we'll be back in a half hour with a local news update and every half hour as well. >> it's friday, enjoy it and thanks so much for starting your morning here with us. >> fri-yay! good morning. primed for battle. amazon's ceo jeff bezos takes on the nation's most notorious tabloid accusing the "national enquirer" of blackmail and extortion and threatening to go public with his intimate and private pictures. why bezos went public rst and what was "the enquirer" trying to hide? in the hot seat, the acting attorney general set for a grilling on capitol hill today after days of intense back and forth over whether he would even show up. this morning why did he say the mueller investigation was about to wrap up? honoring an icon, john dingell, the longest serving member of congress in u.s. history has died.

his decorated career spanning 59 years and 11 presidents. >> presidents come and presidents go and john dingell goes on forever. >> we'll remember the political giant known as the dean of the house. all that, plus grief and anger. >> he's going to pay for it. he's going to pay for it. >> the family of the woman at the center of that greenwich murder mystery calling for justice as police desperately search for the killer. look out below, a prison escape goes very wrong when an inmate falls through a jail ceiling literally dropping in on the officers below. and here's to you mr. robinson, tributes pouring in overnight for baseball legend frank robinson, a hall of fame player, the major league's first black manager and a civil rights pioneer, today, friday, february 8th, 2019. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with savannah

guthrie and hoda kotb live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. good morning, everybody. welcome to "today." nice to have you with us on a friday morning. just when you think you've seen it all. >> this was a stunner, a real jaw-dropper to read. >> it was. jeff bezos one of the most famous ceos in america comes out with this blog post, what he revealed was a stunner. he's the world's richest man. he's turning the tables on an we'll start with nbc's peter alexander. good morning. >> hey, savannah. good morning. you're right. this is a stunning turn of events pitting the tech titan against the tabloid. amazon ceo jeff bezos, the world's wealthiest man calling out the publisher of the "national enquirer" david pecker. bezos accusing them of trying to blackmail him to stop his

investigation into how "the enquirer" got ahold of his private text messages and photos with his mistress. >> overnight jeff bezos dropping a bombshell. the billionaire boss of amazon accusing the "national enquirer" publisher ami of extortion and blackmail. in a personal post on the blog medium bezos says representatives for ami and its owner david pecker reached out to his attorney to stop the investigation into how the enquire obtained intimate text messages between him and the woman he's dating, lauren sanchez. bezos said if he refused the enquirer threatened to publish more intimate texts and photos. explaining his decision to speak out bezos writes, of course i don't want personal photos published but i also won't participate in blackmail, political favors, political attacks and corruption. i prefer to stand up, roll this log over, and see what crawls out. despite what he calls the

personal cost and embarrassment they threaten, bezos also posts what he says are ami's e-mails, detailing the ten images they are threatening to publish including a, quote, below the belt selfie of bezos and sanchez wearing a two-piece red bikini revealing her cleavage. ami has declined to comment. the tabloids demand, according to the e-mails that bezos and his investigators release a public statement saying they have no knowledge or basis to suggest the enquirer's coverage was politically motivated. bezos pointing to the publishers past cooperation with president trump as well as his reported connection to the saudi arabian government. bezos also owns "the washington post" which has extensively reported on the president as well as the murder of its columnist jamal khashoggi, a saudi dissident. the escalating feud follows bezos and his wife announcing their divorce last month, that

announcement coming before the enquirer published an article alleging bezos was having an affair with sanchez. she's a former tv host who is also married. the post recently reporting that bezos's long-time private security consultant says he was investigating whether sanchez's brother, a supporter of president trump may be behind the leak. the president's repeatedly attacked bezos, amazon and the post. >> "the washington post," that's basically the lobbyist for amazon. he uses that -- bezos who's got bigger problems than anyone right now. bezos uses that as his lobbyist. >> about the enquirer bezos writes if in my position i can't stand up to this kind of extortion, how many people can. within the last hour ami responded in a statement saying it believes fervently that it act acted lawfully in reporting the jeff bezos story. ami calls it good faith

negotiations to resolve all matters with bezos and says they will promptly investigate the claims and take whatever action is necessary. hoda, savannah? >> a lot of moving pieces. thank you so much. >> we are joined by the executive editor. let's covered jeff bezos extensively. you see a bombshell from jeff bezos. was this a stunner? >> in a lot of ways it wasn't. he's like this. he's been quiet around the trump attacks and has at any time responded much. this was a real response, i think. >> it was. is that a fight made in heaven? have both met their matches? >> oh i feel sorry for the "national enquirer." that's what i have to say about that. this is an astonishing thing for

the world's richest man and a prominent ceo of one of the most valuable companies to do. this is almost a trillion dollars company. it's just an astonishing thing for him to go out on a limb like this and use the internet to communicate something that most ceos wouldn't do. it's quite a bold move on his part. i'm trying not to use metaphors here because it's such a problematic story on so many levels. you're talking about, you know, body parts. >> right, i know, we're trying to keep -- >> i thought i'd never do, i never wanted to take about jeff bezos's nether regions in my life but here i am. >> we didn't either. >> pulitzers, everybody. >> exactly. let's talk about this. here's the thing. there are a lot of moving pieces. you kind of need a flowchart to understand the conflicting motivations and what might be behind it. the bottom line is according to jeff bezos, the "national enquirer" and its parent company went to great lengths to make sure he didn't find out whoever or whatever was the source of these text messages, this

embarrassing revelation that he's having an affair, i got to think the "enquirer" has folks mad at them all day every day. >> yeah. >> what is it? what are we supposed to surmise about the fact that apparently the "enquirer" really wanted jeff bezos not to find out what the source is? >> you know, this whole racket has been going on for so long. what jeff said at the end of his post, i'm going to turn over the log and see what's there is fantastic. this is a complete racket to either hold information or use information for other purposes. i think it's really kind of interesting that he's going to just open up the entire thing to scrutiny, and i like the idea of that and i think he does too. he doesn't want to be pushed around. he's not easily pushed around in his regular life and he's not going to be pushed around here. >> do you think, i mean, sometimes these stories come up and it's like you know it's a leak. you know somebody showed a picture or a text message to the brother and the brother to his cousin and some good old fashioned leak or a bad old

fashioned leak but there's a suggestion this might be the product of a hack. now we're getting into your area, silicon valley, tech, a hack or a government agency. i mean, what -- from the evidence that's out there, what do you surmise about that? >> i don't know. i thought at first it was someone taking a picture and passing it around. that seems to be the easiest answer but at the same time if it was a hack, it's good for i jeff bezos to find out in that case. it's happened before, if you remember when rupert murdoch, the british paper was doing that to a cell phone. if i was jeff bezos i would find out how this happened. i'd want to know how it happened personally and professionally. he doesn't want to be subject to people sneaking around in his personal stuff and also his business stuff. i don't think it's the craziest thing to investigate this at all in any way. >> kara swisher, thank you for joining us today. we appreciate it. >> congratulations. >> it's so hard not to make

puns. >> that's what twitter's for. all eyes on capitol hill where the acting attorney general is preparing to face congress after a day of drama over whether he even would appear. nbc white house correspondent kristen welker with the latest on that. hey, kristen. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. we are getting our first look at what acting attorney general matthew whitaker is saying on capitol hill. there's the live shot there. in his opening remarks he defended his handling of the special counsel's russia investigation but said he won't discuss communications with president trump. you can expect fireworks. this morning the acting attorney general matthew whitaker says he will testify on capitol hill after a day-long standoff with house democrats who backed down after threatening to subpoena him if he didn't answer their questions. that move an attempt by democrats to prevent whitaker from claiming executive privilege and avoid answering their questions about whitaker's private conversations with the

