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What We Know with Max Foster

Trump: Spoke With Israeli PM, IDF Won't Go To Beirut; Iran: Halting Talks With U.S. Over Israel's Lebanon Strikes; W.H.O. Chief In DRC To Meet With Country's President; Race Against Time To Locate Two Missing Men; Trump To Headline Great American State Fair After Artists Quit. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired June 01, 2026 - 15:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[15:00:30]

MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: Claim and counterclaim as ceasefires in the Middle East hang by a thread.

This is WHAT WE KNOW.

U.S. President Donald Trump says Israel and Hezbollah both agreed that all shooting will stop in Lebanon. In an online message, the president posted

that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told him by phone there will be no troops going to the Lebanese capital.

He also claims talks are continuing at a rapid pace with Tehran. That directly contradicts the Iranian government's earlier announcement that

it's suspending negotiations with the U.S. over Israel's military campaign in Lebanon. That's going to Iran's state media.

To Washington and senior White House reporter Kevin Liptak.

I mean, there has been a roller coaster, hasn't it? From President Trump today, because about an hour before he was saying, I mean, you tell me his

exact words. It was effectively saying that it didn't really matter that talks weren't happening.

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: He said, quote, "I don't care if they're over. I think they took too much time. I think they started

to get very boring."

And so the president, I think, on the one hand, trying to cast himself is under no pressure to get this deal finished, while on the other hand,

suggesting that the talks are proceeding apace and that, in fact, a deal may be happening more quickly than it might appear. And I think all of this

sort of underscores the very difficult predicament that the president now finds himself in, not only the Iran conflict threatening to upend these

negotiations as the U.S. And Iran continue to go back and forth, continue to fire missiles at one another, but now an entirely separate conflict in

Lebanon, also threatening to come in and cause everything that he's been working towards for the last several weeks to completely fall apart.

And so that's, I think, the reason that he got on the phone with Benjamin Netanyahu today to try and suggest that maybe now is not the time for the

Israeli military to go in to southern Beirut to go after Hezbollah in that country, even as the U.S. has over the last week or so somewhat softened

its position to say that it doesn't expect Israel to just absorb these attacks from the terror group, that they do understand the recognition that

Israel has a right to self-defense.

On the other hand, the president, I think, looking at this ceasefire that he has put in place with Iran sort of straining to its limits, I think it

is now being imparted on him that every moment that this deal that's being worked on is not in place, every time that the U.S. and Iran go back and

forth over a word or a sentence that's included in this prospective framework is a moment for something to come in and cause everything to fall

apart.

Even though the president says that he's happy to allow this to go on for as long as it takes to get a reasonable deal and one that he can sign off

of, it seems evident that the longer it takes, the more likely that the war really begins in earnest.

Now, when it comes to the deal and it comes to those negotiations, remember, on Friday the president said that he was in the Situation Room

making, quote, "a final determination on whether he would be able to sign off on that plan." What actually happened in that meeting is the president

told his team that he wanted to make some changes to the text, he wanted to strengthen and toughen up some of the language.

That has now gone back to Iran, setting off another sort of multi-day back and forth trading versions of this deal. And how all of that ends up I

think now remains to be seen, and certainly Iran, at least in their public posturing, suggesting that they will not be quick to sign off on anything,

particularly as the war in Lebanon appears to be heating up.

And so I think it's a moment certainly of a great amount of uncertainty, even as President Trump trying to cast himself as somewhat nonchalant about

whether all of ever gets finalized.

FOSTER: OK, Kevin, thank you.

Israel earlier then issuing evacuation orders for a southern Beirut suburb after Mr. Netanyahu ordered strikes on a Hezbollah stronghold. There were

few signs, though, of a pending ground operation in the Lebanese capital.

But Israel has already gone further into Lebanon in this current campaign than it has in decades, all this despite a US-mediated ceasefire. Since the

truce began on April the 17th, Lebanon reports more than 1,100 people have been killed by Israeli strikes, including hundreds of women and children.

[15:05:09]

CNN's Oren Liebermann joins us from Jerusalem.

