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IDF Preparing To Expand Gaza Offensive To New Areas; U.N. Chief Says Israel Creating "Massive Obstacles" For Gaza Aid, Cease-Fire Only Way To End Nightmare; U.S. Supreme Court Declines To Speed Up Trump Immunity Ruling; U.S. Southern Border Near Breaking Point Due To Migrant Surge; Storm System Moving On From California, Arizona; Nova Music Festival Survivor Reunites With Her Rescuer; New York Ballet Emerges From Pandemic With New Strength; Beijing Seeks To Restrict Online Gaming Spending; Patrick Mahomes Gives Special Gift To Teammates. Aired 5-6a ET
Aired December 23, 2023 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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RICHARD QUEST, CNN HOST (voice-over): Hello and a very good day to you. Welcome to you if you're joining me in the United States and all over -- joining me from around the world. I'm Richard Quest in London. This is the CNN NEWSROOM.
Israel says it's going to great lengths to avoid civilian casualties in Gaza. It seems to be giving Palestinians few options on where go. I'll put that very point to a senior adviser of the Israeli prime minister.
America's borders are at breaking point and federal officials are encountering record levels of migration, nearly 10,000 a day. The surge and what fuels it.
And a report from the CNN Weather Center, tracking a storm system across the Southwest ahead of a busy holiday travel weekend.
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QUEST: It is 10:00 in London, 12 noon in Gaza. Israel's military says it's pressing on with plans to expand the operation in Gaza, despite growing pressure to scale back on its offensive. An IDF spokesperson said the campaign will widen to new areas. The emphasis will be on southern Gaza.
It follows the United Nations Security Council adopting a long delayed resolution, calling for an increase in aid to Gaza. The United States supported the measure by abstaining. But by doing so, the vote, because the resolution did not condemn Hamas.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LINDA THOMAS-GREENFIELD, AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: It took many days and many, many long nights of negotiating to get this right. But today, this council provided a glimmer of hope amongst a sea of unimaginable suffering. Today this council called for urgent steps to immediately allow safe, unhindered and expanded humanitarian access.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: The Palestinian Red Crescent Society says it received 70 aid trucks on Friday through the Rafah border crossing with Egypt. Israel began this week allowing some aid trucks to cross directly into Gaza from Israel at the Kerem Shalom crossing.
So far, far fewer trucks are entering Gaza each day than before the war. President Biden said he is heartbroken to learn of the death of an Israeli American hostage. The Missing Persons Families Forum says 73 year old Gadi Haggai has died while in Hamas captivity in Gaza.
Nada Bashir is following the developments, joins me from London.
This idea of a widening of the offensive in southern Gaza, where exactly are we talking about?
NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is an area where we have seen hundreds of thousands of civilians being told to evacuate to for their safety. But clearly this is not a safe area, at least it won't be for very long.
In fact, we have seen, over the last few weeks, Richard, continued bombardment across the Gaza Strip, north, central and southern Gaza. Now, of course, fears that that ground offensive could also intensify across southern Gaza.
We've already seen the ground offensive in Khan Yunis, the largest city of southern Gaza. Important to underscore that this region is an area where many have flocked to in search of safety, where many are taking shelter in temporary tent cities that have been established in response to that evacuation order by the Israeli military.
Now we have seen continued bombardment of central Gaza today and, of course, yesterday. And we have heard those warnings from the Israeli military now telling civilians in central Gaza directly to evacuate.
But the question, of course, is where do these civilians go?
They have been told previously to move southwards. Now we're hearing warnings from the south. We'll see intense focus when it comes to the ground incursion and also, of course, with regards to the airstrikes that continue across the Gaza Strip.
And, of course, it's important to note that southern Gaza has now been a crucial gateway for aid to get in via the Rafah border crossing. While the aid that is getting in is just a drop in the bucket in comparison to what is needed by those civilians in Gaza, this is, of course, raising alarm bells that this could hinder the access to aid organizations.
