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CNN SATURDAY MORNING NEWS

Hospital Attacked after Bus Bombing; 473 Homes Destroyed in Wildfire; Facebook's Role in Government Surveillance; Building a Case against the NSA Leaker; Conservatives Rally in DC; More Americans Creating Their Own Jobs

Aired June 15, 2013 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


ALISON KOSIK, CNN ANCHOR: And live from Atlanta, this is CNN SATURDAY MORNING. It's June 15th. Good morning. I'm Alison Kosik.

Facebook is giving new details about how often law enforcement asks for information about you.

And fire fighters in Colorado are getting a better handle on a massive wildfire, but it comes a little too late for hundreds of families whose homes are already destroyed.

And we have the latest on a little girl who got a second chance with a critical lung transplant.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.

KOSIK: First, we want to go to breaking news out of Pakistan this morning.

Armed militants are holding hundreds of patients, doctors and nurses hostage at a hospital. Three security guards and a local official have been killed along with three others, and in what's likely no coincidence, victims of a bus bombing this morning were taken to that very hospital to be treated, and a blast hit near the emergency room as they were rushed in.

At least 11 people were killed in the bus attack and all were women teachers or female students from a university and more than 20 people were hurt.

Let's bring in CNN's Saima Mohsin is live in Islamabad, Pakistan. Saima this is a brazen attack. I mean what do you think could it be an example of women being targeted because they're pursuing an education?

SAIMA HOHSIN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: of course, that is something we've seen before here in Pakistan, isn't it, Alison or particularly in the northwest of Pakistan with the Taliban. Well this is the southwest in the Balochistan Province. So we haven't seen women being attacked in the past as far as education is concerned. But we are seeing that this kind of ruthless attack is increasing where men, women and children are being targeted.

So certainly a ruthless and brazen attack as far as the attack on the women teachers and students at that university on that bus is concerned. There were 35 to 40 of them on the bus, 11 of them died and 19 injured and then the rest taken to that hospital where a further attack took place.

And Alison, just to update you, we're getting more and more figures in as this siege continues at the hospital. Two suicide bombers struck this morning inside the hospital. We still don't know how many people have been killed or injured as a result of that.

KOSIK: Now -- now last year 15-year-old Malala Yousafzai, she was shot by the Taliban as she was on her way home from school. Is there thinking that the Taliban is connected to these attacks as well?

MOHSIN: Of course, that's something that always brings to mind when we see these kinds of attacks in Pakistan. It's certainly a tactic the Taliban used to do two bombings back-to-back to target services like the emergency services or hospitals, but this time around to give you some context about this part of Pakistan in the southwest, there's a very serious separatist movement, an armed movement in that region. They want to break away from the rest of Pakistan.

We've -- we don't know yet who has carried out this attack, if, indeed, it is the separatist groups or it is the Taliban. No one has claimed responsibility of this horrific attack yet. It is, of course, still ongoing. Those militants holed up inside. So there could be a number of groups responsible for this.

Do we know whether it's another Malala-style attack? Well, that's something that shocked and reviled Pakistanis up and down the country. This too is shocking Pakistanis as they -- as they watch this story unfold on their screens. As I say eight militants believed to be holed up inside holding hundreds of patients, doctors, and nurses hostage.

More information coming in to me now, Alison, the three nurses have also been killed in that attack. We're watching it closely for you here.

KOSIK: All right an unfolding scene. We'll come back to you for more information Saima Mohsin thank you.

A developing story at this hour the Department of Justice had just announced it has allowed tech giants to reveal how many requests it gets from all forms of law enforcement, including the National Security Agency. And a spokesman says the publication of these numbers will show that an extraordinarily small number of accounts are subject to legal process.

Facebook was the first to come out with its information on how often any form of law enforcement asks for data on you. Facebook says in the last half of 2012 it received between 9,000 and 10,000 requests from law enforcement impacting between 18,000 and 19,000 accounts.

CNNMoney's Laurie Segall talked to me by phone about what these numbers mean.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) LAURIE SEGALL, CNNMONEY CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): We need to know that for national security that these companies like Facebook, like Microsoft, it's a huge resource that they are tapping into this information and we're now beginning for the first time to really see some transparency. You know, when Facebook put out this report you know early this morning, late last night, they essentially said that the local law enforcement uses -- uses these reports to try to help track down missing children.

