distributing them, a show of support for 23-year-old bowe bergdahl. >> we love him. we love the whole family. he's going to come back. >> reporter: the army private vanished from his base on the afghanistan/pakistan border. >> to my fellow amares -- >> reporter: he appeared on this video this weekend. visibly under duress, bergdahl spoke about his family. his captors can be heard prompting bergdahl to give a message to americans. >> a message to your people. >> reporter: the military calls the tape propaganda and a violation of international law. >> we condemn the public humiliation of prisoners. it's against international law. >> reporter: bergdahl's family is staying out of the spotlight. in written statements they thanked the public for the support and asked for their privacy. >> the family members just don't want to do a risk doing anything to enflame the situation or their captors. and you can see how easily that

can happen. they're just total focus is on bowe. >> reporter: bergdahl is described as popular, a free spirit who likes everything from riding his bike to ballet. the town is rallying behind one of its own. i'm leeann gregg, news4. all d today, comments about the captured soldier and the video have been pouring in to news4. many of you have posted your thoughts on nbcwashington.com. joy wrote, i will be praying for bowe and his parents. for him to come home safely. they thoughts are with him during this horrible time.

jane says, i pray for his safe return. there was a knot in my stomach looking at the video. god knows how his parents would feel. another viewer said, god bless the troops. he needs our prayers. you can share your thoughts anytime at nbcwashington.com. a fright train derailed in texas today. emergency crews are working to clear that scene. no injuries have been reported so far. also, there were no haz-mat concerns reported either. no word on what caused that derailment. a second child injured in an apartment file in riverdale has also died. the 7-year-old died yesterday at prince georges county hospital center. his 5-year-old brother died friday. the blaze broke out in an apartment on 56th place. that fire has been ruled an accident. investigators believe the father left some food unattended on the stove. more headaches for those riding the red line this week.

and back to school shoppers, prepare to pay more this year. >> here are four other stories making headlines in our area today. starting tomorrow, the ride through the commonwealth may feel like a longer drive. virginia transportation officials are closing 18 of the state's rest stops srting tonight and early tomorrow morning. the stops closing in our area include two stops on 95 and manassas. the closures come as vdot struggles with a budget shortfall. metro riders can expect more delays during rush hour this week. there were fewer trains on the red line and those trains are running slower than usual. the delays are expected to last until at least thursday morning due to the ongoing investigation of last month's deadly crash. passengers should expect an extra 30 minutes added to their commute.

the state's contract board rejected loral racing's bid after they failed to put up a $28.5 million licensing fee. the high court ruled today that the board has jurisdiction over the matter and the challenge was premature. their decision sends the dispute back to the lower court with instructions to dismiss it. there's some bad news for back-to-school shoppers in the district. this year, the city council has canceled the annual sales tax holiday for clothing and school supplies. the city canceled the tax holiday because of the poor economy. d.c.'s chief financial officer estimates eliminating the sales tax holiday will bring in about $640,000 in extra revenue. the prince georges county police department now confirms that the fbi is investigating some of its officers for their alleged role in a gambling ring operated by known drug dealers. sources tell the "washington post" that phone records and surveillance video connect seven

area officers to game operators. five of the officers are with prince georges county. one is with d.c. police. another is a former d.c. housing authority officer. for the first time, the prince georges county police department acknowledged that some of its officers are being investigated for illegal conduct, including allegations that the officers provided protection for an illegal gambling ring and possibly transportation of stolen goods. no charges have been filed at this point. slipping in public opinion polls on the health care issue, president obama is stepping up today to lead the push for reform, even as republicans escalate their effort to derail the president's plan. steve handelsman has the latest from the white house. >> reporter: at children's hospital in washington, president obama said our current health care system is not focused on patients and now is the time to fix it. >> we've talked this problem to death. year after year. but unless we act and act now, none of this will change. >> reporter: fewer than 50% of

americans in today's "washington post" poll approve of mr. obama's leadership on health care. so he's taking a more out-front role and taking on his critics. >> there's some in this town who are content to perpetuate the status quo. >> 250 million americans currently have health insurance coverage. the great majority through private insurance. and polls consistently show that they're pleased with their current coverage. >> reporter: the rnc slams the obama plan in aew ad. >> a risky experiment with our health care. >> reporter: some republicans say if they can win on health care, they can derail the whole obama agenda. >> think about that. this isn't about me. this isn't about politics. this is about a health care system that is breaking america's families. >> reporter: but the president is backing off his demand that the house and senate act by august 7th.

