Return to Transcripts main page
Isa Soares Tonight
Deadly 7.4 Magnitude Earthquake Hits Taiwan; U.N. Suspends Nighttime Aid Movements In Gaza; Ugandan Court Upholds Anti-LGBTQ Act; To Provide Ukraine With Sustained Support, NATO Looks Into Several Options; Taiwan's Deadly 7.4 Magnitude Earthquake; Musicians Issue Warning On AI Tech; Disney's Boardroom Battle, A Bust for Challenger Nelson Peltz; 2024 Total Solar Eclipse. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired April 03, 2024 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:38]
ZAIN ASHER, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: All right, a very warm welcome to all of you, I am Zain Asher in for my colleague, Isa Soares. Tonight, rescuers
scramble through the rubble in Taiwan after a deadly earthquake, the strongest to hit the island in 25 years. We will have the very latest for
you on that front.
Then more suffering for people in Gaza, the U.N. suspends aid movements at night for at least 48 hours to assess security concerns after seven World
Central Kitchen aid workers were killed earlier this week.
Plus, the music industry taking a stand, more than 200 artists lash out against what they call threats posed by artificial intelligence. That and
so much more coming up here. All right, we are keeping a close watch on a desperate situation in Taiwan as rescue workers try to free people trapped
after a massive earthquake while dozens of aftershocks are hitting the island right now.
Authorities say that at least nine people have been killed, more than 900 others injured. The quake struck during the morning commute, it was about
8:00 in the morning, drivers on bridges and highways had to stop while their cars essentially shook.
The 7.4 earthquake also toppled buildings and triggered this landslide on the island's eastern coast. CNN's Hanako Montgomery has the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Morning commuters in Taiwan shaken by strong tremors. Drivers stopped on highways and bridges.
Live broadcast interrupted and people ducking for cover as the 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck the island around 8:00 a.m. Wednesday.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): All the things fell off, everything damaged.
MONTGOMERY: It was the strongest earthquake to hit the island in 25 years. Taiwan's weather agency says.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): It was very strong. It felt as if the house was going to topple.
MONTGOMERY: It prompted tsunami warnings in Taiwan, Japan and the Philippines, which were later lifted. Its epicenter near the tourist city
of Hualien on the island's eastern coast. Social media video shows the moment it triggered a massive landslide with dust cloud swallowing a road.
This multi-story building partially collapsing as scooters and motorbikes watch from a distance. Around 100 buildings have been damaged, rescuers
racing to save people trapped, including dozens in tunnels blocked by debris.
Wednesday's quake is the strongest to hit Taiwan since 1999, when a powerful 7.7 magnitude quake struck, killing more than 2,000 people.
Authorities said Wednesday, the military has been deployed to help with the aftermath. President Tsai has asked her administration to work with local
governments on assistance.
TSAI ING-WEN, PRESIDENT, TAIWAN (through translator): I would like to ask you to continue to pay close attention to the situation in various places
and initiate various contingency measures to protect the safety of the people.
MONTGOMERY: Many now find themselves in darkness, navigating the ruins of their homes and bracing for the relentless aftershocks.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: And Hanako Montgomery joins us live now from Tokyo. Hanako, even for an island nation that is somewhat used to this sort of thing, somewhat used
to seismic activity, and actually quite well prepared for them. This was still a very frightening experience.
MONTGOMERY: Yes, Zain, exactly. I mean, this was like you said a very shocking experience for people in Taiwan. Of course, the island is quite
well prepared for natural disasters like this. They have a pretty good public education system about earthquakes. They also have a very good
seismological agency, and also building codes that have been revised since that very powerful earthquake that shook the island back in 1999.
So, again, you know, Taiwan is quite well-prepared for natural disasters of this magnitude, but still we're seeing that at least nine people were
killed, more than 900 also injured because of just how powerful this earthquake and the subsequent aftershocks were, Zain.
[14:05:00]
ASHER: All right, Hanako Montgomery live for us there, thank you so much. With more on the science of earthquakes, Susan Hough joins us, she's a
geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey. Susan, thank you so much for being with us. First of all, your thoughts on what just happened in Taiwan,
the strongest earthquake to hit in 25 years since 1999.
And also, we're seeing so many aftershocks. Aftershocks essentially happening every few minutes throughout the day. Give us your thoughts on
what occurred here.
SUSAN HOUGH, GEOPHYSICIST, U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY: Well, unfortunately, Taiwan is one of the places on earth that we know is earthquake prone. It's
sitting on a complicated but very active plate boundary. The whole country of Taiwan is basically there because of the active geologic processes that
have been going on.