What's the response then from Israel to this claim that all shooting will stop, Oren?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Well, crucially, we haven't heard from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yet after that call between

Netanyahu and President Donald Trump. We have heard, of course, from other Israeli lawmakers from across the political spectrum who criticized

Netanyahu after Trump effectively just declared a ceasefire in Lebanon.

It is interesting that Trump said Israel would not be moving ground forces to Beirut. That was never the expectation, nor was that what Netanyahu said

Israel was going to do. Trump also said that forces that were on their way to Beirut would be turned around. Again, not what we expected. We expected

airstrikes, and that's what Netanyahu said would be coming.

The problem is he said it at 10.30 this morning, which is now nearly -- or about 11 hours ago. And since then, even with an evacuation warning for

Dahieh, the neighborhood in Beirut, we haven't seen strikes on the city of Beirut. What we have seen was a strike earlier today on the city of Tyre,

which is south of Beirut, not all that far from the Israel-Lebanon border. That, according to Lebanese state media, killed two people near a hospital.

But we hadn't seen what Israel said would be a vow of strikes on Beirut itself, as they tried to go after Hezbollah in the Dahieh neighborhood,

which is considered a Hezbollah stronghold. So now we're waiting to see what happens here. Of course, it would be incredibly helpful to hear from

Netanyahu and what his plan is right now, but it very much seems like Trump slammed the brakes on this.

And there is, of course, precedent for this happening. In last June's war with Iran, Trump forced Israel to turn back fighter aircraft that were on

their way to carry out a strike in midair. He forced Israel to end that war. He largely pressured and forced Israel to end the Gaza war and to end

previous fighting in Lebanon to get to a ceasefire there back in April.

So Trump has shown that he has the leverage to do this. Still, the one caution here, Max, is that we're in the early hours of this.

And as we've seen all too many times, ceasefires here can exist in name only as they all but fall apart on the ground.

FOSTER: Yeah, exactly. Oren, thank you.

Well, Iran then threatening to retaliate if Israel does go ahead with an attack on Beirut and its southern suburbs. Iran's military today warning

residents of northern Israel they should leave the area if Israel decides to strike.

CNN's international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson joins us from London.

Nic, so Iran saying the talks are off for now. President Trump saying that he's made this arrangement with Israel. Does that allow Iran to come back

into the talks, do you think?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: I think at the moment the sense is there's still space for it because this hasn't sort of

completely gone off the rails and gone back to the level of warfare and exchange of rockets and missiles that was happening back in -- back in

March, that the ceasefire has really brought that to pretty much a standstill.

There have been a few skirmishes over the past few days which really do point to how quickly and easily that it could escalate and go off the

rails. But I think listening to what the Iranians have been saying today and sources in the region familiar with the process, one source talked

about complications earlier today when I was asking about how the talks were going. Complications, which seemed to be a sort of a language that I

hadn't really heard this source using before, but -- so it told me without any specificity that things weren't quite right.

And then we got some more detail later in the day from the foreign ministry spokesperson who said that there were obstacles in the negotiations and

then criticized the United States in these sort of talks over the past week or so that we'd understood from Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week

were just over a couple of words or a sentence that the Iranians are saying in that process the U.S. is changing its position, it's saying one thing

and then changing it and doing another.

And then also criticizing the United States for saying the United States is demanding changes in what's been agreed and then implication being not

expecting or allowing Iran to therefore put forward some of its changes.

So it's very clear that the talks that were expected to take perhaps a couple of days to bring a signature to that MOU have now stretched to the

point where frustrations have come out. We've heard about them verbally obviously from the foreign ministry spokesperson, but it does seem as if

sort of an escape valve has now been opened to let some of the steam, the pressure in these talks be released and that is specifically over the issue

of Israel's attacks against Hezbollah in Lebanon.

FOSTER: Nic Robertson in London, thank you.

Elsewhere then, the head of the World Health Organization is in the Democratic Republic of Congo as it battles a fast-moving Ebola outbreak.

