good morning. bouncing back? a new jobs report out this morning is expected to bring good news for the struggling economy, but how much higher will gas prices go and could that derail the recovery? guilty. a form los angeles police detective convicted of murdering a romantic rival. the break in the case that took 26 years to solve. whitney's final moments. a member of whitney's inner circle who was in the hotel room as people tried to save her opens up in an exclusive live interview, today, friday, march opens up in an exclusive live interview, today, friday, march 9, 2012. captions paid for by nbc-universal television

welcome to "today" on this friday morning. i'm ann curry. >> i'm carl quintanilla in for matt this morning. economists are cautiously optimistic ahead of jobs numbers coming out. >> even if it shows growth the celebration could be muted by concerns over gas prices. they have jumped 30 cents in the past month and are settithreate to set a new record high this summer. this morning we'll hear from the ceo of exxon mobile about this. >> and it's scary when you kids get sick and you're not sure why. one couple knew something was wrong with their 3-year-old. she had swallowed not one, not two but 37 magnets and was in desperate need of surgery. she'll be here with her parents.

>> they must have been frightened by that. and also this morning an internet campaign that keeps growing. we told you about kony 2012 on thursday when it had more than 20 million hits on youtube. this morning it's up to 50 million hits. this just in the past few days. with the publicity comes good news for the creator and his organization. he'll be here live for an interview. >> we begin with the economy and what we can expect from the jobs number this morning. jim cramer, host of cnbc's "mad money" is here. >> good morning, carl. >> jobless claims for unemployment. close to a three-year low. do you think the good news will continue today? >> i do. the data indicate it s the firi are going down and hirings are coming up. that's what we need for a good number today. >> we're managing expectations, especially for the white house. data has been good. if it's not good today are we

once again going into the wrong direction? >> there are good rs tos at work. lots of firing in automobile, oil and gas, in retail. that should continue the pace all year. don't forget, housing could be getting better for once. >> the strong spots have been largely in energy, oil and gas. where has it not kept pace? where are jobs weakest? >> government hiring and services, particularly the banks which are continuing to lay off people. >> let's talk about the markets drifting higher after a rough day on tuesday, worst day of the year. where do you see us going from here and how much do we have to worry about greece? >> greece is in better shape. i'll tell people please don't listen to them. we're better. it's oil, carl. that's the wild card. if we could get oil down from $126 we could see the pumps stabilize. that's the only thing that could derail the recovery. >> we'll hear matt talk to the

ceo of exxon mobil in a little bit. if gas continues to go higher, how much of a head wind does it put on this economy? >> so much of the economy is retail sales. two-thirds of the economy is not manufacturing but service. that gets hit. if we see gasoline go to five, that's a terrible magic number. you won't hear about hiring. you will hear about layoffs. >> the average is $3.76 or so. where is the pain threshold on gas? >> historically it's $4 to $4.25. we have never seen the $5 level. iran and israel. got to watch that. it's a supply disruption. demand is okay. if you see a supply disruption you will see hard gasoline prices. >> you can watch "mad money" weeknights at 6:00 and 11:00 on cnbc. >> now to the presidential race.

kansas holds caucuses tomorrow, but the gop candidates are devoting most of their time to next tuesday's critical primaries in alabama and mississippi. peter alexander is in jackson, mississippi with more on this. good morning. >> reporter: ann, good morning to you. this is the deep south, a place that mitt romney is not expected to do well. it should be friendly territory for republicans. they have had the home field advantage for years. he described it yesterday admitting it feels like an away game. his opponents who have strong appeal among evangelical christians and folks who describe themselves as conservative are looking to capitalize. mitt romney wasn't born on a bayou but in mississippi thursday night he introduced himself as an adopted son of the south. accepting the endorsement of the state's governor phil bryant. >> he's turning me into an unofficial southerner. i say y'all and i like grits. strange things are happening.

>> he has blue jeans on. he likes grits. i like a man holding a baby. >> reporter: not just one, but three. here in the deep south, rick santorum is fighting a two-front war, trying to knock out newt gingrich while he chases romney whose advisers insisted the delegate math showed the former massachusetts governor has a nearly insurmountable lead. >> governor romney is out there trying to spin this thing because he's not been able to win it on the battlefield. >> reporter: thursday, santorum admitted regretting some of his most controversial choices of words, crediting karen for reeling him back in after this comment at the president for wanting young people to go to college. >> what a snob. >> usually the phone rings quickly. you know, rick, you shouldn't have said that. the snob comment didn't go over well. she reminded me, it's snobbish. you can say it was a snobbish

thing to say, but don't call him a snob. i made a mistake. >> reporter: he asked for prayers for having said this about one of president kennedy's speeches on the separation of church and state. >> that makes you throw up. >> obviously the language i used was, at a minimum, inarticulate. [ laughter ] >> i'll speak out. pray for me that i do so more articulately in the future. >> reporter: despite calls for him to exit the race newt gingrich predicts another victory in the south. >> with your help next tuesday, when we win here and in alabama we'll be back up again. >> reporter: this week, gingrich, the self-proclaimed cheerful candidate took his wife for a spin on the dance floor. >> they happened to have a good local band at the hotel. it was really just a few hours of relaxation. we took about a two-hour vacation from the campaign.

>> reporter: an unusual show of affection for the former house speaker and his wife. what did they dance to? we have the band's play list. "all my loving" by the beatles, "california girls" by the beach boys and by special request "rocket man" by elton john. >> peter, thank you. by the way, rick santorum will be one of the guests this sunday on "meet the press." once again here's carl. >> the price of gas is one of the hot button issues on the campaign trail. they are at the highest level in nearly a year and climbing. matt sat down with the ceo of exxon mobil to talk about how high prices could go. >> as we sit here today, the price of an average gallon of gas is $3.76, 36 cents from the all-time high. short-term will the prices remain stable? do you see them going higher? >> what drove prices up is

entirely the crude oil price. 88% of the pump price people see is due to the cost of crude oil and state and federal taxes. then you have a small margin for refiners, distributors and marketers. so the answer to the question is if crude prices go up, gasoline prices will go up. supply and demand is fine. what's led to the most recent run-up, obviously concerns about the rhetoric over the closing of the straits of hormuz and conflicts with iran. >> let me give you scenarios. in iran, if israel and the united states attacked iran's nuclear facilities, what would be the overnight impact on the price of oil and gas? >> it would be fairly immediate and it would be highly volatile. it would largely be driven by what the response was and whether that resulted in an actual physical disruption of the supply of oil to the market. >> so the other situation or

scenario people talk about, if in an act of defiance iran were to attempt to close the strait of hormuz what would be the impact on prices? >> immediate volatile reactions if the straits were closed. one thing people should understand and appreciate about the global supply chain through the iran and iraq wars, libyan civil war, when we have hurricanes you get spikes in price and then the supply chain sorts it out and begins to serve the markets. >> people like to grab a number. right now a lot of people are talking about $5 a gallon coming up in the summer driving months. is that just a headline or is it a realistic number? >> i look at just the supply and demand fundamentals, i would not expect to see prices reach that level. again, the unknown here is if the market's view of the political risk, if the rhetoric gets more heated. if there is a problem somewhere

