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Connect the World
GM CEO: Tariffs will Cost Automaker up to $5 Billion in 2025; Netanyahu Calls Defeating Enemies "Supreme Objective" Not Freeing Hostages in Gaza War; Judge Releases Columbia Student Detained by Homeland Security; General Motors Cuts 2025 Forecast Amid Tariff Worries; 17-Year-Old Steals Spotlight in Barca's Thriller at Inter. Aired 9-9:45a ET
Aired May 01, 2025 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[09:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: Well, it is 09:00 a.m. in Washington, D.C. These are live pictures of the White House as this
morning, one of the biggest American auto makers sounds the alarm, putting a real price on the cost of Donald Trump's tariffs. It's 05:00 p.m. in Abu
Dhabi. I'm Becky Anderson. This is "Connect the World" from our Middle East programming hub.
Also coming up this hour, an historic economic partnership between U.S. and Ukraine as they sign a long-awaited minerals deal. Israel conducts a rare
strike outside Damascus amid growing sectarian violence in Syria. Well simmering tensions over Kashmir, India closes its air space to Pakistani
airlines in what is a reciprocal move.
More on that coming up. Last the stock market in New York opens about 30 minutes from now. Futures markets indicating a positive start to the day.
Shares in Microsoft on a clip in premarket trade after better-than-expected results after the bell on Wednesday. Met his chief, Mark Zuckerberg,
bullish on how his company will navigate this current uncertainty.
Big names out with earnings today, Amazon and Apple, both in focus for investors. Back there, of course, at 09:30. And while we wait for the
opening bell, the CEO of one of the big three U.S. auto makers is giving a blunt assessment of how the Trump tariffs will impact her company.
Mary Barra says they will cost GM between 4 and $5 billion this year. Here's what she told my colleague, Erin Burnett last hour.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARY BARRA, CEO OF GENERAL MOTORS: As it relates to the 4 to $5 billion, we -- those are -- there are many steps that we can take to offset. For
instance, we've already added more than 50,000 on an annualized basis. Our trucks that will be building in Fort Wayne, Indiana. And there's other
moves that we can make.
We already have a very U.S. centered supply base. Over 80 percent of the parts that go into our vehicles are already USMCA compliant, and the --
share of that is U.S. So, there's many steps that we can take to offset the 4 to 5 billion, but we wanted to be transparent and share it. That's the
impact right now?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, Mary Barra talking transparently to CNN a day after what was a startling GDP report showing the U.S. economy shrank in the first
quarter of this year. President Donald Trump blaming this downturn on his predecessor, Joe Biden, while acknowledging that Americans may need to
adjust their spending habits, as his tariffs take effect.
His trade deal still pending. It won't be long before the reality of higher prices kicks in. The last cargo boats carrying tariff free goods from China
are currently arriving in U.S. ports, but that all changes starting next week. Our Stephen Collinson in his latest analysis piece for CNN wrote, and
I quote, the GDP report more important for its political and symbolic effect than for its snapshot of a slowing economy.
Trump cannot afford for its flashing red lights to become conventional wisdom. Stephen joining me now. And it was interesting to hear from the GM
CEO today about the actual bottom-line costs of these tariffs. Just how big a deal is this for the president and his economic team at this point?
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: I think what we're seeing, Becky, right now are a number of moments when the fantasy of Trump's belief
in tariffs as the golden ticket to revive an economy come into clash with reality. The GM Head that you were talking about the impact on their
business we had Ford on CNN.
The Head of Ford yesterday talking about how he couldn't guarantee the prices of cars and trucks wouldn't shoot up for Americans. Earlier this
week, there was a story that has since been denied, that Amazon was thinking about putting an itemizing line on the cart on their websites when
you buy a product, to show consumers just how much extra the price was because of tariffs.
The White House reacted very angrily to that, saying it was a hostile and political act. And yesterday, Donald Trump talking about how Americans may,
be able to get fewer toys for their kids, and they'd cost more.
