or connected tv. i'm tom hanson, cbs news new york. it's thursday, f captioning funded by cbs it's thursday, february 17th, 2022. this is the "cbs morning news." disinformation campaign. russia says some of its troops have retreated from ukraine's borders. why the u.s. is rejecting those claims. new benchmarks. change could be on the way for federal mask guidance, but tensions grow over mandates for students. long-running rivalry. for the sixth time in winter olympic history, the u.s. women's hockey team takes on canada for the gold medal. well, good morning, and good to be with you. i'm anne-marie green. we begin with questions about russia's military activity on ukraine's borders. moscow says that it's pulled back some of its troops, but the west isn't buying their story.

the u.s. argues that russia has added several thousand more troops to its forces stationed around ukraine. the state department believes an attack could happen any day now, but for people in ukraine, there are no apparent signs of fear or panic. laura podesta is in new york with the latest developments on all of this. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. you said it, the white house remains skeptical to say the least that russia's claims of deescalation are true. moscow is providing what they say is more photographic evidence to try and convince the west. the kremlin says these are videos of russian troops leaving an area near ukraine's border. >> there's, you know, what russia says and what russia does. >> reporter: but u.s. officials have concluded that russia recently added as many as 7,000 troops to the border. new satellite images show heightened military activity. >> they are moving concerningly into fighting positions. >> reporter: state department spokesman ned price says russia

may use false claims as a pretext for an invasion which officials believe could come as soon as this weekend. >> russia relies on confusion. russia relies on obfuscation. russia relies on misinformation and disinformation to cover its tracks. >> reporter: on the streets of ukraine, thousands gathered to demonstrate their unity. ♪ despite reports that russia was planning to invade yesterday. >> many people was waiting for a while, but it didn't start. the ukrainian people demonstrated that we want to resist. >> reporter: still, ukrainians are preparing for the worst. these students practiced evacuation drills at their school. >> time to show the children that this may happen and not to be panicked. >> reporter: today vice president harris leaves washington for europe where she'll take part in the munich security conference and show support for nato allies and ukraine. on saturday, harris will meet

with the ukrainian president and separately with german chancellor shultz. this will be the first meeting between harris and zelensky. >> all right. laura podesta in new york. thank you so much. breaking overnight, the head of the federal aviation administration says that he is stepping down next month. stephen dickson, a former pilot and delta executive, has led the agency since 2019. the faa has faced criticism, though, for its oversight of boeing which suffered two deadly crashes before dickson's time as administrator. recently it was involved in a controversy over 5g high-speed wireless and whether it causes interference with planes. dickson said he wants to spend more time with his family. the cdc may relax its covid mask guidance as soon as next week. a growing number of states have already dropped indoor mask mandates for most places. yesterday virginia went an extra step, essentially banning mask mandates in schools. >> this is not about any

individual, it is about us. it's about us. today we are re-establishing and restoring power back to parents. [ cheers ] >> senator glenn youngkin signed a new law giving parents the choice on whether to put masks on their children. as mola lenghi reports, it remains a heated issue in other parts of the country. we want to give people a break from things like mask wearing when these metrics are better, and then have the ability to reach for them again should things worsen. >> reporter: for now the cdc's recommendations remain unchanged regardless of vaccination status, everyone should wear a mask in indoor public spaces i that's more than 96% of u.s. counties. in the last two weeks, 11 states and washington, d.c., have rolled back their mask mandates. but 55% of the nation's top 500 school districts require masks, while more than 40% do not. in pennsylvania, the decision to

mandate masks rests with local districts. at conestoga high school outside philadelphia, tensions have reached a boiling point. >> come on! >> reporter: on friday, dozens of students who believe masks should be optional staged a walkout. ben shapiro is a sophomore and works on the school paper. >> a lot of hatred coming from both sides directed at each other. >> reporter: the district says the debate then spilled onto social media leading to hundreds of comments. then potential threats. the district decided to close the school monday, moving instruction on line. it seems like a distracting environment to go to school in. >> every period it's wondering is something else going to happen, is there going to be another walkout? >> reporter: as a precaution there's been an increased police presence here on school grounds this week. in a statement, the school district said in part that it has been exploring ways to move away from mandatory masking since january. mola lenghi, cbs news, berwyn, pennsylvania. president biden ordered the

