good morning. former senator rick santorum vaults past newt gingrich into third place in the gop presidential race out in iowa. that according to a new poll. what's behind his sudden momentum? this morning he'll talk to us exclusively. where is ayla? the father of a missing 20-month-old in maine who vanished from her bed nearly two weeks ago denies once again he had anything to do with his daughter's disappearance. we'll get reaction from the girl's mom in a live interview. and 285 million hits and counting, the biggest internet sensations of 2011. from the baby who cracked us up

to the dog who redefined man's best friend. , to the seniors who got a little frisky trying to figure out their web cam. the every day americans who found stardom online live in our studio today, thursday, december found stardom online live in our studio today, thursday, december 29th, 2011. captions paid for by nbc-universal television >> i'm going to be humming that song all day. welcome to "today" on this thursday morning. >> thursday not friday yet. good morning everyone. i'm savannah guthrie in for ann. with the caucuses on tuesday you would think we may have a clear picture by now of the republican presidential contest in iowa.

but with just five days to go, things are as unsettled as ever this morning. they were six months ago even. >> that's right. as we've mentioned, dark horse rick santorum has suddenly surged into contention according to one new poll and there was another surprising development in the race last night. the head of michele bachmann's campaign out there suddenly defected to ron paul's side. we'll get the latest from iowa and talk to senator santorum straight ahead. also ahead a key figure in the casey anthony trial speaks out for the first time since anthony was acquitted of murdering her 2-year-old daughter. this morning the medical examiner who ruled caylee anthony's death a homicide opens up about the case in an exclusive live interview. all right. ahead, today is thursday, so tomorrow is -- >> your birthday. you keep reminding us. but it's also friday. >> it's not exactly friday. we'll take you to a place where today is thursday but tomorrow is saturday. because they are canceling friday. we'll explain a little later in the program.

we begin with yet another wild turn in the gop presidential race out in iowa. nbc's political director and chief white house correspondent chuck todd is in des moines. chuck, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, matt. in the republican race that had been defined by who does best at the debates and that had been where surging happened, there is one candidate who is doing retail campaigning in iowa the old fashioned way, one county at a time, pennsylvania senator rick santorum. his efforts might finally be paying off. a new poll of iowa republicans shows rick san tore surging into third place, behind mitt romney and ron paul and ahead of former front-runner newt gingrich. >> we figure the bigger numbers, we feel very good about how things have gone. we have a lot of work to do. >> reporter: gingrich is trying to spin his declining support telling nbc news he'd settle for third or fourth place in iowa and saying he has his sights set on another key early state.

>> yeah. everyone who has won in south carolina -- >> reporter: gingrich aiming to be the lone alternative to mitt romney compared that matchup to ronald reagan's old battles with moderate republicans like george h.w. bush. >> exactly the fight that reagan was in with the establishment. none of the fault lines have changed. >> reporter: gingrich also used reagan to defend his own rhetoric. >> you seem to use a lot of charged words that only seem to throw gasoline on the heart of the fire. as president are you going to tone that back? >> reagan wanted to communicate clearly and vividly to the american people. i want to communicate clearly and vividly to the american people. >> the former speaker then had more combative comments against president obama likening him to saul olinsky. >> i believe he is a saul

radical, he taught olinsky in chicago. he lives it in his mind and believes in him in his world. >> reporter: pivotal in iowa with gingrich is his marital history. asked about his relationship with his two ex-wives. >> with my first wife we have a relationship because we share two daughters and two grandchildren. very respectful on both sides. >> your second? >> we don't have a relationship. >> reporter: if gingrich doesn't get the republican nomination he isn't expecting a call to be the number two. >> i can't imagine you'd be asked. >> i can't imagine i'd be asked. too strong a personality. would you want to abpresidential nominee with me as your vice presidential nominee? >> reporter: mitt romney, sensing an opening, is now redoubling his efforts in iowa blitzing the state with his electability argument. >> this is a critical race. i think to beat president obama we have to have someone who has a vision of what america can be, and we'll make it stronger and more prosperous and create jobs.

>> reporter: and a little drama last night. michele bachmann one of those former conservative candidates that had surnlged and seeing he campaign sort of deflate out here lost her state campaign cochair to ron paul. the bachmann campaign is hinting that somehow money was involved and paul somehow was able to buy the support of kent sorenson, matt. >> before i let you go a rumor we talked about a couple months ago is resurfacing. robert rice who is the secretary of labor under bill clinton and a political commentator wrote a column wednesday saying in his opinion a swap is in the works, that in the coming months barack obama is going to trade out joe biden for hillary clinton. joe biden becomes secretary of state. the current secretary of state hillary clinton becomes the running mate in 2012. is this making any waves in washington? >> reporter: it is not. what's interesting about this story is every time the rumor pops up i get reminded by folks inside the white house and those close to the president about how loyal both the vice president

joe biden and the president are to each other. that is a very close bond. with all of the turmoil and shuffle inside that west wing the last person i'm told president obama would like to see leave the west wing, remember, joe biden has an office right there a couple doors down from the oval office, the last person he would want to lose is joe biden there and that is one reason why i'm told that switch is just so unlikely to happen savannah talked to secretary clinton a couple months ago and she said she does not believe it's in the realm of possibilities. so stay tuned. chuck todd in des moines this morning. thanks very much. here's savannah. thanks. rick santorum is campaigning in coralville, iowa this morning and he is with us exclusively this morning. senator, good morning to you. >> good morning, savannah. >> we've seen this surge in the latest poll. you are now in third place. there is really just one person who predicted this all along -- you. i guess the question now is -- >> my wife. hold on. my wife did, too. >> fair enough.

>> not just me. >> outside of the santorums how can you be sure you're not just the latest front-runner du jour? there have been five or six of them. >> well, i've been through this grind before. i've run several tough, statewide elections and really with national implications, and have had the national media crawling all over my record for years and years and years. so this has been different than everybody else that's riz nesen this race. people know they can trust me that what i say i'll do is what i've done in the past and we've got a good, strong record and great vision for the future of shrinking, dramatically shrinking the size of government. i've put out a plan and i've voted toughly over the years to cut spending and rein in entitlements. we've got the record to back it up. >> at the same time you have campaigned in iowa tirelessly really tailoring your message to social conservatives in iowa.

does your campaign have viability outside of iowa in new hampshire with main stream voters? >> yeah, i think we do. without question. i mean, if you go and as you -- by the way, i'll give you a little shoutout here, nbc has done a great job in following our campaign, frankly longer and more consistently than anybody else with the embeds and if you go back and look at the tape for the past several months we talk about all of the issues, talk about the importance of having strong national security and my experience in that area. nobody has more experience in this field. i served eight years on the armed services committee, was very active and involved in national security matters in the middle east in particular with iran and syria, major pieces of legislation. i authored it through the united states senate. >> you, yourself, have said you will not make these social issues back burner issues. you want them front and center. your views on abortion are well known. you make no exception for abortion in the case of rape or incest. other republican candidates have now adopted that view.

