making news in america this morning -- the death sentence, sending shock waves across the globe. a member of north korea's ruling family, a mentor to the young leader, executed. new details overnight. interpreter investigation. the man accused of giving fake sign language at nelson mandela's tribute is opening up about his violent past, his hallucinations and how he was able to get so close to the president. courtroom stunner. the newlywed on trial accused of killing her husband on their honeymoon comes clean. taking the judge and jury step-by-step into what really happened. she did what? an overnight surprise by beyonce that no one saw coming, not even her biggest fans.

good friday morning, everyone. we begin with what's being called a very worrisome sign in north korea. leader kim jong-un's previously powerful uncle has been executed. >> jang song-thaek was seen as the country's unofficial number two. guards led him out of a courtroom in shackles, following a military trial where he was found guilty of plotting a military coup. and called him a traitor for the ages. jang was executed immediately after the ruling. we get more, now, from joohee cho in south korea. >> reporter: this morning, people in north korea are reading headlines from state-run media that say kim jong-un's uncle deserved to be executed. it was a family affair. the purge endorsed by his own wife and nephew, kim jong-un. and kim's older brother personally directed a raid to arrest two of his closest aides. the public humiliation this man faced before death was brutal. even for north korean standards.

the state media labeled him a despicable human scum, worse than a dog. jang was an advocate of economic reform. he was seen as the second-most powerful man in this country and a mentor who helped kim take the throne after kim jong-il's death two years ago. but the new ruler made a choice, a bold one, which shows the nature of his personality, analysts say. and this is just the beginning of a power struggle between the old and the younger generation. joohee cho, abc news, seoul, south korea. >> it's not known how jang was executed. but the country usually uses a firing squad. and this is not the first time an execution in north korea has made headlines this year. kim jong-un's ex-girlfriend was put to death in august after she was accused of making a sex tape. breaking news overnight in denver, where four people were stabbed in the parking lot of mile-high stadium, following the broncos/chargers game. one is in critical condition. several arrests have been made. and police say they aren't looking for anymore suspects. no word on what caused the

fight. and in southern utah, two people are dead after their home was destroyed in a rockslide. this happened in the town of rockville. officials there say some dirt near a highway gave way. and that carried several large boulders into the house, destroying it. it's believed the people inside were killed on impact. another rockslide happened 11 years ago in the same spot. no one was killed. and from capitol hill this morning, a break in the paralyzing gridlock that's gripped washington for years. >> republicans and democrats in the house have reached a budget compromise, as gop leaders, sending a strong message to the hard right. here's abc's tahman bradley. >> reporter: the house ended the year with a rare act of bipartisanship. by a vote of 332-94, the chamber approved the budget deal that would avoid another government shutdown. at least for two years. the measure eliminates about $65 billion in domestic and defense spending cuts, known as the sequester. and it does so without raising taxes. forging this compromise, the

republican leadership, angered tea party republicans and the far right, who want to cut spending and address the country's soaring debt. >> it just seems the republican party is absorbed, is consumed, with eliminating any conservative influence inside the party whatsoever. >> reporter: house speaker john boehner took on the tea party and outside groups who undermined his leadership the past couple of years. >> there just comes to a point when some people step over the line. you know, when you criticize something and you have no idea what you're criticizing, it undermines your credibility. >> reporter: the budget agreement now heads to the senate, where it could encounter tougher resistance. some democrats want an extension of unemployment benefits, set to expire this year. >> politics of this is pretty strong. the people that are unemployed for long periods of time are democrats and they're republicans. >> reporter: this was a first big battle between the republican leadership and the tea party since the government shutdown. for many veteran gop lawmakers,

that 16-day ordeal was a turning point. john and diana? >> tahman bradley, live for us in washington. thank you. the man hired as the sign language interpreter at nelson mandela's memorial service says he was seeing angels that day. he stood just feet from president obama and dozens of other world leaders while signing what was basically gibberish. thamsanqa jantjie said he is schizophrenic and was seeing angels at the memorial. he admitted to having violent episodes in the past. >> reporter: have you had episodes in the past where you've been violent? >> yes. but it was not a problem because i'm under medication. >> reporter: were you under medication on the day of the memorial service? >> absolutely. >> jantjie was hired just the night before the memorial and hadn't been screened by the u.s. secret service. they blame organizers. but played down the threat, saying agents were close by. nasa engineers have been busy all night trying to find a way to fix the broken cooling system at the international space station. it's forced the six astronauts

