. >>> an nbc news exclusive. the leader of iran, what he thinks about the fate of those jailed hikers and the controversial plan to put an islamic center near ground zero. >>> holy grail. will there ever be a safe pill for weight loss? tonight, the fate of one that was supposed to be a block buster is hanging in the balance. >>> and saying goodbye to edwin newman, whose brilliant career made us all better. "nightly news" begins now. captions paid for by nbc-universal television >>> good evening. if there is a lesson from last night, here it is. the tea party is for real, in case anyone had any doubts. and within the republican party, you could see some veteran politicians adjusting to that idea after watching a few establishment politicians go down to defeat last night. they were primary elections last night in a number of important places and races. the message of voter discontent, and the status quo, loud and clear. while that was last night's result, and november is something else entirely, lots of people awok

lee cowan, nbc news, los angeles. >>> that's "nbc nightly news."y night "football night in america" is coming up next followed by the jets versus the dolphins. thanks for watching, everyone. dolphins. thanks for watching, everyone. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com and the 60-day handshake lives on, [ male announcer ] it's ram truck season. that five-finger bond that communicates trust, honor, follow-through, and follow-up. it's a promise that says go ahead and buy a ram 1500 or a heavy duty without a payment for 60 days. and if it doesn't do everything you ask it to do... bring it back. ram.

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lee cowan, nbc news, los angeles. >>> that's "nbc nightly news."y night "football night in america" is coming up next followed by the jets versus the dolphins. thanks for watching, everyone. dolphins. thanks for watching, everyone. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

hollywood in hot pursuit of a whole new audience. >>> from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news." >>> investigators get the first close-up look at critical piece of machinery that was supposed to have prevented the massive bp oil spill. the 300-ton blowout preventer that should have sealed off the flow of oil after the deep water horizon rig exploded is tonight an important piece of evidence. after being carefully lifted from the seafloor last even under the careful eyes of the fbi. the full explanation of the explosion that killed 11 workers is undetermined, but now investigators are a step closer to learning how it rapidly unfolded into the largest environmental disaster. anne thompson was on board the ship that retrieved the blowout preventer and joins us from new orleans with more. anne. >> reporter: good evening, lesser. the blow joet prevent ee eer is the custody of the fbi tonight making its way to shore and to a nasa facility in louisiana where it will be inspected for evidence as investigators try to answer the question of why it failed. it emerged

rehema ellis, nbc news, new york. >> and a reminder, next week we'll talk all about this. nbc news will host education nation, a nationally broadcast indepth conversation about improving education in this country, starting sunday, september 26th on the networks of nbc. for now, for us, that's our broadcast for this wednesday night. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. as always, hope to see you back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> good evening. >> police about to lose what may be one of its biggest gang prevention tools. parents are angry about cuts that could lead to the police athletic league. >> practice is going

michelle kosinski, nbc news, broward county, florida. >> and a program note, nbc news will host a majorducation summit on the plaza here in rockefeller center in new york. education nation, a nationally broadcast in-depth conversation about improving education in america. it all starts september 26th on the networks of nbc. >>> here's something to inspire everyone going back to work after this long weekend. researchers at princeton have taken on the age old question, does money really buy happiness? they found that, yes, it does, but only up to a point. how much money does it take to be happy? according to this study, $75,000 a year. if you make more than that, researchers say it probably won't add to your day-to-day feelings of happiness. >>> when we come back, how in some ways the work week never really ends for a whole lot of us. >>> on this labor day, vice president joe biden marched in the parade in toledo, ohio campaigning with governor ted stick land, who faces a tough re-election fight. it was one of many labor day celebrations held across the country. >>> if you checked your wo

kate snow, nbc news, new york. >>> when we come back, a medal of honor for an act of heroism that was kept secret for 42 years. >>> at a white house ceremony, the president awarded the medal of honor to a military hero. however, air force chief master sergeant richard etchberger was not there to receive the honor. he died in the line of duty in march of 1968. it's because of his mission and because of where he died in laos that it's taken this long. we were not supposed to be in laos on that day in 1968. he intentionally exposed himself to enemy fire to place three wounded men on board rescue choppers. they were under attack by thousands of enemy and as they flew away, ground fire hit and killed him. the president today said this was all a part of righting a wrong from an entire era. >> today, also marks another chapter in a larger story of our nation finally honoring that generation of vietnam veterans who served with dedication and courage but all too often, were shunned when they came home. which was a disgrace. it must never happen again. >> his three sons were there today. at the

