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Quest Means Business
Russia Targets Ukraine's Grain Facilities; Russia Exit From Grain Deal Pushes Up Food Prices; Netflix Shares Fall Sharply After Revenue Miss; New Zealand Upset At Women's World Cup; Kenya Unrest; Call To Earth: Wildlife Conservation; Cuban Entrepreneurs Get A Crash Course In Business. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired July 20, 2023 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:00:41]
ELENI GIOKOS, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: It is a mixed day on Wall Street. The Dow is on track for its ninth straight day of gains. It is up six-tenths of
a percent. The S&P and NASDAQ both in the red. As you can see, it's all about earnings today.
Well, those are the markets and these are the main events: In a series of strikes Russia takes aim at Ukraine's grain supply.
Netflix shares tank after the streaming giant disappoints in revenue.
And an exciting first day of action in the Women's World Cup. We'll take a look at the fight to close the pay gap for female players.
Live from Abu Dhabi, it is Thursday, July 20th. I'm Eleni Giokos. I'm in for Richard Quest. And this is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
All right, tonight, Ukraine says Russia is targeting its grain supply after three straight nights of attacks on its silos. At least three people were
killed and dozens hurt during the latest airstrikes on Ukraine's two biggest ports, Odesa and Mykolaiv.
Moscow says it will now consider any ship heading for Ukrainian waters as a potential arms shipment and Kyiv has responded by threatening vessels bound
for Russia.
Ukraine's Foreign minister just accused the Kremlin of racketeering by exiting the Black Sea Grain Initiative. The price of wheat has risen more
than 10 percent since Russia withdrew on Monday, and you can see that it is slightly lower today, but overall, on an upward trajectory.
Fred Pleitgen is in Berlin for us.
Fred, great to see you.
Look, after Russia withdrawing from that grain deal, a lot of messaging coming through, whether it's Russia saying look, any vessel in the Black
Sea, we will consider that as an arms shipment, and then another strong message in terms of striking grain infrastructure in Odesa and Mykolaiv.
Tell me, what kind of level of damage are we talking about here?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the damage certainly is significant. If you ask the Ukrainians, they'll say that
especially this port facility in Odesa and in Chernomorsk, which are by far their most important ones, and really the ones where this grain initiative
was taking place.
And you know, for all of us who have been on the ground near those ports an in that area, we know how many trucks full of grain were going into those
ports every single day. So this is definitely something that is extremely damaging to Ukraine, to its exports, and of course, the Ukrainians also say
to the entire world, especially to the most vulnerable people in the world, those that are dependent on the grain that is coming from Ukraine.
Now, of course, one of the other things that we know is that it is already 10:00 PM right now in Odesa, in that part of Ukraine, the sun has set there
and the people there and the authorities there are bracing for another possible wave of Russian aerial attacks.
Here is what we're learning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PLEITGEN (voice over): Search and rescue crews trying to save lives after another round of Russian airstrikes in southern Ukraine, as goes the Army
claiming they're hitting military targets.
(IGOR KONASHENKOV speaking in foreign language.)
PLEITGEN: "The Russian Armed Forces continued retaliatory strikes with sea and air based high precision weapons on workshops and warehouses with
unmanned boats in Odesa and Chernomorsk," the spokesman says.
But the Ukrainian say the Russians are targeting civilian infrastructure. One person was killed and several wounded when a missile hit this building
in the port city, Odesa.
The mayor, irate.
(MAYOR HENNADII TRUKHANOV speaking in foreign language.)
PLEITGEN: "Another terrorist attack by non-humans on the peaceful city of Odesa," he says. "Look at what they're doing. This is a nursery. There is a
kindergarten nearby."
Others desperately hoping their loved ones might be found alive.
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE speaking in foreign language.)
PLEITGEN: "They're searching for my grandson," this man says. "From the recording, it seems he went down to the basement. They're trying to dig up
the rubble."
Ukraine's air defenses were only able to shoot down about a quarter of the cruise missiles Russia fired Kyiv says. Putin's military using some of its
heaviest naval missiles designed to destroy warships and even aircraft carriers.
[15:05:06]
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE speaking in foreign language.)
PLEITGEN: "There is no possibility to shoot them down because we understand what kind of missiles they are, how fast they fly, and their trajectory,"
the spokesman for the Air Force says.
Ukraine says it needs more and better air defense capabilities from the US and its allies or the authorities here will be able to do little more than
try to save victims from the rubble after the attacks.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PLEITGEN (on camera): Certainly apparently some pretty -- some pretty powerful weapons that the Russians have been using there, which of course
cause great damage and Ukrainian say have caused great damage, especially to those grain export facilities. And right now, there really doesn't seem
to be any end in sight to that impasse.
