Episode
60 Minutes: California Water Drought/Oust al Qaeda/The Birdmen
Overview
RUNNING DRY - A three-year drought in California is bringing a decades-long fight over water to a head, forcing tough choices. Lesley Stahl reports. OUT OF THE SHADOWS - Henry Crumpton, the ex-CIA operative who secretly ran the war against terror in Afghanistan after 9/11, describes using local might to oust al Qaeda and their Taliban hosts - a strategy he says is needed in Pakistan now, where terrorist leaders are hiding. Lara Logan reports. BIRDMEN - In the latest craze that has killed several extreme sports enthusiasts, men don wing-suits, jump off mountaintops and glide down at speeds approaching 140 miles per hour. Steve Kroft reports.
Details
- Series
- 60 Minutes
- Season
- Season 42
- Episode
- Episode 14
- Air date
- 2009-12-27
- Runtime
- 44 min
Episode context
California Water Drought/Oust al Qaeda/The Birdmen is Episode 14 in Season 42 of 60 Minutes. It aired on 2009-12-27. The runtime is 44 min.
Previous / Next
Episode 12: President Obama/Growing Body Parts/Ricky Gervais
PRESIDENT OBAMA - In his first extensive interview since his speech announcing his troop build-up in Afghanistan, President Obama talks about his plans for Afghanistan and Pakistan, the economy and the creation of jobs and reacts to the breach in security at last week's White House state dinner. Steve Kroft reports. Michael Radutzky and Frank Devine are the producers.
GROWING BODY PARTS - Morley Safer reports on the emerging technology of growing body parts from human cells taken directly from patients, providing new hope for amputees and patients on organ-transplant lists. Katy Textor is the producer.
RICKY GERVAIS - Lesley Stahl profiles the man who created the hit television program "The Office," which has opened other doors to the stage and screen for the British comedian. Richard Buddenhagen is the producer.
Episode 15: A Crack In The Swiss Vault/Delay, Deny And Hope That I Die/The Secret Language Of Elephants
A CRACK IN THE SWISS VAULT - Swiss bank accounts offered people, including American tax cheats, a safe place to hide money. But Switzerland’s largest bank has given authorities formerly sacrosanct information on its American customers because of tips provided by whistleblower Bradley Birkenfeld, who tells Steve Kroft the secrets Swiss bankers never tell. Andy Court and Keith Sharman are the producers.
"DELAY, DENY AND HOPE THAT I DIE" - Two wars and a recession have significantly increased the claims handled by the U.S. Department of Veteran's Affairs, slowing the large bureaucracy and frustrating many veterans. Byron Pitts reports. David Schneider is the producer.
THE SECRET LANGUAGE OF ELEPHANTS - Researchers listening to elephant sounds and observing their behavior are compiling an elephant dictionary. Bob Simon goes to Central Africa to listen to the language of the forest elephants first hand. Harry Radliffe is the producer.
More episodes from this season
Episode 11: The Zone/Personal Foul
THE ZONE - Geoffrey Canada's remarkable experiment in inner-city education, the Harlem Children's Zone, has helped put historically low-achieving students in New York City on academic par with their grammar-school peers. CNN's Anderson Cooper reports. Tanya Simon is the producer.
PERSONAL FOUL - Disgraced ex-NBA referee Tim Donaghy speaks for the first time about betting on pro basketball games, his Mafia involvement and subsequent prison term. Bob Simon reports. Robert Anderson is the producer. (This is a double-length segment.)
Episode 16: Watching The Border/Revelations From The Campaign/Resurrecting The Extinct
WATCHING THE BORDER - Steve Kroft reports on the status of the multi-billion-dollar "virtual fence" being built at the U.S.-Mexican border, which is years behind schedule and so far covers only about one percent of the border. Keith Sharman is the producer.
REVELATIONS FROM THE CAMPAIGN - Authors of a new book, "Game Change," and John McCain's former top campaign strategist reveal behind-the-scenes issues from the Republican and Democratic camps during the presidential campaign. CNN's Anderson Cooper reports. Robert Anderson is the producer.
RESURRECTING THE EXTINCT - Scientists believe they can sustain endangered species - maybe even one day resurrect some that have died out - using DNA technology. Lesley Stahl reports. Shari Finkelstein and Meghan Frank are the producers.
Episode 10: Congo's Gold War / Robert Ballard
CONGO GOLD - Five million people have died in the Democratic Republic of Congo in a war fueled primarily from gold mined in the country by warlords and smuggled out to be sold on the open market. Scott Pelley reports. Solly Granatstein and Nicole Young are the producers.
THE GREAT EXPLORER - Robert Ballard discovered the Titanic, the Bismarck and the PT 109 and now 60 MINUTES cameras are there for his latest discovery, 1,500 feet down in the Aegean Sea off Turkey. Lara Logan reports. Max McClellan is the producer. THIS IS A DOUBLE-LENGTH SEGMENT.
Episode 17: Haiti/Football Island/Penelope Cruz
HAITI - News from Haiti as Correspondent Byron Pitts reports on the efforts of the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division to help rescue, feed and protect the citizens of the earthquake decimated country.
