tavis: tom brokaw of nbc news. up next, filmmaker darren aronofsky on his latest project, "black swan." [captioning made possible by kcet public television] >> darren aronofsky is a talented director, writer and producer who's previous projects including "the wrestler," "requiem for a dream" and "pi." his latest movie, "black swan," opens friday. here now, scenes from "black swan." >> feel my touch, respond to it. >> i don't want to talk about that. >> you really need to relax. >> it's the role, isn't it? it's all this pressure. i knew it would be too much. i knew it. >> what she's doing here? >> you made me your ultimate. >> the only person standing in your way is you. >> i have my ways. >> nobody's after you. >> please believe me. >> what happened to my sweet girl? she's gone! >> there's buzz on this film but also a lot of buzz on natalie. >> absolutely. >> deserved? >> i think so, yeah. she worked really hard for this, spent a year training, 365 days, five hours a day becoming a ballerina, which is a tall order

tom brokaw, you think about the lame duck session, how the year ends for president obama.the comeback kid, look what he accomplished. on november 3rd after the shellacking, it wasn't supposed to work out this way. what happened? >> let's not get ahead of ourselves. we've got a long way to go and there are still big problems out there. we had a good month, certainly. and it's due, in large part, to the fact that he seemed to be in charge, that he was leading from the front and not from the back, as the good who was kind of consulting with everybody on the hill before he made his decision. he stepped up and the country was ready for this kind of action, and the republicans, i think to some degree, got caught a little flat footed by his eagerness on the way that he wanted to get the deal done. >> let's pick up on that, doris. he signs a signature piece of legislation, the repeal of don't ask, don't tell, that prohibited gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military. this was a way to mitigate some of the damage on the left. look, this was a campaign promise. i got thi

nbc's tom brokaw, historian and author doris kearns goodwin, peggy noonan and bob woodward. i. ♪ to find cleaner, more efficient ways to power flight. ♪ and harness our technology for new energy solutions. [ female announcer ] around the globe, the people of boeing are working together, to build a better tomorrow. that's why we're here. ♪ that's why we're here. [scraping] [piano keys banging] [scraping] [horns honking] with deposits in your engine, it can feel like something's holding your car back. let me guess, 16. [laughing] yeeah. that's why there's castrol gtx... with our most powerful deposit fighting ingredient ever. castrol gtx exceeds the toughest new industry standard. don't let deposits hold your car back. get castrol gtx. it's more than just oil. it's liquid engineering. >>> coming up our round table examines where 2010 has left the country politically and will it be possible for the two parties to find any common ground in 2011? after this brief commercial break. and you...rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle...and go. y

then at christmas time i got one check for $100 from tom brokaw and then i saw my climbing ger and i sold it and i sold my car for $500 that i got from my grandfather in a seedy area in oakland. by string i o spring i had only $2,400. my mother invited me to come and talk to the kids. when i got ready to leave, a fourth grader named jeffery looked me in the aye and he said i've got a piggy bank at home and i'm going to help you build that school. west side school raised 65, 300 pennies. it wasn't the celebrities or the sports heroes or movie stars or if i lan throw pears but children reaching out to children half way around the world to help them build a school. what can you buy with a penny the bay area? probably nothing. in montana you can buy 1/2 tootsie roll. but in afghanistan you can buy a pencil. it's not that's so important but education gives a child hope. you know, if you fight tear riz her rorism it's based in fear but the real enemy is ignorance that bleeds hatred. here in america, afghanistan, africa or pakistan. the way to overcome that i think is through education and

and before that tom brokaw, by the way, the list is tremendous, tom brokaw and jane pauley, john chancellor, the list goes on and on. and i think look, that obviously, you start from the fact that the today show was first. they were there in 1952. >> created the franchise. >> created the franchise, pat weaver did that. and the franchise was created, the people were there. and look, we had great people. and i think we made a number of changes to the today show. we created that first half hour of the today show that we believed at that time was the most important half hour in television news. >> brian williams has increased his lead. >> we are incredibly proud of the job that brian and nbc nightly news has done. obviously they are the dominant evening news program. and i think that's a tribute to the job that the nbc team has done. >> and what's happened since dianne went to abc. >> there's no question that nbc nightly news is more dominant today than it's been to many, many years. and. >> so is abc different since die anne. >> these are all good programs so let's take nothing away from any o

