good morning. showdown. growing larger and more volatile by the day. tens of thousands protest over the future of labor unions and public employees in wisconsin. as the battle heats up, could the fight be coming to your state? high seas hijacking. new details on the four americans taken hostage by somali captives who vow to bring their captives to u.s. today. we'll have the latest. gone with inwind. dangerous gusts toppled trees, fueled wildfires and bring down a national treasure in washington. and look out, winter is about to return with a

vengeance. about to return with a vengeance. today february 20th, 2011. captions paid for by nbc-universal television good morning, everyone. welcome to "today" on sunday, february 20th. >> i'm jenna wolfe. >> dropped the temperature a lot here. the wind chill. >> it did. it got really cold. i could just -- and we're good. >> we all heard the howling and with the gusts reaching 60 miles per hour a lot of damage and power outages. look at the national tree. the national christmas tree in washington. stood for decades in president's park next to the white house. but high winds snapped the 48-foot spruce. wind is just part of the story. heavy snow is expected today in the midwest. we'll tell you where the snow is headed in just a few minutes. hard to believe it was 60 something degrees here the other day. >> yes.

also, suzanne sommers is a sitcom star who has become a best-selling author. and now a controversial one. her new book claims alternative medicine can cure cancer. we'll have more on that. amanda knox is back in the news. lawyers for knox say the film harms her reputation and her prezumption of innocence and could hurt her chances to overturn her murder conviction. more on that just ahead. then, the envelope, please. sealed and stamped with gold in the queen's insignia. take a look, it's direct from bucking hm palace and going to nearly 2,000 folks minus lester and jenna. we'll bring you more of it with the guest list and the palace. >> i'm just curious where she is registered. crate & barrel.

>> i'm sure it's not crate & barrel. showdown in wisconsin for a sixth straight day thousands of teachers and public workers c converged in the capital in madison. scott joins us live from madison. scott, good morning. >> good morning, lester. for the first time, supporters of the governor's bill turned out in numbers. a heavy police presence as both sides shouted to make their voices heard. it was the sixth straight day of demonstrations. this crowd, as men any as 7,000. many protesting scott walker's plan to close the state's $6.3 billion budget deficit. the state's largest public employee unions now say they'll pay more for their health and retirement benefits, but refusing any limits to their collective bargaining rights. >> this has never been about money. about the republican party trying to squash the democrats and trying to squash union

rights. >> reporter: for the first time the governors' supporters joined the supporters in madison. >> i'm out here because i work, just graduated this spring and i try to save my money and act prudently and it's time the state does the same. >> reporter: the republican-backed bill is stalled because all 14 democratic state senators left the state thursday and are holed up in illinois. the senate can't vote on the bill and the senators are prepared to stay away for weeks, if they have to. >> this is chipping away at our middle class. at what our people have as a life in wisconsin. >> reporter: but republicans aren't budging. >> there was a time for debate and the democrats in the senate decided they'd rather go to illinois rather than be here debating this bill. that time has come and gone. >> reporter: ohio and indiana are considering bills similar to wisconsin. ohio's legislature limit collective bargaining for the state's 400 public employees.

what happens in madison could set the tone for what happens around the country. >> collective bargaining began. if it happens there, it possibly could happen in many other states. >> reporter: yesterday demonstrations were peaceful with no arrests reported. monday is a holiday, so, tuesday is the first likely day anything will happen. i should also mention that there is a winter storm predicted to come in here today and that might affect the number of demonstrators who show up. lester sph. >> scott newell, thank you. that sweeping vote in washington to slash $60 billion in federal spending, the bill which now heads to the senate could lead to a government shutdown. david gregory is modrirt of "meet the press" and joins us to talk about all this. good morning. >> good morning, lester. >> the showdown in wisconsin. aside from the economic argument, do democrats have a strong political interest in keeping labor unions alive and well? >> oh, no doubt about it. there is a reason why president