QUEST: OK. And on those aid organizations, this idea that now the resolution has been passed. [05:05:00]
A lot more aid is going to be going in, both from Rafah and from Kerem Shalom.
How realistic is this?
I mean, you know, what is preventing the aid from either going in or getting where it needs to go?
BASHIR: Well, the U.N. secretary general himself called out the Israeli government, saying they have placed massive obstacles when it comes to the distribution of aid. What these U.N. agencies, what aid groups are looking for, is the all-important security guarantees to ensure that aid can get in safely.
And crucially, that aid agencies can operate on the ground safely with those safety guarantees. This is not just a logistical issue but this is very much a security issue for aid organizations, who are left looking at distributing vital aid, medicine, food, water, to get into Gaza, to get to those most in need.
And, of course, this is a huge point of concern. We are now hearing aid organizations, including the U.N.'s own humanitarian organization, taking about famine now; 2.2 million people in Gaza said to be in a state of acute food insecurity.
We've heard from people on the ground, including one doctor who has already had to flee southwards, describing the dire situation.
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DR. NOUR WAHIDI (through translator): The situation is bad. The health situation is bad, the economic situation is bad, the humanitarian situation is bad. Diseases are terrifyingly widespread and there is a significant shortage of food.
So every day I come to work, I witness all the sufferings that we never could have imagined.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BASHIR: While this new resolution has provided some hope this might alleviate some of the pressures that we are seeing in Gaza and, of course, it is getting colder, we are in the middle of winter and we are talking about hundreds of thousands of people living in unlivable conditions in these tent cities, particularly in southern Gaza.
We are anticipating, expecting a further assault by the Israeli military as they have outlined. There is also a continued push by U.N. leaders, including the U.S. secretary general Antonio Guterres for a full cease-fire.
QUEST: Nada Bashir, thank you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) QUEST: Now to Tel Aviv. Mark Regev is with me, the senior advisor to the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu,
Mark, thank you for your time, to take your time to talk to me. I want to start with the idea of the further push into southern Gaza. Israel, first of all, tells people to go south. Once they have gone south, they tell them to move around the south into different areas.
Now they're being told to move -- there is nowhere to go, Mark, except scrub land with no facilities, no water, no toilets.
Where would Israel now like those people to go?
MARK REGEV, SENIOR ADVISER TO PRIME MINISTER BENJAMIN NETANYAHU: Well, Richard, I think when we told people to move south out of the north, it was the right thing to do because, as you recall, the heavy fighting started in the north.
All the people who moved to the south did the right thing. They accepted our advice. In fact, I think over 90 percent moved to the south. It is clear there was heavy fighting in the north. It was common sense to move away.
Now the fighting has started in the south, we've had to be more specific. We've asked people to go to specific areas where we do not intend to see serious, intensive fighting. But we are urging people, please get out of the line of fire. We don't want to see civilians caught up.
QUEST: But Mark --
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QUEST: -- be realistic, Mark. You are moving hundreds of thousands of people into very limited areas, amongst -- you know, massive bombardment. There is simply not the space or facilities, on humanitarian grounds, to move those people into that area.
REGEV: Two comments: first of all, it is obviously difficult to move and move again. My own father was a refugee during the Second World War and I know what is, like. I have heard firsthand what it is like to have to move.
And from a war situation, it can be very difficult. But surely, all of the troubles in relocating are nothing compared to the possibility of being killed by being caught up in the crossfire.
And Israel is saying that there is going to be fighting in a particular area. Hamas is embedded there. And we ask civilians to leave. We urge them to do, so we do not want to see them hurt.
QUEST: Now the question of the aid coming in, as the result of the U.N. Security Council. The United Nations secretary general has pretty much summed up, in his view, Antonio Guterres, on what the problem is.
He said, basically, in his statement, the single largest problem in getting aid into Gaza, was Israel's bombardment, Israel's continued attack.
