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CNN Live At Daybreak
'International News Desk'
Aired October 31, 2002 - 05:51 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to be following, of course, more international stories throughout the day here on CNN. It's time to check on what we're covering.
Our senior international editor David Clinch joins us now -- David, welcome.
You guys are busy this morning.
DAVID CLINCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: We are. We're always busy, Carol.
Good morning.
As I promised yesterday, we brought Chris Burns down to Mount Etna. The experts were saying yesterday that it might be calming down. You heard Chris on the phone earlier saying it really doesn't feel like it's calming down. Still a massive, massive --
COSTELLO: Yes, and right when he was on the phone another earthquake hit.
CLINCH: Apparently just after he put the phone down with you. We're seeing the wires crossing now with what they're calling a strong earthquake felt all over the region there.
And another reason, just to talk about how we cover this story, we let Chris go walk about today with the cell phone so that he could go up on the mountain, because we've got expressive satellite equipment there which we can't afford to risk.
COSTELLO: Yes, we don't want to hurt that, but Chris, you go up on that mountain.
CLINCH: So he'll be live later but he's on the phone at the moment up on the mountain.
COSTELLO: He's OK after the earthquake, though, isn't he?
CLINCH: Exactly. He is. So far. We haven't heard from him but we believe so.
COSTELLO: OK. Good.
CLINCH: The other story becoming an interesting thing, it actually originated from the State Department. They've issued the series of ads and promotional pieces that they're running on television around the Muslim world. This is a State Department campaign to try and improve the image of the United States around the world or in the Muslim world in particular, showing Muslim, American Muslims living in the United States. And in the ad campaign they're showing them as living happily here in the United States, practicing their faith, etc. These things were shown on television. This was actually a preview at the embassy in Jakarta, in Indonesia, where they had journalists and people look at it.
The reaction was mixed. Some people, it's a charm offensive, I think they're calling it, and some people found it slightly more offensive than charming. But it's an interesting story. These ads will be shown all over the Muslim world and it's an effort worth making, according to the State Department.
COSTELLO: Yes, and I want to touch quickly on your last topic, because it's important. The "Washington Post" is reporting this morning that FBI, the FBI is checking out a possible connection between John Muhammad, the sniper suspect, and Richard Reid, the alleged shoe bomber.
CLINCH: Right. Well, actually, to be slightly more precise, the FBI has a team in Antigua, where John Muhammad lived for a period of time and apparently sold illegal passports. He actually held himself an illegal passport from Antigua. Reid, the shoe bomber, was trying to blow up a plane that was on its way to Antigua. That's the only connection that we're aware of. And to be completely accurate, the FBI is there looking into Muhammad. It's the Antiguans themselves who may be trying to establish a connection between Reid and Muhammad, although they themselves say it's probably not there.
COSTELLO: Bogus. Right. Because we don't even know if Richard Reid was ever physically in Antigua.
CLINCH: We believe he was before, but whether he was there at this time, we don't know.
COSTELLO: Yes, OK.
David Clinch, thanks for clearing that up.
CLINCH: OK.
COSTELLO: We appreciate it.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired October 31, 2002 - 05:51 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to be following, of course, more international stories throughout the day here on CNN. It's time to check on what we're covering.
Our senior international editor David Clinch joins us now -- David, welcome.
You guys are busy this morning.
DAVID CLINCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: We are. We're always busy, Carol.
Good morning.
As I promised yesterday, we brought Chris Burns down to Mount Etna. The experts were saying yesterday that it might be calming down. You heard Chris on the phone earlier saying it really doesn't feel like it's calming down. Still a massive, massive --
COSTELLO: Yes, and right when he was on the phone another earthquake hit.
CLINCH: Apparently just after he put the phone down with you. We're seeing the wires crossing now with what they're calling a strong earthquake felt all over the region there.
And another reason, just to talk about how we cover this story, we let Chris go walk about today with the cell phone so that he could go up on the mountain, because we've got expressive satellite equipment there which we can't afford to risk.
COSTELLO: Yes, we don't want to hurt that, but Chris, you go up on that mountain.
CLINCH: So he'll be live later but he's on the phone at the moment up on the mountain.
COSTELLO: He's OK after the earthquake, though, isn't he?
CLINCH: Exactly. He is. So far. We haven't heard from him but we believe so.
COSTELLO: OK. Good.
CLINCH: The other story becoming an interesting thing, it actually originated from the State Department. They've issued the series of ads and promotional pieces that they're running on television around the Muslim world. This is a State Department campaign to try and improve the image of the United States around the world or in the Muslim world in particular, showing Muslim, American Muslims living in the United States. And in the ad campaign they're showing them as living happily here in the United States, practicing their faith, etc. These things were shown on television. This was actually a preview at the embassy in Jakarta, in Indonesia, where they had journalists and people look at it.
The reaction was mixed. Some people, it's a charm offensive, I think they're calling it, and some people found it slightly more offensive than charming. But it's an interesting story. These ads will be shown all over the Muslim world and it's an effort worth making, according to the State Department.
COSTELLO: Yes, and I want to touch quickly on your last topic, because it's important. The "Washington Post" is reporting this morning that FBI, the FBI is checking out a possible connection between John Muhammad, the sniper suspect, and Richard Reid, the alleged shoe bomber.
CLINCH: Right. Well, actually, to be slightly more precise, the FBI has a team in Antigua, where John Muhammad lived for a period of time and apparently sold illegal passports. He actually held himself an illegal passport from Antigua. Reid, the shoe bomber, was trying to blow up a plane that was on its way to Antigua. That's the only connection that we're aware of. And to be completely accurate, the FBI is there looking into Muhammad. It's the Antiguans themselves who may be trying to establish a connection between Reid and Muhammad, although they themselves say it's probably not there.
COSTELLO: Bogus. Right. Because we don't even know if Richard Reid was ever physically in Antigua.
CLINCH: We believe he was before, but whether he was there at this time, we don't know.
COSTELLO: Yes, OK.
David Clinch, thanks for clearing that up.
CLINCH: OK.
COSTELLO: We appreciate it.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