but somewhat lesser known are your views on contraception. you said it is not okay, that it's dangerous. you said you're the only presidential candidate willing to talk about your views against contraception for voters not familiar with you what are they? >> well, my views on contraception are consistent with my catholic faith but as a person who was involved in the united states senate for 12 years i mean i voted to allow that contraception funding. that is to me a personal decision. i do believe and have publicly stated i don't believe it's helpful. i think it is -- it leads to a lot of sexually transmitted diseases and unplanned pregnancies and it's not a healthy thing for people to engage in, you know, sex outside of marriage. >> you wouldn't seek to outlaw it. >> no. of course not. i mean, that's a fundamentally different thing than taking a human life. something i don't believe is right but there are a lot of

in gs i don't believe are right pennsylvania, won a couple times, but also lost, that the general election will come down to those middle of the road voters -- moderate, persuadable, independent voters. many of them are women. should republicans sizing up your candidate today be concerned about this issue of electability should you be the nominee against barack obama? >> absolutely should be concerned about the electability. i'm the only one in this race that has any track record of winning elections. in tough states i had a million more registered democrats than republicans and in two statewide elections, you know, running against very strong candidates, i was able to win the state of pennsylvania, something a republican hasn't done for president since 1988. and so if you look at everybody else in the field, no one has ever run as a conservative and been able to attract independents and democrats to win. i have and i think that's one of the reasons the people in iowa are looking at it and saying, wow, this guy is defeated

straight up two democratic incumbents to win his house seat and senate seat in very tough districts and in a very tough state. >> we're out of time. senator santorum we appreciate your time with us this morning. thank you, sir. >> thanks, savannah. >> by the way, we should mention i'll be live in iowa starting monday along with our entire political team including david gregory and chuck todd. >> he's going to make it interesting, no question about it. >> it is going to be interesting the way it feels like anything could happen tuesday night. we'll see. >> all right. let's get over to the news desk. tamron hall is filling in for natalie this morning. good morning to you. >> good morning, savannah and matt. good morning, everyone. u.s. tensions with iran are flaring up this morning. tehran has alarmed american officials and the world by declaring it would close the main artery for oil exports from the persian gulf if the west imposes sanctions over its nuclear program. andrea mitchell has the latest. there are several questions, but first, what is iran up to and what do you think the consequences could be for us? >> reporter: those are good questions, tamron. it could be serious. iran has made threats to shut down the strait of hormuz before

but this time it could be more than bluster as tehran has military exercises near the strait and is issuing angry response to the toughest sanctions from both europe and the united states against iran's banking system and oil trade. today china weighed in, a key ally of iran, urging calm. any oil interrupted of course in the state of hormuz, the key passageway for 50 million barrels of oil a day, would shut down or severely delay 1/6 of the world's oil supply and it would be catastrophic for the u.s. and the global economy. oil prices would likely go up $25 a barrel, at least a dollar more at the pump right away. though the obama administration has ratcheted up its pressure on iran over the years it argues against the latest sanctions just to prove by the senate unanimously 100-0. the obama administration says it would drive energy prices up for our allies and hurt the economy here at home. now the president is boxed in. if he tries to go around the sanctions to waive them he'll be

accused of being soft on iran and if he doesn't he risks higher oil prices in an election year. now he faces the potential of a military showdown to keep the oil passageway open. >> all right. andrea, thank you. and it's a question of reliability for the "new york times" in an effort to lure back a few hundred people who canceled their subscriptions to the paper "the times" sent out an e-mail offering a special discount to return. that offer went out to nearly 9 million e-mail addresses instead. virtually every person that had given an e-mail address to the paper. the real mistake came in the form of a tweet from "the times" saying, quote, if you received an e-mail today about canceling your subscription, ignore it. it's not from us. the company spokesman says that's not true. the e-mail did in fact come from "the times" and was not a spam attack as they had claimed. this morning's memorial service for kim jong-il in pyongyang marked the official start of his son's rule. kim jong un has now been named supreme leader of the ruling party, the military, and the people of north korea.

he inherits the absolute rule his father and grandfather held before him. new studies are finding that blockbuster drug avastin does not improve survival for patients of ovarian cancer but only keeps the disease from getting worse for a few months. in november the drug was order d ed that it could be prescribed but insurers do not have to pay for treatment. jim sack is a disabled former chicago police officer and a vietnam vet. he relies on his service dog, snickers to walk, balance, and call for help in the event of emergency. when he moved to iowa to help his ailing mother-in-law, the city took away his service dog because of a local ban on pit bulls. but now the pit mix has been reunited with sack after a federal judge ordered it. the order is temporary but sack is suing the city to keep snickers with him permanently. you can follow the latest right

here on our website today.com. i know a lot of you are interested in that story. it is now 7:15. back to matt, savannah, and stephanie. hopefully this will all work out. it's the right thing. >> good to hear. tamron, thanks very much. hi, stephanie. >> the action continues to be in the west and northwest. rain and heavy mountain snow. here is a look at the parade of storms that is going to continue into friday night. we can see up to 2 to 3 inches in some locations and could see over a foot of snow. otherwise it's pretty dry along the rest of the country. >> good morning.k today is softly colder start but without the wind, it does not fail to bad. a mixture of sun and clouds.

matt over to you. >> thanks. while we're on the subject of weather a lot of weather watchers are asking where's the snow? in fact, records are being set for just how little snow there's been so far this year. nbc's mike taibbi is in lake tahoe, california. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, matt. how are you? last year was unbelievable for a lot of resorts in ski country across the u.s. here in squaw valley in fact the season began in november and extended through the spring and into july. it was a year of record snowfalls and revenues. this year the other side of the coin. at california's squaw valley resort it's been a brutal start. only 5 of 170 trails have any snow at all. >> we're making the best of it with the two runs we've got. >> reporter: while there is skating and dining, as much man made snow as they can produce for the kids and the die hards, the ceo says a large part of his

work force isn't working yet. >> a thousand people aren't working right now. >> yeah. they're seasonal and part-time employees. >> reporter: it's the weather or lack of it. from california and the pacific northwest, across the great lakes region and to the northeast, there's less than half the snow on the ground than last year. >> the jet stream from this winter is completely different than last year. most of what's falling is rain and not snow. >> reporter: temperatures have been so unseasonably warm that more snow machines are sitting idle than grooming the slopes. in places like usually snow bound boise, the cabin feverish are heading to the tee instead of planning to ski. in fact, the records, unlike the snow, are piling up. reno will have its first snowless december since the late 19th century. new york only its third. on this day last year in fact new york was paralyzed by a blizzard. today hardly. in minneapolis last year the metrodome collapsed beneath a mountain of snow.

today sun. squaw valley last december? spectacular. this time last year on this very spot the snow pack was so thick about twice my height that if you were on one of those chair lifts your feet might have been grazing the snow. but girls and boys just want to have fun so it was shirtless and swim suits for the steamboat springs ski vacation photo. skiers adapting in rochester, new york, and snow lover in snowless idaho who's been making his own so his friends and neighbors can get into the winter spirit. >> you can see that big mountain right there. that's what we made last night. >> reporter: where they're still waiting? hope and history. >> all it takes is one four-foot snowfall and everybody's memories will be erased. >> reporter: as you just heard from sfef nigh a cotephanie the good news for the last week of the year. friday, cold temperatures about 18 degrees, good for snow making, and a 20% chance of actual snow. matt? >> mike taibbi in lake tahoe for

us this morning. thank you very much. it's 19 after the hour. once again, here's savannah. the weekend is arriving a day sooner for people on the south pacific island of samoa. officials have decided to jump forward in time by literally removing tomorrow, friday from the calendar. nbc's stephanie gosk is in london this morning to explain. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, savannah. well, 120 years ago american traders convinced samoans to shift the date line west so they could trade more easily with california. it took a while but they now realize that wasn't such a good idea. tomorrow will be like any other day in samoa. the sun will rise, the tides will change, the warm seabreeze will blow. normal except for one thing. tomorrow will be the day after. at the stroke of midnight this small island nation in the pacific will shift the date line east. there will be no friday, december 30th. >> this week we're going to be