You know, they do it for gang-related activity, that it's been a help with national security. So I mean for the first time we're really beginning to wrap our heads around the idea that our lives and our lives online are not completely private. They are a huge resource for national security.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOSIK: And this is all in reaction to the revelations the National Security Agency has been accessing Facebook servers which the company denies.

And the man who triggered the scrutiny on the tech giants was the focus of a rally in Hong Kong today. Edward Snowden who leaked the documents that revealed the U.S. government was snooping fled to Hong Kong. Several hundred supporters marched through the city demanding protection for Snowden. Reuters said the turnout was modest and reportedly a third of those attending were journalists.

Rain and calmer winds are helping out Colorado fire fighters battle a huge wildfire. But the flames have already taken their toll; 473 homes are gone, two people are dead, and 15,000 acres are scorched.

Paul Vercammen joins us live now from Colorado Springs. Paul, what kind of progress have fire fighters made?

PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they've made extreme progress and as you can tell behind me, it's very clear. You don't see any smoke; you don't see the -- the fire sparking up again in any areas. They're a little concerned about this wind of course, but the temperatures are very low. It got down to around 50 degrees overnight and that helped fire fighters immensely. They really do have the upper hand on this.

And now they're going to have to go in and just continue to mop up and make sure that none of those hotspots flare up and then get whipped up again by this wind -- Alison.

KOSIK: Paul, how are people there coping, especially with this being, you know, the second year in a row with a huge wildfire?

VERCAMMEN: They're anxious, they're upset. Many people here in absolute limbo. They're fairly certain that their houses have burned down but they haven't been back to their neighborhood. There is just a man who came up to me just a short time ago wondering when the next news conference would be. That's coming up later today because that's where he gets his drips and grabs of drabs of information. And then when you talk to these homeowners it's just aching to listen to them tell their tales and how they lost their houses. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL MOREAU, LOST HOUSE IN FIRE: It's really tough to watch. You know, you see the chairs and things like that on the deck that we sat on just a few days ago. In fact, one that I sat on the morning of the -- of the fire and just to realize not so much the flames, but what's behind the flames. All of those personal things that -- that are important to you emotionally. Little things just set you off. You'll stick your hand in your pocket and pull out something that reminds you of the house and it's just really tough.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERCAMMEN: And this year's fire even worse than last summer's fire; 473 homes burned makes it the most extensive loss in property damage in Colorado history -- Alison.

KOSIK: All right Paul Vercammen thank you.

And we just heard the weather is helping fire fighters in Colorado a little bit. Jennifer Delgado joins us now in the Weather Center. Are conditions going to improve there even more?

JENNIFER DELGADO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hi, Alison. You're right. They are getting a break right now, but as we go later into the day, we do have a chance we could see some thunderstorms popping up. Now right now on the radar it's very quiet out you can see nothing happening across Colorado, but for today as I said, we are going to start to see the relative humidity values dropping just a bit and then we're also going to see winds today in between 10 and 20 miles per hour.

Right now temperature is 70 degrees from the north, 13. That's showing you the dry air in place. Now as I said to you, yes, there is a chance for some storms out there. Not -- we're not expecting significant rainfall but unfortunately, some of these storms could cause lightning. And of course, that could trigger some more wildfires so we certainly will be watching that.

And another feature that we're watching, storms moving through parts of the upper Midwest, all the way down towards the southern plains, and Chicago, it's wet out there. It's going to be a gloomy Saturday for you as those showers will continue to pound across the region. And we also have a chance for some severe weather to pop up from Chicago all the way out towards Denver, Colorado. If you're in the yellow today, make sure you're paying close attention to the weather. We do have a chance for those storms to produce some damaging winds as well as hail.

Now on the East Coast, no problems there, drier air filtering in thanks to this ridge of high pressure. A few showers you can see for the Florida panhandle. And then on the West Coast, lots of sunshine and of course we know where the problems will be today. Alison we'll be following that right now let's send it back over to you.

KOSIK: Ok Jennifer Delgado, thanks.

