. tonight on "nightline" -- leaky secret. it's the biggest leak in u.s. military history. 92,000 classified reports on the war in afghanistan. posted on the internet for all to see. we sit down with wikileak's founder to find out why he thinks it's a public service to public what was once top secret. the bottom line -- with the market for diapers worth $7 billion, it's no surprise that diaper companies have swaddling bottoms down to a science. tonight, we visit the closely guarded lab -- yes, diaper lab -- where scientists, engineers and seamstresses work to create the perfect nappy. and stepping up --

he's a star in limbo. the gray area between tween heartthrob and full-on sex symbol. tonight, we go on the town with zac efron as he attempts to go through hollywood's sometimes treacherous waters. good evening, i'm terry mor mor moron. it's the biggest leak in u.s. military history. 92,000 classified documents published on the website wikileaks. it paints a picture of a war gone wrong in afghanistan. details corruption in the afghan government and pakistani support for the enemy. most alarmingly, they contend what critics claim is evidence of possible war crimes by u.s. soldiers. well, we sat down with the man behind the leak, julian sanoge

is his name. to try to find out why he did it. jim sciutto has the story. >> reporter: its mission is taking on the powerful and seemingly untouchable and exposing their biggest secrets. so when we sat down in london today with wikileaks founder and asked him what drives him, his answer was, well, direct. >> i'm a combative person. it's how i like crushing the bastards. >> reporter: but is crushing bastards in its own right a just cause? >> depends on the bastard. real bastards are people who have power and abuse their power to afflict people who are weaker than they are. >> reporter: today, the quote bastards are the architects of the war in afghanistan. wikileaks released 92,000 classified military reports spanning six years, exposing afghan government corruption, pakistani support for the

taliban, and most alarmingly, what he says is possible u.s. war crimes by u.s. soldiers. that is a very strong charge to make. >> that's true, but when you're seeing such extraordinary numbers of casualties and many, many different types of -- it's pretty clear that at least some of these are war crimes. >> reporter: what do you say to those who say military leaders, government leaders, you've just handed the taliban their biggest propaganda victory? >> well, not so. people who commit war crimes or similarly abusive actions, they hand the enemy propaganda victories. >> reporter: the documents cause a a storm in washington. to the white house, outright dangerous. >> besides being against the

law, has potential to be very harmful to those, uh, that are, uh, in our military, those that are cooperating with our military and those that, uh, uh, are working to keep us safe. >> reporter: but wikileaks has made a habit of ignoring warnings just like that. chalking up a long list of intelligence coups since it was launched just 3 1/2 years ago by a global mix of dissidents, journalists and technology wizards. what's incredible is that it's done it all with no paid staff, no headquarters, no home. it's less an organization than a movement. >> our power comes from the support of the community in the countries where we have a presence. >> reporter: including the u.s. -- >> absolutely, yes. the u.s. free speech tradition is one of our biggest supporters. in some ways, what we are doing is taking the first amendment and giving it to the world. >> reporter: still, it's the u.s. that's been one of its

biggest targets. earlier this year, wikileaks published this video of a deadly american helicopter attack in baghdad in 2007. 12 people were killed. including 2 journalists from rueter. three weeks ago, a u.s. soldier in iraq named bradley manning was charged with leaking the video. now some believe manning could have been the source of today's documents as well. but in keeping with wikileaks policy of protecting sources anonymity, asange refused to say. do you deny manning is the source of the material? >> we don't know who the source of the material is. if those allegations are true, then of course the man is a hero. >> reporter: wikileaks self-described heroic work extends to the broadest range of the ambitious and powerful. during the '08 presidential campaign wikileaks public blushed the contents of sarah palin's yahoo! account which appears to show she sent official messages on private e-mails to avoid disclosure

laws. wikileaks even took on the secretive church of scientology, posting secret manuals online. what's the common thread here? >> the common thread is concealing information to prevent some kind of reform. >> reporter: the danger is you pick so many powerful targets and you become a target yourself. so asange lives on the road. a life that suits him, he says. his family moved constantly as a child. and he's run into trouble himself. convicted of computer hacking in australia in 1995. wikileaks itself doesn't have a home either look dated on more than 20 internet servers with hundreds of domain names. making it virtually impossible -- and this is the key -- for government censors to shut it down. clearly, you've gotten under very powerful people's skin. china, australia, hometown.

tried to censor you. >> iran. >> reporter: does that give you satisfaction to know you've got under their skin? does it prove you're doing something good, in effect? >> not necessarily. it's a good signal that maybe people are taking notice. >> reporter: taking notice and taking aim, at the man and the >> reporter: taking notice and taking aim, at the man and the website dedicated to the future with no secrets. i'm jim sciutto for "nightline" in london. >> and it's really another example of how technology's changing the very meaning of the word "secret." thanks to jim sciutto for that. when we come back, we're going to go to a totally different subject. diapers. the diaper wars. the multimillion-dollar battle over what your baby's wearing this summer. we step inside the industry leader pamper state of the art research and development facility. you're going to take a look at how next generation diapers are made. [ male announcer ] the financial headlines can be unsettling. but what if there were a different story?