president. the white house blasting democrats for playing pointless political games. the president weighed in earlier thursday. >> should matthew whitaker testify tomorrow, mr. president? >> he's an outstanding person. i would say if he did testify, he'd do very well. >> reporter: whitaker calling the subpoena threat unprecedented, unnecessary, and premature. the high stakes drama coming as democrats escalate their scrutiny of the president and his administration on a number of other fronts, among them russia, including a renewed look at mr. trump's potential business dealings there. >> three words that really sum it all up, moscow trump tower. >> reporter: another issue, the president's tax returns, which mr. trump has refused to release defying years of tradition. at a hearing thursday congressional democrats laying the foundation to potentially force the president's hand. >> we have every reason to use the authority given to this committee, the law is on our side. >> reporter: democrats also scrutinizing the administration's move to

separate migrant children from their families. >> i really think that what we're talking about is state-sponsored child abuse, and i would go as far to say kidnapping of children. >> the president calling all of it presidential harassment. house speaker nancy pelosi firing back. >> we will not surrender our constitutional responsibility for oversight. that would make us delinquent in our duties. >> reporter: as for whitaker, his time as head of the department of justice is coming to close. the president's pick for attorney general william barr cleared a critical hurdle on capitol hill on thursday. with republicans in control of that chamber, barr's confirmation is all but assured. savannah, hoda, back to you. >> kristen welker at the white house. thank you. craig joins the table, another major headline this morning. >> good morning to you as well. the white house facing a deadline set by congress today ountable

for the death of jamal khashoggi, and there's a new report claiming that the kingdom's crown prince made a previous threat against the "washington post" journalist. international correspondent keir simmons is here with more on that. good morning to you. >> good morning, guys. ever since jamal khashoggi was murdered the question has been who was behind it, even who ordered it. mr. khashoggi wrote critically about saudi arabia for "the washington post." now there are more reports that the killing goes to the top of saudi society. >> unknown to him, the journalist's life had been threatened a year before he walked into a deadly trap in october. entering the saudi consulate in turkey where he would be murdered, his fiancee left waiting outside. that's according to a "new york times" report that says in september 2017 saudi arabia's leader, the crown prince, told a top aide he would use a bullet if mr. khashoggi did not return to the saudi kingdom.

in another 2017 exchange, the "new york times" says the crown prince bitterly complained about mr. khashoggi and declared he did not like half measures. just over 12 months later, jamal khashoggi was dead. the "times" report citing current and former american officials cannot be independently confirmed by nbc news. saudi arabia denying the crown prince was involved in this heinous murder. the saudi aide in the report calling it categorically false. it comes as a u.n. investigator looking into the murder released her team's preliminary findings, that mr. khashoggi was the victim of a brutal and premeditated killing planned and perpetrated by the officials of saudi arabia, highlighting that the whereabouts of the remains haven't been disclosed. calling that unconscionable. this morning with a looming congressional deadline to hold saudi arabia accountable, u.s. senators are threatening sanctions. the secretary of state denying the president wants to look the

other way. >> president trump himself has said repeatedly to the extent we continue to develop facts that implicate others in the terrible act, the terrible murder of jamal khashoggi, we will continue to hold all of the people connected to it accountable. >> reporter: 11 suspects have been indicted. five face the death penalty, but turkey wants them extradited to face charges there. >> the saudi prince is close to the president's son-in-law jared kushner. there is a lot at stake. the times reports that u.s. intelligence continues to trawl through saudi communications to get to the truth. >> keir, thank you. breaking overnight, word that john dingell, the longest serving member of congress in u.s. history has died. the 92-year-old democrat was a towering figure on capitol hill representing michigan for 59 years before retiring. and he had a surprising second act late in life as a twitter star. here's nbc's kelly o'donnell. >> reporter: not just a witness

to history, john dingell lived history. the michigan democrat served in congress longer than any other lawmaker ever, spanning 11 presidents. >> presidents come and presidents go, and john dingell goes on forever. >> reporter: instrumental in the passage of the civil rights act and medicare. he spent decades fighting for health care reform. >> entirety of the american people want this change, and we are going to give it to them! >> reporter: dingell called the affordable care act, which he helped author the highlight of his career, known as a champion for social issues from clean air to workers' rights, dingell was also powerful as the congressman for motor city, an imposing figure standing at 6'3" big john was sometimes considered a bully. >> it may not embarrass the author of the amendment, but it assuredly embarrasses me. >> dingell was among the last of an era world war ii veterans in

congress. >> well, i learned in the service the value of comradeship. i learned about patriotism. i learned about duty. >> reporter: in 1955, dingell was elected to the house following his late father who had served since 1933. after a record 29 terms, dingell announced his retirement in 2014. wife debbie dingell won the seat. awarded the national medal of freedom in 2014. >> and his life reminds us that change takes time. it takes courage and persistence. >> reporter: though stooped by age, dingell never shrank in stature and fully embodied that title he long enjoyed, dean of the house. kelly o'donnell, nbc news. >> i only met him once years ago. i worked on the hill briefly. he was down right funny. when he came into office, dwight

eisenhower was president. elvis presley had just dropped his first record. and that second act kelly mentioned, he was known as the dean of twitter as well. periodically he would drop some pretty hilarious tweets. i think we've got one of them, and this was one that caught our attention. if we were supposed to talk all the dog gone time, the great god above would have given us two mouths and one ear. >> i like that. >> john dingell. he'll be missed. >> perfect sentiment for somebody who served in congress. do like to talk. >> exactly. >> we wish his family the best. we've got dylan in for al this morning. and she's got the check of our weather. good morning. >> we are going to see a little bit of rain in the northeast. it's a pretty strong cold front extending from the northeast down south. the heaviest of the rain is moving through new york state and will continue to move through parts of new england. a little bit of icing, especially up across central maine as well. now, this cold front will move through, so we'll lose the rain early today, and then we'll actually see some increasing sunshine this afternoon, but winds will also increase. that will turn back on the lake

effect snow machine. we also have the possibility of seeing wind gusts up to about 25 to 35 miles per hour, and some higher gusts back to the midwest. we're also looking at some very cold temperatures behind this system as well. wind chill warnings, windchill advisories posted across the upper midwest and northern plains. your feels-like temperature is down below zero, 30 degree windchills below zero in minneapolis. 19 below in omaha. st. louis feeling like four below. that's a look at the weather across the country. we'll get to your local forecast in the next 30 seconds. in the n. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ who will you make happy today? le vie est belle. the iconic fragrance. lancôme. customize your free gift at macy's.

the beauty destination. good friday morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. we are in a microclimate weather alert as we track our next storm system moving in. we're starting to see rain moving into the peninsula, so expect more rounds of rain and this becomes more widespread, headed into later this morning into the afternoon, as this storm, we can see it swirling over the pacific. it will be with us throughout the afternoon and also some more rounds of rain in the forecast. there may be a brief break tomorrow morning, but some low elevation snow along with rain possible for sunday and another break on monday. just ahead, grief. >> she was just full of life. everybody loved her. >> the victim's family of that greenwich murder speaking out as that investigation raises more questions about what happened. and much more on this morning's big story, after taking on everyone from john edwards to tiger woods, has the "national enquirer" met its

match with amazon's jeff bezos? first this is "today" on nbc. ih with jeff bezo first thiss. i

still ahead, our exclusive interview with lorena bobbitt, why she is returning to the spotlight 25 years after the incident that made her a household name. we will honor the life of a trail blazing pioneer in sports and civil rights, the legendary frank robinson, of course, after your local news. ♪ at walgreens, we know how strong you are, but we also know that half of americans don't take their daily medications as prescribed. that's why we're introducing a new way... ...to refill, pre-pay and skip the line... ...or have your prescriptions delivered. so you never miss a day. walgreens. trusted since 1901. text joinrx to 21525 to stay on track. we'd love some help with laundry. here's how you do it.