[05:10:03]
REGEV: So let's be clear, as you yourself reported Israel, opened a few days ago the Kerem Shalom crossing, which allows for increasing the quantity of humanitarian aid entering Gaza.
Since the beginning of this operation, Israel has placed no limitations whatsoever on food, water, medicine, shelter, that sort of thing going into the Gaza Strip for the civilian population of Gaza, who are not the target of our operation.
Our target is Hamas. But to talk about the secretary general's remarks, he has been calling now, I think for two months, for what he calls a humanitarian cease-fire, just to end it all. He is basically offering a lifeline to Hamas.
We thank the United States for its diplomatic support at the United Nations preventing that resolution passing the Security Council. Because if you give a lifeline to Hamas, if you say a cease-fire now with Hamas in power, you are just condemning us all to more bloodshed in the future.
Because Hamas, Richard, as you know, says openly that Israel must be destroyed. They say they'd do the October 7th massacre again and again. You keep Hamas in power, you condemn both Israelis and Palestinians to more bloodshed down the line.
QUEST: Mark, you and I both know, in the course of war, comments get made that need to be clarified. Yesterday, I think -- or this week -- saw one of them from an Israeli spokesperson, who basically said there was no food shortage in Gaza.
That comment being made, at the same time as the World Food Programme, UNDP, all of them, saying it is almost a famine in Gaza at the moment. So let me give you an opportunity to clarify the comment, that there is no food shortage or there is plenty of food in Gaza.
Do you wish to clarify it?
REGEV: I can say the following. I know for a fact, over the last few days, there were trucks of food that Israel authorized. And Israel had also completed a security check. And yet they were still waiting at the crossing to enter and not because of Israel.
There were all sorts of logistic issues they said inside Gaza. One has to ask the following question, Richard.
Is it possible that Hamas knows that its only chance to survive is by sacrificing the people of Gaza and by saying we will not allow humanitarian aid to be distributed?
We will keep this out. We want to unofficially create a humanitarian crisis. That will create international pressure for the cease-fire, which is the only way they can save themselves.
QUEST: Mark, I am grateful, thank you for taking the time to talk to me this morning. I'm grateful, thank you.
REGEV: Thank you for having me.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: In a move seen as a victory for Donald Trump, the U.S. Supreme Court has declined a request by the special counsel Jack Smith to fast-track the case on whether the former president has any immunity from federal prosecution.
The high court's decision will likely delay the start of Trump's election subversion trial. CNN's Evan Perez has more.
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EVAN PEREZ, CNN SR. JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a request by federal prosecutors to skip the appellate court and have the high court decide whether Donald Trump has immunity from prosecution on election subversion charges.
The decision deals a significant blow to special counsel Jack Smith's effort to keep a March 4th trial date on track. That is a lot harder now that prosecutors will have to wait several weeks while the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals weighs the same consequential questions.
Trump is arguing that he has immunity for actions that he took while in office to pursue his claims of election fraud. He also claims that, because he was impeached by the House of Representatives and acquitted by the Senate, prosecuting him would violate the Constitution's double jeopardy clause.
Trump's attorneys had urged the Supreme Court to stay out of the dispute for now, saying that the special counsel was trying to rush to decide the issue with reckless abandon.
And the Justice Department had argued that the case deals with an unprecedented criminal trial of a former president and required taking the unusual step of bypassing the appeals court.
The special counsel said the public interest and a prompt resolution of this case favors an immediate definitive decision by this court. Now the one-sentence rejection by the Supreme Court on Friday did not come with any additional explanation. There is no notice of dissent among the justices.
But Trump's claim of immunity could make its way back to the high court in the thick of the political calendar. The D.C.-based appeals court has scheduled oral arguments on the immunity question for January 9th.
[05:15:02]
And that is just days before the Iowa caucus on January 15th -- Evan Perez, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE) QUEST: In Colorado, two paramedics were found guilty of criminally neglect, homicide in the death of Elijah McClain in what could prove to be a landmark decision. They injected the 23-year old with ketamine while he was being held down by police officers in August 2019.