A second blast in two days has left another person dead at a chemical plant in Louisiana. This latest incident happened last night at a plant about 40 miles south of Baton Rouge in Donaldsonville. The plant manager says nitrogen was being unloaded from a tanker truck when a small vessel ruptured. The explosion killed a 55-year-old man and injured eight others. Two people died and more than 100 were injured on Thursday by a nearby plant.

A Frontier Airlines' passenger is in police custody after a security threat on board a plane. The flight from Knoxville, Tennessee landed safely to its destination of Denver last night. A bomb squad checked the plane and cleared the scene a few hours later. Investigators are not releasing any details about what exactly happened but they're describing it only as a, quote, "a potential security threat."

Get ready for a new look in the mornings right here on CNN. In just two days, two days, our all new morning show "New Day" begins with Chris Cuomo, Kate Bolduan and Michaela Pereira. "New Day" starts Monday morning at 6:00 a.m. You're not going to want to miss it.

The Department of Justice wants to let you know just how often it tries to get into people's private details and the numbers may surprise you.

And have you ever wondered how much all those natural disasters cost? The price tag is so high you won't believe it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KOSIK: Facebook has opened its stats to show just how often it gets warrants, subpoenas and other orders to hand over your information and it turns out the company says that less than one percent of its billion-plus users are being asked.

It's not the only tech giant though to come out with figures. They're trying to be more transparent after reports they were giving the U.S. government direct access to company servers, which the companies deny.

CNN's Rene Marsh is now covering the story from Washington. Rene, in the last hour the Justice Department releasing a statement about these figures and why they allowed the public to see them -- tell us about this.

RENE MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Alison. Really a short time ago we just received this statement from the Justice Department about this agreement that they made with these companies like Facebook and Microsoft to reveal how much of your information they're handing over to government agencies.

So here is a portion of that statement. They say, quote, these aggregate totals include all instances in which a government entity has served lawful process on the providers, be it a grand jury subpoena or search warrant in a criminal matter, a national security letter, a court order under FISA, or another type of request pursuant to statutory authorization. The publication of these numbers will show that an extraordinarily small number of accounts are subject to the legal process."

Now, pretty much a lot of legal terms in that statement there; pretty much what they are saying there is what we've been doing here when we request this information, we're doing it legally. They're essentially saying that the amount of information that they've requested is a sliver, a small piece of all the data that is actually out there.

And Facebook's lawyer, for example, they said with their more than 1.1 billion users worldwide, only a tiny fraction, less than 1 percent of user account data, was requested. Alison?

KOSIK: All right. Well, Rene, let's get back for a moment to the man who triggered all of this leaking the classified documents, showing the government snooping. Where is Edward Snowden?

MARSH: Right. Well, at this point, you know, the issue is where is he and, you know, will he be arrested? When will he be arrested? We know that that's coming. That's in his future. At this point what we believe is happening is they're getting their charges together. They have to figure out what are they going to charge him with.

We spoke with -- reporters spoke with Attorney General Holder yesterday, and they asked him that very question. Do they know where he is, and they also want to know why hasn't the U.S. called for his arrest as yet? And what Holder said at that point is that this investigation is very much under way, and without naming Snowden, and he has yet to name Edward Snowden, he simply said that the person responsible will be prosecuted to the fullest extent.

So that's where we are now, still lots of question marks. We don't know when these charges will be filed. We don't know when they will call for his arrest.

So we're kind of just waiting and watching for when this all happens, but we do know from the FBI director who was on Capitol Hill just this week, we do know that they are putting together a criminal case against the person who leaked this information, so that much we know, but you just have to kind of wait and see to find out when this man would actually be officially charged and they call for his arrest -- Alison.

KOSIK: Ok, Rene Marsh, thanks.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says Syria's use of chemical weapons and the involvement of Hezbollah threatened to put a political settlement out of reach. As violence continues in the region, the U.S. says it plans to send small arms, ammunition, and anti-tank weapons to Syria's rebels. Russia is opposed to the idea and says there is no reliable information chemical weapons have been used. President Barack Obama will meet with Russia's president on Monday.

Iran's presidential election results are trickling in this morning, and early returns are showing centrist Hassan Rouhani is in a fair lead. Iranian officials say there has been a high turnout in the vote but if not candidate gets a majority -- the top two finishers will be in a runoff next week.

