another recall for toyota? toyota denies it's about to recall its latest model of the popular prius hybrid. job jitters. the latest unemployment report out later today and the news is not expected to be good. and brace for impact. a major storm ready to pound mid atlantic states with up to two feet of snow. this is the "cbs morning news" feet of snow. this is the "cbs morning news" for friday, february 5th, 2010. captioning funded by cbs good morning. thank you for joining us. i'm randall pinkston in for michelle gielan.ining us. in the news this morning, toyota is denying reports in a highly respected squap these newspaper that it will recall the latest version of its popular prius hybrid. tara mergener is in washington with the story.

good morning. >> reporter: good morning, randall. well, according to that report, this recall is looming, yet another hit to toyota's once stellar image. toyota this morning is denying published reports that it will recall 270,000 prius hybrids. on thursday, the auto giant admitted there are problems with the antilock brakes in the 2010 model. >> it's a weird sensation. it's like you're driving and when you pit a hot hole or some kind of bump, all of a sudden it's just like -- >> reporter: more than 100 prius drivers in the u.s. have filed complaints including four reports of crashes. toyota says the problem has been fixed, but only in vehicles sold since last january. the company is also looking in to two other high blid models including the lexus. it uses the same braking system as the prius. another recall could add to millions of other toyotas already recalled because of sticky gas pedals. >> it's the brick on brick, bad

news upon bad news that just kills your reputation. >> reporter: but it's not toyota's reputation congress is worried about. a house committee plans to hold a hearing next week to investigate whether the automaker and u.s. transportation officials acted quickly enough. >> we have to look to government's failure throughout this entire period and that's really where our primary jurisdiction is. >> reporter: one failure could include this federal test conducted more than two years ago. a toyota lexus showed problems with sticky gas pedals, but nothing was ever done. the transportation department has also launched its own review, the beginning what have will likely be a long road for toyota. and some analysts say toyota may be forced to take decisive action because of scrutiny from both customers and regulators. randall, back to you. >> tara mergener in washington, thank you very much. meanwhile, u.s. automaker ford plans to feks a software problem of its own affecting brakes on its fusion hybrid in mercury milan cars. 17,600 vehicles may have

problems that give drivers the impression that their brakes failed, but ford says at no time are drivers without brakes. now to a severe winter storm that is going to pound the mid-atlantic states later today with up to two feet of snow. preparations have been underway overnight.virginia assembly canceled its session today. george cullen says this system should not be taken lightly. >> this is a real dooz zi, this storm coming up. and it's still just forming. we'll take a look and we'll see how much will fall and i'm afraid to say from central new jersey southward going down the garden state parkway or the turnpike to philadelphia, baltimore, washington, you're going to get at least a foot. it might be 20, 22 inches. but once you got over a fooft snow, it doesn't matter because the impact's about the same and we'll have a lot of wind with this, as well, so there will be blowing and drifting snow. >> and severe icing is expected in the appalachians.

michael jackson's doctor, conrad murray, plans to surrender to sthortds came. murray plans to turn himself in this afternoon whether prosecutors have charged him or not. prosecutors have been reviewing the case for weeks. murray's spokesman says the defense team knows the doctor will be charged with involuntary manslaughter but that he is not guilty. north korea says it will release an american missionary it has been holding since christmas. robert park was detaineded for allegedly illegally crossing the border from china. he was protesting human rights violations by the north and calling on north korean leader kim jong-il to step down. north korea says it is releasing park after taking his, quote, since sear repept answer of wrong wrong doings in to consideration. the attorney for ten americans now charged with child abduction and criminal conspiracy in haiti says his clients are completely innocent. this morning they are behind bars where they are likely to remain for month and one church member is under scrutiny back