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with hundreds of gifts under $199! and, find great deals on other gifts she'll love! test. test test. test. test test. i )m - -... a live look at highway 101 in san rafael. it )s looking like the start of what may be a wet weekend. avery good morning to you. 6:26, i'm laura garcia. a live look at highway 10 in san rafael looking like the start of what may be a wet weekend. meteorologist kari hall is tracking the conditions for us, and she's got the time line for the next round of rain. >> yes, for a lot of people headed out the door, you are still seeing some dry weather, but it is already starting to rain on the peninsula, as storm ranger tracks this incoming storm that's been producing some light to moderate rain for many of our areas along the peninsula, up and down through palo alto, up to south city, and we'll see it becoming more widespread, going into this afternoon. also a lot of reds and yellows here indicating some heavier rain and that will impact the

evening commutes and may change your friday night plans as well. we'll have a brief break for tomorrow morning starting out but there will be more scattered showers moving in throughout the afternoon, and continuing throughout most of the day on sunday. so it will be raining off and on, temperatures barely making it into the low 50s. we'll make it up to 53 tomorrow, but 49 on sunday. monday is looking like a break from the showers, but also still very chilly, and then another storm system moving in from tuesday through at least thursday. let's get an update on the commute now from mike. >> open for business, but fast track lanes are slow. this is headed from richmond over toward san rafael. 580, that bridge reopened last night, it's been fine all morning but that rain is coming in that kari is talking about, that may complicate our very nice drive right now. things are pretty calm. san mateo shows slowing in both directions, around 92. also a crash in both directions, you can see that. in the south bay looking at a car fire reported for north 17 north of 85. a little bit of slowing there

and silicon valley commute is looking great as well. watch there may be patches of wet roadway along the peninsula as kari talked about the rain. back to you. >> all right, another local news update in half an hour.

bottom of the first inning, he came to bat for the first time and hit a home run. >> check this out, you are looking at a remarkable moment in frank robinson's hall of fame career. just hit a home run there, first at bat in the very first game that he was not just playing in, he happened to be managing for the cleveland indians. >> 1975 there. i would argue that frank robinson, one of the most underrated baseball superstars of all time. we're going to have more on him in just a moment. >> cool. >> but not an underrated human in any way, a towering figure. we're going to look back with fondness and a lot of admiration. let's get to today's headlines. the acting attorney general

matthew whitaker agreeing to testify before congress today following a day-long standoff with house democrats. they backed down on a threat to subpoena him. democrats want to grill whitaker about his oversight of the special counsel russia investigation. they also want to know about conversations he had with the white house related to the firing of former attorney general jeff sessions. the supreme court has weighed in on its most significant abortion case since conservative brett kavanaugh joined the court. by a 5-4 vote the court blocked louisiana from enforcing new restrictions on abortion clinics. the rules require providers to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals. women's groups say that would leave the state with only one doctor who is allowed to perform abortions. chief justice john roberts joined the court's four liberals in putting the law on hold while it is challenged in a lower court. and an indiana jail inmate didn't stand a chance when he tried to make a break for it. check this out. he bolted from the guards, climbed into a ceiling, and thought he could crawl to

freedom, but falling tiles gave away his location. deputies were waiting for him with tasers drawn. you see him there. the inmate still refuses to surrender. at one point gravity would take over. now he faces a felony attempted escape charge in addition to the misdemeanor he was in for. new developments in a murder mystery in one of the nation's wealthiest communities. police in greenwich, connecticut, have identified the young woman whose body was found inside a suitcase on the side of the road. her distraught family speaking out. nbc's ron allen joins us for the very latest on this. good morning. >> reporter: authorities have identified the victim as valerie reyes. she was 24, a single woman who lived in a very close-knit family in a community about ten miles from here. now police are trying to determine who killed her and how she ended up here. ♪ >> overnight, a community coming

together to comfort the family of valerie reyes. the young murder victim's mother had a message for whoever is responsible for her death. >> you're going to pay for it. he's going to pay for it sooner or later he will get caught. i know it. i know it. >> reporter: reyes, 24 a server at a barnes & noble cafe hadn't shown up for work over a week ago. the company saying in a statement, our hearts go out to her family, friends and co-workers. investigators able to identify reyes after her body was found in a suitcase dumped by the side of the road. her hands and feet bound. her home in this close-knit community more than ten miles away. investigators say they still don't know how or where she died. >> you have no connection to greenwich at all? >> nothing, absolutely not. >> reporter: her mother says reyes suffered with anxiety and depression. she is haunted by the la call with her daughter just before she disappeared. >> she was really scared. she feared for her life pretty much. >> what did she say? >> she said mommy do you have

time. i said yes. she was just really, really emotionally broken and, you know, hysterical. >> reporter: sanchez thinks her daughter may have been in search of medical care. the family says investigators traced her to new york city and told them money was withdrawn from her bank account at two locations while she was missing. >> she encountered someone. >> we don't know. we don't know. i wish i knew. i wish i could tell you, you know, something that can make you also understand we don't even understand. >> reporter: nor does the community where so many knew reyes. >> everybody in this town like pretty much knows each other, like we all know each other. we're all friendly, and like everybody knew she was a good person. she had a good heart. >> she was amazing. she was amazing. that's all i can say, a beautiful soul. >> that is so devastating for the family, ron. have the police been able to

give the family any indication that may let them know what happened? >> reporter: no, not really. they are especially horrified she ended up so far away from home and dumped by the side of the home. they say police have told them nothing about a possible suspect, person of interest, nor motive. back to you. >> thank you. >> such a mystery there. let's switch gears and get a check of the weather. dylan dreyer in for al roker. >> good morning, we are going to see strong winds in the northeast. we have wind advisories in effect. high wind warnings off lake erie and lake ontario. gusts could be up to 60 miles per hour, especially across upstate new york. that could lead to isolated power outages as well. today it's very much above average up and down the east coast, 57 in new york, raleigh 69, jacksonville, 80, but look what's happening behind it, a high of 1 below in minneapolis. indianapolis 22, and then on saturday the cool air settles

into the northeast and down into gainesville with a high of only 66, 51 in wilmington, nashville, 44, and going into sunday, we're also going to see those temperatures continue to drop and by the time we get into tuesday, little rock should get up to about 57 degrees. chicago goes from 29 on sunday over to 35 on tuesday, and in the northeast, down through the mid-atlantic we should stay in the upper 30s and lower 40s. good morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. we're starting to see the rain moving into the peninsula. this will be spreading across the bay area, going throughout the day, and as we get a closer look, we can see some of the scattered showers that continue to move through pacifica, san mateo, down to palo alto and a lot more rain where that came from. cool temperature, breezy winds and by sunday, some low elevation snow down to about 3500 feet. a break on monday and more rain in the forecast for the middle of next week. forecast. >> dylan, thank you. still ahead, lorena bobbitt back in the spotlight and sharing her side of the infamous story that made her a household

name 25 years ago. she's speaking out in an exclusive interview. also ahead this morning, honoring an icon. we'll remember the remarkable life of baseball legend and civil rights pioneer frank robinson. plus, much more of willie's candid conversation with bradley cooper, why he said he made "a star is born" out of frustration. more on the battle between jeff bezos and the "national enquirer". has the most notorious tabloid met its match in amazon's ceo right after this. national enquire enquirer". enquirer". ha yep. i'm doing this. we're really doing this grandma! [music] we're finally doing this [music] i'm so doing this! we're really doing this! you could be doing this when you sail with the #1 cruise line in alaska, princess cruises. 7-days from five-ninety-nine.

