Bush Creates World's Largest Marine Reserve; Violence in T.V. Commercials; Iraq's Martyrs; Lorraine Bracco
Bush Creates World's Largest Marine Reserve
America's 75th national monument will be an area that's home to rare species like endangered monk seals and nesting green sea turtles. President Bush is creating the marine reserve in the Pacific Ocean off the northwest islands of Hawaii. The 1400-mile-long area is home to some seven-thousand species, many of which can't be found anywhere else. The head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says it's the single largest act of ocean conservation in history. Bush is using a century-old law which gives a president authority to create national monuments to preserve America's ancient cultural sites and unusual geological features. The news caught environmentalists off guard. They expected President Bush to designate the island chain a marine sanctuary, which would have delayed protections and allowed legal opposition. By declaring the area a National Monument, the archipelago becomes protected immediately. Guest host Ted Chen talks with Hawaii Congressman Ed Chase, environmental attorney Linda Paul, and Joshua Reichert at the Pew Charitable Trust.
Violence in T.V. Commercials
Television networks use a voluntary rating system to warn viewers about the content of programs, but is anyone monitoring violence in commercials? Networks self-regulate commercial content, following their own standards and practices, but how are those guidelines established and monitored? Ted Chen and his guests discuss this practice of self-regulation, the differences in what's allowed to be shown, or heard, in commercials for broadcast, cable, internet, and in movie theatres, and what role the first amendment plays. Media law expert David Kohler, NBC attorney Don Zachary, and Melissa Caldwell of the Parents Television Council weigh in.
Iraq's Martyrs
Ted talks with Nir Rosen, a western journalist who has spent two of the past three years in Iraq, about his experiences and his new book, "In the Belly of the Green Bird: The Triumph of the Martyrs in Iraq."
Lorraine Bracco
Guest host Ted speaks with actress and author Lorraine Bracco about the conclusion of the 6th season of the hit TV series, "The Sopranos" as well her real life drama recently published in her autobiography, "On The Couch."