i'm rob nelson. >> i'm cecelia vega.od to have you here. >> good morning, i'm -- >> smiling. her final day on "world news now." before he goes to l.a. good friday. >> good morning, i'm rob nelson. a new partner in crime. sitting in for a few weeks. welcome, sunny. >> thank you, thank you, so happy to be here. >> it is your last day. everyone. >> oh! my goodness! you guys are going to make me cry. >> there you go. >> sunny's last day. >> oh. thank you. i have had so much fun on this show. the crew is just amazing. dan, you are amazing. rob has been a pleasure to work with. you guys are going to make me cry. >> we put -- >> did you scare the lovely ladies away? >> scared them all off. >> i'm beginning to think it's you. >> hopefully you stick. take a stroll down memory lane out in the field doing your thing. >> here in new york city. couple years ago. for the all-star game. >> you came to us from chicago. another cool town. >> that's me had to put spanx on to get into that dress. >> glam shot. >> air brushed. not air brush

on the first monday of this new year, i'm rob nelson.nd those of you who have been long time viewers of the show, know i have had the pleasure over the last 18 months to sit next to beautiful, smart, charming, charismatic women. the list gets longer by one today. joining us our permanent, permanent, permanent, permanent anchor of "world news now." >> settle down. >> so excited. going to say it like oprah. everybody welcome paula faris to "world news now"! >> wow, thank you. welcome aboard. >> so welcoming. everyone has been welcoming. want to thank everybody at abc news. want to give a shout out to all my family and friend in the midwest. midwest, born and bred. headed to the big apple. i know my mom and dad, back in jackson, michigan, got tevo and dvr so they could watch. >> good mom and dad. >> they're great. >> right now looking at their baby girl doing her thing. let me give you the official welcome gifts here. you are our new permanent anchor. >> mugs. this is the best porcelain money can buy. >> i have something to pour in here. >>

. >> and i'm rob nelson. it's a big day for democracy. we're hours away from the first voting in the race for the white

rob nelson has those stories and more. >> good morning. kodak is refocusing. pioneer photography company announced last night it has filed for bankruptcy. it plans to continue business as usual. it waited too long to an realize digital photography would replace film. closing stores are overstocked with warm clothing that is not selling. -- clothing stores. and drugstores are feeling a little sick because there's not enough illness this year. local investment banker putting up half the money it will take to repair the national washington monument after the earthquake. and a german study finds a messy desk in the office may help employees think more clearly. if it helps them focus better. the effect is greater on conservatives and liberals. i am rob nelson. >> take it away. >> cold this morning, much colder than yesterday at this time. and we have a little snow mainly later this evening and early tonight. a few flurries or disgusting in a few spots. no big whopper moving our way. saturday morning could be a little different. first of all, look at how much colder

. >>> rob nelson now. >> good morning. topping america's money, the american international auto show opens today. but cadillac has already unveiled its newest as it tries to break into a small luxury sports sedan market. ford will shoulder redesigned fusion of showing two types of hybrids. wall street's may be feeling the effects of a disappointing 2011, their bonuses will likely be the lowest. one reason is increasing criticism over compensation on wall street. gas prices are headed up sharply. the average price of a gallon of regular if rose more than 9 cents in the past week. the reason, higher crude-oil prices. audiences at the movies were possessed. the horror film took in more than a $35 million. many of the people who saw it did not like it. i am rob nelson. >>> the wild weather did a favor for some metro riders. make things more bearable. >> yesterday a group of passengers dropped their drawers during the 11th annual no pants metro ride. it started in new york city and is now staged in cities all around the world.

i am rob nelson. >> all right, let's check in with adam caskey. it has been a roller-coaster lately with the weather. >> it really has been. if you look at temperatures last week and this week, freezing rain. temperatures dropping today. >> a streak. >> a little below average by the upcoming weekend. grab the umbrella and raincoat's as you venture out early this morning, because you'll need it later today. prepare for lunchtime and thereafter. let's look at this picture from my facebook friend debbie that she took yesterday morning of the sunrise and snowfall in marshall virginia. i love to comment on the bottom of the screen. she wrote "i am still waiting on snow." i am a follows no lover as well. nothing in sight for the time being. maybe a few areas of very light snow early friday morning. that's all for now. 33 right now in washington, 25 in manassas, 30 degrees in fredericksburg, 28 in winchester. below freezing in many places. a few degrees above freezing at the waterways. clouds increasing right now. not far behind the clouds is the rain, m