else in the world that flares up it could drive prices up further. >> as we sit here and talk, it's a political year. there is an election in november. one of the candidates on the republican side, newt gingrich, is promising he can deliver gasoline at $2.50. is he being truthful with the american public, in your opinion? >> i haven't seen his specific plan for doing that. i guess the thing that might concern me would be would you be taking short-term action simply to achieve a short-term result that could, in fact, be detrimental to the longer term security of energy, moderate pricing of energy for the country. so i would be cautious and dramatic actions to get the near term. >> you haven't seen the specifics of the plan but as ceo of the largest oil company when you are talking about a guy who could be president of the united states and have dramatic impact

on policy why not dig into that program? >> i just haven't seen it, matt. >> she's calling to open up everything for exploration and drilling. just the thought of all that available oil might bring prices down. >> i have never tried to predict prices. with our own natural resources we do influence the market by having supplies that are stable, not subject to geopolitical interruption. the jobs that are created are staying here. >> that's matt with exxon mobil o rex tillerson. >> natalie is at the news desk. >> good morning, everyone. police are investigating a deadly shooting at a pittsburgh psychiatric clinic. on thursday, a man armed with two semiautomatic handguns burst into the clinic lobby opening

fire, killing one and wounding at least six others. the gunman was shot dead apparently by police. there is no motive but it appear it is gunman acted alone. u.n. special envoy to syria kofi ananne heads to syria this week. opposition leaders say they cannot hold talks while president asad massacres his people. nato and afghan officials signed an 11th hour deal to transferral control of u.s. detention facilities in afghanistan to the government there within six months. the issue had long been contentious as relations grow tense between the u.s. and afghanistan. a chic area in paris had to be evacuated thursday due to a fire. black smoke billowed after an underground parking garage caught fire. it took 90 firefighters to

battle the blaze. dozens were treated for smoke inhalation and 15 luxury cars were destroyed. iditarod racers would do anything for their dogs. when one of the dogs collapsed on the trail, he gave him mouth to muzzle and saved the dog's life. marshall is a veteran of six races and is recovering well. he gets to go home now. we have been there when good reporting goes bad. canadian tv reporter kent molgat was on the trail of a lawyer who didn't want to talk when he ran into a sign pole. it hurts every time you watch it. even the guy trying to escape stopped to make sure he was okay. kent kept his eye on the story instead of the road. >> ooh! >> that hurts even more in slow mo. back to ann, carl and al.

>> i have a feeling the tape will be played over and over again. >> that hurts. >> thank you. meantime, mr. roker is here to talk about the weekend. >> we'll start in hawaii. they have been getting hammered with rain. some areas up to 35 inches of rain in the last week. flood watches and warnings for all the islands except the big island of hawaii. they could again get ten inches in the mountains through saturday. the same moisture streaming up into british columbia. we'll be looking at wet weather in the pacific northwest as well. extreme pacific northwestern coast. anywhere from one to three inches of rain over the n

that's your latest weather. ann? >> al, thanks. now to the cleanup and recovery in japan nearly a year after the earthquake and tsunami that rocked that country. we are seeing stunning images of what the hardest hit areas looked like then and now. ian williams has the latest. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, ann. communities all along this devastated coast are marking the anniversary with sadness, but also with a determination to rebuild their lives. never has the natural disaster been so well documented in all its raw horror. this was the ter fieg moment the tsunami crashed into the fishing port of kesenumma. a year later and this is the

same intersection. much of the town was reduced to twisted piles of debris which largely have been cleared now, leaving a barren wasteland. it's a similar scene along the coast where almost 20,000 people are gone. this was sendai airport last year and this is today. >> you see the debris mountain. >> reporter: the remains of towns have been scooped up and piled into vast mountains which will take years to get rid of. the tsunami generated the equivalent of 19 years of trash in the worst areas. over half a million buildings were destroyed or damaged. the government wants to spread the debris across the country. so far, only three areas have volunteered to take any. in the meantime, the mountains just get bigger. survivors live in temporary homes. there is no blueprint for

rebuilding yet. few towns were hit harder than minamisanriku where water funneled down the valley. 80% of the fishing fleet was destroyed. for the first time since the disaster, boats are back at sea farming seaweed for which the town was famous. that's been made possible by new processing gear under a project supported by the u.s. charity mercy corps which created jobs for 200 people. [ speaking in a foreign language ] >> reporter: it's a start, hiroko told me. she lost her husband and her home in the tsunami. >> it's going to take a long time to rebuild. but i think what we see now a year later is just a really resilient community that's coming back together again. >> reporter: a community determined to rebuild their lives. as they plan for the future, perhaps the most important asset

they have here is the incredible spirit of the people who lived through that disaster. ann? >> ian williams, thank you so much. it's amazing to look at those images. he's absolutely right. we saw that hours after this happened. >> 19 years of debris and trash in one fell swoop. amazing. >> half a million buildings destroyed. and then the way to generate lech trelectricity will have to. they are not going nuclear again. >> just ahead, for the first time we're going to hear from someone who was in whitney houston's hotel room as people were rushing to try to save her. a member of the singer's inner circle opens up in an exclusive live interview coming up. but first, this is "today" on nbc. [ female announcer ] with xfinity,

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"desperate housewives." nicollette sheridan, long-time character on the show, had nothing to do with her case but one of the upcoming plot lines. >> also, the 3-year-old girl who nearly died after swallowing 37 tiny magnets. it's any parent's nightmare. her parents didn't know until they saw her x-ray. imagine their shock. we'll talk to farnthe parents a get to meet her after your local news and weather. i've discovered gold. [ female announcer ] the gold standard in anti-aging. roc® retinol. found in roc® retinol correxion deep wrinkle night cream. it's clinically proven to give 10 years back to the look of skin. now for maximum results, the power of roc® retinol is intensified with a serum to create retinol correxion® max.