robert bazell, nbc news, new york. >>> when we come back, another health issue. the latest place where we're told the bed bugs are biting in this country. it's just so frustrating. the middle of this special moment and i need to run off to the bathroom. i'm fed up with always having to put my bladder's needs ahead of my daughter. so today i'm finally talking to my doctor about overactive bladder. [ female announcer ] if you're suffering, today is the day to talk to your doctor and ask about prescription toviaz. one toviaz pill a day significantly reduces sudden urges and accidents all day and all night. plus, toviaz comes with a simple plan with tips on food and drink choices. if you have certain stomach problems or glaucoma or cannot empty your bladder, you should not take toviaz. toviaz can cause blurred vision and drowsiness, so use caution when driving or doing unsafe tasks. the most common side effects are dry mouth and constipation. [ jackie ] i asked my doctor about toviaz. and today i'm looking forward to my daughter's wedding. [ female announcer ] why wa

we are at this hour debuting a new nbc news "wall street journal" poll. while there is some good news here for the democrats who may be worried about a blood bath, sweeping losses at the upcoming mid-term elections have been predicted. there is really bad news if you're an incumbent office holder of either party. the voters increasingly don't want to hear it. they want some things someone else, and something new. our nbc news political director chief white house correspondent, chuck todd, here with us to start us off. >> good evening. we'll start with the number everybody asks about five weeks before the election and that is, this generic ballot question. who's up? who's down? what do you prefer. last month, it was a nine-point advantage for the republicans. now, the lead has shrunk to six. the mood of the electorate hadn't changed. they want change. they don't like the direction of the country and democrats are starting to engage african-americans and hispanics. as peter hart, our pollster put it, democrats can change the turnout but not the landscape. bu

rehema ellis, nbc news, new yo. >> and a reminder, next week we'll talk all about this.ion nation, a national broadcast indepth convsation about improving education in this country, starting sunday, september 26th on the networks of nbc. for now, for us, that's our broadcast for this wednesday night. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. as always, hope to see you back here tomorrow evening. good night. orrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com four years ago, bob ehrlich got fired as governor of maryland. for good reason.

kate snow, nbc news, new york. >>> when we me back, a medal of honor for an act of heroism that was kept secret for 42 years. heroism that was kept secret for 42 years. this is steven, a busy ma. his day starts with his arthritis pain. that breakfast with two pills. the morning is over, it's timfor two more pills. the day marches on, back to more pills. and when he's finally home... but hang on; just two aleve can keep arthritis pain away all day with fewer pills than tylenol. this is steven, who chose aleve and 2 pills for a day free of pain. and get the all day pain relief of aleve in liquid gels. the middle of this special moment and i need to run off to the bathroom. 'm fed up with always having to put my bladder's needs ahead of my daughter. so today i'm finally talking to my doctor about overactive bladder. [ female announcer ] if you're suffering, today is the day to talk to your doctor and ask about prescription toaz. one toviaz pill a day significantly reduces sudden urges and accidents all day and all night. plus, tovi comes with a simple plan with tips on food and drink choice

jackie benson, 4:nbc news. >>> here comes another surge. looking at the radar over the last three hours mainly into our western suburbs. moderate to heavy rain. we also have some indication maybe some circulation aloft has the leading edge moves into western fairfax, loudon county. gusty winds may cause tree limbs to come in. we see that area of yellow. that's the heaviest rain. that's just moving out of culpepp culpepper. that's heading up towards prince william. maybe another half hour or so should be in fairfax county, loudon county, wst of washington. right now temperatures are in the 60s to near 70 degrees. and we do have more rain, another surge perhaps coming in another couple hours from the south and the metro ara. chanceor flooding this morning. highs near 80. tomorrow, increasing clouds. more rain tomorrow afternoon and evening. jerry, how is the traffic? >>> at the moment it is relatively quiet, which is good news. here's another angle on route 66 in manassas. road spray. potential of slick roadways this morning. of course we'll