home. correspondent bill whitaker reports. >> reporter: arriving for their court hearing, the ten americans appeared optimistic, their bags packed and ready to go. >> do you think you're going home? >> released, yeah. >>. >> reporter: but after two hours before the judge, the group surrounded by police pushed its way through a crush of cameras back to waiting vehicles and back to jail. they were charged with felony kidnapping of minors and criminal association, says their haitian taurn. the ten ban tis most from idaho have been in jail since they were arrested trying to cross the border with 2 3 3 haitian children friday night. a cbs news employee says group leader laura silsby told the judge we were trying to do what's best for the children when the judge asked didn't you know you were kriting a crime, silsby quietly answered we are innocent. but there are serious questions about silsby's motives. the 40-year-old business woman

who convinced fellow members of the central valley baptist church to follow her dream of an orphanage in haiti has a troubling financial history. she's been the subject of eight civil lawsuits, 14 for unpaid wages. her meridian, hide owe house is in foreclosure. she's had at least nine traffic citations in the last 12 years including four for failing to register or ensure her car. still, throughout this ordeal, her church has stood behind the group. >> i know the hearts of those folks that went to haiti, and their heart was to help combat the problem of human trafficking. >> reporter: haiti's prime minister calls the americans a tragic distraction. >> i believe it's a distraction for the hate shan people because they are talking more now about ten people than about one million people sleeping on the streets. >> reporter: but the americans might he said up suffering, too. child kidnapping is a very serious offense here. they could get up to 15 years in

prison. and the u.s. ambassador said the americans are leaving this in the hands of the haitian justice system. bill whitaker, cbs news, port-au-prince, haiti. on the cbs "moneywatch," a major selloff for asian stocks this morning. emily smith is here in new york with that and more. good morning, emily. >> reporter: good morning. well, it was a brutal day for asian markets. almost every index was down significantly. the hang seng tumbled more than 3%. while the nikkei lost nearly 3%. that follows yesterday's blood bath on wall street where the dow had its worst one day drop since april losing 268 points. the nasdaq gave back 65. so far for the year the brew chips are do you know 4%, the tech heavy nasdaq more than 6%. the market's anxiety attack will likely spill in to today. investors will be watching out for today's big monthly jobs report. it's expected to show the economy added 5,000 jobs last month, but it's also expected to significantly upgrade the number

of jobs lost no all of last year. that is now predicted to rise by 800,000 raising the number of jobs lost during the recession to 8 million. while toyota may be facing a daunting medical problem, it's also facing a mounting legal one. more than a dozen lawsuits across the united states and canada have been filed against the auto maker many seeking class action status for vehicle imtims of sudden acceleration accidents. the toyota recalls are expected to cost the company at least $2 billion. new york's attorney general has filed civil fraud charges against bank of america and its former ceo ken lewis. the suit claims the bank misled investors about merrill lynch before it bought the wall street bank early last year. separately, bank of america agreed to pay $150 million to settle an sec claim that it misled shareholders about bonuses and losses while acquiring merrill. and on the lighter side, americans are working overtime on their sex lives. according to a national survey

by vault.com, 6 in 10 admit to in-dull mging in an office romance, nearly a third who got cozy with a colleague admit to kons matsing the affair while at work. and 6% of those people say they actually got caught in the act. can't say i'm part of that group, randall. >> well, you know, we learn the most interesting things from our "moneywatch" with you. thank you very much. >> yes, we do. thank you. just ahead on the "morning news," newly sworn in senator scott brown gets down to business. plus, jet setting giant pandas arrive in china this morning. first, katie curry with a preview of tonight's "cbs evening news." >> my exclusive interview with new orleans saints quarterback drew brees about his commitment to the game and the cityy he no calls home. tonight, only on the "cbs evening news." in great shape. so i was surprised when my doctor told me i still had high cholesterol. that really hit me, and got me thinking about my health. i knew i had to get my cholesterol under control.

but exercise and eating healthy weren't enough for me. now i trust my heart to lipitor. (announcer) when diet and exercise are not enough, adding lipitor has been shown to lower bad cholesterol 39 to 60%. lipitor is backed by over 17 years of research. lipitor is not for everyone, including people with liver problems and women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant. you need simple blood tests to check for liver problems. tell your doctor if you are taking other medications or if you have any muscle pain or weakness. this may be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. i thought i was doing enough to lower my cholesterol. but i needed more help. what are you doing about yours? (announcer) have a heart to heart with your doctor about your cholesterol. and about lipitor. is also a great value? it's the difference between paying more... and getting more. snuggle fabric softener gives you fresh, snuggly softness your family will love -- and it costs less than the leading brand! because everyone loves to snuggle!

