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O'Leary Talks about Utah Data Center; Asian Americans on Trump; Segun Oduolowu is Interviewed about Falling Ticket Sales. Aired 9:30- 10a ET

Aired May 08, 2026 - 09:30   ET

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

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[09:32:59]

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: All right, a huge A.I. infrastructure project set to break ground in rural Utah is being hailed by investors as one of the world's premier A.I. data centers. But some of the residents in the area don't want it. And they made clear that fact to their county commissioners at a public meeting.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) off.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you be quiet and let our citizens hear what needs to be said, please?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This was our one opportunity to hopefully get our voices heard. And we were kind of shut down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SIDNER: There you go. So, this week, Box Elder County Commissioners approved the Stratus project. It's a proposed 40,000 acre data center campus backed by Shark Tank investor Kevin O'Leary.

CNN's Clare Duffy is joining us now.

You just spoke with Mr. O'Leary about all of this. How is he responding to all this?

CLARE DUFFY, CNN TECH REPORTER: Yes, I wanted to understand his reaction to that meeting on Monday where you had hundreds of people coming to raise concerns about this project.

The project is, as you said, 40,000 acres that have been set aside in this rural Utah county that right now mostly has farms and agriculture. The plan is for a nine-gigawatt data center. That would be more power than the entire state of Utah uses in a year, plus a natural gas power plant. The idea there is to create the power for the data center so that it doesn't put a strain on the grid and raise electricity prices for residents.

But residents have several concerns. One is just that they haven't had enough time to make sense of these plans, and the potential environmental impact on this already ecologically fragile area.

So, I asked Kevin about this, and he said they've already taken these environmental concerns into consideration.

Take a listen to what he told me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEVIN O'LEARY, DATA CENTER DEVELOPER: No, we're not going to drain the Great Salt Lake. That's ridiculous. We're -- we are going to create incremental jobs. This is not going to destroy air quality because we don't have the option to do that. That's controlled both state and federally. And we don't want to do that.

And we want it to be the shining example of how you do this. And I want the Chinese to see this. I want -- I want them to see that we're not going to stop. We're going to catch up in terms of incremental growth of power.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[09:35:05]

DUFFY: As you hear there, he says this data center project is going to create 2,000 permanent jobs, tax revenue for the state and for the county. And also, he says this is really a national security issue where he's concerned that the U.S. is falling behind to China in compute power and thus in advancing A.I. technology.

I think the problem is that residents just feel they haven't had enough time to really understand what this project is going to mean for them.

I spoke with Robert Davies. He's a physics professor at Utah State University and an expert in environmental change. And he described the concerns like this. He said, "the question is, will the jobs be worth the cost? And the cost, of course, is multigenerational here. One needs to think about what kind of community do I want my children and grandchildren in 30 years from now, 50 years from now? Because this thing, as described, and running it for 30 years will utterly transform this valley."

And that is what people in this community are worried about.

SIDNER: This is just one. I mean it is a mega project. But this is just one, right? These are going to be concerns that kind of spread across the country in areas where you have some space where these can be put, correct?

DUFFY: Absolutely. I mean there is this concern that we don't have enough computing power to advance A.I. in the way that we need to. So, we are seeing these data center projects be proposed across the country. And also this backlash. We are seeing protests in North Carolina, in Indiana, in Maine. People who say, we don't want that data center in our community, who have environmental concerns, concerns about the noise and the space that it is going to take up.

And in many ways I see this as sort of a microcosm of the larger concerns around A.I., where you've got everyday people saying, wait a second, is this really going to benefit me, or is this going to benefit the billionaires and investors who are building these projects?

SIDNER: Yes, and you heard there in Utah and elsewhere, water is also a huge thing that people are concerned about, how much water they use.

DUFFY: Yes.

SIDNER: Clare, this is always going to be a story for now until gosh knows how long. So, we're glad you're here to tell it. Appreciate it.

DUFFY: Thank you.

SIDNER: Kate.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Blue dot fever is on the rise around the globe. Artists canceling or postponing their tours. Concert season going up in smoke for so many because they simply can't sell the seats. We have new reporting on why and what's happening here.

Also, of course, it is prom season and there is one special program to tell you about helping girls get that special dance that they might not get otherwise.