rob nelson explains. >> sharon has some gadgets to get you in shape.t monitors your sleep patterns. >> it uses data to wake you up adoptable time so you are not drowsy throughout the day. >> next, and heart rate monitor that has a smartphone application which can enhance your workout. >> your heart rate, calories burned map your bike using gps. >> the jawbone visible to wristband that monitors your activity 24 hours a day. >> if you cannot move for a while, it will buzz to remind you to move around a little. >> those are your "tech bytes." i am rob nelson. >> now i will be confused even more. it used to be on the person's ear. the awkward moments, everybody has had one. >>> i love this necktie. >> precious. >> ipod got this as a christmas gift from the kids. my wife did not think i would wear it. >> your kids are so high tech, going on the internet and putting their picture in. >> i guess teddy said i want to get daddy a necktie. the wife had this idea. it is classic. >>> it will be the coldest air of the year we have seen moving into account this year

i'm rob nelson. >> all right.heck your weather and talk about what to expect tonight. >> well, the roads could get a little dicey into tonight and tomorrow morning. luckily, though, i think it will warm up just enough. by midday-afternoon tomorrow things should be much better. we'll have snow and sleet changing over to freezing rain. 25 in hagerstown. oakland. 10 above. all right! now that's my kind of winter weather. 32 in the district and lexington park. a really mild start where temperatures won't change much. are you just going to go steady or -- notice the areas of snow already widespread from the dakotas down into iowa. increasing clouds later this evening. then we'll see the snow and sleet head into town. you'll notice ice pellets falling from the sky. into the morning hours. then about 4:00 a.m. in the metro area, i'm expecting a brief changeover, maybe an hour or two to some areas of freezing rain. it's a little bit of snow and sleet and a little coat of freezing rain on top of that, then changing over to

i'm rob nelson.e same thing. we're like on the same -- >> great minds. >> what am i thinking right now? >> we're just there, in sync. >> what am i thinking right now? >> i don't know. >> you don't want to know. anyway, i'm paula faris. when so many florida votes are at stake, we heard about romney's mexican heritage in a state with a big latino population, and all about newt gingrich's plans to beef up the space program to stimulate florida's economy. it will be a tough primary race to call next tuesday. >> things are heating up there for sure. they're all trying to court hispanics and really whoever emerges out of florida you think then would kind of really become the new front-runner, and more and more polls suggest really florida could be gingrich country. so we will see how it plays out. >>> also this morning, terrifying images showing a homegrown radical targeting the military in the washington, d.c. area. what federal agents are learning about this gunman. >> that's a little frightening. >>> an

." >> rob nelson. welcome aboard. >> showers across, spokane, spokane? right? >> spokane. oh!f the things we do best, mix serious and fun. the world you are walking into. >> crewcut, bad hair, wait till you see what we have coming up. >> we'll reflect on the year, 1992. what were you doing? what were we doing? our big party continues. stay with us. >>> from all of us at wdvd, channel 11 from raleigh north carolina, we want to where sleepless nights yield to restful sleep. and lunesta can help you get there, like it has for so many people before. when taking lunesta, don't drive or operate machinery until you feel fully awake. walking, eating, driving, or engaging in other activities while asleep, without remembering it the next day, have been reported. abnormal behaviors may include aggressiveness, agitation, hallucinations or confusion. in depressed patients, worsening of depression, including risk of suicide, may occur. alcohol may increase these risks. allergic reactions, such as tongue or throat swelling, occur rarely and may be fatal. side effects may include unpleasant t

i am rob nelson >> . time for traffic and weather. >> not the kind of whether you would expect at the end of january. >> it is frustrating. >> it is not. we beg to differ. >> i want snow in late january and not thunderstorms. we are just dealing with thunderstorms later on this morning. it is kind of muggy outside. >> it is warm out there. >> it is humid. we will start with doppler radar. jumping into the forecast, near culpeper if we have yellow and red on the screen. there's also a little polygon. sometimes when we get the polygon the, that can mean a severe. i will walk back into the weather center and double check my sources. there we go, severe thunderstorm warning in western oil and county rappahannock, southeastern greene county, northern albemarle county until 5:00 a.m.. that little storm could produce winds up to about 50 miles an hour and is moving to the northeast at 60 miles an hour. this is our first severe thunderstorm so far this morning. we could see more them especially as the yellow line

