from nbc news world headquarters in new york, this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt. good evening. we begin tonight with grim news out of the middle east. the video surfaced within the last several hours purporting to show the beheading of another japanese hostage by one of his isis captors. the victim appears to be freelance war correspondent kenji goto. he would be the second japanese citizen to be killed by isis in just a week. in recent days his fate has been tied to that of a failed suicide bomber held by authorities in jordan. jordan is where we begin tonight. our bill neely is outside the japanese embassy in amman. >> reporter: good evening, lester. two nations united in horror here tonight. isis has already beheaded five american british and japanese hostages. kenji goto appears to be the sixth. another journalist another father another innocence in syria's war murdered it appears in cold blood. dressed for a brutal death, kenji goto behind him a man with a knife and british accent who has appeared in other isis videos. japan's government reacting with horror. we can't hold back our fury he says of such a despicable act. kenji goto was a journalist who believed his japanese nationality might protect him in syria. he was kidnapped just hours after entering the country four months ago. he'd gone in part to search for another japanese hostage, both it seems are now dead. goto killed in spite of desperate appeals to isis from his mother and from his wife who spoke of their two daughters, one just 3 weeks old. we will said japan's prime minister never forgive them for this. we will not give in to terrorism. japan had believed the deal could be done to free goto. isis wanted this woman held prisoner in jordan to be swapped for goto. they also held this jordanian pilot. jordan wanted proof he was alive before releasing the woman. deadlines came and went. now goto it appears is dead and the pilot's family are praying for his release. mourning in japan, agony in jordan as tonight the life of yet another hostage hangs in the balance. well isis is also holding a young american woman and a british journalist. and within the last hour kenji goto's mother has said he went to save his fellow countrymen. please understand his kindness and his bravery. lester. >> bill neely tonight in amman. back at home a major recall involving some of the most popular cars on the road. and if it sounds familiar it's because we've been down this road before. the issue potentially faulty airbags. and it involves vehicles that have been recalled for the same problem before. nbc's kristen welker has our report tonight. >> reporter: in a major announcement today, the national highway traffic safety administration said it is recalling about 2.1 million vehicles toyotas, chryslers and hondas. the concern, the vehicle's airbags could deploy inadvertent inadvertently, even when the vehicle is not in a crash potentially causing injury or death. these vehicles were previously recalled for the same problem in 2013 and 2014. but nhtsa says the fix "was not effective." today's recall was triggered by a problem in an electric component made by an american supplier trw automotive. but about a million of the rawed honda and toyota models also have defective airbags made by the company takata. those airbags have been known to deploy with too much force sending out metal shards. cory lost his right eye due to a airbag malfunctioning. >> i thought i had a black eye and felt blood. i thought i broke my nose. i didn't know. >> reporter: late last year takata apologized. >> we are deeply sorry about each of the reported instances. >> reporter: the latest recalled instances recalled acura mdx, dodge viper, jeep grand cherokee pontiac vibe toyota corolla, toyota matrix and toyota avalon. all made in the early 2000s. >> consumers the minute they get that recall notice should immediately take their vehicle to be serviced. >> reporter: nhtsa says there are no deaths related to this. we have reached out to the car manufactures who have said they will comply. >> thank you. we're getting late word of the daughter of the late singer whitney houston, bobbi kristina found unresponsive. gabe gutierrez is outside the hospital. >> reporter: good evening. police say bobbi kristina brown is alive and breathing at the hospital. at this point detectives are treating this as a medical call and do not believe there was any foul play. this morning she was found unresponsive in a bathtub. police were called to her home outside atlanta. when they arrived police say her husband was performing cpr. the only child of whitney houston and r&b singer bobby brown. almost exactly three years ago houston widely regarded as one of the greatest singers of all-time was found dead in a bathtub at a beverly hills hotel. authorities concluded she had accidentally drowned. but heart disease and cocaine use were listed as contributing factors. tonight, her