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What We Know with Max Foster
Trump Visits Fort Bragg Ahead Of U.S. Army's 250th Birthday; President Trump Defends Decision To Deploy Troops; Gunman Opens Fire At Austrian School Plunging Country Into Shock; Five Western Countries Sanction Israel's Ben Gvir & Smotrich; Colombian Authorities: Several Killed After Explosions Rock City Of Cali; Trump-Newsom Feud Intensifies Over ICE Raids. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired June 10, 2025 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:00:23]
MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: All this hour, President Donald Trump attends a U.S. military display as he defends his decision to send troops to Los Angeles.
This is WHAT WE KNOW.
President Donald Trump's efforts to reshape the U.S. military is in full view today. He's celebrating the U.S. Army's 250th anniversary with a
military demonstration ahead of this weekend's parade. That'll be in Washington.
Today's celebration at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, is being overshadowed, though, by Mr. Trump's decision to activate more National Guard troops and
Marines to deploy to Los Angeles following protests against immigration raids there, a move the city's mayor says was unnecessary.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR KAREN BASS (D), LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: People have asked me, what are the Marines going to do when they get here? That's a good question. I
have no idea. The National Guard that are here now have one assignment, and that is to protect one building, which is the federal building downtown.
The second building, which is the federal building on Westwood Boulevard. And as far as I know, nothing has happened in Westwood at all. So, this was
not needed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: The U.S. president, once again defending his decision, though.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If we didn't send out the National Guard and last night we gave them a little additional help, you
would have -- Los Angeles would be burning right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Stephen Collinson joins us from Washington. Alayna Treene is at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
And he's about to arrive, Alyna.
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: That's right. He actually did just arrive off of Marine One. He is now currently participating and
watching the Army here at Fort Bragg run through a series of different demonstrations of their different capabilities. Actually, I'm not sure how
much you can see behind me, Max, but some people in the crowd here are watching a live stream of what the Army here at Fort Bragg is doing.
But look, the president is going to, after this, come here and give remarks. It's really about to honor and try to encourage more recruiting in
the military, but also honor the Army's 250th anniversary. But I think your point is, really what a lot of people here, including on the ground here,
are talking about, which is what he's been doing in Los Angeles and sending the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles to try and quell some of
those protests, as well as his military parade on Saturday, coinciding with his 79th birthday.
I actually caught up with some service members here on the ground, max, who told me that they are honored that the president is coming here today. They
believe that it shows that he appreciates them. And while some of them actually downplayed concerns of, you know, whether or not the president
overstepped his authority and sending some National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles, others said that they believe that, you know, that's part of
the job and that National Guard should be dealing with civil unrest.
So, a mix of opinions and some of the reaction to some of the ways that the president has really used the military this week and kind of highlighted
how he believes that the military plays a role in, you know, dealing with domestic issues.
But I do want to make some two points because as we look at what the president is doing this week, really trying to, you know, show a show of
strength with this demonstration today and the different events that he is holding is that this is very different from how he acted during his first
term. I'd remind you that one, when it comes to the military parade, for example, he had a lot of military advisers around him during his first
administration that actually cautioned him against doing so. The president had gone overseas and seen military parades in France and other countries,
and wanted one for himself. But his military officials and advisers then tried to warn him against that.
Right now, obviously, the president no longer showing any qualms about that and wanting to have, you know, dozens of tanks roll through the streets of
D.C., have nearly 7,000 soldiers come for that celebration. But then also, when it comes to what he's doing with Los Angeles, I think it's important
to note as well, because during his first term, he was hesitant to send in the National Guard to any country if the governor was against it. Clearly,
that is not how he was responding. Now, really setting this up as a him versus Governor Gavin Newsom type of issue.
FOSTER: Okay, Alayna, thank you very much. Well keep an eye on all those displays there. Also, the big parade this weekend.
Stephen, I was really struck with Donald Trump's words earlier on. So just explain how it works with these troops and the guard going in. They can't
actually carry out law enforcement activities, can they? And control those, protests, those riots until the Insurrection Act is invoked and Donald
Trump refused to rule that out today.
