By David Gregory, Moderator, Meet the Press

I was stuck on an airport tarmac today for three hours so at first I missed the news about signs of recovery for the economy. It shrank in the second quarter, but less than expected. This seems to a lot of people including the President like it may be the beginning of the end of the recession. But if this is recovery, with so many people still out of work and foreclosing on their mortgages, it makes you worry. We will try to sort some of it out tonight with CNBC's Steve Leisman. Also, with the administration under fire for the stimulus failing to post the results they promised, one of the rebate programs that WAS working - the so called cash for clunkers - ran out of money. Looks like Congress will act quickly enough to authorize enough money for the program for you to get your cash back over the weekend.

If you haven't heard Senator Chris Dodd has prostate cancer. He shared the news with Senator Kennedy yesterday and Kennedy apparently said, "If I can beat mine, you can beat yours."

Also tonight, Norah O'Donnell with a great story about how horses can make a difference in the life of a solider returning from war.

Brian is away today. I hope you will tune in tonight. And have a great weekend.

By Lauren Selsky, NBC News desk assistant

As a student of history, I've studied countless battles where horses were used to wage war. Little did I know that they're now being used to heal our soldiers after they come back from war. 

I was intrigued when I first read about the Horses for Heroes program at the Maryland Therapeutic Riding center.  The non-profit organization offers free equine therapy to veterans and active duty soldiers suffering from both physical and psychological wounds of war. I'd always thought equine therapy was for people with physical disabilities. Never did I think these animals could have such an effect on people suffering from psychological disabilities.

By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor

I'm linking to a single item today because it's important.  While you may disagree, David Ignatius has written an interesting piece for the Washington Post on our current culture of security. I see it everywhere -- and it's become "baked in" to our society (especially in New York and Washington), and in a robust Democracy, we the people get to decide how much is too much security...or too little.

The video is truly frightening. An SUV tipped over on it's side, engulfed in flames; while panicked neighbors work desperately to free a mother and her two young children trapped inside. Out of nowhere appear two brothers; off-duty Milwaukee firefighters who assist in freeing the mom and one child. But the second child, four year old David (DJ) Harper is trapped in his booster seat. Repeatedly the brothers enter the blazing vehicle until the boy is freed. They then douse his burning body with a garden hose and prep him for the ambulance. DJ survives, but this is not where the story ends. The little boy is seriously burned and his cash-strapped family has nowhere to turn. Except now those two brothers, John and Joel Rechlitz, and their own families are spear heading charity efforts to assist DJ and his family. Milwaukee has been mobilized overnight; and everything from cash to clothing is being donated.

In a world where so many often appear willing to take the credit, here are two soft-spoken brothers and their families going far beyond the call of duty to help out another family in need. But hey, don't try to give them credit for doing it…"Wouldn't you do the same thing?", they ask.

That is this evening's Making a Difference.

Here are two websites where you can follow DJ's progress and find out more information.

www.helpingdavid.com

www.caringbridge.org

  By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor

Because my morning was spent attending a funeral, how about this, a great story about a guy with an interesting name, another about a guy with an interesting job, and still another about the collision between the "culture of the web" and the standards of a profession. I attended a screening last night of the new rock-n-roll film "It Might Get Loud" -- and as a lover of the art form -- all I can say to fellow music fans is: go see it when it comes to a theatre near you. I'll leave it at that...we sure hope you can join us for tonight's broadcast.

By Janet Shamlian, NBC News correspondent

It looks like the hurricane hit yesterday. Those were the words of NBC Producer Al Henkel in describing the small Texas community of San Leon, torn apart last September by Hurricane Ike. I was surprised to hear it. I'd been back to Galveston a few times since the storm and the rebuilding -- while far from complete -- was well on its way. But San Leon is different. Front yards are still littered with broken appliances and water damaged furniture. Large families are crammed into FEMA trailers alongside homes where the clean-up has yet to begin.

It was the kind of neighborhood Monty and Susan Scales were looking for. The Indiana couple sat in front of their television, almost four years ago now, looking at the devastation in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. People are often moved to help after a tragedy, and they were no different. They picked up a used camper and headed down to Mississippi. Both had backgrounds in construction and were determined to put that experience to use. After a few weeks it was apparent to them both, they wouldn't be going back to the Hoosier state.

