in university park, pennsylvania, michelle franzen, nbc news. >>> crews in italy can start pumping fuelm the cab sized cruise ship to prevent an environmental disaster. it could take up to 28 days to emp empty tanks which hold 500,000 gallons. the ship is stable enough to let searchers aboard to look for the 17 people still missing. earlier divers found bodies of two women which brings the death toll to 15. the ship ran aground ten days ago. >>> also today, the pakistani army lashing out, saying the u.s. is lying about deadly air strikes. the u.s. claiming the air strikes were necessary and justified because pakistani troops fired first at afghan and american forces across the border in afghanistan. pakistan insisting its troops fires at militants not coalition forces. the air strikes killed 24 pakistani troops november 26th, at two pakistani posts along the afghan border. >>> the european union banning oil imports from iran and freezing the assets of iran's cra central bank, move set to pressure iran into talks about the controversial nuclear program. russia lashing out, calling it a s

michelle franzen, nbc news, new york. >>> now to the daily deal on this thursday. first up, check out living social. in centerville, georgia, valon salon has a deal. for $42, an hour long massage. for $92, anti-curl treatment. >> never done that. here is one for the spy museum. it's for the international spy museum in the district. you can get a ticket for just ten bucks. the normal price is $21. more than 5,000 people took advantage of this. you have three days to go. that's quite a deal, half off. >>> when we return, a mother calls police and asks permission to shoot intruders. this story, straight ahead. >>> tiger woods $12 million home demolished. >>> coming up on non-stop scene d.c. at 9:30, where nixon read his paper and where jfk proposed his paper and where jfk proposed to jackie. we're gonna erase breast cancer once and for all. once and for all. walking 60 miles... in three days. join us. join us. (woman) we're united. (woman) a family. (man) a movement. (woman) a coming together of thousands. (woman) thousands... (man) with one goal. join us. we're commi

michelle franzen, nbc news, new york. >> let me correct what i said leading into the story. robust this past holiday as in 2010, not 2012. we don't know how those sales are going to go yet. >> mr. bernanke might like to have you. >> because i'm such a good predictor. >> we have some news coming up tonight. another night of huge delays on metro's orange and blue lines. we are learning more about a group of middle school kids in virginia who got drunk and went to school. also, a new name for the hot lanes that are causing so much construction hassells and problems, i guess i'm supposed to say in virginia. >> the empowerment lanes or something like that. we'll find out at 11:00. >> you talk about hassells, that's the most hasselled area in the world. >> lots of delays. not many complaints about the weather at the moment. >> you are not going to have any complaints. 56 on friday. 57 on saturday. a little cooler but not too bad. no cold air at all. no folks, still no chances of snow. a big chance of rain in the middle of next week. >> thank you, doug. >>> every now and then someb

in university park pennsylvania michelle franzen, news 4. >>> final preparations are underway today for the smithsonian to welcome the shut el discovery to its collection of national artifacts. smithsonian officials say the shuttle will be flown to dulles airport on the back of a boeing 747 in april. details are still being worked out, there may be a flyover above the nation's capitol as discovery makes its way to its final home in northern virginia. a final welcome ceremony is planned for april 19th in chantilly. >>> international concerns ended a five-day rally on wall street today. talks to resolve greece's debt crisis hit another snag. the dow fell 38 points. the nasdaq was mainly flat gaining 1.5 points. and the s&p 500 dropped a point. >>> the state's same sex marriage bill is more protective of religious freedom than other states with similar laws. governor o'malley made his statement today during a meeting with gay marriage supporters. there will be a distinction between civil and religious marriages. leaders won't be punished for performing same sex marriages. >>> when news 4 a

in university park, pennsylvania, michelle franzen, news 4. >>> doug's here with a look at our weather. so hard to come into work this afterno afternoon. gorgeous outside. >> it's absolutely beautiful. i came home last night to knee on the ground and this morning it was all gone. temperatures rose last night. they're going to fin to rise for the next 15 minutes or so, and then they're going down. >> 55 degrees, the temperature has gone up over the last hour. that is our high temperature of 55. some of you made it into the low 60s across the area today, really just spectacular weather out there on this tuesday, january 4th. 43 degrees, the average high is 44 degrees, our low was almost as high as the average. this is the 14th of 24 days above average this month. take a look at these temperature swings. 34 on saturday, we did have the light snow and the freezing rain early saturday morning. 44 on monday, 54, now 55. we have to change that number. tomorrow we'll go back down a little bit. we're still going to be on the mild side of things. temperature swing for sure. there's the current n