It certainly seems that the Russians are out of the grain deal, intent to stay out of the grain deal. The Ukrainians also saying they don't really
see any other way forward. So right now, definitely unclear if and when, Eleni, grain could be exported from Ukraine once again, despite the fact as
we've shown there, that the prices are already surging.
GIOKOS: Yes, it is such a good point, and the big question everyone is asking right now.
Fred Pleitgen, always good to see you. Thank you so much.
Well, Russia's withdrawal from the Black Sea grain deal is threatening to push up global prices. It's a very big issue.
Just take a look at the jump of the price of wheat over the past five days. The EU claims 60,000 tons of grain has been burnt as a result of Russia's
bombing Ukraine's storage facilities this week.
Paolo Gentiloni is the European Commissioner for Economy, and he joins me now from New York.
Great to have you with us, sir. An important time. EU saying 60,000 tons of grain burned due to strikes that we've seen in Mykolaiv and Odesa. I want
you to take me through the numbers right now, and what you're anticipating to be the damage as it stands.
PAOLO GENTILONI, EUROPEAN COMMISSIONER FOR ECONOMY: Well, of course, this is not only a major factor for inflation, but it is an extraordinary risk
for low income countries.
We experienced already a few months ago, the impact of food crisis, then the grain deal was a tool to reduce this impact. And now, we are back
again.
I think this is a clear message that this war is affecting also low income countries and the global south and this, I think should be clear in the
international community, the Russian responsibility in affecting the global south and increasing the food crisis in these countries.
GIOKOS: Commissioner, look, there has been a question on whether Ukraine can still export grain without Russia's security guarantees. But now that
Russia is saying that any vessel that is in the Black Sea will be assumed to be carrying military cargo, that basically closes the door in terms of
taking grain to the Black Sea.
What does this mean, in terms of finding alternatives to move grain out of Ukraine?
GENTILONI: Well, we worked, the European Union, a lot to ensure the possibility for Ukrainian grain exports, through railways through Romania
and other countries, but it is crystal clear that this, that we call solidarity lane are working. But at the same time, the blocking of the sea
transport is in any case a damage not only for Ukraine exports, but it is a damage for especially the global south of the world, and this should be
clearly said, it is a Russian responsibility.
GIOKOS: Look, there are five Central European countries that wants an EU ban on Ukrainian grain imports to be extended until the end of the year.
We're talking about Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, but these countries say the grain can transit through to other markets.
But they also say that it is hurting local farmers when Ukrainian grain passes through. What are you planning to do with this EU ban? Because as
you say, we have according to the World Food Programme, 345 million people that are currently sitting in very dire situations when it comes to food
security.
So this grain needs to in some way, get to the international markets and not have any constraints by the EU.
GENTILONI: Oh I think there is no constraint by the EU. There is, of course, some consequences in the countries you were mentioning, but the EU
work a lot with these countries to make possible that solidarity lane will still function.
[15:10:17]
The point I continue to make is that this is not something canceling the Russian responsibility in stopping the maritime flow of grain exports,
which is something unacceptable for the international community.
GIOKOS: Absolutely, look, European inflation right now at five-and-a-half percent. What impact is this going to have on inflation in the EU and
generally across the board? What are you pricing in right now?
GENTILONI: Well, inflation is declining. Decline is mostly connected to the declining energy prices, but of course, food price increase could make the
decline is going down. This is what also we want to avoid.
But honestly, this is not the main concern. The main concern is for those in the world that could suffer for this lack of grains and food crisis,
inflation will continue to decline.
GIOKOS: Absolutely. I mean, that is the biggest issue here with his grain deal and there is big hope that it'll be hopefully rectified in the next
month or so.
But I want to ask you something else. There is an economist that was hired for tech regulator in Europe. You together with others signed a joint
letter not to hire her specifically, she has resigned. Why were you opposed to this particular appointment? It is an important role right now as we are
seeing quantum leaps when it comes to technology advancements.
GENTILONI: Well, I think that's rather an internal issue for the European Commission. I think this was a very, very well-known professional. The
discussion was, don't we have a European professional for this role? But at the end of the day, she resigned, and so I think the issue is over now
GIOKOS: Is over. Okay, thank you, sir. Look, Commissioner, great to have you on. Thank you for your clarity and your insights on this issue that is
facing the world right now on food security.
GENTILONI: Thank you.
GIOKOS: We appreciate it.
GENTILONI: Thank you very much.