>> john yang at our nbc news bureau in kabul tonight. john, thanks. >>> grim story in the news today in this country for the fourth time in the last few weeks, a teenager has taken his own life after being taunted and humiliat for being gay. in this case, a young man was recorded via hidden camera in what he thought was private was being play out over the internet. it combines the era of oversharing with the ultimate cruey. our story tonight from nbc's mike taibbi. >> reporter: he was an exuberant student and gifted musician who graduated high school with honors and scholarships. but the body of 18-year-old tyler clemente was pulled from the hudson river just days aft two of his rutgers college freshman classmates allegedly secretly videotaped him during a sexual encounter with another man and streamed that video live. three days later, reportedly wrote on his facebook page, jumping off the g.w. bridge, sorry. but there's a growing chorus of voices saying this is an incident of not just of cyber bullying but of cyber gay bashing. >> that

kristen welker, nbc news, los angeles. >>> that's "nbc nightly news" for this saturday.'m lester holt reporting from new york. see you tomorrow morning on "today" then right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> good evening. pg&e faces a possible class action lawsuit tonight in connection with

kate snow, nbc news, new orleans. >> great story to end on on a thursday night along with our thanks,being here with us. >> now, a few things to remind you of. nbc sports coverage of the saints versus the vikings. come to think of it somebody did mention a game in town tonight. it begins here at 7:30 eastern time. tomorrow night, thanks to the miracle of the jet age we'll be in los angeles for this broadcast and then for the live special benefit broadcast across the network "stand up to cancer." at 8:00, 7:00 central. then "new orleans, an american story" at 10:00 p.m. eastern on msnbc. that should do it. i'm brian williams reporting from new orleans. we hope to see you tomorrow evening. we hope to see you tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com i even bought her a computer with my new citi forward card. then one day... have you seen this? she "friended" me. there's a whole album. [ laughs ] [ groans ] and started posting pictures. ♪ and tagging me. publicly. [ male announcer ] you ought to be rewarded for being dependable.

we can reveal tonight that shortly after the crisis began, nbc news called the discovery channel headquarters when lee himself grabbed the phone and an nbc producer spoke to him for about ten minutes and recorded the conversation. >> do you have a gun? >> i have a gun. i have a bomb. i have several bombs strapped to my body ready to go off. >> reporter: nbc news elected not to reveal the conversation with lee until the hostage crisis was over. just shy of four hours after the stand-off started, police decided to shoot the suspect. >> based on the information that we had, we believed that it was -- that the hostages' lives were in danger. >> reporter: records show lee started protesting outside discovery's headquarters more than two years ago, handing out a rambling leaflet that called for discovery to have more coverage of overpopulation and animal extinction. he was arrested in february of 2008 and pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct. members of the bomb squad tell me they plan to spend much of the night inside that building making safe at least four suspicious devices. discovery representa

officials tell nbc news nine american service members were killed in that crash. u.s. officials say there was no sign of hostile fire, and deny claims that the taliban had shot down the aircraft. >>> former president jimmy carter is trying to clarify comments he made to nbc's brian williams that his post-presidential work has been "superior to that of his successor." after his comments aired last night, carter released a statement saying that he was referring to opportunities from his organization, the carter center. >>> a washington state woman who splashed acid on her face and claimed she was attacked is now facing charges. charged filed yesterday relate to nearly $28,000 in donations that were collected to help pay for the woman's treatment after the incident. >>> an english woman who sparked international outrage after she was seen dumping a cat into a trash bin has been charged with two counts of animal cruelty. this could lead to a lifetime ban of keeping animals. >>> and brazilian authorities say more than 100 people were hurt after a section of bleachers collap

mike taibbi, nbc news, new york. >>> when we come back here tonight, extreme makeover, the white house edition. >>> a new survey may shock so-called helicopter parents everywhere. 30% of british adults admit they find playing with their kids boring. half the parents surveyed said work and chores make it difficult to find time to play with their kids at all. not so shocking, more than half the kids wish they had more quality time with their parents. >>> plastic shopping bags may be about to go the way of public smoking in california. state lawmakers are set to vote on a plastic bag ban arguing the 19 billion of them that are used per year are bad for the environment and cost the state $25 million a year to dump in the landfills. the plastic bag industry has been furiously opposed to the bill, calling it a job killer. >>> while the first family was on summer vacation, we now know what was going on back at the white house. the carpenters and rug people and paperhangers were busier than a paperhanger. and today, the redecorated oval office made its debut to mixed reviews, especially when c