nbc's michelle franzen is in state college, pennsylvania, with the latest. good morning, michelle. >> well, jenna, good morning. joe paterno is said to be surrounded by family here at the nittany medical center. that after false reports circulated that the legendary coach had passed away. his son jay paterno responded in his own message on twitter saying not only was his father alive and fighting, but inspired by the outpouring of support from this community. holding vigil. penn state students and supporters surrounded the campus statue of legendary football coach joe paterno saturday night. leaving flowers, and praying for the man they affectionately call joe pa. they gathered after word came from the paterno family he was in the hospital, fighting for his life. doctors say his condition is serious, due to complications from lung cancer. paterno, who led the nittany lions for 46 seasons, was fired last fall, in the wake of the jerry sandusky sex abuse scandal. criticized for not going to police and following up on the allegations. just over a week ago, he gr

nbc's michelle franzen has the latest. >> reporter: new clues in the case of missing toddler ayla reynolds. investigators confirm some of the blood found in justin depietro's basement matches the 21-month-old who vanished. >> there were hundreds of pieces of potential evidence taken. among them, blood we found in the basement. the crime lab continues to work on the evidence. >> reporter: the blood, investigators say was collected in the initial weeks after ayla's disappearance. they are waiting for the results of further testing. in a statement, ayla's family said the police told them they found, quote, more blood than a small cut would produce, adding they still cling to hope that she's found alive. police have not charged anyone with the crime or called anyone a suspect. they do suspect foul play. their focus in recent weeks centered on those who last saw ayla on december 16th. his father, girlfriend and sister. >> we were told someone came into the home, grabbed ayla and vanished in the night. we have not found one piece of evidence to back that up. >> reporter: we reached out to depiet

and nbc's michelle franzen has reaction on the penn state campus tonight. michelle, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, lester. here outside the stadium, a steady stream of people have been coming to pay tribute all day, laying flowers and candles at the base of joe paterno's statue. this place and the man many say symbolizes the heart and soul of penn state. along with grief throughout the day, there was also a strong showing of pride for this legendary football coach. >> joepa was our father, like everyone. he brought penn state together, really. so it was hard seeing him and terrible this has happened. >> joe has done a tremendous amount for this university and i just hope that we can all remember him for the good that he did and not what happened this past november. >> reporter: earlier today the paterno family released this statement following his death saying, quote, he died as he lived. he fought hard until the end, stayed positive, thought only of others and constantly reminded everyone of how blessed his life had been. back here at the stadium,

michelle franzen, news4. >>> the dallas-fort worth airport terminal was shut down this morning after a security breach. tsa agents spotted the image of a gun in a woman's carry-on bag after she passed through security. officials say she left the checkpoint area before her screening was complete. the terminal was shutdown while officials reviewed security video to find her. it took about an hour and a half to determine that the 65-year-old woman was on a flight to houston, which had already left the gate. that flight was turned around, won't taken into custody. she is facing at least one state charge and federal charges may also be filed. >>> so far, no arrests after someone threw a smoke bomb over the white house fence last night. occupy protesters rallied outside the capital and supreme court before moving to the white house. the secret service briefly locked down one entrance to the white house grounds. yesterday afternoon, police arrested four protesters outside the capitol. >>> days to go before the south carolina primary. and the candidates are battling over taxes, not yours and

michelle franzen. thank you. >>> right now thousands are gathered here in washington for the annual walk for life protesting the u.s. supreme court decision row v. wade which legalized abortion 39 years ago. tracee wilkins has more from the verizon center where a prayer service was held earlier today. >> reporter: today thousands of teens from around the country have gathered here in washington to celebrate life. and they're taking a stance on the very grownup conversation of abortion. >> i'm here because i'm supporting pro life and i think that abortion is wrong and i want it to end. >> reporter: more than 28,000 teens are expected to participate in the youth rally and mass for life prompting two locations for the event, one at the verizon center and one at the d.c. armory. >> life is about how you treat the person sitting next to you today. >> our children realize how precious life is then our country has a chance to survive. >> reporter: they lined up early this morning and came by the bus loads to