losing a day. we are going to move the date line so we'll be in line with new zealand and australia. >> reporter: the date line runs more or less north to south in the pacific ocean. on one side they see the first sunset of the day. on the other side they see the last. confused yet? put more simply if it's friday in samoa it's saturday in australia and new zealand making business deals with samoa's largest trading partners a nightmare. >> it is really urgent, we have to come in on sunday. otherwise we have to wait and come in on monday. >> reporter: at least she has it figured out. the prime minister says enough is enough. time for a time warp. there won't be any births or deaths on the 30th, no car accidents, no school, no work day although employees have been promised to be paid for their lost time. there will be church services held to acknowledge the lost day

and bells will ring at midnight. >> i think it's a good thing. one, because i'm a day less older. >> i think it's a great thing for the island. >> reporter: for those who don't like it? >> people are unhappy about samoa being the last place, samoa not being the last place to see the sunset. this changes our attitudes. samoa will be the first place to see the sunrise. >> reporter: which also means even better they will be the first nation to celebrate the new year. so if you haven't made your plans yet for new year's this could be the place to go. no doubt there will be a very large party and once you've recovered from that one, get on a plane, fly an hour east and celebrate again a day later. savannah? >> stephanie, we're so confused. thank you so much. that would be terrible for you. your birthday is friday, december 30th. >> i get there right now i stay 53 for the next year. >> very clever. >> i'm on my way. >> okay. samoa, here he comes. speaking of friday it was

the most watched video of the year on youtube and this morning we'll catch up with its star and some of the other internet sensations of 2011. first this is "today" on thursday on nbc.

just ahead the father of a missing 20-month-old in maine breaks his silence. what he is saying about the reaction from the little girl's mother. >> are some car dealerships charging you for unnecessary repairs? our hidden camera investigation after your local news and weather. let's go to vegas. vegas baby! maybe we should head back to the dealership first? vegas! no, this is a test drive. vegas! [ male announcer ] it's practically yours. but we still need your signature. volkswagen sign then drive is back. and it's never been easier to get a jetta. that's the power of german engineering. get zero first month's payment, zero down, zero security deposit and zero due at signing on any new volkswagen. visit vwdealer.com.

>> this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. a shooting in west baltimore. not much information being released, but an adult was shot 8:00 wednesday night at west garrison. there is no word on that person's condition or possible motive or suspect. here is sarah caldwell and

traffic pulse 11. >> pretty light out there. the volume is not the problem. 59 miles per hour on southbound 95. harbor tunnel traffic is good, too. icy conditions in rosedale. water main break being worked on at there. 56 on the west side just past 795. we are looking at a nice start below the beltway if you are traveling on 97 through the glen burnie area or 295 towards the capital beltway. here is what it looks like in the parkton region. 83's towards us in the southbound direction on york road. if you are going to travel southbound 95 on the capital beltway, a nice start here on howard county. ava as a check on your forecast. >> cooler temperatures this

morning. 26 at b.w.i. 33 at the inner harbor. lower 20's into western maryland. high pressure building in. we won't have the wind chills to factor in. it is going to feel like 45 with a mixture of sunshine and clouds. cloudy skies and in the mountains all day long. seven-day forecast, not bad. slight chance for

[ laughing ] thursday morning, december 29th, 2011. we dare you to watch that video without smiling. that is micah mcarthur the baby who could not stop laughing at the sound of ripping paper. i know what you're wondering. how is he doing now nearly a year after that video was first shot? we'll catch up with him and some of the other internet sensations from this past year, coming up a little later this morning. it should be fun. i'm matt lauer with savannah

guthrie who ness for ann. also ahead we'll revice et a surprising investigation. >> are you being charged too much when you go to the dealership for car repairs? we'll show you what our hidden camera investigation revealed. also ahead the medical examiner who ruled caylee anthony's death a homicide speaks out for the first time since casey anthony's trial. we'll be talking to her exclusively. we begin with a search for a missing 20-month-old girl in maine. ayla reynolds's father issued a new statement. we'll get a reaction from ayla's mother in a moment. first nbc's ron mott has the latest. good morning to you. >> reporter: i hear nothing. >> ron, can you hear me now? >> reporter: good morning. yes, i can hear you. police have combed the area looking for this missing 20-month-old and in some cases have gone back and searched again to make sure no evidence is missed.

for the 12th consecutive day police searched in and around the home of missing 20-month-old ayla reynolds and they're not giving up. the reward for information in the case is now $30,000. police say they've received nearly 400 tips and investigators are looking into every one of them. since ayla disappeared, her father justin dipietro has not spoken to the media. on wednesday he released a statement saying it's important that the public hear it from me personally that i have no idea what happened to ayla and that i'm not in hiding. dipietro told police he put his daughter to bed on december 16th. when he checked on her the next morning he says she was gone. at the time investigators say ayla was wearing a soft cast for a broken arm. police describe her injury as an accidental fall. but her mother was suspicious. the day before ayla disappeared trista reynolds filed for sole custody. >> since she's been there she's got a broken arm. she ended up missing. i wasn't trying to be secretive by going to the courts. i just didn't want to fight with him anymore.

>> reporter: justin dipietro responded to those accusations saying i would never do anything to hurt my child. the questions of ayla's arm or bruises or anything else being said are simply ludicrous. i have to believe ayla is with somebody and i just want that person to find the courage to do the right thing and find a way to return her safely. justin dipietro is not a suspect in this case. he tells us that he's pleased with how authorities have conducted the investigation so far. he is hopeful that someone will return ayla safely. matt? >> ron mott up in waterville, maine this morning. thank you very much. ayla's mother trista reynolds is with us now exclusively. good morning to you. i know it's difficult for you to even watch that videotape. 13 days now. police are conducting an exhaustive investigation following up on nearly 400 tips. they were back at your daughter's father's house yesterday looking for evidence. what are the police telling you? >> the same thing i hear on the news. they kind of -- they'll call me

now first before i hear it on the news. but it's the same thing, that they're still investigating, that they're still where we were 13 days ago. >> ayla was with her father when she was last seen. now he has not spoken publicly but he did release a statement through the police. first of all, let me ask you. do you think justin dipietro has anything to do with your daughter's disappearance? >> i don't know. part of me feels yes and part of me feels no. it's just -- >> explain the part of you that feels yes. >> just, you know, like he said he's not in hiding but why won't he come out? why won't he talk to me? why is he staying away? you know, like just, what is he so afraid of to not come out or talk to me? >> we should mention in a lot of these situations in the past parents do come forward and go on television but it is everyone's right not to do that. >> right. >> and in his statement he says it's important the public hear it from me personally. i have no idea what happened to ayla. i am not hiding. i've been in full cooperation with everyone in this effort

including not adding additional media hype. your response to that? >> i am still in shock with what he wrote, what he put out in his statement. >> what really got my attention on this trista last night was that you and he have not spoken since your daughter disappeared. you've tried to call him. he has not responded to your calls. have you tried to get the police to act as intermediaries to create some sort of dialogue between you two? >> yep. i've asked that question and they tell me that it's between me and him. like it's on me and him to contact one another. >> i would think as a police officer investigating this you'd want to see the parents interacting at least maybe to observe it. >> right. >> but they've offered no opportunity for you to be in contact with your daughter's father. >> none. >> a little background on your relationship with dustin. according to you, you and justin had an agreement that he would take care of ayla while you were