So, we know these earthquakes are going to happen. We know there's going to be very large ones, and they catch people off guard because they don't
happen, thankfully, every day. An earthquake like this, the last large one was 25 years ago. Well, that's a long time on a human timescale.
There's a lot of people in Taiwan who either weren't alive or don't even remember that. So, nobody is really prepared I think for an earthquake of
this magnitude to strike.
ASHER: As you point out, you know, yes, it doesn't happen every day, but you know, they are somewhat used to this. It's not their first rodeo, but
just in terms of the quake response system, the quake response system as I understand it in Taiwan has served as a model for other places. It is
stellar. But what happened here, even stretched their response system essentially.
The response system that Taiwan has was very much stretched by what we saw unfold in Taiwan.
HOUGH: Yes, and not just speaks to the size of the earthquake. It was located on shore. You know, if an earthquake is offshore, that gets a
little bit of distance between the fault that's moving and where people live. But this was the worst-case, you actually had the fault breaking
close to population centers -- I'm going to say it wrong.
Well, when city is quite large as 350,000 people that were exposed to what we call intensity 8 shaking. It's a level of shaking that will cause damage
potentially even to ordinary well-built structures. So, they were just hit by a very large earthquake, and you know, that's going to stretch even a
prepared country.
ASHER: A lot of places that I used to -- earthquakes do have early warning systems. Does Taiwan have early warning systems and do they use them as
best as they could have in anticipation of this earthquake?
HOUGH: I imagined they did. I don't want to speak too much to that because the expert in Taiwan are going to be looking at the system and the
performance and understanding what worked and what didn't. An earthquake -- the last time they had an earthquake like this, they didn't have the --
system in place.
So, every earthquake like this is -- they learn a lot about what worked and maybe what needed to be improved.
ASHER: What you're seeing here in terms of the death toll, nine people confirmed dead, almost just under a 1,000 people injured. What was it -- I
mean, obviously, nine people, you know, obvious, tragic, it doesn't matter how many people passed away. Nine people certainly tragic. But what was it
that has prevented the death toll from being greater than it actually is.
I mean, I know that some people are trapped, the death toll could of course rise at this point in time. But is it because the buildings are so quake
proof?
HOUGH: Yes, the death toll really does speak to the level of preparedness in Taiwan, and you know, it's something we see in other countries that are
well-prepared for earthquakes that you may have a lot of property damage.
But you -- the death toll may be in the tens or hundreds, which as you say, you know, those deaths are tragic. But if you put a similar earthquake in a
place that isn't well-prepared, the death toll could be so much worse, thousands, tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands.
The 2010 Haiti earthquake was smaller, it was 7.0, and that had just a horrific impact because that country is not prepared for earthquakes.
ASHER: All right, Susan Hough, live for us there, thank you so much, appreciate you being with us. All right, it is yet another blow to
Palestinians on the brink of famine. The U.N.'s relief organization has just suspended night-time deliveries of aid in Gaza for at least 48 hours.
It is evaluating security conditions after seven charity workers were killed in Israeli strike. World Central Kitchen has now identified all of
the victims, one Palestinian and six foreigners saying they are not nameless or faceless or collateral damage of war.
[14:10:00]
CNN has geo-located a video from Monday's attacks, finding that there were repeated strikes, repeated strikes on the aid convoy despite prior
coordination with the IDF. WCK Founder Jose Andres just told "Reuters" that Israel targeted them, quote, "systematically car-by-car".
Israel's military has apologized, saying that it was a mistake that followed a misidentification. White House says that President Joe Biden is
outraged, but still supports Israel's war.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
JOHN KIRBY, NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL COORDINATOR FOR STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS: While we make no bones about the fact that we have certain
issues about some of the way things are being done. We also make no bones about the fact that Israel is going to continue to have American support
for the fight that they're in to eliminate the threat from Hamas.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
ASHER: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing a storm of international criticism over that attack. But also criticism at home as
well over his government's failure to bring back all remaining hostages in Gaza. The hostages' family members disrupted parliament today, disrupted
the Knesset today, storming the public gallery.
Let's get more now from CNN's Jeremy Diamond in Jerusalem and Natasha Bertrand at the Pentagon. Jeremy, let me start with you, because I do want
to talk about Jose Andres' interview with "Reuters", where he essentially said that Israel systematically targeted car-by-car, systematically
targeted these aid workers.
