morning pressing the candidate. shark attack. cape cod on alert this morning. a man bitten on both legs just 75 feet from shore. onlookers say a large dorsal fin broke the surface just before. plus this. the drought is spreading across the midwest. there is no rain in the forecast, and it is hot. just how bad will the corn crop be? farmers won't know until they harvest the corn. but what is certain, food prices are rising for you. "cnn newsroom" starts right now. and good morning. thank you for joining us. it carol costello. we begin with a teenaged chinese supergirl who at age 16 swam at such an incredible speed some suspect she cheated. she won gold in the 400 meter. she swam the last 50 meters or 164 feet faster than american ryan lochte's time in the men's competition. amazing feat, considering according to the bbc that she is 5'6" and 141 pounds, and lochte is 6'1" and 194 pounds. john leonard, the director of the world's swimming coaches calls the win disturbing and unbelievable. i would suspect, jaime, that the chinese have a far different view of this man the americans do. >> reporter: they do. they don't see the point. they think it's unjustified accusations or insignuationinsi. they say she has been swimming since she was 6, and has since been improving her time over the years. in fact, i talked with the editor of the "sports illustrated" china, and he told me that they have been tracking her career since at least two years ago. in fact, they put her on their cover two years ago when she won the asian games championship. last year she also landed at the top in the world aquatics championship. so they say that we should not be shocked or surprised, that she's done so well in the olympics. they also ask, why is it that when stars like michael phelps or some other swimming sensation two so well, it's fabulous news. but if a chinese do it, it's cheating. so they don't think it's fair, and they say that this is just sour grapes. >> well, the thing is that swimming experts here say this swimmer has never swam this fast before. and she broke a world record by, what, five seconds, which is a lot. so they're wondering how could this happen in the olympics at the last minute. is it really because she just has longer legs and bigger hands and just more talent and she just happened to do this in the olympics? >> reporter: she herself attributes her success to hard work and improved skills. especially, she said, in her starts and also her turns. also when she won, she was trailing by several meters in the last lap. and that in fact she won in her forte, which was freestyle swimming. also the chinese officials here are saying that the chinese athletes, including her, have undergone over 100 drug tests in london, and this is aside from the tests conducted by the separate sports federations. so they say no one up to now has tested positive. . carol? >> jaime, thank you. we did ask john leonard, the executive director of the world swimming coaches association to come on and clarify his comments. he refused saying that's all he's going to say on the matter. a swiss soccer player is kicked off his olympic team after what he posted on twitter. he wrote, quote, i am going to batter the koreans, burn them all, bunch of tresos. that is french slang for describing people with down's syndrome. that's him, number 17, in the photo. he has since apologized. he is the second olympic athlete to be kicked out of the games for offensive tweets. and nbc is again under controversy. just before american swimmer missy franklin swam for the gold a "today show" promo aired in primetime. >> when you're 17 years old and win your first gold medal, that's nobody you'd rather share it with. we're there when missy franklin and her parents reunite. a "today" exclusive live from london, tomorrow. >> well, that promo aired about six minutes before nbc aired missy franklin's gold medal-winning performce. it is the latest in a tape delay controversy that just keeps growing. what else can you do other than joke about it? >> the london olympics are finally underway. i tell you, there is nothing like the thrill of seeing team usa triumph in an internet headline, and then waiting to see it confirmed on nbc seven hours later. [ laughter ] >> i mean, the suspense. did the cameras capture what happened? did my cable go out? >> got the latest olympic update. you probably want this, right? >> yeah! >> and like the olympics, this show was taped 15 hours ago at a pool. don't tweet the results, ok? i was kind of ok. >> zain verjee is live in london with more. they were really funny, weren't they? >> yeah, they really are. the headline here is if you're watching the olympics in the u.s., just bury your head in the sand for the whole day or stick it in a jar of mayonnaise or something and only emerge when nbc shows us what happened for that day. look, the hash tag nbc fail was trending high. it's dropped a little bit right now. but a lot of people are mad and outraged at the situation, that they want to watch and live and they can't and they are getting all the information on social media as well as on twitter. and they can't just follow, you know, the races of missy franklin or michael phelps live, which is the whole excitement, right, carol? now, just one thing i wanted to point out, though, is the idea of tape delays is actually nothing new. but what is different is the world of social media that we live in. because everyone, the majority of people in the u.s., can access twitter and facebook and other sites. so you're just getting information a lot faster than ever before. so while nbc is being slammed, the ratings are still surprisingly high. so if they lose some sponsorships, people are mad, the athletes get frustrated, really overall it is a ratings win for them. nbc's olympics executive producer, though, carol, has been going on social media, on twitter, and just responding to a lot of really angry questions. >> well, even some of the athletes' families are speaking out about this. i understand ryan lochte's mom talked about the controversy too. >> yeah, she did. she said basically, when ryan lochte swims, they immediately get on the phone and call all their family back in the u.s. to let them know instantly what happened. take a listen to what else she had to say. >> about the controversy over nbc's coverage delaying screening these big races until primetime, has that affected you or your family back home? are they anxious to see it in real time on television? >> yes. but we call all our family and we tell them how he did immediately. so it's not a matter that they have