Sarah Palin is front and center in the nation's capital today. She's the keynote speaker at a conservative rally. We'll go there live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KOSIK: Sarah Palin will be back on stage soon. The former Alaskan governor and vice presidential candidate is giving the keynote address at what organizers are calling the road to majority conference. It's a meeting of conservatives sponsored by the Atlanta-based Faith and Freedom Coalition.

CNN political editor Paul Steinhauser is at the event. So, Paul, why Palin for the key speech?

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Well, because Sarah Palin is still pretty popular with social conservatives and still very influential and these people are a very big part of the base of the Republican Party. She had another big speech earlier this year at another similar conference, the CPAC conference. And she'll be back here.

This is the fourth year for Faith and Freedom. It's one of the top gatherings of social conservatives around the country. And again, yes, for Palin, this is her crowd, these are her people.

Earlier this morning you had the first speaker. The first major speaker was Rick Perry, the long-time governor of Texas, and he was talking about some of his gaffes from the 2012 campaign. He's also somebody who is thinking about maybe running again in 2016.

And this conference, Alison, you could call it a cattle call for possible Republican candidates in 2016. We have seen senators Marco Rubio and Rand Paul. We saw Rick Santorum, the former senator, speak here. We have also seen Paul Ryan and Jeb Bush as well. So a lot of people here, who even though 2016 is a long way away, may have the White House on their minds -- Alison.

KOSIK: Ok. So Sarah Palin is a big draw for conservatives. What about Governor Chris Christie? I understand though he's not there today.

STEINHAUSER: Yes, I guess you could say the big story is the person who didn't speak here. Chris Christie, as you mentioned, the Republican governor from New Jersey, he was invited to speak here. But at the same time as this conference was happening the last couple of days, so was the Clinton Global Initiative in Chicago and that's where Chris Christie was yesterday, last night in fact. He teamed up with Bill Clinton, the former president at that gathering in Chicago.

And that's not sitting well with some people here, and that would be important to Chris Christie if he decides to run for the White House in 2016. It's still a long way away but people have memories -- Alison. KOSIK: I'm hearing that one time presidential candidate Donald Trump showed up as well. Is he running again or is he just trying to keep himself in the public eye?

STEINHAUSER: You know, with Donald Trump you never really do know. He flirted with it last time, he flirted with running way back in 2000, and he's talking again, flirting again about running in 2016. He did talk about the election last night though, the upcoming election, in his speech. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, REAL ESTATE MAGNATE: We have to be very, very careful. The Republicans cannot have a death wish. The Republicans can win the next election. The next election is going to be tough. I really believe it's going to be Hillary. But Hillary can be beaten, and the Democrats can be beaten.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STEINHAUSER: I guess Donald Trump is convinced that Hillary Clinton is running. Stay tuned, we don't know about that one yet, do we, Alison?

KOSIK: Ok. Paul Steinhauser, thanks.

Just days before the death of Michael Jackson, a top executive at the company accused in his death asked if the pop star needed a straitjacket. More on the wrongful death trial coming up next.

But first, many Americans have given up on finding a traditional job and gone to work for themselves. In this "American Journey" report, Tom Foreman shows us some of the resources now available to them.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When this small tech company began out in Kansas, one of the founders, Dan Carol, knew he needed virtually no permanent staff, just talented temporary workers hired when needed and ready to embrace a new professional mantra.

DAN CARROLL, LEEP 2: I guess sort of the idea that the job you create for yourself is the most stable job you could have.

FOREMAN: He's not alone. One business study estimates there are already more than 17 million Americans who no longer work for companies, but sell their skills day by day. That number could jump to 23 million in the next few years.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, freelancing is happening everywhere.

FOREMAN: At the Freelancers Union in New York, the founder, Sara Horowitz, knows all about it.

SARA HOROWITZ, FOUNDER, FREELANCERS UNION: It is really a phenomenon where people are hard working, and they're just putting together a bunch of projects and they work in fields ranging from being a doctor to a programmer to being a nanny.

