nbc's jinah kim is live in hollywood this morning. what's the mood out there, jinah?rter: well, chris, we're in beverly hills, actually, at the beverly hilton, and whitney houston was staying at the beverly hilton. by now, the crowds have really dissipated, but even as of 2:00 this morning, about four hours ago, there was still a throng of people, fans, celebrity, police, and it was really interesting because they were silence tansly mourning and celebrating her while investigating her. in fact, police wrapped up a ten-hour investigation before they took off earlier this morning without saying a word to reporters. there still remains a little memorial and a candlelight vigil with flowers over there on the corner of wilshire and santa monica. that is growing, obviously, this morning, but we don't expect too much more police activity today. at this point, it's going to be up to the toxicology and autopsy reports to try to determine exactly how whitney houston died. >> do you know how long that might take? and we do not want to pursue any rumors, only what has been confi

"today in the bay's" jinah kim joins us live with more now from the beverly hilton hotel.and people are having such a gut reaction to this because she really crossed so many lines in her music. >> reporter: oh, absolutely. you know, i was comparing when i heard the news in the newsroom yesterday, i happened to be working when this a.p. alert came through. my heart just sank. it was very similar to how i felt when i learned that michael jackson had died, both, of course, their lives taken so early and very unexpectedly and in very tragic circumstances. now, what's the latest here at the beverly hilton which is where her body was found is that police completed overnight a ten-hour investigation. they haven't said much. there aren't too many questions that they are answering right now other than some that you had just mentioned. now the real work, however, begins to try to piece together exactly how whitney houston died. ♪ and i will always love you >> reporter: she was the undisputed queen of the charts through the '80s and '90s. she then reigned over the big screen in block

in hollywood, jinah kim, nbc news. lynn, back to you. >> jinah, thank you so much. >>> elsewhere, there is just 24 hours before the all-important primaries in michigan and arizona tuesday. mitt romney and rick santorum are battling in michigan where the latest polls show the two are virtually tied. nbc's tracie potts joins us fm washington with more on this. tracie, good morning. >> reporter: lynn, good morning. michigan's going to be the one to watch. romney's ahead by ten points or more averaging in arizona but about two in michigan, which is a virtual tie in these polls. yesterday, romney took some time off the campaign trail in terms of speeches to watch the daytona 500. caused a bit of a stir on twitter when he said that he doesn't really follow nascar closely, but he has friends who are team owners, raising questions about whether he can really connect with working-class voters. meantime, santorum in michigan, we are told, will now get secret service protection starting today. what he will not get is the endorseme

in hollywood, jinah kim, nbc news. lynn, back to you. >> jinah, thank you so much. >>> there's just over 24 hours to go before the important primaries in michigan and arizona on tuesday. mitt romney and rick santorum are battling in michigan where the latest polls show the two are virtually tied. nbc's tracie potts joins us from washington with more on this. tracie, good morning. >> reporter: hey, lynn, good morning. a two-point spread with romney on top is a virtual tie when you consider the margin of error in the polls. that's what we're looking at for michigan tomorrow. rick santorum who has surged there, we are told by sources will now get secret service protection starting today in michigan. mitt romney, meantime is picking up arizona governor jan brewer's endorsement. brewer saying yesterday on "meet the press" he carried the debate in the arizona debate and got the best chance to win in november. romney doing better in arizona, 10 points ahead. santorum says after tuesday it's going to prove that this is a two-ma

in hollywood, jinah kim. back to you. >>> a little over 24 hours to go before that all-important primary in michigan as well as arizona on tuesday. mitt romney and rick santorum are battling in michigan where the latest polls show the two are virtually tied. tracie potts joins us from washington with more on this. good morning. >> reporter: lynn, good morning. mitt romney took a day off campaign speeches to enjoy the daytona 500, where he inadvertently caused a buzz online when asked if he's a fan. >> this combines a couple of things i like best. cars and sport. and i appreciate the spirit of the men and women that are driving today. >> reporter: but it's what mitt romney said off camera that has twitter buzzing this morning. asked if he's a nascar fan, romney says he doesn't follow it closely but, quote, i have friends that are nascar team owners. rick santorum has his own race day take on the state's primary tomorrow. >> hang back there for a while. let all the other cars in front of you wreck. and then run

. >> okay, jinah kim, of course he is the brother of the singer brandy. >> she did a "cinderella" movieandy where whitney houston played the godmother. jina kim, thank you, we'll go back to you in a moment. bradley jacob senior editor qualify as us weekly" what are you hearing? >> we're just gathering all our information as much as we can now. this is a massive story. we do know that she was out just last night at this event, where she sang "jesus loves me." we have witnesses there saying she did not look so good. she was not behaving well. she had been drinking, looked kind of messy, and you know, we're going from there. >> you had heard the reports she was led out of a club last night? >> led out of a club? we're working on everything we can. but that wouldn't surprise me. you know, just my first thought looking back on this whitney houston story is that these drug rumors have been around her for well over ten years. it was the interview with diane sawyer that "crack is whack" the statement has aged profoundly over the years, as we've watched her get further and further into trouble.

