control. this is ridiculous. >> thank you, diana, we really do appreciate your phone call. and i'm hearing that thinking, she can't be alone. there have to be other families

dealing with this. robi, do you understand the effect jon and kate's drama could be having on families around the country? >> sure, when you're very connected to a tv show, they become almost a part of our extended family. at least, that's what it feels like. so when jon and kate's idyllic family starts to break apart and there was fighting going on in the media, one could see where kids would get scared by that or start to identify with the kids that jon and kate had and say, hey, oh, my gosh, is this going to happen to me? >> yeah, that's exactly what i was thinking. the kids are watching this marriage fall apart and saying, oh, my goodness, i'm kind of like their family. what do you think, midwin? it really is kind of the collateral damage of this whole thing that's going on with jon and kate that it's affecting family and kids have to be wondering what's going on. >> it is. but i think parents need to do a better job and make sure that their children are not necessarily privy to this type of dysfunction that jon and kate have displayed for the world to see. you have to remember, this isn't the brady bunch. this isn't everyone making nice

and making cupcakes all day, every day. and i don't think children should be privy to this stuff, whether it's on the news or watching the show. >> it's kind of unavoidable, though. particularly, you go to the supermarket checkout, it's on every magazine cover, and if they're old enough to read, they're seeing this stuff. we did get some big news today about "jon & kate plus 8." they confirmed over at tlc, the network that runs the the show, that "jon & kate plus 8" will end next month. they're hoping to move forward with the new "kate plus 8," that's the version of the show without jon. regardless of what happens, robi, given that parents and families are already skittish about the effects of what's going on now might have on their kids, should they be watching any kind of a gosselin show at this point? >> i think it's in poor taste to have a gosselin show at this point, because we're really not thinking about the impact of the kids. and i think there'll be a backlash about that. i think families are saying, hey, enough of this already. you just want to be on tv and get money and you're not thinking about the kids and i think for parents at home, they need to use this as a teaching

moment to reinforce that their family is safe and secure and also what they see on television is a show, and even though it looks like reality, there are a lot of things that go on behind closed doors that we are not privy to, so that they make that separation. >> as has been pointed out time and time again, the whole thing really turned into such a nightmare. it's in such stark contrast now, the whole jon and kate show began, i've been thinking that jon and kate actually owe their young fans and their parents a public apology for turning their show into this bizarre reality nightmare. i really think it could have been avoided. midwin, are you with me? they need to just, before they shut up for good, just say, i'm sorry. we didn't mean for this to happen. >> i think they should. they've been behaving badly. it's been a poor example for everyone involved. and frankly, i think the next iteration of the show should just be the eight kids. call it, "just us 8," and that's it. get rid of jon and kate. it's too much. >> you'll get a lot of arguments

from people saying, those kids should be off the tv altogether. it will be interesting to see how it unfolds, midwin charles, robi ludwig, thank you. i've watched this new courteney cox show on abc's "cougar town," it's pretty funny. but tonight, courtney is dishing advice on how older women can get younger guys. is she just making woman look desperate, though? and why taylor swift may be getting the ultimate revenge on kanye west. why the joke may be on kanye big-time. also this -- >>ly find out if you raise your hand up there and hold a phone to your ear. >> governor arnold passes a law terminating talking on your cell phone while driving. but, uh-oh, his wife, maria shriver, gets caught doing it. shame on you. this is shiite on hln. >> and now the "showbiz news ticker." more stories from the "showbiz tonight" newsroom making news right now.

hey, maybe kanye west will let taylor swift finish when she's hosting "saturday night liv live". today we found out that taylor will be hosting "snl" on november 7th. taylor says the gig is, quote, mind blowing. i bet on a kanye skit, though, you remember how he set off worldwide outrage when he interrupted taylor at the mtv video music awards. welcome back to "showbiz tonight." i'm a.j. hammer. >> and i'm brooke anderson. hey, did you see this? tonight, phone-y maria shriver, the wife of california governator, arnold schwarzenegger, using her cell phone while driving. this is a big no-no since her husband passed law back in 2008 requiring drivers to use hands-free devices while behind the wheel. maria has apologized for the

incident, but we hit the streets and found out that plenty of other people have had this bad habit too. here's cnn's jeanne moos for "showbiz tonight." >> reporter: when the governor of california's wife got on camera. what do you think of maria shriver getting nabbed while talking on the phone while driving? >> since i just got caught myself, i guess it's kind of silly and it's not right. >> you should always use the blue tooth. she's a nice lady, the governor's a good guy, but it's a shame she's breaking his law. >> reporter: the one banning handheld cell phone use while driving that governor schwarzenegger signed into law. back then, he threatened to follow his two daughters of driving age. >> i will find out if you raise your hand up there and hold a phone to your ear. and then the car will be gone. >> reporter: instead, his wife is caught, holding the phone and since the governor has promised there's going to be swift action, will the threat to his daughters apply to his wife? >> the car will be gone and the

cell phone will be gone. >> reporter: hey, look who's talking. arnold caused havoc talking on the phone while driving in "twins." >> i want you to take your foot off the gas, apply it to the brake. >> you got it. oh! >> reporter: at least maria stayed on four wheels and hands-free technology has its own drawbacks. >> yeah, i'm on my new blue tooth, man. it's liberating, dude. you can get so much done wile you're just driving. who's up? cubs or cardinals? of course, they are. chicago sucks. >> reporter: maria shriver's cell phone use with us the talk of "the view." although, online, the view that had some l lo related to the size of her phone. ginormous, that's a monstrosity. reminded of us old movies. >> this is your wake-up call, pal. >> yes, we did, we won. >> i've got to answer that. . >> reporter: at least the newer, littler phones are easier to hide. were you going to use your phone