basically composed of what tom brokaw called the greatest generation. that's the environment i grew up. my mother taught school first through with great speed school. there were a couple or three schools where everyone hung out if he will and drink coca-cola and philip glass bottles or moonshine, whatever. but it was a great environment for young person to grow up, and the church was an enjoyable part of the community as well and the core values we learned at home and in church and the school. >> population? >> guest: population would reach at its maximum it probably got up to 200 people may be if you count every dog and cat in town. >> so you were a farm boy as such? >> i grew up about two and a half miles outside. my wife of 47 years actually grew up in speed. >> host: you met her when you were in fourth grade? >> guest: it was in the fourth grade we met. i say sometimes i proposed to her and the fifth grade but that isn't true. we started coming together when we were in high school and ultimately married. >> host: let's go back to speak because that

>> guest: individuals like ross perot and tom brokaw, i mean, a large number. i had a visit from a great secretary defense, bill cohen and his wife janet the first night were second night i was there. lots of people that showed their concern, and you and i both have had a host of lots of cameras for our counterparts, and i found out during my 83 days with an end to a lot of individuals around the world because the letters that can from some of those counterparts that we hosted in our home were unbelievable as well as from around the united states from people all over the country and the support and a tremendous amount. king abdullah came to see me in the hospital. i mean, he is a great individual and we had developed a friendship while he was serving in the special operations in jordan and it's just a lot of people to include both presidents. president bill clinton had came and visited and people like connie stevens. was tremendous. >> host: let's go back and talk about what does it mean to be chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, what does the term and a? >>

my buddy tom brokaw joined the cause today and said the two should make that pledge on the steps of theational institutes of health. he noted cancer kills 443,000 people a year, ten times more than car wrecks. so what do you say, mr. boehner? are you going to let the president one-up you on this? if barack obama can do it, can't you? back in a minute. ♪ [ man ] if it was simply about money, every bank loan would be a guarantee of success. at ge capital, loaning money is the start of the relationship, not the end. i work with polaris every day. at ge capital, we succeed only when they do. whoo! awesome! yes! we've got to get you out of the office more often. ♪ my turn to drive. ♪ [ ted ] for years, i was just a brewer. until one of the guys brought in some fresh bread that he'd made from our pale ale. and from that first bite, i knew my business would never be the same. [ male announcer ] when businesses see an opportunity to grow, the hartford is there. protecting their property and helping them plan their employees' retirement. ♪ beer or bread? [ male announcer ] see how the hartford h

>>> and tom brokaw will join us to talk about a new documentary he's working on. >>> we begin with aase of online bullying that has led to two arrests. in a moment we'll talk exclusively with the target of the harassment. but first jeff rossen is here with the story. >> reporter: this case could be a real game changer sending a very clear message that online bullying isn't just a harmless prank, but can be illegal. two teenagers in connecticut learned that the hard way. arrested and charged for setting up a nasty facebook page. >> it's painful because it's really rude and cruel comments that i know aren't true. >> reporter: there it was on facebook for everyone to see. allie pfeiffer's very own profile, her very own page. >> it was using my name, my birthday, the schools i attend, everything. >> but it was a fake, the profile photo a cow. and as ally read on, the jokes about her weight got even worse. >> it includes chrrisco, farm animals. and under books, it session i don't know how to read. >> reporter: ally became her own investigator, finding online fingerprints and taking the cl

even if you're upset about all the seats that the republicans gained, at least you got to hear tom brokawy a ton of new names. [ imitates tom brokow ] david schweiker, tim hyoolskamp, raul labrador, alan nunnele. [ cheers and applause ] this isn't good. a lot of people went on twitter to complain that the font-size used on ballots was too small. yeah, people who got the small fonts were like, "i can't see anyone i want to vote for!" [ laughter ] people who got the regular size fonts were like, "i can't see anyone i want to vote for! [ laughter ] this is just insane." "what is this thing? get this out of here." there were a lot of big issues on the ballot. yesterday, california turned down prop 19 to legalize marijuana. [ booing ] that's right, but you could tell stoners got desperate during the vote count. they starting shaking the ballot box, like "dude, there's still some more in here. i swear, trust me. you get some use out of this man, i'm telling you." speaking of marijuana, two men in pennsylvania were just arrested after they were caught fighting over stolen weed. [ laughter ] yeah