And we do know that there were multiple strikes, repeated strikes on the aid convoy. Just walk us through, A, what Israel has said about this, and
also just in terms of the fact that Israel is already on thin ice when it comes to international trust, right? So, how will this and the outrage
we're seeing around the world because of these attacks, how will this change their strategy going forward? What are they going to do differently
from this point onwards?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, certainly, to begin with Jose Andres' comments, I mean, his comments are supported by the evidence
that we have seen ourselves on the ground from video of these three vehicles that were struck by the Israeli military over a distance of about
1.5 miles is what separates the first vehicle from the third vehicle that were struck.
The -- all of them indicating a precision-guided strikes likely carried out by drones, likely with full surveillance giving the Israeli military
visibility into the strikes that they were carrying out, according to one arms' expert who we spoke with. And so, when Jose Andres saying here that
the Israeli military systematically targeted these vehicles, and also noting that this was not just a quote, "bad luck situation".
He is certainly speaking from the point of view of the evidence that we have seen of what these strikes actually were. Now, what is also clear is
that the Israeli military, that the Israeli government recognize what an enormous error as they are characterizing it.
This was the Israeli military's top General Herzi Halevi; the Chief of Staff of the Israeli military, calling this a grave mistake and actually
issuing a rare public apology on the Israeli military's behalf. The Israeli Prime Minister himself also acknowledging what happens here, and that's
because of the international uproar of this situation, because of the fact that so many of those killed were foreigners.
But we should not of course, lose the fact that so many other aid workers in Gaza, Palestinians have been killed over the course of this nearly six
months of this war. In fact, according to an organization that tracks these matters, more aid workers have been killed in Gaza in the past six months
than in any other conflict annually over the last 20 years, 190 different humanitarian aid workers killed in Gaza since October 7th.
And so, the question, as you just ask of what will the Israeli military do differently going forward? They say that they're establishing a joint
command center to coordinate the delivery of aid in Gaza to de-conflict with Israeli military operations. That of course, is something that
humanitarian aid organizations have been saying for months now, has been an enormous issue, an enormous impediment to the distribution of aid.
And of course, making the jobs of these aid workers so much more dangerous. And so, it's of course, important to keep in mind that the dangers that
these aid workers face, that the deaths of these aid workers yesterday is intrinsically tied to the fact that not enough aid is getting into Gaza,
that this job is so dangerous, and it is so needed at this time because of the fact that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians at this moment are
staring down the possibility of famine facing massive food insecurity already.
ASHER: And Jeremy, I've just been told by our producers that we actually do have the sound-bite, we just got the sound-bite of Jose Andres' interview
with "Reuters". I just want to roll it.
[14:15:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSE ANDRES, FOUNDER, WORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN: They were targeted systematically car-by-car. They attacked the first car. We were still
trying to get all the information on what happened on the first car, we have a feeling they were able to escape safely because it was an armor
vehicle.
They were able to move in the second one, again, this one was hit, they were able to move in the third one, in the process, we know they were
trying to call, but in the chaos of the moment, whatever happened, they tried to be -- telling IDF that why are they doing that? They were
targeting us in a deconflicted zone in an area controlled by IDF.
They knowing that was our teams moving on that route with two armor -- with three cars. And then they hit the third one and then we saw the
consequences of that continuous targeted attack. Seven people dead, but there are seven on top of at least, more than -- I know there are 190
humanitarian workers that they've been killed over the last six months.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Yes, and that point is an important one. The fact that this is not an isolated incident. And Netanyahu said in a statement yesterday that this
sort of thing happens in war. But Jose Andres saying, you know, these workers shouldn't be collateral damage. I do want to bring in Natasha
Bertrand, standing by for us.
So, it's interesting, Natasha, because President Biden says that he is outraged by what happened here to the World Central Kitchen aid workers. He
also has said repeatedly that he doesn't believe that Israel is doing enough to protect humanitarian workers. But at the same time, he's also
approving or pressing Congress rather to approve an $18 billion worth of sale in terms of F-15 fighter jets to Israel as well. How -- what's the
reaction to that? The fact that he's trying to sort of play both sides of this?
NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and it's really hard to kind of square that circle and the State Department's spokesperson
was pressed on this very thing just a few moments ago, the -- you know, the question of, well, you are saying that Israel essentially is not conducting
the war in a way that you would deem acceptable in terms of the level of civilian casualties, in terms of the amount of humanitarian aid that is
getting in, or I should say, not getting in.