GIOKOS: Well, coming up Hollywood is embracing the use of artificial intelligence. Our own Donie O'Sullivan got a firsthand look. He will shows
how they made him sound like an actor, one of my favorites, Liam Neeson, take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AI MODIFIED VIDEO: I don't know who you are, but what I do have her a very particular set of skills. If you let my daughter go, now, that'll be the
end of it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:15:44]
GIOKOS: Netflix shares are down sharply after a disappointing quarter. Its stock, as you can see, it is off 8.4 percent since yesterday's earnings
call. The company's second quarter revenue falling short of expectations as did its revenue forecast for the current period. CEO, Ted Sarandos
addressed the writers and actors strike. He told investors it was "not an outcome that they wanted."
Still the company had cause to celebrate, it added nearly six million subscribers as the crackdown on password sharing. Anna Stewart is with me
right now, great to have you on the show, Anna.
The big experiment on cracking down on password sharing, giving a subscriber boost. Clearly, it is not good enough, but I have to say I was
just looking at Netflix shares. It's still up 60 percent year-to-date, but there was something about these numbers that clearly didn't excite
investors.
ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER: But actually in the lead up to this earnings report, shares were up around eight percent. So really what we've seen is
just a wipe out of that value on the actual earnings report itself.
The six million added subscribers for Q2 is good. This is a gamble really that has paid off. The crackdown on password sharing, lots of people were
concerned that that might mean people would simply cancel their subscriptions. It appears they've gained far more than they lost in this
period, so that's the good news.
That's sort of where the good news maybe ends with this earnings report. In terms of revenue, it was a bit of a disappointment, a bit of a minor
undershoot though, I wouldn't say that's necessarily responsible for the share price reaction we're seeing today.
I think really for investors, the big question is for Netflix and for all of this big streamers, is where is the big revenue stream going to come
from next? Because it's all very well, once you've grown in lots of mature markets, and you're growing in developing markets, they want to see more.
The years of subsidizing online streaming are over.
Now one key strategy from Netflix, which is what they unveiled last year was ad-supported subscriptions. Now, on the earnings call, we were hearing
lots of questions about this, but very few specifics in terms of the numbers, how many people are actually signing up to pay for ads at this
stage.
But interestingly, Netflix has announced it is removing the lowest priced ad-free subscription model in the UK and the US. So it is going to push you
either towards a cheaper subscription, but you're going to get lots of eyeballs for the advertisers, which is what they want or you're going to
pay a lot more for a subscription, which will now be $15.49 a month if you don't want those ads.
It is not alone. NBC Universal's Peacock has done this, Disney+ are already doing it. There are rumors that Amazon might launch this for Prime Video in
the coming months.
I think for viewers at the moment, for investors, well, they want to see content. They want more content. And the actors and writers strike
certainly doesn't help with that.
Netflix maybe has an edge though, given it's got all of that foreign content from around the world, foreign language content it can draw upon if
content is lacking.
But I think it was just a bit underwhelming for investors today -- Eleni.
GIOKOS: Yes, really fascinating to see all the promises paying out. But of course bad news that when we're binge watching our shows, we're going to be
interrupted by ads. Anna, new era of watching streaming.
Good to have you with us, as always. Much appreciated.
Well, it seems Broadway theaters have avoided a strike that threatened to shut them down. The union for stagehands and other backstage workers
reached a tentative agreement with the Broadway League. It needs to be ratified by the union's rank and file and they were voting on whether to
support the strike when the deal was announced.
Dozens of shows in New York and across the US could have been halted as soon as Friday. Strikes have already halted US TV and film production.
Vanessa Yurkevich is in New York.
What is it about this deal that makes sense for this sector? For Broadway?
VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well, the key sticking points that the union spoke about was wages and benefits and
that's what we're hearing from multiple unions that are on strike right now. But this deal really coming down to the wire, this would have sent
1,500 stagehands and backstage workers on strike, the last thing that Hollywood and the entertainment industry needs right now.
[15:20:08]
What happened was, just yesterday, the union called the strike authorization vote. These votes are almost certainly going to be yes votes.
They almost always pass, but then the president went ahead from the union, went ahead and said that the strike could happen as soon as Friday, and
that clearly rattled the productions that this union was negotiating with.
If a strike happened, this would have impacted 28 productions and 17 traveling shows in the US and Canada, but this deal coming together, really
within hours avoiding this strike that would have sent over a thousand individuals on strike, and it is important to note that they had been
negotiating this contract since July 2nd, but the contract has been up and these workers have been working in good faith.
But clearly in just the last week, the union feeling like not enough progress was being made, the strike authorization vote and the threat of a
strike clearly pushing them to the finish line. As you mentioned, rank and file members will now have to ratify this deal.
But this comes on the heels of a SAG-AFTRA strike with actors and writers, 170,000 members combined on strike on the picket lines, and Eleni, here in
the US, we are calling it the summer of strikes, because we are also watching UPS, 340,000 UPS workers could head to the picket lines as early
as August 1st.
