tonight on "nightline," shop and tell. they're the super shoppers who purchase, post -- >> i just thought it was cute. >> and promote, sending thousands of fans into a buying frenzy. we look at shopping haulers, where tiny and cute -- >> i love that. >> moves millions. summer plans? today, an arrest. a terror alarm. and new details on a threat list targeting hotels. is this activity a sign of trouble ahead? and, father's day. president obama in a rare interview about fatherhood. his most tender moments with sasha and malia. >> it is those moments where you are enjoying each other's company. and that's the stuff that lasts.

>> and what it was really like growing up without a dad. >> announcer: from the global resources of abc news, with terry moran, cynthia mcfadden and bill weir in new york city, this is "nightline," june 17th, 2011. >> good evening, i'm terry moran. well, for some people, the only thing more fun than going shopping is showing off what they bought. thus was born the so-called haul video, shoppers mainly women setting up a web cam and displaying the spoils, the haul, of their latest outing, for all the internet to see. well, the twist here came when the videos of certain haulers began to win fans. in some cases, lots of fans. and the devoted shoppers began market movers all their own. here's abbie boudreau. >> hey, everyone. >> hey, everyone. >> hi, everyone. >> reporter: it's one of the fastest growing trends hitting the web. >> we got a haul, people! >> reporter: women of all ages.

>> any kind of boot goes. >> reporter: shopping and then posting videos of their catch online. >> i just thought it was cute. >> reporter: perhaps a dream job for many women. >> i love that. >> i love that. >> smells like cake batter. >> reporter: this is elle. >> and honey. and cake batter. >> and this is her younger sister blair. >> i don't really like cucumbers. >> reporter: they're not clothing designers or models or makeup artists. they're what you call shopping haulers. >> you can see your foot inside. >> really does kind of liven up europe face. is that a word? >> reporter: we went shopping with the two at forever 21. >> everywhere i go, everything i taste, everything, i mean, everything -- >> thinks of videos and blog ideas. >> and taking pictures to twitter, tweet it. >> they're my size. >> reporter: for more than two years, the sisters have been bargain shopping then hauling their bags full of stuff back to their bedroom, revealing to

their almost 2 million youtube subscribers what they bought and why. >> why am i wearing a leaf? >> i think it's cute. >> reporter: they test makeup. >> this is a lotiony based product. >> tell you where to find good deems. >> these pants were only $14. i kind of feel like i'm steaming a little bit. >> blts. i've been ordering them every meal. >> reporter: they talk about almost anything. >> blts are my love. >> reporter: and what they say they like translates into huge sales. >> thank you. >> reporter: there have been times where you say you like something and in minutes it is sold out. >> companies say, my site crashed. i'm like, why? you talked about it. >> reporter: why are people so interested you in two? >> people have told us a lot that they started watching for the beauty tips or the fashion tips and they end up liking our personality or the dynamic between us but i mean, personally, i don't know, i just film the videos in my room. i love the detail on this.

that's kind of cute. >> like many young girls, they love to shop. >> a microphone. >> reporter: but these two tennessee-born fashionistas have turned third shopping obsession into an empire, targeting teens and 20-somethings. inspired by the kardashians, blake lively and selena gomez. they search for trends that catch their eye. mostly feathers. >> oh, do they have feather earrings? >> reporter: and all things nautical. >> it has the rope. >> that's awesome. so cute. >> reporter: they've been featured in fashion magazines. they partnered with youtube. they have their own website. they are writing a book. companies ask them to critique their products. >> companies send us products and want us to review them. and we are always really honest about product reviews and out of 100 products we get sent, we might have two make it into videos. >> reporter: it was an idea that started small. >> i was bored, i had nothing to do. i started making beauty videos, how to apply your makeup and how

to do your hair and it evolved. >> reporter: did you think that people would actually watch? >> no. i didn't think she would watch. >> you don't expect anything to grow the way it does. but it did and we're happy about it. >> reporter: now, there are thousands of other shopping haulers online. and not just teenage shop-a-holics, but moms, too. >> excuse me, honey. >> reporter: like audrey, who says she used to be fashion i con donna karan's personal assistant in new york city. >> style completely changes when you become a mom. that's just the way it is. because of our bodies, the money situation in our household -- so, a lot of the young girls, teenagers, college students, i wanted to bring it into the mom space. >> we're not super skinny models, we're not wearing it for our waist. you want to make sure you have a longer shirt on on top. >> reporter: audrey is a mother of four boys under the age of 8. she has millions of followers and turned her blog into a money maker for her family. >> hey, everybody.

