Actress Brittany Snow Speaks Out about Bullying and Teen Suicide
BALDWIN: Real quickly before we move on, update on the situation in Hollywood, Florida. Big massive water tower. Two guys fell 30 feet in. Here is the update we're getting from SBN, the affiliate down there. First victim is down on the ground transported to a local hospital. Second victim is out but has not been lowered off the tower. That's what we have out of Florida. Now, listen to this.</s>BRITTANY SNOW, ACTRESS, ACTIVIST: I'm Brittany Snow. When I was in middle school and high school, I was picked on daily by a bully. I was mistreated and disrespected. It led me to feel alone and hopeless. After years of struggle, I finally overcame it, became stronger. And now I know that love is louder.</s>BALDWIN: You recognize her. This is actress Brittany Snow. You may know her from "Gossip Girl" and you will soon know her from her upcoming NBC show "Harry's Laws." Snow was touched by the recent headlines of all these teens who have committed suicide after they were bullied and wanted to do something about it. So she didn't want it to, though, come across as bully- bashing. She wanted a more positive message. So here's what she has done. She has started the "love is Louder" campaign. It's a social networking project to help teens out there cope with what she's calling the isolation and hopelessness that can result from bullying. And Snow has joined forces with MTV and the Jed foundation and as you see there on this Facebook page as we're scrolling through it here there are all kinds of people joining, becoming friends and fans and joining the conversation there on Facebook. And actress Brittany Snow is there in Los Angeles to have a very real and honest conversation about all of this with me. And Brittany, I thank you for being on with me.</s>SNOW: Of course.</s>BALDWIN: And I'd kind of like to begin with what I heard in that "Love is Louder" video. You talk about how you were once a victim when you were much younger. I look at you. You're this gorgeous, confident TV actress. But if you can, share that experience.</s>SNOW: Yes. I mean, I think a lot of people can probably relate to being picked on, being bullied in middle school and high school. I'm not the only person who has been through that. I was bullied daily by a particular person, and it led me to just have many other problems down the line. And I think what people don't realize is that bullying does really affect you long term. And some kids just don't take the severity of that into a factor. And so I went through it, and I know what it's like to feel hopeless and alone. And recently when all these -- the suicides tragically happened, I decided that I wanted to stand up and do what I could in what little voice I thought I had.</s>BALDWIN: And that's the Love is Louder. Love is Louder than what? Tell me about it.</s>SNOW: Love is Louder is a movement of people who believe that love is louder than hate, love is louder than pain, love is louder than shame. It's really you can -- you can put it towards whatever it is that you're going through. And it's a movement of people partnered with other campaigns and other charities that are raising the volume on bullying, suicide prevention, depression, and really putting a positive message out there that, you know, we need to treat each other with respect and love, and that's what's most important.</s>BALDWIN: Speaking of raising the volume, we're looking at pictures. This is Boston. And I think within 24 hours, right, Brittany, you'll be launching this Love is Louder, a bunch of kids got together, and they were shouting "Love is Louder" in Boston. Also we know a couple of celebrities, Drake and Trey Songz, two R&B; singers, they're also leaving these messages out of support for your campaign. Let's listen to what they're saying.</s>DRAKE, SINGER: I want to let you know that love is louder than anybody's negative voice. Keep doing you.</s>TREY SONGZ, SINGER: This is Trey Songz. And love is louder than anything imaginable -- hate, bullying, jealousy, anything. Long can conquer all. If you learn love you learn to live a better love. So I encourage you to do so.</s>BALDWIN: Brittany, what kind of feedback have you gotten so far?</s>SNOW: The feedback has been amazing. I'm so honored and touched and grateful that people are responding in such a positive way. I couldn't have asked for -- I mean, I -- you know, my friend Courtney Knowles from the Jed foundation and I had this little idea to just put a positive message out there. And now, you know, there's rallies with "love is louder" being chanted and celebrities are coming forward and lending their voice as well. And it's been -- it's been above and beyond where I thought. But I'm so glad people are supporting such a positive message.</s>BALDWIN: And we want to make sure we let all our viewers know you have a Facebook page, you can hop on twitter, "Love is Louder." Brittany Snow, we thank you for that. We'll make sure we tweet that out so you can learn more about love is louder.</s>SNOW: Thank you.</s>BALDWIN: Also, still ahead here, this explosive report. Have you heard about this? This exposes links between American subcontractors over in Afghanistan and the Taliban. We're going to break it all down for you and tell you how the hit movie -- did you ever see Quinton Tarantino's "Reservoir Dogs"? What in the world does that movie have to do with Afghanistan? Wait for it. Also, here's something you've got to see. This dog is not exactly cleared for takeoff. This guy is sprinting across the tarmac. Where is this? What happened? Could flights possibly be delayed? Oh, yes. That's next.