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now more than ever, it's important to get financial advice from people who share your military values. call now for our free guide and tips on planning for your retirement this tax season. >> this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. officials and students at towson university are trying to diffuse racial tensions after a student group rights the words "white pride" campus but a group called the youth for western civilization took responsibility for the messages and defended their actions. others spoke about how the

messages made them feel. administrators hope the forum will give students a deeper understanding of. -- of diversity. >> not a bad ride. as with one on most of the major roadways. no delays with this accident scene. 37 on the north side. tapping the brakes r. ford towards providence. nothing significant. 42 on the outer loop at 70. 55 on 97 out of the glen burnie area. let's give you a live view of traffic and see what is going on. there is the accident off to the side. we will switch over to a live view of traffic on 83's york road towards parkton. nice start for the maryland line all the way to the beltway. >> we had rained around last night. we should wind up with a dry

update today. cloud cover will stick around for the next couple of hours. 45 degrees. 39 in westminster. significantly cooler today than yesterday. today we will top out in the 50's and eventually get some sunshine. chilly tomorrow, sunshine with a high-temperature near 50. 60 on sunday. 60 on sunday. sixties for most of next

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7:30 now on this friday morning. it's the 9th day of march 2012. it's not going to be nearly as warm today as it was on thursday in the northeast. but that didn't bother the people gathered on our corner of rockefeller plaza this morning. nice crowd. apparently a spring break rash of crowds. meantime i'm ann curry alongside carl quintanilla who's in for matt who is taking an extra day off. nice to have you here. >> thank you. >> for the first time today, someone who was inside whitney houston's hotel room as efforts were made to save her speaks out. we'll talk to her. she was part of whitney'snner circle. >> also new drama at nicollette

sheridan's "desperate housewives" trial as one of her costars was called to the stand. what he had to say and the show's plot twist that was accidentally revealed to gasps in the courtroom. >> we'll talk about the cause of a 3-year-old girl's stomach ache that turned out to be the fact that she'd swallowed 37 magnets. it turned into a life-threatening situation. her parents didn't realize it until they saw the x-rays. coming up, they will all share their story. and the creator of the kony 2012 campaign that's amassed 50 million hits in the past few days. we'll join us for a live interview coming up. >> we begin with the verdict in a 26-year-old cold case. a former los angeles police detective found guilty of first-degree murder in the 1986 killing of her ex-boyfriend's wife. josh mankiewicz has details from los angeles. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. who's the most likely suspect in

a murder case and who's the least likely? this is the story of a police department that first got those answers wrong, and then got them right. after 26 years, the lapd closed a cold case murder, but it brought them little joy because the killer was one of their own. stephanie lazarus, one of the lapd's own detectives, on trial for murder. and the verdict? >> guilty of the crime of murder of sherry rasmussen. >> reporter: the victim's family saw justice finally delivered. >> it's a tremendous relief. >> reporter: down the street at police head quarters, the reaction was more muted. >> well, i'm very pleased. but it's bittersweet. >> reporter: lapd chief charlie beck. >> we would have rather this had not been a los angeles police detective, that's for sure. i have known stephanie for a lot of years. >> reporter: the details were

shocking. in 1986, then a jup ynior patro officer, lazarus stalked and murdered the new wife of her former boyfriend. lazarus was beaten, bitten and shot to death. at the time detectives thought it was a botched robbery. rasmussen's parents begged detectives to investigate lazarus, their daughter's romantic rival. >> i told the detective not once but probably 15 to 20 times and he said, the trouble with you is you have been watching too much tv. >> reporter: the break came when saliva from the bite on sherry's body was sent in for dna analysis. no match, but it revealed the killer was a woman. in 2009 another lapd detective took a fresh look at the file and soon zeroed in on lazarus. a dna sample from lazarus, secretly taken from a soda straw, matched the dna in

sherry's bite mark. days later, homicide detectives pulled lazarus into a room and began hitting her with questions about the case. >> did you have a fight with her? >> you're accusing me of this? is that what you're saying? >> we're trying to figure out what happened, stephanie. >> reporter: lazarus could be in prison the rest of her life. >> state law requires that lazarus be sentenced to life with the possibility of parole. sentencing is set for may 4. carl? >> josh mankiewicz in los angeles. thanks. you can see more on "dateline" tonight at 10:00/9:00 central time on nbc. now a check of the weather from al. >> thank you, carl. we have a gorgeous day here. a lot of folks in for the big basketball game. go irish. in albuquerque, new mexico, things got a little bit dusty. take a look at this. it's -- visibility is reduced to

zero along the interstates there shutting down roads for a while. should be much better today. as we check out what's happening for today, we'll show you afternoon temperatures in the 30s and 40s in new england. 20s in the plains. 40s down through texas where we have snow in parts of western texas. warm in southern florida. you can see the showers now through the gulf coast. sunshine out west. rain in the pacific northwest and snow around the central and syrian great lakes.

and that's your latest weather. ann? >> al, thanks. nearly a month after whitney houston's death, investigators are trying to determine an officially cause. now for the first time we're hearing what was going on inside her hotel room. we'll talk to a woman who was there in just a moment. but first, nbc's tamron hall has details. tamron, good morning. >> good morning. tiffany dixon is a hollywood hair stylist who's used to being around celebrities, but when whitney houston invited her into their t inner circle the two developed a deeper relationship than just employer and employee. by 2006 whitney houston's once shining star had faded. it had been 11 years since she had recorded a number one single. rumors of drug use and rehab visits filled the tabloids. and her marriage to bobby brown was in shambles. >> amazing person.

>> reporter: but to tiffany dixon, whitney houston was like royalty. >> i would listen to her music and she was just america's princess. >> reporter: houston hired dixon to be her hair stylist in 2006 and is shown in these pictures licensed by nbc news, dixon stayed with whitney houston as the singer rebuilt her life after divorcing bobby brown. ♪ i look to you >> reporter: with a world tour in 2010 -- >> i know y'all don't love each other that much. >> reporter: and her first movie role in years in 2011, houston was finding her groove. >> that was the beginning of the comeback -- well, a come through. we talked about it and she said, i never went anywhere. i'm coming through something. >> reporter: on the eve of the grammys last month dixon arrived at houston's hotel room to get ready for a party. she said she saw houston's body on the floor after others had

pulled it from the bathtub. >> i saw that she was unresponsive and i immediately turned around to get help. >> reporter: you saw her there? >> from afar, yes. i did. >> reporter: in the chaos that followed, dixon tried to comfort houston's daughter in the hallway. >> she said, what's going on? >> reporter: was she in shock? >> very much so. >> reporter: since houston's death dixon has tried to forget the painful day in february and focus on the joy of knowing whitney. >> when you see the picture of her in a leopard dress and she's just beautiful. >> smiling. >> reporter: are you proud? >> happy i could be part of making her smile. >> just days before her death houston went back into the recording studio to work on a new song for the "sparkle" sound track. her last work as a singer and actress. it will be released, ann, in

august. >> thank you so much, tamron hall. tiffany dixon joins us exclusively. i know it was hard to watch that. you got very emotional. good morning. thank you for being here. what doesn't the public know about whitney houston that over six years you got to see? >> she was an amazing person. outside of the music she was fun-loving. she loved people unconditionally. if she loved you, she loved you unconditionally. she was an amazing person. spiritually sound. i had the pleasure of working with her for some time. it's been an amazing journey with her. >> what was her state of mind in those days leading up to the grammys? >> she was happy. she was joyful. you know, she seemed pretty happy with with herself.