so, i just got back from tj max where i did a haul. these are real and raw slices of our lives. for me as a mom, my number one thing is comfort. my kids are in the background, my husband is shooting it, i'm on a web cam, it starts to shake and i just roll with it. >> reporter: back at forever 21. i probe for tips. so, what is the new black this season? >> coral. >> i was about to say orange. i was about to aoransay orange. >> reporter: before doing a haul for myself. do i look good in this? with advice from the best in the business. >> you turn on the camera, you say, hey, everyone. and you hold the bag up so they can see the store on the bag. and then you pull the items out and you show them one by one, you the them why you bought it and stuff like that. >> reporter: first up, the shirt, which i think is adorable. and the second thing, i bought this scarf.

love how the pink and the green and the cream and the black go together. it has coral in it. does that look horrible? maybe i should leave this to the experts. i'm abbie boudreau for "nightline" in los angeles. >> shopping haulers. thanks to abbie for that. just ahead, we're going to shift gears and take a look at what today's alarming incident near the pentagon and other recent security news could mean to you for the summer ahead. your advertising mail campaign is paying off! business is good! it must be if you're doing all that overnight shipping. that must cost a fortune. it sure does. well, if it doesn't have to get there overnight, you can save a lot with priority mail flat rate envelopes. one flat rate to any state, just $4.95. that's cool and all... but it ain't my money. i seriously do not care... so, you don't care what anyone says, you want to save this company money! that's exactly what i was saying. hmmm... priority mail flat rate envelopes, just $4.95

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>> announcer: "nightline" continues from new york city with terry moran. >> material taken from the compound where osama bin laden was killed in may revealed that the al qaeda leader contemplated marking the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks this coming september with new attacks. well, bin laden did not survive to see any such attack through, buzz his death has not stopped plots against the u.s., nor has it ended our lingering sense of insecurity, as we saw this morning, in washington. here's pierre thomas. >> reporter: it was a scary sight. police lights surrounding the pentagon. streets shut down just outside the nation's capital. at first, it seems like an unfolding terror plot, as cops arrested this man.

yonathan melaku, after they found him acting suspiciously while lurking in the arlington national cemetery. >> a individual acting alone was found in the cemetery by the police who approached him as he fled. >> reporter: the cops discovered he was carrying a backpack. inside, police found four bags with a grainy substance that looked like ammonium nitrate. they also uncovered spent .9 millimeter ammunition and a notebook containing the words al qaeda and taliban rules. >> he had a backpack that contained an unknown material which will require us further investigation. >> reporter: but police feared the suspect planted bombs at arlington national cemetery and shut down traffic in washington for hours. in the end, no bombs were found. authorities are now working on figuring out who this young man is. melaku is 22 years old, an oath

yoep man american who serves in the marine reserve. he's a suspected criminal, having recently been charged with breaking into cars. so far, the fbi has not linked him to any known terrorist organization. >> we do believe, at this time, that this individual acted alone. >> reporter: but law enforcement is on edge about so-called lone wolves right now. people like the ft. hood shooter, who are not known members of terror networks, but inspired by them. at first glams, melaku seems to fit the profile. >> how can we empower local law enforcement in particular to prevent a lone wolf from being successful. >> reporter: those fears have been heightened in the wake of osama bin laden's death, leaving security officials and americans on alert, wondering if the terrorist threat is heating up this summer. >> right now, al qaeda wants to be able to demonstrate that they are a force to be reckoned with. >> reporter: and in the weeks since the raid that killed bin laden, there are signs that al qaeda is more determined than

ever to attack america. adam gadahn, al qaeda spokesman, released this new video, challenging american muslims to take up arms against their own countrie countries. >> muslims have s in the west remember they are in perfect place. >> reporter: al qaeda officially announced this week they have a new leader. this is him in egyptian prison years ago. >> we want to speak to the whole world. >> reporter: osama bin laden's closest adviser. the latest threat, train derailments. journals found in osama bin laden's compound contained evidence of al qaeda's desire to attack trains. following that warning, someone tampered with train tracks in iowa, trying to derail a train filled with highly flammable ethanol. the fbi is now investigating. while authorities do not suspect terrorism, sources tell abc news, this incident is a sob sobering reminder that trains are vulnerable. this week, amtrak announced it