in rehab back in october. other reports suggest that child protective services gave justin temporary custody of ayla. i don't think you agree with that. but after you got out of rehab a month went by where you never saw ayla. why? >> i had went like two and a half weeks without seeing her when i first got out of rehab. and then after like the first week of november i didn't see her again until the 21st of november and then after the 21st of november i did not see her again. >> have you been critical of justin's parenting? do you worry she was not safe in his care? >> yeah. >> for what reason? >> just, you know, for the reasons like he would never let me see her. i would call to talk to her and he'd get mad about it. i mean, like if i did see her and i would notice something on her like a bruise or just something he instead of reacting in a calm manner he would lash out about it or kind of like go into defense. >> i have to ask you at the end here. you filed for sole custody of

ayla the day before she disappeared. did you have anything to do with her disappearance or send anyone up to that house to take your baby back? >> no. and i didn't file for sole custody. all i filed for was parental rights and responsibilities. it wasn't sole custody. >> if you could speak to justin dipietro right now what would you say to him? >> just come talk to me. like just talk to me. you know? like he's the only one that can answer some of my questions. you know? like we have a daughter that is missing. we used to be able to get along all the time. just talk to me. that's all i want. just -- he was the last one to see her alive. talk to me. that's all i want. just talk to me. >> we will obviously follow this story. trista reynolds i appreciate you coming in this morning. our thoughts are with you and your family. let's check the weather now with stephanie abrams filling in for al. >> it is a little chilly in the northeast. we have wind chills this morning that have been down into the single digits for some. look at water town. it feels like 1 degree out there. on the other side of the spectrum it is above average.

through an enormous chunk of the country temperatures some 20 degrees above average there. right through the plains and throughout portions of the midwest. otherwise sunshine along >> good morning. it will feel better into the afternoon with much less wind today. we will have increasing matt, over to you. >> thank you. up next, do you really get what you pay for when you take your car to the dealership for repairs? our hidden camera investigation right after this. when bp made a commitment to the gulf, we knew it would take time, but we were determined to see it through. today, while our work continues, i want to update you on the progress:

bp has set aside 20 billion dollars to fund economic and environmental recovery. we're paying for all spill- related clean-up costs. and we've established a 500 million dollar fund so independent scientists can study the gulf's wildlife and environment for ten years. thousands of environmental samples from across the gulf have been analyzed by independent labs under the direction of the us coast guard. i'm glad to report all beaches and waters are open for everyone to enjoy. and the economy is showing progress with many areas on the gulf coast having their best tourism seasons in years. i was born here, i'm still here and so is bp. we're committed to the gulf for everyone who loves it, and everyone who calls it home. yeah, our low prices are even lower. we need to teach her how to walk. she is taking up valuable cart space. aren't you, honey? [ male announcer ] it's our biggest clearance event

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back now at 7:42 with "today investigates" and this morning a look back at our hidden camera investigations into pricey auto repairs. when you take your car to the dealer are the service bills legit? nbc's jeff rossen is here with details. >> good morning. we've all heard the horror stories. maybe you've actually been through it yourself. your car breaks. you take it to a local garage, and you feel taken advantage of. that's why so many of us only trust the dealership to fix our cars. after all, they are the experts, right? we went under cover putting dealers to the test. one suv, six hidden cameras, and five different dealerships about to get a visit. >> an appointment at 7:30. >> what would we find?

when we dropped off our car for service? >> $2,000 to fix this? >> reporter: we set up the experiment using this 2007 jeep grand cherokee. under 40,000 miles but out of warranty. we took it to a mechanic certified by two top auto repair groups. he inspected every system of our jeep. >> everything looks fine. everything is good. >> reporter: then we asked him to rig a simple problem. he used this small part in the air conditioner called the relay switch. what are you doing here? >> i'm going to take your ac relay out and replace it with a defective one. >> reporter: that makes the air conditioning blow warm air. >> yes. >> reporter: quick and easy fix. >> yes. replace the relay and that's it. >> reporter: this independent mechanic says he charged $100 to fix our bad relay. but what would the dealers do? by the end experts say at least one dealer lied right to our

face. >> so the ac compressor kind of, almost i want to say -- >> my compressor exploded? >> pretty much. >> reporter: we installed hidden cameras inside our car and under the hood. then we sent this female nbc producer in to five jeep dealers. a random mix of city and suburban locations. >> my air conditioning doesn't seem to be working. it's blowing hot air. >> reporter: with hidden cameras rolling our producer dropped our car at manhattan jeep in new york. within minutes great news. they find our problem. the bad relay switch. but fixing it here would cost $325. ramsey jeep in new jersey also found the bad relay, but to fix our problem they wanted to give our ac a system recharge for an extra fee of course. total bill at ramsey jeep? $270. >> he doesn't think it's as cold and he recommended charging it. >> reporter: but this mechanic says we didn't need that.

we had him check our ac pressure before every dealer and it was always fine. the dealer later told us their extra recommendation was based on the age and mileage of our car but experts say that's wrong, too. how would you rate this dealer from what you've seen? >> poor. poor. >> reporter: we showed our undercover video to two experts. one of the nation's top ac repair mechanics and phil reed, senior editor with a leading auto website. while reed can't speak to these dealers' practices he says many advisers may be pushing services for the wrong reasons. >> the dealership is the big picture. when they're not selling cars they need to make it up someplace else so they may go to their guys in the service department and say, look. you guys need to turn it up a bit. >> reporter: to keep the dealership afloat. >> absolutely. they're basically trying to feed a bigger system that's trying to make money. >> reporter: experts say they could be profiting from it personally. many service advisers are not

mechanics but actually salesmen. >> is there a personal stake? >> most people don't realize they're paid on commission. whenever they recommend a part or service for you they'll get a percentage of that. >> reporter: at westbury jeep in long island not only did they diagnose our bad relay, they also gave our car a free world class vehicle inspection and found several more services we needed. a brake flush. >> it's recommended every 30,000 miles. >> fuel induction and emission services. >> that will help make sure it runs with good gas mileage. >> reporter: and transmission service. >> the service is $229. i think the problems can cost a couple thousand dollars. >> reporter: total cost $792 but for those services, were they really necessary? we bought the actual dealer service manual for our car and found no specific recommendations for them from jeep at our mileage. >> i think they were trying to

sell you some things that you didn't necessarily need. >> reporter: in a statement w t westbury jeep strongly disagreed saying we advise. our customers choose to use our advice as they see fit. they say their inspection is designed to find problems before they cause systems to fail. jeep's own manual recommends service any time a malfunctions suspected. experts who reviewed our case say our car showed no signs of malfunction. >> the service adviser said, look. pay a couple hundred dollars now and it is going to save you thousands later. sounds like a good deal. >> the strategy is essentially to get you to over maintain your car. in some cases you may be doubling the service that is required. >> reporter: but of all the dealers we visited, no one charged as much as this one. bayside jeep in new york. our hidden cameras show they do find our relay problem. >> you got to change this because this thing got fried. >> reporter: but then -- >> you need a compressor.