daughter remains here at the hospital. and a police investigation is underway to find out exactly what happened. lester. >> all right. gabe gutierrez tonight, thank you. tonlt, there are heightened concerns ability the recent measles outbreak. on the east coast a new case potentially exposes thousands of travelers. and out west the impact being felt at the super bowl. nbc's hallie jackson. >> reporter: the day before the super bowl phoenix is full of fans from all over the country, like the nelsons. but 2-month-old juliet stayed back home in new mexico. >> she hasn't even had her measles shot. so we decided this is too crowded a venue to come to. >> reporter: they're worried about the measles outbreak that's now in 14 states including arizona. >> measles is one of the most infectious agentings on the planet. and if you aren't protected and come into contact with someone who's sick your chances of getting ill are about 90%. >> reporter: but health officials say the chances of being exposed to measles virus at the super bowl are tiny though there has been a new exposure in new york where a barred college student boarded a train at penn station, one of the nation's busiest transportation centers. >> i'm vaccinated so it doesn't really bother me. and the 8 trillion people coming through here one person's not changing anything for me. >> reporter: the measles virus can survive a couple hours in the air or on surfaces incredibly contagious but incredibly preventable if people get immunized. but in the epicenter of this latest outbreak california about 3% of parents choose not to vaccinate their kindergarteners for personal or religious reasons. rates are higher in other states like in oregon where it's 7%. and in idaho, vermont, michigan and maine. doctors say the measles shot doesn't just protect you or your child, it protects everyone else's too. >> don't get vaccinated just for yourself. do it so that you're not a vector of disease to somebody who might get into even more serious trouble than you may if they get it. >> reporter: because there are so many people here in town for the super bowl public health officials have a lot of ways to monitor the spread of any illnesses. even some hotels are on alert to let the county know if say hotel gift shops sell out of a certain kind of medicine. lester. >> hallie jackson tonight, thank you. tomorrow's super bowl is not only the granddaddy of sporting events it's also the big one for security teams. with the packed stadium and eyes of the world glued on the action, it's the one challenge of the day where losing is not an option. ron mott has our report from the site of the game. >> reporter: with less than 24 hours to kickoff, super bowl security is about to kick into high alert. >> we're looking for the super bowl anything like a weapon of mass destruction, any explosive, anything out of the ordinary. >> reporter: and they're scanning high and low for trouble. f-16 fighter jets will join blackhawk helicopters patrolling the no-fly zone above the stadium. on the ground s.w.a.t. teams, canines, thousands of officers and security personnel in uniform and under cover safeguarding the game and the crowd of more than 71,000 fans. you have eyes pretty much on this entire facility. >> we do both inside and out. >> reporter: it's the third super bowl in arizona. and the man in charge of coordinating 40-plus agencies on the security detail says familiarity hasn't brought complacency. >> a lot of us are waking up at 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning running things through our heads what could go wrong. >> are you on the phone with her? >> reporter: from this undisclosed location officials keep close watch on the festivities with more than 500 high-tech surveillance cameras in place. techs even scanning social media for threats. nothing is left to chance. the recent terrorist attacks in france adding to the heightened sense of urgency and vigilance a. >> you can never relax your guard and we know that especially in light of what happened in paris. >> reporter: today, visible security remain largely in the background. come tomorrow it's front and center. >> a very visible presence and that's to make sure that everybody has the confidence that they can do what they came here to do, enjoy the fan experience that super bowl has to offer. >> reporter: hosting the super bowl is a coveted prize, but it's expensive. security alone here is expected to top out between $2 million and $3 million, perhaps a bit more. and now comes the challenging part for the cities involved try to figure out how to pay for it all, lester. >> thank you. tomorrow's game comes after what's no doubt been a controversial season for the nfl. among the issues casting a shadow over the sport concussions and the growing number of cognitive problems suffered by former players. nbc's chuck todd spoke with two-time super bowl camp leonard marshal about the