i'm brian williams, lester holt will be here with you this weekend.e of course hope to see you right back here on monday night, in the meantime, have a good weekend. in the meantime, have a good weekend. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com . >>> we begin with developing news. good evening, everyone. i'm janelle wang in for jessica aguirre. >> i'm raj mathai. an amber alert for a 2-year-old girl allegedly kidnapped by her father. they say the child's life could be in danger and the pair could be heading to the bay area. >> nbc bay area's reporter joins us now. kimberly, you spoke with

i'm lester holt in tonight for brian. watching the steep rises and falls of stock prices today was not for the feint of heart, especially after yesterday's 513 point free fall of the dow. but for all of the drama, and there was lots of it, the market finished today largely flat. the dow gained 61 points. the nasdaq lost 24. and the s&p was down about a point. but take a look at how we got there. after that big drop yesterday, on a strong start today, the dow bounced up and down across a 416 point range. not easy to watch, especially for all those americans who saw a huge chunk of their nest eggs vanish this week amid global debt concerns. those concerns were still very much at work today, along with some news about the american job picture. we're covering it all here tonight starting again at the new york stock exchange with cnbc's maria bartiromo. maria, good evening. >> reporter: the dow jones industrial average this week was down 7%, the worst week since the financial crisis of 2008. it has wiped $2.5 trillion of value

captions paid for by nbc-universal television >>> good evening, i'm lester holt, in tonight for brian. still trying to shrug off yesterday's rare earthquake, the east is tonight bracing for irene. the now category 3 hurricane we have been telling you about is striking the bahamas at this hour with 120-mile-per-hour winds as it cuts an unwavering path toward a potential east coast landfall. tropical storm winds are blowing more than 200 miles from its nt.er. forecasters expect irene to intensify for a bit and then essentially hug the i-95 corridor up the east coast and as we look at the forecast track, that potentially puts tens of millions of americans at risk from flooding, rains and dangerous winds from north carolina to new england. already tonight, evacuations are under way along north carolina outer banks. our teams are in place and we have two reports tonight beginning with nbc's kerry sanders on cedar island, north carolina. kerry? >> reporter: good evening, lester, this is the first hurricane to threaten the u.s. mainlands this year. if irene does make it to the land, the real

i'm lester holt reporting from new york. i'll see you back in just a few moments with tonight's special "dateline" hour. in the meantime, for all of us here at nbc news, good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

lester holt is in for brian williams. >> see you at 6:00.

lester holt is inside the evacuation zone, in lower manhattan. lester, we have had minor flooding over the years where they have taken some folks out of nursing homes, perhaps a hospital or two, but this kind of thing has never happened in new york city. >> reporter: you know, brian, it's interesting you said seen at all. there are 8 million of us living in new york city, we do feel at times we have seen it all. heck we had an earthquake this week. but when the mayor announced mandatory evacuations in a lot of this city, it got a lot of folks' attention. tonight urgent reality is gripping the big apple. the naked city has never felt so exposed. residents in low lying neighborhoods are now being urged to get out. >> i feel nervous, like i don't really know what's going on, i don't know what's going to happen. that's always a scary feeling. zblsh the. >> reporter: the city has produced a map showing the relative flood risk, now zone a is under an evacuation order. today seniors at this brooklyn hospital are among the first to be relocated. >> i can'

i'm lester holt reporting from new york.u tomorrow morning on "today" and right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> good evening, i'm diane dwyer. we begin with news from

i'm lester holt reporting from new york. for all of us here at nbc news, goodnight.

lest see for a second the way she handled it with lester holt on the "today" show. >> you cannot turn give become bam a blank check for $2.4 trillion in exchange for $21 billion in cuts. >> this raising the debt ceiling was for bills that have been agreed to, not new spending. >> actually that's not true. this money will go not just to bills that have already been spent, this will be for future money as well. that's a false statement. >> so here she's saying to lester holt that raising the debt ceiling is to take care of future money not past money, which is not factual. >> it's not true, but on the other hand she's not saying anything that a lot of republican caucus attendees or primary voters would disagree with. >> politically it's fine. >> politically it's fine. i think she showed for someone who's never run for statewide office she can play at that level. when byron york asked the submission question, i could feel the pressure of that press room change. she deflected it nicely. >> what did you think of that question? the question of the debate and she really handled it? >> it was

raising the debt ceiling as lester holt correctly state dd not increase government spending.tates won't become a deadbeat. that it will pay the bills already rung up by congress, and an institution, by the way, bachmann has been a part of for three terms now. such falsehoods may go over well for folks participating in the ames straw poll tomorrow or republican primary voters in general, but they are a disservice to any american desperate to understand why the economy is in a shambles and why washington seems incapable of doing anything about it. thanks for watching. i'm jonathan capehart. it's a pleasure sitting in for martin this week. you can always find me at washingtonpost.com back slash postpart gann. what do you in this afternoon? >> hey, jonathan, two democratic congress people coming by who are finally thinking big on jobs and on the debt ceiling. a definitive look at the underbelly of rick perry, plus confused dogs an and an alien invasion. i'm serious. the show starts right now. >>> breaking news -- the wild week on wall street is over. down, up, down, up, and up ag

