captions paid for by nbc-universal television on our broadcast tonight. t from london the epic drought across the u.s. has gotten so bad the government says half of the counties in america are now disaster areas. inside syria in the midst of the fighting with the rebels as they come under attack by the regime. also the fight over women's health and religious freedom as more of the health care law kicks in. and here at the olympics a new scandal as athletes get caught and called out for playing to lose. we thought that was him. the mayor of london gets stuck over the crowd. nightly news from london begins now. this is "nbc nightly news" with brian williams reporting

tonight from the olympic summer games in london. good evening from this global gathering here in london where tonight as quickly we turn our sights back to the united states specifically the tripling and history making drought we are in the midst of and the news that came out just today a measure of just how bad it is and how much it is going to impact us. we begin with our chief environmental affairs correspondent, anne thompson. >> reporter: this is america land of the dry. rivers barely moving, farmland cracked and parched by a persistent stubborn drought. today the u.s. department of agriculture reports nearly half of the counties have been declared a disaster because of the drought. much of the west, midwest and southeast bathed in red having endured a severe drought for eight or more weeks.

the fear in colorado county, texas is potential wildfires fueled by the trees killed in last year's drought. >> we may have lost between 100 and 500 million trees. >> reporter: it's been so hot in minnesota even famous lakes provide little relief. >> temperatures of 95 degrees. >> reporter: causing fish kills in at least 25 lakes. withering in fields the price of corn hit a new high. there is other trouble, too. 37% of the soybean crop is rated very poor to poor. 66% of the hay fields are in drought. so is 73% of the cattle land. >> this could be the new normal in the united states. we need to plan ahead because we know and science tells us that under a changing climate droughts will be more frequent and more intense. >> reporter: 60% of the states have no plan. tomorrow the government will issue its weekly drought monitor detailing the extent of a crisis

that could stretch into fall, a crisis that is expected to impact food prices as much of the nation remains stuck in a very dry place. overseas we continue to follow this fighting in syria. the rebels way outgunned and up against seemingly impossible odds as they fight the regime and fight their way across the country side. our richard engel is reporting and today encountered the fight up close. richard reports tonight from ariha about 40 miles outside the big city of aleppo. >> reporter: 11:00 a.m. attack helicopters circle the sky. from a roof top we hear the assault begin. it sounds like artillery and tracings from the helicopters. we move down to the alley to try

to find out why syrian forces are attacking this city of 70,000 south of aleppo. we see civilians fleeing from open areas searching for cover and rebels on motor cycles on the main square. it appears a large military convoy was passing through and as the troops were moving past here the rebels in this town opened fire on them. in a makeshift rebel media center activists try to upload videos of the attack they have taken with small cameras. they show me syrian tanks are now firing. the rebels attack the convoy to prevent reinforcements from reaching aleppo but now this city is paying for it. back in the alleys men on

motorcycles tell us there are bodies up the street, many. in a mosque, we find them along with their distraught relatives. witnesses say the victims were civilians standing outside a mosque and attacked by a helicopter. there seem to be many casualties. here eight bodies have been brought. they can't get them to the hospital so they are putting ice on top of the bodies. they can't move them because there is too much helicopter and mortar fire coming in. men embrace the deceased. "oh, uncle, oh uncle" this man cries. the rebels seem desperately outgunned and may have taken on a battle they can't win. each fighter says he only has about six bullets and home made grenades. how are you going to defend yourself against a tank assault? "god is with us," he says. back in the media center bad news has just arrived. one of the rebels media activists has just been killed, one of more than a dozen killed

in ariha today. and the rebels never stop the convoy headed to aleppo. nbc news in northern syria. >> two things here. we are happy to be able to report that after filing his report richard and his team were able to safely get out of ariha and are now safe and in northern syria. one more note here we learned prior to going on the air tonight nbc news has been able to confirm that president obama has signed an order calling for mostly clandestine u.s. forces to support the rebels in syria. domestically another piece of president obama's signature health care law went into effect today and includes preventative care for as many as 47 million women including access to contraceptives at no charge and by going into effect started the health care fight all over again. nbc's kelly o'donnell has the story. >> reporter: from free birth

