Return to Transcripts main page

CNN News Central

Actors Set To Strike After Negotiations Fail; Disney CEO: "Worst Time" For Both Actors & Writers To Strike; FDA Approves 1st Over-The-Counter Birth Control Pill; Experts Dispute Robert F. Kennedy Jr Claims That Chemicals In Water Impact Sexuality Of Children; Search For Escaped Inmate Michael Burham Intensifies. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired July 13, 2023 - 13:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[13:30:00]

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN HOST: Katelyn Polantz, thanks so much.

Brianna?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: The stage is set. Actors poised to go on strike after talks with major studios failed. So what does this mean for all of your favorite shows?

And it's a mini pill that could have big impacts on women's health here in the U.S. The FDA just OKed the first over-the-counter birth control pill. We'll have details ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:35:03]

KEILAR: For the first time in more than 60 years, the talent behind the cameras and in front of the cameras could go on strike at the same time. Contract negotiations between the studios and SAG-AFTRA actors fell apart overnight.

Now the union representing more than 100,000 actors will likely join the writers who have been on the picket lines for the past 70-plus days.

CNN's Natasha Chen is covering all of this from Los Angeles.

Natasha, tell us where things stand and what the sticking points are.

NATASHA CHEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so the negotiations fell apart, as you said. This was an extension of their original deadline. And the guild of 160,000 actors had previously authorized a strike if not no deal was reached.

Now they're waiting for the national board of SAG-AFTRA to formalize a vote. And we'll hear about that result at noon in Los Angeles.

The sticking points have to do with a few major things, compensation, residuals when it comes to streaming and artificial intelligence. In what SAG-AFTRA has been telling the public, they have said that

there are enormous shifts in the industry and economy that have been detrimental to their workforce.

As you can imagine, we live in a world where we stream all of our content now and the residual payments, they say, have not really caught up with that.

Of course, you can imagine A.I. is a concern when you think about that technology taking the digital likeness of an actor.

So there have been opinions on this, of course. And today, we heard from Disney CEO Bob Iger commenting on the strike as well.

Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOB IGER, DISNEY CEO: There's a level of expectation that they have that is just not realistic. And they are adding to a set of challenges that this business is already facing that is, quite frankly, disruptive.

I respect their right and their desire to guess as much as they possibly can in compensation for their people. And I completely respect that. I've been around long enough to understand that dynamic and to appreciate it.

But you also have to be realistic about it, the business environment and what this business can deliver. It has been great business for all of these people and it will continue to be even through disruptive times.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHEN: Now the studios have said to the press that they actually made a historic pay increase offer as well as groundbreaking protections as far as A.I. Is concerned.

And they said they're disappointed that SAG-AFTRA made the decision to stop negotiating, saying that this potential strike here causes further financial hardship for the thousands that depend on the industry for their livelihood.

Now in speaking to anybody in this town, they would agree that there is a lot of financial hardship already with writers on strike for more than 70 days.

Now with the actors potentially joining them ,this is about to get worse for a lot of people even outside of the film and TV industry who serve these productions -- Brianna?

KEILAR: Natasha Chen with the latest from Los Angeles. A lot of people watching this, they want to know how this is going to impact them.

Thank you. Jim?

SCIUTTO: A major change in the availability of contraception coming to the nation's store shelves. For the first time, the FDA has approved an over-the-counter birth control pill. It's called Opill. And as OTC, that means no prescription, no doctor visits needed to get it.

CNN health reporter, Jacqueline Howard, joins me now.

Jacqueline, it's been available for decades with a prescription. Now without a prescription. Can you explain the difference that makes today in terms of availability across the country?

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: That's right, Jim. I mean this makes a huge difference. And we could see it as soon as the first quarter in 2024. So early next year, we could see Opill available on store shelves, including drug stores, grocery stores and even online.

And what this does, it makes it more accessible for women. This Opill, it is as you mentioned, a daily oral contraceptive. So this is not meant to be an emergency contraceptive.

And it contains the hormone progestin. And we have seen this type of oral contraceptive used with prescription. Now it's available without a prescription. Meaning any woman of reproductive age is able to access it over the counter -- Jim?

SCIUTTO: Jacqueline Howard, certainly, a big development for women.

Thanks so much.

Brianna?

[13:39:32]

KEILAR: All right, RFK Jr no stranger to making controversial claims. Now CNN's "KFILE" is debunking another. We'll explain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: CNN's "KFILE" has new reporting disputing some controversial claims from Robert Kennedy Jr.

The Democratic presidential candidate, who has a history of sharing unfounded conspiracy theories, that manmade chemicals, particularly in the country's tap water, could be affecting the, quote, "sexual identification" of children.

CNN's Andrew Kaczynski is joining us now on this.

All right, Andrew, you spoke to some experts on this, scientists and toxicology experts. What did they tell you?

ANDREW KACZYNSKI, CNN "KFILE" SENIOR EDITOR: That's right. So RFK Jr has been making this claim that manmade chemicals could be making children gay or transgender. He's also said that these chemicals could be making boys more feminine or girls more masculine.

We spoke to experts who strongly pushed back on this. He cited the way these chemicals have affected frogs. And what they told us was this is basically comparing apples to oranges.

[13:45:02]

Look, we are humans. Frogs are amphibians. These things affect us differently. For humans, our sex is determined at the moment of conception. With frogs, it can be affected by things like environmental factors.