nbc news immediately notified police once the conversation began.nd nbc "nightly news" will have more on the audio in just a moment at 5:30. there's much more audio from the interview. it lasted for about ten minutes. >>> for the first time in two decades, the number of undocumented immigrants has dropped in the united states. the study from the pew hispanic center estimates there were many undocumented immigrants, a drop of 8% or about 1 million immigrants from a peak of 12 million undocumented immigrants in 2007. the struggling economy and increased immigration enforcement are considered likely factors in the apparent drop. nearly a quarter of the undocumented immigrants live in california, about 2.5 million. >>> have you ever been able to spend a day working from home? for those that can swing it it can be a freeing, relaxing experience. it's all thanks to modern internet technology. if it works for work, then why not school? nbc bay area's report on teachers, students and parents are saying -- yes! >> reporter: how can a student go to school at

the state of georgia's age of sexual consent is 16 years old. >>> today nbc news is proud to kick off "education nation" here at 30 rock. it is a special week of programming, designed to shed a light on growing concerns over american students and schools. a new nbc news "wall street journal" poll finds well over half of americans believe public grade schools need major changes or a complete overhaul. nbc's michelle franzen is is standing by. good morning to you, michelle. >> reporter: good morning, venk kaw. veronica. what look goods around the country and what doesn't. a start on national education a that many say is long overdue. at a town hall, kicking off "education nation" -- >> and good afternoon and welcome to our teacher town hall. >> reporter: -- teachers from around the country highlighted ways to inspire children in the classroom. >> all students can learn as long as teachers are committed, passionate, and held accountable to standards. >> reporter: many also voiced frustration and searched for ways to improve the nation's education system. >> there shouldn't be a lottery f

. >> reporter: shortly after the incident began, nbc news called the discovery channel. lee grabbed the phone. an nbc producer spoke with him for about ten minutes and recorded his words. >> do you have a gun? >> i have a gun and i have a bomb. i have several bombs strapped to my body ready to go off. >> reporter: nbc news notified police and agreed to withhold the tape until the crisis was over. a website, apparently posted by lee, contains a long, ranting list of demands. among them, the discovery channel "stop encouraging the birth of any more parasitic human infants." brian mooar, nbc news, silver spring, maryland. >>> now here's a look at some other stories making news early today in america. police in washington state are hoping security video will help them catch two suspected puppy thieves. a woman is seen grabbing a chihuahua and stuffing it into a backpack while a man blocks with his body. the couple then attempts to create a diversion, picking up and petting another puppy before leaving the store. >>> one man is in custody after florida police and the coast gua

lee cowan, nbc news, anchorage, alaska. >> nbc news learned that republican leaders in the house of representatives will unveil a pledge to america tomorrow morning. 21-page document that outlines what they will do if they regain control of congress. they are promising to cut taxes, cut federal spending back to '08 levels, repeal president obama's health care reform law, and end government control of the mortgage giants fanly may and freddie mac. democrats immediately blasted mostly the tax portion of the pledge, saying it will increase the deficit by giving tax cuts to millionaires. >>> one more note on health care reform. it's been six months now since congress passed the obama plan. and so major provisions of it go into effect tomorrow among them, dependents will now be covered under their insurance plans up to age 26. children under age 19 can no longer be denied coverage because of preexisting medical conditions. and insurers will no longer be allowed to put lifetime limits on coverage. >>> when other broadcast continues on a wednesday snigtd, life saving cancer drugs that cost a fortune. whet

news" begins now. captions paid for by nbc-universal television >>> good evening. last night at this time it was the biggest storm on the planet, but in a fortunate and welcome turn of events, the hurricane named earl, once a raging and grinding category four, is tonight barely a category one. it took its time but now it's making all the right turns. and a lot of people owe a huge debt of thanks to the air that came rushing across the country to shred the storm and to push the storm out to the east on the friday before labor day weekend. while, sadly, parts of new york -- you see it there -- and new england are still in for a storm, it is nothing close to what it almost was. we want to begin our coverage tonight where the storm is. peter alexander in montauk at the tip of new york's long island. peter, good evening. >> reporter: brian, good evening to you. there are more battering waves hitting this coast tonight, but be clear. there is also great relief here that this storm has largely stayed out at sea. still, by the end of today, 13 states will have felt the imp