control to annual check ups millions of american women with private health insurance could begin to save money and that means no out of pocket co pays for many preventive services. at boston's women's hospital dr. paula johnson says this gives women an incentive to get care. >> this is a cost saving measure for women and for their families and will make preventive care far more accessible. >> reporter: new policies would cover at no out of pocket costs, yearly preventive checkups including prenatal, breast exams, cancer and diabetes screening, contraception, domestic violence screening. women can no longer be charged more than men for the same insurance plan. >> no woman should have to choose between seeing her doctor and putting food on her table for her family. >> reporter: contraceptive coverage has prevoked a political fight with religious groups and conservatives who

oppose birth control. while religious employers have been given a waver so they don't have to offer birth control coverage now today house republicans argue the federal government has gone too far. >> this is not about women's rights. this is about the largest assault. on our first amendment right. >> religious freedom is one of the bed rock principles of our democracy and that freedom is under attack. >> reporter: the new rules take effect as employer based policies renew or when individuals buy new coverage so many women will wait a while longer. kelly o'donnell nbc news, the capital. he turn to the olympic games underway here in london. there was more action in the pool, the u.s. still basking in the glow of the women's gymnastics team win. the shocker today was in badminton. of all things and of all sports, nbc at olympic park with the latest on this. good evening. >> reporter: tonight our first bizarre scandal of these games. it is not doping.

but it may be a new twist on cheating. trying to determine who your next opponent is by losing on purpose. it may be an olympic sport but sportsmanship was decidedly lacking. women's badminton teams from china, south korea and indonesia played like beginners trying to obtain a better draw on the competition by losing. >> we couldn't believe, we had never seen anything like this before. >> reporter: point after point was missed. the crowd booed, judges chastised and players threw temper tantrums. some were shown black cards disqualifying them from the match. following a meeting of the world badminton federation, all eight players involved were sent packing from the games. big time congratulations for the fabulous five as the u.s. women's gymnastics team received a gold medal call from the president. president obama also called the

most decorated athlete in olympic history and michael phelps was included in a presidential tweet. congrats to michael phelps for breaking the all-time olympic medal record. you've made your country proud. even signing off, b.o. and a huge roar and sigh of relief for host great britain winning not one but two gold medals in women's rowing and the second to cycling sensation bradley wigans. >> absolutely fantastic. we are just loving it. >> not so golden for mayor johnson famous for his lack of -- mop of hair and hangups while zip lining in a london park he got hung up literally, stuck. dangling until someone pulled him back down to earth. with two gold medals and two silvers today britons are still

flying high and tonight tower bridge turned gold. and once back the lord mayor of london said while he was worried about being suspended in the air all afternoon he highly recommended the zip line experience. there is never a dull moment with boris. >> the bridge is still glowing gold tonight, a big day for our host nation today. as these games progress the medal counts are climbing. if for you just seeing the overall medal count would be a spoiler of any kind look away for just a moment. we will show you the tally so far. for the top five nations here is where we stand going into tomorrow's competition. and as we wrap up tonight it is now safe to rejoin us. still ahead as we continue along the way this wednesday night across america today crowds swarm a chain of chicken restaurants over the issue of family values.

later an american gymnast who competed hard from an early age and tough circumstances just to get here. early age and tough circumstances just to get here. [ male announcer ] this is anna, her long day teaching the perfect swing begins with back pain and a choice.

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and available in three delicious flavors, get the nutrients you need to help you be your best. try boost nutritional drink today. helping you buy better. big story across the u.s. these past few days combining food and free speech. for those who live near one chick-fil-a makes a good product and does it well. it is when the man in charge branched to family values is when the chicken chain got into the news as a larger debate over same sex marriage came into view. from texas to pennsylvania to chicago people lined up in big

numbers to support a fast food chain under fire. >> support people's rights to boycott but i want to support a company whose values are similar to our own. >> we want to show our support for the founding family and his right to free speech. >> reporter: the crowds were responding to calls from conservative and christian leaders to support the chain in the fire storm over the president's public opposition to gay marriage. a chicken sandwich has become a the symbol in a bitter battle over freedom of speech and freedom to marry. it began in june when chick-fil-a president dan kathy appeared on a radio show. >> i think we are inviting god's judgment on our nation when we shake our fists at him and say we know better than you as to what constitutes a marriage. >> reporter: some mayors said chick-fil-a would not be welcome in their cities. >> people who don't support human rights, there is just no