there just now? >> are you guilty of driving while talking on your cell phone? >> reporter: yes, i'm guilty. do you have to take my picture. did you see maria shriver got nabbed on her cell phone in the car? >> yeah, but i'm just walking. >> reporter: but she's not. ♪ how do you solve a problem like maria ♪ >> that was cnn's jeanne moos for "showbiz tonight." maria shriver not only apologized for breaking california's cell phone law, but she will also donate her phone to a local charity. >> they want it. brooke, our "showbiz on call" phone lines have been ringing nonstop today. >> huh, what about, a.j.? >> they're calling about you, brooke, and your beautiful baby, kate victoria. listen to annette calling in from texas. >> i'm not calling about a celebrity tonight. i'm calling about somebody way better. brooke anderson, this is for you. just wanted to say how happy i was for you and your husband. congratulations on your precious little baby. and although i was glad to have a.j. all to myself all these

months, i'm glad that you're back and that i can see you every day again. >> we appreciate your calling in. and be clear, brooke, a celebrity in her own right. we also her from debora calling in to "showbiz on call" from washington. >> caller: i just wanted to welcome brooke back. you look absolutely beautiful and you were missed by so many viewers, i'm sure, and it's just wonderful to have you back and your beautiful little kate is just -- she's gorgeous, she's absolutely gorgeous. so welcome back and i look forward to seeing you every night on my tv. >> thanks for your call. isn't it nice, brooke. not just on facebook, people are calling us saying they're so glad you're back. and of course, i'm included in that. >> it's so nice, and the warm welcome means a lot to me. because all working mothers know that it's not easy to leave your child every morning to come to work. so i really, really appreciate the thoughts. i love to hear from y'all, so please give us a call, "showbiz on call," let us know what you think about my baby, or anything else that is on your mind. the "showbiz on call" phone line

always open, 1-888-sbt-buzz, 1-88-728-2899. tonight, there's a brand-new weight debate over that disgusting fox cartoon making fun of jessica simpson for her weight. >> i still can't believe tony dated jessica simpson, even after he blew up bigger than flozell adams. >> big stars rushing to jessica's defense today, but there's also a lot of people saying that jessica's weight is a clean hit, because she sells her looks. also, the fired up cougar debate! courteney cox, who stars in abc's "cougar town," giving brand-new advice to older women on how to get younger men. now, does this make women look desperate? this is "showbiz tonight" on hln. now the "showbiz news ticker," more stories from the "showbiz tonight" newsroom making news right now. they said it would never last.

but it's been two months, and you're still going strong. glade lasting impressions. two fragrances alternate to keep things... fresh and exciting day after day. - and not just for 30 days. - ( inhales deeply, sighs )

but for 60. it's the longest-lasting plugins ever. get freshness that won't fade away for 60 days. ahhh! with plugins lasting impressions. and yes, it's glade. s.c. johnson, a family company. man, i still can't believe tony dated jessica simpson, even after she blew up bigger than flozell adams. >> hey! >> now on "showbiz tonight," the great jessica simpson weight debate. stars rush to jess' defense after a cartoon skit making fun of her weight. but is jessica's weight fair game? it's the great debate. cougar alert. "cougar town" star courteney cox dishes on how older women can snag younger men. but is courteney making women look desperate? i'm like, okay, how are you going to end world hunger? and then, it hit me. sell the vatican, feed the

world. >> sarah silverman's controversial new spoof. guess what, not everybody thinks it's funny. plus, more stories breaking from the "showbiz news ticker," tv's first most provocative entertainment news show continues right now! welcome back to "showbiz tonight." it's 30 minutes past the hour. i'm a.j. hammer, broadcasting tonight and every night from new york city. >> i'm brooke anderson, coming to you from hollywood. tonight, the great jessica simpson weight debate. the debate over a fox skit poking fun at jessica simpson's weight absolutely exploded today. jessica fired back today for the very first time and some big stars are backing her up, including valerie bertinelli. watch what she said on "the joy behar show" right here on hln. >> i don't get it. she's a very beautiful young

woman. >> but not everybody agrees with jessica's defenders. brace yourself, there are some who are also saying making fun of jessica for her weight or anything else is fair game because she's a celebrity. i mean, come on, a.j. are jokes about jessica's weight really fair game? >> not if you ask me, brooke, but some of our "showbiz tonight" facebook fans say, yes. joining us tonight in new york, marvette britto, a publicist and brand strategist. and joining us from hollywood is kim serafin, an editor if "in touch weekly." first, i want you to take a look at a bit of what fox played during their nfl pregame show on sunday. and frankly, i think they should be ashamed of themselves for this. take a look. >> man, i still can't believe tony dated jessica simpson, even after she blew up bigger than flozell adams. >> hey! >> hey, tony, is jessica around? we could use a defensive tackle! >> yeah, yeah, very funny. fox has now apologized for this.