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a healthy immune system, and a real difference in your cat. purina one improved with smartblend. discover what one can do. you can take the heat. 'til it turns into heartburn, you've got what it takes: zantac. it's strong, fast lasting relief. so let them turn up the heat. you can stop that heartburn cold: (sssssssss!!!) zantac. for decades, pampers and huggies, the giants of the diaper industry, have waged an increasingly high-tech war over the $7 billion u.s. diaper market. we went inside the industry leader pampers never before seen research and development lab -- yes, a diaper lab -- where over

500 scientist, chemical engineers and seamstresses are trying to improve the look and feel of the nappy. and here's sharyn alfonsi with the story. >> reporter: they are sweet. innocent.

and at the center of one of the toughest battles in business. the diaper wars. in the u.s., the birth rate has been declining for more than a decade, with fewer new customers, the two industry giants, pampers and huggies, are socking it out, fighting for the precious dollars that come with diapering those precious bottoms. americans spend $7 billion worth of diapers every year. 7 billion. and the battle for those dollars has been waging for decades. >> this little baby went to market and smiled all the way home. >> reporter: this is the first diaper commercial from pampers back in 1960. >> because pampers are made with seven layers of softness. >> reporter: today, diapers are about half as bulky. that didn't happen by accident. diaper companies spend millions of dollars every year to try to

make diapers thinner, more absorbent. we were granted access to pampers never before seen research and development center where over 500 scientists, chemical engineers and seamstresses are trying to improve the look and the feel of the nappy. okay, i can't even say that -- >> that's the analytical chromo tography lab. >> reporter: okay. their work is surprisingly top secret. no one, not even executives like carrie haley, have access to every room. there are locks. there is serious business. >> security is serious, it's diapers. >> reporter: each lap has a numerical lock so they can track who is coming in and out. here, they're working on prototypes for new diapers. they are tested for scent, touch, flexibility and durability. >> we want to make sure that as babies are scooting around on their bottom and moving, that that product stays together and stays as intended the entire

wear time. >> 23.4 pounds. >> good job. >> yeah, big boy. >> good job. >> reporter: and that's before they bring in the babies for some real-time testing. >> are you posing? >> reporter: this is called a fit and load test. >> hang on tight. >> reporter: fit to make sure they're comfortable. and then the load. >> does that tickle? does that tickle? >> reporter: those bubbles are actually synthetic urine. each diaper is tested for how much it can take before it leaks. can we take measurements from this line down to that line -- >> reporter: researchers pour over their findings. they take x-rays. even creating three dimensional models. why do you need to flip the baby upside down like that? >> for us, it's critical to see for gapings. >> reporter: then, after all of it, they test the products again. >> here we are doing another diaper change. >> reporter: this time, with mommies who take home the product. using them.

weighing them. and then returning them. >> seal it up. >> reporter: that's right, they pick apart and even sniff dirty diapers. one unit is dedicated entirely just to bowel movements. all of it in the name of science. why smell a stinky diaper? >> what we do is we try to measure and analyze and understand everything that mom and dads experience with our products. so that includes applying it and fitting well. it also includes what is the scent experience that they get, you know, in the beginning, in the middle, in the end. >> reporter: when dozens of mothers complained on face book about pampers new dry max diapers saying they gave their children extreme diaper rash and chemical burns the folks at pampers were shocked. >> there's been no data being able to link the dry max product to any kind of skin irritation. dry max was tested on over 20,000 babies. >> reporter: the internet swirled with theorys that pampers competitors or

environmentalists who favor cloth diapers were behind some of the accusations. and while that battle waged on, the diaper war intensified. huggies launching a little shock and awe. >> my diaper is full, full of fashion. >> reporter: a limited edition jean diaper. yes, jean diaper. >> i look like number one. i poo in blue. >> reporter: the commercial caused quite a buzz. >> over 1 million consumers have actually gone on to youtube where the spot is actually out there and played the commercial for themselves. >> reporter: and sales skyrocketed. up 15% almost overnight. but pampers fought back. releasing its cynthia rally designer diapers. seem silly? well, the idea is to get moms so

