on the broadcast tonight. a ray of hope that americans might finally understand the claims of containers of sunscreen. news tonight from the fda. the winners and losers from last night's gop debate. it might just be the sad truth about american students. and the opening night. broadway show that cost an arm and a leg and broke more bones than that. tonight, the men from u-2 defend their broadway debut. "spider-man" finally opens. and the latest reason why a passenger was pulled off a flight. is there a lesson in it for all of us? "nightly news" begins now.

captions paid for by nbc-universal television good evening. with summer upon us there are millions of americans who won't leave home without it and for good reason. sunscreen has become standard equipment for the human body in recent years and it's out of sheer necessity with skin cancer rates galloping skyward. but the sun science aisle at the store is often a confusing and intimidating morass, numbers and letters on spf and uva and sprays and creams and competing protection claims and now finally, the federal government, the fda has made some changes and they've been a long time coming while the numbers have been climbing. 2 million americans get treated for skin cancer every year. people die from melanoma at the rate of one death per hour in this country. those are the stakes. we begin tonight with our chief medical editor dr. nancy snyderman. the fda wants to clear up

the confusion about sunscreens. dozens on the market and more on the way. a $650 million industry that's growing. amid concerns about skin cancer. all sunscreens sold in the u.s. will soon be categorized according to how they protect against uva and uvb rays. the harmful ultraviolet rays that cause skin cancer and wrinkles. those sun screens will be labeled broad spectrum and only sunscreens with a spf of 15 or higher can make that claim. >> it's a continuous spray so you can get your kids upside down or right side up. >> a big change, a drug facts label showing ingredients and differentiating between products that protect against cancer from those that only prevent sunburn. >> we've heard from many surveys that we've done this really helps people access information. so we're adding the drug facts box just like is found on other otc drugs. >> reporter: what you won't see anymore are words like "sun block," "waterproof" and "sweat proof."

since they say nobody can make that claim. >> they are not associated with any standard and any manufacturer could put it on their sunscreen and you'd have no idea what it meant and it is misleading. >> reporter: but the environmental working group says the fda didn't go far enough. >> the american people have waited 33 years for the fda to provide guidance on sunscreen and today's final rule from the fda, is over y'all. underwelming. >> maybe, but you'll see the new changes by next summer and in the meantime, when you go down the aisle look for the labels that say uva and uvb protection and spf of at least 15. no matter the number you have to reapply the sunscreen every two hours and liberally, brian. especially if you're in the water or sweating. >> important news for everybody, thank you, nancy, as always. we turn to presidential politics tonight on this day after the first truly

substantial presidential debate of the season. and while again we have 17 months to go here, what happened last night and the name that emerged last night from the gop candidates could affect at least the early going. nbc's andrea mitchell is covering for us tonight from our washington newsroom. andrea, good evening. >> reporter: good evening. michele bachmann has been a tea party leader in congress but now she's shaking up the field in this year's republican presidential contest. to many, she was the surprising standout of this year's first new hampshire debate. >> i filed today, my paperwork to seek the office of the presidency of the united states. >> reporter: like the best-known republican woman politician to hit new hampshire this month, 55-year-old michele bachmann knows her way around a rod and reel. but unlike sarah palin, bachmann has hired a top pollster, a strategist and a debate coach and last night she was ready for primetime. >> i'm a former federal tax litigation attorney. i'm a businesswoman.

we started our own successful company. i'm also member of the united states congress. i'm a wife of 33 years. i've had five children and we are the proud foster parents of 23 great children. >> michele bachmann did comport herself well last night, i must say. she was very articulate and forceful. >> reporter: elected in 2006, bachmann is a tea party favorite. >> it was a chance for america to see her shine but the tea party movement has been seeing her shine for a while. snoelt and the lady is mine ♪ >> she wowed party conservatives at their convention this winter. overcoming an earlier stumble. >> today, unemployment is at 9.4% -- >> reporter: she was ridiculed her answer to obama's state of the union speech. >> the economy was a disaster as you can see. >> reporter: now bachmann's feisty performance in new hampshire has given her campaign a big lift. >> i fought behind closed doors against my own party on t.a.r.p. it was a wrong vote then.

