THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS ANCHOR: From Mississippi to Mexico, Wall Street to Washington, and a little trip to Hollywood, today's edition of CNN Student News is on the move. I'm Carl Azuz. Let's get started.
First Up: Mississippi Tornado
AZUZ: First up, some Southern states are starting a massive cleanup effort after being hit by tornadoes over the weekend. Mississippi seemed to get the worst of it; Louisiana and Alabama suffering damage, as well. Take a look at this iReport that someone sent in from Mississippi. You can see the rain kind of swirl up from the wind, and then it just comes pouring down. The National Weather Service estimates that the Mississippi tornado had wind speeds of up to 170 miles per hour.
We're right around the start of tornado season right now, so there are some safety tips to keep in mind if you're ever under a tornado warning. One: If you're inside, get to the basement or lowest floor. And two: put as many walls as possible between you and the outside. If you are outside, try to find a nearby ditch to lie down in, but watch out for flooding and watch out for anything flying overhead.
Juarez Violence
AZUZ: Next up, we're heading across the border into Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. It is the most violent city in the country of Mexico, and the reason for a lot of that violence is drugs. Last year, more than 2,600 deaths in Ciudad Juarez were connected to drug violence. Now, officials are looking into the most recent incident of violence to see if it is related. It happened around noon on Friday: a shootout on the streets that left seven people -- most of them police officers -- dead. The city's mayor said it started when police stopped some people they'd been investigating, and then gunmen from those vehicles opened fire. The mayor reacted by ordering more patrol cars out onto the streets. Ciudad Juarez has been a main focus of Mexico's fight against drug organizations.
AZUZ: "This title has been rated M for mature." You've heard that in video game commercials; you've seen the sticker on some of the games. The gaming industry says the point of those ratings is to let people know which games are appropriate for certain players, especially younger players. But some people argue the ratings aren't enough. And this fall, the U.S. Supreme Court will weigh in. It's agreed to hear a case out of California about video games and free speech. The state made a law that bans violent games from being sold to people who are under 18. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger says the law protects young people from the effects of these violent games. The gaming companies say the ban goes too far, and violates the right to free speech and expression.
Blog Promo
AZUZ: The Supreme Court will address the issue in the months ahead. We want to hear your take now! Are violent video games -- are any video games -- a form of free speech? Head to our home page, CNNStudentNews.com, click on our blog, From A to Z, tell us what you think.
Blog Report
AZUZ: Another thing we're talking about on our blog: mistakes teenagers make with money. This is Financial Literacy Month, after all. And Bailey, who had the very first comment, said it pretty well: "The biggest mistake is obvious: teens spend money on things they don't really need." So many of you telling us this! Hallie says when they go out with their friends, "kids spend twice as much as they normally would because they don't wanna look cheap." And Keely thinks "teens spend too much money on makeup. You're beautiful the way you are! Why change that?" Now, as far as the reasons why go, Andrea argues kids spend more "because they don't have to earn it, and they can keep taking it from their parents." David backs that up, saying "teenagers believe their parents will take care of them and that there's no need to invest their money." And Katie asks, "What are we going to do when our parents don't provide for us anymore?" Great comments. You'll notice we included first names only!
AZUZ: Now, we're gonna invest some time in the stock market, specifically, the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Most people just call it the Dow. You hear about it a lot; you hear us talk about it. It's popular because, though the Dow is made up of just 30 stocks, it gives an idea of how the entire market is doing. And lately, that's been pretty well. The past couple days, the Dow has been at its highest point in more than a year and a half. It finished yesterday over 11,000 points. Now to compare, the record came back in October of 2007 when the Dow was over 14,000. Then the recession happened, and by October of 2008, it had lost more than 5,000 points. But, with it back on the rise, some people are feeling confident about investing in stocks. And a few days ago, I checked in with Ali Velshi -- he's a CNN anchor and our chief business correspondent -- and I asked Mr. Velshi what it means to own stock.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR AND CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Stocks, basically, you invest in a company. So just like you own your house, or your parents own your house, you can own a piece of a large company like Coca-Cola or Disney or General Motors. Buying a stock allows you one little share in that company. Now, it's a very small amount; you don't get to go around and fire people or give them raises. But when that company does well, when it succeeds, your stock goes up, or they'll give you some money. And when it does badly, your stock goes down. The idea there is that your fortunes go up or down with that company's.