excited about a new product they'll switch brands. and that is not easy. diaper buyers are extremely brand loyal. and it started on day one. studies show if a mother's given a particular brand in the hospital, they're likely to use that brand for life. so both companies sell their diapers to hospitals at a discount. hoping to hook customers early. pampers claims it now has contracts with about 95% of hospitals. to win the diaper war, companies know they have to win the hearts and mines of mommies. after all, there are billions of dollars riding on those adorable bottom lines. dollars riding on those adorable bottom lines. for "nightline," i'm sharon al fonzie in new york. >> thanks to sharyn alfonsi for that interesting report. when we come back, we're on the town with zac efron as he tries to leave his teen idol self behind and talk about plans for hollywood's treacherous waters. that interesting report.

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and thers complete killing with frontline plus. his starring role in the "high school musical" series. but a whole new category, a genuine sex symbol. neal karlinsky goes on town with the star as he prepares to take on a new kind of role. >> reporter: at the mall of america, they're lined up to see a man caught somewhere between squeaky clean tween fantasy, teenage heartthrob and full-on sex symbol. he is efron. and if you don't know who he is, just ask a teenage girl. they fell for him and his

singing and dancing in "high school musical." ♪ but if you think zac efron is just a fancy-footed tween dream, he is working hard to prove you wrong. with his starring role in the new film "charlie st. cloud," the young man with the perfect smile is showing off his acting chops. no dancing but plenty of raw emotion. >> that's my brother! sam! >> reporter: as a man racked with guilt for survive ago car crash that killed his little brother. >> we'll meet here every day at sunset canyons. >> promise? >> i promise. >> reporter: was it hard for you to bare all, to be emotional? >> no, it was fun. it was fun. i read the script, i recognized this was a brand-new challenge. >> reporter: i mean, crying on command, for a lot of us, difficult to do. >> it's not so much cry on command, that's not, you know, how you really think about it.

it was really easy for me to put my little brother -- and picture him in the scenarios and how it would have made me feel. >> reporter: the film was a strategic choice for a young actor trying to navigate hollywood's sometimes treacherous waters. >> i want to put in the work. i want to be taken out of my element. i want to be challenged in a new way. >> reporter: he started acting at the age of 12. and just like the characters on tv's "glee." >> ♪ it's my life ♪ it's now or never >> reporter: efron says he was a theater geek. >> some guy i used to play basketball with goes, there goes the theater dork. i am, that's right, i am, here's the theater dork. >> reporter: his mother made the three-hour drive from the family's california home to hollywood so he could audition and eventually land bit parts on shows like "er" and "summerland." moving in these new and exciting directions?

>> i have to keep them close, man. they're the ones that keep you grounded. your family's all you have. they tell it to me straight. >> reporter: he is aware that his looks haven't exactly hurt him. you get a hard time about that? you brother give you a hard time? >> yeah, of course, dude, it's the worst, man. >> reporter: this is the worst? >> it's not the worst -- every once in a while, you walk into people's houses and that's on their kitchen counter. there's always an awkward moment where they realize you've seen it and you're just like -- i flip it over. >> reporter: you're blushing slightly i think. >> i am. you're holding up a magazine. >> reporter: though he embraces his tween fans, he still has a sense of humor about it all. >> it's zac! >> reporter: and even poked fun at his own fame recently on "saturday night live." >> let's face it, tweens, i owe you big time. if it weren't for you, i'd just

be some random college student, instead a college-aged man pretenning to be a high school student. >> reporter: efron is careful. caref careful choosing his next movie with a constant following from the paparazzi and careful with his relationships. he met actress vanessa hudgens on the set of "high school musical." >> we've got a great thing going. we're having a lot of fun. so it's not over yet, you know? i'm not going to speak too far down the road because i don't know what's going to happen but right now i'm very happy. >> reporter: he's happy with his new movie too. and says he won't pick his next role just to get another paycheck. he wants to become a serious hollywood talent and says he's willing to wait and willing to hollywood talent and says he's willing to wait and willing to work to make that happen. i'm neal karlinsky for "nightline" in los angeles. >> a coming of age tale. thanks to neal for that report. and we'll be right back with tonight's "closing argument." first, jimmy kimmel. >> tonight, johnny knoxville,

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