FOREMAN: Not much like a traditional union, her group helps its members take on all the tasks that employers used to manage, networking for the next job, marketing their skills, and the toughest part, managing health care. By combining their purchasing power, she says group members get insurance for 40 percent less than it would cost them individually. And for all the headaches --

HOROWITZ: Because they don't work that 9 to 5, they can be home when their kids get home from school. They can still do the things they love, the projects that many of us say, well, we'll do that when we retire.

FOREMAN: And she suspects many freelancers, despite some economic jitters, are feeling more free because they left the everyday office behind.

Tom Foreman, CNN, Kansas City.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KOSIK: Facebook and Microsoft are revealing just how often they get requests for subpoenas, warrants, and orders from the secret court that is at the heart of the government's snooping scandal. Facebook says it received 9,000 to 10,000 requests from all forms of law enforcement. Microsoft received 6,000 to 7,000 requests in the last half of last year. The Department of Justice says the newly released information shows that, quote, extraordinarily small numbers of accounts are subject to the legal process.

As violence continues in Syria, U.S. Secretary of state John Kerry says Damascus' use of chemical weapons and the involvement of Hezbollah threaten to put a political settlement out of reach. The U.S. says it plans to send small arms, ammunition and anti-tank weapons to Syria's rebels, but Russia is opposed to the idea.

Seven people are dead in an armed siege at a hospital in southwestern Pakistan. Militants are holding hundreds of patients, physicians and nurses hostage. Twenty students wounded in a bus explosion earlier today had been taken to that same hospital. Police say at least 11 people were killed in that explosion. No one has claimed responsible for the blast.

The numbers are in and last year is on record as the second most expensive for natural disasters in the U.S. from hurricanes to droughts. We're talking about damage into the billions of dollars, including the mess on the East Coast after superstorm Sandy. Alina Cho reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hurricanes, tornadoes, fires, floods: 2012 was the second costliest year ever in terms of damage according to the National Climatic Data Center. More than $110 billion spread out over 11 major weather disasters, each costing more than $1 billion.

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: That's just a number that you can't even put your head around. Weather is becoming more extreme.

CHO (voice-over): The most extreme of 2012, superstorm Sandy, $65 billion in damage -- and let's not forget the human cost, more than 130 lives.

Perhaps lost in the coverage, washed away by news of Sandy, was the year-long drought, the longest since the Dust Bowl days of the 1930s, affecting more than half the country for most of the year and costing $30 billion.

And remember the drought leads to wildfires, which last year burned 9 million acres across the country.

So what's being done?

MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY: This is urgent work and it must begin now.

CHO (voice-over): Just this week New York City's mayor, Michael Bloomberg, proposed a $20 billion plan to build floodwalls, levees and upgrade the city's building codes. New York City suffered $19 billion in damage post-Sandy and Bloomberg says the forecast by midcentury is that a similar storm could cost nearly five times that, $90 billion.

BLOOMBERG: We can do nothing and expose ourselves to an increasing frequency of Sandy-like storms. We could abandon the waterfront. Or we can make the investments necessary to build a stronger, more resilient New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KOSIK: And Alina Cho joins us now from Seaside Heights, New Jersey.

Alina, let me ask you this, because I know the people there have suffered so much after Sandy.

How are they doing now?

CHO: Well, it's incredible to see the rebuilding, Alison. First of all -- and a lot has happened in the past 61/2 months -- the entire 16- block boardwalk here has been rebuilt. It's really, really incredible. The beach is packed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHO (voice-over): Have a look here just to my right. I mean, take a look at this. Of course, it's a beautiful day. And we're told that, come July 4th weekend, some of the kiddy rides will be back and so that will be important to the businesses here; that will bring some of the crowds back here at night after the beach hours. What's incredible is that 85 percent to 90 percent of the businesses are back open. Many of them are open right now. The rebuilding cost about $6 million to $7 million. Amazingly, that's half of the budget of Seaside Heights. But when you consider that this is the lifeline, 75 percent of the revenue annually comes from this boardwalk, rebuilding it really was priority number one. Alison?

KOSIK: OK, Alina Cho, nice to see things bustling over there again in Seaside Heights. Thanks.

Now to that explosive testimony in the Michael Jackson wrongful death trial.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KOSIK (voice-over): The Jackson family accuses concert promoter AEG of being liable for the pop star's death because it negligently hired or supervised Dr. Conrad Murray.