the movie is coming out. she did it. it was successful. she enjoyed doing it. >> you were actually with her two nights before her death as she was singing with kelly price. i wondered what she said about the gossip afterwards that she had been behaving erratically. there were even some suggestions of blood on her legs. how did she react to that? >> she really didn't react. she doesn't pay attention to those things. but like anyone those things can hurt a person. you know, when you're in such a high profile person and someone's saying things about you that are untrue, i'm sure with anyone that it would be hurtful. >> she never mentioned anything about that but you know she knew about it. >> absolutely. >> on the day that she died, contrary to published reports you actually were not the one to discover without's body. >> no. >> but you said in the piece you

rushed to help, to make sure 911 was called. >> i did. >> describe what we understand was chaos in the room. describe that. >> i wouldn't say chaos. everything just happened so fast. i was due to report to work. we were doing a party that evening. i heard something as i was going in the direction i needed to go. i was instructed to call for help. that's what i did. >> you comforted bobbi kristina, she comforted you. >> absolutely. she did. she comforted me. >> did she know what was going on as she comforted you? >> she didn't know what was going on. >> at what point do you think she understood? >> i don't quite know at what point she understood all that. that was a lot to deal with. >> sure. did it appear as you saw whitney from afar, as you mentioned in tamron's story, that anything

could have been done to save her? >> i didn't -- at that moment all i could think about was find someone to help. because i didn't know what was going on exactly at all. >> a lot of people want to know why whitney died. you still don't have an official report. do you know why she died? or if there was anything that she was doing that might have put her health at risk? >> no, not at all. she was happy that day. we were going to go to the party. we talked about looks and what she was going to wear. those sorts of things. i'm her hair stylist. we talked about her looks and what we were going to do for the evening. she seemed happy that day. >> present, aware? she had no side effects of anything that would indicate -- >> not at all. >> -- something she was doing. >> not at all. >> in terms of bobbi kristina

now, because you have developed a relationship with whitney's daughter, i don't want to pry, but what can you tell us, people who are worried now about her, how she's -- >> i have not been in contact with her that much. i'm sure the family is with her and i'm sure everyone is comforting her. she has strong people around her. that's what she needs. i'm sure every day will be different. she's still a child, still a baby. and she's lost her mom. all you can do is pray for her and hope she surrounds herself with positive people and that every day will be different. she'll be okay. >> tiffany dixon, thank you for being here to speak out for whitney houston. thanks for joining us. >> okay. >> just ahead, we're going to make a turn and meet the man behind the movement that has exploded on youtube this week, but also coming up next one of nicollette sheridan's costars on

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back at 7:46. the wrongful termination lawsuit by former "desperate housewives" star nicolette sher clette sher

entering its final days. one of the other cast members took the stand on thursday. mike taibbi is in los angeles with the latest. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. it wasn't one of the female stars but one of the supporting players like sheridan herself who testified on behalf of cherry. bottom line nothing that happened to sheridan or her character seemed out of the ordinary. on the show james dentin played mike who posed as a plumber while edie tried to zeus hseduc. he was plainly uncomfortable testifying in court when he found out she would be written he said, i can't say i was shocked because characters are dill killed off so often. it didn't prove or disprove sheridan's claim she was fired because she complained about a hitting incident but her fellow actor called testifying an ordeal. >> you hope nothing you say will

affect either of them adversely. i'm close to both of them. >> reporter: sheridan's demeanor when cherry testified that what she called a hit was a light tap. i was trying to indicate some playful things she could do to exit the room, he said. as cherry left the stand sheridan muttered a curse word in his direction. >> it was the most dramatic day since we saw sheridan crying on the stand at the beginning of the trial. >> reporter: and, spoiler alert, producer george perkins provided an additional unexpected dramatic moment. >> he reveals that james dentin's character will be killed off sunday and people gasped in the courtroom. >> reporter: this trial stars nicollette sheridan and there have been claims worthy of a soap opera about her behavior and relationships with costars. >> ow! >> reporter: on screen the tension between edie and susan was a plot device. in court cherry testified once

nicolette said she thought hatcher was the meanest woman in the world for how she was treating her. cherry criticized sheridan's unprofessional behavior, not punctual, forgetting lines and critical of costars. >> this has been ugly. it's not helping anyone. >> reporter: for a time the show was such a cultural touchstone former first lady laura bush made a joke she knew everyone would get at the 2005 correspondents dinner. >> 9:00. mr. excitement here is sound asleep. [ laughter ] >> and i'm watching "desperate housewives." [ laughter ] >> reporter: those days are in the past. >> i burned your house down. >> reporter: with the show winding down and especially for the star who insists she was wrongly jettisoned from the cast. one of the only facts not in dispute that was that sheridan

was fired after the hitting incident and after she complained about it. the rest was a he said/she said dispute with no smoking gun offered yet. the jury should get the case early next week. carl? >> mike, thanks so much. just ahead, the 3-year-old who needed life-saving emergency surgery after she swallowed 37 magne magnets. she'll join us along with her parents, but first, these messages. ♪ my heart is playing tricks on me ♪ [ female announcer ] introducing new special k granola bars. ♪ i can't break through with 4 grams of protein. and 4 grams of fiber. finally, a granola bar that makes your heart skip a beat. a snack that loves you back. what will you gain when you lose? ♪ ...skips a beat

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is still ahead, the man

behind kony 2012, the video sweeping the internet. why did he do it and what does he have to say to his kids? >> first, your local news and weather. i've been growing oranges my whole life, ever since i can remember. my name is paul fabry, and i grow oranges in florida for tropicana. my grandpa taught me that there's no orange like a florida orange. they're grown in just the right soil... with the perfect amount of sunshine. see, that's how you get that beautiful colour and ripeness.

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>> this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. here is sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. >> only accident we had is southbound 95 in harford county. this is all off to the right shoulder. not having a major impact. tapping the brakes there. outer loop of carper towards the harrisburg expressway, tracking speed at -- on the j.f.x., around 32 miles per hour from greenspring to the j.f.x. once you get into town, still running smoothly.

live view of traffic. here is what it looks like at the accident scene. 95 and route 24, everything running smoothly. live view of traffic at harford, we're seeing intermittent delays going away from us from harford towards dulaney valley. >> we had rain around last night. most of that is pushed off of the coast. cloud cover will be breaking up as we head throughout the morning big change from yesterday's temperatures. no. isn't 15, gusting to 21. it will feel like the 30's. down to 39 in taneytown. same thing in westminster. 42 in mount airy. it should state dry no around baltimore. as we head into the afternoon, it will become mostly sunny. breezy and obviously cooler than yesterday. high temperatures between 5459.

sunshine on both saturday and sunday. a little chilly on saturday. we will make it up to 60 on sunday. sunday. daylight savings time begi i'm drinkin' dunkin'. definitely dunkin'. you know, i need to get that jolt in the morning, but i want something good to do that. i love the aroma, i love the taste. you can't mistake the flavor. i run on dunkin'! america runs on dunkin' coffee.