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this morning on in-depth, a closer look at our top story, amazon's jeff bezos accusing the "national enquirer"'s owner of blackmail and extortion. >> has the infamous tabloid met its match. stephanie gosk has more on that. good morning, this is a wild one. >> that is the question. this all stems from bezos's blockbuster divorce from his wife of 25 years, and the "enquirer"'s publication of a story exposing his alleged affair with another one. bezos wanted to find out who leaked texts to the "enquirer." he hired an investigator. that personal probe led to an offer he had to refuse. >> reporter: has america's most notorious tabloid met its match? amazon's ceo jeff bezos accusing the "national enquirer" and its parent company ami of extortion and blackmail. >> what you have happening here

is extraordinary. you have the founder of amazon, the wealthiest man in the world, effectively exposing the "national enquirer" for something that many people have suspected it of doing for a very long time. >> first reported on by the "national enquirer." >> it's far from the first time the "national enquirer" has tus led with the rich and famous. the tabloid is widely known for its sensational headlines. over the years it has broken enormous stories about powerful people, and it has helped sink the presidential aspirations of several high profile candidates. >> do you think it's triggered by this "national enquirer" piece that came out yesterday? >> it's the practice known as catch and kill where newspapers prevent stories from going public, sometimes to protect friends and allies of the editor, that has the publication making headlines. ami's ceo david pecker and mr.

trump have been close friends for decades. the "enquirer" admitting it coordinated with trump's campaign to keep potentially damaging information about the then candidate out of the headlines by paying for the rights to stories it had no intention of publishing. federal investigators revealing the company used the catch and kill tactic to bury a story about karen mcdougal, the former playboy model who claims she had a sexual affair with donald trump, which the president has denied. >> they wanted to squash the story. >> you're saying they wanted to protect donald trump. >> i'm assuming so, yeah. >> the tabloid facing an opponent with the will, the wealth and the power to fight back. bezos posting in an online blog, if in my position i can't stand up to this kind of extortion, how many people can? >> we reached out to ami and amazon. amazon declined to comment, and ami has not gotten back to us. >> you mentioned catch and kill, but beyond that obviously the "national enquirer" has some

headlines in its history going after the president's political enemies. >> yeah, and not to suggest there's any coordination on these stories between president trump and the "enquirer" but you might remember during the campaign made a connection between ted cruz's father and the jfk assassination. that made a lot of headlines, a lot of people talking about that. candidate trump at the time talked about that on fox, with george stephanopoulos. there was a headline on hillary clinton's health, a couple of stories on that referring to her health crisis, and suggests that she had alzheimer's. >> it's so fascinating, here they have this immunity deal with regard to what's happening having to do with the karen mcdougal payoff and it's alleged all of this is happening in the middle of that dealing. >> the critical question has not been answered, how did the "national enquirer" get those text messages as first amendment does protect journalists from revealing those sources. >> and why are they so concerned about this particular instance?

we shall see. >> tangled web, stef, thank you. up next, the overnight tributes pouring in for frank robinson, a hall of famer and history maker who changed baseball in this country forever baseball in this country forever co dove intensive repair conditioner proves it can. we treat one brush with dove conditioner... ...and expose both to heat styling, ... ...to bleaching... ...and even coloring. the difference is clear. the brush treated with dove is visibly smoother.... ...and protected against damage. ♪ dove intensive repair conditioner. for 100% touchably beautiful hair. since one conditioner doesn't fit all. dove ultra-care conditioners. . . . .

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we're so happy when carson joins us. >> baseball le send frank robinson lost his battle with cancer yesterday. on the field he was a hall of fame player. in the dugout he made history as the major league's first african-american manager setting a lasting example for anyone who heard his story. >> and frank rips in to this one. >> frank robinson swinging his way into the record books as one of the most feared sluggers in baseball. known for aggressively sliding into bases and leaning over the plate, just daring pitchers to hit him. he hit 586 home runs.

and won the elusive triple crown. leading the league in batting average home runs and rbis. robinson remains the only player ever to win mvp in both the national and american leagues. a 14 time all-star on the field, he would become a game changer off the field. a leading voice in the civil rights movement. >> 56,000 fans greeted frank robinson on opening day. nine 1975 while playing for the cleveland indians robinson made history when the team also named him manager. the groundbreaking move making him the first african-american to fill that role in baseball history. >> i know that my every move will be watched and checked. >> bottom of the first inning, he came to bat for the first time and hit a home run. >> robinson hitting it out of the park on day one of pulling double duty. after retiring as a player in 1976 robinson went on to manage in san francisco, baltimore,

montreal and washington. he served as a major league baseball consultant and adviser later in his career. >> i'm trying to make it better for the kids that are coming after me. already they want to be a baseball player, a front office person. >> robinson was inducted into the baseball hall of fame in 1982. and was presented with the presidential medal of freedom in 2005. a powerhouse and a pioneer who went to bat for so much more than just the game. >> when he retired in 1976 there were only three players that had more home runs than frank robinson. babe ruth, willie mays and hank aaron. >> first year 1956 was an all-star again 18 years later in '74. >> heck of a career. >> wow, what a man. >> he'll be missed. >> we're back with a lot more on a friday morning after a check of your local news and weather.

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good friday morning. right now at 7:56, we are in a microclimate weather alert, as we track the next storm system approaching the bay area, it is starting out with some scattered light rain, mostly for the peninsula. it is starting to cross the bay and moving into parts of the south bay. we are going to see this becoming more widespread, going into late morning and early afternoon. some of the heaviest rain will be here at about 2:00 to 3:00 for much of the south bay, the east bay, and then moving into the north bay as well. we will see scattered showers, rounds of rain throughout tonight. there looks to be a break for tomorrow morning and then the next round of rain gets here by tomorrow afternoon, and continues throughout the day on sunday as well. so our temperatures stay chilly. highs only reaching into the upper 40s and low 50s. we may see this ending with low elevation snow above about 3500 feet, a break on monday, and

then more rain from tuesday through at least next thursday. let's get an update on the commute now from mike. >> kari, looking at slowing, crowding, here north 880 through oakland but this is not as bad as monday through thursday, that's typical of friday. a lighter volume of traffic, so lighter slowing through oakland for 580, 808 and down the east shore freeway, the metering lights are still on at the bay bridge, and full function for the richmond to san rafael bridge. some wetter roadways on the peninsula as kari has been talking about. the south bay has one crash north 101 at 880. back to you. >> thank you very much. happening now, we are following police activity right now in campbell. we have a live look to show you from the scene right here. officers have a denny's restaurant surrounded. police not giving us any additional details but we do know that neighboring streets are closed, including south baskham near the pruneyard shopping center east of 17. we'll post any developments as soon as we get them to our twitter feed. gas has been restored to all but 40 pg&e customers in san

francisco. what ntsb investigators are looking into, now they arrived on the scene, on our home page. the new work week - how it )ll impact your morning commute. plus - riders beware. bart is changing its morning start time on monday. trains will roll out an hour later. we )ll check-in with commuters. join us monday, from 4:30 to 7.

it's 8:00 on today. coming up, amazon crime? jeff bezos accusing "the national enquirer" of extortion. and how the magazine got private messages of him and his mistress. >> he's allegation a very prominent ceo of one of the most valuable companies to do. >> what happens next in the battle of tech titan and the tabloid? plus, breaking her silence. >> he hurt me. >> 25 years after her story

captivated the country, lorena bobbitt is opening up about that night. >> do you regret the action you took? >> oh my god. how could you regret something that was not planned? how could you -- you have to understand i wasn't in my right mindset. >> what she wants you to know about her side of the story. and parks and wrecked. >> are you messing with me? what is this for? what is this? >> what tiffany haddish is revealing about her past with chris pratt. and the hollywood superstar. >> you all look alike. >> do you think i'm chris acceptan hemsworth? >> today, february 8, 2019. ♪ i'm just a dead man walking tonight ♪ we're saying hi to our families in ft. worth, texas. >> a mother-daughter trip from alabama. >> so tell berate my birthday!