i'm rob nelson. >> alisa clark 17.e we go again. >> if this will be some good weather. >> this week will be near 40 every afternoon for the most part with the exception of tomorrow. >> what is normal right now? >> 43. we are close to normal. except for tomorrow with a weather maker coming into town. >> you will not high it's up -- hype it up? >> no. 12 degrees in inwood. 13 in steven cityville and western port -- in stephens city and westernport. those were some of the coldest temperatures i could find. in dallas, tx, 59 degrees. that's warmer weather will move our way tomorrow. we will have preforming trend on tuesday. then temperatures fall back down for the rest of the work week. here's the satellite and radar composite. we have clear skies right now sunshine this morning and for the majority of the day. some clouds to our southwest will drift overhead later this afternoon. if we will have an increase in the clouds. the area of low pressure, which is still a young system, that will move closer to washington tomorrow

here is rob nelson. >> new netflix numbers are encouraging despite the companies' mistakes last year. 20 million netflix subscribers worldwide watch more than 2 billion hours in the last three months. that vindicates the decision last wyear to split services. kodak is about to declare bankruptcy. investors dumped its stock yesterday. the company failed to capitalize on digital cirphotography. downloads are a big part of the resurgence in the music industry. for the first time in seven years album sales last year rose. british singer a dell was a big factor. that was the best-selling album in the u.s. digital cd sales fell, but downloads more than made up for that. i am rob nelson. >>> forget about circling april 15 on your calendar, the irs is postponing this year's deadline to file income taxes until two days later. taxpayers have until april 17 to file their 2011 return. if april 15 falls on a sunday this year. the following day is emancipation day. people requesting an extension will have until october 15 to file. >>> it's that time again. start crunching the numbers. we doubled ou

i'm paula faris. >> and i'm rob nelson.he vote by a very comfortable margin, easily taking the race away from jon huntsman and ron paul. we'll hear from the front-runner and see what's next in the critical state of south carolina. >>> and also this morning, what a major boost for a sagging american industry. detroit's automakers are seeing the light at the end of the recession's tunnel. we'll show you what's driving all the new enthusiasm that is great for the american economy. >> more and more people bought cars in 2011. so the numbers are up. and that is good news for everybody, especially these days. >> and great for my home state. >> that is right, you michigan girl. later this half hour, too, making some money off all those returned christmas gifts. you didn't want this stuff and the store didn't want any of it either. so see who's selling this perfectly good merchandise and what a deal we can find. >> can't we all just be grateful? >> yeah. did you really -- every christmas present you ever got, did you really want it

i'm rob nelson. >> and i'm paula faris.f a joint session of congress and millions of americans at home president obama laid out what he calls his blueprint for an america built to last. he got 37 standing ovations from democrats. republicans said they felt like he was lecturing them. we'll go live to capitol hill in a moment for more on the president's address. again, 37 standing os. and we were counting all of them. >> yes. people love to count those standing os. but a very interesting message last night. the president, kind of fairness seemed to be one of the central themes there in terms of people having a fair share, getting a fair shot, all of us playing by the same rules there. so it was kind of laying out an aje agenda but also rebutting some of the gop attacks he's facing as the primary race goes on. >> but they went a little defensive, too, the republicans in congress. >> their pre-buttal in just a second. >>> also the common household chemical that could prevent your kids' vaccines from actually working. from item

i'm rob nelson. >> i'm paula faris. it's not easy being the front-runner in new hampshire this morning when occupy protestors and all the gop opponents come out swinging with some hooks and jabs. see how mitt romney is responding to all this political noise on the eve of the new hampshire primary. >> so far he has done a good job staying above the fray, even keel, appearing presidential, that kind of thing. >> doesn't appear flustered. >> up by 20 points. helps your confidence. this morning, an adventure in africa that nearly turned tragic for a tourist taking a 365 foot bungee jump the cord broke. how the victim swam to safety with broken bones and legs tangled up. unbelievable video. just unbelievable survival. how anyone. >> 1% of you wants to bungee jump don't do it after seeing that video. later this half-hour, an attempt to mix arithmetic and history lessons turns to outrage when some word problems in math class bring up the ugly topic of slavery. a story that is incomprehensible here in the 21st century. >> don't

