this morning on "early today," tracking bin laden, how the al qaeda mastermind was able to send and receive e-mails without being detected. lesser of two evils? as the mississippi river swells, federal officials consider opening a spillway that could flood millions of acres of land. and beast of burden. you may have heard the saying a bull in a china shop, but how about a bull in a clothing store? captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. i'm lynn berry.

today we begin with off the radar. we are now learning how exactly osama bin laden, once the most wanted man in the world and apparently a prolific e-mailer, managed to stay ahead of the u.s. government for so long. the associated press reports although he didn't have a phone or internet access in his hideout, bin laden managed to stay in touch with his contacts by giving a courier e-mail messages on a flash drive. the courier would then go to a distant internet cafe to send and receive bin laden's messages. navy s.e.a.l.s hauled away about 100 of those memory drives. the electronic records may contain hundreds of e-mail addresses leading investigators to others. >> reporter: senior u.s. military and intelligence officials tell nbc news from inside his hideout, bin laden was fully engaged to carry out

other 9/11-style attacks. describing him as a micromanager and meticulous note taker, he used his compound for command and control of al qaeda, compiling plans for new attacks. >> he mentions the big cities, he mentions certain important dates, for example, the 10-year anniversary of 9/11, which is coming up. he mentioned transportation, aviation and rail. >> this wave of intelligence is emerging through a government campaign of briefings and orchestrated leaks. "the washington post" reports bin laden was preoccupied with attacking the united states over all other targets, a fixation that led to friction with followers. and nbc news has learned the itr officials were listed as potential targets. but the vice president was said to be less of a target. so why the information onslaught? they're sending a message to

members of al qaeda that the americans may have information about you, they may have information about your plans, about your intentions and it causes them to question what they're going to do. >> also seized in the raid, personal correspondence between bin laden and senior al qaeda leaders with bin laden discussing the places he wanted to attack, the best times to attack, which of his followers would be right for specific jobs. u.s. officials say the navy s.e.a.l.s focused primarily on bin laden's messages and left behind detailed logs of his and al qaeda's movements, logs now in the hands of pakistani authorities who have not yet agreed to share them. >> that was nbc's peter alexander reporting. back here in the u.s., residents near the mississippi are battling historic flooding hoping the waters will spare their homes and businesses. as the water levels continue to rise, officials are now faced with the decision of whether to intentionally flood some areas

in order to save others. the army corps of engineers could decide to breach a levee north of baton rouge, louisiana, as early as this weekend sparing that city and new orleans while sacrificing thousands of other less populated areareas. now here's a look at other stories making news early today in america. a brazen robbery was caught by security cameras when a thief jumped behind a jewelry counter to execute a smash and grab. the suspect wrestled with one of the employees before getting away with several rings. police have made no arrests. one fugitive didn't have the sea legs to get away from florida police. the wanted suspect tried to avoid arrest by jumping into the atlantic ocean from a beach front restaurant. police used aerial and sea support to pull the man from the water and make the arrest. a fire on orange county sunset beach destroyed one home

and damaged two others before firefighters put out the blaze. high winds made extinguishing the inferno a tough job for the 100 firefighters on the scene. investigators think the fire started after a barbecue grill was blown over. and in connecticut, we have an update for you on the teen recently banned from his prom. james' unique but unsanctioned prom invitation has garnered support from thousands of folks. his story and appearances on the "today" show and late night talk shows have led connecticut lawmakers to draft legislation aimed at getting him back into the prom. well, school officials who banned james for being on school property in off hours still refuse to lift his punishment. standing his ground, rules are rules. here is big karins with the forecast. >> i thought this would be

positive. >> i know the update is not so good. >> he is trying to be a player, you know. >> keep the pressure building. >> let's chat about the forecast. >> the west coast has been okay. all eyes continue on the middle of the country. it is going to take the month of may to get rid of the water. the decision this week end isen going to happen around baton rou rouge. the 23rd will be going through. it is going to flood somewhere. as i mentioned, it hasn't been too stormy lately. more clouds than we would like.

we'll give you breaks of sunshine today. temperatures in the 60s. still hot in arizona. tucson, arizona today warm at 95. sacramento, not tbad. enjoy. weekend forecast coming up. >> bill, thanks so much. also coming up, wall street gets defensive, facebook gets caught and one zoo's way of adding revenue that just plain stinks. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, it's good to be the royal couple. you're not going to believe the list of goodies they had shipped in for their island getaway. coming up, the conference finals are set in the nhl and nba. a hat trick for the mets' carlos beltran and tiger limps away from the player's championship. you're watching "early today."

good morning, and welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry. here are some of your top headlines this morning. in pakistan, twin explosions struck a paramilitary training center killing at least 80 people. the pakistani taliban claimed it carried out the attacks to avenge osb's killing. former nevada senator john ensign could face criminal charges related to the probe into his affair with a former campaign staffer. possible charges include obstruction avenue justice after ensign deleted documents and files. ensign, who has denied breaking the law, resigned last week. president obama is asking congress to extend the current 10-year term of fbi director robert muller for two more years. officials tell nbc news the move is motivated in part by the president's hope to avoid a

partisan battle over muller's successor with an election looming. executives from the five big oil companies were grilled on tax breaks yesterday. jay rockefeller called one executive out of touch while charles schumer said, quote, you would have an easier time convincing the american people that a unicorn just flew into this room than oil companies need tax breaks. this is an ox inside a clothing store in brazil. it escaped from an overturned truck, but it was eventually captured. >> and now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,695 after gaining 65 points yesterday. the s&p inched up 6 points. the nasdaq rose 17. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo,