The officers stopped McClain on his way home, while responding to a suspicious persons call, according to the indictment. During the trial the prosecutors argued that the paramedics, Jeremy Cooper and Peter Cichuniec, acted recklessly by not speaking to McClain or checking his vital statistics.
The paramedics testified they followed their training and were told numerous times that ketamine is a safe, effective drug.
CNN has reported that having two paramedics standing trial for the death of someone they treated in police custody is an unparalleled situation.
U.S. and Mexican officials are expected to meet next week and they'll discuss how to slow the record numbers of migrants streaming to the U.S. southern border each day. A report from Texas in a moment.
And a silver lining for U.S. travelers braving the holiday travel rush this weekend.
The weather, is it going to cooperate?
Chad Myers.
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CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Chances for a white Christmas look pretty slim to none across the eastern part of the United States and even, for that matter, Canada. Forecast coming up.
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QUEST: Some U.S. officials are warning that the U.S. southern border is near at a breaking point, they're saying, encountering record number of migrants every day, straining all resources and personnel.
It's a situation that's getting so bad that this week there was a call between President Biden and the Mexican president to pressure Mexico to do more to slow this surge. Senior U.S. officials are traveling to Mexico, where they'll hold further discussions. CNN's Ed Lavandera from Texas.
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ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Apprehensions of migrants crossing the southern U.S. border are once again reaching record levels.
A Department of Homeland Security official tells CNN the average number of encounters in the last week is 9,600 per day. This rate of apprehensions has not been seen since earlier this year, in the days before the lifting of the COVID-era restriction known as Title 42.
Republican Congressman Tony Gonzales says the situation is spiraling out of control again.
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REP. TONY GONZALES (R-TX): Border patrol agents are doing everything they can to take care of the situation but they're completely overwhelmed, completely, just overwhelmed with the situation. And it's getting worse.
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LAVANDERA (voice-over): This spot along the Rio Grande in Eagle Pass, Texas, is the focal point of the southern border migration crisis. Despite miles of razor wire, steel containers on the riverbank and thousands of federal, state and local authorities on the ground, thousands cross this spot every day.
Sheriff Tom Schmerber says a zero tolerance immigration policy won't keep migrants from crossing the border illegally into the U.S. But he says the Biden administration needs to do more to get it under control.
SHERIFF TOM SCHMERBER, MAVERICK COUNTY, TEXAS: Best thing to do is for the federal government to work with the government of Mexico, hoping they can persuade them to put some kind of a border patrol system over there on their border, north border, as well as our south border, and help us stop immigrants coming from Mexico.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): President Joe Biden spoke with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Thursday. The administration said both men agreed more needs to be done to stop the historic migration flow.
And the Mexican president announced Friday he will meet with the U.S. secretary of state and Secretary of Homeland Security next week in Mexico City.
U.S. border authorities remain overwhelmed. Immigration processing facilities are filled. And the strain on resources is creating staggering delays and long lines at ports of entry for border residents.
No one has figured out how to overcome the tidal wave of misinformation that largely influences migrants, as they make their way north to the U.S. border. Border authorities say these migrants are convinced that crossing illegally between ports of entry is routine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is a lot of misinformation going on on the Mexican side. Migrants are believing this is an official port or an official way to enter the U.S., which is completely wrong.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): In places like Eagle Pass, the daily flow of migrants crossing the Rio Grande doesn't appear to be slowing down anytime soon.
LAVANDERA: This week, Texas governor Greg Abbott signed a law that would allow state authorities to arrest anyone who entered the state illegally. But the sheriff in Eagle Pass says he doesn't think the law will make any difference in stopping people from crossing the border.
And the Mexican president has also been extremely critical of the bill, which could complicate the discussions that he's scheduled to have with U.S. officials next week -- Ed Lavandera, CNN, Dallas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: Now in the United States, more than 10 million people could see very heavy rainfall this weekend. You might be one of them. And as the storm system that's unleashed flooding rains on California and Arizona, that storm system is on the move.
