[Kyra Phillips, Co-host:] Hello, everyone, I'm Kyra Phillips live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
[Don Lemon, Co-host:] And I'm Don Lemon. The P.R. stunt that triggered a terror scare. Were the guys arrested just doing their jobs or way out of line?
[Phillips:] Joe Biden and Barack Obama, racial overtones or just a misunderstanding? Controversial words from a presidential candidate.
[Lemon:] Snow and ice are causing havoc in the south. Live reports and the latest from the severe weather center, right here live in the CNN NEWSROOM. They wanted publicity and, boy, did they get it. Twenty-four hours after a marketing stunt shut down the city of Boston with a series of bomb scares, two people are facing charges. City leaders are up in arms, and Turner Broadcasting, this network's parent company, is apologizing. Our Boston bureau chief, Dan Lothian, is covering it all for us. Very interesting story, Dan.
[Dan Lothian, Cnn Correspondent:] It's a very interesting story, bizarre from the very beginning. And then it sort of took another turn this afternoon, as two of the suspects two of the suspects, Sean Stevens and Peter Berdovsky, they were released on $2,500 cash bail. They came out of the courthouse behind me. They approached the microphones. Everyone had been waiting to talk to them, and they were going to say make a statement. Then they began by saying the only thing that the only thing they were going to talk about was hair. One of the young men had dreadlocks. The other one has shorter hair. And then they went into sort of this rant about afros and Mohawks and talking about hairstyles. They kept getting peppered by reporters, saying, aren't you taking this entire thing seriously? And they said, "Well, that's not a question about my hair. That's not a hair question. We will only take hair questions." So just a bizarre press conference, I guess, or press availability after the two suspects were able to post bail. I talked to their attorney afterwards. And I said, listen, what was going on here this afternoon? And he told me that they were putting on a performance. And I said, well, are they not taking this seriously? And he said, "All I can say is that perhaps this a result of the shock as to what has transpired over the last 24 hours in their lives." Now, initially, they were being held on $100,000 bail. That was reduced to $2,500 bail at their each, at their arraignment today. They both pled not guilty. This case obviously has been so unusual and has been stunning for many of the folks here in the Boston area, beginning yesterday morning, not far from here, when the first device was found. And then throughout the afternoon a number of these devices started showing up, bomb squads, both local, state, federal agencies, running around the city, shutting down roads and bridges, and even the Charles River had to be closed for quite some time. Defenders of the two suspects who were here in quite large numbers today were saying these were just two young men who were doing their jobs. They were doing a marketing campaign for the Cartoon Network which, by the way, is owned by Turner Broadcasting, also the parent company of CNN. They said that they were just doing what they were paid to do.
[Jason Palm, Protestor:] They were just doing their jobs really. This is part of an advertising campaign. They're getting paid to do this. They didn't go out and decide to plant these all over to make them look like bombs and to disrupt the city.
[Lothian:] The prosecutor in court today, though, said that, you know, while we know these were harmless devices in the end, they could have been bombs. He said they were placed in places where, if you wanted to cause some damage, you would place a bomb, like under a bridge or in a transportation hub. And he said they had batteries and wires and duct tape. So therefore, they were taken seriously. That's why bomb squads were dispatched to various areas to explode these devices. Obviously, the city is quite angered by what happened here. The mayor saying that Turner Broadcasting needs to be held accountable. And even the MBTA, the transit authority here, which had to shut down the trains and buses yesterday at certain times, has written a letter seeking some compensation for time lost and for the disruption of their service yesterday Don.
[Lemon:] And, Dan, we were watching back here, obviously, and I'm sure you can attest to this, as well. One of the most interesting and bizarre press conferences we've ever seen. You alluded to the fact that Turner is being asked to pay for some of the damages there, and I think it's upwards of $100,000, or a couple hundred thousand dollars for all of the law enforcement effort?
[Lothian:] Right, and the particular letter I don't have an exact number on what they're looking for in terms of trying to get back. But the numbers that are being thrown around by the city, anywhere from $500,000 to $1 million for the resources that were used. And, you know, all those people who were needed to shut down roads, to go out and do these investigations.