[15:05:01]
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: Yeah. So, the Insurrection Act is a law which allows the president to use active duty
troops on domestic soil only if there is a rebellion against federal power or an uprising or insurrection or an invasion. That clearly is not the case
in Los Angeles. There's been some unrest. Theres been some rioting, mostly peaceful protests. But no -- by no normal or historic definition of
American history. Would you say that that was an insurrection.
However, members of the administration, Stephen Miller, for example, the top hard line White House domestic policy adviser, has been talking about
an insurrection. Trump has been, as he does, floating this idea and then saying, well, we're not at that point yet. I haven't really thought about
it. But this would be a tool of the presidency that would be seen very much as an authoritarian act if he were to try to use troops after invoking the
Insurrection Act to arrest or suppress protests.
Let's just think about this. If, say, ten years ago, this was happening in developing nations somewhere in Asia or the Middle East, it would be quite
normal for a State Department spokesman to say, well, a president who created or escalated a crisis that doesn't actually appear to be happening
and then sent troops to try and address that crisis, would be acting in a very anti-democratic and authoritarian manner. But it's not happening in
some developing nation. The potential is that it could be happening in the United States.
In an affront to many of the values that the United States has stood for over its 250 years. So that's the reason why a lot of people are very
worried about what's going to happen over the next few weeks and why the spectacle of Trump repeatedly surrounding himself with military and martial
imagery is so troubling to many people.
FOSTER: Why is he doing it then?
COLLINSON: I think he's doing it because Trump seeks to impose maximum power and leverage wherever he can. He uses whatever he believes is at his
fingertips as president.
The entire leitmotif of his first four months in office has been to push the boundaries of the presidency, the conventions, and even the
constitutional understanding of what exactly a president can do inside the United States to its limits. Thats what he's doing. And I think there is a
real ideological bunch of hardliners inside the administration who actually believe there is a foreign invasion of migrants, even though that is not
the case, and they want to use maximum force to address it. And I think in that sense, we've moved into a different stage of a modern American
history.
FOSTER: Yeah, it's fascinating to cover, isn't it, worrying a lot of people, but also a lot of Trump supporters I'm seeing are really in full
support behind him.
Thank you much -- so much, Stephen.
California is asking a federal court to block the Trump administration from using the National Guard to enforce laws in the state. The streets of
downtown Los Angeles are relatively calm at the moment amid President Trump's immigration crackdown in that city. L.A.'s mayor says that right
now, she's only aware of one planned demonstration today, that's following Monday's clash between protesters and police. Now, the protests --- the
protests have been taking place in a small area of the city. As you can see, something Mayor Karen Bass pointed out earlier.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BASS: The unrest that has happened are a few blocks within the downtown area. It is not all of downtown, and it is not all of the city.
Unfortunately, the visuals make it seem as though our entire city is in flames, and it is not the case at all.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: To Los Angeles now, CNN's security correspondent Josh Campbell.
It's difficult for people around the world, Josh, to understand. There's so much messaging coming out about what is happening, what isn't happening,
and politics is involved, isn't it? You've got, you know, the Republican White House, you've got many Democrats on the ground in California.
So just explain to us what you see happening there.
JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. You know, anyone who's in the field of law enforcement or public safety, they don't like it when
politics starts to interfere. That can create tension here, a complete collision. Because what we've seen is the White House, President Donald
Trump, sparring publicly with local state officials here.
We know that Donald Trump, for example, called up members of the National Guard here in the state where I am and for our viewers around the world,
essentially every state in the U.S. has its own National Guard that reports to the state's governor, in this case, President Donald Trump has
essentially usurped the power of California's governor, called up these troops on his own and sent them here to Los Angeles.
Again, there's a big question here from local law enforcement as well, about whether any of this is needed. The Los Angeles police department has
several thousand officers. There are multiple law enforcement agencies that are around the area that have been called in to assist.