♪ 8:00 now on a friday morning. it's the 9th day of march, 2012, as we say hello to all the wonderful people here who decided to jump start their weekend in new york with a stop with us in rockefeller plaza. if they stick around until monday, they will be able to catch the boy band one direction when they take over the plaza for a live concert. they have become an overnight sensation. a lot of us in the older generation never heard of them until recently, but young people all know. >> the young people. >> we'll tell you what the excitement is about coming up this half hour. meantime i'm ann curry along

with carl quintanilla who is in for matt and al roker always here for himself. what else is coming up? by the way, matt has the morning off. coming up we'll be talking about a frightening ordeal. >> 3-year-old payton bushnell, they thought she had a bad stomach ache. 37 tiny magnets she swallowed were connected together inside her body. obviously needed emergency surgery to have them removed. shh's here with her parents. i think she's holding the magnets themselves. amazing story. >> that's amazing. a little bit later on we have the story about kony 2012. >> that's right. essentially this videotape, it's a film that was made by a man who started something called invisible children. basically it's gotten 50 million hits in a matter of days on youtube and still counting. the question is are people getting the message. we'll find out from the creator of the film and also ask him

questions. there have been things that have come to light as well. >> on a lighter note, would everybody say "happy anniversary, ann". >> happy anniversary, ann! >> today mark it is 15th anniversary with the "today" family. actually on sunday. it's been a heck of a journey. there with the dalai lama all the way to tends of the earth. the north pole, south pole. we're talking about your highlights. >> getting my hair cut by katie. >> you have done so much. go to today.com to get a look at ann's 15 years here at "today." >> you surprised me. i had no idea you were going to do that. >> it's not there, is it? i have to start reading the script. natalie, save me. i'm so embarrassed. >> happy anniversary. good morning once again. in the news kansas voters add their voices to the presidential

race with the republican caucuses on saturday. the candidates are looking ahead to next week's primaries in alabama and mississippi. mitt romney called himself an adopted son of the south on thursday as he accepted the endorsement of mississippi's governor. rick santorum and newt gingrich are counting on strong showings of support from southern conservatives and evangelical christian voters. greece averted a catastrophic default on debt today. a majority of the private creditors agreed to bond swap to clear the way for a new international bailout. officials in michigan say a million dollar lottery winner has now been removed from public assistance. this after nbc's detroit affiliate revealed that amanda clayton who won last fall was still receiving $200 a month in food assistance. the report said she paid cash for a new home and car. clayton didn't break any laws. she said she kept using the

benefits because she's unemployed and took home less than half the million dollar windfall after taxes. mormon leaders blocked access to the names of holocaust victims and other people in the database. the goal is to prevent mormons from performing posthumous baptisms which outraged jewish people and members of other religious groups. now for a look at what's trending today. our quick round-up of what has you talking online today. model heidi klum is poopening u about her shocking split from seal. she said she feels she's in the eye of a tornado. she's upset that seal has spoken publically about the split but continues, he's a grown man and she can't tell him what to do and what not to do. angry birds fans, listen up. nasa is helping with the launch of angry birds in space. in this video trending on youtube, astronaut don petit

uses a slingshot to fling red bird across the international space station while explaining the impact of zero gravity. this ad for the dollar shave club has gone viral this week. take a look. >> each razor has a pivot head. it's so gentle a toddler could use it. do you like spending $20 a month on brand name raise e.r.zors? $19 goes to roger federer. we'll ship them right to you. we are dollar shave club.com and the party is on. ♪ >> very creative advertising. the dollar shave club, a real company. as for the founder you can see in the video he personally says he can't grow a beard but says he's no beard aphon phonaphobe.

>> funny stuff. matt's not here, so you wrote in carl. both are married so i don't think it will work out. >> it's worth a try. >> we have a couple of camera guys you could probably ask. >> all right. what's your name? >> very discriminating. nice. let's check your weather, see what's happening. des moines, iowa. nbc 13 in des moines. sunny and cool. 49 degrees. as we look you can see the front stretching from new england all the way into texas bringing rain to the gulf coast up into new england. mountain snows there. we are looking at rain in the pacific northwest. sunshine through the plains. it will be gorgeous here in the east.

it's your 16th birthday. wow. it's like mumenschantz. happy birthday. >> thank you. >> now back to ann. >> we have the toddler who swallowed 37 magnets. we have an exclusive live interview after this. hey, you made your own lunch. yep! (mom) i'm so proud of you. the bus is here, gotta go mom. okay hunny, have a great day. look in your bag, made you something. (announcer) it's more than just that great peanut taste, choosing jif is a simple way to show someone

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super. quaker oats. energy. fiber. heart health. super people eat super grains. he thinks you're naked. it just looks like my milk chocolate is showing. only a fool would think i'd actually show up naked. so it's that kind of party...hit it! ♪ i'm sexy and i know it ♪ look at that body [ female announcer ] mcdonald's happy meal has really blossomed, with big, new changes like juicy, wholesome apple slices, plus special kids fries in every box. it's a meal you'll both love. ♪ [ gasps ] think again. try charmin ultra strong for a clean with fewer pieces left behind. its diamondweave texture is soft and more durable so it holds up better for a more dependable clean. fewer pieces left behind. charmin ultra strong. are choosing advil®. here's one story. pain doesn't have much of a place in my life.

i checked the schedule and it's not on it. [ laughs ] you never know when advil® is needed. well most people only know one side of my life. they see me on stage and they think that that is who i am. singer, songwriter, philanthropist, father, life's a juggling act. when i have to get through the pain, i know where to go. [ male announcer ] take action. take advil®. and if pain keeps you up, sleep better with advil pm. back now with a frightening health scare for a 3-year-old girl in washington state. it started with a stomach ache but when her parents took her to a doctor, an x-ray revealed she swallowed 37 magnets. we'll talk to them in a moment but first craig melvin has the story. >> reporter: little payton bushnell is back in the swing of things now. but a few days ago she could have died.

do you feel guilty? >> i do. >> reporter: how long do you think that will stay with you. >> as long as i can see the scar. >> reporter: days ago she complained of a stomach ache. >> i didn't think of it until she started to vomit. we thought it was the stomach flu. >> reporter: then payton stopped eating. >> mother's instinct set in and i knew something was wrong. >> she's lying around, not the spitfire she usually is. she looked different to me. >> reporter: after the doctor ruled out a virus she ordered x-rays. when she saw this she thought someone's bracelet had gotten in the way of the machine. >> second x-ray and still a ringlike thing in the abdomen. we said, we should go to e.r. >> reporter: after the surgery doctors realized it was 37 tiny magnets bound together slowly eating away at little payton's intestines. she swallowed more than three

dozen buckyballs clinging to the bushnell's refrigerators. as the magnets rolled through her body they started connecting to each other, squeezing her stomach and small intestine together and creating a potentially deadly bond. >> we had to make an incision to retrieve the magnets from within the stomach and upper intestine. >> see these magnets? they can make holes in your stomach. >> reporter: payton's predicament isn't as rare as you might think. according to the consumer products safety commission the number of cases of children swallowing magnets is on the rise. from one in 2009 to 7 in 2010 and 14 last year. payton's parents don't know how she swallowed 37 magnets but the lesson they have learned is clear. >> don't let your guard down with your kids. dond under estimate anything they can do. >> reporter: for "today," craig melvin, nbc news, vancouver,

washington. >> payton is here with her parents eric and kelly bushnell. she looks fantastic. we heard in the report your mother's instinct kicked in. what did you notice was different about her when you thought it was a stomach ache? >> after she was sick three or four dais ays and not eating, a the flu payton usually eats the next day. when i was bribing her with any type of food and she couldn't stomach it, i knew. when the doctors told me it was the flu, by tuesday i brought her in and that's when her pediatrician took the x-ray and found the beads that were in her stomach. >> which she's holding in a jar now. >> she is. >> do you know what this is? those were in your tummy, right?