And yet, you continue to make decisions to approve these massive military sales to the Israelis, is that going to stop? And the response was
essentially, it is not going to stop because we have made an investment in Israel's long-term security. We have a longstanding defense relationship
with them -- and oh, by the way, these sales that we are approving, the equipment such as the F-15 fighter jets are not actually going to be
delivered to Israel for another four to five years.
While of course, the obvious response to that is, well, you could -- you are still approving and engaging in these transactions with the Israelis
now, thereby essentially affirming that you have faith in their ability to be a professional military and carry out their operations in the way that
the U.S. would expect its allies to.
And you know, the response consistently from the Biden administration has been that these weapons and these systems are going to Ukraine -- to Israel
to defend itself from the many threats that it continues to face. Not only from Hamas, but also from Iran. But you know, that argument is increasingly
-- I think wearing thin on not only on President Biden's critics, but also generally on the American public who are wondering why the administration
appears to be saying one thing in public very loudly, criticizing the way that Israel is carrying out this war.
And then on the other hand, continuing these arms sales. I think that this attack on the WCK convoy could move the needle somewhat in President
Biden's thinking, just because he is a close friend of Jose Andres, and unfortunately, that does hit closer to home perhaps than the many other
Palestinians that have been killed in this conflict.
But as of right now, we are not seeing the signs that any change in U.S. policy in that regard is imminent, Zain.
ASHER: Right, Natasha, standby. Let me bring Jeremy Diamond back to talk about the continued protests we've seen in around the Knesset. Protesters
storming the Knesset, protesting also outside Netanyahu's house as well.
The belief and the perception, Jeremy, among certain segments of the Israeli population is that Netanyahu is putting -- continues to put his own
political survival ahead of the interest of the Israeli people, and also ahead of trying -- doing whatever he can to bring the hostages back, unless
the hostages are brought home, unless there is some kind of temporary ceasefire. Where does this go from here for Netanyahu?
DIAMOND: Well, it is difficult to predict the future as it relates to Benjamin Netanyahu. He has repeatedly been at low points in his political
career and managed to survive. And questions about whether or not this time will be different.
[14:20:00]
So far, he remains deeply unpopular in the polls in the wake of October 7th, but at the same time, the Israeli public is very much behind this war
effort in Gaza. And so far, most Israelis are still unwilling to bring about the kind of massive demonstrations that we saw before October 7th,
for example, in opposition to the judicial reforms in this country.
And so, even as we are seeing rising protests, including over the course of the last week in front of Israel's parliament, in front of the Israeli
Prime Minister's residence, including last night, where dozens of protesters clashed with police, breached barriers in front of his
residence.
That is still a very small minority of the country. And so, there's no question that the pressure is building on the Israeli Prime Minister from
all sides, from the Israeli public in part from these increasingly visible, albeit still small protests that are happening from the United States,
pressure in terms of the war effort in Gaza itself, as well as from within his own government over this conscription policy as it relates to ultra-
orthodox Jews in Israel, whether or not they have to serve in the Israeli military.
So, the pressure is certainly building, but it's not clear as of yet if it will lead to his downfall. But tonight, Benny Gantz, a member of the
Israeli war cabinet who is also the Israeli Prime Minister's chief political rival for the first time, calling for Israeli -- early Israeli
election, saying that there should be elections in Israel by September. That is of course very notable.
It is the first time that he has done so publicly, but it is not clear yet whether or not the Israeli Prime Minister himself will actually agree to
those elections. And Benny Gantz, while he is a member of that emergency war cabinet, he's not a member of Netanyahu's coalition government.
And so, he himself cannot bring down this government, so major questions about exactly how this will unfold and for now, it does remain quite an
uncertain picture.
ASHER: Yes, but as you point out, it is hard to bet against Netanyahu just because he is such a survivor. Jeremy Diamond, live for us there, Natasha
Bertrand, thank you both so much. All right, at the White House, there is - - or there was rather a potent sign of fraying relations between the Biden administration and Muslim-Americans and Iftar dinner planned at the White
House had to be canceled after people said they didn't feel comfortable breaking bread while people in Gaza were starving.
A Palestinian-American doctor then walked out of the downsized meeting, which had been arranged to replace the dinner attended by President Biden
and Vice President Harris. The doctor told CNN that not enough is being done to protect civilians in Gaza.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THAER AHMAD, WALKED OUT OF WHITE HOUSE MEETING: We are not satisfied with what has taken place. There has been no concrete steps, but keep in mind,
we're very concerned about the people that are over in the Gaza Strip that are in Palestine right now, who are not just starving, but are facing the
threat of a looming Rafah invasion.