[09:05:00]
So, all of this is the reality beginning to bite it's going to be an increasingly difficult political problem for the president. And I think
that is one reason why the White House is increasingly desperate for some of these vaunted trade deals that they say are coming down the pipe from
countries who supposedly are desperate to give massive concessions to Trump to avoid tariffs. They really need some of these deals to come to fruition.
ANDERSON: Yeah, and we've heard 200 deals, and we heard less, I think, Bessent talking about the potential for 17 deals. Ultimately, it comes down
to, we're close to a deal with India, possibly South Korea and Japan at this point. President Trump doubling down on his tariff policy last night.
Acknowledging that it will be painful, he continued to voice optimism that these deals will get done, Stephen. This was all during a call-in Town Hall
last night with News Nation. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I could set those deals tomorrow and do away with negotiating, but we're negotiating with
South Korea, we're negotiating with Japan, we're negotiating with a lot of different, many, many, India is a very big they want to make a deal so bad.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.
TRUMP: I'm not telling anything at a school. We're going to make great deals for America instead of bad.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Just explain where he's at with this.
COLLINSON: Well, I think the answer to his statement that I could get great deals tomorrow is then why? Where are the deals? If you listen to what
investors are saying on Wall Street, they want to know where the deals are and what's in them. And I think one of the problems here is that this isn't
happening in isolation.
When a country tries to do a trade deal with another country that involves concessions and politically difficult decisions. It's not, you know, easy.
It's not that they just want to come and give America a great deal and they're prepared to hurt their own economy. Japan and South Korea both have
elections coming up in the next few months.
That's going to sharpen the dilemma of the leaders of those two countries. I think there's also big questions about just what will be in those deals.
If you look at Trump's trade deals of the first term, the North America trade deal redo and his deal with China, both of those deals were
exceedingly limited, although the White House Trump had them, as you know, massive deals, the greatest trade deals that have ever been done.
And I think there's precedent perhaps, for expecting that some of the deals that Trump does get done are going to be a little less impressive. And that
is important, because the damage that's being done to the economy through tariffs. Is it really going to be recouped by a series of trade deals?
Are they really going to reshape the global trading economy and make, you know, the return of U.S. manufacturing more likely?
ANDERSON: Yeah, less bigly than perhaps he might have hoped, or the American public might have hoped. Look, we will continue to cover this, of
course. And it's always good to have you with your insight and analysis, Stephen. And do read Stephen's analysis on CNN Digital.
It is -- you can get that either@cnn.com on your laptop or, of course, on your CNN app. Right, the U.S. President has got his long-awaited Natural
Resources deal with Ukraine over the line. Washington and Kyiv have signed an agreement that will give the U.S. access to Ukraine's rare earth
minerals.
In return, the U.S. will contribute to an investment fund in Ukraine, which will help pay for the country's post war reconstruction. As CNN's Nick
Paton Walsh tells us it took months of tense negotiations to get here.
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Becky, it's important to remember that Kyiv didn't really have much choice but to
sign this document. The idea of rare earth mineral investment was theirs, originally sold to the Biden Administration latched on to by President
Donald Trump and a thorn really, in their side.
Initial versions similar to this, in terms of proposing the nature of the relationship and this investment fund for Ukrainian reconstruction. I think
now we've ended up with a document with a little bit more teeth and technical detail. But you have to remember, Becky, this isn't going to
suddenly mean overnight billions pouring into American coffers.
It's a long-term relationship by design, and one likely to be implemented with different administrations in both Kyiv and Washington in the years or
decades ahead.
[09:10:00]
They may have very different ideas about how this relationship should indeed function. And then there's a larger question, too, of exactly how
Ukraine can get at its natural resources, how valuable they are, and how long it needs peace to be able to get that kind of investment and huge.