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QUEST: Now some good news for U.S. travelers braving the holiday travel rush this weekend. The country's three largest legacies, the airlines, United, Delta, American, say they're anticipating few flight cancelations. It's shaping up to be the longest holiday travel period so far. CNN's Polo Sandoval reports from New York's LaGuardia Airport.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
POLO SANDOVAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The weekend off to a relatively smooth start, at least travel-wise here at New York's LaGuardia Airport, with few to no delays or cancelations.
That's not necessarily the case elsewhere with other airports throughout the country experiencing some form of issues. But they certainly do not compare to that travel nightmare that we experienced just last winter, when Southwest Airlines was forced to cancel thousands of flights.
As a result, the federal government has really been pressuring airlines to make sure that their systems are ready to go, that they can handle any potential unexpected issue and minimize the impact on passengers.
Those passengers are certainly now thinking twice about hitting the road again this year, with AAA estimating that roughly 7.5 million people will be flying to their destination this holiday season. The Transportation Secretary talking a little more about the preparations that have gone into place.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) PETE BUTTIGIEG, U.S. SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION: I would say we know that weather's coming our way. It's why you want to make sure that you're keeping in touch with your airline.
The big thing that we can control, though, that airlines need to control, is how resilient the system is to that weather.
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SANDOVAL: AAA estimating that, all in all, close to 150 million people will be traveling this holiday season. A vast majority of them will not be flying. They will be driving to their destinations instead -- Polo Sandoval, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: As you and I continue together, an exclusive report on the American woman who survived the brutal attack at the Nova music festival in Israel. The reunion with the man who saved her.
Also I'll be telling you about the Czech Republic honoring those who were murdered in the worst peacetime mass shooting.
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QUEST: A warm welcome back to wherever you're joining me, whether it's in the United States or elsewhere around the world. I'm Richard Quest in London. I'm glad to have you in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Despite growing pressure to scale back its offensive in Gaza, the Israeli military says it's preparing to expand its operations. An IDF spokesperson says the emphasis will shift to southern Gaza as its campaign widens into new areas.
The announcement follows the same day as the U.N. Security Council adopted a resolution, calling for, quote, "unhindered humanitarian access" to Gaza. But some aid organizations are criticizing it for not demanding an immediate cease-fire.
Instead, the measure calls for humanitarian pauses. It lays the groundwork for a sustainable end to the fighting.
Eleven weeks after the fighting erupted following the Hamas brutal attack on the Nova music festival, one young woman who survived that ordeal has returned to the scene and met the man who rescued her. CNN's Will Ripley exclusive report from Tel Aviv.
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WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Looking at that cloud of smoke, what does that trigger for you?
NATALIE SANANDAJI, NOVA FESTIVAL SURVIVOR: So seeing the smoke, it definitely reminds me of those noises that bring me back to that day.
RIPLEY (voice-over): In southern Israel, you don't need a map to know you're near Gaza.
RIPLEY: Why are you here?
What do you want to go back?
SANANDAJI: Sorry.
RIPLEY (voice-over): That loud boom, outgoing artillery near our car, rattling native New Yorker Natalie Sanandaji.
RIPLEY: Tell me what that made you feel like just now.
SANANDAJI: Like I'm scared that, like, we're being shot at. I panicked.
RIPLEY (voice-over): The last time she was on this road, Natalie was running for her life. Just after sunrise on Saturday, October 7th, rocket interceptions seen from the dance floor at the Nova music festival. Hamas militants killed more than 350 people, mostly young, mostly Jewish, mostly unarmed.
SANANDAJI: I feel so lucky that I made it out, that I got out alive. I feel like it's my duty to be that voice for all those who weren't as lucky as me.
RIPLEY (voice-over): That sense of duty is why she's returning to Israel for the first time since the attacks.