michelle franzen has details. >> reporter: some of internet's top websites and search engines shut downowed solidarity today. wikipedia english had a 24-hour blackout. other site, including google and the "huffington post," took the unprecedented step to protest anti-piracy web legislation they say threatens the free and open internet. >> they wouldn't do it if they didn't think that these bills that are being proposed in congress wouldn't significantly change the way the internet works and how users experience the internet. >> reporter: lawmakers are considering two separate bills. the stop online piracy act, or sopa, would give the government the authority to monitor and shutdown websites accused of distributing pirated content and stop illegal downloads. it is supported by the film and music industries. but tech companies like wired say the restrictions would equal censorship. >> punish everyone and arguably destroy the internet with regulations that have never existed before and which will have consequences that we cannot really predict. >> reporter: today, house speaker john boehne

nbc's michelle franzen joins us with more. michelle, good morning. >> good morning.he bride and kwroom say their special day was ruined after hiring tutera to plan their destination wedding and were told right before their big day he would be a no-show. now the couple is vowing to take him to court. on the reality series "my fair wedding" david tutera is famous for paying attention to every last detail. and for making last-minute changes that would stress out any bride before she says i do. >> you want a picnic barbecue? >> reporter: but a brooklyn couple claims their real-life dream wedding turned nightmare takes the cake. and is suing the star planner. newlyweds wendy lead perez and hector santana look happy in these photos. but in a lawsuit the couple claim they were left at the altar, by tutera. they say the elite planner failed to show up in the dominican republic to finalize their wedding plans. leaving his staff, and the couple, scrambling to find vendors to provide the cake, flowers, even furniture. the couple is not speaking publicly but their lawyer issued

michelle franzen reports. >> reporter: at the public viewing, thousands waited in line at the campusritual center to say good-bye to the legendary coach. inside, his casket flanked by one former and one current football player at all times. >> been here probably about an hour, just to pay our respects to the great man. >> say my good-byes, say my respects. i mean, avenues big part of our family. >> reporter: that penn state pride on display all throughout happy valley. at the old mainframe shop, customers filtered in to buy paterno memorabilia. >> he is probably the icon of what an outstanding coach s. >> reporter: 85-year-old lost his battle with lung cancer sunday and was fired last fall, criticized for not doing enough to address sex abuse allegations a decade ago involving former assistant coach jerry sandusky. but that hasn't affected the outpouring of support for paterno. >> the game of life, he was grooming us to be men and productive citizens and good father and good family members and bigger than football players. >> reporter: meanwhile, last-minute preparations are under wa

michelle franzen, nbc news, new york. >>> coming up on news 4 at 4:00 it's one fat cat and it hopes tonew home. >>> plus border officials put a stop to a cheetah about to board a flight. >>> coming up a spike in crime in upper northwest d.c. there have been several armed robberies as people arrive home and tonight two victims are telling their stories. >>> i'm tom sherwood. the district is famous for passing out parking tickets but an advocacy program to encourage you to pay up is about to run out. i'll have the story coming up. >>> then tonight at 6:00 employers reveal the most outrageous excuses they've gotten from people coming in late to work. se here's a friendly reminder. it's your last chance to get verizon's reliable high speed internet and phone for small business for only $84.99 a month. call 1.866.solutions now or visit verizon.com/solutions. only $84.99 for high-speed internet and phone. plus your choice of either no annual contract or a two year price guarantee. call 1.866.solutions or visit verizon.com/solutions today. hurry -- this offer won't last long. contact the veri

michelle franzen has our story. >> reporter: new clues in the case of missing toddler ayla reynolds.tors confirmed some of the blood found in justin dipietro's basement matches the 21-month-old who vanished six weeks ago. >> there were hundreds of pieces of potential evidence taken. among them is blood that we found in the basement. the crime lab continues to work on that evidence. >> reporter: the blood investigators say was collected in the initial weeks after ayla's disappearance and they are waiting for the results of further testing. their focus in recent weeks has centered on those who last saw ayla on december 16th. her father, along with his girlfriend, and his sister. >> what we have been told is obviously someone came into that home, grabbed ayla, and vanished in the middle of the night. but at this point we have not found one piece of evidence to back that up. >> reporter: we reached out to dipietro but he is not commenting about the blood found. earlier this month, he denied involvement in ayla's disappearance. >> i love my daughter. i'd never do anything to harm my daugh