And so, I was able to share that with the president, and let him know that out of respect for my community, out of respect for all of the people who
have suffered and who have been killed in the process, I need to walk out of the meeting, and I want to walk out with decision-makers and let them
know what it feels like for somebody to say something and then walk away from them and not hear them out, and not hear their response.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: The White House says that during that private meeting, President Biden expressed a commitment to keep working towards securing an immediate
ceasefire and getting more aid into Gaza as well as the release of the hostages who are being held in the enclave.
All right, still to come tonight, NATO foreign ministers are having serious discussions on Ukraine today. Details ahead on one costly solution being
floated by the Secretary-General.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:26:24]
ASHER: I'm reading page 30. A five-judge panel has upheld Uganda's Anti- Homosexuality Act. The ruling keeps in place harsh laws that outlawed gay marriage, punishes same-sex acts with life imprisonment and calls for the
death penalty for so-called aggravated homosexuality.
It also requires Ugandans to report suspected homosexuals or violations to authorities. A member of the LGBTQ community spoke earlier about the
ruling.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The ruling today was disappointing. That is for sure. But it does not make us lose hope. It actually puts us in more energy to
ensure that we actually go to the Supreme Court to be able to appeal on what has happened today, because what has happened today is an injustice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: CNN's David McKenzie has more from South Africa.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Human rights activists and lawyers are deeply disappointed in the decision of the
constitutional court in Uganda to unanimously uphold a draconian anti-LGBTQ law that calls for a life sentence in some cases, even the death penalty in
certain circumstances for the LGBTQ community in Uganda.
And now, there were two aspects of the law that the judges said could be thrown out, including issues of privacy and health. But in the main dilated
stand, despite the incredible pressure coming from western governments and others ever since President Museveni signed the law last year.
An extensive reporting by CNN has shown that LGBTQ Ugandans have been harassed, evicted and beaten. And in some cases, even had to flee the
country to seek asylum elsewhere because of the conditions in Uganda. Now, it's likely the lawyers will appeal this ruling at the Supreme Court. David
McKenzie, CNN, Johannesburg.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: Future-proofing. That is how one senior European diplomat is describing the focus of NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting today in Brussels.
NATO Secretary-General is considering a range of options to shore up long- term support for Ukraine. One solution would be to create a five-year fund worth a $100 billion. But that still would not be large enough to support
Ukraine's war effort against Russia indefinitely.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JENS STOLTENBERG, SECRETARY-GENERAL, NATO: Today, allies have agreed to move forward with planning for a great NATO role in coordinating security
assistance and training. The details will take shape in the weeks to come, but make no mistake, Ukraine can rely on it to support now and for a long
haul.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Let's get to CNN's Kylie Atwood joining us live now from the State Department. So, Kylie, what's come out of these meetings specifically when
it comes to Ukraine?
KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN U.S. SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, listen, what we've heard from European officials, NATO officials is that, as you said,
these conversations are really focused on trying to set up this $100 billion commitment to Ukraine over the course of five years from the NATO
countries that would essentially give them a reliable source of support over the next five years.
And this is particularly important as allies of the U.S. in NATO are looking at the possibility of a second Trump presidency. Of course, we
don't know what's going to happen in the U.S. presidential elections here. But as they consider the fact that Trump could potentially beat Biden,
they're worried about continued support from the U.S. for supporting Ukraine.
[14:30:01]
So, this is one of the things that a diplomat put to me is part of their future proofing plan. The other thing that they're looking at doing is
running the coordination of all of these weapon's deliveries, humanitarian support, and all that that typically has been orchestrated by the U.S.
instead out of NATO so that NATO would have a greater role in the dynamics that play on the ground when things get to Ukraine.
So, this is all an effort that's really ongoing right now as NATO is looking to its leader level summit that's here in Washington, D.C. later
this summer. But this is a really critical conversation for members of NATO right now, not only because it's important to continue support to Ukraine,
but because of the possibility of an incoming Trump presidency here in the us.
ASHER: All right. Kylie Atwood live for there. Thank you so much.
OK. Still to come tonight, emergency services in Taiwan are racing to rescue victims under the rubble off the island that was hit by its
strongest earthquake in a quarter of a century. We'll have the latest for you as the threat of aftershocks continue to live.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: All right. I want to bring you back to our top story. It is early Thursday morning in Taiwan where first responders are picking through the
rubble, hoping to find survivors after today's deadly quake. At least nine people were killed, more than 900 injured. But the threat isn't over yet,
that's because aftershocks continue to rock the eastern coast and more are expected.