>> it's going to take more time to get it right. >> reporter: still to be worked out is the biggest issue, how to pay to ensure america's uninsured. some options are taxing existing health care benefits or raising tax rates on the rich. either way, or another way, that will be a big fight. steve handelsman, news4 at the white house. now, the insurance industry is also stepping into the health care fray wit a $1 million ad campaign. the industry restates its support of an overhaul that provides universal coverage. not mentioned is the fact that most insurers oppose creating a government-run insurance option. turning to the weather, a cool start to this july week. and some wet weather could finally be coming our way. veronica johnson has our fast forecastcenter. >> a cool one today. you noticed the humidity. the cool is good for us because at least it's helping with our now lawns that are starting to

look on the brown side. we've only had six days this month of july with rainfall. five of those we received less than a tenth of an inch of rainfall. just for the month of july, over a quarter of an inch. we're on track now to -- well, this will wind of being one of our driest julys on record. the last time was 1872. but the fact is, there was a little bit of rain out there right now south of the area. looks like it will be heading up our way for the next couple of hours. the promise of rainfall, more moisture, more humidity, too. and 81 degrees, the average high at 89. running on the cooler side with that cloud cover across the area. and later tonight, our temperatures will drop to the low 70s with a chance of rain for 7:00 and 9:00 and even 10:00 p.m. before moving out. so some evening showers on your fast forecast. meanwhile, our rain chances are even climbing for the next couple of days. i'll tell you when with that seven-day forecast coming up. we'll talk about the heat, too. how hot it could get this week

and the upcoming weekend. back to you. >> all right. thanks, veronica. >> thank you. when we come back, an amazing rescue caught on tape. take a look at that. today, two firefighters being hailed as heroes after pulling a family from that burning car. also, why the mother of michael jackson wants more time to work out the child custody details. and will your local library soon look more like a bar? where they might soon be serving alcohol with those books. also, is there a shake-up in the works for "american idol"? find out which judge could be on his or her way out.

"endeavour" astronauts have started their second spacewalk of the mission. this time they are attaching spare parts to the international space station. it's the second spacewalk in three days, and it's taking place on the 40th anniversary of man's first moon landing. one "endeavour" astronaut said it's "cool" they get to mark the anniversary with their own spacewalk. the apollo 11 astronauts who made that first moonwalk gathered today to talk about that mission. they urged president obama to continue america's space program, but many wonder, can we afford it? tracie potts has that story. >> that's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. >> reporter: it was those words 40 years ago today that opened a new door. neil armstrong, the first man on the moon. instantly cat pulting america to

the forefront of space ecpl exploration. >> the greatest legacy from apollo is the inspiration is provided. >> reporter: eugene was the last american astronaut to set foot on the moon. >> i really believed that we'd be back to the moon by the end of that decade and on our way to mars by the turn of the century. my glass has been half empty for three decades. >> reporter: and there's disagreement on what the next step should be. >> there's a lot still to be done on the moon. >> america to mars is what it ought to be. not america back to the moon. >> reporter: but a trip to mars could cost far more than the $100 billion the u.s. has spent on the international space station. and in these tight economic times, the biggest concern may be whether america can afford to explore. >> until we are willing to pay the price, the american public is not going to have a very aggressive space program again. >> first step on the moon.

july 1969. >> reporter: the glory days of space exploration now history with america's future in space yet unknown. nasa's budget is about $18 billion. president obama has asked to add another billion next year. then level off for several years after that. from capitol hill, tracie potts, news4. president obama welcomed the apollo 11 crew to the white house a short time ago. the president described neil armstrong as an iconic figure and genuine american hero. mr. obama said while growing up in hawaii, he remembers sitting on his grandfather's shoulders when the capsules would land in the pacific. mr. obama also pledged support for math and science fields. most of us run to the pharmacy when we get a cold, a headache, or a skin rash, but with so many medicines on the drugstore shelves including many