But good news on the Broadway front, the lights will still be on; shows still happening, something that tourists and New York City, which is still
recovering from economic impact of COVID was really happy to see -- Eleni.
GIOKOS: Vanessa, thank you so much. Good to see you.
Well, Broadway may have averted a strike, actors are continuing to push for better pay and conditions. One sticking point in negotiations is the use of
artificial intelligence and how it will affect their jobs.
Meanwhile, AI companies say their technologies will not replace real-life actors.
Joining us now in New York is Donie O'Sullivan or is it Liam Neeson? Who are you, Donie?
DONIE O' SULLIVAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That will make sense when people watch this.
GIOKOS: I've always wanted to interview Liam --
O'SULLIVAN: I'm not going to try to do an actual impression.
Look, yes, this technology, really artificial intelligence is Hollywood's special effects on steroids, but for actors and writers and others who are
looking at this, it's a nightmare. Have a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATT PANOUSIS, COO, MARZ: This is where we start. It is an automated solution for cosmetic and de-aging work.
CHRIS WALLACE, CNN HOST, "WHO'S TALKING TO CHRIS WALLACE": Through some technological wizardry, 80-year-old Harrison Ford looks exactly like 40-
year-old Harrison Ford. Do you understand how they did that?
HARRISON FORD, ACTOR: Not completely.
O'SULLIVAN (voice over): In the latest "Indiana Jones" movie, Harrison Ford is de-aged for a flashback where he fights the Nazis.
FORD: It's not Photoshopped or anything. It doesn't look that way.
O'SULLIVAN (voice over): Hollywood studios are moving beyond traditional visual effect technology and embracing artificial intelligence turning to
companies like MARZ.
O'SULLIVAN (on camera): What does MARZ stand for?
PANOUSIS: Monsters, aliens, robots, and zombies.
O'SULLIVAN: I think that's the best name I've heard for a company.
PANOUSIS: Thank you.
O'SULLIVAN (voice over): The latest Spider-Man movie released in 2021 features villains like the Green Goblin and Dr. Otto Octavius, characters
who haven't been seen in years.
JONATHAN BRONFMAN, CEO, MARZ: So they took the villains from previous versions of Spider-Man movies and they wanted to bring them back in that
moment when they originally performed that character. So without naming names, we helped Marvel do that on a certain character.
O'SULLIVAN (voice over): MARZ says it's de-aging AI technology knocks thousands of man hours off the visual effects process, but they say they
aren't killing jobs.
BRONFMAN: The demand for visual effects way outstrips the supplies, but there are a finite number of artists in the world that are able to execute
on that demand.
(CLIP FROM "FRIENDS.")
O'SULLIVAN (voice over): MARZ has also built an AI dubbing tool aiming to make awkward out of sync voiceovers like these a thing of the past.
(CLIP FROM "FRIENDS.")
O'SULLIVAN (voice over): MARZ uses deepfake technology to reconstruct an actor's lips to match the dubbed audio. They tried it out on me. First we
sent them this short clip I shot in a CNN studio.
I've always been terrible at speaking any language other than English. In fact, I struggle with English sometimes.
With that, they were able to do this.
(CLIP FROM AI-MODIFIED VIDEO.)
O'SULLIVAN (on camera): That is very impressive.
My lips look French.
(CLIP FROM "TAKEN.")
O'SULLIVAN (voice over): This technology can even put other people's words in your mouth.
(CLIP FROM AI MODIFIED VIDEO.)
But what I do have are a very particular set of skills. If you let my daughter go now that'll be the end of it. I will not look for you. I will
not pursue you.
O'SULLIVAN: My fellow Irishman as well.
PANOUSIS: Lip dub was built for the purpose of allowing studios to take content in their native tongue and put that content across the globe in a
way where it looks native to the viewer.
[15:25:11]
O'SULLIVAN (voice over): For its part, MARZ says it is not in the business of replacing actors. Its technology is meant to enhance performances, not
create them.
FORD: I think it's not a question of the technology, it is how you use it.
TOM HANKS, ACTOR: Look, you know, I could be hit by a bus tomorrow and that's it, but my performances can go on and on and on and on and on, and
outside of the understanding that has been done with AI or deepfake, there'll be nothing to tell you that it's not me and me alone.
O'SULLIVAN (voice over): Fears of how AI will be used is partly why SAG- AFTRA, the actors union is on strike, saying the studios want to replace them with artificial performances. The movie studios are pushing back on
that claim.
BRONFMAN: Technology cannot replace an actor full-on. So you cannot go head-to-toe and redo the entire face and expect that to be photo real. The
technology just isn't there right now.