>> michelle franzen, thanks.n post" columnist who we just heard about who interviewed joe pat earno, joins us this morning. sally, thanks for being here. >> good morning. >> so i have to say in reading your story, it does paint this picture of a very frail man, of a very sick man. does he -- is he lucid? does he fully understand everything that has happened so far? >> he's pretty lucid. he does wander a bit. he's hard of hearing now. the chemotherapy has made him a little bit foggy at times. and so, you know, we couldn't talk for very long periods. the reason i did it in two interviews was because he actually didn't have the strength to really have a prolonged conversation so we did two different sessions. >> paterno maintains he went through the proper channels, he believes he went through the proper channels in reporting this scandal. so does he understand the criticism that's been lodged against him? >> he does. he believes he did the right thing, as he understood it at the time. he did fulfill his legal oblig

michelle franzen joins us. >> the bride and groom say their special day was ruined.nd then told right before their big day, he would be a no show. now the couple is vowing to take him to court. >> you look amazing. >> reporter: on the reality series "my fair wedding" david is famous for paying attention to every last minute detail and making changes that would stress out any bride. >> you want a picnic barbecue? >> reporter: but a brooklyn couple claims their real life dream wedding turned nightmare takes the cake and is suing the star planner. newlyweds look happy in these photos but in a lawsuit they claim they were left at the altar. they say the elite planner failed to show up in the dominican republic to finalize their wedding plans leaving his staff and couple to find vend s vendors. the couple is not speaking publicly but their lawyer issued a statement saying mr. and mrs. santana are hard working professionals and hope that mr. tutera and his team keep this matter civil and not allow it to deteriorate into unnecessary name calling. tutera's publicist said dav

nbc's michelle franzen is here in new york tonight. >> reporter: good evening, lester. this is the heaviest snow that the northeast has seen since that wallop last october. winter finally arriving after it ushers in after a mild and slow start. the first big snowstorm of the season left its mark from the midwest all the way to the northeast, but parts of new england saw nearly a foot of snow. aside from a few accidents like this overturned tractor-trailer on interstate 70 in pennsylvania, winter's better late than never arrival was a welcome sight. >> we are really happy to be out here because we have been missing the snow. >> reporter: in new york, just over four inches of snow blanketed streets and parks. just enough and just right for sledding and snowballs. >> truth is i don't love the snow, but with three kids they have been really, really itching for us to have snow. >> reporter: the snow first hit in the midwest yesterday. in chicago, it made for a messy and treacherous commute. it is a far cry from last winter when storm after storm after storm left record snowf

today, as 11 news reporter michelle franzen explains, thousands got to pay respects during a public viewing. >> the line stretched around the block at penn state's spiritual center as hundreds waited to pay their respects to legendary coach, joe paterno. >> he is penn state. he's the face of penn state to me. >> the public, faculty and former football players returned to say farewell. mark battaglia says he was a man that was more than a coach. >> he was everything to me up here and i think to a lot of people, my kids, he's still a rock star. >> rock star, mentor and father figure to so many, including interim head coach tom bradley, who took over to finish the season when pat no was fired. >> i was lucky enough to play for him and work for him and call him friend and had a great impact on my life in so many ways and i've been quoted as saying this, next to my father, he was the guy. >> paterno's son, jay, also spoke publicly today. he says despite his father's battle with lung cancer and controversial firing in the wake of the sandusky sex abuse scandal, his dad stayed upbeat. >> there was

nbc's michelle franzen has the latest from state college. ning to you. what's the reaction to this news around the campus? >> certainly, as soon as the news, alex, came around in the last few days that joe paterno's health was deteriorating, many of the students gathered around that statue at the stadium of joe paterno leaving flowers and certainly praying in that area. tonight they're expected to hold a vigil in that very spot. of course, joe paternos, the heart and soul of penn state. many say the most important part of the paterno family according to their family's statement this morning releasing a statement saying it is with great sadness that we announce that joe paterno passed away today. his loss leaves a void in our lives that will never be filled. he died as he lived. he fought hard until the end. stayed positive. thought only of others. constantly reminded everyone of how blessed his life had been. of course, joe paterno in these final week, granted an interview to the washington post. reporter sally jenkins saying that he seemed d