. >> and i'm rob nelson.ndidates for the republican presidential nomination faced off last night in florida. all eyes of course were on mitt romney and newt gingrich as the two attacked each other and their records. of course overnight we also got our first look at mitt romney's much-discussed taxes. we'll have all the details just ahead. some staggering statistics in just how wealthy mr. romney really is. >> he's really wealthy. >> yes. he could be one of the richest gop candidates ever to run for president. >> no wonder he's got all that money to spend in florida, right? >>> also this morning, rand paul versus the tsa. the senator from kentucky and ron paul's son was stopped by airport security when he refused a pat-down as he was heading back to washington. so was he trying to score political points, or was he standing up for travelers everywhere? and of course his dad had things to say about that as well. >> mm-hmm. and is the car of tomorrow already here, just no one's paying attention just yet? it's the

i'm rob nelson. good morning again, everybody.stem sorts out the captain's latest claims, expert divers have a more urgent job to do this morning as we look at live pictures from italy where some pretty stormy conditions there have slowed down efforts to find those still missing in the shipwreck. >> also this morning another sign that mitt romney's victory this saturday in the south carolina primary is not a slam dunk. newt gingrich is up big-time in the polls. you're going to see why he is appealing to voters. >> new details about, you know, mitt's finances could hurt him a little bit. newt has cut that lead almost in half. could be a big day down south saturday. later this half hour, no need to way for the bartender. check out a new invention that allows you to serve yourself beer. my prayers have been answered. thank you, lord. we'll show you how it works. >> aren't you the inventor? >> i'd be a rich man. i would not be here. >> and you wouldn't be working next to me? >> not at these hours. >> oh, man. cheers. >>> but first, th

i'm rob nelson. >> and i'm paula faris.faced tough questions in court yesterday as crews continue a difficult search for victims after friday night's disaster. >> you won't believe some of the recordings of this conversation, some of the things that went back and forth. just seeing this guy just had a completely -- >> unconscionable. >> yeah. coward is the right word. just left that ship with people's lives in the balance. >> you can find the entire transcript on abcnews.com as well. >> check it out. we'll get to that in just a minute. that ongoing story there. >>> also this morning, this got a lot of conversation in the office this morning. celebrity chef paula dean admits she has had type 2 diabetes for years now. but can we expect her now to change her popular menu of sugar, spice, and everything rich, fried, and fattening? she had kind of an emotional interview right here at abc. we'll get into that too. >> sugar, spice, and everything nice. right? >> nice, yeah. >>> and later this half hour, a tribute of military brave

i'm rob nelson. >> and i'm paula faris. the final stretch of the fight for south carolina has been a wild ride. a few days ago, it seems like mitt romney would cruise to victory. >> newt gingrich stepped on the gas but ran into a land mine. tahman bradley joins us with more. >> reporter: just as newt gingrich seemed to be coming on strong. a bomb shell from his ex-wife. beginnigingrich may have his pr but so does mitt romney. on the final day of campaigning, mitt romney is trying to hold on to his lead there and his front-runner status. polls in the palmetto state show newt gingrich surging. with rick perry dropping out and endorsing gingrich, there was one less conservative on stage. >> i think the destructive, vicious, negative nature of much of the news media makes it harder to govern this country. and i'm appalled that you would begin a presidential debate on a topic like that. >> reporter: he was referring to the opening question that his ex-wife made about infidelity in an exclusive interview with brian ross. >> he wa

i'm rob nelson. >> and i'm paula faris. >>> a daring nighttime raid by navy s.e.a.l.s has freed an american and a danish aid worker. >> they choppered into the east african nation of somalia. there was a shootout that left at least nine pirates dead. >> jessica buchanan and poul thlsted had been kidnapped nine months ago. >> an interesting sight. the president may have tipped his hand last night in the state of the union. as he entered the house chamber, he pointed to defense secretary leon panetta, standing in the crowd and said this -- >> leon, good job tonight. >> in case you didn't catch that, he said good job tonight. the pentagon team is working to learn more. >>> our other major story is the state of the union address. after laying out his vision to congress, the president gives it a real-world test later today on a stop in iowa. >> before the speech rarks moment of unity in the house chamber. >> reporter: good morning, rob and paula. last night, the president declared that washington is broken. he called for a bipartisan effort to keep the economy growing. they may not agree on the