release of trump white house visitor logs to the house committee investigating the january 6 attack on the u.s. capitol. former president trump sought to block their release by asserting executive privilege. mr. biden rejected that claim. the logs show appointment information for people allowed to enter the white house including on the day of the insurrection. it's unclear if mr. trump will change the release in court. a previous attempt to national archives from releasing record was rejected by the supreme court. turning to the winter olympics in beijing where it was a rough evening for team usa. the women's hockey team lost to canada 3-2 in the gold medal match. the americans fought back from a 3-0 deficit. they scored their second gold with 13 seconds left, but they just ran out of time. the u.s. beat canada four years ago to win the gold medal. and on the slopes, mikaela shiffrin skied out in the alpine combined and was unable to finish. for the third time in five

races. she lost her balance about ten gates into her run. the two-time gold medalist will leave the 2022 games without an individual medal. and coming up, runaway tire. what happened when an out-of-control truck tire slammed into a police car with two officers inside. and how a teenage pilot's sister inspired him to try and break an aviation record. this is the "cbs morning news." i'm so glad we did this. i'm so glad we did this. i'm so glad we did this. life is for living. let's partner for all of it. i'm so glad we did this. edward jones at intra-cellular therapies, we're inspired by our circle. a circle that includes our researchers, driven by our award-winning science, who uncover new medicines to treat mental illness. it includes the compassionate healthcare professionals, the dedicated social workers, and the supportive peer counselors we work with to help improve - and even change - people's lives.

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make aviation history, and thousands of gallons of gasoline spill after a tanker truck fire. those are some of the headlines on the "morning newsstand." "newsday" says the cleanup and investigation continues after a massive tanker truck fire in rockville center that's just outside of new york city. the vehicle flipped and exploded yesterday sending more than 9,200 gallons of gasoline into the streets. some of it seeped into the sewer system. the crash destroyed a former furniture store and damaged another building. the truck driver and three firefighters suffered minor injuries, but no deaths were reported. no word on what caused the driver to lose control, though. "the centre daily tiimes" says a detached tire slammed into a police cruiser's windshield in pennsylvania. two officers were inside when the tire smashed into the windshield this week. the tire bounced on to the opposite side of the road without hitting any other vehicles. the officers were okay. they say the tire detached from the pickup, but the driver was

not issued a citation. they call it, quote, a freak accident. and "reuters" says a teenager aims to follow in his sister's footsteps and break a record with a solo world flight. 16-year-old mack rutherford wants to become the youngest male to fly around the world alone in a light aircraft. the record is held by an 18-year-old. rutherford, who plans to start his trip next month in bulgaria, says it's not about sibling rivalry. he says that there is more to his mission, especially since h. >> the first time i actually touched the controls and flew was when i was 7. since then, my passion has grown. i want to show that you don't have to be 18 or older, you don't have to be an adult to do incredible things. you can be young. >> last month rutherford's 19-year-old sister became the youngest woman to fly solo around the world following a five-month journey.

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ratings uber drivers give you, and the record-breaking price a huge blue diamond could fetch when it's auctioned off. diane king hall is in new york with those stories and more. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. stock futures are pointing to a lower open this morning. wall street reversed a heavy selloff yesterday after the fed released minutes from last month's policy meeting and provided an indication of how aggressively the central bank might raise interest rates to help fight inflation. stocks finished mixed. the dow fell 54 points. the nasdaq lost 15. the s&p 500 added 3. have you ever wondered how uber drivers rate you? the ride-share company is now breakdown of their ratings in the privacy seconds of the app. it shows how many times you've gotten five stars to the dreaded one-star review. uber is also sharing tips to raise your score with drivers like buckle up, be respectful, and don't slam the car door.

now, a lot of people fork over money for subscriptions, but what about for airline travel? yesterday, alaska airlines announced it will offer the first-ever subscription-based flight service in the u.s. the plans would start at $49 a month or focus on the west coast. members can fly between six and 24 roundtrips for a year, most destinations are in california, but they also include reno, las vegas, and phoenix. and a record-breaking blue diamond will go up for auction in april. sotheby's says the gem is the largest and most valuable blue diamond ever to come to auction. >> it is the most rare color and the most sought after. i think there's going to be high demand. the buyer could be anywhere. there was a time maybe you would say the buyer will be in asia, in russia. this buyer, really it's a global market. it could be anywhere. it might even stay in new york. >> reporter: the stone was discovered just last year at a

mine in south africa famous for producing extremely rare blue diamonds. the gem was given the highest rating for color and clarity. sotheby's estimates it could sell for more than $48 million. anne-marie? >> now, that is a gorgeous stone. >> beautiful, right? >> if sotheby's really wanted to break a record, and i know they're going to, they would have put that on the auction block before valentine's day when the pressure is on. everyone's gotten their gifts, eaten the chocolates. got regular diamonds. now there's no pressure. diane king hall in new york, thank you. >> thank you. up next, britney spears in demand. why some members of congress want the pop star to testify on capitol hill.