[14:35:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Unbelievable video we're getting in. Just -- this one really showing you just the power, the sheer force behind this earthquake. It's the
strongest quake that Taiwan has seen, by the way, in the past 25 years. It brought down buildings, it completely destroyed roads. Residents in Taipei
recall the moment they began to feel the shake.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): It was shaking a lot. Many of the decorations at home fell onto the floor, but the people were safe. We were
very lucky.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): It was like a mountain collapsed. The whole thing collapsed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Terrifying. Even when you consider the fact that Taiwan is relatively used to this sort of thing.
CNN Meteorologist Chad Myers joins us live now. So, just talk to us about how the weather -- I understand it's going to be quite rainy in Taiwan over
the next few days. How's that going to impact rescue efforts? And also, the biggest concern, I imagine, would be landslides.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST AND AMS METEOROLOGIST: And aftershocks with the landslides. Absolutely. Without a question. No real threat here with
the aftershocks of another tsunami. But there was a tsunami, I'll show you some pictures of that of about one meter.
But the 7.4 here, it was along the eastern shore, on the eastern coast. And because of all of the typhoons, this is not a hugely populated area.
There's population, half a million people, but not like it would have been on the other side where we saw the shaking in Taipei. Taipei shaking was
somewhere equivalent to a 5-0, 5-5, 5-6, somewhere in there where on the other side we were hundreds of times more shaking in the areas that we saw
that.
34 quakes so far, aftershocks now above four magnitude, so that's a pretty good shake all on its own. And what that's doing are these buildings that
are already compromised are shaking when we do have rescue crews trying to get still people out.
Here, the promised picture of the tsunami. Not a big tsunami, but there was an area in Taiwan of about one meter. This is about a half a meter here
from Japan. Why? Well, because it's the ring of fire. The Atlantic Ocean is getting bigger. The Pacific Ocean is getting smaller and we're crashing
these plates into each other.
So, most of the earthquake activity, the volcanoes around the world are all in this ring of fire, 450 volcanoes, 90 percent of the world's quakes, and
most of the big ones. Now, this was a seven, four. Look from seven to eight. Between seven and eight, they -- 15 earthquakes a year of this
magnitude or close. So, not a rare event, one per month or so, but rare because they were under so many people's feet.
That's the problem. Half a million people felt this where many times those sevens are in the middle of the ocean or along the subduction zone where no
one lives. And yes, there will be some showers every day, but the temperatures will not be too bad. 26, 25, somewhere in that ballpark,
that's middle to upper seventies Fahrenheit, and the morning lows in the 20s. That's right at about 68 to 70 degrees there.
So, we are not going to see the freezing cold temperatures. So, I think this actually gives rescue workers an advantage of what sometimes we get,
if this would happen in the winter or in the middle of Afghanistan, where temperatures can fall to well below zero in the middle of the winter.
Conditions here are pretty good for survivability, Zain.
LANCASTER: All right. Chad Myers, thank you so much for breaking that down for us.
OK. Still to come tonight, popular musicians from around the world issue a group warning on A.I. technology. We'll tell you why they believe it is a
threat to their industry.
Plus, the battle over Disney's future was put to a vote, what shareholders decided just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:41:28]
ASHER: Popular music stars are teaming up to raise the red flag about artificial intelligence. More than 200 artists, such as Billie Eilish, the
Jonas Brothers, Kacey Musgraves, have signed an open letter on A.I. They say the technology is a threat to their work and if left unchecked, could
destroy the music industry. Potential threats include cloning artists voices to use in other works.
Disney's boardroom battle was a bust for challenger Nelson Peltz. Happening just a short time ago, a high stakes vote ended with a win for current
Disney board members and Bob Iger. Peltz, an activist, investor, and founder of Trian Partners was looking to shake things up at the media
giant. The corporate raider is critical of Iger, saying that Disney has lost its way. Peltz was seeking a seat on the board himself.
CNN's Hadas Gold is following this from New York. So, this victory by Disney's board was certainly widely expected, but it doesn't change the
fact that Disney has a lot of financial problems. And a lot of people are saying they absolutely need to change direction. Hadas.
HADAS GOLD, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, this was the most consequential board election for Disney, and I would say 20 years or so.
And actually, it was also the most expensive proxy battle, I think in history. Some $60 million were spent by all sides in this proxy battle,
trying to reach shareholders to get them to influence their votes.