And the big question right now, and in talking to law enforcement sources, the biggest concern is they don't know what these so-called rules of
engagement are for these troops that have been called in. And any military operation around the world. The first thing that troops are told is here
are the circumstances under which you can use force if necessary.
We understand that these marines, members of the National Guard, have been told something the administration isn't saying, and that's creating a lot
of unease among local security officials here.
FOSTER: A lot of police, you know, welcoming the support, presumably. But as you say, there could be confusion on the ground if it's not clear who
does what. So, the police have to take charge of marines, which is a bizarre situation.
CAMPBELL: It's bizarre all around. And you know, what the president has said is that it's almost -- there are two things that the White House is
messaging. First, they're saying that the marines will be sent here to protect federal property. They will also be used in order to protect
immigration officers as they go around and conduct their various arrests. But it's much different when you actually see what these troops are doing.
So far, we have seen a number of them around a federal building in downtown Los Angeles. The president has said that. But for those troops coming in
this weekend, I think his word was that Los Angeles would have just completely been obliterated. I think was the word that he used.
Law enforcement officers here say that that is nonsense, that they welcome the assistance, obviously, in order to protect the federal facilities. But
it's not as though the U.S. troops arrived and suddenly save the day. They say they think they have this under control.
FOSTER: Okay, Josh, appreciate it. Thank you so much for joining us.
Other big story today, a gunman opening fire in Austrian school killing at least ten people, plunging the country into a state of shock as well. The
victims were between 14 and 18 years old. Austria's interior ministry says the suspect was a 21-year-old man who used to study there but didn't
graduate. Police say the gunman took his own life at the scene.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GERALD ORTNER, DIRECTOR, STYRIAN STATE POLICE: This person was not known to us at the police. He owned the weapons, as far as we know at the moment,
legally, meaning he had a gun ownership card. Our information at the moment, we know that a shotgun and a handgun were used.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: I want to show you some live pictures from Graz. Now this is a vigil taking place outside the school. This is a moment where everyone is
just trying to get their heads around what on earth happened today?
A huge number of grieving families there, but you know, this does happen on these tragic occasions. People want to be able to go somewhere and remember
those who've been lost. And there's a talk taking place there. And, well, wait to see what the police update us on later on.
What we want to know for now, why are school shootings so hard to prevent?
Joining us is James Densley. He's a professor of criminology and criminal justice at Metro State University in Minnesota because it keeps happening,
doesn't it, professor?
The number of school shootings around the world appears to be going up. Or is it that we're just seeing them more? What's the trend?
JAMES DENSLEY, CRIMINOLOGY & CRIMINAL JUSTICE PROFESSOR, METRO STATE UNIVERSITY: Yeah, I think it's a little bit of both, which is whenever one
of these terrible tragedies occurs, it gets a lot of media attention, and rightly so, because it's the most gut wrenching thing that you could ever
imagine happening in a school setting, which is meant to be a sanctuary for children. And in this particular case, it completely shakes a community to
its core.
But the trend is that we are seeing more gun violence in schools. I study this mostly in the United States, which is where I'm based. And we've seen
a pretty steady increase in school shootings through the last decade or so, although this year is down compared to the previous year. But then you also
have the global trend.
And there do seem to be sort of copycat cases inspired by high profile American cases that have then creeped into other contexts as well. So it's
just an awful tragedy all around and affecting far too many people.
FOSTER: Am I right in saying the majority of school attacks, at least because knives have been involved and other weapons as well, are from
disgruntled staff and students?
DENSLEY: Yes, I think that's a very clear way of stating it.
[15:15:02]
The vast majority are actually perpetrated by current or former students of the school, and it tends to be that they target the school because the
school is somehow emblematic, representative of their grievance. It perhaps might even be the root of what they perceive to be their problems. And I
think importantly you often see that the perpetrators die on the scene, many of them by their own hand.
And I think in some ways that speaks to the mentality of a school attack or a school shooter. They've got to a point in their lives where they no
longer care if they live or die. And it's that that is the underpinning, sort of grievance and motivation for the violence that follows.