but jessica is still stiticked . she fired back on twitter. i thought it was great what she wrote. "i will never understand why people attack for a laugh. own your beauty and don't listen to the judgment." she handled with this great class and gave great advice along the way. kim, you with me? >> absolutely. this was in such poor taste and it wasn't even funny. and it's not relevant. the last time people were talking about her weight was when she wore those mom jeans. she wasn't fat then, she's not fat now, and she's not even dating tony romo anymore. and to compare her to a 350-pound lineman, it really didn't make sense. it wasn't funny, and i don't think a lot of people found it funny. and if anything, i think it will give her more sympathizers. i think she's doing exactly the right thing. >> but here's the thing. this is what's been happening today. a lot of people out there are saying, she's a celebrity, and

she is fair game. even jokes about her weight are fair game. marvette, do you think jessica has any right to be mad about this? >> certainly, she has a right to be mad, but as a pioneer as a person who opened up her life to reality tv show, her weight, sadly, and unfortunately, is fair game. for fox and burger king, two corporate giants, to drag themselves in the middle of something that really is insensitive to people who are their consumers, i think they're forgetting about their consumers and focusing on jessica simpson, but it was out of line and i think they're consumers are going to speak loudly. >> you make a great point. you have to think, who really gains when a joke like this is made and it's done at somebody else's expense. megan mccain is, of course, the daughter of john mccain. she's been attacked about her weight in the past. and she blogged about this point on the dailybeast.com today. and she wrote, "what does anyone

gain by this? the media can do better, this country can do better. if not for women like me then my little sister and all of the other young girls in my country. my only answer is to refuse to take it, i refuse to be bullied and i refuse to little jessica simpson to be bullied." i have to wonder if there is some underlying bullying mental going on. is jessica simpson an easy target for bullies to make fun of her, even her weight, even if it's a couple of pounds. brooke, your take on it? >> that's an interesting way to look at it. yeah, there are some people that get some sort of sick thrill out of kicking a man or a woman when she's down. and i think that is what's happening in some way. i think it's pitiful, malicious, uncalled for. and besides, she looks beautiful. more power to her. >> and the sad thing is, we do see this go on all the time. i really am hoping for the day it all comes to an end. valerie bertinelli is someone who's certainly battled her own weight issues over the years, and she is speaking out. in a brand-new interview, she

makes a stronger point about the whole thing. jessica's not even overweight. watch what she told joy behar on joy's show here on hln. >> how brutal can the media be about press and these people making fun of jessica. the poor girl, i mean, she put on, maybe -- she doesn't even look heavy to me. >> maybe five hundred dollapoun camera adds weight. i don't get it. she's a very beautiful young woman. >> but you have to take a look at what andrea t. wrote today on our "showbiz tonight" facebook wall. she says, it is not fair to go after her, but they are going to go after anyone that is famous. if she was too skinny, fat, got implants, that's just the price they pay for being in the spotlight. that was your point before, marvette. but my question is, shouldn't the line get drawn somewhere? i mean, if she had blotchy skin, if she was missing a foot, would that be okay to go after and make fun of her, just because she's a celebrity? >> well, unfortunately, a.j., it does. you open up your life for ridicule when you are a public figure. it's not right, but i think it's the price you pay for being a

celebrity. the issue here is the example that it's setting for young women all across this country and all around the world. that you will be ridiculed for being overweight. and like they said earlier, she's really only a few pounds overweight. but this is a bad example to set. and again, the corporate giants attached to this bad example is really startling and alarming. it's a big issue. it is a problem. >> it's a terrible example to set and pardon the use of the phrase, but i think it should be a real teaching moment. maybe people really need to wake up and making fun of people for their weight when, especially, a celebrity who has the last thing from a real weight issue, is a very dangerous thing to do. here's another comment i want to read from the "showbiz tonight" facebook wall. lauren f. writing today, it isn't fair, but jessica simpson used her sex appeal to become famous, so she has to deal with people criticizing her weight. now, this is really more of an attack than criticism, but, kim, do you buy that logic? because a lot of people are saying that as well. >> no. i disagree. first of all, she first became famous as a singer, then she did

"the newlyweds" and then her brand was the ditzy girl. it was only in "the dukes of hazard" where she became known for being a sexy girl. i have a pair of jessica simpson shoes and this makes me want to get another pair. she's trying to be a business woman now. she's trying to focus more on her singing career, not trying to be a sex symbol. i think that's unfair. and again, going back to that little spoof they did, saying, i can't believe tony romo dated jessica simpson, are there really a lot of guys who would be like, ew, i can't believe somebody would date jessica simps simpson, i mean, come on. >> and are there any guys if they gained a couple of pounds would be made fun of so brutally by the media or in cartoons like the one we saw about jessica? i don't think so. and our "showbiz on call" phone lines have been ringing all day about this. susan from texas makes a good point about this double standard. take a listen. >> caller: it's getting to be ridiculous when people are constantly picking on females for being overweight.

how come a woman that is 20 pounds overweight is considered fat? but then a man can gain all kinds of weight and he's considered stocky. there's still the same double standard. i guess there always will be. >> brooke anderson, we have a few seconds here, but we cover this all the time. would we be having this conversation if it were george clooney? >> oh, please, no way. i certainly agree with our caller. the same old double standard applies. a man's weight can fluctuate, no one says a word, but a woman, five, ten pounds, it's all over. it's disgusting. we've been asking you to vote on our "showbiz tonight" question of the day. jessica simpson's fat jokes, is making fun of her weight fair game? let us know what you think at cnn.com/showbiztonight and e-mail us showbiztonight@cnn.com. cougar alert. courteney cox has become the top cat in the cougar den with scenes like this from her new hit show, "cougar town." >> look at all these cute little

crests on your heels. >> my feet have had some experience, okay, josh, they've seen things. >> i didn't mean anything bad. >> i so don't care. >> now courteney is dissing about how older women can snag younger men, but is courteney making women look desperate? we've got the great cougar debate. also, "american idol" judge kara dioguardi opens up today about what it's going to be like without paula at the judge's table. you've got to hear this. plus, major controversy over sarah silverman's new spoof. >> i'm like, okay, how are you going to end world hunger? and then it hit me. sell the vatican, feed the world. >> okay. guess what, not everybody is laughing. wait until you hear what the catholic league has to say today about sarah's controversial new spoof. this is "showbiz tonight" on hln. >> now the "showbiz news ticker." more stories from the "showbiz tonight" newsroom making news right now.

