Good afternoon from New York.  I'll be at the anchor desk tonight as Brian takes the night off.

The big story today is the historic face to face meeting between American and Iranian diplomats in Baghdad. The focus was narrow.  There was no discussion of Iran's nuclear programs, only ways to end the violence in Iraq.   We'll have a full report tonight on the outcome and expectations.

We will of course be framing our war coverage around the day's Memorial Day observances.  We are reminded on a day like this of the names, faces and stories of the individuals who so often are reported only as troop deployment or casualty numbers.  Tonight you'll get to know some of the Army dads who recently watched their sons and daughters graduate high school in Texas via a video-conference hook-up from their bases in Iraq.  It's a nice story about keeping families connected, and I'm happy we can share it with you.

We're also in Afghanistan tonight where Jim Maceda continues his excellent reporting from the battlefield with members of the 10th Mountain Division holding the line against the Taliban.

Also this evening: pulling the plug on a TV station, and some good news finally on those wayward whales.

Thanks for checking-in.  I hope you can join us tonight for NBC Nightly News.