to get more of the fiber you need every day, try fiberchoice. with the natural fiber found in fruits and vegetables and 33% more fiber per serving than benefiber. fiberchoice, the smart choice for the most fiber. our professionals hair care line. this feels great. very moisturized and shiny. - it shines like glass. - so soft. - smooth. i would definitely recommend this to my clients. then we revealed what was really in the bottle. it's suave professionals. suave, really? i'm shocked. i didn't know suave could do that. top stylists were surprised. you will be, too. suave professionals. salon proven to work as well as salon brands. suave professionals. rethink salon hair. that's the panda express arriving this morning in china

delivering two american-born giant pandas to their new home. tai shan born in washington's national zoo and mai lan from the zoo in atlanta will become part of china's breeding program to save their endangered species. only about 1600 giant pans today remain in the wild. back in washington, this condition's newest senator says he is anxious to get to work. scott brown, the massachusetts republican who won ted kennedy's former seat, was sworn in yesterday by vice president joe biden. senator brown told reporters he is willing to work with democrats on health care and the economy, but is concerned about huge new spending deficits. >> people back home, i can tell you, were very upset at the amount of spending not only in massachusetts, but you couple that with the amount of tax dollars that are being spent and sometimes wasted, people are fed up. >> brown gives republicans 41 senate vote, enough to blokt democrat prs pushing through president obama's agenda. brown's surprise victory in massachusetts was thanks in part

to the tea party movement which opened its first national convention thursday in nashville. tea partiers fiercely owe pose government taxes, spending policies and regulation. their convention will climax tomorrow night with a speech from former alaska governor sarah palin. scientists are reporting a brain scan breakthrough in their study of people with severe brain injuries. researchers in belgium and bret tip found unexpected brain activity in some patients formerly thought to be in a nonthinking venlg eight difference state. scientists even managed to communicate with one such patient reading patterns of brain activity as a yes or no in answers to questions. the los angeles county coroner says actress brittany murphy died of pneumonia complicated by anemia and prescription drug use. the 32-year-old murphy died a few days before christmas after collapsing at her home in the hollywood hills. straight ahead, your friday morning weather forecast.

and in sports, lebron james does his thing scoring 36 points to beat the heat in cleveland. whatcha doing, little bite? trying to be big like you, dad. you're so good at keeping everyone full and focused with your fiber. but you already are great at doing that. - really? - sure! you're made with fiber just like me. but best of all, you're the perfect size for smaller kids. give your little ones kellogg's® frosted mini-wheats little bites™ cereal. in chocolate and now original flavor. they're an excellent source of fiber packed in a smaller size. oh, it's original little bite. we're off to practice keeping 'em full and focused. yeah, we've got big shoes to fill. did you know that, for a limited time, you can earn double extra bucks with your extracare card? for every two prescriptions purchased, you get two extra bucks. and you normally get 2% back, but now you can earn 4% back on all cvs brand items.

what a treat! sign up for double bucks today. only at cvs/pharmacy. here's a look at the weather in some cities around the country. new york, mostly cloudy, 35 degrees. miami, thunderstorms, 79. chicago, periods of snow, 32. denver, partly cloudy, 44.

l.a., 60. time how for a check on the national forecast. the latest satellite picture shows that the eastern half of the nation is covered under a blanket of clouds. and it's a stormy morning along much of the pacific coastline. later today, two to four inches of snow will fall over much of the lower midwest and ohio valley. heavy snow begins to spread around the mid-atlantic states. that snow will last right in to saturday. areas around baltimore and washington can can expect close to 20 inches. and the southeast will see heavy rain. now to sports and what else? another big night for the big guy, lebron james, in cleveland. the cavaliers j.j. higs son got the crowd going with a steal and a slam against miami. the heat's dwyane wade fought back with a tough lay-up, but lebron came on strong taking an alley-oop for a slam in the second and capping his 36 point game with a step back in the fourth as the cavs beat the heat 102-86.