obama weighed in and called this union bashing and a reason why rahm emanuel in chicago who is running for mayor was saying governor walker was doing something that is a political agenda. this is a state that is a swing state that went strongly for president obama in 2008. this is being viewed as ground zero, as a test case for union  strength, public employee union strength around the country because other republican governors who may try something similar. that's why there's so much at stake here. >> some suggestions that the white house needs to make a little stronger statement, a little more noise about this. is there any percentage in the president becoming more forceful here? >> well, it's possible he could depending on how negotiations go. i think he will be pushes on that to do it and also not to do it. this is a state issue in terms of what is going on in wisconsin, but he well understands, as everybody else does, that this is a really a big, national issue.

reining in government spending is happening in the states because they have to balance their budget and also the dominant discussion in washington right now and will be the discussion in the 2012 campaign. >> david, i want to talk about the federal budget. the house pulled the all-nighter and pulled $60 billion in cuts and the senate clearly won't go along but they have a narrow window to get this together before the risk of a government shout down. how real is that risk? >> that risk is escalating. a couple weeks ago i didn't think it would be there. two sides far apart and not the basis of much negotiation and even the leadership on the republican side, if they may be willing to deal. speaker boehner made a crack the other day saying, i'm only the speaker of the house, which is to say he has a rested group of conservative republicans who want to make good on this pledge to cut where they voted to cut. he may not be able to control his rank and file the way he'd like. >> we all remember going down that road 16 years ago with a

government shut down. david, thank you very much. jeff rossen over at the news desk for a look at the other top headlines. >> good morning, everyone. we're going to begin this morning with a new round of deadly protests in the middle east, this time in libya, where at least 15 people have been killed and demonstrators are back on the streets today. nbc ron allen live in cairo with more on this. ron, good morning to you. >> good morning to you, jeff. yes, the numbers we have are a lot higher than 15. human rights groups are estimating as many as 100 people killed in libya yesterday. the government there, the military are cracking down hard on the protesters. we just spoke to an activist who is out there in the streets by telephone. it is impossible for western media to get into the country and various images getting out and he told us that there are now some 20,000 people on the streets in the second largest city in that country and they are surrounding a military compound and a courthouse there. at this point, the military and police have hunkered down and not on the streets.

our activists have no doubt they will come back with a vengeance. hughesi using heavy weaponry and people were gunned down randomly in the streets today. >> dangerous situation. roll allen in cairo, thanks. in iran, state television reporting that two iranian navy vessels are approaching egypt's suaz canal. israel calls it a provocative move accusing iran of trying to exploit the instability of the region. back in this country now, the upper midwest is bracing for a big snow storm today after a major wind storm here in the northeast. the weather channel's mike seidel following all of it and more. good morning to you. >> good morning, jeff. yesterday a storm over eastern canada produced hurricane-wind

gusts in western mass. jfk airport up to 60 miles per hour and as you can imagine those kind of winds slowed air travel and blew down trees and knocked out power to thousands. it was snapped at the trunk after standing at the capital for 33 years. a replacement has already been chosen. meanwhile, out west, a series of storms to dump heavy snow, another two feet on the california sierra and the total in the ski resorts, as much as five feet. rain and flooding in l.a. and that storm is headed to the midwest. as much as a foot of snow to plow through the twin cities today and tonight and all gets under way here in a couple of hours. jeff, back to you. here in new york the severe winds that mike mentioned fanned the flames of this huge fire in brooklyn overnight destroying a six-story apartment. one person was killed and 32 others injured including 20 firefighters. emergency crews are still on the scene this morning. and, finally, a dramatic

rescue in boise, idaho, to tell you about. the precious little jack russell terrier eddy. somehow eddy got stuck in this ditch 30 feet under ground. he was trapped under there for 19 hours. emergency crews had to use heavy equipment, but you can see the happy reunion. we're told eddy is doing well. you should see the video. he came out and he was wiggling around, not a care in the world for the jack russell terrier. that's the news, now back to lester, jenna and janice. >> how is it this guy got into this little hole and it took this bulldozer to yank him out. >> did they get the bone he was chasing? >> or the squirrel. >> he's like, did i do that? thanks, jeff. adorable. janice huff is here with a check of the weather. >> windy, windy. >> i know. it got really warm in the east over the last few days, but now the wind is whipping up a storm across the eastern u.s. and now