FOSTER: The -- you know, there have been terror attacks on schools, but we can look at that differently, can't we? These are isolated incidents with a
very targeted mission, and they can get into the schools. They know how to get in. They know where how to move around.
And there might be some social posts just before the event, but they're quite hard to track. Well, harder at least, than terrorists who would have
a history of messaging and you know, extremist behavior.
DENSLEY: Yeah, I think that's an interesting point. What you have here are what you might call insider attacks. And students, in particular, are going
to be very familiar with the security procedures of the school. They go through the school every day. So, whether you have cameras or metal
detectors or police officers or whatever security apparatus is there, students are very familiar with that. So that alone is not going to prevent
attacks like this.
And again, it comes down to then these are attacks which are perpetrated by current or former students, which means they are in front of the teachers
and staff every single day. And it's about noticing the more subtle warning signs that someone might be on the pathway to violence is where you get the
intervention. So I think the key thing here is being very alert around just minor changes in baseline behavior. If you're seeing a student that's
usually very happy and, all of a sudden, is coming to school disgruntled, coming to school, withdrawn no longer engaging in activities, that might be
an opportunity to open up that conversation to see what's going on.
The vast majority of these cases, though, are telegraphed in advance. People with hindsight look back and realize that there were warning signs,
but perhaps were holding different pieces of the puzzle and weren't putting those pieces together. And that's where you need a more systemic approach,
systematically putting that information together. They often call it threat assessment, for instance, where you might have law enforcement working with
schools, working with families and communities to work together to identify those warning signs upstream of the problem.
FOSTER: James Densley, thank you so much for just showing how hard it is to prevent these events where you don't have the intelligence beforehand.
Thank you.
Greta Thunberg departing Israel on a flight to Paris after she was detained by Israeli forces whilst aboard a ship heading to Gaza. The Swedish
activist was amongst 12 people on the Madleen, which was attempting to deliver aid to Gaza before it was intercepted. Israel says it's preventing
the entry of all vessels into Gaza.
After landing in Paris, Thunberg called the detention a kidnaping.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRETA THUNBERG, ACTIVIST: I did not recognize that I entered the country illegally. I made it very clear in my testimony that we were kidnaped on
international waters and brought there against our own will, and into Israel.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Five Western nations, including the United Kingdom, have sanctioned two far right Israeli government ministers for, quote, repeated
incitements to violence against Palestinian communities. The sanctions target Israel's national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir and finance
minister, Bezalel Smotrich.
Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway joined the U.K. in sanctioning the two ministers and issued a joint statement calling their rhetoric appalling
and dangerous.
A weekend of violence continues in Colombia. We'll tell you about the deadly explosions there, which happened just days after a senator was shot.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:22:14]
FOSTER: While protests break out in parts of the U.S., President Trump is attending a celebration at the Fort Bragg Army Base in North Carolina,
ahead of a Washington military parade on Saturday. The visit comes as the president doubles down on his immigration enforcement policy, including the
use of federalized National Guard troops and active duty U.S. Marines. It's another sign of his efforts to reshape the use and deployment of American
troops.
We're joined by retired Air Force Colonel Cedric Leighton, who is also a CNN military analyst.
Colonel, thank you so much for joining us as ever.
I want to talk a bit about what Josh Campbell, who's got the sort of law enforcement expertise was saying about this very bizarre situation where
you've got police officers. You know, with the authority to enforce law enforcement backed up effectively by acting military, active military
personnel who don't have any powers. And what a bizarre situation that is. I mean, from a military point of view, how must the marines be feeling
going into this situation?
CEDRIC LEIGHTON, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Yeah, Max, I think it's, you know, for them, it's somewhat of a strange feeling. Now something similar has
happened before, in the 1992 Los Angeles riots in the wake of the Rodney King verdict, where police officers were acquitted. There were riots and
the marines were actually deployed as part of the military contingent that at the time, President George H.W. Bush deployed to Los Angeles in an
effort to quell the riots that were there.
But those riots were much, much, much bigger civil disturbance compared to what we're seeing today. Today, the issue is clearly not as grave, not as
dangerous, and what you're seeing here is basically a very peaceful assembly of people, at least in this particular vignette from yesterday.