ANDERSON: All right, I think -- we may have just lost Nick's microphone. Get where he was at. Let's stay on this. CNN's National Security Reporter
Zachary Cohen joining us now. He's been across this story since these negotiations started. And you know, to a degree you could talk this up as
certainly as a win for the U.S. Trump Administration.
What do you make of the details and language of this deal? You know -- I know that you've seen the details now. And the language certainly looks
more supportive of Ukraine than many people might have expected that.
ZACHARY COHEN, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yeah, Becky, absolutely. I think that this deal is certainly more favorable to the Ukrainians in some
of the previous drafts that we've seen. And look that's reflected in how the Ukrainians are talking about this agreement after the fact, right?
They call it a quote, equal partnership between Kyiv and Washington, which signals -- we've come a long way since that shouting match in the oval
office back in February when the two sides could not come to or find common ground and reach an agreement on this rare earth mineral deal.
And look this, it remains to be seen how this will impact the relationship between Kyiv and the Trump Administration going forward, but Treasury
Secretary Scott Bessent making clear that this deal is a signal to Russia about the Trump Administration's intent to provide and support Ukraine
going forward.
That's really the key part of this agreement, is that it's really forward looking. It seems Ukrainians have been able to talk the Trump
Administration out of forcing them to reimburse for the military aid that they've already provided. Instead, this is going to incorporate military
aid into future investment opportunities as part of this investment fund that the deal sets up.
So, the details are still a little bit murky, though, as Nick was saying that it's not really clear how this partnership will look in real time or
in the future. It will take a long time for this to really, you know, bear fruit, if you will, for the Trump Administration. But ultimately, both
sides holding it up as a win and potentially something that could change the course of what has been a tense relationship between Kyiv and
Washington today.
ANDERSON: Yeah. Thank you very much indeed for that. And no response as of yet from Moscow, the language, though, from the Trump team, it has to be
said, notably harsher on Russia in this than in the past. Certainly significant, whether the consequences of that are that this team and Donald
Trump, very specifically, is going to toughen his stance on Russia as he seeks an end to this conflict.
Not clear as of yet. Good to have you, Zachary, thank you. Turn into the war in Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister -- Benjamin Netanyahu says that
defeating Israel's enemies is more than important than securing the release of the remaining hostages. Meantime, the source tells CNN he will meet with
senior defense officials tomorrow as he prepares to expand operations inside Gaza.
CNN's Jeremy Diamond is in Tel Aviv. And Jeremy, what more do we know of the prime minister's plans at this point?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the Israeli Prime Minister made some very significant comments today during remarks which came on
Independence Day in Israel, of all days, the Israeli Prime Minister making clear that he believes that defeating Israel's enemies is the, quote,
supreme objective of Israel's war in Gaza.
And effectively making clear that he believes that securing the release of the hostages comes secondary to that. The prime minister said that
returning the hostages is a, quote, very important goal. But then he said this, there is in war, there is a supreme objective, and that supreme
objective is victory over our enemies, and that is what we will achieve, he said.
This is the first time that the Israeli Prime Minister has made clear that he believes the defeat of Israel's enemies, in this case, Hamas, is more
important than securing the release of the hostages. Previously, he has described both of those goals, as the goals of the war, as the top
priorities of the war, but this is the first time that we have seen him -- rank them as such.
And it drew quite a backlash already from the representatives of the hostage families, the hostage Family Forum saying in a statement that the
return of the hostages is not less important, but in fact, that it is that which should be the supreme goal guiding the Israeli government in this
moment.
[09:15:00]
And they also rightly note that that's how the majority of the Israeli public feel. As we have seen multiple public opinion surveys indicating
that the overwhelming majority of the Israeli public. 70 percent according to one poll, believe that Israel should strike a deal to end the war and to
secure the release of all the remaining hostages.
Instead, these comments by the Israeli Prime Minister, put him in the same camp as the Right-wing Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who said last
week, made very similar comments last week, saying that returning the hostages is important, but again, that it is not the most important goal of
the war, according to him.