to wait for it. >> i think they should do it twice. show it live and then show it in primetime. i'd watch it twice. >> i agree. >> you'd watch your son winning gold twice, wouldn't you? >> i would be there first. but you're right, you're right. and it should be for everybody because they want to see it. and if they want to stay up until 3:00 in the morning and do it, let them see it. >> exactly. if you really want to watch, you'll get up at 3:00 a.m., right, carol? you would do that. >> i'm up anyway. are you kidding? i would do it. thanks, zain verjee. zain verjee reporting live for us from london. it is exhausting on the campaign trail, especially if you're jet-lagged. whatever it was, mitt romney's press secretary snapped and cursed at journalists in poland as reporters shouted questions to a candidate who did not want to answer them. >> governor romney! >> can you discuss some of the mishaps on your trips? >> governor romney, do you have a statement for the palestinians? >> what about your gaffes? >> do you feel that your gaffes have overshadowed your foreign trip? >> this is a holy sight to the polish people. show some respect. show some respect, jim. >> we haven't had a chance to ask him some questions. >> [ bleep ]. this is a holy sight. >> in case you missed it, he said kiss my -- and then he said the "a" word. jim, this happened at the poland tomb of the unknown soldier. why the vitriol? >> reporter: well, and i should caution the viewers that did not exactly happen at the tomb of the unknown soldier here in warsaw. we waited until mitt romney moved a good 100 yards away from that monument to shout those questions to the gop contender. and, you know, this is sort of standard operating procedure for how campaigns go, carol. as you know, shouted questions happen back in the states and shouted questions can happen overseas. basically what happened today was mitt romney was going through a number of photo opportunities that his campaign laid out in poland before giving a speech here in warsaw. and at one point, we tried to ask him some questions about the gaffes that he's had on this trip. you'll recall in london, he questioned whether that city was ready for the olympics. there are some who say he had a gaffe in israel when he was heard at a fundraiser comparing israel and the palestinians and those economies and whether or not culture has something to do with the differences between those economies. and so i think the reporters just tried to ask him questions. he didn't answer those questions, but in sort of unprovoked fashion his presse a aide come over and started dressing us down pretty audibly as you heard. >> mitt romney has sat down with wolf blitzer and given an extensive interview. so tell our viewers where he is refusing to answer questions of reporters like you who are following his campaign. >> reporter: well, it wasn't just me. there are other reporters from "the washington times," "the washington post," "the new york times," politico. these were journalists who follow his campaign on a daily basis. his traveling press. and those reporters were not given very many opportunities to ask questions during this trip. he had a seven-day trip, carol, and every step along that way, he had his traveling press with him. and he only took three questions over the course of seven days in three countries. so that's really one question per country, if you, you know, sort of play it out in terms of an average there. and the last time he took questions from that traveling press was outside 10 downing street, and those questions were primarily about what he said about the olympics. so he hasn't given reporters much of a chance to ask him questions about how things are going. and, you know, let's face it. "the new york times" and "the washington post" and some of the "wall street journal," bloomberg, these are important news sites and publications, and those reporters deserve to have their questions asked as well. you make a very good point. others have made this point as well. the romney campaign made this point that mitt romney sat down with cnn. he sat down with fox and the other networks. but there are other reporters who would like to ask a question as well. they didn't get that chance on this trip, carol. >> and i will say that when candidates sit down with reporters, and i'm not just talking about mitt romney, i'm talking about barack obama too, they are prepared for the interviews. they know what they want to say. they have the talking points down. when you shout out questions, they have to give spontaneous answers. and both campaigns have been loathe to do that this time around. >> reporter: that's right. and we should mention this is a bipartisan affair. you know, the president has not had many news conferences since he's been in the white house. but, you know, presidents have different styles. and candidates have different styles of dealing with this, carol. i remember covering john mccain back in 2008. you know, bringing the reporters on the back of the straight talk express with senator mccain wolfing down chili dogs and taking questions from reporters. and you'll remember, carol, sam donaldson shouting questions at ronald reagan right in front of the white house and ronald reagan would hold his hand up to his ear and act as if he couldn't hear what he was asking. so there areifferent ways to handle questions like this from the press. they're going to happen. to have an event and expect the media not to ask you questions is sort of unrealistic. and to take a traveling press corps overseas for seven days and visit three countries and only put the candidate out for three questions, i think it's really just, you know, really no surprise that the press tried their best to get a question to him today. they tried. it didn't work out. and at the same time, i think it should also be noted that this press de in what he said to us was really inexcusable. and he knows that. and that's why he called a couple of the reporters who were there today and apologized. so we're hoping to move on. these things happen. they happened out on the campaign trail. people get tired. they get testy. but you have to keep your cool at the same time. >> jim acosta reporting live to us from poland this morning. cheaper flights are coming. yes, it could happen by the end of august. find out how much you could save. ♪ [music plays] ♪ [music plays] our current dividend tax rate will expire this year, sending taxes through the roof and hindering economic recovery. the consequences? millions of americans will see their taxes on dividend income spike, slowing