[Lemon:] Right. All right. Dan Lothian, thank you very much for that. And as Dan alluded to, Boston is still buzzing about the "Aqua Teen" bomb scare. Here's what some people are saying.
[Unidentified Male:] I think that this is an outrage. You know, they send this one paragraph press release out, saying they apologize. But they didn't never gave us the locations of any of these packages in the city of Boston.
[Palm:] They were just doing their jobs, really. This is part of an advertising campaign. They were getting paid to do this. They didn't go out and decide to plant these all over to make them look like bombs and to disrupt the city.
[Unidentified Female:] If it's guerrilla marketing it should have been approved by the city and it should have been something that the city knew was happening and that it was fine and that it wasn't going to cause a big scare.
[Unidentified Male:] Now that I hear that it's the Mooninites, I think it's kind of hilarious.
[Unidentified Female:] It was mentioned in the context of, can we get home? Is the traffic going to be really bad? And so that's what people were concerned about. And then you think what kind of world do we live in?
[Phillips:] Well, the term is guerrilla marketing, an increasingly popular form of nontraditional advertising. Karl Carter is co-founder of GTM Inc. and a pioneer in the field. You've probably seen his work, his team's work. One of the better-known media blitzes that they did was the truth campaign. It was a series of events and ads speaking out against smoking. His company has done campaigns for Turner Broadcasting also in the past. But my guess is you've never pushed the edge like this.
[Karl Carter, Co-founder, Gtm Inc:] Not this way, no.
[Phillips:] We'd know about you a lot sooner. Let me ask you, how do you define guerrilla advertising?
[Carter:] You know, what's interesting, I think whenever we get this question, especially as media has evolved, it's really more about a nontraditional mind state, so even traditional media can be done in nontraditional ways. So you can do a billboard in a nontraditional way. Even the Internet, which is semi-traditional today, can be done in nontraditional contents. So guerrilla marketing is really all about nontraditional ways to market.
[Phillips:] All right. This was definitely a nontraditional publicity stunt that we saw happen yesterday. How do you define nontraditional? I mean, do you sit down with your employees and say, "OK, look, we have some ethics we have to talk about. And we've got to talk about people's security. And we've got to talk about not pushing the envelope to where it's going to cost the taxpayers a lot of money and get the United States scared"?
[Carter:] Well, you know, it's interesting. I think the end of the day, the goal is buzz. The goal is for you to break through all the clutter. It's becoming increasingly, increasingly more difficult to reach consumers. And so that's why guerrilla marketing is as popular as it is and has become increasingly more and more popular. And so I think, you know, it's all part of the process, really sitting with your client and understanding what their goals are and then understanding, well, what can I do that's most creative and innovative, still stays in the confines of the law, because, you know, this kind of P.R. is not necessarily what they were looking for.
[Phillips:] So you do talk about the law? You say, look, we have legal guidelines we have to work within?
[Carter:] Absolutely, absolutely. You know, one of the things that when we were talking earlier, one of the things we talked about earlier was current TV and the big take-back TV events that they did. And so a very big one was done in Philadelphia.
[Phillips:] This is the one you did. Let's tell our viewers. I asked you what's the most risky campaign that you ever took on. And it was Take Back
[Tv. Carter:] Take Back
[Tv. Phillips:] Why was this risky? Tell me about this.
[Carter:] Well, just because there was so many moving parts, you know. The event itself drove about 7,000 people. It was all marketed online virally. We did it, you know, according to subculture segmentation, which is basically marketing to a person on the basis of their culture, versus race or class, ethnicity, anything of that nature. And so, you know, you had to work with the police department, the mayor's department, the film commission, SEPTA, which is essentially MARTA in Philly. And so, you know, it was just this situation where everything had to be coordinated with all these different government agencies. And of course, whenever you're convening 7,000 people in front of City Hall, you know, you're going to have these sort of concerns from the city naturally. And so I think as the agency, it becomes your job is to go in and connect with these people and say, "You know what? We're professionals. We understand how to do this in a way that would be safe, in a way that will be entertaining. And at the end of the day, reflect positively on the brand."