And all of this comes as the Israeli Prime Minister tomorrow will sit down with security officials to discuss expanding Israel's war in Gaza. We have
heard talk of this for some time now, a pressure tactic by Israel that it is leveraging at the negotiating table with Hamas, but now, with security
consultations underway, a very real possibility that Israel could be expanding its ground war inside of Gaza.
ANDERSON: Thank you, Jeremy. It's important to understand what is going on there and what the prime minister actually means when he talks about
expanding that war. I know you'll do a lot more on that for us. Meantime, Israel also carrying out a strike outside Syria's capital, Damascus, why?
DIAMOND: Why is a good question, Becky. We have seen the Israeli military carry out strikes in Syria effectively since, you know, the Syrian, former
Syrian regime was toppled the this is a rare strike, though, because it came very close to the Syrian capital of Damascus, killing at least one
security officer, according to sources on the ground.
The Israeli military said it was targeting an extremist group that had attacked the Syrian Druze community in Syria. And Israeli officials
describing this as a quote warning action. Israel has of late really contextualized a lot of its military activity in Syria in the context of
protecting the Druze religious minority inside of Syria.
We have also seen Syrian Druze leaders come over to Israel for the second time, just this past weekend, since the Syrian revolution occurred. And we
see that Israel is clearly staking out a position as being the protector of that minority religious community inside of Syria. But it's clear that
Israel is also interested in much more than that.
We know that the Israeli military has already established a significant security zone outside of its borders, inside of Syria, where it has several
military positions and is conducting patrols. Israel does not view this new Syrian government as an ally, and is viewing it quite cautiously, in fact,
with Israeli officials referring repeatedly to Syria's President as a jihadist, noting his former affiliation with Islamist movements.
So, it's clear that Israel has a number of interests inside of Syria. And today, when we heard one of the Syrian Druze leaders calling for immediate
intervention of international peace keeping forces, it's clear that he's also talking about Israel, certainly something that Israel could use as a
pretext to expand its military operations inside of Syria.
But for now, it does not seem that we are quite at that point yet, as discussions are underway between the Syrian Druze community and the Syrian
government to try and reach a resolution to recent clashes and contentious activities inside of Syria, Becky.
ANDERSON: Good to have you, Jeremy. Thank you. Jeremy is in Tel Aviv for the time is 18 minutes past 4, 18 minutes past 5 from our Middle East
programming headquarters here in Abu Dhabi. I'm Becky Anderson. Still to come the U.S. and China urging India and Pakistan to de-escalate tensions
after a massacre in Kashmir. We will look at how the decades long conflict began.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:20:00]
ANDERSON: Welcome back. I'm Becky Anderson, wherever you are watching, you are more than welcome. India has shot its air space to Pakistan's airlines,
as tensions saw over what was that recent massacre in Kashmir. India's move comes after Pakistan close its air space to Indian Airlines last week.
Now the two countries have engaged in what is this tit for tat hostility, after the killing of 26 tourists in Indian administer Kashmir last month.
India accuses Pakistan of being involved in that attack, a claim that Pakistan denies. Well, both U.S. and China now urging the two governments
to de-escalate tensions.
This is just the latest flare up in what is a decades old conflict over Kashmir. CNN's Ryan Young explains why it is such a dangerous flash point.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For nearly 80 years, the disputed region of Kashmir has been at the center of conflict
between India and Pakistan. After the British partition the Indian sub- continent into the nations of India and Pakistan, several princely states and kingdoms remain independent, including Kashmir.
Ultimately, the Hindu ruler of the Muslim majority region, decided to join India, sparking the first war between India and Pakistan, which killed
thousands before an easy stalemate was established. Another war over Kashmir sparked up in 1965. And the two powers went to war again in 1971
which led to the breakup of Pakistan and independent Bangladesh on India's eastern flank.