formerly prescribed meds, the risks associated with self-medicating can be significantly higher these days. we explore when to go to the drugstore and when to go to the doctor. so, doctor, what are the most common ailments that send us to the drugstore? >> well, i don't know which came first, the ching or the egg, but what is available at the drugstore is medicines for cough, cold, allergy, digestive diseases and pain medications. >> those are the big ones. let's start with the coughs, colds and allergies. which drugs are we overusing the most? >> the one that concerns me the most is people will use benadryl for life-threatening reactions. these are bee stings and food allergies. you really need to go see your doctor to treat that. >> and treating yourself even for minor symptoms like a cough, you say, can be bad because that can mask a cough, can mask a bigger problem.

>> there is a cough for a reason. you don't just cough for the fun of it. you're trying to get something out. what you can mask when you use the medications could be things like asthma, things like a sinus infection. it could be reflux. you want to get that cough looked at. don't just throw a cough medicine at it. >> and what about drug interactions and even addictions? >> right. let's take cough medication, for instance. one of the risks is that it can interact with patients that have antidepressant medications. they shouldn't be taking cough medicines. or patients with diabetes or risk of high blood pressure. all of those can interact. it's right there on the box. read the box. in terms of addiction, you need to know that if youse those nasal sprays, they're only able -- they're only meant to be used for a few days. if you use it more than that, we have to give you prescription medicines to undo that. again, read the labels on the boxes. they tell you what you need to worry about. >> let's talk about pain. we often buy aspirin for pai

we know at too much of the acetaminophen can be a problem and damage your liver. what are the other dangers?ñrçó >> one is it can endanger your kidney as well. people with kidney problems have to be careful with that. and then for medications like motrin and ibuprofen, you have to worry about bleeding in the gut. it's a very dangerous thing. once again, if you are on these medications over and over again, you really need to go see a doctor to get better treatment. >> do they raise your blood pressure? >> they can, and they can also mess with people who are on medications like cumeden. you have to be careful with those. >> digestive problems, what is the problem with popping a tums? >> there's not a problem if you do it now and again. if you have a bad meal, go ahead and take one of those. the problem is if you're using this day after day or if you're using is months after months, then you rlly need to get that looked at. it should be something severe like a blockage or a cancer or

it could be something -- just like a -- an ulcer. something that you need to get looked at. >> okay. you'd say the same thing for the skin rashes. >> right. if you need to use the creams over and over again, get it looked at. >> here's an interesting -- many doctors will tell you just go to the drugstore and get something off the shelf. and it makes you feel like the trip to the doctor is worthless. >> right. i have a lot of patients that come in and there are things i suggest for them to use that are over the counter. sometimes that's because the insurance company is saying, look, this thing was prescription last year. you can use it again this year. i need them to use it and fail on it before i give them a prescribed medication. that does happen. sometimes there are medications that are perfectly legitimate, but i always have them come back. >> antibiotics, we share them and overuse them. >> that's right. whether you really overuse them is where people will end up having left over, it was meant for another family member and they'll pop those antibiotics.

please don't do that. we're back in the fall doing a story on resistant antibiotics. the way they become resistant is because people eruse them. the antibiotics prescribed are prescribed for that patient and they should be finished and there should be none left. stop playing doctor. >> we'll do better. thank you so much, doctor. for more, log on to nbcwashington.com and search "as seen as news4." coming up, on incredible rescue at sea after a ship catches fire off the coast of new jersey. we'll show that to you. also, you may want to beware of the lifeguards next time you're at the beach. we'll tell you where they're now issuing tickets. and it's getting more crowded in the 100-year-old club. the number of centenaans is non]nw

lifeguards in delaware can give you more than just first aid now. they can also give you a ticket. the town's lifeguards can now write citations for drinking alcohol on the beach, littering, other offenses as well. the effort began this summer. fines can top 200 bucks.