it's continued to be a wrong vote. >> reporter: she's easily overshadowed competitors like tim pawlenty, all vying to challenge mitt romney. and today, former utah governor and president's obama former ambassador to china, jon huntsman said he's jumping in the contest. and hints that texas governor rick perry will run in a field getting a lot more crowded by the day, brian. >> we, again, have 17 more months of this to go. andrea, thanks as always. the current president was making a little history today becoming the first sitting president to make an official trip to puerto rico in 50 years. but this trip may have less to do with making history there than nailing down votes back here on the mainland. kristen welker traveling with the president with us from san juan. good evening, kristen. >> reporter: good evening. president obama was welcomed

with opened arms when he spoke at this airport hangar in san juan. some shed tears. the white house says this is a fulfillment of a campaign promise. a show of support for puerto rico. a traditional spanish greeting marks a new day in puerto rico. president obama becoming the first sitting u.s. president to officially visit since john f. kennedy in 1961. >> when i came here to campaign, i promised that i would return as president of united states. >> reporter: and while throngs of puerto ricans gave him a hero's welcome many say this is a nod to the 4.6 million puerto ricans who live on the u.s. mainland and who now outnumber those living on the island. >> politically, he's really doing a campaign stop for places like illinois and florida. states that have seen a huge increase in the number of puerto ricans moving there and living there. >> reporter: and potentially voting there. in 2008, 67% of hispanics

supported mr. obama. but since then many say they are disappointed with his failure to achieve immigration reform. >> don't take a community for granted. he said, i will sign an immigration bill the first year of my presidency. and now what we have is more deportations and more separation of families than ever before. >> reporter: puerto ricans say they are typically less concerned about immigration since they are u.s. citizens and more concerned about the main issue facing most americans -- unemployment which hovers above 16% on the island. some credit the president for paying attention. >> he made it clear that we're part of the nation and that he'll continue treating us as part of the nation. >> reporter: actions that could win the president favor in 2012, but many puerto ricans say even if politics is driving this visit, that's okay. >> so even if he's here for a minute or five hours, he did take time to come over here and visit us.

>> reporter: now the president left about an hour earlier than expected so he spent a total of four hours here and he visited with the governor and stopped by a campaign fundraiser. brian? >> san juan, puerto rico, thanks. to the american desert southwest now, the massive arizona wildfire we've been reporting on for days has officially now become the largest in the state's history, burning more than 732 square miles in all. that surpasses the previous record from 2002. as of this morning, firefighters are reporting they have 18% containment. that indicates major progress in their fight. they're gaining on the fireline every day, though it could take many weeks to snuff it out entirely. on the iowa/missouri border workers are trying to hold floodwaters back from the town of hamburg, iowa. two nearby levees finally gave as the slow motion disaster of the flooded missouri river makes its way to the south, moving a

lot of earth on its way. national guard troops are helping in the effort to build temporary levees to keep the floodwaters from inundating the population, about 1200 in that town. when we come back here tonight, from revere to the roosevelts to reconstruction. how much our kids really know or don't know about history and what we all learned about it today. and later, two guys from ireland. a spider from new york and $70 million. what could go wrong? and opening night tonight they're hoping everything goes right for "spider-man."

news from education today making up our "education nation" report tonight on what's called the nation's report card. it gives us a snapshot of how our kids are doing in various subjects.

when it comes to history, the results out today are clear. improvement needed, as the teachers say, for those in grade school. all the way up to our high school seniors. our report tonight from our chief education correspondent, rahema ellis. >> time's up. >> reporter: at this middle school in los angeles, today's lesson is on u.s. history. >> take two or three minutes and put it in your own words. >> reporter: eighth grade students in this class were asked a typical question included on a nationwide test. identify at least one advantage american troops held over the

british in the american revolution. >> they had more leadership support. the british had to go overseas to get all the way to america. >> reporter: are they right? the answer in a moment. across the country, 30,000 students were tested on their knowledge of u.s. history. the nation's report card released today shows fourth, eighth and 12th graders are still struggling with the subject. while eighth graders improved since the last time the test was given in 2006, less than 20% scored at or above a proficient level. black and hispanic eighth graders account for some of the biggest gains, narrowing the achievement gap with white students. but there was virtually no progress for 4th and 12th graders. in fact, among seniors, more than half tested below the basic level. >> we have seen no growth since the early '90s in our grade 12 students performance levels in all three categories. that's very troubling. >> reporter: also troubling, on the test, only 9% of fourth graders could identify a picture of abraham lincoln, our nation's 16th president. >> this is a real crime for a country like this, that depends on understanding where we came from and why we are the way we are as a country in order to have a successful future. our kids are just not learning this stuff. >> reporter: back in the history

class, jose got the question correct. the british were not on their home turf. on average, students spend only two hours a week in class learning about american history. and students spend ten times that amount on reading and math. >> those abe lincoln numbers are downright painful. we'll revisit this. thanks for your reporting. up next after the break, the u.s. army will soon be sporting a new look. you might say a big change is coming to the very top.