another one over the midwest. this one as mike seidel mentioned will bring blizzard conditions to minnesota and the dakotas in the next 24 hours and plenty of snowfall. more than a foot is expected around rapid city and minneapolis and that snow will spread across the great lakes and the northeast. new york city may tomorrow morning may see one to three inches of snow. rain across the central and southern plains and high pressure dominates over the southeast. it's dry for you now but you'll get some of that rainy weather coming up in the next 24 hours. that's what's going on around the nation and now here is your lo and temperatures will be frigid across the northern plains and parts of the northern rockies with temperatures, high temperatures in the single digits, subzero windchi today over parts of montana and thedc dakotas and wyoming. meanwhile, a high of 40 in chicago, you'll get some snow tonight. just down the road in st. louis, it warms up dramatically, 70 degrees, 73 in oklahoma city, 36 in new york city with windchills

in the 20s today. that's your weather. now, here's lester. up next, abducted at sea. the latest on the americans ed after this. [music playing] confidence available in color. depend® colors for women. looks and fits like underwear. protects like nothing else. depend®. good morning. great day. ["stir it up" playing]

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this morning we're learning much more about the americans hijacked by somali pirates in the indian ocean. u.s. officials are now considering how to respond. nbc george lewis reports. >> reporter: these photos from scott and jean adams' website show the couple on an adventure of a lifetime. as they traveled, they handed out donated bibles. ironically, jean wrote, we expect this trip to hold some unexpected surprises. now, the management of the yacht club has asked members not to comment further on scott and jean adams. the fear is anything that is said could further compromise their safety. as news of their capture broke, people were following the story

closely. >> we got an e-mail from them about a week ago and they said that they were about to take off into where it was going to be dangerous and there wouldn't be any more radio contact. >> reporter: no more radio contact because they didn't want the bands of pirates off the somali coast to know their location. somali officials said the adams were among four americans captured by pirates. a friend of the adams said the two other americans were robert rigel and phyllis mckay from seattle. last year 49 americans were hijacked from pirates and a total of 28 vessels and 638 hostages are still being held for ransom. this, in spite of stepped up patrolled by the u.s. fifth fleet and the navies of other country. on wednesday this convicted somali pirate was sentenced to almost 34 years in a u.s. prison for his role in the hijacking of

the freighter "maersk alabama" in 2009. last november a retired british couple were released after being held by somali pirates for 388 days. >> i'm happy to be alive. >> reporter: and, now, friends of scott and jean adam are praying for their rescue for release. for "today," george lewis, nbc news, los angeles. >> for more insight on the hijacking, we're joined by maritime security analyst. >> good morning. >> this is notorious for pirate activi activity. who are these modern-day pirates? >> what you had when this really started to explode and scale in 2008 is you had a lot of former fishermen who had their industry, essentially destroyed by illegal fishermen and alleged

toxic waste dumping. what they saw an opportunity was to actually hijack these vessels, ransom them back to the company. because of the situation in somalia being a failed state they had the ability to do this and continue to do this and now it's turned into such an industry that you have fairly large organized criminal gangs with thousands of people involved taking advantage of this situation. >> are these pirates getting more money from private yachts like these four americans that were held as opposed to these large cargo vessels? >> that's the thing, for yachts, they targeted yachts before and this is the second yacht they have at the moment. they have a south african couple also being held and it's more of an opportunistic target. the larger ships do get more money. a huge oil tanker that brings in the maximum that has been paid is $9.5 million. that kind of ransom is huge and

