WDBJ 7 morning news for 08/19/04

[Crash-Settlement]

[ANCHOR=Kim]

[NEWSCAST=Morning]
[WRITER=dgr]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=News 7 Mornin']
[ENG#=1]

Daimler Chrysler will pay at least five million dollars in settlements over a 15 passenger church van crash in 20-01 that killed a Roanoke teenager.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Randolph Co., NC/July 2001;]
[TAPE#01-13 TC1:49:57]
[VO-NAT from 01-31 TC09:40]
A judge approved the settlements for the family of Jessika Lewis -- who was killed -- and two others who suffered serious brain injuries. Eleven of 14 Virginia Heights Baptist Church youth group members returning home from a trip to Myrtle Beach were hospitalized -- Lewis died five days later. A National Transportation Safety Board report last year blamed tire failure and poor driver response as the cause of the wreck. The crash on U-S 220 near Greensboro became part of a national debate about the safety of 15-passenger vans, now notorious for flipping in fatal crashes.
(------------)

[VOB-Hudson]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=04-]
[GRAPHIC=none]
[ENG#=2]

A Halifax County man who killed three neighbors in a long-running dispute over a driveway was executed by lethal injection last night.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

James Bryant Hudson pleaded guilty to shooting brothers Walter Stanley Cole and Thomas Wesley Cole, as well as Wesley's wife, Patsy Ayers Cole.
It happened outside their Halifax County home in July 2002.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 1:34:05 from Meghan's pkg]
[IN Q=Under his own power]
[SUPER=01-Larry Traylor/Department of Corrections Spokesman; :00]
[SUPER=01-Justin Bergman/Execution Witness; :12]
[RUNS=28]
[OUT Q=see that his breath stopped.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Jarratt]
Hudson was pronounced dead at 9:07 last night. For his last day, he refused all visitors. And unlike many capital cases, Hudson never appealed his conviction or death sentence.
(------------)

[Iraq]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=Iraq]
[ENG#=3]

Gunfire and explosions rang out overnight in Najaf, despite a peace deal.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Najaf, Iraq;]

Radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has accepted the deal-- agreeing to disarm his militia and move his fighters out of the city's holy shrine.
But his aides say he wants to see a ceasefire first.
While there's no sign of a quick end to the standoff, some militamen are backing off.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=They were trying]
((THEY WERE TRYING TO WORK TOWARD US A DAY AGO.. TODAY IT SEEM LIKE THEYRE STAYING ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE ROAD.))
[RUNS=:07] (estimated bite runs time)
[OUT Q=north side of the road.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Meanwhile, al-Jazeera has broadcast video from an Iraqi militant group threatening to kill missing American journalist Micah Garen-- unless U-S troops leave Najaf within 48 hours.
(------------)

[Campaign-2004]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=Campaign 2004]
[ENG#=4]

President Bush will stay at his Texas ranch until the middle of next week to prepare for the Republican National Convention.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-St. Paul, MN;]
But he spent yesterday campaiging in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

The President says he has a lot of goals for the next four years.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=We have so much]
[RUNS=:10]
[OUT Q=spread the peace.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Cincinnati, OH;]

Democratic Presidential nominee John Kerry spent part of yesterday in Cincinnati-- speaking to the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=I believe that]
[SUPER=01-Sen. John Kerry/(D) Presidential Nominee;]
[RUNS=:13]
[OUT Q=all the world.]
(----------)
[VO-NAT]

Kerry also criticized Bush's plan to withdraw 12- thousand U-S troops deployed against North Korea.
He says the timing is wrong.
(------------)

[11Kerry-Party]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=ssm]
[TAPE#=04-17 TC2:01:00]
[GRAPHIC=Campaign 2004]
[ENG#=1]

"Meet-ups" have quickly become a popular way for like-minded political activists to get together and share ideas about getting their candidates elected.
And next month, a self-titled "Queer for Kerry" house party will take place in Lynchburg.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Lynchburg]

It's the idea of gay activist Corey Hidlebaugh (High-dul-baw).
Hidlebaugh says the gay community is concerned about the same issues as everyone else and they need to get involved.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT 16:38:29]
[IN Q=I wanted to]
((COREY HIDLEBAUGH/GAY POLITICAL ACTIVIST: I WANTED TO HELP IDENTIFY DEMOCRATS IN THE COMMUNITY THAT MAY HAVE NEVER BEEN INVOLVED IN A POLITICAL CAMPAIGN OR POLITICS IN GENERAL AND JUST HELP GET OUT THE VOTE AND GIVE THEM AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE INVOLVED IN THIS CAMPAIGN.))
[SUPER=01-Corey Hidlebaugh/Gay Political Activist]
[RUNS=16]
[OUT Q=in this campaign.]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]