Now, as it relates to writers, I think they can more easily be replaced by artificial intelligence.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
O'SULLIVAN (on camera): That's a pretty stark message there for writers, but of course, look this technology even though you heard there might not
necessarily be able to recreate a full actor as easily at the moment, that could very quickly change and we could get to that point.
Obviously for now, though, you can have a lot of fun with this. I can live out my dream of being Liam Neeson, but look, at the end of this, this is
really powerful technology developing, you know, at a pace, just totally unprecedented.
So very, very scary, not just for Hollywood, but for all of us.
GIOKOS: Yes, exactly right. So you know, it is fun watching what this technology could do, and how it could elevate performance and change the
way we watch, you know, certain films in different languages.
But the fear of what that could look like down the line. And look, to be honest, when you see what the writers are saying right now that they're
worried about how AI could replace them, it is one of those real tangible risks that we are facing.
So is it about the way that this AI is being produced right now to create safeguards? I mean, what is -- I mean, clearly, we're going in that
trajectory, but how do you create safeguards in the lead up to this quantum leap?
O'SULLIVAN: Yes, and I guess for the unions, they certainly want to have something in place where they can have some guards against this. But, you
know, obviously, there has been a kind of global discussion about how to regulate this new technology.
But, you know, it's only really been about six or seven months since ChatGPT went kind of viral before the holidays last year. So we are really
in unprecedented territory here.
I should say, you know, one point that was made was that a lot of this technology in terms of like doubling up crowds, you know, as background
actors, a lot of this kind of stuff can already be done using traditional special effects. But of course, this new technology is going to make it a
lot easier and a lot cheaper. So those concerns I think, are very well placed on the part of actors.
GIOKOS: Donie O'Sullivan, great to see you. You sounded fantastic as Liam Neeson, but good to hear your voice back to normal.
O'SULLIVAN: See you soon.
GIOKOS: Great to have you on.
O'SULLIVAN: Bye-bye.
GIOKOS: Well, some AI wizardry lighting up the world of soccer. The French telecom, Orange, unveiled this ad showing great moments from past soccer
matches, and the players all appear to be men.
We'll take a closer look and all is not as it seems. This footage was showing, women's matches all along, Orange made the ad to bring attention
to the prejudices that surround women's sports and to show their support for the French women's team.
So when we return the Women's World Cup is now well underway and we'll talk about New Zealand's upset win and football's upsetting pay gap.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:30:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
GIOKOS (voice-over): Hello, I'm Eleni Giokos, there's more QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in a moment. We'll be in Kenya, with protests over tax hikes have
turned deadly.
And in California, a single $2 Powerball ticket has won its owner over $1 billion, before, that the headlines this hour.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
GIOKOS (voice-over): More than 100 people were injured in northern Italy on Thursday morning, when tennis ball sized hailstones rained down during a
storm. The hail measured up to 10 centimeters in diameter and caused extensive damage to buildings and cars.
Former U.S. secretary of state, Henry Kissinger, is in Beijing this week for a surprise visit. Chinese president, Xi Jinping, called the 100-year-
old Kissinger an old friend and praised his success in improving U.S.-China relations.
In the 1970s, the meeting comes at a time when relations between the two countries are increasingly strained.
A lion is said to be on the loose in Berlin. Authorities have issued emergency alerts to stay inside while they conduct a widespread search. It
remains unclear where the lion escaped from. No German zoos, wildlife refuges or circuses have reported a missing beast.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
GIOKOS: The Women's World Cup is off to an electric start in Australia and New Zealand. The host nation started off on the right foot, with New
Zealand's 1-0 upset over Norway and Australia's win over Ireland by the same score.
While the World Cup is something football fans to celebrate, it's also drawing ire over overpay inequality. A new CNN analysis found that female
soccer players at this World Cup will earn just 25 cents, 25 cents to the dollar, of what their male counterparts made last year.
That's actually an improvement from 2019, believe it or not, when it was less than 8 cents per dollar.
Macaela MacKenzie is the author of "Money, Power, Respect: How Women in Sports Are Shaping the Future of Feminism." She joins me now from
Connecticut.
Great to have you with us. So much to discuss here, I like looking at the numbers. The Women's World Cup this year set to generate just over $300
million in sponsorship revenue for FIFA.
The men's World Cup in Qatar last year, total revenue, $6.3 billion. It's huge. What is made at the top, eventually what boils down to what players
get, the prize money and so forth. Tell me about these discrepancies, as you look at them from a macro perspective.
[15:35:00]
MACAELA MACKENZIE, AUTHOR: Yes, I think the most important thing to acknowledge here, the different levels of investment that have existed. In
the women's game versus the men's game over the past several decades.