jinah kim has more from the 84th annual academy awards. >> and the oscar goes to "the artist." >> reporter"the artist" swept the academy awards' top three honors, winning best picture, best director, and best actor for jean dujardin. dujardin is the first frenchman ever to win an acting oscar, and "the artist" became only the second silent film to take the academy's top prize and the first since 1929. another first? best supporting actor christopher plummer, who is now the oldest actor ever to win an oscar at the age of 82. >> you're only two years older hahn than me, darling. where have you been all my life? >> and the oscar goes to -- >> meryl streep added a third oscar to her mantle for the win for "the iron lady." she beat out viola davis of "the help" who was widely expected to win. >> when they called my name, there was a feeling i could hear half of america going oh no! >> reporter: best supporting actress went to the "the help's" octavia spencer. >> i'm wrapping up, i'm sorry, i'm freaking out. >> reporter: another highlight of the evening was billy crystal, who returned as host af

in beverly hills, jinah kim, news4 washington. >>> houston's cousin dionne warwick canceled a concerteensburg. it will now be held march 2nd. >>> right now president obama is in northern virginia. the president is speaking at northern virginia community college talking about his 2013 budget proposal that's being released today. he's asking congress to boost spending in transportation and education, cut government spending and increase taxes on the wealthy while reducing the budget deficit by $12 trillion over the next ten years. copies arrived on capitol hill at 8:00 this morning. >>> part of the president's budget proposal includes $8 billion for community colleges around the country to help train the next wave of workers. news4's megan mg gracgrath is ln the northern virginia community college campus with more. >> reporter: good morning. i'm going to step out of the way to show you the president is arriving here as we speak. he's going to be unveiling details of the community college to career fund. president obama is calling for an $8 billion investment in job training to be perfor

in beverly hills, jinah kim, nbc news. >> houston's music and her story touched millions.io stations in our region are playing her music as fans react to the news. >> so raw emotionally, trying to figure out what happened, how this happened, because she was 48 years old, you know? that's so young and she had so much more to give. it's a real tragedy. >> rick chill, a deejay, has been taking calls from listeners. houston's fans say she touched their lives through her music. >> she inspired a lot of people with her music. i lost my husband a year ago, and the music really lifted me. and the deepest sentiment goes out from her fans. >> local deejays say they will celebrate houston's life by playing her music. >> houston's friends and peers are sharing their condolences. singer lionel ritchie says "i am devastated by the loss of whitney. we have lost a true angel. my prayers, my heart goes out to her family. we have lost an extraordinary voice to the world." bishop t.d. jakes says "at the apex of her career, whitney had no peer with a voice that shaped a generation. she has le

nbc's jinah kim joins us with the latest. >> reporter: good morning. the befrl hills police department has put a stop on this investigation, meaning we won't get information for weeks, if not months. meanwhile, as you said, some of the biggest names in music made it very clear at the grammy show last night that she will be missed. >> i just want to say to whitney up in heaven, we all love you, whitney houston. >> reporter: music's biggest awards night turned into an impromptu tribute to whitney houston. songs and photos of the six-time grammy winner were featured throughout the night, along with a tender rendition of her most famous ballad. ♪ and i will >> the passion and how effortless she was. we celebrate that tonight. >> i don't think any of us have come to the full realization of what this means. >> reporter: earlier sunday, the los angeles county coroner told reporters an autopsy had been done, but it's far too early to tell what may have caused the si singer's death. >> i know there was reports she was maybe drowned or did she overdose. we won't

kim joins us with the latest. she's in beverly hills for us. jinah, good morning. >> good morning. it could be two months before we learn what substances, if any, may have played a factor in whitney houston's death. her fellow artists made last-minute stage to the grammys show to reflected the deep sense of loss felt by so many around the world. >> i want to say to whitney in heaven, we love you, whitney houston. >> reporter: music's awards show turned into a memorial for whitney houston. videos were shown throughout the night, as well as a tender rendition of her most famous ballad. >> the passion and how effortless she was with it. we celebrate that tonight. >> i don't think any of us have come to the full realization of what this means. >> reporter: earlier sunday, the los angeles county reporter told reporters an autopsy had been done. but it's far too early to tell what may have caused the singer's death. >> i know there were reports that she maybe drowned. did she overdose? we won't make a final determination until all the tests are in. >> he said it will likely take six to e