those are your tech bites, i'm rob nelson. >>> good morning maryland. >>> welcome back. the help cleaned house at the screen actors girld. the group won best ensemble cast, actress and supporting actress. modern family took home best tv comedy. lifetime achievement went to mary tiler moore. she got in to show biz at 18 and last night honored for a lifetime of work. >>> looking at weather today, i think you are going to like the weather if you like the clearer skies. satellite and radar not picking up on a lot. areas northern harford county, a little bit of snow across the area. moving too quickly to accumulate anything. if you want accumulation, head to the knot or around the great lakes, new england. temperatures are a little bit chilly, but the wind behind the front, yes, they are picking up a little bit, west at 7 miles per hour, in to baltimore, 10 dc, 6 easton, hagerstown 12. the wind chill, dress the kids as they are going out the door. 26 on the cold side. bundle them up. 23 frederick. here is your forecast, hour by hour here, as we start you out at 4:00 p.m., 45

i'm rob nelson. >> and i'm paula faris. a bit of a 180 for jon huntsman. he is planning to throw his support to fellow republican mitt romney. it's a major announcement on this final week of campaigning for what may be a make or break south carolina primary. he's expected to do so this morning at an 11:00 a.m. press conference. >> it's so funny how politics work in this country, too. because he just gave an interview days ago saying mitt romney's not given anyone a reason to trust him just yet and here we are it's going to be the endorsement today. it's funny you talk trash about somebody for weekends and then endorse them. it's so weird. also our other big headline this morning is that deadly cruise ship disaster in italy where at least now a half dozen people are confirmed dead. what the captain of that ship did and did not do during the crisis could actually land him behind bars for several years. >> and it is mlk day. later this half hour, we will take you back to the day when martin luther king

. >> and i'm rob nelson. today's new hampshire horse race is all about second place. >> the nation's first primary starting with voting just after midnig midnight. >> t.j. winick is with us. good morning, t.j. >> reporter: rob and paula, good morning. it's primary day here in new hampshire. as you said, the only surprise might be who finishes second to mitt romney. the votes are in in dicksville notch. the tiny vil lauj renowned for casting the first ballots. jon huntsman and mitt romney tied. >> reporter: the former massachusetts governor leads in one poll here by 24 points. yesterday, made one of the biggest slips. >> i like being able to fire people that provide services to me. >> reporter: he was trying to make the case that americans should be able to choose their own health insurance, to drop a company if they liked. >> governor romney enjoys firing people. i enjoy creating jobs. >> reporter: and the multimillionaire front-runner uttered this line earlier. >> i know what it's like to worry if you're goin

i'm rob nelson. >> and i'm paula faris. interstate 75 near gainesville, florida finally reopened last night after a nightmare of a scene early sunday. the terrible conditions that led to the smashup and big questions police face because they closed the road and reopened it just before the accident. >> heartbreaking story. the nearby fire just made for some awful conditions. ten people gone. just an unbelievable scene. >>> also this morning, lessons in bravery from a school principal in the state of new hampshire. she took some pretty big risks to save an autistic boy who ran from the school and into an ice-covered river. >> wow. brave, brave, brave. and later this half hour, reasons to laugh before tomorrow's cutthroat gop primary in florida. some campaign humor as we head into an all-important vote. >> it is getting nasty down there. a few laughs are probably a good thing right about now. so we need a little humor. especially after this next story. >>> we start with that horrific crash scene on inte

i'm rob nelson. >> i'm paula faris. mitt romney's opponents aren't the only ones raising questions about the front-runner. occupy protestors are on the offensive. find out why they're taking aim at romney and hear how romney is responding. >> protestors making their presence felt on the campaign trail. also this morning, a major lead in the murder investigation that took place on royal property. investigators just identified the victim, found not far from the queen of england's country else skate. young girl. sad story. >> we'll lighten up a bit as we tell you about the group of teachers, love this story who, won major lottery jack pots. not once, but twice. going to tell you what you can do to increase your odds of winning every time you play the lottery. and for you, you are a lottery player? >> every now and then. if the jackpot gets up to gazillion, buy a ticket or two. if they have the secret. i'm all ears. teach me. before all of that, mitt romney faces a blistering series of new attack ads set to run this week in