you brought these from work and a lot of people have them on the desk as a stress reliever. >> sure, hold a business card. something quirky. she'd come in and visit and she'd play with them. once i lost a couple at the office, i brought them home and used them to keep stuff on the refrigerator. >> you think it's a bracelet and they take them out one by one and you find these individual little balls. what was your mindset then? >> i knew exactly what they were when they said it wasn't a bracelet, they're magnets. >> do you want me to take this? as soon as i found out they were the buckyballs from the office or from the refrigerator i knew we were in bad shape. i knew we weren't going to get them out. >> there is something of a backlash, accusing parents of not being attentive or something. what's your message to them? >> you know, we're first time

parents. we're very protective, overly protective parents. if it happened to us i want the message out that it can happen to anyone. never let your guard down. never think it won't happen to us because as protective as we are and as much as we watch her, it happened to us. >> yeah. >> as far as assuming the worst, you can't accuse a parent until you are one and you go through something like this. >> we were talking during the break. i'm a parent of toddlers. it's hard to cast dispersions and throw stones. >> sure. >> payton, thank you for coming in. this is a much better alternative, the binky p by the way. >> thanks for having us. >> up next, the man behind the global campaign sweeping the internet. we speak to the creator of kony 2012 after this. [ male announcer ] if you think tylenol

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doers. here's to more saturdays in the sun. and budgets better spent. here's to turning rookies - into experts, and shoppers into savers. here's to picking up. trading up. mixing it up. to well-earned muddy boots. and a lot more - spring per dollar. more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. show the yard who's boss, with this cordless black and decker trimmer, just $84.97. back now with the phenomenon that's taken the internet by storm this week. since hitting youtube on monday the kony 2012 campaign has racked up 50 million hits. we'll meet the man behind it in a moment. first savannah guthrie has the story. >> reporter: the video touched the hearts of millions in days, from teenagers to social activists, actors to politicians. the remarkable part of it is how

it's gotten so big so fast. >> joseph kony -- >> amazing, potentially revolutionary. >> reporter: the reach stretched from the air waves. >> they are talking about kony 2012. >> reporter: across the internet. >> kony 2012 is so incredibly sad. >> reporter: and around the globe. >> a friend of mine shared it with me. she's in africa. >> reporter: kony 2012 is the online video that's taken the world by storm. seen by tens of millions in just days the video targets uganda's guerilla leader joseph kony and his group known as the lord's resistance army named by the international criminal court as the number one war criminal for crimes against children. >> turning the girls into sex slaves and the boys into child soldiers. [ crying ] >> reporter: plain spoken, poignant and powerful jason russell uses his 4-year-old son to make a simple point.

>> what should we do about this? >> stop him. >> it made me want to act. >> i felt attached to the children and i don't even know them. i just wanted to help them. >> we will fight war! >> reporter: at 30 minutes long it's unlike other videos that have exploded on youtube. >> i'm struck by how young the viewers are and how strongly they are reacting on facebook and twitter. that's the point of social networking. rarely have we seen it used for international activism like this. >> reporter: the video went viral, fuelled in large part by big name celebrities like oprah, rihanna and justin bieber who tweeted, this is not a joke. this is serious. together we can make a change and stop kony. part social campaign, part call to action inspiring a new generation, kony 2012 asks people to take to the streets on april 20, putting up posters of

joseph kony in every city on every block possible. >> the world will go to bed and wake up to hundreds of thousands of posters demanding justice on every corner. >> reporter: by harnessing the power of social media film maker russell hopes to change the world one view, one click and one tweet at a time. the momentum has not stopped. in the past two days alone it's averaged close to 1 is million hits per hour. ann? >> savannah, thank you so much. jason russell joins us now. good morning to you. you posted the film on monday. >> yeah. >> a lot of us heard about it from family. my niece lily told me about it. you looked at 50 million views on youtube. but we checked vineo and if you add them together, 64 million views. why do you think your effort to make joseph kony famous caught fire? >> i think because it's a human story. we are all human beings.

for some reason we forgot our humanity because of politics and because of all of the things we are talking about. it's paralyzed us. we forgot, oh, yeah, we're humans first. we forgot. this brings it back to the core issue. we are living on a planet, floating in eternity. we can connect and protect each other. >> you really are connecting with young people. that's what's driving so much of the retweets and movements. >> right. >> a lot of major news organizations talked about joseph kony. >> right. >> but there is something about the way you have done it taking it beyond reporting and informing people. you're trying to move people. how do you know this is not just slactivism? how do you know people will do this? >> we have over half a million action kits ordered. they are demanding what are we doing now? we are taking it to the streets. they are organizing in every city around the world. this is not an american movement. it's everywhere. literally south korea is saying, we're ready.

we are putting up posters. en mas in math you don't start with calculus or algebra. there are complicated issues in the world. afghanistan, syria, somalia. these are complex issues. kony is not. he's one plus one. we can all agree together we're going to stop him this year. we are not going to wait another year. >> how are you going to stop him? >> we have a crisis tracker. lra crisis tracker.com. it's an app you can download and it the money goes to track him down. we know where they are abducting and where they are killing. we want the international community to respond. there is a responsibility to protect the u.n. committed to. samantha powers has been talking. angelina jolie, george clooney, they have been saying it for a long time. now youth are waking up.