it takes a much longer time to dig out of the hole you're in. >> lester holt, it's nice to see you.that. "dateline's" the town that jobs forgot airs this sunday. you can find awesome deals for places nearby. interesting... wow, i'm blown away. you look great. hotels.com summer sale, save up to 30%. and get a free kindle. hotels.com. be smart. book smart. >>> it is time now for the flip side, our look behind the headlines. with all time low approval ratings the 112th congress is deeply unpopular with the american people. but just how unpopular? apparently we even like banks more than we like congress. financial crisis and all americans have more confidence in banks than in their elected representatives by 6%. what else is more popular? some things we don't like much at all according to "the washington post." corporal punishment for one. 31% of respondents told the l.a. times in 1994 it's a good idea to cane teen vandals. that's way more than those who think it's a good idea to re-elect their congressman. sheep cloning still has a much higher approval rating than congress. even human

sitting alongside me, lester holt. coming up in this half hour the latest on the s&p downgrading the nation's sterling credit rating from aaa to aa. plus it's the first time in u.s. history that that's happened. >> standard & poor's, one of the three credit agencies that offers advice to investors, in a statement last night they said the downgrade reflects our view on the effectiveness, stability and predictability of american policymaking. so how does this affect you? coming up, we've assembled a panel of experts to answer some of your questions. >> then, casey anthony's back in the news. last month a jury found her not guilty of killing her daughter caylee. but while she is free, anthony may be forced to go back to florida for a case involving writing a bad check. it's all about her profession for that offense. what will the judge decide? will she have to go back? we're going to find out. >> then on a much lighter note, a new look at the tv woman everyone loves, lucille ball. the comic legend would turn 100 today. an

. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news with lester holt." substituting tonight, carl quintanilla. >>> givening. the u.s. economy is once again in the crosshairs. a downgrade of america's debt by a ratings agency, standard & poor's, could well impact stock markets around the world tonight and our own tomorrow morning. politicians meantime are debating how the downgrade may affect your pocketbook and whether the u.s. truly deserved it. we have complete coverage tonight. cnbc's john harwood starts us off. >> reporter: good evening, carl. obama administration officials remain furious about s&p's decision to downgrade u.s. debt, but they also have to worry about minimizing its effects. hoping to calm markets, treasury secretary tim geithner ended uncertainty about his future by announcing he'll remain on the job rather than return to new york. in an exclusive interview with nbc news, geithner said that u.s. treasuries remain safe and sought to reassure americans worried about interest rates while blasting s&p's decision. >> i think s&p has shown

i'm lester holt. reporting from new york. i'll see you tomorrow morning on "today," then right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> good saturday evening, i'm diane dwyer. the coast guard is asking for the public's help tonight in finding a

i'm lester holt. >> i'm jena wolfe. we mourn the americans killed in yesterday's deadly attack in afghanistan. >> it's america's darkest day yet. a rocket propelled grenade struck a helicopter in the eastern part of the country killing 30 u.s. troops, 22 of them were navy s.e.a.l.s. >> reaction is still coming in from the front lines and from here at home especially on the base where many of the fallen live. >> we do know the attack happened during an operation in a taliban stronghold. it took place in a mountainous region that's becoming volatile. we have full coverage and we begin with atiaa abawi. >> reporter: officials continue to investigate just what went wrong and how yesterday became the most devastating day for american troops in afghanistan. 30 u.s. service members and eight afghans were killed yesterday when their helicopter came crashing down by insurgent fire. most of the men belonged to the navy s.e.a.l. team six, a group most recently credited for hunting down and killing osama bin laden. preliminary repo

. >> this could be the final -- >> she recently spoke with lester holt expressing hopes that her friends would soon be released. >> reporter: before today's sentencing, many thought bauer and fatale would be freed with time served. now friends were concerned about the toll a long prison term would take. the case is highlighted differences among the ruling elite in iran. while the judiciary has taken a hardline, it was only two weeks ago, that iran's foreign minister said he hoped bauer and fatale would be free. after the sentences were announced the u.s. state department issued a statement saying, we continue to express our hope that the iranian authorities will release these young men. it's believed obama will continue back door policy to free fatale and bauer. >> if that doesn't happen, there will be a price for the iranians to engage in this behavior. it's the holy month of ramadan in iran, and traditionally prisoners are pardoned at the end of it, which is ten days from now. >> the families of the two uc berkeley graduates have not yet reacted to the news, but those who know shane ba

i'm lester holt reporting from new york. i'll see you tomorrow morning on today. then right back here tomorrow evening. good night everyone. cleesh cleesh -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> good evening, i'm diane dwyer, and we have new information tonight on the shooting death of