So it is true, the men's team is pulling in a lot of -- men's federations are pulling in a lot more sponsorship dollars. But they've also benefiting
from decades more investment, both in actually growing the quality of the game but also in building the game into these hundreds of millions of
dollars in franchises.
So as we're seeing more investment in the women's game, we're starting to see them actually outpacing the men in terms of viewership numbers,
sponsorship dollars; this is the first World Cup where the women's broadcast rights have been sold separately from the men's.
Previously, broadcasters had essentially gotten them for free. So we're really starting to get a chance to see what happens when you do give women
that investment.
GIOKOS: Exactly. It's the value chain of investment that actually matters. And we're excited to be see a big shift coming through. I want to mention
something that really struck me.
In France, a wonderful ad was released by the French telecom company Orange, showing a fantastic game that was, frankly, enthralling. What they
did, they superimposed men on the women that were actually playing the game. It's actually coming down to perception.
Is women sports exciting enough, good enough, to watch?
How much of this is based on biases that exist in society?
MACKENZIE: Yes, that ad was so fantastic. It really gave me, personally, goose bumps. I'm sure a lot of people had the same reaction. But it really
speaks to this idea of biological differences or there being some sort of biological superiority in the men's game that makes it more exciting or
faster paced.
I think what this ad did was call out that that is false, that the woman's game is just as exciting, that there is a really rich field for fans to get
involved with. And I think that just absolutely could not be underscored enough, going into this World Cup, when we're seeing the most competitive
field we've ever seen in women's soccer.
GIOKOS: Yes, we're looking at the numbers, again, 25 cents on the dollar is what women get in terms of prize money versus what the men are getting.
It's better than 2019, which was 8 cents, which is pretty startling.
But what FIFA did this time, they made sure there's more clubs involved at this World Cup. You're seeing more money, you're seeing more noise coming
through from the top.
And then you wonder, have we missed so many opportunities to get women's sports to where men's sports basically are right now in terms of
sponsorship deals, in terms of the big money that's available and clearly, exists?
MACKENZIE: Yes, absolutely. I think when we look at men's sports as a whole, versus women sports as a whole, men's sports really have benefited
from so many decades of investment, reaching the top of their potential.
Whereas women sports represent this incredible investment opportunity, particularly for sponsors and broadcasters, because they're nowhere near
reaching the top of their potential.
It's sort of, like you, know getting in on Apple at the ground floor. I think sponsors are starting to wake up to that reality, in starting to make
investment decisions accordingly.
But it really, you know, we see what happens when brands do decide to invest and when federations to invest more money into actually growing the
programs in their own countries.
GIOKOS: Absolutely. Exciting month ahead, I'll definitely be watching a lot of these games. I hope everyone at home will be too. Macaela MacKenzie,
great to have you with us. Thank you.
MACKENZIE: Thanks so much.
GIOKOS: We turn now to Kenya, deadly protests continue. People are protesting tax hikes and the high cost of living. Businesses have been
attacked, schools closed and at least three people have been killed in violent clashes this week alone. Larry Madowo has the story from us from
Nairobi.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Violent confrontations between Kenyan police and demonstrators in a neighborhood of the capital
Nairobi. Even tear gas did not keep these young men away for long. They responded with even more stones or anything else they could throw at the
police.
The first day of the opposition's planned three-day antigovernment demonstrations came down to these battles with security forces or cat and
mouse games in some areas.
Construction worker Elijah Monde (ph) says, he was on his lunch break nearby when he got hit.
ELIJAH MONDE (PH), CONSTRUCTION WORKER (through translator): I don't know if it was tear gas or a bullet. It just hit me. And I passed out.
MADOWO (voice-over): He was still bleeding even after first aid. With no ambulance available, this motor bike taxi was the only way to get him to
hospital.
[15:40:00]
MADOWO (voice-over): Armored water cannon trucks keeping demonstrators away from the roads in a different part of Nairobi. But some residents concerned
about the sharp increases in the prices of basic commodities are ready to endure the crackdown.
MADOWO: Do you support the protests?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I do. 100 percent I support the protests. It needs to continue until the president hears our cries. The cost of living is high.
And the president should look at this situation, at least take a look and reduce the cost of living.
MADOWO: A heavy security presence made sure that there were no major street demonstrations today. But the opposition did score a win by managing to
bring the capital of Kenya almost to a standstill. These rallying battles between police using water cannons and tear gas and the young men throwing
rocks has been the order of the day.
MADOWO (voice-over): But the President William Ruto remains defiant. Saying Kenya's politics should be devoid of violence.
WILLIAM RUTO, KENYAN PRESIDENT: We must protect this country and the police must be firm on the hooligans, on criminals, on people who want to destroy
other people's business.