onboard to dim their lights and turn off unnecessary equipment. nasa says the problem can be fixed either through a software upload or at least two spacewalks. a decision of which one will be used is expected over the weekend. the fcc has voted to start the process of lifting the ban on in-flight phone calls. but the possible rule change is getting immediate opposition from the department of transportation. the d.o.t. chief echoed the opinion of many americans, saying that calls may not be fair to consumers. the ban could be lifted as early as next year. so far, delta is the only carrier to say it won't allow the calls. the biggest cities along the east coast, bracing for a snowy weekend, as a new storm moves in from washington to boston. >> that's right. parts of upstate new york are already buried under nearly four feet of snow. the tiny town of constableville has been getting slammed since tuesday. and this morning, it's still coming down. more snow is on the way to new york, blowing across from kansas this morning. rain along the gulf becomes a wintry mix along the

mid-atlantic states overnight. clear and mild in california and the southwest. snow in washington and oregon, west of the cascades. >> 46 in seattle. 61 in los angeles. a high of 42 in denver. a mild 64 in new orleans. 36 in kansas city. 28 in chicago. minneapolis, still getting hammered, with a high of 12. don't be surprised when you hear people talking about the mega millions lottery today. tonight's drawing is worth an estimated $400 million. >> i'm in it already. the jackpot has been growing since october 1st. it's rolled over 20 times since then. if one person wins, they take a lump sum payout, they would be getting about $216 million before taxes. good luck, everyone. did you play? >> i haven't. can we hurry up and finish this newscast so i can play? >> i'll play another one, too. get ready for a change during the big game. a few super bowl favorites will be missing from the ads this year. and courtroom shocker. a newlywed accused of pushing her husband off a cliff during their honeymoon comes clean. her admission in court that no one saw coming. plus, the enthusiastic

blonde everyone is talking about this morning. the must-see performance of a little girl at her holiday concert.

welcome back. that turnaround in stocks that we mentioned yesterday morning didn't happen. and now, the major averages are on the verge of their second-straight week of losses. the dow suffered the most, dropping nearly 1%. analysts say the selling is all over fears about the coming end to the fed's economic stimulus. ford is now hiring. the nation's second-largest automaker is adding more than

5,000 jobs here in the u.s. and those hires come ahead of ford's biggest launch year in history. the company is rolling out 23 new vehicles next year. 16 of which are being introduced right here in north america. some familiar faces are getting benched at the next super bowl. more than 100 million viewers will not be seeing ad icons like the etrade baby, jared from subway or the go daddy girls. etrade and subway are just not doing 2014 super bowl ads at all. and go daddy has decided to ditch the sexy women and go in a different direction. >> the etrade baby never fails to make me laugh. >> i know. the competition at the box office is all about second place this weekend. that's because the new hobbit movie is hitting theaters. >> it's called "the hobbit: the desolation of smaug." experts say it's likely to bring in about $80 million. tyler perry's new movie, "a media christmas" and "frozen should round out the top three. and you could see doritos used in unique ways. how does doritos on chicken

wings sound? >> sounds pretty good, actually. >> pretty good. it could actually happen. now that pepsi is partnering up with buffalo wild wings. company officials say other unique menu offerings are also in the works. possibly even something called mountain dew salad dressing. >> i don't know about that one. i'm more partial to the buffalo wings with doritos. >> you just discovered buffalo wild wings. >> you turned me on to it. >> i sure did. >> it was good. when we come back, cutting the risk in half. doctors are taking a close look at the pill and possible prevention of breast cancer that might come with it. and the growing outrage after a teen is sentenced for drunk driving. did a family's net worth play a role in the verdict? plus, a university has a lot of explaining to do after thousands of high school students received false acceptance letters. how did this happen? s, pete.