we're told that lifeguards have issued 19 tickets so far this summer. beach goers, beware. meanwhile, in paris, frans, no beach, no problem. every year truckloads of sand and dozens of palm trees are trucked to the banks of the river to create a fake beach, right smack in the middle of the city. folks treated like the real thing. some take their lounge chairs there, they make sand castles. there's a pool area and activities for the children. the art financial beach now in its eighth year. i guess that's part of the art financial beach as well, veronica. it's open for about a month. >> okay. lounge chairs, sand, and a little imagination. >> and everybody is smiling. you didn't see any frowns there. >> back here, we'd be smiling if we could get some rain out of the clouds. >> my lawn is really turning brn in spots, and i'm sure the same could be true about a lot. we've got the clouds outside right no some rain is coming. it's just south of the area right now.

so we take a look outside. overcast skies. our temperatures today have been in the low 80s across the area. the dew point temperature at 59 degrees with a southeast wind at eight miles per hour. the last inch of rain that we had, pat, in d.c. was back on june 18th when we had 01 inches of rainfall. as i said, it has been cool across the area today. 81 degrees, the temperature. the average, 89. look at raleigh, north carolina. socked in with more clouds and showers today. just at 80 in atlanta. 83, 82, memphis, tennessee. st. louis, missouri. all across the northeast quarter of the country, cooler than average today. so it's got a big dip in the jet stream headed all the way down. overcast skies through the carolinas and some showers and storms parked on one side of a front that's currently off the coast. showers and storms here. our wind tomorrow will be out of the east and northeast. peal have a chance for more showers for our evening here coming up. there is that possibility

between about now and 10:00 p.m. already some light showers working their way northward. cloud cover, plenty of it inside the beltway and even more so down to the south. there's golden beach with showers. no severe weather, though. washington and culpepper, wet weather headed to the northeast. so over us until about 10:00 p.m. there's been more of that down south. spots there around danville in virginia, picking up 1 1/3 inch of rainfall today. look at the rainfall in lynchburg. close to half of an inch. our month lly rainfall is just 13 hundredths there in mcclain. here's the thunderstorms through the nation's midsection. that's the front that will give us our best chance of rain on thursday. look at that. the tropic is quiet, but a tropical wave, this wave is expected to make its way north-northwestward, so it could become anna, the first named storm for the atlantic season. for our evening, cloudy and

warm. showers around. 75 to 79 degrees. sunset at 8:29. so some showers up until about 10:00 p.m. then tomorrow morning, breaks. the next couple of days we'll have more sun coming our way for the afternoon. but warm it is for tomorrow. 64 to 69 degrees. i think it's going to be overly humid tomorrow, but certainly by the middle of the week, by wednesday, thursday especially, you'll notice the rise in humidity. so a chance of showers for the afternoon tomorrow. the uv index up to nine. still put on the sunblock. 78 to 83 degrees. heat is coming our way at the end of the week. could be close to 90 degrees. we'll talk about a pattern change, too. >> all right. thanks, veronica. >> thanks a lot. coming up in our next half hour of "news4 at 4" a dramatic rescue caught on tape. we'll hear from two off-duty firefighters who pulled a woman and her children out of this burning car. also, more uncertainty for michael jackson's three children while michael's mother, katherine, is now asking for

more time to sort things out. and is one of the three original idol judges leaving the program? which judge may soon be heading for the door.br ññ?ñ

welcome back to "news4 at 4." here are some of the top stories at this hour. the parents of captua captured

soldier say their focus is on his safe return. bowe bergdahl was captured early this month. he grew up in haley, idaho. president obama was pushing hard for his health care overhaul. he's responding to republican critics who are calling his proposal too risky and too expensive. a n 40 years ago today, millions of people around the world watched and listened as two apollo 11 astronauts became the first to walk on the moon. at the white house today, the president called the astronauts true american heroes. a wisconsin woman and her two children are alive today thanks to a group of bystanders who braved the flames and pulled them from their burning vehicles.

the firefighters talked about the whole ordeal on the "today" show this morning. some of this video is kind of difficult to watch. jay gray reports. >> come on! >> reporter: the flames grew almost as quickly as the panic. as neighbors rushed in, they realized time was running out. a mother and child were pulled from the fire, but a 4-year-old was still trapped inside the suv. >> we need water! there's a baby in there. >> reporter: the wives of two firefighters, brothers who live in the neighborhood, saw what was happening and called for help. the men rushed in. >> the child was in a booster seat with the seat belt, lap belt across the child. >> reporter: as the suv was swallowed by flames, they climbed inside. >> it was horrific. you know, you had the car, it was engulfed in flames. and the child was just, you know, inside there screaming.

