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CBS NEWS SPECIAL
Air Date: Sunday, February 03, 2008
Time Slot: 7:00 PM-8:00 PM EST on CBS
Episode Title: "CBS REPORTS: FATHERS, SONS AND BROTHERS"
[NOTE: The following article is a press release issued by the aforementioned network and/or company. Any errors, typos, etc. are attributed to the original author. The release is reproduced solely for the dissemination of the enclosed information.]

CBS REPORTS: "FATHERS, SONS AND BROTHERS," A LOOK AT THE LIVES OF NATIONAL GUARDSMEN SERVING IN IRAQ AND THEIR FAMILIES AT HOME, WILL BE BROADCAST SUNDAY FEB. 3

War has always been about families making sacrifices and nowhere is that more evident than in the towns across America where the citizen soldiers of the National Guard and Reserve have put their civilian lives on hold to fight for their country. CBS REPORTS: "Fathers, Sons and Brothers" follows the 1st Battalion of the 133rd Infantry of the Iowa National Guard and their families in an exploration of the American experience of war, in Iraq and at home. Correspondent Scott Pelley reports this revealing and emotional chronicle of soldiers and families to be broadcast Sunday, Feb. 3 (7:00-8:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

National Guard and Reserves make up a third of the fighting force in Iraq and Afghanistan. Pelley follows the farmers, mechanics, students, plumbers, electricians-everyday Iowans-who left loved ones behind for the call to duty. The broadcast also covers the home front-the wives, mothers and children waiting for their loved ones to return.

CBS REPORTS: "Fathers, Sons and Brothers" captures the experience, from the beginning of the soldiers' journey, full of hope and determination, to the day-to-day realities and sacrifices of life at war, to the anticipation of going home, the disappointment of learning their tour would be extended and then the final relief of a delayed homecoming two years later.

Guardsmen Mike and Josh Ites, father and son, leave for Iraq with a shared attitude toward the war. After months of fighting, however, they no longer see eye-to-eye. Back home, their absence is taking a toll on wife and mother Brenda Ites, who is fighting depression. On the battlefield thousands of miles away, Sean Rohret's Humvee is hit by the enemy's most common weapon, the IED, or improvised explosive device. Cameras catch up to him recuperating stateside. Scott Nisely and Kampha Sourivong weren't as lucky as Rohret. Cameras record their flag-draped coffins arriving at an Iowa airport.

Andy Wendling, a law student, withdrew from classes to serve with his younger brother Adam. Twin brothers Justin and Denver Foote, called "the feet" by their friends, serve as well. One stayed stateside for officer school while the other shipped out to Iraq. Says their mother, Tonya Rosol, "These are Iowa boys. They can depend on them. They're trustworthy. They work hard and they have so much pride.

"For a mother to send her child into harm's way is unnatural," says Rosol. "There are 100,000-plus mothers who are doing this...It's the hardest thing I have ever done."

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