Hidlebaugh says he already has about twenty people signed up to attend his event on September 4th.
(------------)

[6-Industrial-Park]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=myr]
[TAPE#=04-25 TC1:18:26]
[GRAPHIC=Business News]
[ENG#=1]

Business opportunities are growing in Rocky Mount.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Rocky Mount;]
Tuesday night, the town voted to purchase nearly 60-acres of land to expand its half of the Rocky Mount-Franklin County Industrial Park. The town says the purchase was necessary to attract new businesses, considering it only had about 19-acres of land left in the park. Officials say the property includes 16-hundred feet of rail access, and one of the first things they plan to do is build a trans-loading dock for local farmers and businesses who receive products by rail.
(------------)

[Marketwatch]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Morn]
[WRITER=chr]
[TAPE#=NET]
[GRAPHIC=Business News]
[ENG#=2]

In other business news, Google sets its I-P-O price.
Alexis Christoforous has that story and more in this morning's Marketwatch.
(/////SOT/////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Alexis Christoforous/Reporting; :00]
[SUPER=01-Tracy Nieporent/Myriad Restaurant Group;]
[RUNS=1:40]
[OUT Q=in New York, I'm AC.]

((AFTER A ONE DAY DELAY, THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION HAS SIGNED OFF ON GOOGLE'S IPO REGISTRATION.. THAT ALLOWS GOOGLE TO BEGIN TRADING ON THE NASDAQ AS SOON AS TODAY.
IN AN EFFORT TO DRUM UP MORE BUSINESS FOR ITS SHARES.. GOOGLE LOWERED THE PRICE RANGE OF ITS OFFERING TO 85 DOLLARS A SHARE.. DOWN FROM 108 TO 135 DOLLARS.. IT ALSO REDUCED THE NUMBER OF SHARES TO BE SOLD..CUTTING THE VALUE OF ITS IPO NEARLY IN HALF TO LESS THAN 2 BLN DOLLARS.. THAT SPLASHES COLD WATER ON WHAT HAS BEEN TOUTED AS THE HOTTES TINTERNET IPO IN YEARS.
ON WALL STREET.. STOCKS RALLIED DESPITE ANOTHER RECORD CLOSE FOR OIL PRICES. THE DOW ROCKETED 110 POINTS THE NASDAQ CLIMBED 36.
SHARES OF DELTA AIRLINE'S SOARED..IN AN EFFORT TO AVOID BANKRUPTCY, DELTA IS CONSIDERING GIVING ITS PILOTS AN EQUITY STAKE IN THE CARRIER IN EXCHANGE FOR PAY AND BENEFIT CUTS.
WITH ONE WEEK TO GO BEFORE THE REPUBLICANS DESCEND ON NEW YORK CITY, ROOMS AT SOME OF THE CITY'S HOTTEST HOTELS AND TABLES AT SOME OF ITS MOST EXCLUSIVE RESTAURANTS ARE STILL AVAILABLE...BUSINESSES ARE NO LONGER BANKING ON A BOOM....

SOT: Tracy Nieporent / Myriad Restaurant Group
"I think that they're going to be in the convention hall at night and have scheduled a lot of activities during day the day so it doesn't appear that we're seeing any activity at this point."
BUT CITY OFFICIALS ARE STILL PROMISING THE FOUR DAY GOP EVENT WILL ADD ABOUT 265 MLN DOLLARS TO NEW YORK CITY'S ECONOMY.
FIND OUT MORE AT CBS.MW.COM IN NY I'M AC.))
(tape tosses to stocks)
[STOCKS] [WOOD ROGERS SPONSOR BOARD 5185 ESSC] [COMM]

[Wildfires]

[ANCHOR=Kimberly]
[NEWSCAST=Mornin]
[WRITER=kmc]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=Wildfires]
[ENG#=1]

Nearly 13- thousand acres are burning in Washington state.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Near Dryden, WA;]

Authorities say the wildfire is about 30- percent contained, but at least 160 homes are under mandatory evacuation.
Hundreds of other residents remain on notice that they might also have to leave if the fire grows.
Washington Governor Gary Locke plans to visit the fire command center later today.
The wildfire has been burning for 10 days.
(------------)

[11Brisco]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=dse]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=Murder Invest.]