FOOTBALL ISLAND - 60 MINUTES goes to American Samoa to find out how a territory with a population less than the capacity of a pro-football stadium sends more players to the NFL than any similarly populated place in America. Scott Pelley reports. Peter Radovich is the producer.
PENELOPE CRUZ - In a rare interview, the Spanish starlet opens up about her life, career and childhood. Charlie Rose reports. Ruth Streeter is the producer.
Episode 9: The Cost of Dying / Witness / Cameron's Avatar
THE COST OF DYING - Many Americans spend their last days in an intensive care unit, subjected to uncomfortable machines or surgeries to prolong their lives at enormous cost. Steve Kroft reports Andy Court is the producer. Watch a preview
WITNESS - Recently freed after four months of interrogation and torture at the hands of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Newsweek reporter Maziar Bahari tells his story to Bob Simon and writes about his ordeal in the next issue of Newsweek. Michael Gavshon and Drew Magratten are the producers. Watch a preview
CAMERON'S AVATAR - Morley Safer gets the first broadcast look at how "Titanic" director James Cameron created his $400 million 3D fantasy "Avatar." David Browning is the producer. Watch a preview
Episode 18: The Quiet Professionals/White Hot/Beyonce
THE QUIET PROFESSIONALS - In a rare chance to show America's elite Special Forces up close, 60 MINUTES spent over two months with a Green Beret unit as they trained a group of Afghan soldiers and then went into battle with them against the Taliban. Lara Logan reports. Jeff Newton is the producer.
WHITE HOT - U.S. Snowboarder Shaun White, who took home the gold at the last Winter Olympics, is still the guy to beat as he shows Bob Simon some of the tricks he'll use next month in Vancouver. Tanya Simon and Andrew Metz are the producers.
BEYONCE - Steve Kroft profiles the superstar singer on the road and backstage where she explains what makes her one of the world's most successful entertainers. John Hamlin is the producer.
Episode 8: The Deadliest Weapon/B-Rex/Resurrecting Eden
THE DEADLIEST WEAPON - Byron Pitts and 60 MINUTES cameras spend two days on the road with a bomb-hunting unit in Afghanistan as they encounter one deadly bomb after another. Tom Anderson is the producer.
B-REX - Lesley Stahl meets the inspiration for the lead character in the classic film Jurassic Park and reports on how famed dinosaur hunter Jack Horner is shaking up the paleontology world. Shari Finkelstein and Meghan Frank are the producers.
RESURRECTING EDEN - In Southern Iraq where many biblical scholars place the Garden of Eden, Scott Pelley finds a water world where the "Marsh Arabs" are making a comeback after Saddam nearly destroyed the "cradle of civilization." Jenny Dubin is the producer.
Episode 19: Made In America/Davos/Pigeon Fever
MADE IN THE USA - Could crucial parts of the equipment Iran is using in its uranium enrichment facility have come from the U.S.? American law enforcement authorities say sensitive devices and electronics that could be used in weapons of mass destruction are being smuggled into Iran. Lesley Stahl reports. Shachar Bar-On and Meghan Frank are the producers.
DAVOS- Nowhere in the world can such a concentration of power be found than at the World Economic Forum's meeting in Davos, Switzerland, where the world's most powerful and influential people gather yearly to try to solve the world's most pressing problems. Scott Pelley reports. Michael Karzis is the producer.
PIGEON FEVER - It's been just over a year since Bernard Madoff's multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme fell apart. But, as Morley Safer reports, despite all the news about the Madoff scandal, similar Ponzi scams are still thriving. David Browning and Diane Beasley are the producers.
Episode 7: Cyber War/Andre Agassi
CYBER WAR - Could foreign hackers get into the computer systems that run crucial elements of the world's infrastructure, such as the power grids, water works or even a nation's military arsenal, to create havoc? They already have. Steve Kroft reports. Graham Messick is the producer.
ANDRE AGASSI - Katie Couric interviews the tennis champion about his drug use, the depression that made him use methamphetamine and other aspects of his personal life and tennis career in his first interview about his upcoming book. Harry Radliffe and Magalie Laguerre-Wilkinson are the producers.
Episode 20: Blackwater 61/Bloom Box/Ground Zero
BLACKWATER 61 - "Blackwater 61" is the call sign of a plane flown by the embattled government contractor Blackwater that crashed into a mountain in Afghanistan killing all onboard. The widow of one of the soldiers killed - a pilot herself - says the firm was negligent in the way it operated the flight. Steve Kroft reports. Draggan Mihailovich is the producer.
THE BLOOM BOX - Large corporations in California have been secretly testing a new device that can generate power on the spot, without being connected to the electric grid. They're saying it's efficient, clean, and saves them money. Will we have one in every home someday? Lesley Stahl reports. Shachar Bar-On is the producer.
GROUND ZERO - It's been eight years since the attack on the World Trade Center and billions of dollars have been spent, yet none of the promised buildings and memorial has been completed in what its developer calls "a national disgrace." Scott Pelley reports. Shawn Efran and Catherine Herrick are the producers.