>> from east atlanta middle c l school. >> good morning. i'm helping raise awareness for women's heart health. >> from germany, we love our troops. hi, everybody. happy friday. no amount of rain is going to dampen anybody's spirits. we're so happy to have you with us. whether watching at home or out in our plaza. nice great day. >> great crowd outside. we'll be out in a bit. >> we want to get to your news tops. astonishing new twist in the clash between jeff bezos and the publisher of the notorious tabloid. peter alexander joins us with the latest on this one. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. this is a blockbuster accusation from amazon ceo jeff bezos, the tech titan and the world's richest man, calling out the publisher of the company's top tabloid who happens to be an ally of president trump.

bezos accusing "the national enquirer" of blackmail. overnight, dropping a bombshell. the boss of amazon accusing ami of extortion and blackmail. in a post on the blog medium, bezos says representatives such as david pecker reached out to his attorney in an attempt to stop the investigation on how the "enquirer" obtained text messages from the woman he's reportedly dating. explaining his decision to speak out, he writes, of course, i don't want personal photos published, but i also won't participate in ami's well-known practice of blackmail, political favors, political attacks and corruption. i prefer to stand up, roll this log over and see what crawls out. despite what he calls the personal cost and embarrassment

they threaten, bezos also posts what he says are ami's e-mails detailing the ten images they are threatening to publish. including a below the belt selfie, and a picture of his girlfriend in a two-piece bikini. bezos and his investigators released a public statement saying they have no knowledge or basis to suggest the coverage was politically motivated. bezos pointing to the past cooperation with president trump. the escalating feud follows bezos and his wife mckenzie announcing their divorce last month after 25 years of marriage. that announcement coming before "the enquirer" alleges bezos was having an affair with sanchez, a former tv host who is also married. he said he was investigating whether sanchez's brother a supporter of president trump,

may be behind the leak. and responding early this morning, ami says it believes it acted lawfully in reporting the bezos story. the negotiations were in, quote, good faith. still it says, thole investigate and take whatever action is necessary. savann savannah? >> all right. see where this heads next, pe peter. thank you. former michigan representative john dingell has died. he retired five years ago. he played a key role in landmark legislation calling the passage of the affordable care act the highlight of his career. he also championed medicare, the clean water act and the endangered species act. he was one of the last world war ii veterans to serve in congress. now to massachusetts and a ruling in a case that drew national attention to cyberbullying. the state's top court upheld the manslaughter conviction of a woman who used text messages to pressure her 18-year-old

boyfriend to end his own life. michelle carter will now have to serve 15 months behind bars. detectives and the victim's families are speaking for the first time with "dateline." >> what kind of things was she saying? >> things like, you promised me. when are you going to do it. you haven't done it? >> you disappointed me. >> i'll take care of your family. >> it was just unbelievable. i just kept thinking, she's holding his head under water. she overpowered him. >> there is never before seen police surveillance video. all new "dateline" nbc 10:00 eastern. in the meantime, a florida woman was trapped inside her home for several hours when an unwanted visitor camped right outside her door. check this out. police arrived to find a 9-foot-long alligator just a few feet away if her house. they called in a professional trapper, but the gator was so big and aggressive too, the trapper actually had to get extra help to haul it away.

the gator probably came from a . >> wow. all right. i think it's time for a morning boost. >> all right. >> here we go. a couple got the surprise of their lives when their daughter came for a visit and brought them a present. they calmly opened the gift and didn't know what to expect. well, inside that box there was a blanket and they found out that they would soon become grandparents. >> oh! oh! oh! oh my god. >> i don't know what you were expecting, but how was that? >> that reaction was everything. >> could not contain her excitement. >> wait until she meets the baby. >> that was just the blanket. if you want to hear heartwarming stories over the weekend, send them to my newsletter. on the weekends, there will be a little gift.

>> and your reaction might be like that woman. just ahead, we'll be joined with more of that revealing conversation with bradley cooper this morning. what made him question his decision to direct "a star is born"? and lorena bobbitt has been the subject of endless fascination. now she's breaking her silence about that night. our exclusive interview right after this. oh, that wasn't in the note. should have sent a text. #1 stain and odor fighter, #1 trusted. it's got to be tide. ♪ seed to the oat to the o ♪ to the honey in each bite ♪ healthy hearts make life sweeter ♪

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country for 25 years. you probably remember the name lorena bobbitt, and you'll understand why we want to give you a warning about the subject matter we're going to talk about. >> absolutely. she's back in the spotlight because there's a new documentary. kristen dahlgren spoke with her exclusively. >> good morning. lorena bobbitt made headlines in the '90s after cutting off her husband's penis. then she became the punch line of endless jokes. everybody seemed to focus on what happened instead of why. now she's hoping a new docuseries with amazon will make people take a second look and maybe in the #metoo era see things differently. >> reporter: it was an act that defined her in the eyes of a generation. >> 25 years later lorena bobbitt, who now goes by lorena gal low is telling what she says is the real story. >> the real story is about a victim, is about domestic violence. >> one that began june 23rd, 1993. >> when you think back to that night, what do you remember?

>> i don't remember anything how it happened, but i honestly don't even want to know what happened because i will be traumatized again. >> traumatized by what unfolded that night when she says repeated verbal, physical, and sexual abuse at the hand of her then husband john broke her. >> it hurt me. >> reporter: leading her to take a knife from their kitchen and cut off his penis. >> do you regret the action you took? >> oh, my god, how could you regret something that was not planned. i mean, how could you -- you have to understand. i wasn't in my right mind-set. >> reporter: an act that turned her life into a media circus, devoured by america. >> why do you think there was so much attention on what you did rather than why you did it? >> i think it's because just the act, that it was a severe organ, a male organ. that changes the whole perspective of this story. >> john wayne bobbitt who denied

the abuse in court was found not guilty of marital sexual assault. >> john, how do you feel? >> good. >> reporter: lorena was found not guilty by reason of temporary insanity, her story the focus of amazon's new series lorena. >> they kept saying i was a hot blooded latina woman. it hurts my heart. >> reporter: a four-part documentary looking at what made her story a punch line across late night. >> it's not going to be easy for either of them to get a date when this breaks. >> the endless jokes lorena says were painful, but something she learned to accept in an effort to further her cause of helping domestic violence survivors. >> i believe this is a gift, and if i can help change a life, then my mission is worth it. >> reporter: a mission that has taken on new meaning in the #metoo era. >> so how much has the #metoo movement meant to you? >> a lot because, again, it help

us to break that taboo, and i think my story, the documentary, will actually push that conversation again on the table and say, look, i mean, yes, it happened 25 years ago, but things are not changing much. >> reporter: the series features key players in the story including john. >> i think a lot of people would be surprised to hear that he's reached out to you repeatedly. >> repeatedly on many occasions, yes. i don't know why, i'm guessing control. >> what types of correspondence have you gotten from him? >> valentine's cards and notes, love notes. >> reporter: notes from someone she says she wants to leave in the past. i'm like look at me, i did this to you. just leave me alone. >> reporter: lorena enjoying the next chapter in her life hoping her story can make a difference. >> what would you tell the younger lorena bobbitt going

through all that, about how this story turns out? >> i hope first of all that wouldn't happen to me or anybody. now i will said that there is hope, what i went through wasn't in vain, that this is a gift to help others. >> we reached out to john bobbitt who had no comment. as for lorena, she's still l living in virginia with her long-time partner david and 13-year-old daughter. we'll have her daughter's reaction to the story on the third hour of "today." all four episodes will be available on amazon prime next friday. >> and her daughter watched? >> her daughter watched it at s sundance with them. >> so much of us remember what happened. i didn't know the back story until right now. i did not know what she went through. >> the headlines were all about the action. >> not the why like you put it. >> kristen, thanks. good morning, again, guys, we are going to lose the rain this morning with the cold front

affecting the east coast. in the northwest we have a big storm system moving in including areas good morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. we are in a microclimate weather alert, as we see a storm approaching, and we are going to continue to track still some scattered showers in time for the morning commute, and then get heavier for later this morning. we are seeing the rain moving up and down the peninsula, now approaching san jose with some light rain. we'll see it once again become more widespread, and by 2:00 to 3:00, some widespread, heavy rain, and that could impact the evening commute. we are going to see the rain tapering off for tomorrow, but more rain moving in by tomorrow afternoon. >> and that's your latest forecast. >> dylan, thank you so much. willie's here. we're going to have more of your conversation with bradley cooper in a few. >> great, yeah. >> but first pop start. >> guys were hanging. love it. >> you'll see more of us hanging. first up, tiffany haddish and chris pratt. when they were asked about their first impressions of each other,