the cousin who took five year-old clinton and on saturdays to former's joint chiefs of staff also tom brokaw and sam donaldson a cabinet members and political consultants, over two dozen current and former members of congress like a party for a or bob dole or henry hyde even a cameo appearance by larry flint. i spent one solid years interviewing. my wife will tell you, i in my mahan of a strong opinions so she was struck each evening whenever a report on the interviews i would find merit in the view of whatever person i had spoken to that day and one day someone may say impeachment was a travesty hardest the rise to a level of high crimes and misdemeanors us about in the constitution? you cannot argue with that. then some was say lying under oath especially if done by a president of united states. you have a point*. the process was crystallized when night interviewed dick armey in the morning, the conservative republican former house majority leader and after lunch mehta with the democratic fund-raiser extraordinary and premier friend of bill's. dick armey has contempt for bill clinton and c

. >> one of the most fascining feelings that i have heard of our show was when pat buchanan and tom brokaw started talking in 2009 during the health-care debate. i sd, you guys cover the civil rights struggle, 1968. chicago was on fire. that was about as bad as it had gotten, right? pat buchanan said, nope. this is much worse. it is interesting now. when i thought the survors of the clinton administration and the new gingrich congress, but we got together, despite the fact that it seemed so ugly back in the 1990's, we talk about how we did not like each other, when the chips are down, we had to do the right thing. balance forbes -- balance the budget for first time for the first time in a generation. we grow the economy. we did a lot of very positive things together. that is before the hyper partisanship really got fuelled by the new media components. i am not saying that it ishe responsibility of bloggers to be more tactful. the responsibility falls, the responsibility lies and politicians being grown ups and knowing what to filter out. washington has not done a good job at distinguishing

there were notes from tom brokaw, brian williams, barbara walters.done on "60 minutes." i get letters from politicians. ted kennedy, orrin hatch, bill clinton and daniel patrick moynihan, they all wrote me. but of all the letters i've received from politicians, the one i liked best was years ago from senator barry goldwater. i didn't agree with goldwater about much of anything politically, but i admired him a lot personally. and after i wrote a piece about him for "60 minutes" that harry reasoner did, we became good friends. as much as i disliked barry's politics, i couldn't help liking him a lot personally. robert schuller, the pastor of the crystal cathedral in garden grove, california, wrote me a couple of good letters, even though he and i don't agree much about religion. i get christmas cards from the comedienne phyllis diller. even the beautiful loretta young sent me a nice note years ago. of all the letters i've saved, the ones i like best are from friends i worked with-- arthur godfrey, charles kuralt, walter cronkite, garry moore, and harry

north carolina is a small eastern north carolina rural community basically composed of what tom brokaw called the greatest generation. that is the environment i grew up in. my mother taught school they ar. there were a couple of three stores they are in town, and where everyone hung out if you will read it old-timers would gather and drink coca-cola and in a glass bottle can eat moon pies or whatever. >> host: or moonshine. >> guest: or moonshine or whatever. it is a great environment for young person to grow up in and the church was a part of the community as well and the idea was that you learned at home and were reinforced in both church and home. >> host: population? >> guest: population would range i would say at its maximum he got up to 200 people, maybe if you count every dog and cat in town. >> host: you were a farm boy is such? >> guest: i grew up on a farm two and a half miles outside of there. my wife carol of 47 years grew up in the heart. >> host: i think he said when you were in fourth grade. >> guest: it was in the fourth grade we met. i jokingly say sometimes i propose

and it's tyinging into a documentary that tom brokaw hosted that will premiere on friday night on usaement in the u.s., and how far we may still need to go. >> absolutely. >> and you star on "covert affairs," as an actor on the show. what brought you to want to be a part of this psa? >> usa network approached me and a bunch of stars of usa shows to do these psas and i had been involved with "the more you know" campaign before i was doing this show. and i think it's incumbent on anybody in the public eye who can help out. like amy was saying, everything is culminating tonight in an event at the new york public library, where amy will be speaking, kristin chenoweth is hosting. it's going to be a lot of fun. >> very powerful. >> and you mentioned the show you were on before, "heroes," you say you've got angry fans coming up to you. >> we do have some angry fans that are upset with the decision. >> i can't believe it's over. >> but all good things must come to an end and i'm really enjoying "covert affairs." >> we're enjoying you on it. thank you so much for being here. and don't forget,