frances kuo, nbc news. >>> a look at some other stories making news early today in america. in alabama a police officer is recovering after a bizarre series of accidents sent him to the emergency room. the officer was first thrown 50 yards off his motorcycle when it crashed and caught fire. this after a vehicle moved out of line during a funeral procession. an ambulance responded to the scene but soon after en route to the hospital it overturned and caught fire. the officer suffered multiple broken bones and significant trauma to his legs and arms. >>> more than 25,000 people filled new york's central park for a five kilometer race for the cure. politicians, celebrities and other supporters ran alongside an estimated 1,600 cancer survivors, raising money and awareness for the fight against breast cancer. >>> and in new mexico, eating champ joey chestnut is at it again, setting a new world record at a burrito eating championship. oh, wow. chestnut wolfed down an inkred 47 burritos in a mere -- the previous record of 33 1/2 beef, green, and pepper stuffed tortillas. oh, my goo

mike taibbi, nbc news, new york.rimp pasta... to new creations, like crunchy parmesan shrimp. our best value of the year, endless reasons to get together. during endless shrimp, right now at red lobster. dr. scholl's back pain relief orthotics with shockguard technology give you immediate relief that lasts all day long. dr. scholl's. visit our facebook page to save $3. [ but aleve can last 12 hours. tylenol 8 hour lasts 8 hours. and aleve was proven to work better on pain than tylenol 8 hour. so why am i still thinking about this? how are you? good, how are you? [ male announcer ] aleve. proven better on pain. >>> that's it for this abbreviated sunday night edition of "nightly news," football night in america is up next. and then, the redskins host the cowboys on "sunday night football." i'm kate snow reporting from new york. for all of us here at nbc news, york. for all of us here at nbc news, have a great night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

i've failed. >> reporter: lisa myers, nbc news, washington. >>> when "nightly news" continues in just a moment, a new look at the state of women's health in this country, where we are and where we need to be. >>> it started with thomas alva edison more than 100 years ago. it pretty much ends tonight. >>> as of tonight, the results are in from a kind of national checkup for american women. that's because of a new report that came out just today from the prestigious institute of medicine. it looks at where things are improving for women and where they are not. we have a look at all of it tonight from our chief science correspondent robert bazell. >> reporter: like so much of health moves, the status report on women's health is a mixture of good and bad. >> there's some conditions where we've had really game changers, but there are a whole lot of others where we've had little progress and where we think the kinds of recommendations we make will increase the progress in the future. >> reporter: the most progress the report said has been made against heart disease, breast cancer and cervic

rahema ellis, nbc news, new york. >>> tonight at 7:00 on nbc nightly news with brian williams a close-upt the obama administration's race to the top. what makes this program different from all the other education programs that came before it? >> and that is news 4 at 4:00 p.m. >> stay right there. news 4 at 5:00 starts right now. >> announcer: you're watching nbc 4, washington's news leader. now live in hd, this is news 4 at 5:00. >>> strong storms slam the region from heavy rain and wind to a tornado warning that was in effect. ur crews have been busy assessing the damage as anothe round of wet weather rolls in. well, we signed up for it and we're getting it good, folks. >> toppled trees, power outages. the weather is creatinging problems and it's not over yet. we have live team coverage but we begin with our chief meteorologist doug kammerer with a flash flood watch in effect. >> it will be in effect through tomorrow. that's because we have a lot of rain still in the offing. some areas with two to three inches of rain. now jus cloud cover around the region. even a couple of breaks in t

i'm steve handlesman, nbc news, washington. >> some sad news for you from the world of sports. hall of fame quarterback george blanda died. he was 83. blanda was seemingly ageless playing longer than anyone else in pro football history. he retired a month shy of his 49th birthday. after playing ten years with the chicago bears, part of a season with baltimore, seven with the houston oilers and the final nine seasons with the raiders. he scored 2,002 points in his career which was a record at the time of his retirement. his scorecard, a long one. also kicked 335 field goals and 943 extra points. >>> well, still ahead tonight at 5:00, bagging the fees. the airlines argument against giving you a refund for your lost luggage. >> and a pricey and popular juice is in the crosshair of health officials. why the company is facing charges tonight. >> not so happy. the battle between san francisco and fast food restaurants. >> and our education nation series has a look at a growing trend in schools that has some questioning whether it works. >> keeping an eye on the hot temperatures all a

that has some school districts looking at new ways to fight back. nbc's kate snow has our report. >> does anyone know what any of these are? >> reporter: it's only the second week of school at belmont elementary in maryland, and already these students are getting a valuable lesson in a program called project change. >> no child can say they haven't bullied or haven't been bullied. >> reporter: maggie should know. at 17, she says she's been both a victim of bullying and to be honest, she's done some things she's not proud of. >> play ground at lunch, i took chalk and i wrote her name and i wrote she was stupid. >> reporter: it's happening all over the country, at younger and younger ages. often online. >> someone said, oh, this person still sleeps with a blanky or that person still sucks their thumb. >> reporter: the principal figures talking about bullying before it starts might keep it out of the classrooms. >> they'll be able to identify it, recognize it, and hopefully seek appropriate assistance when it happens to them. >> reporter: belmont is doing a