hey, kid! >> courteney cox is the ultimate cougar, but her new show, "cougar town," is stirring up a lot of cougarlicious controversy. tonight, the great debate, is it sending the wrong message? >> pretty funny, that scene right there. welcome back to "showbiz tonight." i'm a.j. hammer in new york. >> and i'm brooke anderson in hollywood. tonight, courteney's cougar advice. courteney cox is the new mascot for cougars everywhere in her new hit show on abc, "cougar town," courteney cox is sizzling hot over 40 and unabashedly dating men half her age. and now in a brand-new interview with "usa today," courteney cox reveals her top rules for being the perfect cougar. but tonight, "showbiz tonight" wants to know, is courteney cox empowering women over 40 or belittling them? you decide. joining me tonight in new york,

don yannik, the senior editor for life askand style weekley. also joining us, midwin charles. all right, ladies, i'm betting there are a lot of men who think that courteney cox is cougarlicious in "cougar town." she plays a newly divorced mother in her 40s struggling to create a new identity and dating plenty of younger men along the way. watch. >> there's a man in my house. >> did you call the police? >> no. i lied to him and went to -- oh, just go look at him. >> what? >> come on! >> go do disgusting things to that boy. >> no, i need time to prepare. i've got to buy candles. >> i love it. so funny. so what are courteney's real-life rules for being the ultimate cougar? courteney tells "usa today,"

number one, be your own biggest fan. she says her favorite cougar is herself. she's 45, hubby david arquette, 38. midwin, is courteney the cougar sending the right message to women over 40? >> i don't know. i mean, i took a few minutes to look at the show the other day and i just was not impressed. not so much because of the cougar concept is crazy or wild. i think it's fabulous. i mean, we all can remember samantha from "sex and the city" and how great that character was, but i just don't know if courteney cox fits well into this role. she really isn't someone who exceeds sexuality. so the show, not concept, yes. >> oh, harsh. harsh. who is courteney's second favorite real-life cougar, herself being number one, she says it's demi moore, who's 15 years older than husband ashton kutcher. but there's another poster cougar out there. who is it? madonna, gorgeous, 51 years old, dating 23-year-old jesus luz.

so that brings us to rule number two of courteney cox's cougar rules, embrace your age. don, do you think demi and madonna and courteney are embracing their age and giving coug coug cougardom a better name? >> absolutely. and let's not forget about haley berry. you can be any age, as long as you are confident in your sexuality, in yourself, in your appearance, that is a good thing. and you know what, i think as far as "cougar town" goes, it's just kind of finding its groove. and in the first few episodes, courteney cox's character is a little bit desperate, trying to find he wr way, but she kind of finds herself as the episodes goes along. >> the show to me was funny, made he chuckle, doesn't take

itself too seriously. >> it's a half-hour comedy, it's supposed to be over the top. >> exactly. but not everyone thinks that courteney is sending the best cougar message. some critics say that her cougar character does seem really desperate, does seem really insecure, way different than the real life courteney the cougar. watch this. >> i've got an idea. >> oh, great, it's probably not insane at all. >> every night at 10:00 sharp, i'm going to look out my window and if your porch light is on, i'm going to know that that's a signal that you think i'm attractive and you never have to say it to myself. >> you've got old noodles all in your hair -- >> oh, somebody's obsessed with my hair. >> midwin, i want to get your take on this. is courtney's cougar character somehow belittling this whole cougar movement? >> i think she isn't. that's the exact clip i saw last night, but i think she is -- >> that you were not impressed with. >> i was not. i was not. my mom was with me, she was like, what is this?

turn the channel. but i digress. i think the thing with her character, not the concept of cougar, but her character is that she's so desperate. and i think with the cougars that we have named demimoore, halle berry, there is no desperation there and it's almost abundantly clear that those young men chased those older women and would love to be with them, as well as a lot of other younger men. i think she definitely comes across as really desperate, and rightfully so, that would turn off a lot of women. >> well, you know, i think age is nothing but a number. i think she's supposed to be over the top in this role. and you know, i think it's good when we can laugh at ourselves. we do have to leave it there for now. we'll continue this discussion. midwin charles, dawn yannik, thanks. >> did you see this? the fourth season premiere of "30 rock" aired just a short time ago, but the action started much earlier in the day when tina fey got into a little canoodling on the "today" show. meredith vieira was apparently gunning for another guest spot on "30 rock" and asked tina fey

who she wanted to make out with on the "today" show set. fair question, right? tina said, al roker. do we want to see this? let's see how it turned out. >> here we go. oh, my gosh, i don't even want to watch.. >> oh, my gosh! >> now, does that mean he gets the guest spot or i get the guest spot -- >> that was his guest spot. >> well, in other hot tina fey news, tina said she would definitely consider playing sarah palin again if she runs for office. sarah silverman is under fire about her new idea of ending world hunger. >> i'm like, okay. how are you going to end world hunger? and then it hit me -- sell is vatican, feed the world. >> sell the vatican? guess what? not everybody's laughing. wait until you hear what the catholic league had to say today

about sarah's new stunt. this is "showbiz tonight" on hln. >> time to roll out the "showbiz" news ticker. more stories from the "showbiz tonight" newsroom making news right now -- they said it would never last.