SANANDAJI: Just seeing all these faces and knowing people that loved these faces.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Faces of friends who never made it home.
SANANDAJI: Oh, my God. She's someone I recognize. It's so crazy. And I was dancing right next to them, you know?
So hard to see how many of them there are.
RIPLEY: And it could have been you?
RIPLEY (voice-over): The music festival campsite, now a place where families come to grave.
Rockets in the sky, gunshots on the ground. All she could do was run. Many took cover in bathrooms, bomb shelters, ditches. Most of them ended up dead.
Four hours of running, exhausted, dehydrated.
SANANDAJI: I never thought that -- RIPLEY (voice-over): Natalie collapsed.
SANANDAJI: -- I would really just sit down and accept my fate.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Too tired to run as a truck came closer.
SANANDAJI: We had nowhere to run to. Like, where were we going to get up and run to?
Like, if this is a terrorist coming to kill us, like, that's it. Kind of like that one, you know?
RIPLEY (voice-over): The man behind the wheel, not a terrorist, from at nearby village. Natalie never got his name. She only tracked him down a few days ago. It's why she's come back, to thank him.
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They're about to meet for the first time since that day.
The man fighting back tears, Moshe Sati, an Israeli father of four, who left home and drove directly into danger, not once or twice, more than 10 trips to and from the music festival site.
MOSHE SATI, NOVA FESTIVAL RESCUER (through translator): Stop, this is too hard for me.
SANANDAJI (through translator): It's very nice to meet you.
SATI (through translator): Likewise. I said we are in it together. Come inside.
RIPLEY: You live so close to this but were you prepared fully for what you saw on October 7th?
SATI (through translator): Things like this you can't forget. I'll never forget what I saw. It's very, very tough.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Haunted by the horrors he saw, heartened by the lives he saved.
SANANDAJI: So many people were saved in this truck.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Natalie, one of well over 100 people he packed into his pickup and drove to safety.
SANANDAJI: Like, this truck saved so many lives. And like, it just looks like an average truck. Like, I stood right there in that corner. If it wasn't for him, I truly don't think I would have been here today.
RIPLEY (voice-over): One bright chapter on a very dark day.
RIPLEY: Natalie told us one reason she's sharing her story is she doesn't want people to forget that there is a human face to all of this. These young people who were killed on October 7th have been politicized.
And Natalie herself has been the target of pretty intense online hate as a result of sharing her story. She wants people to remember that civilians on both sides are dying and they have families. They have people who love them. And she says they need to be remembered -- Will Ripley, CNN, Tel Aviv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: To the Czech Republic now, where emotions continue to be obviously high as the country prepares to honor the victims of the deadliest peacetime mass shooting.
Live pictures to you from Prague, from a memorial service that was in Prague. The gunman killed 14 and wounded 25. An official day of mourning is underway with a nationwide minute of silence to be held at the top of the hour.
Bells across the country will set and toll for the victims. At the moment, some students are paying respects at the makeshift memorial.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD SMAHA, CHARLES UNIVERSITY STUDENT (through translator): I have come to express my sorrow over the disaster that happened here. It is something unexpected. Nothing like this has ever happened in Prague.
Moreover, the gunman probably went to our school so he thought it was appropriate to come here and express condolences to the victims and their families. Of course it is a shock. This is not America. Such things don't happen in Czechia. I think it is terrible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Police have released this body cam video. It shows officers searching the building where the gunman took his life after the attack. The gunman's name has not been released. Officials are urging the public not to spread information about him, fearing possible copycat attacks.
The jailed Russian opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, has been missing now for 18 days. His team says attempts to determine his whereabouts have been unsuccessful.
The unprecedented length of the former politician's absence has sparked concerns regarding his safety and wellbeing. The former Russian deputy energy minister, Vladimir Milov, who now serves as an adviser to Navalny, told me on Friday the timing of the disappearance is a message from President Putin.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VLADIMIR MILOV, ADVISER TO ALEXEI NAVALNY: It's a deliberate tactic. It is no coincidence that Navalny disappeared exactly the moment when the so-called sham presidential elections were announced. And Putin allows that he's going to be running again for -- sorry, I
lost count for which term already. Also many other repressive things are happening at the same time.