it's got to be an anxious time for people at nbc news and nbc news in particular because comcast is coming in, and their long-time leader leaving "30 rock." >> yes. and you know, jeff was never going to survive the merger. comcast wants to come in, they want to impose their own executive culture on the company. as you pointed out in your introduction, jeff is blamed for a lot of blunders at the network. and even though comcast is getting nbc, the broadcast network is still the public face if you will of the company, the television portion of that company. so he was never going to survive this merger. >> right. although he gave indications that he thought he might. but i guess he knew he wasn't. eric, what is jeff zucker's legacy in terms of the news edition but also in terms of primetime entertainment? >> well, jeff zucker's legacy is complicated. the news division was relatively successful and enjoyed a lot of successful transitions as you pointed out. but there were a lot of missteps in the primetime and the entertainment side of the network. everything from failing to develop a successo

news" begins now. captions paid for by nbc-universal television >>> good evening. it's always been the american ideal, part of the american way, pushing ahead, always getting better, always improving, a future always brighter than our past. but tonight in the new nbc news polling numbers debuting today, americans are losing hope in the future of their country in greater numbers now. our new numbers contain bad news for the president and bad news for his party. a lot of it because the economy is beyond bad and it's been that way for quite a while. and we begin tonight with our political director, chief white house correspondent, chuck todd. just a grim set of numbers this time. >> it really is. and the pessimism isn't about the now, it's about the future. look at this first number. is america in a state of decline? 65%, two-thirds of the country, agrees that america is in a state of decline. that sort of sets the mood. then we asked them, is the country headed on the wrong track or the right direction? look at this. 61% say the wrong direction. to put this in some pe

. >> reporter: for "today" savannah guthrie nbc news, new york. >> for more we turn to john harwood, chief correspondent for cnbc. you can't make this stuff up. i don't know where to start. let's start with the anger out there. are people just angry in general and does that not make this election somewhat unpredictable? >> well, it does. we have had a volatile season all year long, but so much of it stems from the economy. when you've got nearly 10% of the american people out of work, 15 million americans looking for jobs, that is a recipe for frustration, for looking at washington and saying, you're not solvinging my problems, you're not making my life better. is the life of my kids going to be better than mine? people are pessimistic about the economy. that's a rough thing for incumbents to endure. >> you hosted the town hall this week with the president. we heard a little bit, but there was more than one person who stood up and said supporters of the president who expressed some disappointment that he hasn't taken us where they thought he would take us by now. the president was sm

up next, live from new york it's saturday night -- almost. first this is "today" on nbc. 's schools. what were the facts? fact: march 7, 2000. brown asks voters for new mayoral power to appoint school board members. he gets it, and promises better schools. but the drop out rate increases...50%. the school budget goes into a 100 million dollar deficit. the schools become so bad...the state has to take them over. it was "largely a bust," he admitted. jerry brown. failure as governor. failure as mayor. failure we can't afford now. >>> live from new york it's almost saturday night. the venerable comedy show kicked off its 36th season here on nbc. coming off a big success of betty white's award-winninging tu turn as host can they keep up the momentum. >> hi. i'm amy poehler hosting "saturday night live" this week with katy perry. >> who was "i kissed a girl about". >> i think we know. and you more than liked it. you loved it. >> that was a long time ago. >> studio 8-h was charged with energy. >> now i'm nervous. >> snl alum and "parks & recreation" star amy poehler said she's b

nancy snyderman, nbc news, new york. >> when we come back, i want you to meet a couple of friends of who are here with us for tonight's "stand up to cancer" event. ere with us for tonight's "stand up to cancer" event. are you suffering from frequent heartburn ? try new zegerid otc. it's the first 24-hour treatment with two active ingredients: prescription-strength medicine plus a protective ingredient so it's effectively absorbed. for 24-hour relief, try dual-ingredient zegerid otc. no oil has flowed into the gulf for weeks, but it's just the beginning of our work. i'm iris cross. bp has taken full responsibility for the clean up in the gulf and that includes keeping you informed. my job is to listen to the shrimpers and fishermen, hotel and restaurant workers and find ways to help. that means working with communities. we have 19 centers in 4 states. we've made over 120,000 claims payments, more than $375 million. we've committed $20 billion to an independent claims fund to cover lost income until people impacted can get back to work. we'll keep looking for oil, cleaning it up if wfi