And this victory is, in a way, a legacy defining victory for the CEO, Bob Iger. He won by quite a bit. According to a source familiar who spoke to
me, who is familiar with the vote counts, they say that Bob Iger's seat itself, he won by 94 percent of shareholders, while Nelson Peltz only got
some 31 percent for his seat.
So, he lost by a magnitude of two to one compared to the Disney pick. And then Peltz's partner in this proxy battle, Jay Rasulo, who's a former
Disney executive, he lost by more than five to one. So, it's not just a victory. In some ways, it's a trouncing. And what's interesting is those
retail shareholders -- now, Disney is unique and that a lot of its shareholders, more than 35 percent, are what called retail investors. These
are your everyday people who might own 10 shares here, 100 shares here. These are not these huge companies. These are just your regular
individuals, and they voted for the Disney slate and 75 percent.
So, that is something that Disney is taking as a victory. And this is something that's being described as Nelson Peltz's biggest loss in a proxy
fight because he's held these proxy fights before, and he's won several of them. But they are saying this is one of his biggest losses ever.
Now, Bob Iger, in a statement, calling this a -- saying that this distracting proxy contest is now behind us, and they're focusing 100
percent of their attention on their priorities, on growth, on value creation. Trian, which is Nelson Peltz's company for its part, it's taking
credit. They say, for the stock going up 50 percent over the last six months, saying that they're reengaging essentially this proxy battle, they
think, help sort of kick things into gear at Disney.
And while it's not usually surprising that investors would trust Bob Iger over somebody like Nelson Peltz who has, I should say, no entertainment or
media experience it does goes to show that there was dissatisfaction out there with what Disney is doing and some questions over its tragedy.
I should note, Disney is aware of these and has said that these are problems that they're working on. These are things like turning a profit on
streaming. Reinvigorating their studio businesses after a few film flops. And also, the question of who will be the successor to Bob Iger after he is
supposed to leave in the next two years or so. So, right now, the challenge for Bob Iger and for Disney is to show all -- to all of their shareholders
that they made the right choice by voting for them saying. Zain.
[14:45:00]
ASHER: Yes. So how does Bob Iger do that? I mean, what is his specific -- I mean, you listed some of the challenges that Disney is facing. But what is
Bob Iger's specific strategy going forward when it comes to, streamlining Disney when, you know, for streaming, for example, overhauling its
streaming strategy, ESPN theme park attractions, cruise ships. There are so many different facets of the business that need a makeover.
GOLD: Yes, and one thing that he has been talking about is kind of refocusing on the heart of Disney, on the creative and on their characters
that work in this presentation he made to shareholders today. He -- we heard a lot of familiar names. These are things like the movies like
"Avatar", like "Moana", like sequels of things like that.
And I -- so, I also think what's really important for Bob Iger right now is to figure out the succession issue, because keep in mind what happened over
the last few years and the, kind of, what happened with Bob Chapek didn't quite work out. That was his handpicked successor, only lasted for two
years before Bob Iger had to come back.
This is something that investors are very worried about. They want to see a succession plan in place that they can trust. Disney also has to figure
things out on streaming. This is something that Nelson Peltz said he wanted Netflix like margins. On streaming, Disney is -- says that they're aware of
this. Says that they are working towards this question of will they be able to succeed on all of these points?
ASHER: All right. Hadas Gold live for us there? Thank you so much.
OK. Forbes has just come out with its annual list of billionaires. The usual names are on top, for example, Bernard Arnault, head of the world's
largest luxury band, LVMH, whose family is worth $233 billion dollars. He's followed by Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. But
there were some high-profile newcomers this year as well, including Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI. Luxury shoe designer Christian Louboutin, and a
woman who's made quite a bit of news lately as well.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: "That's Me" by Taylor Swift there. And Swift really is one of a kind. She's the first musician to make the Forbes list of billionaires
based solely on her songs and her performances.
All right, still to come tonight, eclipse mania has gripped much of the United States as millions of people are expected to travel to get a glimpse
of the rare event. But will mother nature throw them a curveball? That story just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:50:11]
ASHER: All right. The total solar eclipse is just five days away on Monday. Millions of people will have a clear view of the moon completely blocking
out the sun. The event is expected to be a huge boost for tourism in the path of totality, which stretches across North America from Mexico through
the United States and into Canada as well.
CNN affiliate to KUSA shows us how one hardcore eclipse chaser in Colorado is making final preparations.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID BARON, SCIENCE WRITER AND ECLIPSE CHASER: this is just a bunch of photos and videos from some of my eclipse chasing. This was just last year
in Australia. You had to be a hardcore eclipse chaser to go there.