Now we posed this question to the Kennedy campaign, how do you dispute what these experts are saying? And here's a little bit of what their spokesperson told us.

They said that he's merely suggesting that, given the copious research on the effects on other vertebrates, this possibly deserves further research.

KEILAR: "Merely" and "suggesting" are doing a lot of work in that quote, Andrew, I will say. They certainly are.

"KFILE's" Andrew Kaczynski, thank you for taking us through that.

Jim?

SCIUTTO: "KFILE'S" always on top of it.

Now to some of the other headlines we are watching this hour.

Wild weather on tap for millions of Americans yet again today, a day after several homes damaged as suspected tornados were rolled through the Chicago suburb of Elgin, Illinois.

The storms so concerning that Meteorologists Albert Raymond, with CNN affiliate, WVBN, had a warning for his colleagues.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALBERT RAYMOND, WVBN METEOROLOGIST: Newsroom, time to get out of the newsroom. Time to get into an interior room. We have enough rotation. If you want to, you can come to our level. We are in the most protected part of the building. But we've got to get away from windows now, Newsroom.

Control Room, you should be in good shape.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: He knows what he's talking about. That's the severity.

In an effort to conserve water, Scottsdale, Arizona, will ban natural grass in the front yards of new single-family homes built after August 15th. The city council says that 86 percent of water consumers support that move. Scottsdale is expected to reach, guess what, 109 degrees today.

And Christopher Eubanks' thrilling run at Wimbledon may have come to an end but the American tennis star wants to keep riding that wave of success. A year ago, Eubanks took up a commentating job with the Tennis Channel about doubts with his professional career. This morning, well, it's all changed in a year.

He talked to CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTOPHER EUBANKS, PRO TENNIS PLAYER: To walk off the court, court one at Wimbledon, just cheering for me, it's special. It's something that you dream of as a kid growing up, watching Wimbledon on TV, saying, man, I hope to be there one day.

It's a bit emotional being able to watch it again. It's really special. It's something that I'll never forget.

And I can't wait to just try to use this momentum that I have now, this confidence, as we spoke about earlier, into the U.S. summer swing leading up to the U.S. Open.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: So fun to watch. He will also enjoy what is surely the biggest payday of his career, a cool $444,000.

Not bad at all, Brianna.

KEILAR: Not bad at all.

Police are on a manhunt in Pennsylvania for a prisoner that escaped. We'll have details on that and why authorities believe a drone flying around the jail beforehand could be connected.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:52:49]

SCIUTTO: It has now been a full week since accused murderer, kidnapper and arsonist, Michael Burham, went on the run from jail. Officials say an officer saw Burham's breakout from a jail in northwest Pennsylvania through surveillance cameras.

And yet, he escaped from a recreation yard on the jail roof. Officers could not reach the space in time. The self-taught survivalist then used bed sheets to repel down. Kind of like out of a movie.

As seen in this video obtained by CNN's Brian Todd. He's in Warren, Pennsylvania, following this story.

Brian, so the reward for his capture is now $20,000. Do authorities have any leads?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim, the latest and maybe one of the most crucial pieces of information we have comes from Lieutenant Colonel John Bivens of the Pennsylvania State Police.

He told us that just before Michael Burham escaped from this jail in the minutes, hours beforehand, there was a drone flying very close to the Warren County Jail right behind me.

They did not say who the operator of the drone was. They don't know what the origin of the drone was. Or at least they're not saying.

Lieutenant Colonel Bivens said there could be a very innocent explanation for that or it could be connected to the escape, he said. And another quote from him in describing this was, quote, "I'm not a big believer in coincidence."

Now another person who has spoken to the media is Tim Ryan. I caught up to him yesterday. He owns a cabin in the Allegheny National Forest not far from here. He knows the terrain very well. He hikes there all the time.

I asked him what Michael Burham and his pursuers are up against if they hit some of the most severe terrain in the Alleghany National Forest? Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's either going to end because he is exhausted, dehydrated, starving and he burns out because of that or it's going to end with a body bag.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: That was actually a sound byte from the ex-girlfriend of the escaped convict, Nicole, who spoke with WICU.

[13:55:00]

Now here's a clip of my interview with Tim Ryan on the terrain in the Allegheny National Forest.

Looks like we may not have that clip.

But in lieu of that, let me show you at least what the route was that this man took, according to authorities.

This is the top of the roof. Our photojournalist, Amanda Swinhart, is going to show you.

Right at the top of the roof, that is where the gym is. It's a caged- in gym he was working out in on Thursday night, last Thursday night when he escaped. He came over that wall, down that wall on a string of tied-together sheets. Came through here.

And there is a stonewall right behind us. He jumps the stonewall. And there's a yard to a house right behind us. He takes off that way and goes into the woods. So that was the route that he took.

One other piece of information that is key here. Officials -- city officials told us yesterday that while they had eyes on him at the moment of his escape through surveillance footage, there was a correction's officer watching him on surveillance footage.

At the moment that he went over the wall, there was no one physically with him at the gym, at the rooftop gym at the moment of his escape -- Jim?

SCIUTTO: Well, the presence of that drone at least possibly raises the chance there was some outside help. Certainly, something they're looking into, it sounds like.

Brian Todd, in Warren, Pennsylvania, thanks very much.

Brianna?

KEILAR: So when it comes to the economy, it is not all doom and gloom anymore. We're going to break down the numbers and the, dare I say, good news that could have an impact on your wallet.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)