but it's been two months, and you're still going strong. glade lasting impressions. two fragrances alternate to keep things... fresh and exciting day after day. - and not just for 30 days. - ( inhales deeply, sighs ) but for 60. it's the longest-lasting plugins ever. get freshness that won't fade away for 60 days. ahhh! with plugins lasting impressions. and yes, it's glade. s.c. johnson, a family company.

i'm really sorry i yelled at him. scared the heck out of us. >> all right. it's a story everyone's talking about. you know you're talking about it. the boy thought to be trapped in that runaway balloon right there. he's fine now but there are a lot of questions about what really happened. what are your views about this story? casey anthony returns to court. find out what a judge had to say about her lawyer's push to drop all the charges. and heart-stopping video out of australia.

a baby carriage falls in front of a moving train as his horrified mother watches. what happened to that baby? i'm richelle carey. this is hln "news and views" on this friday. let's get started. 6-year-old falcon heene, he is safe with his family. but a lot of unanswered questions surrounding that balloon that was launched from his family's backyard yesterday. this was the scene as it took off. >> 3, 2, 1! >> whoa! >> what are we really seeing? we're still not sure. the heene family says about the time the balloon was launched, that's when they realized their youngest child, falcon, was missing and feared somehow he had climbed into the basket of the balloon.

>> it was the worst thing i ever heard in my life because all that i could think of was that perhaps he had fallen out and somebody that was here suggested maybe he jumped out. we were hopeful that might have occurred. >> clearly, they look upset. well, the balloon launch set off a nearly two-hour ordeal. this thing flying across colorado. you saw it live here on hln. but now many people are asking questions, was it a publicity stunt? maybe a hoax on the part of the family. during a televised interview this morning, falcon was asked why he hid in the attic of his family's garage while people thought he was floating in the balloon. then on cnn's "larry king live" last night, this is what falcon said, word for word, you guys said we did this for the show. but richard heene says that falcon was just misunderstood. listen to this explanation.

>> right when he had answered, i've got this thing in my ear, i could hear you, i couldn't really hear what he was saying. it was asked to us again. then i heard it more clear what wolf was asking. so after the first set of interviews in the front yard, i told everybody to come in, my wife, the kids. i thought that they were behind me. and i ended up walking to the garage, opened up the garage door and falcon is climbing in the joist showing the media -- the garage door is wide open. and there's like 30 guys out there with cameras showing -- somebody had asked him if he would show them how he got up for some tv show. so he told me that that's what he was referring to when we were talking about it.

>> so now the larimer county sheriff says his investigators do not believe this was a hoax. but because of falcon's comment, they may re-interview the family at some point. this is not the first time the heene family has been in the media spotlight. they were featured on the abc program "wife swap" in march. a lot of you immediately recognize this family. some were questioning whether yesterday's incident was a publicity stunt. richard is insisting they do not seek media attention. >> the "wife swap" thing was the only thing that we had ever done. but we go out storm chasing, we have to go on our own dime. so early on in the early stages, the first tornado her and i and the family had caught years ago, we called the national weather service, told them about it, like you're supposed to.

and then the media and they later on "denver post "d" contacted us and later "wife swap" contacted us to do the show. it just unfolded that way. >> okay. sherry silver swapped lives with mayumi heene for the show. she's a self-proclaimed psychic. and the show features richard talking about his storm chasing. >> the experience that i went through, i felt as though i was in contact with aliens and this is just about identical to what i have seen. i asked who they were. and they said, we are your parents. >> okay, so sherry joins us now by phone from st. augustine, florida. sherry, what was your first

reaction when you saw this balloon in the air and you realized this is the family you knew? >> hello. original i had a phone call from the hairdresser that did my hair after the show. and she called me and said, oh, my god, sheree, you have to look on the news, richard's flying a spacecraft over denver international airport. and i put the show on. and the first thing i saw was, oh, my god, richard, what have you done? >> and did you immediately know that falcon was in this spaceship? >> no. i had to come down from that whole thing, oh, my god, i couldn't even believe he was in the news. and i had the sense that i was going in the news, too. because of the show and everything. and so it was like, oh, shoot. and i had to get in touch with what was going on, what i was

watching. and when i did, i felt like, no, falcon was not in there. falcon was not flying that high. he was not in there. i knew he was not in it. >> why did you say that? was it knowing the family -- >> no, no. just psychically, i just asked. i'm a psychic. i just asked, is falcon in this? and i got, no, he's not in it. so i had peace about it. and then i has to realize, where is he? my first thought is falcon loved to jump. he jumped from the top of the second story of their house down to the coach. he was a jumper all the time. so my first thought was, if it was anything and it did take off, he would have jumped, he loves to jump. it's like, he's going to be okay. i knew and i told the news before they released that he was okay, i knew he was going to be okay. >> you think this happened exactly the way the family said it did? >> i do believe that richard --

i don't think what he said is he doesn't seek publicity. i don't think that's true. >> let me ask you about that. not only did they go out of their way to be on a reality tv show, which is fine. but i think it's a little bit more than that. >> no, they love to be in the spotlight. what he wants to do as a scientist, like he says, he has to pay for everything himself. he made money from the show. he was able to continue to fund his science project. he spends an awful lot of money on science. everything spends on it. >> and also, let me play a clip for you that i want you to listen to. >> what's with the haircut? >> why don't you not be so obnoxious? your kids are picking this up? >> richard, i told you -- you'll be cleaning up. >> this is where he's having a temper tantrum with you. and the family said that falcon hit because he was afraid he would get in trouble.