After three years in the Katrina zone, they moved to Texas last year. Monty says they look for families who've fallen through the cracks, who -- for whatever reason -- are having trouble getting help. The couple do everything from helping these folks apply for federal aid to rewiring their kitchens. The hours are long, the pay is in hugs.. and they wouldn't trade it for the world. We'll introduce you to Monty and Susan and give you a look at their extraordinary labor of love, tonight on Nightly News.

  By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor

Leave it to the good folks at Gawker.  If you watched any part of the President's AARP event today, perhaps you were bothered by the same nagging question: "What does this remind me of?"  Gawker got it.  

I should also thank them for the time-lapse photography of the Manhattan Bridge, which we ran on the broadcast last night -- I first spotted it on Gawker.

  By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor

So today's posting is for fans of the Beloit College list -- the great yearly collection featuring gems like "This year's college graduates have always known what its like to microwave something." While what I'm linking to was written in the UK, it translates to modern life in America.

I hope everyone had a good weekend. We're about to complete the second coldest July on record here in New York, and the weather just keeps getting more and more bizarre. Last night in Lower Manhattan, I saw the closest thing to rotational, tornadic winds that I've ever seen in New York (I've seen the real thing numerous times from my years in Kansas and Missouri) with flying debris and turbine sound to match. Funnel clouds were spotted throughout the metropolitan region yesterday, and we're heading into another boisterous week. My hope, for the merchants and businesses along my beloved Jersey Shore, is that August is a "normal" hot summer month. We're counting on it.

We hope you can join us for our broadcast tonight, as we start off another week.

by Carl Quintanilla, NBC News

A fascinating chapter in recent American politics is coming to an end tonight, as Sarah Palin officially steps down as governor of Alaska. The question is: is she about to open a NEW chapter – with her plans to write books, speak out in favor of political candidates, and form a new center-right coalition?

Either way, tonight brings the kind of homespun theatre we've come to expect from the governor, complete with a Twitter message about the country music she's been listening to in her "camper full of kids & coffee." Our Norah O'Donnell is in Fairbanks tonight and will bring us the latest on what's next for Sarah Palin, and we'll talk all things politics with CNBC's John Harwood.

We'll also highlight the ongoing drought in Texas, which has gone from being a very serious situation to a critical one. Lakes and rivers are drying up and cattle are going thirsty. In some cases, water levels are so low, cars and motorcycles once dumped at the bottom are now at the top and being towed. NBC's Janet Shamlian brings us the pictures and tells us how long experts say the situation will last.

Finally, I don't know if you've noticed, but Hollywood has been incorporating the nation's weak economy, lately, into their storylines. From "30 Rock" to "The Simpsons," characters are dealing with the same hardships as everyday Americans. Has Hollywood finally "gotten real"? And what happened to the escapism it has typically provided in past downturns? NBC's Chris Jansing reports from Hollywood.

We hope you'll tune in and join us.

By Amy Robach, NBC News Anchor

Thanks for checking in, I'll be sitting in or Lester tonight. We're putting the broadcast together right now, with news and live reports from Washington, to Alaska, to Honduras. But many of us are still smiling about a story you may have seen this morning on TODAY – a large dance party out on the Plaza.

If you missed it, be sure to stay tuned to the end of our program tonight, where you will see the newest Internet phenomenon. What started out as a young couple's wedding video to share with friends and family turned into an international sensation in a matter of days. Interest in the video that inspired this morning's re-enactment has ballooned. NBC's Mike Taibbi takes a look at why this video has struck such a chord with so many millions of people. We hope you'll join us this evening.

By Amy Robach, NBC News Anchor

It was a surprise showing at this afternoon's White House briefing, President Obama walked in without warning to address the growing controversy surrounding his comments over the arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Junior.

Earlier in the week, the president had said the Cambridge Police department had "acted stupidly" arresting Gates, and now we're hearing t expressing regret over the words he chose. He stopped short of apologizing as the Cambridge police unions had asked for, but he did make a personal phone call to the police sergeant involved. It's a story that has exploded in the media and has overshadowed the president's agenda on health care reform. 