A Danville man faces a murder charge in South Carolina.
Tuesday night, Danville police and sheriff's deputies from South Carolina arrested 32 year old Steven Christopher Brisco.
Police say the murder charge stems from an incident in Dorchester, South Carolina two years ago.
Brisco has already waived extradition and will be returned to South Carolina to face trial.

[6-Boty-Schools]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=sba]
[TAPE#=04-23 TC1:14:08]
[GRAPHIC=None]
[ENG#=2]
Students in Botetourt County are settling in -after their first day of classes.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Cloverdale]
Students returned to the classroom yesterday after summer break. Here at Cloverdale Elementary the students were given their new schedules and everyone seemed to be getting into the groove-- both teachers and students alike.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT@9:23:13.15]
[IN Q=The first day is the hardest...]
((JACKIE MOSLEY, 36TH YEAR TEACHER: THE FIRST DAY IS THE HARDEST DAY BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO GET THEM READY TO DO ALL THESE THINGS THEY HAVEN'T DONE BEFORE AND THEY WANT TO DO EVERYTHING TODAY. YOU HAVE TO LET THEM KNOW WE HAVE TO SAVE SOME OF THESE THINGS FOR TOMORROW AND THE NEXT DAY, SO I CAN KEEP THEM COMING BACK (LAUGH).... AND KEEP THEIR INTERESTS UP.))
[SUPER=01-Jackie Mosley/Teacher; :07]
[RUNS=:17]
[OUT Q=.. their interests up...]
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
This year teachers and students will deal with some changes. The school day starts 10-minutes earlier to help buses get where they need to go. Lunches are a little bit more expensive and the days of the final exam are finished. Officials say that's to give teachers more time for instruction.
(------------)
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[GRAPHIC=None]
And it looks like hard work last year paid off. Preliminary results from the Standards of Learning tests back. According to school officials, it looks like all of Botetourt County's 11-schools will be fully-accredited. The school system is expecting "official" results in October.

[11Tech-Students]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=rde]
[TAPE#=04-22 TC1:43:40]
[GRAPHIC=none]

[ENG#=3]
College students are returning to Blacksburg and Radford this week.

(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Blacksburg;]

Freshman began moving in yesterday morning. The Tech campus was full of students and families trying to unload furniture. The lines even started spilling out into local stores and restaurants. V-DOT warns that Interstate 81 and the route 460 bypass will be congested this weekend. Traffic is expected to be heaviest on Saturday. Both Radford and Virginia Tech start classes on Monday.
(------------)

(Kim tosses to bump)
[BUMP] [COMM][Trigger]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=none]
[GRAPHIC=none]
[ENG#=D1]

[Roll out of break]

(//////SOT/////)

[COMM]

[TWO STEVE]

[Biz-Brief]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=Business News]
[ENG#=2]

In business news, The Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday gave the final go-ahead to the initial public offering of Google. The internet search firm says its initial shares will sell for 85-dollars each. The final I-P-O price sets the stage for public trading of the company's stock, under the ticker symbol G-O-O-G on the Nasdaq Stock Market. In other news, stocks closed higher yesterday. Stan Case has more in today's business brief.
(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Stan Case/Reporting; :]
[RUNS=1:15]
[OUT Q=I'm Stan Case.]
((U.S. STOCK MARKETS RALLIED WEDNESDAY, GAINING FOR THE FOURTH STRAIGHT SESSION.

THE DOW INDUSTRIALS GAINED 110-POINTS.
WHILE THE NASDAQ ADDED 36.

THE PRICE OF OIL HIT A NEW HIGH OF 47-DOLLARS-AND-45 CENTS A BARREL.
THE PEAK COMES ON NEWS FROM THE U-S ENERGY INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION THAT CRUDE OIL INVENTORIES FELL BY ONE-POINT-THREE MILLION BARRELS LAST WEEK.
U-S LIGHT CRUDE OIL FOR SEPTEMBER DELIVERY SETTLED AT 47-DOLLARS AND-27-CENTS A BARREL.
THAT'S THE FIRST TIME OIL HAS CLOSED ABOVE 47-DOLLARS A BARREL.

THE MORTGAGE BANKERS ASSOCIATION SAYS ITS MEASURE OF U-S MORTGAGE ACTIVITY ROSE NEARLY 12 PERCENT LAST WEEK.
THE TRADE GROUP ALSO REPORTS IT'S REFINANCING INDEX LEAPED NEARLY 21 PERCENT FOR THE WEEK.
MEANWHILE, 30-YEAR MORTGAGE INTEREST RATES FELL LAST WEEK TO AN AVERAGE OF FIVE-AND-THREE-QUARTERS PERCENT -- THEIR LOWEST LEVEL IN MORE THAN FOUR MONTHS.