This week the jury heard testimony that AEG executives chatted about Jackson's mental health, questioning whether Jackson needed a straitjacket.

Also, those NSA leaks, is the man responsible for leaking classified information to the public a hero or a traitor? I talk to CNN legal analyst Paul Callan about that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOSIK: But first to the testimony that may work in the Jackson family's favor.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAUL CALLAN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Their attorney, Brian Panash (ph), really did a number on the CEO of AEG, the company that hired Michael Jackson to do the tour. He caught him in a lot of contradictions. He was able to show that clearly anybody who was looking at Michael Jackson knew that Jackson was sick and was looking pale and had problems.

So, as I say, from a public relations standpoint, I think clearly the Jacksons scored a lot. Whether they're winning the case though is another matter, I think. And the -- yes, go ahead.

KOSIK: Oh, no, no; finish your thought.

CALLAN: No, the reason I say that is because when you step back on this case, the thing you have to remember ultimately is the claim here is that they, the concert company, the -- AEG, was negligent in hiring Conrad Murray, the doctor that Jackson wanted.

Now, Jackson suggested Conrad Murray. Conrad Murray had never, up until that point in time, been disciplined. He had a valid medical license. So is it the job of a private corporation to, you know, vet and do some kind of substantial analysis of the financial problems of a doctor who is being suggested by a movie guy, a movie person and a music person like Michael Jackson?

And that's really what the case is about. And I'm not so sure that you win on that case. I mean, was it AEG's job to pick the right doctor for Michael Jackson?

KOSIK: Hey, we will continue to watch that case unfold.

Let's switch topics for a moment. Let's turn to the NSA leaks and the search for Edward Snowden. Officials believe he's in Hong Kong now and they fear he could defect to China.

What do you think? Does this make him a hero or a traitor?

CALLAN: That's the question of the week, hero or traitor?

We have revelations here of what I think everybody thinks is a disturbing amount of governmental surveillance and collection of data.

Of course, the U.S. government says they have to do this in order to fight terrorism.

Those who think that Snowden has exposed improper, unconstitutional surveillance of American citizens think he's a hero.

But I'm starting to lean in the traitor department personally, only because of the way he's acting. A hero who wants to fight the system and expose unconstitutionality comes back to the United States, faces the charges publicly, like Daniel Ellsberg did in the Pentagon Papers case long ago.

He was put on trial for leaking that information and, you know what? He was exonerated when the charges were dismissed.

On the other hand, Snowden seems to be in flight. He seems to be seeking asylum in other countries and maybe a country that is sometimes viewed as an enemy of the United States, China.

So I think, in the end, regardless of how heroic his actions might be, he's certainly looking like a traitor if he's fleeing and seeking asylum in China or elsewhere.

KOSIK: OK, Paul Callan, thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

One of the most infamous accused mob bosses in U.S. history facing trial in a Boston courtroom. We're taking you inside the case.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KOSIK: Get ready, we're just two days away, two days from the premiere of our all new morning show right here on CNN. It's called "NEW DAY." It begins Monday morning at 6:00 am Eastern. Chris Cuomo, Kate Bolduan, Michaela Pereira, they're all going to start your day with everything you need to know. You don't want to miss it, but if you feel like you're going to miss it, go ahead and DVR it.

In a small mining town in Peru, living conditions are incredibly harsh. There's no plumbing, no sewage system.

The situation is even more difficult for girls trying to get an education there. A Peruvian writer shares her experience meeting Senna, one of the girls featured in a new CNN film, "Girl Rising," which premieres this Sunday at 9:00 pm.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SENNA, LA RINCONADA (through translator): My name is Senna, La Rinconada; this is not a good place for kids.

MARIE ARANA, WRITER: La Rinconada for me was an absolute breathtaking experience. I felt I was stepping back in history, something very medieval about it, the misery of life, the lack of water and sewage.

Education is really very low on the sense of priorities. In the case of Senna, her father was such an inspiration. He said, "Don't be like me, I never stepped foot inside a school. You can."

SENNA (through translator): I found out that my father was dying. I cried and I cried and I told my mom, "Mom, don't cry. I will succeed with or without my father."

ARANA: In a place that is dark and ugly in so many ways, this child has such a great appreciation for words.