But what the current administration has done is they've deployed these marines in addition to federalizing the National Guard troops.
And what that means is they are basically there as backups to the law enforcement personnel who are actually doing a pretty good job of quelling
the disturbances and in essence, limiting the damage that, you know, some of the people have caused there. But it's a very -- in many ways, it's a
very strange situation because they have some degree of training for these kinds of events. But it's more for military use in places like the Middle
East or you know, in perhaps Latin America, but not something that we use domestically here in the United States, at least not normally.
[15:25:06]
FOSTER: What was your reaction to Donald Trump refusing to rule out invoking the Insurrection Act? Well, I think that's a very dangerous course
of events. The -- I think the vagueness of the term insurrection, you know, for most people, they kind of know what an insurrection is. It's basically
a major rebellion against established authority.
And what Trump may do is he may invoke the Insurrection Act, even if, there are no overt signs of there being a major disturbance, a major challenge to
the established political and governmental order. So, it's a dangerous, slippery slope that we could be embarking on if he does this.
And I don't think it should. It should be done this way because there are procedures set in place, to quell disturbances of that are of greater
magnitude. These disturbances basically don't hit that threshold.
FOSTER: Colonel Cedric Leighton, thank you.
Authorities in Colombia are now saying a series of explosions in the city of Cali have killed several people. Local officials say some of the devices
were detonated near two police stations. It comes after opposition Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay was critically injured in a shooting during a campaign
event in Bogota on Saturday. Lawmakers held a vigil at the senate. President Gustavo Petro called for a full investigation.
Stefano Pozzebon is live for us in Bogota.
Talk that the police were targeted here. What do you understand, Stefano?
STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Yes, Max. So, well, the police were targeted. At least the two of these devices exploded in front of police
station. We don't have reports of uniformed men or personnel being killed. But we do know that at least three people have been killed and several more
have been injured. This wave of attacks in the southwest of Colombia today, which started at about 4:40 a.m. local time and lasted until mid-morning.
It recorded at least 16 explosions. It really feels like a wave of coordinated attacks.
The government has accused the EMC, which is a former guerrilla group that splintered out of the revolutionary armed forces of Colombia in 2016 when
this group signed a peace deal with the government. This is a minor group splintered out from that former formation and are still involved in narco
trafficking and armed revolution in this country. They've accused them. The group has not claimed responsibility as of now, but they have released a
statement saying that they consider themselves now at war with the state.
However, like you said, this is happening only three days after a horrific attack on an opposition candidate presidential candidate, which really is
giving chills to the country, I think that what's most important to note is the rapid succession between the attack on Saturday night and today's
attack. Take a listen to what one analyst told me earlier today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SERGIO GUZMAN, COFOUNDER & DIRECTOR, COLOMBIA RISK ANALYSIS: It's unclear, though, if the events are connected, but what is evident is that the
situation in Colombia, the security situation is rapidly deteriorating. Now, this doesn't necessarily mean that other cities are at risk because it
is one organized group attacking in one city, but it is yet to be determined how President Petro and his administration will react, as they
had already broken previous ceasefires with this organization.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
POZZEBON: And with tensions rising and the temperature of the country rising as we speak, because of these two rapid successive attacks, Gustavo
Petro the president has announced he will go to Cali tomorrow morning to personally oversee the security efforts in the southwest of the country --
Max.
FOSTER: Okay. Stefano, thank you.
What's the future of National Public Radio in the U.S.? That's a question I asked the corporation's CEO. Still ahead, her answer to that, and what the
potential elimination of U.S. federal funding could mean for emergency response in some parts.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:32:37]
FOSTER: Looming over the immigration raids in the U.S. and protests in Los Angeles, the sometimes very personal back and forth between President Trump
and California Governor Gavin Newsom is grabbing a lot of attention. Mr. Trump is defending his controversial decision to deploy the National Guard
to send in Marines, ignoring Newsom's objections. In turn, the governor is accusing the president of creating fear and terror in order to seize
control of the state's militia.