BRITAIN'S FINANCIAL WATCHDOG SAYS IT HAS LAUNCHED AN INQUIRY INTO UNUSUAL TRADING BY CITIGROUP IN EUROPEAN GOVERNMENT BOND AND DERIVATIVE MARKETS.
THE PROBE CENTERS ON CITIGROUP'S SALE OF AROUND 13-POINT-FIVE BILLION DOLLARS WORTH OF GOVERNMENT DEBT IN THE SPACE OF MINUTES ON AUGUST SECOND.
A COMPANY SPOKESPERSON SAID THE FIRM WOULD COOPERATE FULLY, BUT HAD NO FURTHER COMMENT.

WITH THE BUSINESS BRIEF... I'M STAN CASE.)) [TAPE TOSS TO STOCKS] [STOCKS] [WOOD ROGERS SPONSOR BOARD 5185 ESSC] [WINNER]

[11OxyContin]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=khu]
[TAPE#=04-30 TC22:16]
[GRAPHIC=None]
[ENG#=1]
What started out as a class action against Purdue Pharma has been dismissed. Three years ago a group of OxyContin users in the coalfields of Virginia sued the drug manufacturer, claiming Purdue Pharma falsely marketed the risks of OxyContin. Yesterday, Federal Judge James Jones granted the company summary judgment.
(---------------)
[VO SILT] At the end of his 39-page opinion, the Judge notes he's familiar with what he calls the "human misery caused by the abuse of prescription drugs, particularly OxyContin." He cites: "Lives wasted, families disrupted, communities devastated, because of misuse of these drugs," and then rhetorically asks whether the company might have oversold OxyContin for its own profit.
(---------------)
[ANCHOR=Kim]
[SS=None]
The judge concluded this case did not answer that. He simply said the evidence does not show OxyContin or Purdue Pharma caused the plaintiffs injury.

[11Boty-Schools]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=sba]
[TAPE#=04-26 TC1:24:24]
[GRAPHIC=None]
[ENG#=2]
It may seem like summer vacation just started, but its already over for Botetourt County students.
(------------)
[VO-NAT]
[SUPER=03-Cloverdale]
Students in the county were the first from the area to head back to class after summer break. The principal at Cloverdale Elementary said everything ran smoothly. This year teachers and students from Botetourt will deal with some changes. The school day starts 10-minutes earlier to help buses get where they need to go. Lunches are a little bit more expensive and the days of a final exam are finished. Officials say that's to give teachers more time for instruction.
(------------)

[School-Lunches]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=kor]
[TAPE#=net]
[GRAPHIC=none]
[ENG#=3]

For many students heading back to school, you might want to take along extra lunch money. School nationwide are hiking the price of lunch to cover the soaring price of milk, food and employee benefits. Ceci Rodgers reports.

(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=01-Brett Clark/Glenview School District; :20]
[SUPER=01-Penny McConnell/Fairfax Co. Public Schools Director; :58]
[SUPER=01-Ceci Rodgers/Reporting; 1:32]
[RUNS=1:58]
[OUT Q=Rodgers, Chicago.]
((
Got milk money?
You may need a little more this year.
The price of milk and a hot lunch in many school districts across the nation is going up anywhere from a nickel.. to 1-dollar.
In Glenview, Illinois.. the cost of a lunch is going up 10 cents.. for the sixth straight year.. to 2-dollars-and-30 cents.

SOT, Clark,

The big reason is the price we're paying for food and milk, from our vendors, as well as our salaries and benefits. Those are really the four driving forces for why we've had to increase prices.
The price of milk alone has soared 27 percent from a year ago,
Fresh fruit and vegetable prices are also up..
Just this week.. hurricane charley destroyed much of Florida's orange crop. School officials say that will likely raise the price of orange juice for school breakfast.

nat sot, quick, from truck/fueling

Transportation costs .. driven by higher fuel prices.. also continue to rise.
and one of the biggest costs facing school districts, employee medical benefits.