[Phillips:] What was the purpose of Take Back TV, this campaign?
[Carter:] It was really to make people aware of current TV. We were currently, at that particular moment in time, a new network. It's been on air a little bit over a year now as of August 5 1, rather. So at that point, it's really about connecting people that were interested in user-generated content and having a new way to impact television. So you know, whenever you're a brand, you're doing something like a branded experience like this. You really walk the fine line between delivering a brand message and also making it entertaining to the audience, so they don't feel like they're sort of sitting through a big commercial.
[Phillips:] Have you ever been arrested?
[Carter:] No.
[Phillips:] Any of your employees ever been arrested?
[Carter:] No.
[Phillips:] Did the guys achieve what they wanted to do yesterday? Do you think they went about this in the right way?
[Carter:] I think that, you know, they probably did not go about this in the right way, obviously. You know, I don't think this is what they were looking for. They were looking for buzz. They didn't expect to wind up in, you know, jail. I think that, of course, you know I'm assuming that their agency is backing them, their employer is backing them and helping them with their legal fees and making sure that they get out of jail promptly.
[Phillips:] They got the publicity they wanted.
[Carter:] They got the publicity that they wanted. You know, there's definitely a lot of people because you know, when you talk about "Aqua Teen Hunger Force", and we were laughing in our office about this, because I love "Aqua Teen Hunger Force". And you know, a situation where people were asking, well, what is it? What is it about? And that talk factor, that buzz, is definitely a byproduct of this whole incident. So I would say, you know, if you're sitting on the client's side, in that respect, you know, you probably have way more impressions, more hits on your site, more buzz. But I think that they didn't do enough to really sort of understand exactly what they were getting into from the standpoint of the agency, and that's really the agency's job, and that agency's prior relationships, to help them out.
[Phillips:] So let me ask you this. How important is their response? Let's take a listen to how they acted in front of the cameras just a little while ago. And I want to get your opinion on this.
[Carter:] OK.
[Peter Berdovsky, Accused In Alleged Incident:] We're ready to make our official statement. And we would like to be more of a conversation with everybody here. Because...
[Sean Stevens, Accused In Alleged Incident:] We value we value your thoughts and your opinions.
[Berdovsky:] What we really want to talk about today, it's kind of important to some people. Yes, it's kind of important to some people. It's haircuts in the '70s.
[Phillips:] All right. These guys are goofballs. Give me a break.
[Carter:] Right.
[Phillips:] They just scared the whole United States by what they did. I mean, they should at least come forward and go, "Look, the move was to get buzz. We got the buzz, but we are really sorry about the havoc that it caused."
[Carter:] Yes.
[Phillips:] I mean, would you hire these guys? Is this what you want?
[Carter:] No, of course not. No. But I think also, too, you know, for them, they're artists. And so you have to sort of understand an artist's energy and a mind state. And so, you know, they're just doing what they're doing, you know. They're being artists. If I'm the agency that employed these guys, I would be, you know, upset because, you know, here's an opportunity, where there's essentially at this point ambassadors for Turner, as well as for the agency. And you know, instead of acting in a mind state like crisis management, these guys are just using it as an opportunity to crack jokes.
[Phillips:] Final question, because I've got to ask you this. Do you think they actually had in their minds, "Well, let's see, post- 911, we put these underneath bridges. They're kind of weird-looking. It may create a little trouble. We're going to get what we want in the end"?
[Carter:] I don't think that anyone would set out for this, you know.
[Phillips:] OK.
[Carter:] I mean, there's P.R., there's buzz, I can't assume that. I think I think this is an example of not thinking about every single possible contingency. And while, you know, the actual devices themselves like, if you're fans of it, of the show, then you will see the character and it's funny, because you where it relates to. But if you're the general public, you don't have any context. So this is probably better set up for, like, nightclubs and other sort of scenarios where the people that are receiving the message, one, would know what it's about, but also, two, wouldn't be frightened, you know. If you put this in certain environments, like public spaces in this with this post-911 sensitivity, then of course, you're going to you know, you're going to wind up in trouble. And I just don't think that they thought it all through.