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heavy snow being blamed for this massive pileup in michigan. at least 40 cars and trucks caught up in a chain-reaction crash near muskegon. witnesses say some drivers were going too fast on the slick roads. at least two police cars were among those hit. several people were injured. this morning, take extra care in the upper ohio valley, where there could be icy rain and snow. roads could be slick from the gulf coast all the way up to kentucky. >> if you're flying, airport delays are possible in dallas and houston because of rain. kansas city, where there's snow and ice. and memphis, where it will be rainy later today. a stunning turnaround by a young newlywed in montana, confessing to murdering her husband eight days after their wedding. >> just before closing arguments, jordan graham agreed to a last-minute plea deal. the 22-year-old seen here in her first dance with her husband, cody johnson, there you see it, says that she pushed him to his death as they argued at glacier national park. >> i just want to say, the family is very thankful for the outcome of this case.

it was very emotional. it's been a long haul for us. >> graham's guilty plea to second-degree murder came after prosecutors offered to drop a first-degree murder charge. she faces life in prison when she's sentenced in march. there's a verdict in texas sparking outrage this morning. 16-year-old ethan couch got no prison time for killing four people while driving drunk. his attorney said he suffered from what he called affluenza because his wealthy parents didn't set boundaries. couch will be on probation for ten years beginning with a stay at a luxury rehab program in california that his parents will pay for. survivors of wednesday's deadly crash off hawaii are sharing the terrifying details of their ordeal. hawaii health department chief loretta fuddy was killed when the plane went down in the pacific shortly after takeoff. eight others survived the crash. a woman who was seated directly behind her said they heard a bang and a lot of beeping before the plane started to fall. >> it was like a slow-motion of everything. the plane slowly going down.

and just -- and even you didn't think what the next step is. it's just, something happened. something drastic happened. >> the owner of the airline that operated the plane said engine failure caused that crash. in medical news, british researchers saying popping a pill might prevent breast cancer before it develops. the theory was tested on nearly 4,000 women at high-risk for breast cancer. the woman who took the pill were 53% less likely to develop cancer than those on the placebo. analysts say a larger study will help determine if the pill is as beneficial as it seems. fordham university in new york is apologizing for a mixup that had thousands of seniors thinking they were admitted. 2,500 students received financial aid notices this week that mistakenly told them that they were in. that was not the case. the school says a contractor sent the notices in error and they don't reflect the students' status. fordham is investigating the messup. >> that's harsh.

if you got one of those and find out you didn't get in after all, man. >> especially if that's everything you were hoping for. >> you bet. time, now, for sports. a close one in denver on thursday night football. >> and a pair of michael jordan's shoes, selling for some big bucks. here's neil and stan with highlights. >> good morning, america. i'm buttoning my jacket for you. he's stan verrett. i'm neil everett. this is los angeles on the "sportscenter" set. >> we're going to start in denver. chargers and broncos there. pick it up second quarter. game tied at 10-10. philip rivers and keenan allen, they've had touchdowns a couple of times in this game. allen has four in two games. chargers up 17-10. denver trying to hold on to the one seed in the afc. san diego just trying to stay in the playoff race in general. peyton manning and andre caldwell make it a seven-point game. broncos had 295 yards. that's their fewest this season, easily. later in the quarter, manning intercepted by thomas kaiser. chargers hang on to win it 27-20. ryan matthews with 127 yards on the ground for them.

san diego gets to 7-7. and they're not done. broncos with three losses now. others to kansas city and new england. the stakes at the ringside in portland are so juicy these days. blazers playing so well. they've only lost two home games. one of those two was to the rockets. lamarcus aldridge, just taking advantage, period. 31 points. 25 rebounds. >> wow. >> no blazer has ever done that. nick batum -- batum, dynamite. portland wins again. 111-104. the shoes michael jordan war in the 1997 game. sold at auction for $104,000 and change. >> $104,000 for a pair of michael's sneakers. >> you're wearing them right now. >> i am. go play b-ball in the snow. how's that? up next, "the pulse." beyonce does something overnight that the entire music industry and twitter is in shock over.