but first here's nbc's michelle franzen. >> reporter: for nearly 25 years elizabeth watkins lived underion, the prime suspect in the death of her own sun, nicholas. please say the 6-year-old's body was discovered by a neighbor this this wooded area in north carolina not far from the family's home nguyenston salem. the medical examiner's office conclude it was a homicide by strangulation. now investigators say a new look at the evidence shows the boy's marks on his neck were consistent with a dog attack, finally clearing watt kins's name, but thornts offered no apologies. >> we did not apologize. our purpose was not to apologize. we have nothing to apologize for. >> reporter: sheriff william shotman reopened the cold case seven years ago. police hat never made an arrest but considered watkins their only suspect. watkins told authorities she last saw her son leave to walk the pet collie and another dog. they were asked to reexamine the evidence using the latest photo graphic technology. >> they decided that it was possible that dogs actually grabbed ahold of the boy's clothing so tight th

michelle franzen has details. >> good morning, jena excerpts focus on the couple's relationship and mrs. obama's transition from the workforce to behind the scenes force as first lady in the white house. a role some aides say caused friction with key advisers. the white house is causing this a psychiatr a string of second-hand accounts. first lady michelle obama has carved out a public role, championing programs to support military families and fight childhood obesity. >> teaching our kids how to make healthier choices. >> long been known for her fashion sense, and those toned ar arms. but excerpts out from a new book due out this week, paints a portrait of the first lady exercising her political muscle inside the white house, sparring with her husband's top aides about policies, her duties, and life in the public eye. >> the only currency in washington is proximity to power and no one closer to the president than the first lady. it leads to suspicions and game playing and gossip and rumor, and i think this book touches on some of that. >> reporter: the obamas is based on interviews wit

nbc's michelle franzen is in state college with more on some of the tributes being paid this morning to paterno. michelle, good morning, good day to you. controversial final days were, this is very heartbreaking news. >> that's exactly right, alex. of course in the last few months since last fall when joe paterno was fired in the wake of jerry sandusky sexual abuse case, he was revered and continues to be revered by many here at penn state. of course, leading the tonight annie lions for 46 seasons, part of the football program here for six decades. many people saying his career, his life, legacy, unmatched, not only in college football but in -- at colleges throughout the country. of course, as you mentioned, condolences and grief taking place here all around the campus and condolences coming in from around the country, including from former president george h.w. bush. he says he considers positive the earn owe a friend and his statement says he was an outstanding american who sing respected not only on the field of play but in life generally. and he was without a doubt a true icon in

nbc's michelle franzen has the latest on the story. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, ann.at the house where ayla was last seen in december and where police confirm they found blood matching ayla's in the basement where her father has his room. kbrarts are still waiting for additional test results to come back and ayla's family is holding out hope she's alive. new clues in the case of missing toddler ayla reynolds. investigators confirm some of the blood found in justin depietro's basement matches the 21-month-old who vanished. >> there were hundreds of pieces of potential evidence taken. among them, blood we found in the basement. the crime lab continues to work on the evidence. >> reporter: the blood, investigators say was collected in the initial weeks after ayla's disappearance. they are waiting for the results of further testing. in a statement, ayla's family said the police told them they found, quote, more blood than a small cut would produce, adding they still cling to hope that she's found alive. police have not charged anyone with the crime or called anyone a susp

nbc's michelle franzen joins us. >> he's already the leader of the colbert nation.s hinting he may want to talk his name into the political ring maybe. >> i have a major announcement to make. >> bordering on the serious. stephen colbert hinted on the colbert report he is considering a presidential run. >> for my possible candidacy for the president of the united states of south carolina. i'm doing it. >> before making announcement, the political commentator handed over the control of the very real super pac he created last summer. >> i want to form the super pac for all the pacless americans. >> showing on the show how politicians are legally barred from running their own organization. >> you can't have the pac. you could have it run by somebody else. >> i think there may be a guy. jon? >> using jon stewart of an example of how friends and colleagues can oversee a super pac as long as they don't coordinate with the candidates. analysts call it a funny take on the latest loophole when campaign finance reform and the game-changer of presidential politics. >> it allowe