Following the last war, the two sides officially established the Line of Control. The border separating the Indian control part of Kashmir from the
Pakistani control side. India and Pakistan claim the entire region. India controls around 45 percent, Pakistan about 35 percent and China controls
the rest.
Decades ago, both sides agreed to a referendum to allow the people of Kashmir to decide which country to join, but the vote has never been held,
while outright war has been avoided for decades, the region has seen numerous border clashes. And in 1989 Kashmiri militants begin an insurgency
against India that has lasted to this day.
India has accused Pakistan of training and arming the militants, a claim Pakistan has repeatedly denied. The resulting conflict has killed tens of
thousands of people, most of them civilians. Tensions again escalated between India and Pakistan following militant attacks in 2016 and 2019.
Both times, the nuclear powers were able to de-escalate the conflict before all-out war broke out. Ryan Young, CNN, Atlanta, Georgia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: And we'll get you the very latest on what we know about Pakistan's intelligence. My interview with one of Pakistan senior officials
in just an hour from now that is on the second hour here of "Connect the World" today. And tomorrow, I'm going to get you the Indian perspective
with the Senior Advisor to the Indian Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
So do join us for that. Meantime, this hour in Vermont, say judge released a Columbia University student on bond on Wednesday, Mohsen Mahdawi had been
detained more than two weeks ago. His legal team say that Homeland Security agents took him right after a naturalization appointment where he had taken
the oath to become a U.S. citizen.
[09:25:00]
Well CNN's Polo Sandoval has been following the story and he joins me now. He is among, of course, the first foreign students released by court order
since what has been this slew of arrests started, correct, Polo?
POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And Becky, that's why this case is so important and so critical to watch the immigration case against the --
because ultimately, it is a critical test for the Trump Administration and its ongoing efforts to specifically target foreign born students studying
in the United States who have previously been vocal and have supported pro- Palestinian causes, which is exactly the case here at Mahdawi, who was very active on Columbia University.
The United States government seeing him essentially as a threat to national security. His attorneys, however, saying that his attention just over two
weeks ago was not only unconstitutional, but was retaliatory because of his ongoing support for pro-Palestinian causes there on campus.
This was him as soon as a federal judge granted him bond at a Burlington Vermont courthouse yesterday afternoon. Want you to listen in as he
addressed some of his supporters just moments after being released from detention.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MOHSEN MAHDAWI, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY STUDENT: We say no to the war, no to the killing of innocent people, no to the funding of the genocide.
Basically, that threat is saying no to their policy, which is a policy that is a pro war and against peace, anti-peace. Keep in mind that, yes, you
might think I am free, but my freedom is interlinked to the freedom of many other students, including Rumeysa Ozturk and Mahmoud Khalil.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Polo, thank you for that. Well, Wall Street opens for business in just a few minutes. Big focus on Big Tech with four of the so called
Magnificent Seven reporting earnings this week, more on that is after this. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Right. We are just about to hear the opening bell on Wall Street. It's employees from Core today bringing in the trading day.
[09:30:00]
Futures were indicating quite a strong opening, it has to be said, after a mixed close on Wednesday, we will let these markets settle. Those are not
the live markets. Just let those settle for a moment. That was the close yesterday that we're showing at the moment. We'll let those settle,
expecting to see a higher open today.
We've got a lot of interest in what is going on in Big Tech at present. We've also had some numbers out of GM and in fact, some interesting
thoughts from their CEO, which we want to pick apart because we are nearing the end of a critical week on Wall Street, and after a slew of new economic
data and reporting today is Big Tech moving these markets right, they are now.
Let's have a look at them. You can see the NASDAQ there up some 2 percent and this is the reason why. And we're going to talk Big Tech S&P up over 1
the DOW up about a half of 1 percent. 4 of the 7 tech giants reporting earnings this week. Numbers released Wednesday by Microsoft Meta show both
companies beating expectations.
And Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, calling it a strong start to an important year. And we're awaiting reports from both Apple and Amazon after the bell
today. So those will be moving markets one way or the other, depending what those earnings are tomorrow. Let's discuss all of this with Carsten
Brzeski.
He's the Global Head of Macro for ING Research. Good to have you, sir. Strong tech earnings from Meta and Microsoft, driving markets higher,
certainly the NASDAQ higher today. What do you make of not just the numbers, but what the companies are saying about business going forward?
CARSTEN BRZESKI, GLOBAL HEAD OF MACRO FOR ING RESEARCH: I think first of all, these numbers, of course, are for the first quarter. And the first
quarter was without hardly any terrors, Liberation Day only came in April. So, I think this shows us, for the first quarter that the global economy
was still actually in a good shape, and was hoping for a good year of strong growth.
So, I think that is what the numbers are showing us. Looking further ahead into this year. I think really the tech companies, know analysts, really
know where the economies are heading to, because there will be the tariffs uncertainty, but there is also, when you look that the U.S. economy has
already been in contraction, might slow down, might continue to be weak for the rest of the year.
Europe is also still in a weak shape. So, the outlook for tech companies, but for markets in general, is still a tricky one.
ANDERSON: I'm just looking at the numbers as you speak. We've got Microsoft up 10 percent out of the gate. Meta up as high as about 7 now down to about
5.5 there, or there abouts Amazon up some 3 percent that's been a company that's been in focus, hasn't it? How are you reading?
How companies are very specifically couching their language when it comes to where they are at now, and where they forecast business to be going
forward. I mean, this is clearly the U.S. President in the back of the mind of some of these CEOs as they talk about business and the bottom line,
isn't it?
BRZESKI: Not clearly, but I think we also since Liberation Day, we've heard so many CEOs of multinationals really talking about how harmful tariffs can
be for the U.S. economy and for the global economy, and also when they are harmful for the global economy. This also has clear repercussion stand for
global businesses.
So, but given this uncertainty, and now given that there are, I would say first signs that there might be some trade deals, that there might be a bit
of a normalization when it comes to traverse terrors. I think this really shows us also where positive market sentiment currently is coming from.
ANDERSON: Let's bring up the GM numbers, if we can. I'm just speaking to my producer here, as you and I talk GM, one of the three big U.S. auto makers
not even releasing earnings. But again, when I listened to an interview that Erin Burnett did with Mary Barra, who is the CEO.
Whilst acknowledging real uncertainty, and clearly that line behind, and she admitted that line behind the fact that GM didn't release these
numbers. Still trying to wrap the future in a slightly rosier fashion, as did Ford this week, to a degree, trying to stay on the right side of Donald
Trump?
[09:35:00]
BRZESKI: I think when you look at the -- automotive sector in general -- there are clearly tariffs -- these are had been effective. I think the only
we know since that this week that there won't be any doubling of tariffs on cars and car parts, plus steel aluminum. So, it's only the 25 percent which
also means, then, even if you're produced in the U.S. and if you start importing car parts, this is still going to push up costs and eventually
also prices for consumers.
So, this study shows us that this sector will be under pressure, and it is a sector which is globally under pressure, because competition has become
fiercer. Competition out of China has become fiercer in the global auto motives market.
ANDERSON: Fascinating. We've got GM down about a half 1 percent, Ford up just shy of 1 percent as we speak, the markets been open about five
minutes. Good to have you, sir, always a pleasure. Eric Trump was in Dubai this week touting crypto and slamming the traditional banking system was
quote broken.
This was at the token 2049 conference. U.S. President -- and CEO of the president's family business looking to boost ties with the UAE's
flourishing crypto digital assets industry. Eric Trump also announced a $1 billion real estate project. He said buyers will be able to pay in crypto
for units in the future Trump Tower in Dubai.