Putin is really willing to show that he's going to enter the Kremlin office for another term through intimidation, through repression, through pressure on the society. And that's clearly a blackmail against all the opposition forces.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: As you and I continue, it's a Christmas classic.
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QUEST (voice-over): The New York City Ballet is bringing back audiences for "The Nutcracker." And they're arriving in ever larger numbers.
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QUEST (voice-over): The "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy," of course, from "The Nutcracker," a Christmas classic. It is performed at the New York City Ballet. February will mark 70 years since it was first performed by the ballet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Now the dance company's been enjoying a post-pandemic revival. The seats are filled to nearly 80 percent capacity. I was joined by the executive director, Katherine Brown, to discuss how the New York City Ballet was able to make such a remarkable comeback after the pandemic.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATHERINE BROWN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NEW YORK CITY BALLET: We actually were fortunate enough to come into the COVID period and a really strong position. We have a fabulous board of directors and some very, very loyal and generous donors.
They really stuck with us through the COVID period and really hung in there with us, which was super, super helpful. And then, coming out of COVID, I do think it took a while for people to feel comfortable being in the company of others inside of a theater. It has been a bit of an evolution.
I think people have really realized what they have been missing and are really relishing being in a communal setting and enjoying performing arts again.
We also have our 70th anniversary that we're celebrating this year. That enabled us to really do some very special things this year. It's given us a lot of momentum and attention.
QUEST: This idea of cheaper tickets or more reasonable tickets for younger customers, this is an interesting one, isn't it?
It really goes to the heart of the idea of hook them young and they will stick with you forever.
BROWN: That's what we hope. That is for sure. You know, we have had a lot of success in marketing very specifically to that younger demographic. Of course, we do need them. We need them to keep coming and keep coming into the next generation.
[05:45:00]
So we have been very pleased to be able to reduce the percentage of -- sorry; increase the percentage of younger people in our audiences. It has been great.
QUEST: Do you sometimes think -- and I know that this can be so different -- the public funding, if you will, of the arts in, say, Europe, which you will be familiar with as well. Australasia where much more public grants are given across a wider range and less reliance, if you will, on private donors, as say, for example, in the U.S. system.
BROWN: Yes. That is a big difference between Europe and the United States. That is for sure.
We are very fortunate in New York to have a very, very strong philanthropic community and people who really do support arts and culture and other nonprofits, too. But it is definitely a challenge, a challenge all the time, every year. You start over from zero every year. There is a lot of money to raise to make all of this work.
So I would say that the up side, in a way, is that I know that other models in Europe, where there has been more public support but now it is kind of pulling back, that is a challenge, too, if you have really been reliant on one major source.
So we do have the advantage of having lots of different sources to draw from. So it is definitely, definitely challenging.
QUEST: The final thoughts as we come to this Christmas. What I find most enjoyable about this is that, in the TikTok era, in the short attention span, you are being so successful, using all the weapons that your disposal, if you will, in terms of social media. You are firing all your guns.
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BROWN: We try. We are trying to do that. I think that we start with such amazing assets, these beautiful dancers that we have, this incredible repertoire from the past. And we are committed to commissioning new work. So that is very exciting to be able to do.
We have a really fabulous orchestra of 62 members that are providing us with gorgeous live music. We are in a beautiful, beautiful theater on the Lincoln Center campus. So we have a lot going for us already and then just building on that.
And really trying to position the company in today's world to be the most successful it can be is really the goal.
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QUEST: The New York City Ballet.
Still ahead, Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes may have a new holiday title this season -- Santa. "CNN SPORT's" Carolyn Manno joins us next to look at the custom gifts he gave his offensive linemen.