SENNA (through translator): My poem would be like an acrostic. It would be a dream of being an engineer. I'm excited to grow. I will never let my dad down, and I will never fall behind.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KOSIK: And Senna is currently enrolled in high school and on track to attend college.

To learn more about the campaign behind the film "Girl Rising" and the 10x10 Fund for girls' education go to CNN.com/girlrising. CNN Films' "Girl Rising" premieres tomorrow, June 16th, at 9:00 pm Eastern and Pacific.

Are you worried about having your smartphone stolen? Well, Apple has something new that will help you by making your phone useless to would-be thieves. I'll tell you what it is after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KOSIK: If you're one of the millions of Americans who have had your iPhone or other smartphone stolen, you know how infuriating it can be, but now Apple is saying they've come up with something to deter would- be thieves, a so-called kill switch for the device. I asked tech expert Carley Knobloch, the founder of Digitwirl, how it works.

CARLEY KNOBLOCH, FOUNDER, DIGITWIRL: Up until now, Apple's response and feature set around this has been pretty lackluster. You can erase your phone remotely if it gets lost or stolen, but it's still fully operational. It can be wiped clean and resold. But now with the upcoming release of iOS 7, there is this kill switch that completely deactivates the phone.

So if it gets lost or stolen, you can render it completely useless.

KOSIK: OK, so is there a timetable on this? When would this kill switch be available? And you said it could be coming out soon. And will it really stop criminals?

KNOBLOCH: Yes, so it's coming out with the upcoming release of iOS 7, which is happening in the fall and, you know, I don't know if it's going to be a deterrent anytime soon.

I mean, there's millions of devices that won't be compatible with iOS 7 and it's going to take a while for people to upgrade to the new operating system. And a thief isn't going to know any of that until they have your phone already in their hand.

But I think it sets a really great precedent. Apple is trying to be part of the solution to this huge problem.

KOSIK: All right. So besides the kill switch, how else can we protect ourselves? We've got iPhones, especially any smartphone.

KNOBLOCH: Right. And I think it's really important to keep all of your information backed up, so that if somebody walks off with your phone, they're not taking your whole digital life with them.

And also, you know, if you're going to be in a place that's where you feel vulnerable to theft or a mugging, resist the urge to tweet and keep your iPhone in your pocket.

KOSIK: OK. So let's switch gears for a moment, another big announcement happening this week from Facebook and they're going to start using hashtags just like Twitter.

I guess we kind of knew this was coming.

First, explain to viewers who don't know what are these hashtags.

KNOBLOCH: Right. So if you've seen them around the Web, different social media, that number sign or pound sign next to a word or a phrase, that's a hashtag and it's essentially a way to organize information by topics. So if you use a hashtag in one of your posts, you are including that post in a larger global conversation around that topic.

KOSIK: OK. So when will everybody start to be able to use these hashtags on Facebook? I haven't seen the ability yet, and are they going to really work the same way they do on Twitter, where you can really consolidate a lot of information?

KNOBLOCH: Yes. So similar to Twitter, they're rolling out the hashtag feature to all of their users within the coming weeks. They like to do this slowly and in phases. And it is going to work in a similar way to Twitter, although you're only going to be able to see posts that you're authorized to see.

So if you put up a post that's only supposed to be shown to your friends, then only those friends are going to be able to see that in their hashtag stream. So it's going to look a little bit different for everybody.

You know, Facebook realizes that their posts are very ephemeral. They get lost in the streams. So this is another way that they're trying to help people find and relocate existing content that's on Facebook.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KOSIK: And that was tech expert, Carley Knobloch, the founder of Digitwirl.

We're watching breaking news at a hospital in Pakistan. Stay with us for the latest.

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KOSIK: And "CNN NEWSROOM" starts at the top of the hour. Fredricka Whitfield is with us.

What you got?

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Good to see you. OK, we're going to have much more on the conservative movement, people at the Faith and Values Conference in Washington taking place.

And of course, one of the headlining speakers today is former Alaska governor, Sarah Palin. So we're going to hear as to is it all about kind of shock value, what she has to say, or how influential is she?

And then also, the words "Happy Birthday" and the song that goes with it, I mean, we all sing it, right?

KOSIK: Yes, of course we do.