tiffany reminded chris that not only had they met in an audition but she also was an extra on the tv show the oc with him. all was revealed when chris was remembering this time on the show. >> brown was in the episode that i was in, and i worked with rachel billson, and i had an ipod and i was listening to this music. >> where were you guys filming at? >> on rose cranes in the studio down there. >> manhattan beach, right? >> manhattan beach, that's right. >> a lot of people around, wasn't there? >> that's when it was. >> we met there, too. i was a background employee. >> you're lying. >> nope. mm-hmm. >> i can't tell if you're being serious right now. >> i'm being dead serious. i was one of the world's best extras of all time. >> you were an extra on the oc? >> yes, i always looked into the camera, too. >> i was an extra on the oc, also one tree hill. i was an extra on dawson's creek. all the white shows, because they needed one black girl to

walk around. [ laughter ] >> funny, rule number one for extras is like never look at the camera. do not look at the camera is what they usually yell out. >> served her well. >> who knew. chris and tiffany voiced characters in "lego movie 2." up next, kit harington, the actor whose new movie is coming outs, "how to train your dragon." harrington sat down with keir simmons and shared his reaction after first reading the part. >> way, way back i read this part for "game of thrones," and it said how he's a quiet, sort of brooding grumpy young man, and i thought, okay, well, i can probably try and do that. >> and that he did for seven seasons. he also opened up about his married life and what to expect from the third installment of "how to train your dragon." it hit theaters february 22nd. you can watch that full interview with kit harington in the third hour of "today,"

"today" all day. finally we have another exclusive reveal, entertainment weekly out with their romantic comedy themed issue. yesterday we brought you the cast reunion of my best friend's wedding. today we have another rom com reunion. >> give us a tease. >> it is the cast of 27 dresses. >> katherine heigl, ed burns, james mardsen. the movie was the epitome of the phrase always a brides mamaid nr a bride. >> katherine heigl thinks there is room for a sequel. >> what are their lives like ten years later, do they end up together. i personally think they do. i don't know why. i just think they do end up together, and i think they have like three kids. >> wow. >> or at least two and she's made jane the god mother every

time, so jane has to plan the christenings and baby showers and gender reveals, but then so do all the other bridesmaids make her the god mother, they can't get pregnant. >> why are you pointing at me? >> 0 for 2 on seeing these movies on the rom com. >> same here. >> you're missing a lot. >> i'm going to pick up the issues, the special rom com issue, follow t. >> wouldn't it be funny if you guys did like a weekend slumber party where you watch rom comes. >> i don't call that funny. >> you'd come back as changed more evolved people. >> funny, torture. will you've got a look at your sunday sit-down. >> "a star is born" is maybe the most talked about movie of the year. it's been a year's long labor of love for bradley cooper. he directs the film and co-stars with lady gaga. bradley had to become a

musician, and gaga had to become an actor. it worked out well with eight oscar nominations and this weekend four grammy nominations too ♪ we're far from the shallow now ♪ >> i know there are people around who said love that you want to be a director, go for it. but man, don't start with something this ambitious where you're starring, directing. >> you. >> i was one of them, crazy. did you ever listen to those voices and say maybe this isn't the place to start as a director? >> i certainly listened to them, i took it in. in a way maybe that allowed me to persevere more. there was a bunch of directors that i've always dreamt of working with, and they just weren't asking me to do movies with them. it's like i'm 40. i keep waiting. that was part of what prompted me, i wouldn't say prompted me, encouraged me out of frustration almost, i've got to do it myself. >> one person who rarely has any doubt about bradley is his mother gloria. >> what does your mom think about the success of "a star is

born" and what's happening right now? >> my mom's funny. she always thinks everything's going to be a huge hit. >> that's what moms do. >> i'm like mom, no, this one's not going to work. >> bradley, no, i'm telling you. i'm like mom. she's like maybe i'm wrong. now she does it with caution, which i kind of dig, man. she's like i don't know. it's tough out there. [ laughter ] >> she's flipped on you. >> but she's still -- yeah, she's definitely like did a total 180. >> in 2011 just as cooper's career was taking off, his beloved father charlie died after a long fight with cancer. >> do you think about -- and i know you do -- what your dad would think about where you are in your career right now? >> yeah. >> yeah? >> sure. yeah. >> what do you think he's thinking? >> i don't know, man.

yeah, you know, it's part of life, yeah. >> he's your guy? >> yeah. yeah. >> yeah. you know, he's talked just this week to oprah interviewed him as well. he was talking about his dad, and he held his dad in his final moments and in his last breath. his dad was his hero and obviously has such an impact on his life. in 2011 when his dad died, the first hangover movie had come out, but before the silver linings play book, so his dad i think bradley regrets didn't get to see all that. >> that moment you didn't say anything but it was like all behind his eyes. you could just see him seeing his father and thinking about that. >> he talks about that. he says i still see him in my dreams, and that's what i take from it. >> that was beautiful, willie. it really was. >> you can see a lot more of that interview on sunday. to listen to the entire unedited conversation with bradley and our library of other sunday sit-downs for free, check out

apple podcasts or wherever you get yours. >> thank you, willie. straight ahead, the very funny and very smart hassan minhaj, we're goingi )m ... a live look from nbc bay area and good morning to you. 8:26. i'm marcus washington. a live look for us right now from nbc bay area sky ranger, flying over a police standoff in campbell. this is happening on south baskham avenue near the pruneyard highway center east of highway 17. officers have the denny's restaurant surrounded. here is a live look at what we're seeing from the ground there, and this has been what it's been like since our camera crews arrived there about an hour ago. police are not giving us details about what's going on or who may be inside the restaurant, but we do know that the neighboring streets remain closed right now, including south baskham and that could cause some traffic concerns. mike inouye is standing by with

a look at our commute. >> those familiar with the area know it's a busy intersection. you avoid the area, again around that denny's where the activity or the police activity. now we look northbound 101 was almost completely stopped, actually it was completely stopped for a couple of minutes. they may have moved a crash by the first tower exiting san francisco. the problem only two lanes for the morning commute and one of those was blocked for about a half hour. again, we may be seeing that clearing now. the bay bridge metering lights are on. mild slowing through oakland and the rest of the bay and the rain coming in so the ray for shows what kari is tracking. back to you. we'll have another local news update coming up in 30 minutes and we're always on at nbcbayarea.com.

welcome back, everybody. 8:30 on this friday morning, february 8th, 2019. the rain held up just a little bit so we could hang out with a bunch of people and a birthday girl. happy friday. >> happy birthday. >> you've got a crowd moment for us? >> i've got a crowd moment. i got a friday morning -- i'm looking for molly and jan, molly and jan, hey! how are we?