On Capitol Hill today, some House Democrats pressed U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth about the move.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETE HEGSETH, DEFENSE SECRETARY: President Trump has all the authorities necessary, and thankfully, he's willing to do it on behalf of the citizens
of Los Angeles, on behalf of our ICE agents and behalf of our country.
ROB BONTA, CALIFORNIA ATTORNEY GENERAL: The authority upon which President Trump relies, and Pete Hegseth relies for calling in the National Guard,
does not allow them to call in the National Guard. They are trying to exercise authority they do not have.
In order for them to call in the National Guard, there needs to be a rebellion. There's not. There needs to be an invasion. There's not.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Our Kristen Holmes joins us from the White House.
The president's doing it anyway. So, I think for a lot of people, it -- none of these complaints are appear to be effective.
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's right.
And obviously, we know now that there have been a number of lawsuits that have been brought against President Trump. So we'll see how that ends.
I mean, one of the things that we've been watching here is him, the president systematically pulling these federal levers to try and go around
the state government of California, particularly Gavin Newsom, somebody who he has had an enormous amount of animosity towards for years. He's been
attacking him since he's been in office, even particularly over the campaign, when it seemed like the two might one day run against each other
as Joe Biden was dropping out.
So that is not new. But what we are seeing here is this real usage of various levers that we don't often see, particularly going around to state
government. It's not just the calling of the National Guard, but it's also the bringing in of the marines, the deployment of marines. You heard the
mayor of Los Angeles talking about how she didn't even know what the marines were going to do, and Donald Trump was asked right before he left
for this trip to North Carolina, how long the National Guard would be in Los Angeles. And he said, until there's no more danger.
So obviously leaving that up to himself now, we've been wondering how far Donald Trump would be willing to go when it comes to using these federal
authorities asking about the Insurrection Act and invoking the Insurrection Act. And he left the door open for that today, saying that if there is an
insurrection, he will certainly invoke the Insurrection Act.
[15:35:04]
We reported yesterday that while its still on the table, the administration had been looking for other ways to kind of go around that, to do something
maybe a little less aggressive, a little less extreme. But clearly today he has left that door open, that he would invoke the Insurrection Act if he
says he believes that it gets to that.
FOSTER: Okay. Kristen, thank you very much indeed.
The Trump administration officially requesting funding be cut to public broadcasters in the U.S. Meanwhile, last week there were the White House
sent Congress the request to cancel more than $1 billion in federal funds for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. This is the organization that
distributes taxpayer funds to local NPR and PBS stations.
Amid these threats, I sat down with the CEO of National Public Radio at South by Southwest here in London last week.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Has the role of media changed in the Trump era?
KATHERINE MAHER, CEO OF NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO: I wouldn't say that the role of media has changed in the Trump era. Our responsibility is to report
on things that matter to citizens so that they are informed to make decisions about their lives. I think what this moment has brought about,
and it's not so much this administration, but just general polarization, is the role of media as a place where we can connect despite disagreement and
at least in public media, we recognize our responsibility to be able to serve audiences that may not have a lot in common, but at least can come to
this common place where they can engage in dialogue and difference in a meaningful way.
So, of course, an informed public is always a part of the press. But there's also this aspect that is really about ensuring that we can have the
conversation and the connection that's essential to a working democracy.
FOSTER: America's got lots of networks that aren't so common here in Europe, which are opinion based networks, and that's a different culture.
But you have to serve everyone. So you're trying to stay in the middle.
MAHER: Yes, yes.
FOSTER: And that's become harder.
MAHER: It -- I think it's harder insofar as people don't agree on what the middle is now. It's not harder in the sense of our commitment to ensuring
we're hearing from different voices.
I also tend to think there's this perspective that, you know, people can be reduced to sort of political platforms, but in reality, when you drill down
on people's preferences, they're far more complex than that. When you go into local communities and you talk to them about what they want in terms
of economic revitalization, they will recognize real tensions, perhaps around manufacturing and ensuring that their environment is something
healthy for their children.