>> what a bunch of lies. this is basically fraud. >> reporter: then the service adviser spelled it out for our producer. >> so the ac compressor kind of i almost want to say -- >> my compressor exploded? >> pretty much. it's kind of like blew up internally. >> how much is it going to cost to fix? >> with everything we're talking $1,999. >> so $2,000 to fix this? >> reporter: with tax over $2100. when experts say the real problem could be fixed for just $100 bucks. bayside jeep told us their service department is honest and they must have misdiagnosed our car. in the end, four out of five dealers charged us for repairs experts say we did not need. >> i'm always sorry to see that things like this give all of us in the repair business a bad name. >> reporter: now in response to our story bayside jeep says it fired the service adviser and

technicians who worked on our car. jeep corporate says it made changes two years ago that actually improved dealer service. and dealerships make repair recommendations based on the age and condition of the vehicle, savannah, to maximize performance. the way to protect yourself here, when they come out and give you an estimate when you bring your car in they haven't done anything yet. that is just an estimate. take your car back. bring it to a second place if you think the bill is too high and get a second opinion. >> that is a good piece of advice. jeff rossen, thanks so much. we'll see you tomorrow. just ahead the biggest internet stars of the year. remember the dog who can say i love you? we'll catch up with that dog and some other people who made it big on the web in 2011. but first, these messages. aahhh!

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the biggest and best sales event of the year is going on now! >> this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> 7: 56. time for your morning commute with traffic pulse 11. >> no delays to report. we are dealing with a lighter volume out there. monday, things return to normal. chesapeake bay bridge looks great. we have icy conditions to report in rosedale. 55 on the north side, looking good on the west side at 54.

roadwaysthe major look great this hour. we will start at i-70 in the areas of 29, eastbound and westbound traffic moving without delay. harford road, going away from us, outer loop traffic, a nice start there as well. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. ava has a check on the forecast. >> we are waking up at colder temperatures today did let's look at the positive -- we don't have a strong winds. we are expecting to measures to improve in the afternoon. 33 at the inner harbor. high temperatures will make it into the mid-forties. 45 in baltimore. mid-to-upper-forties in southern maryland. without the wins, you don't have to factor in the wind chill. low 40's in the mountains with

most the cloudy skies. as our next storm system approaches, it should weaken over the mountains. if we get precipitation saturday morning, it should come as a

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fiber one 90 calorie brownies. in the granola bar aisle. caramel...pretzel 90 calorie bar. ♪ look at the monkey. >> did you put it on capture? ♪ hello my baby >> we are back, 8:00 on a thursday morning, the 29th day of december, 2011. we love these people. that is esther and bruce hoffman. who can forget this adorable couple as they tried to set up a brand new web cam on their computer not realizing everything they were doing was being recorded by that web cam? it became one of the hot videos of 2011 and the reason we're showing you this video is because we're catching up with some of the other internet stars. >> they are here.

and the stars of the youtube videos that really made it big in 2011 including that adorable laughing baby micah. rebecca black, star of her own video "friday" and who can forget this little talking dog who says i love you? they're all here live in our studio. we'll talk to them coming up next. we are look foing forward t that. next year on the program we're celebrating our 60th anniversary of "today" and we'd like to know how and where you have watched the show over the years. the more exotic the locale the better. keep it clean. and if you send us that information, you could be part of our 60th -- you shrieked when you saw the hair too, right? it does it to me every time. you could be part of our 60th anniversary telecast coming up in january. >> and your anniversary is tomorrow. >> exactly. over to tamron hall whose filling in for natalie on the news desk. good morning.

iowa's presidential contest is still unsettled five days before the january 3rd caucus. the latest polls show mitt romney is poised to finish first with 25% support. ron paul is close behind at 22%. they are trailed by rick santorum and newt gingrich who led the pack but lost 20 points in the last 20 days. the new september 11 memorial in new york city has already reached a mile stone. officials will announce today the memorial plaza and its two huge fountains have been visited by 1 million people since opening to the public on september 12th of this year. americans are feeling optimistic as 2012 rolls in according to a new associated press poll that finds that 62% of respondents say they're optimistic about what 2012 will bring for the nation and 78% are hopeful for their own families in the coming year. now to wall street. cnbc's mandy drury is at the new york stock exchange. mandy, good morning. it was a rough day for the s&p 500 on wednesday. what's on tap for today? >> that's right. now the s&p 500 stock index is teetering on ending the year

unchanged from where it was at the start of the year. gold prices on the other hand are up nearly 10% so far this year. if you take in the recent sharp plunge at the start of the month they could have been a lot higher. as for what's happening with yahoo, very interesting story here. yahoo might become owned by a chinese company. the commerceman has hired a washington lobbying firm a sign they might be willing to pay for all of yahoo. one to watch. now for a look the what's trending today. this video has people flocking to youtube to get a suitcase's view of what happens to your bags after they're taken on the conveyor belt. it is an ad for delta airlines. they let passengers track their bags in real time. and a nearly 50-year-old alfred hitchcock mystery may now be solved. it's on twitter. the 1963 classic "the birds" is

based on furious birds launching themselves from the skies. now scientists say it's caused by birds eating poisonous food. this video is surging on the philadelphia inquirer website. that is former pennsylvania senator arlen sector zinging his capitol hill colleagues at a philly comedy club this week. >> so i've been in comedy now for 30 -- [ laughter ] -- for 30 years. the only difference is it's not stand up. we all have comfortable chairs. >> and we'd love to show you more of his routine but most of it was too much for morning tv. the 81-year-old ended his 30-year career in january. coming up we'll have the stars of the top viral videos of 2011 right here on "today."

it is now 8:04. now back to stephanie with a check of the weather. tamron, we have two fans. why don't you want to go? >> the crowd. you get locked in. >> you get locked in. what time are you going to show snup. >> they say 3:00 but i'll give them until 3:30. >> you're going to push it a little bit and really go crazy. let's have a look at our weather in vegas. they have a phenomenal new year's celebration with tons of fireworks of all sorts of hotels down the strip. temperatures will be mild. 66 degrees today. the rest of the country the northern tier where all the >> good morning. today is softly colder start but without the wind, it does not fail to bad. a mixture of sun and clouds.

back over to you, savannah. >> all right. thank you. from a laughing baby to a talking dog we'll talk to the internet stars of 2011. they're all live in our studio this morning. most of them are awake. that's coming up right after this. tony, pick it up. you know i'm just not feeling the wood cutting thing today. tony, eat a snickers. why? 'cause you get a little bit whiny when you're hungry. better? better. [ male announcer ] you're not you when you're hungry™. hey! my back hurts. [ grunts ]

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♪ it's friday friday got to get down on friday ♪ back now at 8:09 with 2011's internet sen investigations sations. this morning we're catching up with the stars of the year's hottest viral videos. >> we'll begin with the tiny tot and the ripping pape they're brought out this unforgettable laugh. take a look and listen.