the latest apparent overreaction to aviation security is brought to you tonight by the letter f, a new york-based children's author was overheard by another passenger dropping a few f-bombs in

excitement over a delayed take-off. the delta jet went back to the gate and the cops boarded the plane and he was hauled off for being disruptive. in his defense, he says it was rediculous and embarrassing, he was in his seat, used profanity but was far from threatening in any way. he said he lost a cousin and a lot of people on 9/11. the airline apologized and put him on a later flight. after everybody in today's army got used to their new look, you may recall when in 2001 when the army converted to berets for their basic acu, but the army combat uniform with the black berets proved unpopular. they are hot, like wearing a wet sock and it takes two hands to put it on and you can't put it in your pocket. so now they'll go back to the old patrol cap and the beret will go back to be a special covering for rangers, airborne and special forces. a dramatic moment on windy

san francisco bay for a racing catamaran during a race in choppy seas, 45 foot oracle vessel did just that capsized tossing two members. both were okay. the event was staged to get people for interested in the next america's cup series two years from now. it now officially received media attention. up next here tonight, broadway was just minding its own business and along comes a spider and $70 million and tonight, if bono and the edge are on edge about opening night, they're not showing it.

it's happening right now not far from here, theater district in new york, opening night at long last for "spider-man" turn off the dark." perhaps lions and cats have been big money makers. two irish rock stars figured spiders would be a smash. you turn the comic book "spider-man" into a broadway show and what hadn't gone wrong? it's the most expensive production ever. we have our conversation with the men of rock who have been positively rolled by this experience and are hoping the

jokes will stop when the curtain goes up. >> reporter: when our sweet, good natured furry friends at "sesame street" do their parody of the mishaps and injuries of a broadway show that's when you know you have a pr problem. >> bono, could you give me a boost next time? >> reporter: when the tony awards, broadway's oscar night sets aside a segment for jokes about a broadway show, it's uncomfortable. >> i sent bono a congratulatory cable but it snapped. >> so it's a natural question for the show's two chief creators. >> have your names taken a hit, do you think? >> i don't believe so. i think the project has come through the fire and i think that it's going to survive. i truly believe that. >> i think we would have taken a hit if we had stood over something that really, you know, sucked. and, in fact, it is a magical

piece of theater. ♪ >> reporter: bono and the edge are among the greatest living rock musicians, the driving force behind u-2 and the cocreators of ""spider-man" turn off the dark." but for all their power and mite they can't turn off the bad reviews. the chicago "sun times" critic said their broadway creation, quote, is like a giant insect hopelessly thrashing its legs with crushingly weak writing and almost total lack of story telling mo ntum.g and this part especially stings. a numbingly bland score by bono and the edge. how do you deal with that part of this? >> i mean, you know, reviewers are hired because they can write and because they have strong opinions. and you're going to get some people who are going to love what you do and some people will hate it no matter what.

so you can't really live or die by the reviews. there will be, you know, there will be some people who want to make a name for themselves by, you know, turning it into a blood sport on wednesday morning. i remember times with u-2 where we've taken some serious black eyes. i think we're actually -- i think we're quite comfortable being in the ring, being beaten. >> reporter: in their own defense, both men copped to approaching this project with no idea how long and involved and fraught it would be. the stats are staggering. five cast member injuries. opening night was delayed six times. the estimated cost of $70 million so far, is a record for broadway. then there are the endsless previews. 183 shows prior to tonight's official opening. critics traditionally wait until opening night to review a play but a lot of them couldn't hold

back and a number of them have panned it. >> you guys will both get injured. >> two months ago they shut down production, fired the director and reshaped the show. villains are now heroes and the love story at the center of the plot is back in. ♪ i'm a $60 million circus tragedy ♪ >> reporter: some have wondered if the thrill of the mishap has motivated ticket byers but they are buying tickets. the show has been raking in a million dollars a week and the stunts and the sets are spectacular. no show has ever attempted anything close to this or paid such a high price in injuries and bruised representations. >> what's happening? >> it's happening, isn't it. >> reporter: did you do your best? looking out over this, knowing what's going to happen here, did you do your best? >> the next few months we'll have gotten it to a place where

we'll stop criticizing. it's just there. just there. to say that broadway shows are never finished they just open. like a u-2 record. we're so close to being able to sign off on this. peter parker, what makes him a superhero is not his spider pattern. it's his personal integrity. and people leave the theater feeling that. >> bono and the edge, the first opening reviews will be available when the curtain comes down, where else? but on the web. more of our interview on the web as well. that's our broadcast for this tuesday evening. thank you as always for being here with us. i'm brian williams. we hope to see you back here tomorrow night. good night.

-- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com a middle school field trip results in a criminal investigation after some shocking allegations. good evening, everyone, i'm jessica aguirre. >> and i'm raj mathai. we start with a disturbing story. the district attorney says he's never seen anything like this before. allegations of a gang rape. a group of boys, all 14 years old and under, raping two 12-year-old girls. we bring in elise