and a little girl warming the hearts of the country, because of a performance during a recital. ♪ if i was a flower growing wild and free ♪ ♪ all i'd want is you to be my sweet honeybee ♪ ♪ and if was a tree growing tall and green ♪ ♪ all i'd want is you to shade me and be my leaves ♪ grown in america. picked & packed at the peak of ripeness. the same essential nutrients as fresh. del monte. bursting with life™. the same essential nutrients as fresh. ♪ ♪ hanes. a perfect fit for every body. now in colorful new styles. ♪

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the album's official name is "beyonce." kelly ripper thanking her trainer. the picture she tweeted will explain why. she's upside down, with her feet on the wall, demonstrating her six-pack. maybe it's an eight-pack. >> kelly, the host of "live with kelly and michael." he's the mother of three. because it's not polite to reveal a woman's age, we won't. but most 20-year-olds don't look like that. you go, girl. a new study of james bond's drinking habits show if he was real, he would be a serious alcoholic. that study claims he sucked down four-times the amount of booze recommended for men. >> it says he would have been drinking 31 martinis a week. and that doing so would have made driving fast, firing a gun and chasing women, all but impossible. >> sounds like a plan to me. seriously, though, the study claims that bond would have suffered from liver damage, a

possible stroke and sexual dysfunction. from james bond? >> i don't know if i wanted to know that about bond. >> they have pills for that. you're back in business. >> you're completely drunk off your butt. >> well, you know. can't have everything. after the sign language debacle at nelson mandela's memorial service, a little girl in florida is showing the world how it's really done. ♪ ♪ santa is his name >> there she is, in the plaid, by the way. 5-year-old lori's parents are deaf. she surprised them by signing at her kindergarten christmas concert. her parents understood every word because lori used the real thing, american sign language. check her out. >> she's awesome. her mom was so proud, she posted the video on youtube. she said it was obvious that nelson mandela's interpreter was a fake. if only she was there.

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let the weekend begin it is friday, 4:28. i'm kristen sze. >> i'm eric thomas. before we get to that friday stuff, we just broke the record again, five straight days of spare the air. now six, right, mike? >> possibly. looking at the website, they he could go all the way through next week. i think today the air will be clean. we have a northwest wind behind this cold front. i think even though it is a spare the air day i the day will be cleaner. tomorrow, winds out of the northeast again and that's when we get our pollution problems. we have an issue this morning showing up on live doppler 7. you can see the model, less than quarter-mile visibility thanks to fog there temperature running above freezing. from the explore tore yum camera, see the clouds from yesterday, slightly warmer this morning, they have moved in.

mid-50s to 6s today, starts off with clouds in the morning but have increasing sunshine as we head throughout the afternoon. find out about friday lights on the traffic. how about it? >> if you are one of the early birds who gets onto the road nice and early in the morning don't have accidents or much construction to talk about. we have one little incident, san jose, 101, tilden avenue, doesn't appear to be blocking any lanes but i do have a big closure to tell you about coming up in my next report. that is for an overnight cloche sure that is going to happen later on this evening. take a look outside at the san mateo bridge. see how traffic is running smoothly there over towards the peninsula. not many taillights out of hayward. we have breaking news in oakland, a family was able to safely escape a house fire early this morning. firefighters are still on the scene mopping up this fire that just raced through a home on 90th avenue after 2:30 this

morning. when oakland crews got to the scene, heavy smoke was coming from the house. the cause sunder investigation and we will continue to stay on the story. breaking news overnight, a fatal crash shut down northbound interstate 280, highway 885 interchange for nearly three hours this morning in cupertino. the driver of this red mazda lost control, went off the highway, struck a tree shortly before midnight. the driver has been identified as 26-year-old from daly city. the chp is trying to determine exactly what happened and they are looking for any witnesses to come forward. the freeway reopened around 2:30. we now know the identity of the driver killed by a suspected drunk driver in this fiery crash in livermore yesterday. cell phone video shows the fire sparked when a hummer slammed into a jeep cherokee on westbound 580 around 10 yesterday morning. 29-year-old reed whitaker of livermore died inside the cherokee. we learned whitaker worked as an emt at highlands hospita