[15:10:06]

He's meeting the country's leaders to discuss how to contain the virus after visiting the epicenter of the outbreak over the weekend. At least 42

people have died and nearly 300 cases have been confirmed in the DRC so far.

There is optimism though. The WHO says four nurses and a lab worker have recovered from the disease, meaning there could be more recoveries to come.

CNN's Clarissa Ward visited a red zone Ebola ward in the DRC and shows us first-hand the measures healthcare workers are having to take to treat

patients with the virus.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We are now getting ready to go into the so-called red zone of this hospital. That is the area

where all suspected Ebola patients are put and there is a lot of protective gear, unsurprisingly, that one needs to wear to go inside.

One of the things that makes this so challenging for these healthcare workers is that it becomes unbearably hot to wear these for, honestly, even

just 10 or 15 minutes.

It's actually quite hard to breathe normally in these things.

WARD (voice-over): He tells me to pull the gloves over the sleeves of the suit.

WARD: Ebola is not actually airborne. It's contracted through fluids, but still, healthcare workers have to take absolutely every precaution before

they can treat the patients, because, of course, to treat the patients, they need to touch them.

WARD (voice-over): The doctors write our names on our backs so they can recognize us, and then it's time to go in.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Clarissa.

Now, in Laos, a desperate race against time to find two men still trapped in a flooded cave network. Divers are focusing on a newly discovered cave

shaft. Amid possible signs of life, a rescuer tells CNN there were knocking sounds in response to the signals. But another member of the rescue team

says the sounds could have been made by bats or the wind.

Five villagers are recovering in hospital after making it out of the caves last week.

Mike Valerio has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the day on Monday began with a healthy, cautious dose of optimism after rescuers started knocking on the

cave walls, hoping to hear a response in return, potentially from the two people who are still missing.

They heard something during some of those moments when they were knocking on the cave walls. But by nightfall on Monday, one member of the team told

CNN it was unclear what the sounds were and it was absolutely not the case that they heard knocking.

Let's listen to what he said.

JOSH RICHARDS, CAVE DIVER: There has been a lot of reporting suggesting that we heard knocking back. That is absolutely not true. I had my ear to

that hole as best I could listening, and it was definitely something unusual that I couldn't identify.

Now, that could have been bats. That could have been the wind coming in. A lot of these caves have fissures through them as well. There were very

unusual sounds coming down from below.

They didn't necessarily sound rhythmic. They didn't sound like there were echoes or anything like that. But there has been a lot of reporting saying,

oh, we heard knocking. That is absolutely not the case.

VALERIO: So what does the team now? Well, new reporting from our colleague Will Ripley, who is on the scene, is conveying that they will potentially

look at new tunnels that they have discovered, not one but four, where they could hopefully potentially get to the two men who still remain missing.

It is a very difficult enterprise to figure out where the two men are because they didn't enter at the same time as the other people who made it

out of the cave so far. They took a different route, and they went into the cave system earlier before the men who have managed to make it out of that

cave system.

Also, an air pocket where the two men could be, according to members of the rescue team. It is tighter and more unpleasant than the crevasses, than the

spaces that rescuers have had to move through so far. So certainly the operation is not over, but challenges certainly still remain.

Mike Valerio, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Still to come, more on President Trump's claims about Hezbollah in Lebanon after reports that Iran had suspended talks with the U.S. over new

Israeli attacks.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:17:55]

FOSTER: Recapping our top story.

U.S. President Donald Trump says no Israeli troops will be heading to Beirut following conversations with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin

Netanyahu. Mr. Trump's comments came after Iranian media reported Iran would suspend talks with the U.S. due to Israel increasing its military

activity in Lebanon.

For more on this, let's bring in Ali Fathollah-Nejad, founder and director of the Center for Middle East and Global Order. He joins us from Berlin.

Thank you so much for joining us.

I think one of the things that people are noting about what President Trump said was that troops would no longer be going into Beirut. I mean, that was

news to everyone that there was a plan for ground troops to go into Beirut.