. >> i'm lester holt. matt and ann have the morning off. we're about a minute and 12 seconds into the show and we've already lost you. >> i have a tear in my eye on that one. so amazing. we're both military kids, so we know what that's like. >> i love it. she throws. he walks up. he must have said something because the recognition hit her before the mask is off. >> oh, my goodness. we're going to see more of that coming up in a little bit as well. >> a very special one. >>> meantime, 14 months away from the election, looks like the govs have already come off on the republican side. >> that's right. eight gop candidates took turns taking shots at president obama and each other d during last night's debate in iowa ahead of tomorrow's straw poll. there was obvious tension in the air. we're going to talk exclusively to representative bachmann about what was said and ask her about that much-talked-about "newsweek" cover. >>> live to aruba in the latest for the search of a missing maryland woman. the fbi has started conducting interviews tied to

. >>> lester holt is in new york city. >> chris, there are 8 million of us living in new york city and we would like to think we have seen everything, but when the mayor announced mandatory evacuations for part of the city today, it got a lot of folks' attenti attention. come sunday this area might be under water. there's a urgent new reality taking grip here in the big apple. the naked city has never felt so exposed. tens of thousands now under orders to get out. >> i feel nervous. i feel like i don't know what is going on. i don't know what is going to happen and that's always a scary feeling. >> the city produced a map with the flood risks in the five boroug boroughs. today's seniors at this brooklyn hospital were among the first to be relocated. >> i cannot stress it enough. please, nature is a force more powerful than any of us, and it really is better to be safe than sorry. >> reporter: this is battery park at the lower tip of manhattan sitting at sea level. it would be the first area to be overwhelmed by a storm surge. experts say the entire area could be buried in water, even f

here's what she told lester holt. >> i was happy to i was able to talk about my wonderful husband. it's important to talk about respect. we've been married for 33 years and the basis of our marriage is respect. >> being submissive is not really about being respectful. maybe that's the way she interprets it. when she's going out and campaigning with women and especially independent minded women, i don't mean that in just a political sense, is the campaign worried at all that this question of being a submissive wife might turn them off? >> reporter: it's a good question. but they're not worried. i spoke to the campaign after the event ended. i asked a question about that question. about, you know, the submissive quote, and the campaign told me that they were happy to have had the question because it gave the congresswoman an opportunity to talk about how much she loves and respects her husband. the other dynamic at work here is that there's sort of the biblical foundation for this. it's something that's talked about at church. >> thank you for calling in. i appreciate it. >> reporter

. >> nbc's lester holt joins us now from brooklyn, new york. good morning, lester. >> chris, good morning. that's the new york that most people around the world and the country know, manhattan. it's big, maybe 2 million people there. but it's only a part of this city, made up of five boroughs. all of them have lots of waterfront, lots of exposed, vulnerable waterfront, and so the storm surge is the worst fear of officials here. and it really strains the planning. what's going on today is the city has identified various parts of the city as "a," "b" and "c" zones. "a" zone, those low-lying areas most vulnerable to the storm surge, already the mayor has ordered evacuations of nursing homes in those "a" zone areas. they're being completed by 8:00 tonight. shelter is being put in place. the issue of mandatory evacuations still on hold. that call may be made saturday morning. the mayor had two news conferences yesterday, outlining the planning here. one of the big question marks is mass transit. this is a city where a lot of people don't have cars. t

she recently spoke with lester holt expressing hopes that her friends would soon be released. >> that's what we're praying for. we pray that the time for compassion has finally come. they hope that they will be freed with time served. now friends were concerned about the long prison term would take. >> you are a pawn in a game that it is unclear what that game is. it has to be very tough. >> reporter: the case has highlighted differences among the ruling elite in iran, while the judiciary has taken a hard line it was only two weeks ago that the foreign minister said he hoped butter and fattal would be freed. the u.s. state department issued a statement saying we continue to express our hope that the iranian authorities will exercise a humanitarian option of releasing these two young men. observers believe the obama administration will continue its backdoor diplomacy to pressure tehran to free butter and fattal. at this point a humanitarian option may be the best hope for the two americans. it's the holy month of ramadan in iran and traditionally prisoners are pardoned during it. >> repo

now, over to lester holt who is in midtown manhattan in the center of the city, and what are you seeing there, lester? >> well, i actually came back from downtown manhattan and i was at ground zero shooting a story at the new memorial, and so it is a construction site and i did not feel it. i came outside and noticed people standing around the buildings and as we are around manhattan in the office buildings, and people who have been evacuated by force or on their own and we passed by what appeared to be a day care center of some sort where they had taken cribs out on the street with the children, and the workers were caring for the chidren and certainly no sign of damage and you would not expect it in a earthquake of this magnitude, but people here will not react in tokyo or california, because it is a rare event in new york city. i'm now going to greenwich village and seems like a normal day here with people going about their business, but clearly around the tall office buildings, people were taking precautions and standing out there to waiter for some kind of instructions and even tho