MADOWO: That firm police action earned condemnation from the U.N. human rights office last Friday when it said it was concerned about widespread
use of violence by officers. Kenya's foreign minister called the U.N. statement inaccurate and misleading.
DR. ALFRED N. MUTUA, KENYAN FOREIGN MINISTER: The U.N. is most critical in this statement. I'd like to know them, their names and others. They are
just throwing names and figures out there. you know, that is bad manners for an organization of such stature.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GIOKOS: Coming, up a single Powerball ticket has scored its owner more than $1 billion. Nobody has come forward to claim the prize.
We'll be right back.
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GIOKOS: At the Wildlife Conservation Society in New York, the mission is simple: protect the world's wildlife and wild places through science,
action and education. Now for the first time, in its history, a woman is at the helm of those efforts.
On today's Call to Earth, CNN's Julia Chatterley sits down with president and CEO Monica Medina to discuss this new role and how we can all do our
part to protect nature.
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JULIA CHATTERLEY, CNN ANCHOR: Tell me how it feels to be the new head of the WCS, what it means to you?
MONICA MEDINA, PRESIDENT AND CEO, WILDLIFE CONSERVATION SOCIETY: Julia, thank you so much for having me.
[15:45:00]
MEDINA: It means so much to me to be heading up this organization right now. We know that we are losing biodiversity very quickly. We also know
that the climate crisis is upon us. And we know we need to take action.
So if we work fast and work hard over the next seven or eight years, we will definitely be able to put ourselves in a position to keep climate from
becoming the dominant thing that really wrecks our environment and our economy and that makes the future for so many generations that much less
bright.
CHATTERLEY: There's never been a more critical time to take action.
MEDINA: And I think the public is growing in awareness, I think that's really important. So the public understands that there are things that they
can do and that they should do, in order to help our planet, things like use reusable water bottles instead of those plastic ones.
Or buy detergent in boxes instead of in big plastic tubs or walk whenever you can. I don't think people need to give up every modern convenience or
make their lives that much more difficult in order to think about the way that we all impact the planet and our responsibility to those future
generations.
CHATTERLEY: Particularly, in a city, too; as you said, it's not actually just about vast open spaces or the countryside. It's actually about
preserving our wildlife in urban environments, too, well, what, let's be honest. Half the world live in those kind of environments.
MEDINA: Yes. People here in these environments need nature as much as anyone, maybe even more so. We know, during the pandemic, people who were
stuck in their homes were so glad to get outside and spend time in nature and reconnect with the nature in their neighborhood.
And I also think it's a great time for a place like WCS to be educating the public. We run four zoos and an aquarium; we're at the aquarium right now.
It's a wonderful place for people to really see animals and to understand why they're so critical to our planet.
And these places help people to see and get a much better understanding of the connections between all of us humans and the natural environment.
CHATTERLEY: There will be people watching though, that need to understand that your work is not just about zoos, it's not just about the aquarium.
You have projects in 60 countries all over the world. Explain that part of your work too.
MEDINA: We are the premier, on the ground conservation organization, working all over the world. We have thousands of people who are working to
conserve animals and habitat in the wild.
We're trying to protect the last wild places here on Earth. We know we need them, because we know that they help our climate. We're working with
governments and local communities, trying to help them grow ecofriendly, sustainable businesses around those areas, that are strongholds for nature.
CHATTERLEY: What more can we do to help?
MEDINA: You can help wildlife anywhere that you are by using less plastic, by conserving water, conserving energy, thinking about living a life that's
more sustainable. There are beach cleanups every weekend here in New York. There are lots of ways to contribute and get your hands in nature.
Get wet. The public loves nature. Our work is really essential to holding onto it today.
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GIOKOS: Let us know what you're doing to answer the call, with #CallToEarth.
We'll be back right after the short break.
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[15:50:00]
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GIOKOS: Welcome back.
A single U.S. lottery ticket has made someone an overnight billionaire. The winning Powerball ticket was sold at a convenience store in Los Angeles.
The lucky winner has yet to claim the jackpot. When they do, they will be given two options, receive $1.08 billion over 30 years or get $558 million
all at once.
Both those numbers are before taxes; still not bad. Not bad either way. Nathaniel Meyersohn is with me now.
I'm curious to find out what the tax rate is but I'm even more curious to figure out what the probabilities are of actually winning a jackpot of this
size.
NATHANIEL MEYERSOHN, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes. So I have some bad news. I regret to inform you that you didn't win the Powerball this year.
Maybe next time. But don't feel too bad, the odds of winning were 1:292 million. This is the sixth biggest lottery in U.S. history.
And it's the third biggest Powerball lottery ever. Last year, there was about $2 billion prize winner, also came in California. There's just
something about California and these folks winning Powerball.