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QUEST: Although the Nasdaq has had a very good year, tech stocks in China tanked on Friday after Beijing proposed new rules that would restrict spending and online gaming. The change would deal a blow to in-game purchases, one of the most lucrative parts of the industry.
It is part of a wider crackdown that's rattled China's tech sector. CNN's Marc Stewart in Beijing with this report.
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MARC STEWART, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Here in China, we've seen regulations on exactly how often young people can play video games, including how many hours and when. Now the government is looking to crack down even further.
According to a proposed draft, new regulations place restrictions and limits when it comes to the money changing hands in video games, for example. Something like rewards for logging in could be banned, as well as large tips to players, who livestream their games.
The government wants to reverse what it sees as a growing trend of game addiction among young people. Looking back to August of 2021, people under 18 were banned from playing video games during the week and could play for just three hours on most weekends. We've also seen the government clamp down on big businesses, such as
the tech sector. But there are some signs of a possible change in an effort to help the economy. And while young people may not be happy about this, some of the big gaming companies here in China saw very steep declines -- Marc Stewart, CNN, Beijing.
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QUEST: Now Florida State University's board of trustees has taken the first official steps toward eventually leaving the Atlantic Coast Conference. They claim, in their words, "draconian withdrawal penalties have trapped schools into the ACC." CNN's Carolyn Manno is live from New York.
It's going to be messy and expensive.
CAROLYN MANNO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: It certainly is going to be expensive. I mean, undefeated Florida State was controversially left out of the college football playoff after winning the ACC championship.
And on Friday, they made it clear that they do want to leave the conference. The board of trustees voted unanimously to file this lawsuit, challenging an agreement that binds the school to the league for the next 12 years, with more than $0.5 billion in fees for exiting.
FSU claims the ACC's long-term TV media deal is grossly undervalued and it puts the school at a disadvantage compared to rivals in the SEC and Big 10.
In the meantime it was revealed that the league had proactively filed its own lawsuit against Florida State's board of trustees on Thursday. The ACC claiming that FSU cannot challenge a binding agreement and that any ruling should be determined in North Carolina, where the conference headquarters are located.
Interesting story. Stay tuned to that space because a lot more there to come.
With Christmas just around the corner, Richard, Kansas City Chiefs' quarterback Patrick Mahomes, in the spirit of giving, like so many other athletes, rewarded the linemen that protect him with custom golf carts, complete with their names and jersey numbers.
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The big boys could not way to wait to take their new toys out for a spin in the package lot around the stadium.
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PATRICK MAHOMES, KANSAS CITY CHIEFS: I figured I'd give them something I enjoy and I think you all can see from some of the videos they enjoyed it. They're going around Arrowhead and I got a little nervous.
It's cool. I'm glad they enjoyed it. It's that part of the year and they do a lot for me. So I'm going to take care of them, as well.
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MANNO: Major bonus points inside the locker room for Mahomes. Safe to say that he approves of the love story between Travis Kelce and pop superstar Taylor Swift. Mahomes telling "CBS This Morning" how the team responded to the very public relationship.
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MAHOMES: For us there were jokes here and there at the beginning. Now she's part of the team. And it's cool that she's embraced Brittany and they've built a friendship as well.
So for me it's just -- it's Travis, man. He's lucky enough to be with a great girl and a great woman.
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MANNO: So the question is will Taylor spend Christmas Day in Kansas City when the Chiefs host the Raiders?
And golf carts are all well and good. But Taylor Swift is the gift that keeps on giving to the NFL. It's been quite a year.
QUEST: Hey. Let's not be mean about it or mean spirited. Giving to you, giving to me, Taylor Swift is a gift that is giving to the U.S. economy. Taylor Swift is just the gift.
Carolyn, have a lovely, peaceful.
That wraps up this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Richard Quest in London. If you are with me in North America, "CNN THIS MORNING" comes up next.
For those in the rest of the world, "AFRICAN VOICES: CHANGEMAKERS" follows because the news never stops and neither do we. This is CNN.