>> reporter: somehow, they managed to pull him free. one of the brothers held the little boy while the other used a garden hose to try and cool the burns over 30% of hisbody. >> they put their lives on the line and as a result, we're able to all stand here today and once again give them a proud and heart-felt thank you from all the citizens. >> reporter: today, the firefighters along with an off-duty police officer who also helped with the recuscue were honored by the mayor. >> everyone came together to perform a miracle. >> reporter: a miracle that saved three lives. jay gray, news4. the family inside that burning suv was taken to a local hospital. the 4-year-old today is listed in critical condition. the two firefighters, as you might have seenthere, treated for burns to their hands and their arms as well. another group of quick-thinking good samaritans

saved some fellow mariners. look at the scene off the coast of new jersey. this was early yesterday morning. the coast guard was called in. it was on fire. before the coast guard could get there, the crew from another ship saw the fire and jumped into action. they pulled a crew from the rigs on to their life boats until help could arrive. fortunately, no serious injuries were reported. we have not heard what caused that fire. a not guilty plea today from a train operator accused of texting at the time of a major accident. he was arraigned this morning. prosecutors say he made a cell phone call and tried to type a text message in the moments just before a crash on may 8th. the train he was operating slammed into the back of another train, injuring more than 60 people. michael vick is now a free man. the former nfl quarterback officially finished his 23-month

sentence late this morning. he was released from prison a couple of months ago but finished the sentence under home confinement with a monitoring device attached to his ankle. vick will stay on probation for the next three years. today's custody hearing involving michael jackson's children was postponed again for now. paris, prince, and blanket will remain in the care of michael's mother, katherine. sources familiar with the case are telling nbc news that katherine jackson has realized that 79 years old, she can't raise the children alone and wants more time to sort it all out. two of michael's sisters are emerging as possible contenders for custody. the older sister was spotted with the kids in public just last week. she was taking them to a jehovah's witness church. janet is reportedly been with the kids every day. still ahead on "news4 at 4," more rumors of a chelsea clinton wedding. where the former first daughter may tie the knot later this summer. plus, if your kids are

spending their time this summer just playing video games indoors, maybe you don't need to worry as much depending on what they're playing. coming up, the possible health benefits of gaming.

we've all heard out the trouble in the housing industry.

the fact is, with all the talk of a national real estate market, your town, your neighborhood, your home, or the home you'd like to buy, are each unique. the national conversation may not apply at all. if you've been worrying about what your property may be worth, or wondering if your dream home may finally be affordable, ask a re/max agent or go to remax.com. nobody sells more real estate than re/max. showers and now thunderstorms. welcome back. veronica johnson here in storm center 4. the storms moving northward. these will be heading north and northeastward. that's where the leading edge of the showers are, over to stafford county moving northward. wet weather coming up for the evening rush. and up until about 10:00 p.m.

tonight as this heads northward up into baltimore and aberdeen. 81 is the temperature. so it's not that hot across the area. lots of cloud cover today. today will be on par with today. about 81. 82 degrees. but we'll have more sunshine across the area. especially during the afternoon. and for tomorrow afternoon, a chance for more thunderstorms. so for your good night wake-up forecast, 9:00, the possibility of showers across the area. same thing at 11:00 p.m. first thing tomorrow morning, first thing tuesday, partly sunny skies. temperatures at 78 degrees. later tonight, cool spots at 61. last night, there were a few locations around western maryland, oakland and cumberland that dropped to the mid-50s. could be on the cool side. 82 the high for tomorrow. we get a break on wednesday. sunshine and more showers and even storms for thursday. then we've got some heat posted for that upcoming weekend. back to you.