you just couldn't get that for a couple because they don't have access to those funds. they don't have a company behind them. you have to go to the governments them selves. >> we heard about the -- do you see what happened this past weekend as some sort of retailiation about that or are all these separate events? >> the area the couple was sailing in is a high-risk area. you had the korean tanker taken around that area and the recent hijacking, the "irene" was taken very close to that position, as well. this is a known area where pirate gangs are known to be operating. >> few seconds left. do we know what will happen to this couple? what is the tendency once they arrive at land? >> usually once they arrive at land when they're not on the large ship where the crew would

stay on board. what they'll do is they'll probably move them on land and also because they'll fear some sort of rescue attempt. they'll separate them out and also keep them separate and limit their, limit the ability to launch rescue operations. >> then we just wait and see. tim hart, thank you so much for your insight and information. still to come, amanda knox, could a new tv film damage her defense? first, these messages. man: everybody knows you should save for retirement,

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still to come on "today." suzanne sommers are the medical claims of her new book true? first, these messages. thanks to the venture card from capital one,

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good sunday morning to you. a live look at the bay bridge, looking beautiful out there this morning but very, very cold. yesterday the radar was green. today your map is all blue because it's freezing. >> it's cold. we lost the blanket, the clouds overnight cleared and we've got some 30s, patchy frosts, probably some roadway ice in the north bay valley this morning with some of that fog. look out for that. low 30s around novato and santa rosa. visit down to a quarter mile so a little bit of a tough drive this morning morning. wait till about 9:00 if you

don't have to go anywhere and you'll see the temperatures come up. notice clouds and showers heading into southern california. we're starting to dry out today. high temperatures today going to be warmer than yesterday, but it seemed like just a couple weekends ago we were in the 70s. today we're lucky to get into the 50s for highs. around the north bay, lake county, we may see an isolated shower this afternoon, but today a bit of a drier finish to the weekend. tomorrow, a chance of showers for the north bay coastline. dry through the middle part of the week, then round two of low snow come friday of the new week. >> thank you very much. the oakland police department is investigating a pair of shootings and the department's response problems over the weekend. both incidents happened in east woekd, one on 62nd avenue near bancroft, the other about a mile away near the coliseum. police say about 1:00 yesterday morning a 31-year-old man from redwood city and his 27-year-old girlfriend from oakland were shot to death as they sat in a parked car on 62nd avenue. then about two hours later a fight started at a party in a

room at la quinta hotel near the coliseum. a 19-year-old man was shot in the chest, a second man was shot in the leg. police say their response was hampered once again by malfunctioning hand-held problems. this follows several weeks of problems with those radios. they have promised to fix the problem. lafayette police investigators are searching for suspects wanted in a botched jewelry store robbery. two men wearing ski masks began to rob the store at diablo boulevard last friday afternoon when the owner came at them shooting. investigators say one man may have been hit. all of the suspects fled in a getaway car. and the would-be robbers collided with another vehicle before fleeing. shortly after, berkeley hospital called the sheriff's department saying a man had arrived with a gunshot wound. reports are that investigators believe that man is one of the suspects. coming up at 7:00 on "today in the bay," a cry for help and how you can make a difference. a south bay family setting up a

fund raiser for their 4-year-old son who suffers from a rare form of cancer, and yet he's still smiling. those stories and more at 7:00. ♪ [ male announcer ] not all steel is created equal. not all manufacturing processes are created equal. not all engineering standards are created equal. which is why not all luxury vehicles are created equal. the hard way means never taking short cuts. the hard way is how lexus inspires absolute confidence.