Do you think that was a slip of the tongue or was he releasing some information we didn't know about?

ALI FATHOLLAH-NEJAD, FOUNDER & DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR MIDDLE EAST AND GLOBAL ORDER: I think that the Israelis had indeed planned some kind of attacks

on the so-called southern neighborhood of the Lebanese capital city, Beirut, Dahieh, which is a stronghold of Hezbollah, which is the main ally

of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Middle East.

And since the ceasefire between Iran and the United States, the Iranian regime has been insisting that this ceasefire should be applied to all

fronts, that is, including the one between Israel and Hezbollah.

FOSTER: We haven't heard from Prime Minister Netanyahu yet, crucially, about what he says about this, because it would be a major development,

wouldn't it, if all of the fighting were to stop right now?

FATHOLLAH-NEJAD: Well, it shows that if -- you know, if it's indeed true that Israelis have decided not to go ahead with their plans, it shows that

Trump has some kind of strong influence on Netanyahu, on Israel, that he could tell them that, given his preference to strike a deal with Tehran,

that Israel has to stop its attacks on Hezbollah or cannot intensify those attacks.

[15:20:01]

So it also speaks to the kind of power relations that exist between the United States and Israel.

FOSTER: And does it now unlock talks, then, to restart with Iran? Because Iran, of course, saying that they're not going to be talking because of the

attacks in Lebanon.

FATHOLLAH-NEJAD: Well, I mean, first of all, the claim that we have heard from Tehran comes from regime-affiliated media. Most of them are affiliated

with the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps, the IRGC, which is at the center of power in the Iranian system.

So it is not really clear at the moment if those talks between the US and Iran mediated by Pakistan have indeed stopped. So this is not clear. But

what is clear is that within Iran, we've seen for weeks now that there have been heavy pressure from ultra-hardline elements within the regime and

their constituencies towards a kind of regime pro-diplomacy camp not to engage in any kind of meaningful talks with the United States.

So this also, I mean, this problem that we have right now or this development is an indication of the infighting that exists within the

Iranian regime when it comes to the question of diplomacy with the so- called Great Satan, which is the United States and regime jargon, and the kind of concessions that may be given to the United States in those, you

know, negotiations because after all, you know, enmity with the United States is part of the identity of the Islamic Republic.

And it is not that easy, as Trump may suggest, that a so-called peace deal can be achieved between the two sides.

FOSTER: Yeah. But it does also speak to what many in his administration said. They're not -- they're not always clear on who they're actually

dealing with in the country, but there's some reality to that, as you say, because there are different factions and many of them are very powerful,

aren't they?

But in terms of where Trump can take it from here, what do you think is his best option just to get the Strait of Hormuz to open, if anything else?

FATHOLLAH-NEJAD: Well, I think that the so-called reopening of the Strait of Hormuz is feasible, although there are some elements within the Iranian

regime that regard Iran's capabilities to block and to further block the Strait of Hormuz as a key element of Iranian power and deterrence.

But be it as it may, both the United States and Iran do suffer from this continued blockade of the Strait. The Iranian side needs the Strait of

Hormuz for over 80 percent of its imports and exports, most notably its oil exports. So these oil exports are absolutely key in terms of Iranian

ability to gain hard currency. So this is a heavy economic cost that the U.S. naval blockade on Iranian ports is imposing on the Iranian regime.

On the other side, there is also some pressure that the Iranians can exert on the GCC, on the Arab Gulf states and on the world economy by their

method of harassing shipments and commercial vessels going through the Strait. So I think that because of those economic costs on both sides, some

kind of arrangement could be made on that front.

FOSTER: Ali Fathollah-Nejad, I really appreciate your analysis today. Thank you so much for joining us from Berlin.

Now, back home, President Trump is planning his own opening ceremony for an event celebrating the nation's 250th birthday after multiple artists pulled

out. The Great American State Fair is slated to take place later this month over the course of two weeks on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

Brian Stelter has more on why the artists dropped out.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: Hey, Max. Yeah, this is being called a fiasco and a big missed opportunity. What was supposed to be a

grand concert in Washington celebrating America's 250th, it is fizzling out with all of the artists involved, at least most of the artists involved,

saying they were misled and practically all of them now saying they're not going to show up.