someone's having a birthday? >> we are, we both are. >> both having a birthday? >> yes. >> there's someone who wanted to say happy birthday to you. tell me if you recognize this baby. you recognize that one? >> my granddaughter dylan. >> dylan? what a great name. >> named after dylan. >> after dylan dreyer. >> after me? >> after dylan dreyer. >> she was. my daughter michelle in chicago loves you, and so when her daughter was born she wants dylan. >> oh, my goodness. that's amazing. >> how old is she? >> 15 months. >> i love it. thank you. >> there's a dylan out there. >> the world needs more female dylans. i love it. >> happy birthday, too. >> thank you. >> happy birthday. >> that's so neat. >> a future young meteorologist. >> i know. >> i love it. >> that's so cool. >> have you ever been named after somebody before? >> no, especially a girl so that's even better. >> i really, really love that. >> coming up, greeting cards,

they're the hottest way to express your feelings or the short little animated clips you always text your friends. we're going inside the factory where they're created and changing the way we communicate. >> pretty cool. >> i didn't even know there was a factory. also, guys, a rising star who's not only funny and entertaining, hassan minaj is right here in our studio. had is his first time on the "today" show. >> very cool. >> plus, are you guys ready? it's time. it's our first get fit today checkin to see how we're doing with our challenges. >> so sad. >> spoiler alert, not well. >> not well? >> coming up in a few minutes, on the third hour of "today," we will be wrapping up doppelganger week. today's a doozy. sheinelle's clone is with us. there may be a surprise involved in that as well. >> ms.dryer you got a check of the weather. today's weather is brought

to you by kay jewelers, for all the moments, for love, forever. >> let's take a look at what's going on across the country as we get closer to the weekend. we are going to see temperatures drop up and down the east coast. it will feel more like average, whereas back through the midwest and the northern plains, it is going to be a cold saturday. temperatures in the single-digits, even below zero, and then you factor in the windchill on top of that. the messy storm in the northwest will bring snow to even areas like seattle. that will move east on sunday into the rocky mountains. also, another area of snow through the midwest, light snow moves into the chicago area and around the great lakes. we will see some icing possible in missouri and northwestern arkansas as well. then we are going to see sunshine up and down the good morning. i'm meteorologist kari hall. we are in a microclimate weather alert, to give you the heads up about the incoming storm. it starts out with some light rain, we're tracking right now on storm ranger, even some snow

on mt. hamilton. there are a few pockets of heavier downpours approaching 1k0 1 throu 101 through the peninsula pane a lot of our rain headed our way into the rest of the weekend. off and on rain, highs reaching into the low 50s and this ends with low elevation snow mostly on mt. hamilton. a break on monday and more rain headed our way for tuesday. ppin here trying to take selfies. we'll get to that in a sec. back to you. if you check your phone you've probably received a few already today, those little looped videos everybody's texting from your favorite movie, it's a gif and it perfectly expresses your feelings. >> so where do they come from? nbc's gadi schwartz got an inside look at the factory here in new york where apparently they're cranking them out and learned once and for all how to actually say the word. >> reporter: from the second you walk in the doors, it's clear something is different about this tech company.

♪ >> hi, welcome to gify. >> you guys have a coffee bar at the reception desk. >> that's right. >> there we go, america na. >> all right. >> their offices look more like doors, neon lights, video games. >> this area over here we have a nintendo set up. >> reporter: people can even bring their dogs. >> we really just try to make it feel like a big group of friends. >> reporter: this is the home of gify, you know that company behind these little videos that can tell people exactly how you feel. and if a picture is worth a thousand words, gifs are worth 7 billion expressions. that's how many are shared every single day. >> you guys are like a dictionary for emotion. >> right. >> for expressions on the face. >> yeah, for more complex emotions like trying to describe that you're feeling kind of bored or tired in a meeting doesn't go as far as a jim

hallpert gif from the office that makes it so clear i am over this. >> proud of your kids? here you go. don't know what people are talking about? how about some joey from friends. tired of fighting with your loved one? try to stay mad at this. there are gifs for everything. or are they called jif? >> once you're here long enough, you end up saying gif. >> the company's search bar is already on your phone and almost every social media platform, and behind it all 100 employees serving 500 million daily users who watch 11 million hours of gifs every single day. >> you guys have built an entire company, an entire empire based on just sharing these little videos. >> that's right. >> how do you make money? >> we just launched our advertising platform this year, and got some major advertisers on board, and we're helping them create ads that people actually want to share that are funny, that are cool, that are

relevant. >> reporter: big brands have taken notice filling pages with their own gifs and homework better watch out because some of the most popular gifs are happy birthday and love, and this year the queen of the gif is not beyonce, but cardi b, and it turns out anyone can make them. >> we're going to walk you through making some gifs today. >> it's not just about pulling gifs from movies. you guys create gifs here. >> as much as it's nice to have a clip from a movie that we all share, sometimes you want to make something in the moment, something fresh. >> just get loose and follow his lead. >> back to you. happy birthday. >> digital devices have changed the way we talk, so i see more as we're taking it back. we're injecting personality and real people, real emotion back into these otherwise cumbersome devices. >> helping us rewrite the art of modern conversation a few

seconds at a time. for "today" nbc new york. >> so it's jif. >> gif. >> it looks fun. >> gif. >> it's fun when i get them. they do sum up so many emotions. >> my mom texts almost exclusively in gifs now. it's hi lalarious. >> i'm saying jifs. >> he said opposite of the peanut butter. it's not jiffy, it's giffy. >> truth matters. >> it was a joke. they changed it. >> i don't get the joke. >> from a j to a g. >> we're not changing. thank you, carson. >> you're welcome. >> gif nation right here. coming up next, patriot act host hasan minhaj is here, his sense of humor, his unique perspective on the world, and his intelligence to the his intelligence to the helines of today.

do you think this is fun for me? you think i'm having fun? [man on other line] it certainly wasn't much fun to..... do you have eyes on the target? is it her? [man on other line] i can't tell from this photos... ...i need better shots. thank you for flying turkish airlines. taxi! you waiting for someone? no. just... looking.

welcome back, hassan ma naush is one of the fastest growing names in comedy. >> he's the host of the critically acclaimed netflix show patriot act. it's known for deep dives into big issues with a humorous spin. it is returning this sunday, hasan good morning. >> thanks for having me. >> you're like super huge now. you're a big deal. do you feel like a big deal? >> i don't know, but my parents are watching right now. >> they are? >> that is a big deal. >> the parents are watching. >> it's tough for my parents to keep up with netflix. >> when you thought of the concept, you're taking serious subjects and trying to make them funny. why did you think that was a n concept that would work right now? >> at the daily show you have to cram so much into a short segment. i was like all right, there's no commercial breaks on netflix. let's do it. >> how are you picking your topics? because i mean, some things are just serious, and they're really

not that funny. you somehow are managing to take things that are complex and important but also finding that kind of humorous take. >> there's some things i've always wanted to talk about. i've wanted to do a deep dive on snaker culture just because. >> you guys got great kicks. >> yeah. >> let's do a hot 20 on that. >> you had a hot one when you were taking the s.a.t.'s because you talked about when you had taken them the first time what was your score? >> 1310. >> which i thought was unbelievable. >> i'm bearing my soul right now. >> according to who? >> according to most people. >> according to someone who got like 1050. >> you had a 1050, why are you airing this out? >> i don't know. i've never admitted that before. >> this is going to be forever. >> you want me to admit, too? >> you're going to be a gif. it's going to be a loop. >> you want me to admit to? 1030. >> i was a high school slacker. i didn't know the s.a.t. was the next day. >> we didn't realize. here's the thing, you decided to

retake yours to do better. >> yes. >> i loved a lot of stuff about this. one was you had your dad totally in the middle of it. >> my dad woke me, he flew from california to new york. he woke me up. he packed my lunch, he took me to the princeton review, and they administered a test. i took it again. >> for real? >> raw horsepower, everything up here, i just took it. >> and bhad ywhat'd you get? >> i got a 1030. >> boom, high five right here. >> it's not good. we didn't get good scores. >> i know, but it's over. >> you know what -- >> i don't mean to be a dunce, but obviously i am, but a 1330 is a good score. >> it was a 1310. my sister got a 1,500, and she's doing great. my parents will never let that go. >> we should let people know 1,600 is the max. >> i think this moment that's happening right now, the three of us being in this chair as everyone behind us watches and shakes their head, and they're like how did they get to where they got to is a testament that

anything is possible. >> i think that's right. >> tenacity and hard work. >> any dope like us can just make it in this country. >> so did you think you would ever see yourself in this kind of a position when you were a little kid? did you dream of being on stage? >> i had three options, engineer, disappointment, but it worked out. i think things are going good. >> you got this show. you have this new baby, almost a year old. >> she's 11 months. >> how have you taken to fatherhood? >> i'm loving it. she's adorable. she's super cute. >> what's her name? >> it's a secret. but she's adorable. >> pretty by any name. we're looking at her picture. >> she is a real sweetheart. >> she's a scene stealer. >> what's next for you? you got this thing going on netflix. where do you see yourself if you were to look down the road five years or something? >> i'm just trying to make the show really good. this always happens. you'll be doing -- hoda, what's next? what do you got coming up?