(LAUGHTER)
GIOKOS: Fascinating. So I also want to talk about another story that has come up. AMC thought that they could charge people going into theaters
different prices for different seats. That has backfired. Now we're seeing a change.
Why?
MEYERSOHN: So AMC is the largest movie theater in the country. They thought that people would want to buy tickets based on where they're sitting, kind
of like a concert. But folks were not interested in this. Movies are not concerts.
AMC was also hoping maybe people would go for lower priced tickets closer to the front but nobody wants to sit in the front row. Although I think for
"Barbie" and "Oppenheimer," coming up tomorrow, you may only be able to get a front row seat.
GIOKOS: Well, good to see you. It makes me want to move to California, get a Powerball ticket very soon. I'll be coming on holiday. Maybe I could be
one in the 292 million chances, the odds?
MEYERSOHN: We got to get you here.
GIOKOS: That's a huge number. Yes, I'm going to come visit you. All right, so thank you so much.
For a long time, capitalism was a dirty word in Cuba. Now budding entrepreneurs have more freedom to go into business for themselves. But no
place to learn the ABC's of business. Patrick Oppmann reports, they're now getting a crash course, courtesy of the U.S. government.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A business seminar in the hotel meeting room may not seem that groundbreaking. But not long ago in Cuba, where
capitalism used to be outlawed, it would have been impossible to imagine.
All the more so since the man teaching this in a business boot camp organized by the U.S. embassy in Havana is Cuban American development
expert Gustavo Arnavat who left the island as a young boy to flee Fidel Castro's revolution.
He's been invited by the U.S. government to share his knowledge with Cuba's trailblazing entrepreneurs.
GUSTAVO ARNAVAT, BUSINESS SEMINAR INSTRUCTOR: What they need is capital, they need an idea, they need persistence. They need to really work through
very difficult times. Every entrepreneur is going to have good days and bad days. Some bad days are going to be extremely challenging they might want
to give up.
Again, this is in any other country but here it's particularly difficult.
OPPMANN: Particularly difficult because for decades following the 1959 revolution all private enterprises was banned in Cuba. Cubans were required
to work for the state. Then following the collapse of the Soviet Union, official prohibitions on self employment slowly began to ease.
[15:55:00]
OPPMANN: The first entrepreneurs in a generation here face a unique problem. There are no business schools, scarce knowledge that can be passed
down about self employment. Cuba's budding capitalists have to learn by doing.
OPPMANN (voice-over): Juan Carlo has turned a side business selling hamburgers into a restaurant franchise, a small supermarket and a logistics
company. All together he says he employs more than 60 people.
Attending the business boot camp be says helped him to identify areas of future growth.
"We've done courses on e-commerce, marketing, risk capital, private financing," he says. "They are very current things, very modern, and things
that we can use a lot."
Even though the U.S. government says it wants to help Cuban entrepreneurs, U.S. economic sanctions intended to impact the Cuban government also hurt
business people here making it all but impossible for them to access the U.S. banking system or receive financing.
The U.S.'s top diplomat in Havana says the Biden administration is studying if sanctions can be eased for Cuban entrepreneurs.
BENJAMIN ZIFF, CHARGE D'AFFAIRES, U.S. EMBASSY IN HAVANA: There's a shortage of food, there's a shortage of gas, there's a shortage of water.
Cuban state economy is no longer able to provide for its people.
And the answer to that is not a necessary evil private sector, it is more better, more empowered private sector.
OPPMANN: So far the U.S. embassy in Havana says about 200 entrepreneurs have taken this boot camp. And the hope is that they can move beyond the
decades of hostility between the U.S. and Cuba, to not only transform their lives but their country -- Patrick Oppmann, CNN, Havana.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GIOKOS: Just moments left to trade on Wall Street. We'll have the final numbers at the closing bell, right after this.
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GIOKOS: Welcome back.
The Dow is set to close higher for the ninth straight day. That is the longest winning streak since 2017, up 161 points, almost half of the sent
to the good. The index has been higher all day. And it's keeping that momentum. Let's take a look now at the other Dow components. That are
driving the markets.
Today, we had Johnson & Johnson popping up on an earnings beat. It raises its outlook to IBM, is up as well. The chip maker posting better than
expected margins. Of course, as you can see, in the green you've got Johnson & Johnson up 6 percent, IBM also sitting in the green.
Look, it topped revenue expectations as well, generally, a bad day to take intel and Salesforce at the bottom of the screen, as you can see, Intel
down 3 percent, Salesforce also losing about 3 percent.
Well, that's it for QUEST MEANS BUSINESS. I'm Eleni Giokos. The closing bell is ringing on Wall Street. The LEAD with Jake Tapper starts right now.
END