in portland, the trailblazers rallied in the fourth quarter on a three-pointer who beat the san antonio spurs 96-93. now clemgt hoops and a big win for purdue at indiana. the boilermakers gentleman one johnson took it inside for a score and a foul, three of his 21 points. and an eighth ranked purdue went on to beat the hoosiers for the first time since 199978-75 file score. and virginia tech's malcolm delaney drove hard for a lay-up and a foul against north carolina as the reigning national champs took their fifth loss in six games, 74-70. when we return, another look at this morning's top stories. and new doubts about climate change thanks to sloppy work by scientists. you ready, axel?

[ announcer ] your dog's one of a kind. good boy. and now, you have the power... to help significantly extend his healthy years. a groundbreaking 14-year study by purina... proves that puppy chow, then dog chow nutrition, fed properly over a lifetime-- ready, axel? can help extend his lovable antics... up to 1.8 healthy years. faster, axel! faster! long live your buddy. whoo-hoo! long live your dog. purina puppy chow and purina dog chow.

on the "cbs morning news," here's a look at today's weather. a snowy day in store not lower

midwest and ohio valley. chevy snow developing across the mid-atlantic states which continues until tomorrow. stormy across the southeast. the weekend will be dry. and now another look at this morning's top stories. toyota is denying reports that it plans to recall 270,000 of the latest model prius hybrids, but toyota is admitting take it is investigating the problems with the prius brakes. >> preparations under way in the mid-atlantic states where a major winter storm is about to dump up to two feet of snow. some flight and traen services are already canceled. now to the debate over global warming. the united nations admit as report on the impact of global warming on the himalayan glaciers was off by hundreds of years. the u.n. main takens the science behind global warming is solid, but that has not stopped critics from piling on. mark phillips reports.

>> reporter: the biggest splash these days in the global warming argument may not be caused by the world's melting glaciers, it may be caused by a series of gaffes by climate change scientists. the latest one involves temperature data from weather stations in china used in global warming calculations. the problem is that where weather stations are matters. one located in the city will give a consistently higher temperature reading than one out in the country. the allegation is that the researchers used chinese data when they didn't really know where their weather stations were. it's just a small part, they say, of a worldwide database, but it's the little mistakes that matter. mistakes like the line in the last report by the u.n. panel on climate change which claimed glaciers in the him leahs might disappear by the year 2030. the panel had to admit the claim was wrong and the climate change skeptics jumped in. >> any scientist that read that

2030 figure just laughed because they knew it couldn't be true. there's no doubt the trust in the u.n. panel has been yuchbd mined. >> reporter: trust was already undermined by the series of leaked e-mails at a brits continue university, one of the world's big climate science center, which seemed to show that in-convenient facts were being hidden. it's a frustrating time for those who believe the basic science in global warming remains true. >> i am concerned that it appears the whole edifice has been undermined by these couple of bricks that are flaking a bit. >> and that's a danger. >> it is a danger. i totally agree. >> reporter: the scientists may still believe they're winning the scientific argument, but they're in danger of losing the public relations war. mark phillips, cbs news, london. this morning on "the early show," a special super bowl show from south florida and justin

bieber performs. i'm randall pinkston. this is the "cbs morning news." crafted to be exceptionally smooth... decadently rich... delightful... chocolate... bliss. hershey's bliss chocolate. crafted for bliss. make that first step easier, with the nicoderm cq patch. nicoderm steps you down from nicotine gradually. doubling your chance for success.

nicoderm cq. three steps, ten weeks and you're free.

, here. in the news this morning, as you said, snow is in the forecast again. a shoot out in northwest baltimore leaves one man dead, another injured and a police officer in the hospital. a problem with the prius, toyota could be announcing yet another vehicle recall. more news, first warning weather and your first traffic report of the morning in a ,,,,,,,,,,,,

hello again, in ten seconds it will be 5:00, hello again -- in ten seconds -- you want to