[Phillips:] I'll tell you what. There's a cultural gap, because there were a lot of people that just did not understand the whole guerrilla marketing, hence why we're talking to you.
[Carter:] Right, absolutely.
[Phillips:] Karl Carter, thanks so much.
[Carter:] No worries.
[Phillips:] Appreciate your time.
[Carter:] Thank you.
[Phillips:] All right.
[Lemon:] Well, so much for the sunny south. Folks are slipping and sliding today from just north of Atlanta well into the Carolinas. Snow, sleet, icy rain. Well, they mean a day off for some, but not for this guy. Meteorologist Reynolds Wolf braving the elements as always in Charlotte, North Carolina. How's it going there, Reynolds?
[Reynolds Wolf, Cnn Meteorologist:] It's going it's going pretty well. It's going pretty well, Don. I have to tell you, conditions have really improved since this morning. This morning, when we first came out here, just to give you a quick blow by blow of this thing, it started off with absolutely nothing happening. And then very quickly, we had heavy I'd say heavy to moderate snowfall that piled up to about an inch and a half at our location here. And then we had a mix of some snowflakes, a little bit of sleet, some rain mixed in. And right now, it's, for the most part, it's pretty quiet. Now, take a look at I-77 behind me. This is one of the major arteries that zips right into the Queen City. I got to tell you this structure of roadway has been in pretty decent shape. It's been just humming along. And as you look at this video some of the traffic that we've had in parts of Charlotte, not just I-77, but also I-40 beep beep, thank you very much we've had, really, some decent conditions out there. Now, that isn't to say we haven't had accidents. There have been some fender benders out there. In fact, we've had over 100 accidents. However, no fatalities to report, which is a great thing when you have these kinds of conditions. Now the reasons why we've had decent conditions on the roadways, well, this video tells the story. We had some brine trucks from the city of Charlotte that came out yesterday, and they coated many of the main thoroughfares with that brine solution. It's a combination of both water and salt. Then we've had salt trucks, some 30 salt trucks from the city of Charlotte that have gone through and put down a layer of that salt to help fight off the icing. And that's pretty much done the trick. What the North Carolina Department of Transportation is advising people do is, if at all possible, simply stay off the roadways, and conditions will be, certainly, easier to deal with on the roads themselves. Now, we're not fully done yet. We've got another chance of some freezing rain to come in through the evening hours. And that could cause all kinds of issues on trees and on power lines. But I must tell you that Duke Power, the power provider for the city of Charlotte, has reported that they're only about 1,000 people without power. And considering what has come through here, that's pretty good. A city of nearly 2.5 million people to have only 1,000 without power, that's a banner day. During a strong thunderstorm coming through, normally you'd have more power outages from that alone. But that is certainly some good news for them. Also, what's been interesting about the snow, is it's been really a really wet, a really thick snow. Not like the powder that you have out in Colorado. So it has been really soggy. But what's interesting is by tomorrow, by midday and into the afternoon, temperatures could go up into the mid-40s, possibly some low-50s, and all the snow will be long gone. Back to you.
[Lemon:] I saw you earlier, Reynolds, and you had a snowball. And you know, that really thick, wet snowball, that hurts. Not much snow on the ground, though, so can't make one, though. It doesn't look like you can really make one.
[Wolf:] No, it is melting. And let me tell you, also, point of interest. Do not, under any circumstances, eat yellow snow. Not a good thing to do.
[Phillips:] God!
[Lemon:] OK.
[Phillips:] Oh, boy.
[Lemon:] Oh, boy.
[Phillips:] Let's get back to the weather center.
[Lemon:] Reynolds, there you go, thank you.
[Phillips:] Deep advice, let me tell you. Let's go back to the weather center. Rob Marciano tracking the storm system. He probably agrees with Wolf, but we'll move on.
[Rob Marciano, Cnn Meteorologist:] We will. Usually Reynolds has he's a wealth of useless information, but that is actually pretty useful.