And so, when we do really good reporting, what we're actually offering is the ability for us to hold that context, that nuance and that complexity in
ways that allow people to connect with how it affects people's lives, as opposed to reducing it to sort of left versus right.
FOSTER: It's been undermined by parts of the right. Do you feel all the brands are suffering from a lack of trust? I mean, where does that come
from?
MAHER: I think it's indisputable that media right now has a trust problem. And it's not just NPR, it's not just major broadcast organizations. We're
seeing a real rise in people's trust in media influencers, news influencers.
I would always note that usually those influencers are relying on other media organizations, reporting organizations. They don't have
newsgathering. I don't know that that's necessarily a bad thing.
I think what it teaches us is that people want a relationship not with an institution, but with an individual. We have a historic belief in media
that the brand name of our organization is enough to convey trust, confidence and integrity. But people right now are really looking for
relationships with the reporter. They want to understand why someone is saying what they're saying. That is as meaningful now as the brand of the
organization itself.
FOSTER: When you're dealing with the Trump administration, you've got this particular challenge at the moment. They're effectively trying to take away
your funding, which I know doesn't necessarily affect the national network, but does affect the local networks massively, doesn't it?
MAHER: Yeah. Our local network, I think is it's such an under-realized part of what it is that we do, and it's very different from other public
media broadcasters, which is why it's sometimes confusing for people to understand. We at NPR are a producer of news. We've got a newsroom, news
gathering, culture information.
Our local stations are on the ground and they are doing local newsgathering. They're producing shows that are relevant to their local
communities. The loss of federal funding will hit them first and foremost. So, it's about 100 million in annual funding that goes directly to
stations. So, it's both a lot of money. And also, you know, it's relatively small compared to the size of the federal budget.
And so, the way that these public stations work, these local stations is they play a critical role in emergencies -- not only in terms of emergency
broadcasting warnings, tornado watches, things along those lines, but recently, there were -- in the last year, Hurricane Helene, which hit North
Carolina terribly hard.
[15:40:18]
The residents of Asheville and the surrounding area went without drinking water, showering water, cooking water for more than --
FOSTER: And Internet.
MAHER: And Internet and news and electricity and all these things.
FOSTER: They're still working.
MAHER: The radio was the only thing that worked.
FOSTER: Yeah.
MAHER: It was the only thing that worked. And it was where people found safe drinking water. It was where people found information about their
loved ones to know whether they were okay. So, this is what we're talking about. It's not just a medium of last resort, but it's really important
that it is there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: The CEO of NPR speaking to me. Now, a judge has dismissed a $400 million defamation lawsuit filed by Director Justin Baldoni against
Hollywood power couple Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds. Lively had initially sued Baldoni, claiming that while working on the film, "It Ends With Us",
Baldoni sexually harassed her. She claims that when she spoke up, Baldoni's team orchestrated a smear campaign to ruin her reputation.
Deadline Hollywood executive editor Dominic Patten lays out what this ruling actually means now for the case.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DOMINIC PATTEN, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, DEADLINE HOLLYWOOD: This is a huge win for Blake Lively. I mean, a massive win. You know, she made a move to have
this -- this suit dismissed back in March. This has been dismissed in its entirety.
Now the judge has said, Judge Liman has said that the Baldoni team, the defendants, can put in a new amended complaint with much more limited
claims that they can make. They have until, I believe, June 23rd to do that. But at this point, for a case that's going to trial on March 9th,
2026, Blake Lively holds the upper hand.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Finally, a major collection of the late Princess Diana's belongings are set to go on auction this month. Julien's Auctions, calling
it the largest collection of the royals fashion ever to go under the hammer.
More than 100 items will be available, including a Versace sleeveless shift dress and a Dior handbag as well. And this dress, named by Diana as her
"Caring Dress", as the bright colors helped ease sick children, estimated to go for $300,000. Parts of the proceeds will go to the muscular dystrophy
U.K. charity.
I'm Max Foster. That is WHAT WE KNOW.
"QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" up next.
(INSIDE AFRICA)
END
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