The Trump organization also signed a deal this week to expand its Golf Club in Qatar. Now U.S. President of course, set to visit Saudi Arabia, the UAE
in Qatar about two weeks from now. You are watching, "Connect the World" with me Becky Anderson, be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Well, this week, we've been spotlighting pioneers, business, sport, and the arts, in what is our new CNN series, "Visionaries". One
trait that they all have in common is a willingness to take big risks. Nigerian Media Boss Mo Abudu has made history with major Hollywood studios,
but it's not a career path she began until quite late in life. CNN's Larry Madowo has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MO ABUDU, CEO OF EBONYLIFE GROUP: Lot of the time we're confronted with the Western medias view of who we are as Africans, who we are as black people,
you know, and the roles that we were being given in these films. We have to tell our own stories. We have that responsibility to tell them.
LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: But you didn't go into storytelling straight away.
ABUDU: No, I didn't.
MADOWO: Your entire career.
ABUDU: I had a completely different career. I mean, I was working corporate 9 to 5 at ExxonMobil for many years. And even before I left England, I was
working in HR, went back to Nigeria, worked in HR, and did that for about 10 years, and then I woke up at age 40, and I said, I'm done.
[09:40:00]
And everybody thought, literally, I was having a meltdown. You're turning 40. You know mid-life crisis.
MADOWO (voice-over): If this is a mid-life crisis, sign me up. Because Mo didn't just change careers. She'd go on to create a media empire.
ABUDU: At that time, about 20 years ago, from now looking back, then, there wasn't really this first as much for local content, even when I started my
talk to women's with more, when I went to DS TV and I said I would like to do a talk show, they pretty much turned around and said to me, but we've
got a number of talk shows on our channel.
We've got "The Oprah Winfrey Show". We've got "The Ellen DeGeneres". We've got "The Tyra Banks Show" at the time. And I'm like, this is all great, but
what happens to us telling our stories? What happens to us, showcasing, celebrating our people? Oh, that's a good point you have. So, they gave me
a spot on the basis that I could go find the money to pay for the show.
MADOWO (voice-over): Mo raised the funds.
ABUDU: And welcome back.
MADOWO (voice-over): And in 2006 she premiered Africa's first syndicated talk show "Moments with Mo".
MADOWO: How does a successful HR professional decide at 40 that I'm going to start a talk show broadcast all over Africa?
ABUDU: Yeah, yeah. How -- it was scary. It was scary. I was so afraid of failing. But I think when you're afraid of failing, I think what drives you
is make sure that you have ticked all the necessary boxes to ensure that failure isn't an option.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: And you can see more from Larry's interview with Mo on "Visionaries" premier this weekend. Do give that a watch. Right, did you
watch it? If you did, you saw a teenage star carry his team on his shoulders to help Barcelona bounce back? Big time.
The 17-year-old showing the rest how it's done, stealing the show in Milan last night. Amanda Davies joining me now. He is nothing less than a phenom
for Barcelona.
AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yeah, if people didn't know his name and hadn't heard about his journey when, as a 16-year-old, still doing his
exams, he helped lead his country Spain to that European Championship success last summer. Well, last night was the night everybody sat up and
take notice. The comparisons being made to Lionel Messi to Cristiano Ronaldo.
He's been labeled a genius by his coach, Hansi Flick. I was lucky enough to speak to him in Dubai, actually, in December.
ANDERSON: Yeah.
DAVIES: And people were so blown away by his incredible maturity. The head that he's got on those shoulders, enabling to do him to do what he's doing
with his feet. And we are talking about him plenty more in "World Sport" in a couple of minutes. But no doubt, for months, weeks, years to come, Becky.
ANDERSON: Amazing. Yes, let's get used to it. Amanda, always good to have you. "World Sport" up after this. I'll be back in 15 minutes time with the
second hour of "Connect the World".
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:45:00]
(WORLD SPORT)
END