this is the pursuit of perfection. see what it takes at lexus.com/thehardway. we're back on this sunday morning, february 20th, 2011. what happened to spring? spring was yesterday. winter is today. definitely returned to the northeast. but cold and wind can't keep this amazing crowd from joining us. we thank them so much for being with us outside on the plaza. i'm jenna wolfe alongside lester holt. still to come, we're talking about the made-for-tv movie about amanda knox. >> it premiers tomorrow night. amanda knox has seen some of the film and what does she, what deher parents think of it and where is this movie going? we'll talk more about that coming up. also suzanne somers is back

in the news with a book she wrote. she has been promoting alternative cancer treatments. do they really work? this morning dr. nancy snyderman looks at those treatments and gives us her take. >> we've been telling you about the invitations to the royal wedding. they're finally in the mail. how the guest list is chosen, the wording on the invitation and who attends the queen's luncheon. i've still got the big deal over there. i got one. >> i don't believe you. and, you know how i never complain. i never once complained. it is cold out here this morning. we are back to the dead of winter. janice huff is here with another check of the weather. hey, janice. >> good morning. you need your hat this morning and the gloves and all the gear on this cold morning. what a huge group we have and representatives from the engineering week. big competition coming up. what is the name of your group again? >> the kangaroo.

is this what you're entering in the competition? >> yes, it is. >> what does it do? does it do anything really special? >> we like to think so. first we have here, we get our batons and then this basket and dispense it into the goal. >> oh, very cool. good luck. a lot of teams going to be here this week. >> that's right. >> big competition march 12th. very good. good to see you guys. let's check a little weather on this cold morning in the northeast. cold. wind gusts up to 40, 50 miles per hour. even worse, will be another storm system moving over the northern plains. blizzard conditions today from the dakotas across to minnesota. plenty of snow and dangerous travel weather. it's best to stay indoors. snow spread across the northeast and we'll be expecting some snow in new york city tonight, tomorrow morning and in new england. up to let's show you what's going on around the bay area this morning. we are watching for some fog. look at san jose, 38 degrees.

it's livermore out to the north bay, as well. that's where we've got fog, reducing visibility in a few spots down to about a quarter mile. the rain and snow are both gone, a cool day today, a little warmer in terms of our temperatures. we'll get those highs back in the 50s around the bay area today. tomorrow a chance of coastal showers. we should stay dry through the middle part of the week. you can always check your weather any time on weather.com or the weather channel on cable and today's a special day here on nbc. it's hockey day in america. from noon until 6:00 p.m. right here on nbc and then from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. on versus, you can see hockey day in america starting today at noon and then the heritage classic at 6:00 p.m. but starting at noon right here on nbc. now, back inside to jenna. >> janice, thanks. despite legal threats and protests, the controversial lifetime movie "amanda knox murder on trial in italy" is

scheduled to air tomorrow night. the film which claims to we based on a true story depicts the murder of a british woman killed in italy by american amanda knox and two other men. miguel has our story. >> amanda knox will be tried for murder. >> reporter: the movie airs monday on lifetime. the sensational story of a brutal murder in italy. >> suspect it started as some sort -- >> reporter: which ended of the real-life conviction of amanda knox, her then boyfriend and another men who all claim to be innocent. but lawyers for amanda knox have formally demanded the movie be scrapped. knox's conviction is on appeal, dna evidence is being questioned. her attorney says the film harms knox's presumption of innocence. serving a 26-year murder sentence, knox has seen the trailer from prison. >> actually, at last visitation i sat down with her and she had mentioned that she had seen a little bit of it and she was absolutely horrified. >> reporter: owned in part by

nbc universal, lifetime has made no comment about the film, but the victim's family calls it horrific. the original trailer now pulled from lifetime's website including graphic clips. the victim meredith kercher screaming for her life. racy scenes between knox and her ex-boyfriend. >> we want the audience to either formulate their own opinion and, in many cases, they'll walk away going, still don't know. >> reporter: the real-life trial of amanda knox made headlines around the world. dubbed foxy knoxy and angel face by the press, in court knox told the judge she was hit by police during her interrogation. a claim repeated by her parents. now, they've been charged with libel. ordered to stand trial this summer in italy. >> they're going to ask us about amanda's interrogation and we answered what we knew of her

interrogation and we've been charged as a crime for that. >> reporter: knox's trial and her appeal have always drawn a media frenzy. and now her story has turned into a movie. for "today" miguel, nbc news, los angeles. >> linda stacy is a critic for the "new york post." thanks for being with us. linda, i want to start with you. interestingly enough you have a daughter who studied abroad in italy. what was your opinion about this whole case before you saw it? >> as a mother i said, this would like saying my daughter did something. so outrageous and ridiculous and such a railroad job. i spent a lot of time in italy and i found the whole thing bizarre and, as a reporter, i found there were pieces missing and i thought it was a complete railroad job. >> now you see the movie, has it changed your opinion at all?