does that jive -- >> completely. because i tell you, there were times that i was afraid of richard. it's not very comfortable when somebody's screaming and yelling to the top of their lungs and swearing at you and calling you names. that's not human behavior. that's not good adult behavior for his children to watch and him to do. >> let me ask you one quick question before i let you leave. i was taking it a step further about the seeking the media attention, not necessarily just the reality show. but even this morning he was making all the rounds on the morning shows. even to the point of falcon getting sick on air and he continued the interviews even as the child was getting sick on air. does that make you uncomfortable knowing this family? >> yeah, you know, one of the things richard wanted to do, he wanted to do something with me after the show because i'm a psychic and he's a scientist and he said we should work together. and i wasn't comfortable with that. >> thank you very much for your

take on this, having met this family and experienced what you did. thank you very much. >> you're welcome. >> we're getting a lot of calls -- i mean a lot of calls, e-mails, tweets, i-reports, facebook comments about this. you started yesterday and you haven't let up today. so continue to let us know what you think. was it all a hoax? is the family telling the truth because the sheriff continues to say this was not a hoax. you can call us. e-mail us at cnn.com/hln. text the word "views" to hlntv. standard text rates apply. and comment on my facebook page at richelle carey hln. it's a horrifying scene, it is difficult to watch. a baby stroller rolls into the path of an oncoming train. how did this baby survive with minor injuries?

some truly incredible photos to show you, pictures of a 6-month-old baby falling onto the train tracks getting hit by a train. before we show you this, yes, the baby is okay. it happened in melbourne, australia. for a second, the mom looks away, just a second, and the baby in the stroller rolls off the edge edge and onto the tracks in windy weather. a train hits the stroller, pushing it along the tracks as mom watches in just horror. amazingly, the baby boy has a slight bump on the head. that's it. there it is again. officials say the stroller's safety restraint probably saved this child's life. the stroller was found in pieces. can you believe it? it's a story that kept you glued to the tv set for hours. a little boy believed to be trapped on a runaway balloon. turns out he was safe at home hiding, but some of you are

saying about the dramatic ordeal and how it all ended.

back to the story that likely kept you glued to the tv yesterday. for hours, a concern that a 6-year-old boy was trapped on a runaway balloon, it looked like a spacecraft. it was not. he was found safe hiding in the attic. richard lui is here to talked about it. authorities say they, for now, believe this wasn't a hoax. but there is chatter that something does seem off. there's two things going on here. >> this story is intoxicating. let's go to the video. you were showing it earlier. there could be a possible contradiction here. this home video was taken yesterday, the moment the balloon broke free. you can see dad is there at the launch. there doesn't appear to be a basket nor a boy in with this

balloon as had been reported. this video is at odds with what the sheriff said earlier. >> did the father know falcon was in the basket when it took off? >> no, because he was in the house. the son is the one that came in and told him that his brother had climbed in the basket when it took off and watched it go up. >> so that doesn't fit together, right? the video could be of another launch, certainly. but what we have been told is it is from yesterday's untethering that we've been telling you about. another possible contradiction, what little falcon heene told our sister network, cnn, last night. here's this. >> did you hear us calling your name at any time? >> uh-huh. >> you did? >> you did? >> why didn't you come out? >> you guys said that we did this for the show. >> okay, that's what he said. when wolf blitzer asked what

falcon meant by that, his dad said he was appalled by the question and that his son was probably talking about all the media coverage. you're covering another explanation that came out this morning from the father. authorities say they want to talk with the family again. t one sheriff also said seasoned investigators who spoke with the family felt that this was not a hoax and this was the real deal because they were trained and were used to looking for some inconsistencies in such interviews. >> but even after that interview last night, the family is doing more and more and more interviews. it's odd. >> it is. you can't keep up with them. >> all right. well said, richard. thank you. you all continue to talk about this. you've said so much about this balloon story. let's get to the phones right now. ty is calling us from california. ty, what's your take? ty, are you there? >> caller: can you hear me?

>> now i can. go for it. >> caller: i saw the same thing you saw. there was no basket. the son said the reason why he came out yesterday, because he was bored and his story's changed today where he said that he came out because he was scared he would be in trouble. the story keeps changing over time. >> are you convinced it's a hoax? are you entertaining the possibility that it could have happened the way the family said? >> caller: no. i believe it was a hoax. >> okay, ty. thank you for your phone call. let's get to james calling from connecticut. james, fire away on any angle you want. >> caller: okay. well, first, if the child was inside the balloon, wouldn't you want your government to do everything they could to get him down safely? and if it was a hoax, they could do community service. don't break the family. but maybe this whole thing was a beneficial safety exercise if

something like this was to happen in the future. >> james is telling everybody, just lay off, people. we're going to continue to test your views on this and see where you're coming down on this. keep telling us what you think. was it a hoax? do you believe the family? we want to know. call us. e-mail us at cnn.com/hln. we want to know your views. . all right, toyota had two massive recalls in the past month. one involved a faulty cruise control device. the other one had a very simple fix you can do at home. clark howard has some easy-to-use tips that could keep you safe on the road. >> by now, i hope everybody in america who has a toyota or lexus made between 2004 and 2010 has checked to see if your vehicle is one of the ones affected by one of the oddest recalls of all time.

