To the Point

Airline Industry - Fair Play or Price Gouging?

A slowing economy and savvier travelers are making it tough on airlines. Last year, carriers made raised prices repeatedly for business travelers and made huge profits. This year, empty seats, higher fuel costs and greater use of Internet comparison-shopping are causing airlines their worst year in a decade. If consumers are benefiting, travel agents are not as airlines continue to cut agents' commissions. We look at how changes in the air travel business affect carriers, travel agents and passengers, with industry consultants, travel writers, and travel agents. (Jonathan Friedland, of The Wall Street Journal, guest hosts.) Newsmaker: Afghan Refugees Stranded off Australian Coast - Some 460 refugees, most of them from Afghanistan, languish on a Norwegian freighter docked at Australia's Christmas Island. Lina Fransson, of Norway's Dagbladet, reports that diplomats, half a world away, are meeting to determine the fate of the asylum seekers. Reporter's Notebook: Frat Segregation at the University of Alabama - Frats and sororities at the University of Alabama have remained racially segregated despite laws banning such discrimination. Now a move is afoot to affect real change. We get a preview of the proposed changes from Sybil Todd, UA's vice-president for student affairs, and Brian Oliver, president of its Interfraternity Council.