Tonight we'll have a full report from Chief White House Correspondent Chuck Todd, as well as analysis from "Meet the Press" moderator David Gregory. We hope you'll join us for the broadcast this evening.

Brian is attending Walter Cronkite's funeral today so he will not be posting.

By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor

Mistakes are awful in our business -- whether it's NBC News, US News or The New York Times -- we try mightily to avoid them, and try to cop to them when we discover them.  As long as there's a human element in journalism, mistakes will happen.  So it was with that in mind that we noticed the mother of all corrections in this morning's New York Times -- and of all things, it had to do with their coverage of the death of a man who was a stickler for detail: Walter Cronkite.

By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor

When I left CBS to come work at NBC, my colleagues organized a farewell gathering at a bar on the West Side of Manhattan. It had originally been scheduled for my last day of employment, February 26, 1993. However, that day, a truck bomb went off beneath the World Trade Center -- and I was on the air covering the story until my contract expired at the stroke of midnight. The party was re-scheduled for a few days later.  At a certain point in the evening, as is common at such gatherings in our industry, a television was wheeled into the room and the crowd was shushed -- for the playing of the "going-away tape," a collection, usually, of well-wishers making jokes and blowing kisses goodbye. This particular tape was different, because it featured a personal message from Walter Cronkite.  I had already lived a charmed enough life to be able to tell Walter that he was the guy I wanted to be when I was a small boy. He'd heard the same thing about countless other people during the course of his career, and yet because of his extraordinary kindness, there he was on my tape, with a personal message for me. He said it had come to his attention that I grew up in a household where dinner was not served until the CBS Evening News was over each night -- until the moment my mother heard him say, "That's the way it is..."  He looked into the camera and said, "Brian, I never want you to miss another meal, so consider this your personal copy -- "That's the way it is."  I was floored -- floored that he knew who I was, amazed that he had taken the time and the trouble...and feeling pretty lucky about life's good fortune. 

I didn't know then...that just over a dozen years later, I'd be anchoring a network evening newscast... the job I watched Walter perfect so many years before.  I have said for years, and to all who will listen: He's the guy I grew up wanting to be.  Of course, there's only one Walter.  All I can do now is hope that his example continues to guide me, and others, in work and in life.  While in retirement and in his old age, he long ago left the public spotlight, now he's truly gone. As long as he was with us, there was always "Cronkite" to point to, to hold up as a living example. Now it is Walter's memory that lives with us all.

Someone asked me yesterday if Walter would have embraced blogging. I actually think, if such a thing can be measured on a real-time basis, that if Walter were in the chair today, he'd like it.  I think he would find it an excellent way to communicate with the audience, to try to be transparent and to explain things like I'm about to: I wrote the above post yesterday and forgot to send it on to our editor. My wife asked me last night, "No blog today?"  That's when I realized I hadn't hit "send."  Some days I use this space to admit errors the night before, sometimes I learn our coverage has touched a nerve when I see the email volume on a given subject. While it's just speculation on my part, I think Walter would have liked the daily deadline aspect and the "reporter's notebook" aspect of a blog -- for all the material that can't fit on the air and is thus normally wasted. It adds context and conversation and depth, and it's a part of our daily drill. On days when we remember to hit "send."

We'll look for you tonight.

Brian was unable to blog today but will post tomorrow.

by Carl Quintanilla, NBC News

Two major stories have caught our eye tonight, and they both come out of Washington. The first is that of an Army private captured by the Taliban, now featured in an emotional video posted online. His name is Bowe Bergdahl, a 23-years-old, Idaho native who's been serving in Afghanistan since February.

By John Boxley, NBC News producer

It was a special graduation for a special group of students at UCLA.

12 classmates, each with developmental disabilities, were part of a first...the first graduating class of Pathway.

Pathway UCLA is a unique 2-year program, offered by UCLA Extension and created specifically for students with special needs like autism and down syndrome, giving them the opportunity to experience college life.

For the past two years, these students have lived the dream, on the UCLA campus with 36,000 other students, attending specialty classes, internships, and football games.

Organizers say one of the primary goals of Pathway is to teach these students, ages 18 and older, how to take care of themselves, while pursuing their goals. They've lived in off campus apartments with roommates, and are responsible for not only getting to class on time, but also tackling household chores like laundry and the dishes.

