STUDENT NEWS

France Holds Elections; Celebrating Earth Day

Aired April 23, 2012 - 04:00:00   ET

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

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GROUP: We are the (inaudible) senior class of (inaudible), Nebraska, and you`re watching CNN Student News with Carl Azuz. Whoo!

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CARL AZUZ, HOST, CNN STUDENT NEWS: From those seniors in Nebraska to the CNN Center here in Atlanta, Georgia, we`re welcoming all of you watching around the world to a new week of CNN Student News.

First up, election day in France, as voters cast their ballots in that country`s presidential election. Just like in the United States and other countries around the world, the economy and jobs -- two of the big political issues leading up to this election. 

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AZUZ (voice-over): According to French television, exit polls showed that current president Nicolas Sarkozy came in second yesterday to Francois Hollande. But neither candidate got at least 51 percent of the vote. 

In fact, neither got more than 30 percent. And according to French law, if no candidate wins an absolute majority, the top two candidates have a runoff election. That means Sarkozy and Hollande will face off again on May 6th.

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AZUZ: One year -- according to the owner of the Costa Concordia, that`s how long it will take to remove the cruise ship from the waters near an Italian island. The salvage process will start in May. First, the Concordia will have to get back to a floating state, and then the ship will be towed to port.

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AZUZ (voice-over): You might remember the Costa Concordia ran into rocks and then turned on its side back in January. The pictures were amazing. There were more than 4,000 people on board the ship, 32 of them were killed. The ship`s captain is facing possible criminal charges in connection with the wreck, although he claims that the rock that the ship struck wasn`t on his charts of the area.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Today`s first Shoutout goes out to Mr. Rainey`s civics classes at Lake Nona Middle School in Orlando, Florida.

Which of the Middle Eastern countries is the smallest? You know what to do. Is it Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar or United Arab Emirates? You`ve got three seconds, go.

Bahrain is the smallest of these nations. It`s only a fraction of the size of Rhode Island. That`s your Shoutout.

AZUZ (voice-over): That small nation is dealing with some major political unrest right now. Some of the recent anger is focused on a Formula 1 auto race that happened in Bahrain`s capital over the weekend.

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AZUZ: This race, the Bahrain Grand Prix, was canceled twice last year because of violence surrounding protests against the government. The protesters want changes made to their country`s government. Canceling the race is estimated to have cost Bahrain hundreds of millions of dollars.

There were concerns that this year`s race might be canceled too.

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AZUZ (voice-over): Opposition groups called for more protests around the race. You can see here some of what happened. Tires and trash were lit on fire, blocking some roads leading to the racetrack. Some protesters called the race a publicity stunt. They said it was being used to make Bahrain look more unified than it actually is.

Despite the protests though, the race did happen, and a Bahraini official called it a huge success.

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AZUZ: Here`s a quick quiz for you. What annual event takes place every year on April 22nd? It`s Earth Day. The tradition started back in 1970 with around 20 million Americans getting involved.

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AZUZ (voice-over): Now according to the Earth Day Network, more than a billion people all over the world participated in Earth Day activities. The goal? To raise awareness about environmental issues. That same year Earth Day was created, the U.S. government passed the Clean Air Act, and established the Environmental Protection Agency.

Here are some Earth Day related statistics from that agency. In 2010, each person in the United States generated nearly 41/2 pounds of solid waste, trash every day. Around 34 percent of that waste gets recycled.

Eighty-one percent of Americans switched from regular light bulbs to energy-efficient fluorescent bulbs. Seventy percent go with reusable grocery bags instead of paper or plastic and 1.2 million American homes use solar power.

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AZUZ: The 22nd is Earth Day, but all of April is Financial Literacy Month. Last week we talked to you about taxes, the fees that governments collect in order to fund the goods and services that they provide. Well, Christine Romans is going to break down where that tax money goes in the U.S.

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CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Your government took $2.3 trillion of your money in fiscal year 2011, so what are you getting for all that tax money? Well, for starters, it`s not enough. The federal government spent $3.6 trillion, meaning they had to borrow $1.3 trillion. Don`t worry, if you pay taxes, you`ll be paying the interest. 