was stepping up plans to attack against terrorism and sabotage. and authorities are now warning major hotel chains to be on the lookout. after discovering an al qaeda threat list that included a major uk hotel. >> i think we are interesting a unique window of vulnerability. but i would suggest we are entering a window of opportunity. >> reporter: this homeland security expert says now is the time to hit al qaeda hard. >> we sold accelerate some of our activities to keep the adversary looking over their shoulder rather than plotting attacks. >> reporter: the u.s. has been targeting al qaeda relentlessly, killing not just osama bin laden, but two other top terrorists. and there's a new focus on targeting al qaeda's most aggressive branch. that, according to the chairman of the house intelligence committee, mike rogers. >> this morning, when you are over your breakfast cereal, there is somebody in al qaeda in the arabian peninsula, planning an attack against the united states.

>> reporter: that group is headed by anwar al awlaki. carried out by people who are flying under the radar. >> he is really reaching out to english speakers, to people, again, as we said, hold the right kind of paperwork or passports, that can get into the country. >> reporter: he was in direct contact with the ft. hood shooter before the november massacre. next month, his group sent the underwear bomber. ten months later the group tried to blow up u.s. planes with printer bombs. >> they are getting very innovative about how they try to defeat our countermeasures and carry out a successful attack. and that makes them incredibly dangerous. >> reporter: it's that danger that has america's top cops sweating what could be a long, hot summer. for "nightline," i'm pierre hot summer. for "nightline," i'm pierre thomas in washington.the story . a team with pride... guts... and last season...

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according to the latest census bureau statistics more than one quarter of all children under 21 years of age in the united states live with single parents, mostly the moms. but the majority of those kids do have some contact with their fathers including, let's hope, on sunday. well, as father's day approaches, robin roberts has an exclusive interview tonight with perhaps the world's most famous father, the dad in chief. >> malia and sasha are the perfect age. 13, 10, where they are interesting and funny and they're their own people. but they want to spend time with

you. and that may not last that many more years. >> reporter: you are about to hit the teenage years. >> oh, yeah. >> reporter: are you prepared for what's about to come? >> i could not ask for better kids. but i understand that, you know, teenagehood is complicated. i should also point out that i have men with guns that surround them often. and a great incentive for running for re-election is that it means they never get in a car with a boy who had a beer. >> reporter: you're very fortunate to have a teenage daughter and have the secret service around. >> absolutely. >> reporter: that young man, knock, knock, knock, 1600 pennsylvania avenue. >> a little intimidating. i might invite him to the oval office, ask him for his gpa. >> reporter: you and your wife had very different childhoods. her mother and father, her father's very prevent, very

strong. >> leave it to beaver. that's what i call michelle's family. mom, dad, brother, sister, same house, same neighborhood. and i was all over the place. without a father in the home. >> reporter: do you approach parenthood differently because you've had this different background? >> the interesting thing is, michelle and inhave the same values with respect to parenthood. she comes at it based on what she had, i probably come at it based on, to some degree, what i didn't have. >> reporter: were you aware, as a child, on father's day, i don't have a father. he's not here. >> it was a -- the kind of thing that, when you're young, you don't think about, and it's only in retrospect, as an adult, that you realize what you missed. you know, he gave me my first basketball. and it wasn't until i was in my 20s, and i thought back, you know, that's part of why i've

been playing basketball this whole time. it was that one signal of something that he had given me. on father's day, it's not so much me thinking about the past. and it's more thinking about the precept, thinking about now. and there are times where i'll walk into the room with michelle and the girls are sitting there and they start laughing and they start teasing me and you sort of take a snapshot of that moment and you say, you know, at the end of your life, when you think back at to what was worth it -- this will be one of the things that was worth it. >> reporter: happy father's day. >> thank you very much. >> reporter: thank you, sir. thank you. >> barack obama, dad. thanks to robin roberts for that interview. but that's our report for tonight. thank you for watching abc news. we hope you check in for "good morning america."