>> it actually did change my opinion. i still don't know, of course, i wasn't there. however, the reactions that she had afterwards, making out in the police station with her boyfriend, literally doing ca cartwheels. laughing and fooling around while meredith's mother was holding a candlelight vigil. it doesn't add up. >> steve, i want to ask you a question. you believe amanda is innocent and, like her parents, you worry this movie could hurt her appeal process, is that correct? >> i think it will definitely hurt her appeal process. i initially thought she was guilty and the facts, not a movie, affected me. she is completely innocent and it's frustrating to see something that portrays things, the way the movie portrays her laughing and doing cartwheels and things. it's really not what happened. that's what people need to realize that you can be swayed by a movie when the facts are completely different.

>> steve, i want to mention this, we heard this in the piece. an italian judge ordered amanda's parents to stand trial on libel. what is your take on that whole situation? >> it's complete harassment. since the prosecutor himself, by the way, was charged with malfesance which he was convicted for and sentenced to prison. he has charged ten other people with slander or libel. the prosecutor in his case said that this guy has a type of delusion about the world and that he has a need to fight back against those who criticize his investigation. there's kind of a paranoia here and, frankly, i think he may need some psychological evaluation. >> her appeal is just in the beginning stages. what do you really think realistically her chance are of getting this 26-year sentence overturned? >> the chances of her getting the appeal depend on whether the

italian government wants to make sure that this trial is fair. the evidence is completely rigged. and if they're not willing to stand up and say, she didn't do it and this evidence is rigged, then she has no chance. if they're willing to tell the truth and let the pieces fall where they may, then she's coming home. >> linda, i have to ask, you're a tv critic. what do you think of the movie? >> i think the movie told both sides and where they thoushow t alleged attack and rape, what they're doing there is that the prosecutor, who i agree with steve is off the rails, that's his version. and it probably was not necessary, but they also show her version in the movie. but i would like to say if it's only the facts and the movie couldn't persuade steve, then it shouldn't persuade the jury, which is made up of judges. it's not made up of just regular joes in italy. i don't know, i don't know,

very, very compelling stuff both ways. but there's eyewitness reports that say otherwise. >> okay, we'll have to leave it at that. linda, steve, we thank you so much. coming up next, suzanne somers and her best-selling book causing some controversy. dr. nancy will weigh in right causing some controversy. dr. nancy will weigh in right after this. m sam chernin, owner of sammy's fish box. i opened the first sammy's back in 1966. my employees are like family, and i want people that work for me to feel that they're sharing in my success. we purchase as much as we can on the american express open gold card so we can accumulate as many points as possible. i pass on these points to my employees to go on trips with their families. when my employees are happy, my customers are happy. how can the gold card help serve your business? booming is taking care of your business by taking care of your employees.

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actress suzanne somers has built an empire as a best-selling author for self-help book. but one book left medical experts skeptical. nancy snyderman joins us now. good morning. >> good morning, lester. she is a fascinating woman. suzanne somers. i have been with her many times over the years and she has one place many americans are turning to these days for medical information. she is a former sitcom star, tv pitch women and, yes, a household name. suzanne somers and her best-selling book is suggesting alternative cancer treatments and is causing controversy and some say confusion. what she calls real breakthroughs some doctors are saying are just dangerous. suzanne somers recent book

"knockout" she claims can cure cancer without chemotherapy and radiation put her in the crosshairs of controversy. so "dateline" decided to learn more starting with what dr. somers considers the most extraordinary. >> i believe one day he will be -- >> reporter: houston doctor says he's curing pediatric brain tumors with antineoplasten. proteins he discovered in 1967 that can turn cancer cells off. >> nobody in the world was able to do it before. >> reporter: and you are. you are the only man in the world that can save these kids with these tumors. >> the only one in the world that can save these people, not everybody, i save. but some percentage of the patients can be saved. >> reporter: patients like braden. three years ago his doctors in massachusetts diagnosed him with a tumor on his brain stem. tell me about the day he was diagnosed? >> parents' worst nightmare.