. >> and i'm rob nelson. that freed american hostage is expected to be reunited with her loved ones very soon. >> her rescue was carried out under cover or darkness by an elite team. tahman bradley has the new details. >> reporter: after three months in captivity, jessica buchanan is now safe at a u.s. base in africa. tuesday night, after the state of the union, president obama told buchanan's father that his daughter was rescued from somali pirates by u.s. navy s.e.a.l.s. >> to know she's safe is such a weight off our shoulders. >> reporter: the 32-year-old aid worker spoke with her father shortly after her rescue. her unged described part of the conversation. >> she said i feel safe for the first time in 93 days. the men that risked their lives, you just can't say enough. really, really appreciate it. >> reporter: the men were the elite navy s.e.a.l. team six. the same one that killed osama bin laden. this mission may have been even tougher. >> it's a self-containing unit that can go any place in the world

i'm rob nelson. >>> and i'm paula faris. the balmy, and almost boring winter ends for us today. >> the vase occasion is over. a storm is soaking the northeast. making travel miserable. the big story, those in the midwest, the biggest snowmaker of the season is now bdigging i. >> they were wondering when it was going to hit. >> tada. >> here's tahman bradley. >> reporter: this morning, parts of the country are digging out or cleaning up. a possible tornado ravaged towns in north carolina. the streets were filled with rubble overnight as residents and emergency responders viewed the remains. dozens of homes and buildings were damaged. some completely levels. hundreds without power. >> i got a call about 5:55, saying my grandma's house got hit by a tornado. >> right here. you can see part of the barn that came from that barn right down there. >> trees down. powerlines down. just in that swath. >> reporter: in denver, snow was the problem. and it fell at the worst possible time. right in the middle of rush hour. the roads left d

i'm rob nelson. >> and i'm paula faris. the republicans battled it out in a final debate before tuesday's primary in florida. >> newt gingrich shines at these showdowns. this time, mitt romney came out to beat him at his own game. karen travers has more. >> wouldn't it be nice if people didn't make accusations somewhere else that they won't make here. >> reporter: romney was more aggressive, more confident, more prepared than he has been in recent debates. romney repeatedly slammed gingrich for his work as a consultant for freddie mac. he made it a local issue. >> he should have been anxiously telling the american people that these entities were causing a housing bubble that would cause a collapse. >> reporter: gingrich fired right back. >> governor romney owns shares of fannie mae and freddie mac. >> i don't known stock in either. i know that sounds like an enormous revelation. but have you checked your own investments? you have investments in mutual funds that also invest in fannie mae and freddie mac. >> reporter: ron pa

. >> and i'm rob nelson. mitt romney is on the defensive this morning over how he handles his finances. the campaign now admits that he has accounts in the cayman islands. >> tahman bradley joins us with more. >> reporter: good morning, paula and rob. it's the bottom of the ninth inning in what could be the republican world series. every gop candidate who has won south carolina since 1980 has gone on to clinch the nomination. with the vote in south carolina only two days away, the race has turned bit person it's mitt romney versus the rest of the field. all of the candidates except romney took part in a personhood meeting. >> governor romney, also having become pro-life passed romney-care with tax paid abortion. >> reporter: at one time, he supported abortion rights. he changed his position in 2005. >> this was a decision he made for a political convenience, not an issue of his heart. >> reporter: a cnn/"time" poll shows newt gingrich gaining ground in south carolina. >> if we win on saturday, think i'll be t

i'm rob nelson. >> and i'm paula faris. the next ten days are critical for the republican presidential candidates. next week's primary might be the last chance to stop mitt romney. >> he's celebrating a 16-point victory in the new hampshire primary, followed by ron paul and jon huntsman. >> romney delivering a tough new message in his speech last night. t.j. winick is live in man manchester with the details. good morning, t.j. >> reporter: good morning to you, rob and paula. the next primary is being seen as make or break for several candidates. mitt romney is on a roll. the first republican since 1976 to win both the iowa caucus and now the new hampshire primary. >> thank you, new hampshire. tonight we made history! >> reporter: the former massachusetts governor was gracious. but he didn't back down from recent attacks on his work as a venture capitalist. >> president obama wants to put free enter prize on trial. we have seen desperate republicans join forces with him in the last few days. >> reporter: almost half of the v