impact it's had on him. >> i would forget things. i would forget places. i would have these shouting matches with my wife for no reason. i would have erratic behavior towards my child for no reason. i would do things that didn't make a lot of sense. >> scare you? >> scared the daylights out of me. and i started talking to people. and i started to figure out i'm not in this by myself. >> you can catch more of this interview and the larger discussion of sports and politics tomorrow on "meet the press" here on nbc. this week some of the country's top colleges announced they're drawing a hard line on drinking and partying. it's all aimed at preventing sexual assaults on campus. but the measures aren't without criticism. here's nbc's stephanie gosk. >> reporter: is the wild alcohol-fueled college party a right of passage or the root of a larger problem? this week dartmouth banned hard alcohol on campus part of a broad plan hoping to bring an end to binge drinking and sexual assault. >> we are not alone in facing them but we will lead in saying no more. >> reporter: some students at the ivy league school seemed to embrace the goal if not the message. >> it's probably not a popular decision but it's probably in the best interest of student health. >> reporter: an estimated 40% of college kids binge drink. for women that's four beers. and for men it's five in under two hours. the dartmouth decision came just days after 16 national sorority leaders banned their university of virginia chapters from going to fraternity parties this weekend. in a letter the sorority presidents wrote, we believe the activities present significant safety concerns for all of our members. the mandate sparked criticism. >> i think it sends a message that women are weak. and i think i'm better than that. i think i'm smarter and more powerful than just hiding in my home whenever. >> reporter: the university already put in place new rules and sexual assault policies after a now discredited report in rolling stone alleged a gang rape at a fraternity. other universities are facing scrutiny as well. this week two former vanderbilt football players were convicted of raping a fellow student in 2013. >> i'm just sorry. i've never intended on hurting anyone. i was extremely intoxicated. >> reporter: just some of the cases that have triggered schools around the country to take action. >> a lot of people are trying to do the right thing. and now is really time for us to identify the best practices and figure out how to scale them up. >> reporter: cracking down on partying is important, activists say, but real cultural change will take more than just new rules. stephanie gosk nbc news new york. for a second weekend in a row we're watching a sizable winter storm on the march, this one delivering snow and frigid temperatures from the plains on into the northeast eventually. meteorologist dylan dreyer joins us with more on that. dylan. >> good evening, lester. about some 40 million people are under an advisory from iowa nebraska all the way to new england. the storm producing rain right now through texas. snow filling in through omaha. we'll see heavier snow move into the chicago area and stay as snow throughout the entire day on sunday. now, we do have to watch this rain/snow line. you can see as we go into early monday morning in new york city we should see a transition from snow over to a wintry mix. we might even see that transition in boston as well. so that will determine just how much snow we see. chicago will stay as all snow. we're looking at easily a foot. same goes for southern parts of michigan and into northwestern ohio. most of new england will see a foot of snow new york closer to about three to six inches. boston we have to watch it. there could be another foot of snow headed that way, lester. >> dylan, thanks. we'll see you in the morning on "today." when "nightly news" continues on this saturday, the battle over drones and the new way they're being kept out of places they don't belong. and later, the smartest 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(gunfire) (groans) every time we meet someone ends up dead. we've gotten off to a rocky start. amir arison: whether you are an action junkie looking for edge-of-your-seat suspense or drawn to characters with stories that never fail to surprise the blacklist has somethin has something for everyone. hi, i am amir arison. i play aram on the show, and i have the distinct pleasure of being both a fan and an actor on the blacklist. so, when they asked me to be your guide as we travel behind the scenes of the blacklist, i jumped at the chance. now, join me for an inside look at what is becoming a worldwide phenomenon. we'll catch up with other actors from the show our creators and of course, the stars of the blacklist, megan boone, and emmy winner and now two-time golden globe nominee for the blacklist, james spader. take a look ahead at the second half of the season