[ laughing ]unforgettable laugh. take a look and listen. [ laughingbrought out this unfo laugh. take a look and listen. [ laughing ] baby micah macarthur is with us at least in body this morning along with his parents marcus and amanda. nice to see you this morning. you were back here in march and 5.5 million people had viewed this online. now it is 33 million people. what do you make of that? >> it's still as surreal as when we hit a thousand views. it' aeunbelievable. >> it's impossible for 33 million people to watch something that is part of your life and have it not change your lives. what's the most bizarre thing that's happened as a result of this? >> there's been a lot of great things. probably the most bizarre thing

is we received some fan mail or micah has received some fan mail. everything from home made bibs to pictures of people with their child laughing. >> letters on how to get a job. >> he's older now. he is 20 months old. does he watch the video and does he recognize himself? >> i don't know if he recognizes himself but he definitely gets a smirk out of it and really any baby laughing or any child laughing. >> as television luck would have it micah was wide awake for an hour and a half this morning and just passed out a few minutes ago. let's do an update here. obviously what started micah laughing was the sound of you ripping up rejection letters for jobs you had applied to so bring us up to date. >> that's right. after several job rejection letters i can now happily report that i have a wonderful job at an educational publishing company called creative materials in california. so moved from the midwest back home to southern california. >> where our family is. >> any connection to that in

this video or was it simply something that happened on the side? >> on the side. didn't even know about it until later. >> fantastic. listen, micah, enjoy -- i hope he enjoys his nap. we've enjoyed laughing with you guys over the last nine months or so. >> it's been great. >> thanks for coming back and joining us. we really appreciate it. >> thank you. >> over to savannah. thanks. 2011 was a record-breaking year for rebecca black, the teenager took the country by storm with a catchy song that became youtu youtube's most watched video of the year. here's a look. ♪ it's friday friday got to get down on friday everybody's looking for the way to the weekend weekend ♪ ♪ friday friday getting down on friday everybody's looking forward to the weekend ♪ ♪ partying partying >> we all have it in our heads. rebecca black, good morning to you. >> good morning. >> you still like hearing that

song? >> i actually have not listened to the whole song in a long time. >> well, you started 2011 like any other normal 13-year-old girl and here we are at the end of the year. you have the most watched youtube video, a camo video and lady gaga has said she thinks you are a genius. >> yes. >> how does that feel? >> i mean, it hasn't all sunk in yet. i mean, it's just like looking back, what a year. >> would you ever have predicted this video would become so popular? >> no, never. i mean, if you would have went back to the beginning of last year, this last year, and told me, you know, this video, my little video i made at my house is -- would amount to this, i would have never believed you. >> for those who don't know the back story, because that video looks very professional, explain how it came to be. >> i had went to school -- i was at school and one of my friends

had actually done a video with this company and so, you know, everyone loves it and he was so cute. so i asked him, how do you do this? we were both big drama kids, so i asked and she gave me the name of the company. i went to the company. >> your parents paid to have this video made. >> yes. >> that led to kind of an unfortunate flip side to this. >> yes. >> there was a back lash on the web. >> yes. >> i know you received even death threats and have left school and you're being home schooled for a variety of reasons. why do you think people reacted that way? how have you been handling it? >> i honestly don't know. i mean, i could understand not liking the video because everyone has their own opinions but, i mean, some people have just gotten to such crazy extremes with -- i don't understa understand. it's just -- i don't know what goes on. >> well, i guess there's the good side and the bad side to everything. you certainly have had the good side this year. rebecca black, it's great to

meet you in person. good luck to you. >> thank you. coming up next two more internet sensations in 2011. the talking dog and the grandparents who got a little frisky as they struggled to use their new web cam all coming up right after this.

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back at 8:18 more of 2011's internet sensations. the regular people and pets who made it big this year thanks to youtube. this next video was an instant favorite around our office. take a look at how man's best friend caught the world's attention. >> i love you. >> hi. >> i love you. >> i love you. >> good girl. >> i love you. >> i love you. >> i love you. >> i love you. >> i love you. >> well, the talking dog is here with her family, matt, alina,

and trevor. good morning to all of you. >> hi. >> good morning. >> when we last met, this video had been seen 55 million times. now there have been 10 million additional views. could you ever have dreamed that this little clip would take off the way it has? >> no. we really didn't imagine. >> tell us the back story. as i understand it, alina, she's been talking for years. you only recently put the clip up. >> yes. she's been talking since she was a little puppy and it's always sounded like "i love you" to us. so my husband decided to put it on youtube and it just became really popular. >> now, other than "i love you" she can say some other things, right? >> yes. >> what other things does she say? >> hello. i'm hungry. i want dinner. it sounds a little like that. >> okay. she is not your only pet and she's not your only talking pet. i understand some of the other animals are starting to talk a little bit or trying. >> yes. we have a siberian husky puppy that's a year old and mischka is teaching her to talk too.

>> is she getting anything out so far? >> she says hello. >> i don't know if she does this on demand. is there a trick here? do you love us? >> you want to talk? you want to say something? >> mischka, i love you. >> i love you. >> we could go all day like this. now for pet owners who think they would like to try to teach their pets to talk how do you do it? >> i guess when they're howling or talking just say things to them and see if you can get them to say something back to you. >> okay. >> mischka, i love you. no. she doesn't love me. >> she loves me. >> alina, tell me what's next for mischka. >> we're in talks with a movie theater in l.a. to make some movies and an animated series this year, too, with her and her sister.

>> trevor, can you make mischka talk? >> trevor, can you tell her you love her? >> no. >> okay. >> we get it. fine. not everyone wants to perform on command. thank you so much. great to see you again. good luck with everything in 2012. >> all right. it's 8:21. here's matt. finally the couple who stole america's hearts in 2011 when they couldn't quite figure out how to work their web cam. they didn't realize it was working just fine and it was capturing everything. take a look. >> look at the monkey. >> did it capture it? i put it on capture ♪ hello my darling hello my baby ♪ >> i'm so sad. i'm so sad. >> why won't it take a picture? take photo. >> i don't know, dear. pardon me. see how pretty your hair is? did you notice that?

>> no. >> how pretty your hair is? >> no. i don't know what i'm recording. shucks. >> maybe it's recording us. drop your dress a little bit. see your -- >> stop it. stop. >> ooh, ooh. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> you have your hands full. you really do. does this change your lives? you have 16 grandchildren. what was their reaction when they saw this video? >> well, actually my granddaughter put it on youtube because i didn't know anything about youtube and, yeah. they're pretty excited about it. we never dreamed this would happen. >> bruce, had you ever heard of a viral video before this? >> i am a viral 87-year-old. >> but did you even know what a viral video was before this? >> no, no i didn't. i didn't know what youtube was either. >> you didn't use the internet or anything like that?

and so now with 9 million people having watched this over the last year or so, what's the best thing that's come out of it, bruce? what's the worst thing? >> the best thing is the fact we've got to do this with a lot of people, shake hands with a lot of people and visit some shows like in san francisco, for example, and people are so warm. that's it. >> you get to meet people because of this. >> oh, yes. >> what made you save the booby part? >> well -- >> because it's just the way he is? >> i don't even remember saying that. >> that's one of the nice things about being 87, right? >> that's right. >> i got to admit if i had to do it again i might not say that. >> all right. this is a reunion by the way. you used to be a page? >> i was many years ago. >> for nbc. and you worked at cbs, which is nice. what people need to know about you, not only are you not so

good -- by the way, have you figured out the web cam now? you got that working? >> not too well. >> can i tell the people, the retirement community hi? >> sure. >> in oregon. home of the spruce goose. >> whereby the way you are a pingpong champion. >> well, i play a pretty good game. >> come on. let's go over here. esther, we'll be back. bruce? >> i don't know. >> come over here if you are indeed a champion and just to intimidate you a little bit, i'm going to wear a web cam while we do this. all right? because i know those things freak you out a little bit. so i got the web cam. >> this is my bucket list. >> this is, playing pingpong with me? hold on one second. >> go, babe. >> i'm focusing on you. >> i'm ready. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> ah! tried to get aggressive on me. >> wait. here we go. >> good.

>> hold on. >> you are good. >> whoa. that was good. bruce and -- go ahead. a spinner. >> ah! >> all right. hang on. you have a ball over there? ♪ mm-hmm. >> ah. >> you see? under estimated the young guy here, didn't you? >> well, yes. where is it? >> it's behind you. bruce and esther hoffman, thank you very much. thanks to all of our 2011 internet stars. we really enjoyed catching up with you guys. and happy new year. way to go, pal. nice job. >> thank you, matt. >> we're back after this. all right. you got it.

>> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. time for a final check of the morning commute. here is sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. >> not too bad if you are heading out in the next few minutes. icy conditions on philadelphia road and golden ring due to an earlier water main break. problem-free so far on southbound 795 coming from owings mills. 47 miles per hour southbound 83 around shawan road. nice start out there.

light volume. probably until monday, when things return to normal. construction expected southbound at tydings memorial bridge, they suspended i think they got enough calls from people. monday is when they will restart that construction. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. ava, over to you. >> well, this is jon this time around bagh. farther west you go, there are clouds. don't be too concerned about this. a lot of this is going to dry out as it goes through the mountains. most of what we will see is clouds but mostly sunny skies over baltimore. clouds to the west. winds are calm. here is the weather development out to the west. as this moves east, we will get into less chilly air.

mixture of sunshine, clouds coming into the picture. as we mentioned, a chilly start this morning. temperatures in the mid-forties for vice. >> my, ava, how you have changed in the last several minutes. we are back at 8:55 with another update.

it is 8:30 now on a thursday morning, the 29th day of december, 2011. our big crowd this morning, all wrapped up in chilly temperatures, only 24 degrees outside. i imagine a lot of these people are standing out in the cold on

times square to watch the ball drop. i'm matt lauer with savannah guthrie and tamron hall who is here while ann is off today. al is off today. natalie is off. we'll tell you more about that. >> why are you here? >> got the shortened end of th straw. here you go. meanwhile, coming up we'll catch up with -- >> everybody remembers this is the trial that transfixed the country this year the young mother found not guilty of murdering her 2-year-old daughter. coming up we'll talk to the medical examiner who ruled caylee's death a homicide. she is speaking out for the first time since the verdict. she wants to set the record straight about her findings and what really happened during the trial. >> and on a much lighter note we're looking ahead. you mentioned the revelers out here. we're looking ahead to 2012 and some of the hottest trends we've been looking at in the coming year including food, desserts, all things that are hot in the new year. we'll show you so that you can

be cool before it's cool. >> we have a programming note. >> oh, yes. >> tomorrow here on "today" we'll catch up with juliana ransex. we followed her battle with breast cancer since she revealed her diagnosis here on our program. she underwent a double mastectomy and will be here with her husband and share the latest on her recovery tomorrow morning. that is just weeks after surgery. tomorrow morning on "today." >> we look forward to that. now we are ready for stephanie abrams with the weather. >> we are celebrating a birthday here. on the search for tory birch. did you find it? >> we were successful. >> daddy are you watching? is daddy going to be okay? >> i hope so. >> we hope so. we hope he's not watching. i'm watching the weather for you. here is a look at what we will see through the day today. basically the southern half of the country is going to be sunny. the northern tier, where the action will be located, otherwise as we head into the day tomorrow, again, it stays pretty active in the northern

tier. not a whole lot changes. >> good morning. it will feel better into the afternoon with much less wind today. we will have increasing we've got the iowa state cheerleaders back here. is your weather something to cheer about? go to weather.com to find out. spear figures everyone! matt, do you have spear figures? >> i will get those in a short time. thanks very much. coming up next on a more serious note the medical examiner in the casey anthony murder trial speaks out for the first time since that trial to set the record straight. but first, this is "today" on nbc.

the kraes casey anthony case was one of the most searched news items of 2011. the florida mother charged with murdering her daughter after the medical examiner in orlando concluded 2-year-old caylee was the victim of homicide. in a moment we'll talk exclusively to the woman who made that ruling setting the stage for that sensational trial. but first nbc's kerry sanders has more. good morning. >> reporter: well, good morning, savannah. if the medical examiner had not concluded that caylee was the victim of homicide, then prosecutors never would have been able to charge her mother, casey, with murder. in the end, the jurors did not buy it. some experts say that may be a result of the so-called csi effect, an expectation among jurors today that a medical examiner will present high tech,

flashy, convincing forensic evidence. from the moment caylee's remains were found in the woods the pressure was on the medical examiner. dr. g as she is known, already a high profile personality because of her cable tv show, was now under a different spotlight. she had the challenge of determining how little caylee died almost six months after her disappearance and with scant evidence. all dr. g had to work with were weathered, skeletonized remains, hair, clothes, a laundry bag, and duct tape. still, dr. g concluded -- >> the cause of death will be listed as homicide bai yun determined means. >> reporter: at trial she told the jury, it was murder. >> scientifically defensible to say it is a homicide but die not believe we have enough scientific information to say the means of how that homicide occurred. >> reporter: casey's defense team said caylee had accidently drowned in the back yard

swimming pool, her body dumped in the woods in a panic. but dr. g disagreed. >> a hundred percent of the time when the person finds the child they call 911 because there is a chance that child might live. >> we the jury find the defendant not guilty. >> reporter: in the end the jury didn't buy it. casey was acquitted. now dr. g in her cable tv show tries to explain what happened. why the jury dismissed three pieces of duct tape found with caylee's skeleton. >> the duct tape told us that it was put there before she started to decompose. >> reporter: and she responds to the defense expert who testified dr. g did a shoddy autopsy. >> when the head is not opened that tells me about a shoddy autopsy. >> there is no reason to open it. we were able to look inside that skull with a light. >> reporter: a high profile case that has the prosecutor and now the medical examiner on the defensive. >> i think this is reputation

repair. it's not necessarily a crisis but there is some reputation concern. >> reporter: casey anthony, who is free, remains in florida. she is serving a one-year probation for passing bad checks. savannah? >> kerry sanders in orlando this morning, thanks. dr. g is with us this morning. good morning to you. >> good morning. >> you were a passionate witness on the stand. i think we all remember your testimony. in terms of the science can you say that casey anthony killed her daughter? >> my job is not to determine who did it. my job is to determine what happened. so i feel very strongly that we could say this was a homicide, death by the hands of another. my job is not to point the finger at one person or another. >> we are not in a court of law anymore. do you have a theory about how this little girl died? >> well, obviously we have to always look at the last person that was seen with the child, the person who is legally,

morally, ethically responsible for the child, what stories do they give as to what happened. we never did get anything from her of what happened. yet we found her with duct tape discarded in the woods. that tells a lot. >> some five months later and in fact five months after she disappeared is it the passage of time that ultimately makes this unresolvable from a scientific perspective? >> exactly. a lot of people don't understand these were very dry bones. a lot of information that's coming out makes it seem like we could do this test or that test or they would expect dna. you wouldn't expect that. these are bones that don't have anything left on them. >> i remember your testimony. you basically cited three reasons why you think this is a homicide. the fact that she wasn't reported missing, the fact that her body was hidden, and the presence of that duct tape on her face. these seem like common sense reasons. they don't seem like scientific reasons. i know you've heard that criticism.