children 25 and younger are saying, mom, dad, pay attention to this right now. it's now. the power of doing it now, not later. not next year. we don't have the answers. >> in fact, let me ask you about it. there is evidence that joseph kony is down to about 200 followers, that his impact has lessened since all those years ago when you met young jacob who you showed us in your film and that actually kony is on the run. >> right. >> how much of a threat is he today to children? >> if 200 children were abducted in san diego, california, where i'm from -- >> he's down to 200 followers, i said. >> fighters. so 200 fighters, 200 abducted children. if that happened in san diego, california, in new york city, 200 children abducted and forced to kill their parents. if that happened here, in my home it would be all over the news. i's taken 26 years for this to hit the news. >> well, it's been in the news

for years, it's just not been in the front as you're making it. >> right. we cared but we didn't know what to do. now we know what to do about it. >> let me ask you. i want to give you a chance to talk about some of the criticism. specifically there is a criticism that too much of the money, that only 32% of the money that invisible children get goes directly to aid children, to help people in uganda. >> right. >> can you answer that? >> the old model of charity or some charities. well, the scott harrison charity water model is 100% goes to clean water. he's a rock star and we love him. we're good friends with him. that's their model and they're proud. our model is threefold. the movie, the movement and the mission. we want to rehabilitate the child soldiers. we think different. it's unorthodox on purpose. >> you're just getting started. jason russell, it's a pleasure to meet you. >> thank you for telling the

story constantly. >> we'll keep going. thank you. just ahead, another international sensation. the rise of the hit band one direction is coming up after your local news. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i m mindy basara. traffic pulse 11 and sarah caldwell. >> one problem noted in harford county. we have an accident off to the side. all lanes are open. north side, 44 on average. making away from greenspring towards the j.f.x., and once you get on to the j.f.x. southbound, nothing major delay-wise. coming towards us is southbound traffic. tapping the brakes just prior to

the accident scene. inner loop of greenspring going away from us. john collins joins us with a look at the forecast. >> we look at our radar- satellite combination. around the chesapeake bay, lingering showers on radar. in western maryland, clouds are beginning to thin out in little but, an indication that some are coming into play. 44 at the airport. barometer. winds are being to pick up. dustin up to 21. blustery day. high temperatures in the 50's. close to 60 degrees. that mixture of clouds going towards the sun, breezy and cooler.

longer-term forecast puts us in the 40's to near 50 on saturday. near 60 on sunday. >> we will have another update at 8:55. ok, guys-- what's next ?

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8:30 now on this friday morning. the 8th day of march 2012. we have a large crowd in rockefeller plaza. spring break, do you think it's begun? we expect a larger one on monday. the international pop sensation one direction will stop by for a live concert. brace yourselves.

[ cheers ] >> one-d as the fans call them burst onto the scene a year ago. they have taken the music world by storm. some have compared it to beatle-mania. up next we'll show you why one direction's phenomenon is hitting all of us. >> in the meantime we're going to gear up for the concert with a big hearty meal for the weekend. in this case, braised beef rigatoni. the family is sure to love it. >> that's what smells good upstairs. >> that's good. then we are going to bring in barbara corcoran, our brick house will be here to show us great real estate options from apartments to houses, even a houseboat. i think that's a first for us. all under $200,000. >> she's the real estate expert. first how about a check of the weather? >> for the weekend, starting with tomorrow, cold and flurries in new england. heavy rain in texas, mississippi into arkansas. rain in the pacific northwest. windy around the western great

lakes. sunday, sunshine along much of the country -- east coast although shower telus southern florida. heavy rain in the mid mississippi river valley. more rain in the pacific northwest through the mountains of idaho look for sunny and mild conditions in the southwest. and that's your latest weather. don't forget. get your weather any time day or night on the weather channel on cable or weather.com online. now let's head to florida and say hello to uncle willy.

>> the sweet sands of sanibel island on the gulf of mexico. look at those beautiful little children having fun playing in the water and playing in the sand. i used to love to do that. ocean city, maryland. got to love it. happy birthday from smucker's. how sweet it is. take a look at our birthday buddies. today here is tamer owens. she's from victoria, texas. 110 years old. loves to read the bible and make cookies. both of those things, i'm very much in favor of. especially the cookies. jack jones of samson, alabama is 105 and has a sharp mind. he wouldn't work with us then. he couldn't handle it. his secret to longevity is having lots of good friends. laura buhr of glendale, arizona.

dresses to the nines. beautiful dresser and enjoys going to have coffee with the girls. how about that? that's nice. i like to have coffee with the girls. alvin grammar of san matteo, california, is 105. an experienced sailor and a big san francisco giants fan. can't beat that either. julia macmillan, hancock, michigan, is 103. worked in a donut shop. that's my idea of heaven. read the bible and work in a donut shop. we wish her the best. likes her bingo, too. finally, take a look at george boggess is of washington, d.c. that's our hometown. place of operations. he loves to travel with his lovely wife.

they visited all 50 states. how about that? from the shores -- they are trying to change the name to the gulf of america. did you know that? it's the gulf of mexico now. back to new york. >> willard, thank you. now we get to say hello to oscar winner kathy bates. star of "harry's law." now back on sunday nights. >> we'll be opening this sunday night at 8:00 p.m. in our new time slot. really excited about it. it's a great night for tv. we have a lot of loyal fans. so i want to make sure everybody knows where we are going to be. we have great episodes coming up. ten left in the season and the show keeps getting better. we have a wonderful cast. i'm partial to the show. i guess you can tell. >> there's a great balance because there is the legal part, the drama and comedy, too. >> definitely. i don't know if you could tell on that cut.

we have a guy with a nail on his head for the first episode. i must say harry ends up taking advantage. he works for her old firm. she just wants to stick it to them a little bit. >> no pun intended. >> exactly. >> your character was described as feisty. a departure for you? >> she's tough. she doesn't suffer fools gladly. i love playing the part. i think i aspire to be harry. >> we see you so much on film. most recently you played gertrude stein in "midnight in paris." with tv, how do you jump easily between tv and film? >> i've been blessed, natalie. i loved working with woody on that movie. i ran into owen wilson during one of the awards shows. we were all sweltering in this apartment in paris and we were thinking, i don't know. this sounded like a good idea at the time. we had no idea the movie would

take off like it did. >> as a fan of "misery" you can break my legs any time. >> don't tempt me. >> thank you. >> great to have you here. >> sunday nights at 8:00. don't miss it. >> or she'll break your legs. >> she'll hobble you! >> up next, everything you need to know about the international sensation one direction before they rock the plaza on monday. first, this is "today" on nbc.

♪ back now at 8:39 with the group some people are saying is inspiring the next case of beatlemania. one direction is from great britain and they will take over the plaza for a live concert

monday on "today." what's all the excitement about? we asked natalie to find out. >> i'm one of the screaming teens. if you have a preteen girl in your house she's probably already obsessed with one direction. they are on tour in the u.s. and are mobbed by fans at every stop. [ screaming ] >> reporter: it was madness at a boston mall. >> hello! >> reporter: 5,000 screaming, crying teenage fans showed up for a glimpse of the newest sensation. and in toronto, police closed down a city street as fans caused chaos. ♪ >> reporter: their name -- one direction. and they just may be the next global phenomenon. >> they have that thing that probably starts with elvis into beatlemania, keith partridge and on down. they have that thing. >> they're british. we love them. >> so hot.