place for them in the city. >> reporter: even the muppets have joined the opposition, the jim henson company dropping out of a deal to join the chain and donating the money they already received from the chain to a gay rights group. it all prompted former republican presidential candidate mike huckabee to organize today's show of support. other city leaders say a businessman's personal views are irrelevant. >> you don't want to ask political believes before you issue a permit. >> reporter: experts say this shows the risk of speaking out. >> it is difficult enough to attract customers that the last thing a brand wants to do is get on one side or the other of a controversial topic like this. >> reporter: as a fast food chain becomes a battle ground in the culture wars. coming up tonight the loss of an american who had lived a larger than average american life. had lived a larger than average american life. i stepped on the machine, and it showed me the pressure points on my feet and exactly where i needed more support. then, i got my number. my tired, achy feet affected my whole life.

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even though we are having one of them london showers there is the moon over london and tonight's full moon is special

because it is the first of two in the month of august. the second one comes on the 31st and as such makes it a blue moon. as in once in a blue moon to describe a rare event. while the moon is not blue in color this two moons in a month event won't happen again until 2015. gore vidal has died. it is difficult to pin down and define all he was. he described himself as the last of a breed and was probably right. the gore vidal story begins with breeding. his family was steeped in u.s. history, a senator on his mother's side. his father worked for fdr and vidal hobnobbed with everybody. al gore was a distant relative. gore vidal believed humans were inherently bisexual. and he practiced what he

preached as much as physically possible. he was a public figure on tv a lot and a prolific writer, the author of 25 novels. he also wrote for tv and films including "ben hur." his play, "the best man" is currently on broadway. he was unquestionably brilliant and could be a terrible bully and fought sometimes physically with capote and famously with buckley on live television in 1968. >> the only thing i can think of is yourself. >> listen. >> let's stop calling names. >> he was born at west point because his dad worked there. after prep school he joined the army. he died believing america was in deep decline that started long ago. he got his larger wish in life to be remembered as both a

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after yesterday's women's gymnastics gold medal tonight it is the men's turn. one of the u.s. contenders is a young man who started out in the bronx which made it tough to get here in the first place. >> reporter: you can see it from his earliest competition. john orozco was a natural. he was seven when his dad saw a flyer for a free gymnastics tryout and brought him because when he was born he was fearless. >> we would put him in his crib and the lights were out and we would here a bump and there was

john. he had barrelled over the crib walls and jumped on to the floor. >> reporter: soon john was competing and winning. in his small bedroom filled with the memorabilia of a champion a dream took shape. >> i used to stay up all hours of the night and think of how it would feel to go to the olympic trials. >> reporter: the road to london would have setbacks. john grew up here in the puerto rico neighborhood of the bronx where at 5'3" and a gymnast he was teased relentlessly. once on his way home from church he and his brother were jumped by local thugs with knives and injured. >> there is nothing i can do. these people were attacking my brothers and beating them to a pulp. >> reporter: he worried about his parents, too, when his dad had a stroke and was forced to retire from the sanitation department john got a job to help out. >> his first check he handed to his father and said here for the mortgage. >> reporter: then he blew out his achilles tendon potentially

ending his career. >> i thought the injury in 2010 was the biggest tragedy in our lives. he came back with a bang. >> reporter: john got better in every event training far from home in colorado and focusing on skills that didn't pound his ankle learning tricks on the high bar and performing effortless flare work on the floor and maintaining his unmatched ability -- >> he is a natural. >> reporter: stick landing. on a rare trip home this past christmas he helped hang the olympic ring with his proud dad. and it was mom and dad he tearfully thanked when he made the olympic team. >> when i am out on the floor it is a lonely feeling out there. and then i think about my family and the reason i have taken this so far is because i wanted to create a better life for myself and my family.

>> reporter: that little boy who loved to perform is now starring in a popular music video appropriately titled "the fighter." and ready to take center stage in london. not bad for a kid from the bronx, huh? >> not bad at all. >> reporter: john's nickname in the gym is the silent ninja because he has all of these amazing moves and is so quiet. but what he has accomplished, making the olympic team and the all around finals here, i think speaks for itself. >> you have to believe the victory part is the journey for him. thank you so much for telling his story tonight. you can see john orozco and the u.s. men gymnastic's team along with today's action in the pool all on prime time tonight. that is our broadcast on a wednesday evening. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams reporting

again tonight from london. we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com