SOT, McConnell,

just like you and I are paying very high health insurance costs, we as operators of school lunch programs are having to absorb that.
The question is.. with the cost of a school lunch at a national average of a-dollar-sixty ($1.60).. and rising.. will parents start packing brown bags?
Apparently not.
m-o-s, I would pay for it no matter what because I work. So for me it's better for them to just have a lunch, it's much easier.
m-o-s, we have no choice, we have to. Otherwise we would have to prepare lunches and with three children it's easier to pay the price and not worry about it
stand-up bridge:
One group that doesn't have to worry about paying higher prices.. the 17 million low-income children in the National School Lunch Program. They get their school lunch for a reduced cost or for free. and won't be affected.
but for everyone else.. it's perhaps an early lesson in the value of a dollar:

sot, it's just a dollar! it's not like 50 dlrs!

not yet anyway. ))

(Kim tosses to bump)
[BUMP]

[COMM] [PKGLow-Carbs]

[ANCHOR=Kim]
[NEWSCAST=morn]
[WRITER=jus]
[TAPE#=04-29 TC 36:33]
[GRAPHIC=None]
[ENG#=2]

It seems a lot of us have an appetite these days for anything low carb.
Restaurants, even grocery stores now cater to the diet. But are low carb items healthy?
Justin McLeod went to the experts to find out.

(///// SOT /////)
[SOT]
[IN Q=]
[SUPER=03-Roanoke; :00]
[SUPER=01-Heather Cox/Kroger Nutritionist; :07]
[SUPER=@justin1; 1:27]
[RUNS=1:38]
[OUT Q=JM, News 7]
((((NAT SOUND OF CHECKING OUT AT REGISTER))
The next time you're at the grocery store, you're bound to see tons of low carb foods.
[SOT 5:06:26]
[IN Q=In fact it's]
((HEATHER COX/KROGER'S NUTRITIONIST: IN FACT IT'S THE BIGGEST PUSH IN THE GROCERY INDUSTRY FOR ABOUT THE LAST SIX MONTHS TO A YEAR.)) [Runs04]
[OUT Q=to a year]

But are these products good for you? We asked Kroger's nutritionist to take us through the grocery store to find out.
First up? Bread.
[SOT 5:13:55]
[IN Q=Look for varieties]
((HEATHER COX/KROGER'S NUTRITIONIST: LOOK FOR VARIETIES WHERE THEY ARE MADE UP WITH 100-PERCENT WHOLE WHEAT. THAT'S REAL IMPORTANT AND SOME OF THE REDUCED CARBOHYDRATE VARIETIES AREN'T.)) [Runs09]
[OUT Q=VARIEITES AREN'T]

That's because many of the low carb breads are made with white flour.
Another product you need to look out for are low carb ice creams, especially novelties.
[SOT 5:19:46]
[IN Q=So what some of]
((HEATHER COX: SO WHAT SOME OF THE MANUFACTURERS HAVE DONE IS ACTUALLY ADDED MORE BUTTER FAT TO THEIR PRODUCT.)) [Runs04]
[OUT Q=TO THEIR PRODUCT]

That adds calories, something you should always be wary of.
But sugar free ice cream is ok.
So is low carb syrup.
The reason? A sugar substitute called splenda.
In juices, it cuts the calories by a third.
[SOT 5:10:07]
[IN Q=Because of that]
((HEATHER COX: SO NOW YOU'RE LOOKING AT 40 CALORIES PER EIGHT OUNCE SERVING ONLY 10 GRAMS OF CARBOHYDRATES VERSUS THE 35 GRAMS OF CARBOHYDRATE IN THE REGULAR VARIETY.)) [Runs08]
[OUT Q=the regular variety]

Other drinks are not as good.
Take low carb coke. Yes, it's better than regular coke but consider this.
[SOT 5:13:06]
[IN Q=The healthiest choice]
((HEATHER COX: THE HEALTHIEST CHOICE IS GOING TO BE THE DIET.)) [Runs02]
[OUT Q=BE THE DIET]

Then there are the low carb beers.
Yes, they have fewer calories than regular beer but the alcohol content is the same.
[SOT 5:18:42]
[IN Q=It's still an]
((HEATHER COX: IT'S STILL AN ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE YOU STILL NEED TO DRINK RESPONSIBLY.)) [Runs03]
[OUT Q=DRINK RESPONSIBLY]
[SOT ]
[IN Q=You also need]
((JUSTIN McLEOD/REPORTING: YOU ALSO NEED TO BE CAREFUL BECAUSE LOW CARB BEER IS A LOT LIKE LIGHT BEER BUT YOU'LL PAY MORE FOR THE LOW CARB STUFF. WE SAW THAT WITH A NUMBER OF OTHER PRODUCTS SO THE BOTTOM LINE READ THE LABEL AND BUYER BEWARE. JUSTIN McLEOD, NEWS 7.))))