WHITFIELD: Well, one particular music group says they have the copyright of "Happy Birthday" and so they believe that they are owed millions of dollars in licensing fees.

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KOSIK: Why is this coming to light now? We've been singing it how long? But why -- WHITFIELD: Maybe because now they decided to take it to court.

KOSIK: Oh, there you go. OK.

WHITFIELD: And they're adding up the numbers. Are they subject to receive anything? Our legal guys are going to weigh in on that. Avery and Richard will be along.

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WHITFIELD (voice-over): And then, the world of race car driving is now mourning the loss of one of its own, Jason Leffler there. Perhaps you recall that we profiled him a couple of years ago, and he was gracious enough to take me behind the wheel around the Charlotte Motor Speedway.

And so, we're going to revisit the life and times of Jason Leffler. All of us are feeling like our hearts are broken. And you'll get to see and hear from him as to why he really has a place kind of in our memory and our hearts really go out to his family.

KOSIK: OK.

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WHITFIELD: (Inaudible) Eastern time.

KOSIK: We'll be watching. Thank you, Fredricka.

After 16 years in hiding, reputed mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger is captured, now facing trial. What happened in court? That's coming up next.

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KOSIK: He's one of the most famous mob bosses in U.S. history, James "Whitey" Bulger. After a 16-year manhunt, the reputed Mafia kingpin now sits in a courtroom facing 19 counts of murder. Deb Feyerick is in Boston following the trial for us.

Deb?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Alison, this is a trial that many people here in Boston thought they would never see. Now, James "Whitey" Bulger, who spent most of his life trying to avoid attention, is front and center for everyone to see.

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FEYERICK (voice-over): These are some of the images seen by the jury: Whitey Bulger, 30 years ago at the height of his power, a crime boss feared throughout Boston. Prosecutors introduced clip after clip of Bulger meeting with members of both the Italian and Irish Mafia, here at a garage where Bulger ran his criminal enterprise. That enterprise, said his own lawyer, was made up of drug trafficking, extortion and loan sharking and was worth millions upon millions of dollars.

Bulger has pleaded not guilty to charges he killed 19 people. Prosecutors emphasized those murders in opening statements, saying, "This, ladies and gentlemen, is what this case is about."

Underscoring the violence that characterized Bulger's so-called "Reign of Terror" from the '70s to mid-90s, prosecutors presented an arsenal of weapons found at Bulger hideouts. Those weapons included dozens of fully automatic machine guns and military rifles, sawed-off shotguns, semiautomatic pistols and double-edged knives, enough to go to war.

Bulger's role as an FBI informant is essential to this trial. One of the first witnesses to testify was retired Massachusetts police colonel, Thomas Foley. He led the Bulger investigation in the '80s and said he felt betrayed by corrupt FBI agents, who, quote, "put a higher priority protecting their informants than on protecting public safety."

The most colorful testimony came from a former bookmaker, who said he paid Bulger thousands of dollars every year for nearly 14 years. Richard O'Brian (ph), seen on the right, described a meeting between Bulger and a man who owed him money.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FEYERICK: O'Brian (ph) testified that when the man balked at paying, Bulger apparently replied, "We have a business besides bookmaking: killing people like you."

O'Brian (ph) used a racier word than people and Whitey Bulger, who showed little emotion in the first days of trial, threw his head back and laughed, seeming to enjoy a good story by an old friend, not afraid to look him in the eye.

Alison?

KOSIK: Deborah Feyerick, thanks.

All right. Now, here's something you've just got to see.

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KOSIK (voice-over): Watch the left side of your screen here because a man falls five stories, smashing into the sidewalk. And you can see him lying there, debris all around him. People gather around to help.

And then look at that, moments later, whoo! He walks away. He's the one in the middle in the striped shirt. I don't know if you can see him there. Look, look again, there's the fall again. People try to help.

And then he walks away. He was a little stunned, but otherwise, OK.

WHITFIELD: Just a little bit.

KOSIK: Like a cat with nine lives.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

KOSIK: All right. "CNN NEWSROOM" continues with Fredricka Whitfield.

Hi, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Hi.

What a way to end it. That's very perplexing.

All right. Thanks so much, Alison. Have a great day. We'll see you tomorrow.