their hair! >> i'm harry styles. >> zayn malik. >> i'm liam payne. >> i'm niall horan. >> and i'm louis tomlinson. >> they never met and competed as solo artist but that changed when simon cowell brought them together. >> we could have been going back to school in september or being on the road like this. that's how things have changed so much in the last 18 months. >> i was sleeping, chilling on the bus, playing video games. >> reporter: one direction's success has been meteoric. their debut album was the fastest selling in the united kingdom last year. their first single "what makes you beautiful" won best british single and the video has over 65

million views online. here in the u.s., teenage girls are mad for british boys all over again. ♪ you don't know you're beautiful ♪ >> reporter: they have landed spots on tv shows on nickelodeon and icarly. they never saw it coming. >> we thought it might happen in the uk but to come to different countries is unbelievable. we feel so fortunate that people enjoy our music. >> there is a lot of possibility here. there is a lot of upside. that level of talent with those looks matched with the kind of management that's backing this band is a perfect storm for a massive successful phenomenon. >> the perfect storm is coming on monday here to our plaza. >> i'll see them tonight. i'm taking my son nicky to see big time rush and one direction is opening up. >> they are probably a bigger

act than big time rush now. i hate to say it. but i did say it. >> you just did say it. >> using nicky as an excuse again? >> i love them! >> you screaming little girl you. >> simon cowell, what a genius. think of the acts he's put together. all of the talent. >> meantime you can catch the one direction madness for yourself when they perform live on our plaza monday here on "today." coming up next, a hearty meal you can make for your family this weekend. first, this is "today" on nbc.

♪ back at 8:45 this morning on

today's kitchen, what's on the menu? farm to table to make a hearty braised beef rigatoni. chef and partner all the restaurant north is here. eric, good morning. >> good morning. >> before we start, the apron, vote eric. >> food & wine magazine.com people's best new chef award for the people's choice of best new chef in the united states. i'm in the running. i am a nominee and finalist. so humbled to be on the list. >> the deadline is sunday. how do you vote? >> foodandwine.com, best new chef in the new york area. >> let's start with the kind of meat you need first. >> awesome. we are farm to table at the restaurant. we support local farming. we brought in a 1,300-pound steer this month and we are playing with all the cuts. to use the less expensive cuts we have ribs, top sirloin, chuck roast and the short ribs. we do a braised beef.

it's an easy, quick -- well, not quick. >> dial back that part. >> it's a long braise but a quick put-together. >> first sear it. >> sear it in the pan. then take garlic, pinch in a little chili flake and crack in sage. sage is hearty. it lends to getting fried a little bit. it's simple in this manner. this takes 20, 30 seconds. we add in a touch of homemade tomato paste. >> why? >> it emulsifies the red wine and braises it out, gives a rich, deep flavor. >> okay. >> we add in the tomato paste, add the meat and cover with red wine, approximately two cup spms smells amazing already. >> you can never have too much wine. >> so you let it braise. what's the typical period of time? >> at a low temperature, about

300 degrees. this will cook in three and a half to five hours, somewhere around there. just until it's fork tender. it's an easy braise. if you cook it too much that's okay. it will fall apart. >> start on friday, have dinner saturday night, something like that. >> absolutely. >> we have the braised meat here. we'll heat it up a little bit more. >> here comes the pasta. >> and pasta. we use rigatoni and pockari. it's big huge tubular pasta. papardelle works well. >> tubular. sounds like the '80s. why does it work? >> it gets in there, the meat gets in the tubes. who doesn't want to eat lots of pasta, lots of meat? >> you add it to the braised beef. >> add the cooked pasta, olive

oil to emulsify it together and a little bit of arugala. it's a dark, rich braise, so keep it light and fresh. >> ooh! you do it so well. >> thank you. we'll bring it over here to plate. >> cheese? >> cheese. you can use any type you want. a hard earthy cheese the wonderful. we use a local cheese. cow's milk aged about 120 days from this farm. it's beautiful. parmesan, pecorino works well. >> you accompany it with a salad? >> it's a rustic italian dish. this is papa's italian beef braise. my grandfather is from genoa. this is how he cooked. a simple salad to cut through the richness. >> and cheese.

and you have pannacotta to finish it off. the meat falls off the fork. >> that's what we're going for. >> this is amazing. vote eric. food and wine.com. still ahead, ways to avoid the costly fees some banks are charging. first, this is "today" on nbc.

back now at 8:51 with the remarkable work of a brave, talented journalist. new york times correspondent anthony shadid died of an acute asthma attack in syria last month. the two-time pulitzer prize winner was just 43 years old. his wife joins us to talk about his life and his book now being released. it's called "house of stone." good morning. >> good morning. >> it's a pleasure to have you here. even just the lead-in was enough to make it difficult for you to be here which says something about how important it is to talk about this book. there was a lovely image of anthony this sunday in an article written by tyler hicks for the new york times who was with him on his last assignment in syria. he says directly across me amid

cigarette smoke was anthony with a huge smile on his face. this was exactly the kind of connection that made him most happy as a reporter. what can you speak about in terms of what drove him to work so hard to make us understand the middle east? >> you know, for as long as he remembered he wanted to be a journalist covering the middle east. he felt a commitment to the middle east because this is where his ancestors came from. he moved there, studied the language. he learned the culture. you know, he just became an expert about everything. he just loved being part of these communities wherever he was doing reporting to get to know these people as much as he could so he could write about them and really write as deeply as one can. >> it caused him great pain. it caused him near death experiences, what he saw in

other people's suffering. it hurt him, especially after the first time he nearly lost his life in syria. you knew this. you saw firsthand how much this impacted him. he started locking the doors at night? >> he started locking the doors at night. he was scared. but he was also very committed. he never imagined himself doing anything other than journalism, being a journalist or writing about people whose lives are being changed and are going through tremendous changes or are living under violence and wars and conflict. so it was painful and it was hard and scary for him. he was committed. >> he should be here talking about the way he found himself. you are standing up to do that for him. the way he found himself after all this difficulty and seeing this was to go back to lebanon, the land of his ancestors and

find this house that belonged to his great grandfather and bring it back to life, to renovate it. he describes the process in the book with such love and also with the weight of history, thousands of years before including his own family history in such a beautiful way. did he find a part of his soul again in this process? >> i think he was the happiest there. i think he did find himself there. it was something that he created that he created from his imagination. he felt this is where he belonged. i think he loved to believe this is where he belonged. this is the beginning for him for his ancestors. it was the end for him, too. >> i know you have a 2-year-old son. i'm sure you thought about how you want to make sure your son and anthony's daughter from a prior marriage just to think of him now. have you thought about what you would want to say, briefly?

i'm sorry. >> i think i want them to know how modest our father was and how nice. he never turned down anyone who came asking for advice or help. >> the book is "house of stone." we're back after your local news. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. fire fighters union joins the growing number of organizations of voting no confidence in the leadership in anne arundel county. the agency passed the judgment on fire chief john ray thursday, saying he has neglected

>> we have some clouds lingering around the area. sun is beginning to break through on western maryland. it looks like we are done with that weather system grid mixture of clouds going to sunshine today only in the 50's for the highs.