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[09:42:47]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Midterm elections less than six months away now, and one of the things we're constantly looking for here is what voting blocs are shifting, perhaps from 2024 as we head into 2026.

Here now to discuss a really interesting bit of movement, CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten.

We've talked about African American voters. We've talked about white men. What about Asian American voters?

HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: You know, the Asian American bloc is such an interesting one because Donald Trump put in a historically strong performance with them back in 2024. He got 40 percent of the Asian vote. That was the best GOP showing in 20 years among that bloc.

But look at what's happened now. Down he goes into the deep blue sea. His job approval rating, get this, is averaging just 25 percent. That is nearly a drop in half in the support that Donald Trump is getting from this key growing part of the electorate. This is part of a larger trend that we've seen for Donald Trump with non-white voters. We've seen it with Hispanics. It is holding true with Asian voters as well. And we have seen it in a number of special elections as well, where we've seen that Asian communities have generally shifted away from the Republican Party, into the Democratic camp. We saw it in the Virginia gubernatorial election. And we see it right here as well, where Donald Trump's support is absolutely plummeting in the Asian American community.

BERMAN: OK, you're seeing it in Trump job approval. You said you've seen it in some of the special elections. What are we seeing it in the polling about the upcoming midterms?

ENTEN: Yes, OK. So, you see this right here with Donald Trump. You go, OK, does this actually carry over in the race for Congress? I would say, yes, it does, because just take a look here, the margin for the U.S. House Asian voters. In the 2024 election, Democrats won that vote. They won it by 22 points. That lead is up like a rocket. You could see it right here. Look at that, expanding by 14 points. This is a huge shift. A huge shift with a growing part of the electorate.

So, what's happening with Donald Trump at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is absolutely finding its way down ballot, at least when Asian American voters are saying who they're going to vote for, for Congress.

BERMAN: You're saying a growing part of the population. What do you mean?

ENTEN: Yes, what do I mean? I mean, just take a look here. The share that -- the Asian share of the U.S. population. In 1990, it was three percent. It has more than double. It has more than doubled in the past 35 years. So, it's up to seven percent of the population. And it is the -- one of the fastest growing blocs, if not the fastest growing bloc of the electorate, depending on how you exactly measure that.

[09:45:04]

So, they are increasingly an important part of the electorate. And that is why this movement that we're seeing right here is so important. And, of course, that is all downstream of this movement that we're seeing here with Donald Trump's support with Asian Americans literally dropping basically in half.

BERMAN: You don't want to be doing worse with a population that's growing more, to be sure.

ENTEN: Correct.

BERMAN: All right, talk about one place where this might have an impact. One of the more closely watched races in the country, the Senate race in Alaska. What are the prediction markets (INAUDIBLE)?

ENTEN: Yes, if you -- if you want to look at a state where Asian voters have an outsize influence compared to other swing votes, and, of course, it is so important, the state of Alaska, you know, in terms of Democrats won and win back the Senate. Take a look. The chance that Mary Peltola wins the Alaska Senate race, what do we see? We see that in January her chance was 43 percent. It's up like a rocket now. We're talking about a majority chance that Mary Peltola wins this race. And it is part of a larger picture right now that we're seeing, Asian American voters going into those midterm elections, shifting away from the president of the United States. And we're seeing that have a major impact down ballot in Congress and in Alaska could have a major impact as well.

BERMAN: One of the key trends to watch. Harry Enten, thank you very much.

A lot of news this morning. We'll be right back.

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[09:50:39]

SIDNER: There is a growing trend in the music industry. Big music tours and shows getting canceled. There have been at least a half dozen shows with big names axed. The cause? Tickets aren't selling. It's being called "blue dot fever." That's the industry term for all those unsold seats in blue that you see on those ticket maps when you're looking for your nosebleed seats. Artists who have canceled shows recently include Meghan Trainor, Post Malone, The Pussycat Dolls, Zayn Malik, Kid Cudi, and Demi Lovato.

So, the big question for musicians and their fans is this, is the touring boom starting to bust?

Joining us now, Emmy Award winning journalist and media personality Segun Oduolowu.

Thank you so much for being here.