(END VIDEO)
Shoutout
TOMEKA JONES, CNN STUDENT NEWS: Today's Shoutout goes out to Mrs. Davenport's government class at Point Loma High School in San Diego, California! What does the D in 3-D stand for? You know what to do! Is it: A) Directional, B) Dimensional, C) Digital or D) Diagonal? Three seconds on the clock -- GO! You're perceiving three dimensions when you watch something in 3-D. That's your answer and that's your Shoutout!
AZUZ: That third dimension is all over the big screen lately. The weekend's number 1 film in the U.S.? 3-D. The biggest money-maker in movie history? That's in 3-D. Out in Hollywood, some filmmakers are going back to school to learn how to make 3-D movies. Kareen Wynter looks at why the method matters.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
JAKE SULLY, AVATAR: But we would send them a message...
KAREEN WYNTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: "Avatar's" message is that the future could mean big bucks when it comes to 3-D. Created and shot with 3-D technology, the film is the highest grossing movie of all time, with roughly $400 million coming from 3-D screens alone in the U.S.
SULLY: Outstanding.
WYNTER: With so much money-making potential, hopes are high that this latest 3-D boom doesn't go bust, and there's a movement underway to blaze this trail straight into the future.
WYNTER: Is it fair to call you a 3-D guru? You've been doing this for, since the beginning of time.
BUZZ HAYS, CHAIRMAN, INSTRUCTOR/VICE PRESIDENT, SONY 3-D TECHNOLOGY CENTER: Sure. I mean, yes, but there's a bunch of gurus out there.
WYNTER: Buzz Hayes began working in 3-D before it was cool. He's the lead instructor at Sony Pictures' brand new 3-D Technology Center, where filmmakers are immersed in an intensive, hands-on course on how to actually film in 3-D, a method much different from converting 2-D movies to 3-D. That process drew mixed reviews from critics, where it's used in "Clash of the Titans." But some would say how important is this? Does the audience really see the difference?
HAYES: I think they already are. I mean, based on some recent releases in theaters, I think people are very vocal about the quality of 3-D that they see, both good and bad. So, we just wanted to raise the bar.
WYNTER: And stay above it, says camera director Jack Messitt, who enrolled in the class because he says his future depends on it.
JACK MESSITT, CAMERA OPERATOR: The language of 3-D is really different than the language that we've all learned to utilize in 2-D. With the great increase in 3-D, I don't want to be left behind.
WYNTER: One exec who says he's ahead of the game is Jeffrey Katzenberg, CEO of Dreamworks Animation. He recently blasted the 2-D to 3-D conversion process, warning that it could turn audiences away.
JEFFREY KATZENBERG, CEO, DREAMWORKS ANIMATION: For the first time in well over a decade, we're actually seeing admissions go up, and 3-D is the reason.
WYNTER: Yes, and they're willing to spend a little bit more for that experience.
KATZENBERG: Well, if you give them something great, and that's the thing we just, I think everybody is being very protective of right now. This is a beautiful golden goose and it's, you know, giving us golden eggs.
WYNTER: And in this golden age of advanced technology where 3-D movies have fired up the box office, industry leaders like Buzz Hayes say the future looks bright. Kareen Wynter, CNN, Culver City, California.
(END VIDEO)
Before We Go
AZUZ: Well, before we go, your mother told you to eat your vegetables. She never said how fast you had to eat them. Probably better to just get it over with quickly? This is an asparagus eating contest. Now, let's stalk about this for a second. 10 minutes. Deep-fried asparagus. And the winner, Joey Chestnut, put away nearly 8 and a half pounds! It is the fifth time he's taken top prize in the event.
Goodbye
AZUZ: Which means he has four titles to, uh, spare, I guess. Might have bitten off more than we could chew with that one. We'll be back tomorrow with another serving of CNN Student News. I'm Carl Azuz.