the nikkei lost 67 points but in hong kong, the hang seng added 202. thursday was a roller coaster day on wall street as investors nervous about a recovery moved to so-called safe stocks. recently, defensive shares such as health care and consumer staples have been heading upward, suggesting jittery investors aren't bailing out on stocks altogether. pharmaceutical merck, coca-cola, kraft foods led stocks higher by end of day trade. april retail sales posted the smallest rise in nine months. pushing early losses, applications for unemployment benefits fell last week, but less than expected. commodities managed a modest comeback. oil recovered from steep, early losses, finishing nearly 1% higher, but still below $100 a barrel. cold and copper also rose. goldman sachs was lower after its shares were downgraded due

to a growing chorus arguing charges should be brought against the bank for defrauding investors. cisco sank after reporting 18% slide in earnings, lower profit forecast and job cut plans. after the bell, nordstrom dropped after cutting its full year earnings outlook. elsewhere, facebook admitted a claim first reported by the daily beast that the social network hired a prominent public relations firm drawing immediate attention to privacy practices at rival google. facebook insisted its involvement remain a secret. and finally, the prague zoo is making loads of money off elephant dung. gardeners using it as a fertilizer are scooping it up for about $2 a pound. goes well with breakfast, doesn't it? coming up, an injury forces tiger to sit. the bulls ran past the hawks and beltran belts three. plus, the san jose sharks take a game seven stanley cup thriller.

in weather, it's almost the favorite time for the forecast, your weekend forecast. that's coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today."

in sports, most professional athletes will tell you in a best of seven series, they would rather get swept than lose it all after winning the first three games. last night, that's what hockey's sharks avoided. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. good morning. the san jose sharks blew a 3-0 series lead, but were able to avoid a historic collapse with a game seven wing over the detroit red wings. you know it's not your night when your own teammate takes you out. daniel clary had to leave the game after a jaw rattling hit. sharks got out to an early lead. pass. up 2-1. added insurance in the third. patrick marlow popped in the rebound. the sharks didn't fold. they're heading back to the western finals with a 3-2 win. chicago will face miami after closing out the atlanta hawks. unlike other games, derrick rose

got plenty of help from his teammates. carlos boozer chipped in 23 points and five different bulls scored in double figures. chicago led from start to finish and they advance to the eastern finals for the first time since 98 with a 98-73 win. for years, we wondered if tiger woods could break jack nicholson's mark for players's championships. now it appears tiger woods will be lucky to win another championship. he has a knee injury and will likely shut it down until next month's open. carlos beltran missed more games than he's played over the last season. but yesterday, he had more runs batted in than the entire rockies team. mets won it 9-5 thanks to beltran's home run hat trick. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin.

yesterday, it was hugh grant. find out today who is hotly rumored to be replacing charlie sheen on "two and a half men." your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, some areas are enduring their flood of the century. we'll show you one town who fought back and won. you're watching "early today."

welcome back. let's take you through your weekend forecast. in the northwest a lot of high, thin clouds sunshine today. nice in port lalanportland. saturday showery weather. la 67. cool on sunday. not a wash out weekend. be prepared. see a local college classic story that is funny and provoking at the western stage. that is your pa sicific event o the day. that's your "early today" event of the day. a little saturday night fever.

now here's a look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. the experts say what little tension there may be this weekend at the box office will be over second place, not first. "thor" should win first place. bridesmaids has snl's kristin wig. the reviews have been great, but it's r rated and the question is will guys see that movie? experts say second place at somewhere over $15 million. "priest" is expected to draw many guests and it's not expected to move past $15 million. ashton kutcher is in negotiations to replace charlie sheen on "two and a half men." tabloid has reported william and kate have had a slew of their favorite foods shipped in for their honeymoon including philadelphia cream cheese and

brussel sprouts just to name a it is bizarre. >> and this comes to us from bluff, arkansas where communities joined forces to save one house. the waters of the white river rose to record heights, destroying an entire neighborhood. overwhelmed with the destruction, families transformed their frustration into focus. united together, they laid thousands of sand bags, dug motes and built levees. their efforts paid off, guaranteed at least one home in their neighborhood did survive. that's a neighbor. i'm lynn berry, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station.

one artist in china uses his bare hands not to sculpt, but to tear the. the art form goes back hundreds of years and requires incredible detail. artists use only their eyes without any sketching beforehand. his latest masterpiece? a portrait of president obama. bear that was stolen from his enclosure is safely back home today. bango was taken earlier this week from a zoo in australia. for an unknown reason, thieves used bolt cutters to break into his pen. park officials found him in the zoo's parking lot stashed in a trash bin after an anonymous phone call. luckily, he's expected to be

just fine. one man is taking a few shortcuts to combine a favorite past time. he has an easy trip to and from the dock. the machine cost him about $1,600 and took two years to make. if you're interested in getting one, not so fast. one company has already turned him down to mass produce the mow-boat. how can you turn that down? >> trimming the seaweed and the kelp. it looked like he was coast guard certified. >> the lights and the siren just in case. he's only going 6 miles per hour. time now for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day here on nbc. former u.s. supreme court justice john paul stevens will deliver the commencement address at northwestern university law school. stevens, who graduated in 1947 is the third longest serving justice in the supreme court's history. speaking today in new jersey, the dalai lama.

hosted by newark's mayor, the three-day conference focuses on peace-making practices from around the world. and happy birthday to musician stevie wonder who turns 63 today. all day long, you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with nbc "nightly news." and, finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. how potential gop presidential candidate mitt romney is defending his own health care record while attacking president obama's. and the very latest in the casey anthony murder case where jury selection in the trial has been slow going. now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm lynn berry. thanks for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. have a good one. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com