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here's a look at the forecast in some cities around the country. ♪ britney spears says that she's been invited to testify before congress about conservatorships. the singer shared a letter on instagram from two house members congratulating her on her legal victory. spears writes that she was flattered but still healing when she received the invitation in december. she says that it made her feel heard and, quote, like i mattered for the first time in my life. a los angeles court ended the

grammy winner's conservatorship in november. for 13 years the controversial legal arrangement controlled nearly every aspect of spears' life. the city of angels tweeted its super bowl champion rams like god during a victory parade. tens of thousands celebrated the victory over the cincinnati bengals. the team passed around the lombardi trophy, chugged champagne, and smoked cigars from open top double-decker buses. >> i'm hugging up every single one of these guys here. just -- just pinching myself about the opportunity to play with these guys, about the opportunity to go to work with these guys. it is unbelievable. it's a dream come true. i dreamed about this for so long, so to be here right now it's surreal, man. i'm so in the moment right now. >> the celebration took place the same day that los angeles county lifted its outdoor mask mandates. even though they might have lost, the city of cincinnati

held a rally for its bengals. fans, cheerleaders, and the team mascot helped say thanks to the afc champions. the mayor presented the bengals' owner and head coach with keys to the city. coming up on "cbs mornings," why a growing number of firefighters think the uniforms that are supposed to keep them safe are actually making them sick. i'm anne-marie green. this is the "cbs morning news."

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our top stories this morning -- russia says that it's pulled bck some troops from ukraine's borders, but the u.s. is rejecting those claims. officials believe russia has added up to 7,000 more troops. later today, vice president harris will leave washington for europe where she will meet with ukraine's president during a security conference this weekend. and the cdc may soon relax its indoor covid masking guidance. as omicron recedes and more states loosen mask policies, the cdc director says that they're working on guidance that is relevant. she said that they want to give people a break from mask wearing, as numbers like hospitalizations improve. many americans are still unsure, though, about getting covid-19 vaccines. new research shows that vaccine hesitancy is actually dropping

much faster among black americans than white americans. laura podesta has details. >> reporter: jennifer saunders was skeptical at first about getting the covid vaccine. >> you know, i'm sure as everybody was, because i really didn't have a lot of research knowledge about it. >> reporter: so she attended some events in her community to get more information about covid. >> it could actually be more deadly to a person with underlying conditions, especially like diabetes. it could have affected me a totally different way if i were to get it without the vaccine. >> reporter: a new study at ohio state looks at covid vaccine hesitancy. while black americans were more hesitant than white, hesitance dropped faster among black people. >> they're more likely to come to believe over time that the vehicles is necessary to protect themselves and their community. that could be an explanation for why overall black americans are becoming more willing to use the vaccine. >> reporter: the lead study

officer says initial hesitance among black americans may have been done in part to historical mistrust of the medical community. the focus should be on access to vaccines since fewer black people are vaccinated than white people. >> it's probably not hesitance. and that makes us have to look at the other bucket of why people may not be vaccinated. it could do with inability to get transferred to a vaccine site, being worried you won't be able to take time off work. >> reporter: jennifer got her shot in april. >> basically the pros outweighed the cons for me at the end of the day. >> reporter: she received her booster in november and hopes more people choose to protect themselves. laura podesta, cbs news, new york. coming up on "cbs mornings," why a growing number of firefighters think the uniforms that are supposed to keep them safe are actually making them sick. plus, we'll speak with virginia governor glenn youngkin about the new law he signed making masks optional in public schools. we'll preview a new

docuseries that re-examines the legacy of president lincoln and his complex journey to end slavery in america. that's the "cbs morning news" for this thursday. thanks for watching. i'm anne-marie green. have a great day. ♪ ♪