>> reporter: surgery removed most of the tumor, but not all of it. when it started to grow back doctors recommended chemotherapy but he did not want to go that route. what was it about chemo that did not convince you? >> it was never supposed to fix the problem guaranteed by any means. >> reporter: so he turned to dr. brasinski and considered experimental and not fda approved. but leading cancer specialist markman said there has never been definitive scientific evidence that they ever cured anyone. >> quite frankly to go after vulnerable, helpless cancer patients with a claim that something will help and never have it tested to prove its benefits. >> reporter: suzanne somers says criticism is just sour grapes. >> this is a reputable scientist. >> reporter: if he's reputable, then why do some people think

he's not? >> jealous. jealous. jealous. i say go down there, you will be impressed. >> reporter: chief of the integrated memorial service is a long-time critic and she says his claims of success have gone too far. >> do you think there's any truth that he has found a cure for certain cancers? >> i think there's zero proof. unfortunately, as is true with the thousands of practitioners of that type, they offer only hope. they don't offer anything real. >> nancy, suzanne somers has written a lot of books on menopause, on sex, on a lot of lifestyle topics. why has this one struck such a cord with folks? >> suzanne talks about a close call with cancer and then looks at the medical establishment and what we haven't accomplished

since the '70s and where she thinks we should be. her challenge was to look at some of the crazy ideas that perhaps might have merit, but to try to give creedance to what could be good science and what could be bogus science. i have met suzanne several times, as i mentioned. she was always smart and gracious. her and i always laughed about how we see things differently but if the core of science is the idea that you should replicate someone else's results. if i discover something and say i can cure someone, you with the same instruments or medicine should be able to do the same. there's a lot of money at stake for a lot of people and a lot of hope. >> they can be very expensivep. >> a lot of times money up front and not reimbursed by insurance and they are considered experimental and one of the doctors we profiled gave people four coffee a day and no medical evidence that any of that stuff works but we'll let viewers decide for themselves both sides

of this controversy. >> dr. nancy snyderman, thank you very much. >> you can watch sue zam summers a dose of controversy right here tonight. signed se, sea ad nd on tlei way, the royal wedding invitations. [ male announcer ] from jet engines that have fewer emissions, to new ways to charge electric cars, to renewable sources of clean energy, ecomagination from ge is advanced technology that's good for both the economy and the environment. ♪ it's technology that makes the world work. [ squawking ] ♪

i think it can. one of the challenges for kayla being gluten-free is actually finding choices the whole family will love. then we discovered chex cereals. five flavors of chex are gluten-free, including the honey nut flavor, and that's amazing to a mom like me. as a parent you don't want to have to tell your kids "no" all the time. it's nice for me to be able to say "yes" to something that they want to eat. [ male announcer ] chex cereal. five flavors. gluten free. this morning we're counting down just 68 days to the royal wedding and as we have been reporting the invitations are in the mail to the estimated 1,900 guests that will fill westminst westminster abby. the palace receptions hosted by the queen.