4 million vehicles approximately were recalled because the driver format could cause you to be in an accident and possibly even cause a fatal wreck. it's weird, isn't it? and the remedy, so simple. you pull out the floor mat on the driver's side and let your carpet get dirty in the car. but most car recalls aren't so simple as that. the shocker is that most of the time, even when there's a recall involving serious safety stuff, people don't respond, don't take their cars or trucks to the dealer. i want you to take care of, especially if it's steering, braking, something like that. there's a website you can learn what's going on with your car, autosafety.org. check it out. i'm clark howard. check me out at c cnn.com/clarkhoward. >> clark will teach you how to save more, spend less and avoid getting ripped off. catch him on sad and sunday right here on hln. eeeeeeeeeeeeeee

3, 2, 1! >> whoa! >> oh, my god. okay. >> a lot of drama, yeah. that was the scene yesterday as that experimental balloon was launched from the family backyard of the heene family in colorado. they say they feared their youngest son was inside. he wasn't. he's fine. sandra doe is in ft. collins,

colorado. the questions swirling around this incident. so many questions. thanks for joining us. >> reporter: that's right. and you are calling him balloon boy. some are calling him the attic boy. i'm standing in front of the heene family home and i'll show you the garage where little falcon, the 6-year-old, was holed up in and he says he was hiding in the attic, playing with toys, hiding in a box, even taking a nap while this whole massive search for him was going on. this new video shows how it all started and captivated the world. many feared 6-year-old falcon heene was on a wild helium balloon ride. as it turned out, he was actually safe at home the whole time, hiding in a box in his grarnlg attic because his dad yelled at him. the boy said he heard people calling his name but didn't come out. >> why didn't you come out? >> you guys said that we did

this for the show. >> reporter: skeptics now wonder if this was all a publicity stunt. but dad says his son was just confused. >> i ended up walking to the garage, opened up the garage door and falcon's climbing in the joists showing the media. somebody had asked him if he would show them how he got up for some tv show. so he told me that that's what he was referring to when we were talking about it. >> reporter: local authorities say while bizarre, they treated this like any other missing persons report and did not believe this was a hoax. >> we've seen no indications that this was anything more than what looked like a tragedy that was averted. >> reporter: a family relieved their helium balloon didn't take away their son. >> we went through so many emotions yesterday that -- it's something i don't want to experience ever again.

>> reporter: yeah, an emotional roller coaster for so many of us watching and captivated by what was unfolding in front of us yesterday. and sheriff's officials here say because of the speculation surrounding whether or not this was a hoax or a publicity stunt, they say they're thinking about possibly re-interviewing the family. local officials haven't charged anything against the family yet. they don't seem to plan on that and they are still tallying up the total cost of their rescue effort. >> oh, sandra this family doesn't seem to shy away from the camera, whether it's a professional camera or a home video or whatever. so because of that, we've been able to learn a lot about them. can you kind of sum that up for us? >> reporter: oh, yeah. i'm sure you're airing their i-reports that they send in from time to time to cnn. the family was featured in two episodes of an abc reality show called "wife swap." and the father's a

meteorologist. he's a self-proclaimed storm tracker. he pulls his kids out of school to track storms. he even went down to hurricane gustav. and neighbors know this is what they're all about. he even mentioned he has an old flying saucer in his backyard. and so while they're a little unusual in the neighborhood, a lot of the neighbors say they're friendly and they seem normal. but because of their panchant for publicity, there's a lot of speculation about what's going on yesterday. >> sandra endo, thank you for that wrap-up in ft. collins, colorado. appreciate it. got some news just in we need to tell you about. there has been a deadly shooting at a high school at myrtle beach, south carolina. officials say a 16-year-old student was killed. this is at carolina forest high school. this happened after this student stabbed a police officer. according to local reports, it

started when the boy got into a fight with this officer. the boy allegedly stabbed the officer who then killed the student. officials say that this was an isolated incident. no one else was injured. no more tlc for jon gosselin. the network that brought "jon & kate plus 8" is suing gosselin for breach of contract. tlc says he hasn't met the obligations of his contract as an exclusive employee and has appeared on other shows for pay and has revealed unauthorized details about the show. gosselin's camp has yet to comment. but i just have a feeling they will. i do. the judge in casey anthony's murder trial says he needs more time to decide whether to drop the murder charge against her. her lawyers try to convince the judge to dismiss the charge during a hearing this morning. her defense team and prosecutors went back and forth over the evidence in this case. casey anthony is charged with first-degree murder in her

daughter caylee's death. casey anthony's pled not guilty. the state is seeking the death penalty. a utah judge gets -- smart was abducted from her bed in salt lake city when she was 14 years old. she's 21 now. her alleged captors were never tried because they were deemed mentally incompetent. today, hospital officials tell the court whether that's changed for wanda barzee. smart testified at mitchell's competency hearing that she was tortured and raped throughout the ordeal. this wasn't your usually boring city council meeting. >> enough, enough, enough! >> oh, dear. these guys were fighting about a decision to privatize a city sidewalk in st. petersburg, florida, huh?

>> come on, out! >> knock it off! >> okay, one of them is 76 years old and the brother of one of the councilmen. the other is 51. both were arrested for disorderly conduct. it is a misdemeanor. they are free on bond. cruisers are searching for a fighter jet pilot in the atlantic. two f-16s collided during training exercises near the south carolina coast last night. one of the jets did land safely. but the location of the pilot and the other is still unknown. the air force has been doing tests at nights so pilots can train with night vision equipment. four more american troops were killed in afghanistan yesterday. 25 american service members have died in afghanistan this month.

it's a horrifying scene. it is difficult to watch. a baby stroller rolls into the path of an oncoming train. how in the world did this baby survive with only minor injuries?

there's a search going on right now for a little boy who literally floated away from his family's home on an experimental aircraft which -- these are pictures of the aircraft right now. >> this is a very, very dangerous situation, not only to this 6-year-old boy but the people on the ground because th tng is moving at a very last velocity. >> they are very upset. this balloon was never meant to actually carry anybody. it was just a family project

they were working on. >> he's going down. he's at 100 feet. this is ending and it looks like -- >> he's coming down? >> yeah, he is coming down. the balloon is down. the boy is not in it. that's the bulletin. that's the headline from this 2 1/2-hour ordeal over the plains of colorado. >> you were there, i know you were. that's a taste of our hln nonstop coverage yesterday. thankfully it didn't take long after the landing to learn that 6-year-old falcon heene had not fallen out of the balloon, which we thought for a while he might have. but he was never in it. he was hiding in the attic. and you have a lot to say about this balloon story. i mean, a lot. and we want to hear it. quite a few comments on my facebook page.