and you're like. >> it's like when you're dating someone. it's like when are you going to get married and when are you engaged and when is the wedding date, and when are you going to have a baby? >> i checked the box, i've got a show, we're still on the air, we've got new episodes coming up, and we're going to hopefully not piss off more grown princes. >> the saudi kingdom did ask netflix to remove one of your episodes. >> i'm a cyber criminal, i'm an internet bad boy. >> not only do you have a great s.a.t. score, you're dangerous. >> the legend grows. >> thank you. >> we appreciate you. >> the first time on the "today" show. you want to say hi to mom and dad? >> hi mom and dad, hi seema, hi everyone at the v.a. in sacramento. >> patriot act returns this sunday. we're going to update you on our get fit challenge. who's been busy biking, dancing, and planking, and who has not? you're going to find out. first this is "today" on nbc. >> you killed it.

♪ and we are back with our special series "get fit today," and to start the year off right, we've divided our teams into multiple teams here. there they are. they're going to be tackling their fitness goals. this morning, how about a progress report, see how we're doing? joined by our trainers, editors in chief of "men's health" and "women's health." good morning to you both. good to have you here. let's start with team hoda. al is not here, but hoda is. their goal is to bike 1,000 miles in ten weeks. we followed them to a spin class at flywheel. >> oh, right. >> let's see how they do. >> get fit today! >> i'm ready. >> yay! here we go. [ laughter ] >> i'm going to give you a range on torque and your speed or your rpms. just try to stay in or around it, and the biggest thing is, have a little bit of fun, all right? >> yeah. >> all right! >> come on! ♪

>> i'm already sucking air. nobody else is? okay, good. >> go! >> you rock! >> yes! you're killing it! all right. >> it's killing me. >> ow! >> let's go, al! >> al, nobody's sweating but us. >> yeah. yeah. wow. >> there we go. you guys crushed it! yes! >> and that was the five-minute course. pretty good. how many miles have you biked so far? >> since we started, i think about 160. >> wow. >> how hard was that? >> you doubled up al. >> al did 80? >> he's always biking. >> if you follow him on instagram, he's up at like 5:00 in the morning on his bike. >> what we realized -- i did some classes, some 45-minute ones just to knock them out. because we had to do a 30-minute class every single day to make -- >> so, are you going to make it? >> no. >> you could!

>> there's still time. >> it's going to be hard. it's like cramming for a test. >> how are they doing? are they on pace? >> i have to say, you guys set a very lofty goal. >> like forrest gump or something. >> that's great. you aim for the stars. even if you hit the moon, that's a positive. >> it's important to remember that not all the miles are the same. sometimes you've got the torque or resistance turned all the way up and it's like hills. it's really hard. sometimes it's a flat road and you're going fast really far. that's the key to making it fun is mixing it up from day to day. >> reach for the candles. now, mastering steps through dance. they met up with celebrity trainer tracy anderson. have a look. >> we really love to dance, but we are not that good at it. >> and we do think we can get here. >> okay. >> it's just going to take some practice. >> five, six, seven, eight. step ball change, step ball change, step ball change. reach, touch, clap, turn to the back. >> yeah, i'm not doing it right. >> drop clap, two quick --

>> i went the wrong way! >> here we go, girls. here we go! five, six, seven, eight. step, ball, change. one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight. good job! you got that one. step, clap, turn to the back. >> whoo! >> good job! i love this! >> i love that one! >> huh? >> that was cute. >> i'm looking at savannah because i just said we can't do the whole dance yet. and she goes, i can. i can do it backwards and forwards. she took dancing without me! i said this, we've worked out together a lot, but when savannah has a goal, she's like, you get here right now and we do this until it's complete! i'm like, all right, mom. >> i'm like, it's at 3:00. and then i'm like, it's 3:04, where are you? >> she was late. >> this is your number of classes? >> i don't think you've done one more than me. >> i never said how many i did to anybody, but -- >> i think you did, though.

because you went a couple times without me. >> i went a couple times with my sister. >> how's the fitness aspect for the dancing, liz? >> well, i'm curious to hear, are you guys feeling like you're more proficient at it? because as you start to learn the routine and get your head out of the game, that's when the magic happens when you get in the physical flow and you can put forth more effort and burn lots more calories. >> i've been traveling this week, so. >> finally, to craig and dylan. their goal is to increase their core strength -- >> that is our goal. >> we than the to touch their toes. they flexed their muscles recently at flex pilates studio. have a look. >> can you do this. >> no. but i'm going to try. >> let's try. >> let's try. >> here we go. >> go team. >> arms reach. and slide out to your first plank. bend your knees and come all the way back to standing. >> are we going to do several of those? >> oh, yeah. ♪ >> dude, that is hard. >> ow! it really hurts! >> one more.

one more. you have it. you have it. >> so far, this is my favorite exercise. >> i can almost touch my toes. >> yeah, look at you! really, really good. >> don't lie, but thank you. >> you guys might be winning the challenge. if you doubled your plank -- >> i really want to call you out on this. >> no, it's not about me. it's about the studio. i think i could probably hold it for about a minute and 20 seconds. >> you look pretty good. >> dylan, 1:42? >> i'm better than craig! i love it! >> i'm also very competitive. >> girls' world! >> i'm not going to win this, be very clear. >> i'm very competitive. >> thank you so much and good luck with you. >> good luck, guys. you've got this. >> we'll be checking back in. >> we're checking back in again? this is "today" on nb>>c.

don't forget to check

today.com/allday for more stories you love. today ina garten's secret for a romantic valentine's day. we're talking about her musical play list. >> sheinelle, what do you have on? are you taking your clothes off while i talk? >> no, i'm not. i've been doing this series on education. tomorrow a major problem facing schools all over the country, a teacher short aageshortage, wha anything can be done about it. >> before all that, sheinelle's about to meet her doppelganger. i know, i'm so nervous. >> a littlegood morning, it )s . i )m - -... a look from nbc bay area good morning. 8:56. i'm marcus washington. a look from nbc bay area sky ranger, a few moments ago, flying over the police standoff in campbell on south baskham avenue near the pruneyard shopping center east of highway 17. officers have a denny's, as you see right there, surrounded. now the last few minutes police gave us an update, and they were called about 5:30 this morning, about a man with a gun in the

parking lot. he was inside that restaurant when officers arrived. no one has been injured, and police say that all the workers and customers that were inside made it out safely, leaving that man inside the restaurant alone. nearby streets are closed right now, including south baskham. we have a crew there on the ground at the scene. we'll have an update at midday. check out our twitter feed for the updates. also the latest on the investigation into wednesday's gas explosion in san francisco's richmond district. investigators arrived overnight. the gas has been restored to all about 40 pg&e customers. go to our home page for information. albert finney has died at the age of 82. finney received five oscar nominations over his career, some of his biggest films "annie" -- more rain in the fore

the new work week - how it )ll impact your morning commute. plus - riders beware. bart is changing its morning start time on monday. trains will roll out an hour later. we )ll check-in with commuters. join us monday, from 4:30 to 7.

> >> announcer: from nbc news this is "today" live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. a good friday morning to you, welcome, craig melvin here along with sheinelle jones, dylan dreyer and look who stopped by, keir simmons. >> there's not an ocean in between us. >> it's a good day for you to be here. we are talking about something that you know well from across the pond, tabloids, in case you have not heard, the richest man in the world is taking on the "national enquirer," amazon's ceo jeff bezos went public accusing the tabloid of trying to blackmail him. we're going to talk about it in a moment. but first, here's nbc's peter alexander. >> overnight,