That's the sun. That is the sun.
This was my 8th. Yes, that was my 8th. So, the one, this year it will be my ninth. My name is David Baron and I'm a science writer and eclipse chaser.
An eclipse chaser is someone who is so in love with the experience of seeing total solar eclipses that they will travel around the world to see
something that lasts usually three minutes.
I want to capture my own reaction. So, this now was in Chile in 2019. It's such a precious and brief experience. I don't want to waste any time trying
to take pictures of the eclipse itself. That was August 21st, 2017. I mean, a total eclipse connects people. Yes, it gives me chills. I mean, it's just
-- it's like I leave my normal, everyday existence and I'm suddenly transported someplace else.
It's just all about appreciating being alive. It's just meeting new people and seeing new places and experiencing something so rare and so brief. it
just reminds me to appreciate that I'm here. It's as simple as that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: CNN's Kristin Fisher joins us live now from Washington, D.C. Kristin, his remark -- his reaction, really remarkable. Just so much
excitement. Just explain to us how different Monday's eclipse will be to the eclipse that we got back in 2017. What can we expect this time?
KRISTIN FISHER, CNN SPACE AND DEFENSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, this time, one of the most amazing things about this upcoming total solar eclipse is the
fact that the moment of totality, the moment when, the moon totally obscures the sun and it literally changes from daytime to nighttime in a
matter of seconds, so dark that the stars come out.
It's going to last so much longer than it did back in 2017, about double the amount of time. At the longest point, you will be in total darkness in
totality for about four minutes and 30 seconds. That is a long time when you compare it to a lot of the more recent, previous total solar eclipses.
The other thing, Zain, that makes this eclipse so unique is that it just so happens to coincide with a very unique period of very active activity on
the surface of the sun. So that means that it may be much more dynamic and, quite frankly, cool to look at during those four, roughly, four minutes of
totality.
So, you should see things like solar flares or coronal mass ejections, big things. Those big wispy things kind of coming off the surface of the sun
during that moment of totality. So, those are the two big things that make this eclipse so different and the fact that there's not going to be another
one in the contiguous United States for about 20 years, Zain.
So, it truly is a once in a generation event. And can I just say that eclipse chaser right there, I thought he put it so well, you know, I've
never seen a total solar eclipse. I'm hoping that the weather cooperates but --
ASHER: I can't believe that.
FISHER: I've never seen one. I've seen a partial but never a total and apparently --
ASHER: In 2017, right? Did you see the one -- you saw the one in 2017?
FISHER: I did not see the one in 2017.
ASHER: Oh, I see. OK.
FISHER: I did not. So, I had actually just had a baby so I could not.
ASHER: OK. Me too, actually. I think our kids are probably the same age.
FISHER: Really?
ASHER: OK.
FISHER: So yes, I can't really bring a baby out to look at an eclipse. No, eclipse glasses on a baby, right?
ASHER: Yes.
FISHER: But I, -- apparently, you know, the difference between a partial eclipse and a total eclipse is, you know, massive. So, I love what that
eclipse chaser said was he said, you know, I like to chase these things because it just makes me realize how briefly we are on this planet and how
it makes me feel so alive. So, I'm hoping to experience the same thing, Zain, if the weather cooperates and it's not looking good in so many parts
of the country right now.
ASHER: I know. I was just thinking to myself that by the time the next eclipse rolls around, my son will be 24, 25 years old, which is crazy. It's
crazy.
FISHER: Yes.
[14:55:00]
ASHER: So, he's older now. So, I'm hoping to get him glasses and we are going to look at it together on Monday. Kristin Fisher, so good to see you.
Thank you.
FISHER: Good to see you, too. Thanks.
ASHER: All right. Join us next Monday for the total solar eclipse. As Kristin and I were just talking about, it's going to be traveling, of
course, from Mexico across the United States into Canada as well. Experience the total eclipse from a number of locations. Lots of science,
lots of excitement along the way. Our special coverage, don't miss it, start at 12 noon eastern time.
If you were planning a trip to the moon, you might need to adjust your watch. NASA has been tasked by the White House to create a coordinated
lunar time by the end of 2026. Differences in gravity make time go slightly faster on the moon. Only about 59 microseconds each day, but this can
really jeopardize the accuracy and safety of space missions. This celestial standardized time will serve as a timekeeping benchmark for all space
agencies and private companies can use.
All right. Thank you so much for watching tonight. Stay with CNN. "Newsroom with Jim Sciutto" is up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