Look, I was looking up the average cost of a ticket these days. It's like $135. But in 1996, it was $25. Is this just people being priced out?

SEGUN ODUOLOWU, EMMY AWARD WINNING JOURNALIST AND MEDIA PERSONALITY: No. Good morning, Sara and the whole gang. It's not just about people being priced out. Blue dot fever is the sickness, and the cause is greed. Ticketmaster, which is owned by Live Nation, is a vertical monopoly. So, if you look up just everyone watching Google vertical monopoly and the second definition of it is literally Live Nation. They own the venues. They -- which means that they own the promoting, they own the parking, they set the ticket sales. They actually manage the artists that are going to the venues.

So, what is happening is prices for tickets, which they control, have not -- do not reflect the growing cost and what it takes to live in America. And fans that are paying here in Los Angeles, for example, almost $7 at the gas pump, are making a real life decision within filling my car with gasoline or going to see my favorite artist. And they're not going to see their artists because they can't afford it. The prices have skyrocketed in tickets because there's only one entity controlling it.

I'll give you another example. In L.A., Ticketmaster, Live Nation, they own the Kia Forum. Which means they own everything around it. But they're also the primary promoter of the Hollywood Bowl. They are the primary promoter of Crypto Arena. So, whatever act size you are, you have to come through Live Nation in order for your tour to work. They set the prices. There's price gouging. They were literally sued in court and determined that they are monopolizing and controlling the prices. And fans are just making real world decisions, we can't afford it anymore.

BERMAN: Yes, this is sort of the least surprising thing to me in the world, as someone who's been on the web looking for concert tickets the last few months. They're bonkers. And we're talking about, like, the nosebleed seats. The only thing surprising to me is that the claim that the average price is $135.

SIDNER: I know.

BERMAN: I couldn't get anywhere near $135 for anything.

SIDNER: Yes.

BERMAN: I mean, you're dealing with $300, $400, $500 for back of the house. I just don't know how anyone buys them.

ODUOLOWU: No one can buy them. And what's happening is it's affecting music and the industry at large.

Look, Beyonce can tour. Her fans are legion. Taylor Swift can tour. Her fans are legion. But the mid-level acts cannot, which means that the real reason you went into the business of being a musician to get your music out to your fans, live on stage so they can feel that energy, it's going away. You see decreased sales in albums. You see decreased sales in merch. And you see artists right now scrambling to figure out how they are going to actually survive in this business.

And we, the fans, also suffer because we're not getting the kind of good music. The artists are having to churn out music on streaming. There aren't really classic albums anymore. Everyone is suffering because one entity sits at the top. They own and control 300, globally, venues for musicians to tour in. So, you can't really exist in this business without going to Live Nation. And because of that, $400 tickets for nosebleed, or a bag of groceries. If you're a fan, you decide what you're going to do.

BOLDUAN: And, Segun, I mean, then it also puts artists in a tough spot, right?

[09:55:01]

You know what you're up against. You need people to come buy your tickets and you want, obviously, to fill seats. And if you need to deal with the one entity that controls it all, what do you do? Are artists speaking out?

ODUOLOWU: Artists are speaking out. But again, what is -- what is left to them when all of the venues either have contracts with Live Nation for where you're going to perform, or Live Nation itself manages these artists. Maybe you can get your music out to your fans direct to consumer, but you can't do that from a stage. They're almost having to go to the smallest of bars and do these, you know, you know, like up front and these intimate concert settings, which doesn't make them a lot of money. The music industry is skewed in such a way that artists don't get paid from their album sales like they used to because of streaming. The only way you can actually make money is to tour. But unless you are Billie Eilish, maybe Adele, if you think of your favorite artist in any genre that can pack a stadium, it's not many. There -- in hip hop there's maybe two. In R&B, maybe three. So, when you start looking at it, they can't support this system. Their music doesn't get out and artists are suffering.

SIDNER: Segun, thank you so much. We all are suffering through it.

BERMAN: We are.

SIDNER: As we --

BERMAN: Although we're going to do a free concert in the park. CNN NEWS CENTRAL, free concert in the park, coming up this summer.

Thanks so much for joining us. "THE SITUATION ROOM," up next.

SIDNER: With lead singer, John Berman.

BOLDUAN: Going to fill those seats.

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