first live from buckingham palace, good morning. >> good morning, jenna. those royal invites have been finally sent out. no names have been released, but one very well-known name has not made the final cut. if your name's not on the list, you're not coming in. invitations to the royal wedding are finally en route to the guests. 1,900 invitations sent out. some royal watchers say it was her choice. >> it would seem rather insensitive for her and possibly, you know, divert all that media attention from their big day to her. and that's what the press would do. i think she's done the right thing. >> reporter: so who is coming? well over 1,000 family and friends. more than 50 royals. the rest, foreign royal families, politicians and other dignitaries. >> what you may think about a

royal wedding, it's all predecided and, basically, a networking business venture. >> reporter: a ruthless one, too. by lunchtime the 1 ,900 at westminster abbey will drop to 600 who get lunch with the queen. only 300 can stay for dinner. that exclusive guest list is still a big secret. let's hope this teenager's luck is in. desperate for an invite, she's gone on a hunger strike. not surprisingly royal officials have now sent her their address. camilla has been giving kate middleton fashion tips. she has been in talks with her flamboyant hat designer. many more surprises to come, jenna. >> i, too, went on a hunger strike that lasted through breakfast and then i gave up. we'll take a closer look at the royal invitations. here with details is patrick,

nbc royal contributor and former aide to princess diana. patrick, good morning. >> good morning, jenna. >> let me ask you this, nearly 2,000 invitations sent out and on them the lord chamberlain is commanded by the queen to invite so and so. who is the lord chamberlain. >> well, this is one of those nice traditional touches to this whole event. the lord chamberlain is officially the head of the queen's household. so, since these invutags are being sent on the queen's behalf, he has put his name to them and they are sent out by members of his staff for those 1,900 lucky people. if you are looking for yours, jenna, you wouldn't miss it. big cream envelope and nice chunky cardboard about 8 by 6 and it will say the lord chamberlain is commanded to invite jenna wolfe to the marriage of prince william and ms. middleton -- it will be

good. it will tell you where to go and when. 11:00 a.m. at westminster abbey. it will tell you what to wear. >> interesting, because i always have such a hard time picking out my clothes anyway. that's one less thing i have to worry about. question for you and little logistics. stacks and stacks of invitations are going out. are they just sticking them in the mail or are they going to be hand delivered? how does it really work? >> of course, this is also very major protocol occasion. there are people who have to be invited because of their position. for example, members of foreign royal families. now, they've already been sent a fax asking them to hold the date in their diaries. won't be a surprise to them. for everybody else, it will come in the post, which we call the royal mail here and they'll watch their post boxes and door mats very carefully. >> three big events that day. the ceremony with 1,900 invites and then a lunch reception with

600 invites and then a dinner with only 300 invites. i guess the closer you are to the guests, that's what determines which one or all three, perhaps, that you get invited to. is that correct, peter? >> yes. if you are there because of your position, because you're a diplomat or politician or member of the royal family, you will be invited to the ceremony at westminster abbey and probably then to the queen's lunch, the wedding breakfast at buckingham palace. but the final 300 are close friends and relatives of william and kate themselves. >> i wonder where weekend "today" show co-host fits into all that. now that the invitations are all out everyone is wondering who is designing kate's dress. >> i was thinking it was going to be an e-vite. 30 years after princess diana walked down the aisle in her wedding dress, peter alexander joins us with more. you were there at the beginning

of the journey a few weeks ago. we saw you, where was that? >> grand rapids. this is my sweet spot right now. we were in london for a bit and this dress will come here and make its first appearance on "today" show driving from grand rapids, michigan, overnight. over the last several days i had a chance to interview david emmanuel who designed this now famous dress with all the theater, this victorian style, hand-sewn dress and some of the best details he gave us were about what happened behind the scenes with diana. among the details, if i can share. the fact that when they were designing it, it was known who would be doing it but they didn't want anybody to know exactly what the dress would look like. whenever they spoke about diana they called her deborah behind the scenes. >> nobody would know who it was. peter, thank you very much. you can see it here inside studio 1-a tuesday morning on

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david gregory to find out what is coming up this morning on "meet the press." >> good morning, lester. i will be joined by susan rice for the very latest on the middle east protest and the battle over the budget with assistant majority leader in the senate, dick durbin and lindsey graham. >> that will do it for us on this sunday morning. jeff rossen, thank you so much. janice huff, thank you. it's the oscars next week. we'll have a preview. >>soon lg, everybody. thanks for watching.