The program's Executive Director, Eric Lathom, says that having the experience of living on their own, and doing all these things to make their lives function on a daily basis, is an invaluable experience. He says the Pathway students have had a college experience like millions of other young people, going off to college and learning to live on their own, taking classes and having the same struggles that everyone else has had.

I, along with Peter Alexander, had the chance to meet them in 2007 as their journey first began, nervous and excited about what they would soon be facing. Now 2 years later, you can see the many steps they have taken and the growth is truly inspiring.

Whats next for the Pathway Class of 2009?  Some will be moving home, and some will be continuing their education elsewhere. Organizers say that these young graduates have been given an opportunity to chase their dreams, what they do from here is up to them.

By Bonnie Optekman, VP News technology, NBC News

Walter Cronkite never asked for the mantle of "most trusted person in America." And when asked about it in interviews, he downplayed it. But there it was. He accepted it and took it seriously.

Walter conducted himself professionally and personally in a way that not only would never tarnish his own reputation but would neither tarnish that of the profession of journalism. He wanted that trust to extend to the fourth estate. That's why you never saw him endorse a product or even consider running for office. He said he believed it would be unfair to expect viewers to know when he was putting his objectivity hat on or off. And he was concerned that journalists coming after him would be suspect if he ever made that choice - even after leaving the anchor chair.

Of course he had opinions. But he kept them out of his newscasts and speeches, save for the rare Vietnam example. While Walter was doing his job, he was defining the responsibilities, policies, & guidelines of that job.

Now, don't get me wrong. Mr. Cronkite wasn't some holier than thou selfless bore. He may have been erudite but he was also a ton of fun. After all, he appeared as himself on The Mary Tyler Moore show. Christmas parties at his home were the event of the year for his staff. And he liked saying "And that's the way it is" at the end of the broadcasts. When the American hockey team beat the Russians in the 1980 Olympics, he was thrilled that the story was in time for the broadcast but not so happy that there was no time for his catch phrase.

As Walter's executive assistant right out of college - his "number 2" as they called it - I've always considered Walter Cronkite to be my masters degree in journalism. How lucky I was to land in that chair, at that desk, right outside his office. I worked with wonderful people, many of them still friends including his "number 1," Ann Whitestone.

I'll never forget the day I interviewed for the job with him. I came home and told my parents that I wasn't sure if I should shake his hand or kiss his ring but he couldn't have been more congenial and friendly, instantly putting me at ease. When I spoke of my producer ambitions and looking forward to meeting people and learning from them, he said, "Oh you'll surely meet people. I just hope not too soon."

When Walter trusted you, he did so completely, inspiring devotion and loyalty. What a great feeling that was - whether it was research for a speech, speaking to a source or drafting correspondence. I remember one letter to a viewer who'd written to say his friend had bet him that the great Walter Cronkite would never respond to a viewer's note. I couldn't resist. I drafted a one sentence reply. "Tell your friend he was wrong." And Walter signed it.

People far more important than I have written or are writing obituaries from but their words are not more heartfelt. I treasured my enduring friendship with Walter and his family. I'm glad I got to see him one last time in January. And I will miss him.

By Savannah Guthrie, NBC News correspondent

For 19 years, Walter Cronkite told Americans the way it was from the anchor desk of CBS News. With his passing at the age of 92, tonight, the legendary newsman is the news. NBC's Ron Allen – who started at CBS News as a desk assistant nearly 30 years ago – will report on Cronkite's career. We'll take a look at all of the iconic moments Cronkite reported, as well as some personal reflections from the anchor and managing editor of Nightly News, Brian Williams.

By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor

America has lost an icon, our industry has lost its living giant, and all those who learned about the world from Walter Cronkite have lost an exceptional teacher.

He loved his country and had a profound effect on it. He told us the truth in a plain-spoken manner. He never forgot that he was one of us, and yet we admired him so. That's why I can't help but fear that his loss means we've lost a tiny bit of who we are. He was a founding father of our profession. Others had done the job before him, and yet no one before or since has had just a mystical hold on the American people. He perfectly reflected his audience and our times. Watching Walter do what he did -- better than anyone -- was a formative experience. While he was deeply uncomfortable with overstatements of his own importance, those of us watching at home were so comfortable knowing he was in that chair during those years of great change and upheaval.