video games are often blamed at least in part for the rise in chi childhood obesitobesity, but th not all bad. some can actually benefit kids' health as much as taking part in moderate exercise. researchers found that games like wii boxing or dance dance revolution increased heart rates and burned the same amount of energy as walking on a treadmill at 3 1/2 miles an hour. researchers are not recommending that kids stop playing outside or stop exercisinexercising, bu video games can be a good alternative. and obesity, not in large tonsils, may be the reason that a lot of kids don't get a lot of sleep. doctors often remove a child's tonsils thinking that they're the cause of sleep apnea when in reality, excessive body weight is more likely to blame. sleep apnea is a common but dangerous disorder that interrupts bleething while you

sleep. and obesity raises the risk. a once exclusive club is growing by leaps and bounds. more and more people are living to see their 100th birthday and beyond. according to the census bureau, the number of people to reach 100 is expected to swell to nearly 6 million people worldwide by the year 2050. the growth is due to better diets as well as more aggressive medical procedures. the bureau also estimates that there will be more people aged 65 years and older than there are children under the age of 5. still ahead here on "news4 at 4," talk about a bad commute. we'll show you where workers had to spend the night cleaning up after a pile-up involving 300 cars. and how about a drink? the next time you borrow a book from the library, where they

there is an interesting proposal being floated in loudoun county to allow liquor in the libraries. it's an idea that's drawing pretty potent reaction. gene watrel is here working on this story. so is this what tight budgets have resulted in? >> i guess so. this was proposed by the loudoun county library board. this is in loudoun county. it was proposed in '07. the board voted it down in '08, but they're bringing it back again. they're cash-strapped. they like to have events there after hours and serve beer and

wine along with the shakespeare and chauser. >> okay. so who supports it? >> one supervisor is against it. it opens the county up for liability and he doesn't think it sends a good message to the young people. we talked to the -- the library board said this would be a way to raise money. this would be after hours. is would have nothing to do, you know, with exposing children to alcohol. but it is an issue that strikes at a lot of people. >> it really isn't such a novel idea because two other counties are doing this. >> that's right. the facilities would be closed. there would be no patrons in and then it would be reopened again for fund-raisers. but it even the county staff says it opens the county up for liability and sets a precedent. so it's a matter of what the board of supervisors want to do tomorrow. >> what is the public saying about it at this point? >> no one knew about it apparently. all the library patrons i

stopped, no one had a clue. i stopped a dozen. they had no idea this was going on. and the ones with children just didn't like it. they feel like the library is like a church. it's a sacred space where people read books and not for booze. >> and what kind of booze are we talking about? beer, wine? >> beer and wine. and it's showcasing loudoun county wineries. there's 24 wineries in loudoun county, so they're pushing this as well for economic development. >> jane watrel, we'll get the rest of the story at 5:00. back to you. >> all right. thanks, pat. when we come back, starbucks is offering freebies tomorrow. we'll tell you what you can pick up at no cost in the morning. and christmas in july? the stores getting into the holiday spirit early this year 37 ñ

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all right. let's get an update on the weather. how does it look outside? >> still no drops falling on me,

craig, but the overcast skies we have, and we need rain. look at the lawn out there at nbc 4. it's brown and this only took a week and a half to get this way going from the green to the brown. and we'll go to the green right now because on radar, there is some showers even some thunder around rappahannock county. ashby's corner, too. cast castleton could get a quarter of an inch of rain out of this. not enough to turn things around, but we've got more coming this week. i-66, too, around prince williams county, some showers nearby. it is on the cool side out here. 81 degrees, the temperature. look at martinsburg in winchester. that's what we'll have around tomorrow under the same pattern. by the end of the week, a more sustaining mid-summer-type pattern with some heat for the area, too, as a big ridge starts to set up across the area. that old western atlantic high. it will pump heat and humidity

around our area for sure. so we start out with temperatures in the 60s, showers ending around 11:00 p.m. tomorrow, 82 degrees with more afternoon thunderstorms. the high, 82. i'll see you back re tomorrow. and that's the closing bell on wall street. stocks rallied on this monday. the dow gained 104 points. the nasdaq up 22 and the new york stock exchange gained 103 points on the day. and here is today's news4 bargain blast. tomorrow, it's free pastry day at starbucks. the coffee chain is inviting you to try a free pastry with the purchase of any beverage. you do need a coupon, however, to get your pastry. you can print one on starbucks' website. go to starbucks.com. it may be the middle of summer, but it feels like the christmas season at least at some stores. with u.s. retairs posting ten straight months of sales

declines, some chains are trying to bring the holiday spirit earlier hoping for a boost in sales. sears and toys "r" us are holding holiday-themed events ahead of their back-to-school events. sears says it put up christmas decorations in about a third of its 930 stores. toys "r" us says it's planning a similar event but with more emphasis on holiday-themed pricing than the decorations. the cosmetic surgery industry is making a comeback. the economy appears to be improving. the los angeles times reports that baby boomers are helping drive the increase. demand for surgery is expected to grow 8.4% every year through 2012. >> little signs of recovery. coming up, a shake-up on "american idol." which judge might be leaving the program before next season. also, you heard of wine tasting, but how about beer tasting? where you can soon take a sip of

a cold one before deciding which one to buy.