>> one of the most fascinating feelings that i have heard of our show was when pat buchanan and tom brokaw started talking in 2009 during the health-care debate. i said, you guys cover the civil rights struggle, 1968. chicago was on fire. that was about as bad as it had gotten, right? pat buchanan said, nope. this is much worse. it is interesting now. when i thought the survivors of the clinton administration and the new gingrich congress, but we got together, despite the fact that it seemed so ugly back in the 1990's, we talk about how we did not like each other, when the chips are down, we had to do the right thing. balance forbes -- balance the budget for first time -- for the first time in a generation. we grow the economy. we did a lot of very positive things together. that is before the hyper partisanship really got fuelled by the new media components. i am not saying that it is the responsibility of bloggers to be more tactful. the responsibility falls, the responsibility lies and politicians being grown ups and knowing what to filter out. washington has not done a good job at disti

>> one of the most fascinating feelings that i have heard of our show was when pat buchanan and tom brokaw started talking in 2009 during the health-care debate. i said, you guys cover the civil rights struggle, 1968. chicago was on fire. that was about as bad as it had gotten, right? pat buchanan said, nope. this is much worse. it is interesting now. when i thought the survivors of the clinton administration and the new gingrich congress, but we got together, despite the fact that it seemed so ugly back in the 1990's, we talk about how we did not like each other, when the chips are down, we had to do the right thing. balance forbes -- balance the budget for first time -- for the first time in a generation. we grow the economy. we did a lot of very positive things together. that is before the hyper partisanship really got fuelled by the new media components. i am not saying that it is the responsibility of bloggers to be more tactful. the responsibility falls, the responsibility lies and politicians being grown ups and knowing what to filter out. washington has not done a good job at disti

i remember being shocked hearing tom brokaw and pat buchanan saying things were nastier now than in 1968ere on fire. >> that's right. >> how can that be? >> we can talk about how we got there. there's a lot of reasons. recreating districts where you have people from the far left and the far right who don't represent america. that's a big part of the problem. we're going to be talking about election reforms that have no labels. the primary system is partly to blame. i like what california did, opening up that process. we'll be talking about that as well. we can talk about that. there's no question that the way things are today are radically difference than they have ever been in our history. you look at reagan and tip o'neill. they don't meet with members of the other party. >> senator, remember, '90-'94 when newt gingrich took the job as speaker, he talked about the moral impairty of fighting poverty being more important than balancing the budget. he talked about fdr. he had a sense urgency about what was happening in the lives of working people. that was newt gingrich. and now we have b

. >> out with his wife, out with tom brokaw. >> you get brokaw out late, look out. >> like velcro aftert. >> that's what it was. >> you have an invitation for us, willie? >> no, i don't. >>> joining us from washington democratic representative from maryland congressman chris van hollen. the house democrat's point person on the tax deal making its way through congress. we'll talk about that. with us onset, editor and chief and co-publisher of the "new york daily news," mort zuckerman back with us. >> straight to news. >>> the house expected to vote today on the tax deal president obama made with republicans. the measured cleared the senate yesterday by an overwhelming vote. lawmakers from both sides of the aisle agreed to extend the bush era tax cuts for all americans and pass an extension of jobless benefits. the nearly trillion dollar plan would be financed entire li by adding to the national debt. still the president wants the house to act swiftly and follow the senate's lead. >> -- that this tax cut plan, while not perfect, will help grow our economy and create jobs in the private se

one of the most fascinating things that i have heard on our show was when pat buchanan and tom brokaw started talking in 2009 during the health-care debate about how bad things have gotten. i said you guys covered the civil rights struggle, 1968 when chicago was on fire. that was as bad as it could have got, right? both of them said this is much worse. it is interesting now. when i talk to survivors of the clinton administration and the gingrich, risks -- and the gingrich congress -- despite how ugly things got in the 1990's, which talked-about how when the chips were down, we had to do the right thing. we balance the budget, grew the economy. did a lot of positive things together. i think that is before the hyper partisanship really got fuelled by a lot of the new media components. i am not saying that it is the responsibility of blockers to be more tactful when they are in their basement eating cheetos at their mother's house, writing things about leaders. it is terrible getting cheetos stains on your mac book knowing what to filter out over the past 56 years, washington has not don