>> right. certainly the manner of death is an opinion based on all the information. that is an opinion based on the scientific information and the scene and the circumstances. always an opinion. the cause of death is what we couldn't come up with. now, there's a lot of still science behind that duct tape. that's why we're doing this special is because after the fact all of a sudden it's like they're rewriting history, rewriting what we found, which isn't true. >> i think this is, this concept may be hard for some viewers to get their hands around because the idea that you can say, well we know it was a homicide, but we don't know how she died, for some people those two concepts seem paradoxical. >> no. it's a common problem when you hide the body that evidence goes away. and we occasionally will have a case like that. every medical examiner's office has cases where there's highly

suspicious circumstances, found in a shallow grave with your hands tied behind your back? you know, how did you get there? >> you've got the television special coming up this weekend six months after the verdict. i know you wanted to set the record straight. but respond to those who say, well here we go again. here is another person looking to profit or gain more notoriety from this infamous case. >> well first of all, i'm not making a penny off of it. i never wanted to. anything i make from that show because it is part of my regular series will go to children's charities. i really just did it to get away from the hype and be able to explain why we could say that that duct tape was there in less than just little sound bites. >> i know you know the defense theory of the case which was that the baby drowned and there was some criticism that you didn't do a particular test that would perhaps have determined whether there was a drowning. your response to that? >> anybody that mentions that brings up that test must have the csi effect because that

test, they're little one-celled organisms, plants, and the theory is when you drowned they get sucked into your lungs and your vascular system. these were dry bones. there is no way, a, that is not a very specific or sensitive test and we couldn't test for them in the dry bones. >> you think this case will ever be solved? >> not unless -- we'll never know what happened until the perpetrator states what happened. >> thank you so much. you can catch dr. g inside the caylee anthony case sunday night on tlc. her show, "dr. g medical examiner" returns tomorrow night on discovery fit and health. coming up next we'll switch gears and preview the hot food trends we'll be talking about in 2012. but first, this is "today" on nbc.

we're back at 8:45. meatballs, regional italian.

what food trends will we be chewing on in 2012? here is a look ahead with the editor of "saveur" magazine and a chef. nice to see you. almost happy new year. how do you spot trends a year out or half a year out? >> you just sniff around and you get a gut feeling. i think the amazing thing about 2012 is going to be a return to trends. real feel good foods. >> comfort foods? >> yes. absolutely comfort foods. >> we had a little comfort food in 2011. i mean meatballs were very popular. but you say meat loaf is going to be the dish for 2012. why? >> meat loaf is absolutely going to be the year that the meatball grew up in 2012. but what we're going to be looking at are international versions of meat loaf like the beautiful ones from denmark that are wrapped in bacon or this one from south africa flavored with curry and has beautiful, dried fruits in it. this one from the philippines

with a whole hard boiled egg in it. >> so not just your mom's meat loaf. >> not just your mom's meat loaf anymore. >> anybody who is into food, the real foodies are always looking for great knives and you're here to talk about some of the knives that are going to be great in 2012. what were the ones hot in 2011? >> 2011's must have knife was a japanese knife. they're usually made of ceramic but also stainless steel. as you can see they're really gorgeous to look at but to my mind frankly they're not that durable. 2012's knives to have, much more durable. a carbon steel knife, so powerful, so wonderful, a real work horse of the kitchen. >> if you buy a really quality set of knives how long should they last you? >> honestly a good set of carbon steel knives would last you a lifetime. >> all right. in 2011 people were talking about regional italian. and you think this year it's going to be italian american or american italian? >> that's absolutely right. 2011 was the year where we were

becoming even more comfortable with things like cicilian olives. 2012 a celebration of italian american classics like lasagna, broccoli-rab, egg plant parmesan, all those beautiful foods we love so much in america. >> speaking of beautiful take a look at how gorgeous these are. they were popular in 2011. there is a store here in new york that sells them and the lines are out to the street. what's going to be the dessert food of 2012? >> layer cakes. >> why? >> return to layer cakes. because they are so delicious. and you can see, so beautiful. and no more are we going to have to deal with little cupcakes. cakes are going to return to their beautiful, full, rightful -- >> that would say you expect the economy to recover because this is decadence where this is more conservative. >> i don't care if the economy recovers. i just want to put my face here. >> what was popular in 2011 with

wines? >> california wines that were made in a really classic, european style. like this beautiful chardonnay, which tastes really more like a french chardonnay. oaky like a california chardonnay. 2012 we're looking at regional american wines made outside of california in places like texas and virginia. this comes from upstate new york. it's $15 a bottle and crisp and beautiful. >> all right. let's talk before we let you go here about some cities that you think are going to set trends for food in 2012. what was hot in 2011? 2011 was the year of portland, oregon with the amazing street food carts and high end restaurants like vitale's place which brought this beautiful shrimp dish. 2012, kansas city. we've long thought of kansas city as a great barbecue town. >> kind of a steak town. >> absolutely. but it's high end dining. it's really on the rise,

including chef debby gold the american where this fantastic cauliflower dish came from. >> you have me looking forward to the new year. thanks very much and happy holidays. great to have you here. still ahead do it yourself styles for your hair for your new year's eve party. they'll save you an expensive trip to the salon. first, this is "today" on nbc.

back at 8:51 with a look back at the wonderfully wacky world of sports in 2011. len is here to do the honors. good morning. >> happy new year, guys. great to see you. birthday kid. 2011 featured the green bay packers and in baseball the st. louis cardinals. what were truly the top sports stories? let's go spanning the year. >> unbelievable! >> oh, my goodness. on your mark, get set, and -- first let's have the invocation to start things off from pastor joe at the nascar race. >> lord, i want to thank you for my smoking hot wife today. >> play ball. the catch of the year. evan longoria, tampa bay.

you know, maybe it wasn't real. maybe it was just a tv commercial. but nice grab. the professional golf putt of the year. out of a helicopter. really? and --? >> it's in the hole! >> unreal. >> our oochps of the year in soccer, the ball hits the crossbar. let's go nuts. we win the game. except for one slight problem. the ball then bounces in for a goal. it was another case of premature exhileration. then there was the drag racing. the steering wheel in drag racing? what is the deal with that one? our rule book question of the year. is this a legal defensive maneuver in soccer the old shorts pulled down? the three stooges i think. what about australian rules football? an over-the-shoulder grab. that's what that is. our performers of the year. the british crew team practicing on the moving walkway at the

munich airport. hey, he's heading upstream. how about mike tyson on a brazilian tv show singing "the girl from ipanema?" ♪ >> want to dance? okay. our sportsmanship of the year award goes to peewees in kazakhstan. first a nice handshake and then you fight. you see that? that's the way they teach the kids over there. lots of fans of the year. the newest golf yell. >> mashed potato! >> you know, girls, i think we have a slight problem with this one. >> oh, there. >> they don't need to be smart. >> then there is the running of the bulls. i think i'll go naked. yeah. >> ooh. >> that's a swell idea. and arena football and the kickoff, the fan in the end zone

makes the stop. nicely done. in taiwan the guy drops his daughter to catch a foul ball. my goodness. he doesn't hold on to either one. you know, in any language, you're a moron. and our athlete of the year? well he is david smith. he is the human home run. he loads himself up and he proceeds to blast himself out of the ballpark. >> and he's gone! >> you know, we would give him his award but we don't know where he is. >> thanks. that was good stuff. great to have you here. >> appreciate it. >> fun to have you during the year as well. happy new year. >> my favorite part is the look on that wife's face, like are you serious, buddy? thank you. just ahead the whakiest and tackiest celeb moments of 2011. >> first a look at your local news and the all important holiday weather forecast. yes you need a steering wheel.

>> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. investigators are still trying to figure out what caused a deadly bus crashed on maryland highway. just as the wednesday evening

rush hour was beginning, a metro bus and a pickup truck collided in bethesda. both drivers had to be extricated from their vehi

>> a little cold, but at least the sun is out. we warm up a bit during the day. we will pick up some clouds. we will see that mixture of sunshine and clouds. highs will wind up in the mid- forties. south wins at five to 10.