[Phillips:] Steel trap, baby. Steel trap.
[Marciano:] Want to teach your kids that one.
[Phillips:] Rob Marciano, thanks so much.
[Marciano:] You bet.
[Lemon:] Joining forces against sending forces. Senate leaders, Democrat and Republican, pushing back against the president's troop surge plan for Iraq. The latest from our congressional correspondent, Dana Bash. Dana, where do things stand on the bipartisan Senate resolution we've heard so much about?
[Dana Bash, Cnn Correspondent:] Well, where things stand, Don, is that everything has kind of receded behind the scenes. Senators on both sides of the aisle are trying to figure out whether or not they can support what is what hatched last night, a deal that hatched last night, a joining of forces, as you said, between leading Democrats and leading Republicans, who both oppose the president's plan to send more troops to Iraq. They had been supporting competing proposals. But they decided to get together with one goal, and that is to try to pass a bipartisan rebuke of the president. Now, I'm going to show you what the key language of this will be. It is: "The Senate disagrees with the plan to augment our forces by 21,500." Now, that the thinking there is that that is a little bit less confrontational than what Democrats had originally proposed, which was that it's "not in the national interest of the United States to increase troop levels in Iraq." Now this was done for, really, practical political purposes when it comes to the Democrats. What they were hoping to do with this is to try to pick off Republican votes and get this passed. But what we're seeing today, Don, is that some Democrats are saying that this is not good enough for them. For example, Russ Feingold, Democrat of Wisconsin, he released a statement saying that he opposes this, because he said it rejects deploying U.S. troops and supports moving a misguided U.S. military strategy. Also, another Democratic senator, Chris Dodd, we understand, is about to announce he is not going to support this. And in a situation where every single vote matters, it's razor-thin here, and they could need 60 votes for this to pass, losing those Democrats could hurt could hurt the Democratic leadership in their overall strategy, which is to pass something out of the Senate that sends a bipartisan message to the president that they reject this idea of increasing troop levels in Iraq Don.
[Lemon:] And Dana, the Iraq field commander, General George Casey, is on the Hill today, trying to win confirmation as the next Army chief of staff. And we understand he's getting a grilling.
[Bash:] He is getting a grilling. He was, of course, the commander in Iraq for the past 2 12 years. And now he is up to be Army chief of staff, as you said. And what Republicans and Democrats are doing in this hearing is, in a way, venting their frustration with what they think has been a failed execution and prosecution of war in Iraq. And specifically asking about him. Senator John McCain has been one of the leading critics of General Casey. And today, he said he had strong reservations about Casey's promotion, because he questions the decisions that he made in Iraq. The other thing that's going on in that hearing, Don, is that the senators are drawing him into the debate that we were just discussing, which is the debate over whether to raise troop levels in Iraq. Senator General Casey said that he asked had asked for fewer troops than the president is sending.
[Sen. John Mccain , Arizona:] Do you believe that the job, the new job, can be done with less than five bringing brigades that General Petraeus says he needs?
[Gen. George Casey, Army Chief Of Staff Nominee:] I do I believe that the job in Baghdad, as it's designed now, can be done with less than that. But having the flexibility to have the other three brigades on a deployment cycle gives us and gives General Petraeus great flexibility. It allows him to make assessments on whether the plan is working or not, and to either reinforce success, maintain momentum, or put more forces in a place where the plans are not working.
[Bash:] And, later, under questioning from Republican Senator John Warner, a chief opponent of sending more troops to Iraq, General Casey said that he did not want to bring one more American soldier into Iraq than was necessary to accomplish the mission Don.
[Lemon:] All right, Dana Bash, thank you so much for that. The hand of Iran in Iraq?
[Unidentified Male:] I don't have any doubt in my mind that the Iranians are involved in Iraq. Everyone knows that. The question is, are the Iranians the ones that are supporting the groups that are killing Americans?
[Lemon:] A closer look, straight ahead in the
[Newsroom. Phillips:] It's her baby, not your business. Ahead in the NEWSROOM, Vice President's Cheney's lesbian daughter draws a line between pregnancy and politics.