investment in u.s. companies and jeopardizing development in energy projects that create american jobs. ask congress to stop a dividend tax hike -- for all of us. as the world around it. with the available lexus enform app suite, you can use opentable to make restaurant reservations. during the golden opportunity sales event, get great values on some of our newest models. this is the pursuit of perfection. get great values on some of our newest models. mid grade dark roast forest fresh full tank brain freeze cake donettes rolling hot dogs g of ice anti-freeze wash and dry diesel self-serve fix a flat jumper cables 5% cashback signup for 5% cashback at gas stations through september. it pays to discover. finally, some great news about flying. buying a ticket will soon be a whole lot cheaper. alison kosik is live. so how cheap aree talking about? >> you know, first of all, i had to take a step back. cheaper airfares. when was the last time we heard about this? but these are pretty sizeable price drops, carol, depending on when you fly and where you're traveling to. farecompare is expecting prices to fall anywhere from 10% to 20%. we did some test searches this morning and we found out you can save a lot of money. say you take a round trip from newark to los angeles. it will cost you $533 if you travel between thursday through sunday. in mid august. but look at this. it drops almost $100 if you go in mid september instead. detroit to austin trip, that will save you $50 if you wait a few weeks. now some of these fares don't change at all from month to month. but in most cases what we found is there was at least a modest price decrease. very welcome news to a lot of people who need to fly this fall, especially since airfare prices had already gone up 8% over the past couple of years. >> very expensive. alison kosik live for us. 10 survivors of the colorado theater massacre still in the hospital this morning, three in critical condition. the accused gunman will be back in court in two weeks. james holmes has now been formally charged with 24 counts of first degree murder for the 12 victims killed in the july 20 rampage, and 116 counts of attempted murder for the 58 wounded. survivors and family members of victims watched as the charges came down in a show of solidarity. >> i think the guy is a coward. and seeing him just confirmed that, 100%. he looked defeated. and he knows that he's not the one with power anymore. that it's us. >> i got a sense that he was very aware of what was going on. i do not believe that he's insane. but of course i'm not a psychiatrist. >> the striking thing about these court proceedings is how many victims feel compelled to be in court so they can look holmes in the eye. cnn legal contributor paul cowan is here. welcome, paul. >> good morning. >> so the victims in this case. have you ever seen anything like it? >> what's unusual is the number of victims, a huge number of victims. and obviously it's going to be a packed courtroom with them. but frankly, every murder case i have ever been involved with eefs either as a defense attorney or prosecutor, the am haves watch the cases very, very closely. we notice it here because there are so many victims. but most american courtrooms, the only one watching is the family of the victim and the family of the defendant. >> is it more a show of strength than anything else, a way to show that these victims are powerful and not the accused holmes? how important is that feeling of power for these victims >> well, i think it's very important to the victims. and i think it gives them an opportunity to share their own grief and it gives them an opportunity to deal with the emotions that are just horrible and will haunt them for years to come. but i also think that it puts a certain amount of pressure on the court system to be open and fair and transparent in the way the case is handled. and i think one of the things that i'm disturbed about is the court refusing to allow cameras to cover the court. you've got a lot of victims in this case, a lot of victim family members, and the public at large. why aren't cameras being allowed in this courtroom? >> well, that's still being decided. there was a hearing yesterday. how likely is it that at least the media will have access to some records that the judge has put these prohibitions on? s he has also issued gag orders for the police and the university of colorado. >> the appellate courts are not very friendly to gag orders. and i think you'll see a very spirited appeal argued in this case about the public's right to know and the press' right to know. but if it's balanced of course against the right to a fair trial, which can be poisoned by adverse publicity. so the judge is in a tough spot here. but overall, we've got a long experience of press coverage of trials and cameras in the courtroom. and fair trials can be conducted even under heavy public scrutiny. >> before you go, i just want to touch on this notebook that was found at the university of colorado that was mailed supposedly by james holmes. how likely is it that we're going to get to see what's in that notebook? >> well, this is a fascinating question. you know, he was being treated by a psychiatrist at the university. and there was a package supposedly sent to the psychiatrist. can that be introduced into evidence? or is it protected by the medical privilege? you know, you speak to a psychiatrist, what you tell the psychiatrist is privileged. so that's a question that the judge will be looking at. there's an exception to the privilege rule, and that is if you tell a psychiatrist you're going to commit a future crime, you're going to hurt somebody in the future, the psychiatrist has an obligation to turn you in. so the privilege is waived. so there are going to be arguments about whether there's a waiver of the privilege. but in the end, i suspect we probably -- we may not see what's in this package if it's medical information. >> paul callan, thank you for being with us today. a record-smashing performance the olympics. but is there more to it? coming up, are those suspicions about this amazing super girl chinese swimmer, are they fair? it's our talk back question today. economy. but with three kids, being home more really helped. man: so we went to fidelity. we talked about where we were and what we could do. we changed our plan and did something about our economy. now we know where to go for help if things change again. call or come in today to take control of your personal economy. get free one-on-one help from america's retirement leader. now is your chance to