But again, where did all that money go? Let`s start with Medicare, Medicaid and the Children`s Health Insurance Program. That`s the biggest slice of the pie, the blue right here. Social Security claimed one-fifth of the total budget -- that`s yellow right up there. The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq cost $159 billion last year, about a fifth of the total spent on defense. 

Now spending on safety net programs designed to keep Americans out of poverty actually dropped last year, and the interest on our debt, that amounted to about 6 percent. That`s the purple wedge there, six cents of every dollar.

Now the remaining 19 percent was split among infrastructure, science, medical research, education, benefits also for retired federal employees and veterans. That`s how your tax dollars are spent.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Time for a Shoutout Extra Credit. Who is the current U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security? Here we go. Is it Michael Chertoff, Kathleen Sebelius, Tom Ridge or Janet Napolitano? Rewind that clock to three seconds and go.

Janet Napolitano is the current Homeland Security Secretary, and the third person to ever hold that position. That`s your answer and that`s your Shoutout Extra Credit.

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AZUZ: Secretary Napolitano and the Homeland Security Department are responsible for keeping the U.S. safe from threats. We`re talking about things like natural disasters, terrorist attacks and cyber-threats. That`s what this next report from Rene Marsh is all about. The government is looking for help to fight online attacks, but it`s having trouble finding people who are qualified.

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RENE MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): They`re on the front lines defending America from cyber-attacks.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just looking for signs that the attackers are trying to gain access.

MARSH (voice over): Government and industry insiders say you`re practically guaranteed a job in cyber-security if you`ve got the right stuff.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There is a lack of expertise, and there are a lot of people clamoring for people who know the Internet world, can work in this area.

MARSH: Last year the Department of Homeland Security`s cyber-unit responded to more than 106,000 cyber-attacks. DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano says unless we train more cyber-experts, our economy could be the biggest casualty. She adds thousands of cyber-experts already work in the federal government, but there`s a desperate need for more.

JANET NAPOLITANO, SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY: We need people who are analysts, we need people who are engineers, we need people who are experienced in intelligence as it relates to the cyber-universe.

MARSH (voice over): George Washington University is on a short list of institutions answering that need. The university will launch a master`s program in cyber-security this fall.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We get calls all the time from industry and government wanting to hire students and to find students who have this expertise and training. There are not enough people. We`re educating them as fast as we can. 

MARSH (voice over): And design systems hackers can`t easily penetrate. Logic and a solid math, tech and science background are pluses. Kevin Mandia`s security form responds to corporate breaches, but with only 220 people on staff, their response is mostly reactive.

They can`t match the current demand, and he says stopping attacks before they happen is impossible without more qualified people in place.

KEVIN MANDIA, CYBER SECURITY EXPERT, MANDIANT CORPORATION: It takes a long time to learn how to be a cyber-security expert.

MARSH (voice over): He believes the six- to eight-year grooming process in a challenging field may be keeping people away.

MARSH: To bridge the gap, Napolitano has been traveling to universities to talk to students about the opportunities available. She`s also been working with universities to set a curriculum that will meet the department`s needs -- Rene Marsh, Washington.

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AZUZ: All right. We`re going high class for today`s "Before We Go" report. 

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AZUZ (voice-over): Caviar is a culinary delicacy, a sign of sophisticated fine dining or a chance to see how fast you can shovel a pound of it down your throat. A restaurant in Moscow hosted this speed- eating competition. Instead of savoring the salted fish eggs -- that`s what caviar is -- the winner gulped down his pile of caviar in just under 90 second. He took home about $340 and more caviar.

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AZUZ: That sounds like an "egg-cellent" prize. There`s a strategy to this kind of eating competition. It`s almost like a medical procedure. You have to approach it like a "sturgeon." There`s no gloating over the competitors you beat though, because there`s just no reason to rub salt in their wounds.

If you`re hungry for more headlines -- and puns -- we`re going to dish up another round tomorrow. See you "spoon."

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