>> we've seen the video since then. it looks like they, in fact, were supervised. but we're still working on that. >> we get your point, todd. we take your point. we want to know what you thought while you were watching that live on tv. call us. e-mail us at cnn.com/hln. and if you want your comment to read from my facebook page, give me the comment search richelle carey hln and dive right in. got some incredible pictures to show you of a 6-month-old baby falling onto the train tracks getting hit by the train.

we wouldn't show you this if the baby wasn't okay. we want to tell you that. this happened in melbourne, australia, for a second, mom looks away. the baby in the stroller rolls off the edge and on to the tracks in some windy weather. a train hits the stroller, pushes it all along the tracks. mom is just watching horrified. but amazingly, this baby boy just has a bump on the head. just a bump on the head. here it is again. officials say the stroller's safety restraint probably saved this baby's life. the stroller was found in pieces. might have a hard time believing this story. civil rights activists are calling for a louisiana judge to resign after he wouldn't give a marriage license to an interracial couple. the judge told the local paper he's not a racist and he feels that interracial marriages usually don't last. the groom is understandably angry about the judge's views. >> he's saying 99% of it winds up in divorce.

how many people get married and winds up in divorce, white or black? >> the couple ended up going to another justice of the peace where they were finally married. joy behar talked to richard belzer about his new novel. but they also touched on topics like racism. >> people like to think it's not a racist country but it is in a way. >> in a big way it is. there's still redlining in banks. you still see health problems among the blacks and hispanics and poor people that people of means don't have the same health problems. we put pollution next to poor neighborhoods. there's so much discrimination that's just built into the fabric of america. >> catch "the joy behar show" at 9:00 p.m. eastern time right here on hln. the latest now on that woman in texas who's dying.

she may have her power shut off. her name is mabel randon. she needs electricity so she can keep her oxygen machine on. but she's behind on her payments and the company has threatened to turn off her power. she has stage 4 cancer. now the public utilities commission put a hold on that disconnect order and state politicians want to change the law to allow exceptions for customers like her. >> i think people recognize that she is the sort of customer that is defined as a critical care customer. >> the power company says it welcomes the opportunity to improve and they're very responsive to complaints from the utilities commission. people are really responding to her story. hundreds of people have volunteered to help pay her electricity bill. it couldn't be air sickness because he never actually went up in the balloon. that fact aside, falcon heene had some very upsetting moments

on live tv this morning.

after giving a speech at a

democratic fund-raiser, president obama heads to texas today to join former president george h.w. bush in a forum that's about urging americans to become more active in community service. they're going to speak at the george bush library center. he's expected to thank the elder bush for the current era of service that laid the foundation for the president's own volunteerism agenda. the families of three americans detained in iran have submitted a petition to tehran's u.n. mission. the document signed by 2,500 people appeals for their release as soon as possible. shane bower, sarah short and josh fata were detained in july after hiking into northern iraq. the president of the country says he will ask the committee to expedite their cases. >> president ahmadinejad is a father and i think he can easily

imagine how difficult it is for the families of the hikers and we very much see this as a humanitarian issue unrelated to anything else. >> you had swiss diplomats who were able to visit with them. tell me what they told you about that. >> that the children were in good health, or the young adults were in good health. they're always our children. and they were able to give them a hug, which for me personally, as soon as i heard that, i felt that. i thought, i hope they feel us through that hug. >> that's a mom for you. the families say the three strayed into iranian territory by accident. now back to that balloon ordeal that kind of held so many people captive in front of their tvs yesterday. we want to let you know that we just got the first 911 call after the balloon, the experimental aircraft took off. we're going to play it for you as soon as we can.

but apparently it's not the first time the family's gotten national attention. the father, richard heene, is a meteorologist and a former tv weatherman. according to his myspace page, his family is known for storm chasing and conducting extreme science experiments together, though he he says he never puts his family in harm's way. his family has been on reality tv. we have video of them appearing on the 100th episode of "wife swap" in march and a while ago we spoke with the woman who swapped with the family. >> it's not comfortable when someone is skreming and yelling at the top of your lungs and yelling at you. that's not human behavior. that's not good adult behave for his children to watch and for him to do. >> the heenes submitted i reports including this one where

they are chasing -- the entire family is chasing a hurricane. since the balloon boy story unfolded, he's been on countless tv programs starting last night well into this morning and this morning it seems like it got the best of him. he walked out of an interview with abc and got sick off camera and during a live interview with nbc he got sick while the camera was right on him and the family continued with the interview. >> we need to tell you about a new h1n1 warning. absolutely do not buy any treatments you see for sale online. the agency says it is testing products on the internet that claim they can help and so far none of them have been approved in the u.s. bottom line, talk to your doctor. do not buy those things you see online. need to hear about this little girl's recovery from a nightmare case of swine flu. this 8 year old spent months in

the hospital. part of that time in a medically induced coma. she had to learn how to walk again. how to talk again. how to eat and get dressed on her own. she turns 9 in a few days and her family is throwing a big bash. if you're a fan of the simpsons, why you should join the wacky family. @@@@@@@@