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a commitment by nbc news to explore it this week. we begin now. of this film, "waiting for superman" debuting this weekend, i want to play a portion of it that talks about a huge challenge we face, one of the disturbing facts in our education system as they show in the movie. >> since the 1970s, u.s. schools have failed to keep pace with the rest of the world. among 30 developed countries, we ranked 25th in math to 21st in science. the top 5% of our students are our very best ranked 23rd out of 29 developed countries. almost every category we've fallen behind. >> and look at a snapshot from our new nbc new "wall street journal" poll on the question of education in terms of the public view of how education is. 77% in our poll give our public schools a c grade or lower. and in terms of the state of public schools, 58% in our poll, if you look at the next grade, 58% believe major changes or complete overhaul is needed. and, indeed, secretary duncan, an overhaul is in the works. where are we right now in terms of reform? >> we've made tremendous progr

todd johnson, nbc news, new york. >> for more on your health, more on "nightly news" at 7:00. >>> massransit riders in maryland have a faster way to commute today, they're using a new version of the smart trip card called the charm card. it may be a chper option, even for commuters on metro. the charm card can be used on maryland's mtabus, subway and light rail system. the card wi also be accepted on metro and some regional buses, including ride on and the fairfax connecter. in turn, smart trip cards can be used wherever charm cards are accepted. the charm card will only cost 2.50. that's half the price of the smart trip card. you can buy them online for 10 bucks with 7.50 preloaded on the card. >>> the commute is looking easier for riders of the bus in prince georges county. operators of that service say most of its bus routes are back in service today. about 100 drivers went on strike last week, looking for better health insance, lunch breaks and better pay. the bus is currently using drivers from other jurisdictions. >>> stay right there, we have a lot more to come on news 4 at 4:00

nbc news, los angeles. >>> that's "nbc nightly news" for this saturday.ster holt reporting from new york. see you tomorrow morning on "today" then right bk here tomorrow evening. good night.

lee cowan, nbc news. t lay, alaska. >> that's our broadcast for this monday night as we start off a new week. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com bob ehrlich pretends to be for the working guy... but he's not on our side. i thought i knew bob ehrlich, but then i found out... he raised property taxes on every maryland family... and business. he increased college tuition... by 40%. 40%. and i thought i knew bob ehrlich. he was against raising the minimum wage. made $2.5 million... working for a lobbying firm. $2.5 million?

and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with "nbc nightly news." and finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. details on what's next for actress lindsay lohan after she failed a court-ordered drug test. >>> and an exclusive interview with identical twin brothers who are suing the founder of facebook, claiming he stole their idea. >>> and now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports and more. i'm lynn berry. thanks for watching "early today." just your first stop of the day, today, on your nbc station. have a good one. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

up next, live from new york it's saturday night -- almost. first this is "today" on nbcew york it's almost saturday night. the venerable comedy show kicked off its 36th season here on nbc. coming off a big success of betty white's award-winninging tu turn as host can they keep up the momentum. >> hi. i'm amy poehler hosting "saturday night live" this week with katy perry. >> who was "i kissed a girl about". >> i think we know. and you more than led it. you loved it. >> that wa a long time ago. >> studio 8-h was charged with energy. >> now i'm nervous. >> snl alum and "parks & recreation" star amy poehler said she's beyond excited to be back. >> she's so talented. she can do the show by herself. i can just relax. >> the show returns on the heels of betty white's emmy-award-winning stint as host by popular demand. >> i can't believe i'm hosting "saturday night live." >> it was a feel-good experience for everyone. it will be hard to match. >> do you think we'll ever catch this guy? like my underwear -- depends. >> at rehearsal thursday they were working on new material to k

lee cowan, nbc news. t lay, alaska. >> that's our broadcast for this monday night as we start off a new week. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams. we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> right now at 6:00, pg&e reese leased more than 20 pages of documents detailing the most high-risk pipelines here in california. i'm lisa kim. >> i'm tom sink co-visit. it has been one of the most asked questions in the wake of the san bruno explosion where are the high-risk pipelines located? in a surprised revelation, the pipeline in san