time now to take a look at some of the stories making news on the web on this monday. >> bad weather is being blamed for this 295-car pile-up on the german autobahn today. 66 people were injured in the

massive pile-up. officials even had to set up a tent at a nearby rest stop to tend to injured before they were taken to the hospital. take a look at this. this blaze. those are wood pallets that are burning in the middle of hot and dry arizona. the flames lit up the sky over phoenix last night. the pallets were sitting there waiting to be recycled when something set them off. no buildings were damaged, though, and no one was injured in this fire. the rumor mill is churning today with talk of a wedding for chelsea clinton. there's talk that the former first daughter will marry her long-time boyfriend. he's a banker at goldman sachs. some are saying that it could all happen in august on martha's vineyard, but a spokesperson for present clinton says the two aren't even engaged. and how about sampling that brew before you buy a whole pint? there's a report out today that more states are looking at beer tasting laws. it would be similar to a wine

tasting law and allow customers to get a taste before buying the bottle or the pint. it would allow brewers to make a better connection with its customers. six states already allow beer tastings. well, she's been there since the very beginning, but is paula abdul done with "american idol"? with recent repor of a big pay day for ryan seacrest and another on the way for simon cowell, abdul's manager says she's hurt, angry, and she may not come back for season number nine. >> reporter: from the unusual -- >> touchdown! >> reporter: to the emotional. >> you've moved me from the beginning. >> reporter: to the confrontational. >> what she's saying is you'd make a good rat. >> i didn't say that. >> yes, you do. >> no, i didn't. >> reporter: paula abdul has been a fixture on "american idol" for ieight seasons, but i appears paulo will not be back on "american idol" next season saying she's not a happy camper

as a result of what's going on. she's hurt, she's angry. >> this is "american idol." >> reporter: what is going on? ryan seacrest has reportedly signed a three-year, $45 million deal, making him tv's highest-id reality host. >> i do agree with paula. >> reporter: there is also talk of a major contract in the works for judge simon cowell. >> the timing of paula's i might not be coming back headlines is suspicious because we just heard about ryan seacrest deal that nets him $15 million per year. if paula abdul didn't try to put something on the bargaining table, we'd think she was crazy. >> reporter: abdul sa, i'm actually moved to tears upon reading the enormous amount of tweets showing me your kindness, love, and undying support. god bless all of you. if it weren't for you, this specific time and situation would feel a whole lot worse. >> were you happy with last week in general? >> i was. you know, there were some

contestants that were better than others. >> reporter: last season, "american idol" added a fourth judge whose own future on the show remains in question. experts say further changes to the show could jeopardize its future success. >> the ratings have been slipping. they don't want to see their rating gold, paula abdul, slip out the door as well. >> representatives for abdul have not commented about her plans. "american idol" returns in january. so we're going to see what happens. that's "news4 at 4." "news4 at 5" starts right now. coming up on "news4 at 5," family and friends of the soldier captured in afghanistan are reacting to this new video that shows the soldier talking and being held by the taliban. 18 resttops across virginia are scheduled to shut down in just a matter of hours. controversy tonight over a plan that would allow alcohol in

loudoun county libraries. and good evening. welcome to "news4 at 5." our top story tonight, a corruption investigation involving d.c. area police officers. the fbi is now investigating whether officers provided security for a high-stakes gambling ring. pat collins has more. pat? >> craig, it seemed like the prince georges county police department was just starting to turn things around. they just got out from under years of federal oversight. the crime rate, gone down. and now this. accusations of dirty cops doing felonious things. prince georges county police say the fbi is investigating allegations that some county officers are involved inus serio illegal activity such as providing protection for aer gambling ring,