To use the terminology of his beloved sailboat, he was our national barometer, our compass and our rudder. With Walter at the helm of that broadcast, we knew we would sail through whatever crisis we faced as a country. He always seemed to point the wheel, with a gust of wind in his sails, toward our collective North Star.

On a personal note, Walter Cronkite was the man I grew up wanting to be. Our household, like many, came to a halt when his broadcast came on the air each night, and dinner was served only after he said good night. Knowing Walter was among the great blessings of my life.

Video: Brian Williams on America's 'most trusted man'

By Kevin Tibbles, NBC News correspondent

For kids, the summer months are filled with the sounds of swimming, summer camp and songs. To be deprived of the opportunity to run and jump, or splash and laugh is downright un-kid-like. Still, for children born with severe heart defects, those sorts of activities have traditionally been out of the question; too risky even to spend the night at grandma's house, or throw some pillows at a pajama party. That's when the medical staff at the St. Louis Children's Hospital had an idea; and that is how 'Camp Rhythm' was born. A week-long sleepover camp that comes with cardiologists as well as campfires. At Camp Rhythm those long 'zipper-like' scars down the front of each kids chest simply means that, probably for the first time in their lives, they look just like everybody else. It's a place filled with those familiar sounds of summer, where worried moms and dads can rest easy because their children are in good hands; even if those hands are covered in the post campfire chocolate residue of one too many s'mores. Camp Rhythm is tonight's Making a Difference. Kevin Tibbles NBC News.

By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor

A few items of interest: Noonan on the Sotomayor Hearing, why Mark McKinnon is kinda happy Obama sneaks a few cigarettes now and again, and a few words from Bo Obama.  And since this very building contains one of the studios long rumored to be the "location" of the Apollo 11 moonwalk, there's this from Newsweek.  That should keep us all busy until Monday.

Thank you for being with us this week, and for joining us tonight.  Have a great weekend, and I'll see you on Monday night.

By Brian Williams, Anchor and managing editor

Let's start on the moon, actually. As a self-confessed space geek, I was hooked by a great piece of writing today: on the men who've gone there and walked in that powdery soil.  It's a great piece, from the author of "Apollo 13," and it discusses the not-so-simple act of walking on the moon -- and how these men have conducted their lives in the years since (answer: with mixed success).

Upon getting to know Scott Carpenter years ago, it's not hard to squint your eyes and pretend its 1966 -- astronauts in khakis (and what we'd now call "vintage" cardigans) driving Corvettes (supplied to them by Chevrolet) around the Cape.  We thought they were the greatest back then.  I still think they're the greatest.

When we last visited Gen. David McKiernan in Kabul, he was at the height of his command...we just didn't know it then. His remarks at his retirement ceremony (especially since I'm halfway through the book I mentioned here a few days ago) surprised me...but then I have to say his departure from that job was a big surprise as well.  I guess those of us who are into this subject matter will all know the whole story before too long.  I hope the General discovers there is life beyond the stars of his own job.

We hope you can join us tonight.

By Robert Bazell, NBC News chief science correspondent

Type 1 diabetes -- a condition afflicting Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sottomayor and a million other Americans -- was once called Juvenile diabetes because it can start in childhood. It differs from the far more common type 2.  Type 1 is an autoimmune disease where the body's immune system attacks the cells in the pancreas that produce insulin, the hormone that regulates blood sugar.  In type 2 diabetes, cells become resistant to insulin, often because of obesity. 

In either kind of diabetes, fluctuations in blood sugar levels can lead to nerve, eye, kidney and heart damage. But that need not occur if the sugar level is properly controlled. In our report, we talk of hope for a cure for type 1 from stem cells.  The research we describe is being carried out at the University of Miami's Diabetes Research Institute. You can read more about that here: http://www.diabetesresearch.org/DiabetesResearchInstitute.htm
 
The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (http://www.jdrf.org) also sponsors a great deal of research. The same is true for the American Diabetes Association http://www.diabetes.org/