President Trump is insulting those artists, insulting those performers, saying nobody wanted to hear from them anyway, calling their music boring

and saying he will hold a rally instead.

[15:25:02]

I do feel like I'm describing something out of a comedy skit, but this is really happening. This has played out over a period of a few days, and it's

partly because there are two kind of competing organizations that are putting on events relating to the 250th anniversary of the United States.

You had this nonpartisan group set up by Congress about a decade ago, knowing that the 250th was coming up in 2026, and that organization has

been planning events for a while.

But then more recently, a Trump-aligned organization emerged raising money from private donors, putting on events that are probably bigger and bolder,

more of a spectacle, more of the way Trump likes. For example, that organization is involved with the UFC fight that's going to be happening on

the White House lawn later this month. So this concert was slated for June 25th, and the artists who had signed on say they were misled about the

event's political associations.

Country star Martina McBride said she was told it would be a, quote, "nonpartisan event," but that turned out to be misleading.

So most of these artists have withdrawn, and now the president says he will replace the, quote, "overpriced" and boring singers by hosting a rally

instead. There's some confusion about whether he's rallying the country, as he wrote on True Social, or whether he's hosting an opening ceremony.

Either way, though, Trump gets to be the star, perhaps just the way he wants. And we've heard from some MAGA media commentators who say this is a

bad look for the president.

Matt Walsh, who's a podcaster, a conservative podcaster, he wrote on X that Trump just talking about himself for 90 minutes at a rally would be

ridiculous and sad. He said, America's birthday should not be about Trump. He isn't the star. The country is.

But here we are, another event that was supposed to be a form of unity turning very divisive. It's sort of symbolic of where America is on its

250th birthday -- Max.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Thanks so much to Brian.

Coming up, protesters have been arrested outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility. Why the demonstrators there were there and the reason

as well for their arrest.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:30:33]

FOSTER: New clashes between police and protesters outside of New Jersey Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE facility.

Police arrested a group of demonstrators who were out after a newly imposed curfew. For days, people have gathered outside Delaney Hall to protest

against alleged inhumane conditions inside that detention site.

CNN's senior crime and justice correspondent Shimon Prokupecz joins us live from Newark, New Jersey.

Take us through it because this has just been getting worse and worse, hasn't it, Shimon?

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, it has. And part of what's happened here, you know, for days you had it was

ICE officers that were clashing or came face to face with protesters. And many of them, as you said, out here protesting what they say are inhumane

conditions inside the detention center.

But things have changed here because the governor here in New Jersey decided to bring in the state police to patrol the area, to try and bring

some of this under control. And instead of calming things down here, it seems to have escalated the situation. Those clashes in that video that we

have been showing with the clashes, that's happening outside the protest zone, outside the zone of where this detention center is.

It's because the state police came in and they moved everyone out of here. They told the protesters they were no longer allowed to be in front of the

building. And they've moved them about a half a mile away in both directions.

So the protesters have no way of getting into this area now. And so the clashes are now happening on the outside. And they're happening at night

because there's a curfew. At 9:00, the curfew hits.

And then the police come in and they tell people they have to leave. And that's when we start to see some of the agitators spike up. And we start to

see some of the fighting with police.

And that's when the arrest occurred. There's still things out here that many of the protesters and the community and families left behind, like

this tent. This tent was set up here and many of the protesters were gathering.

So that still remains. There's a bunch things inside. We're also seeing some indications of why the police had moved in and maybe made some of the

decisions they made, because there was concern that people were setting things on fire.

But there were also these large cinder blocks, large pieces of cement that some of the protesters were using around. And you see them here around.

They were using some of these things like this, Max, cinder blocks to kind of try and prevent law enforcement from doing some of their activities.

So as a result of all of that, the governor decided, look, enough is enough. Let's move the state police in.

But that doesn't seem to have calmed things down. For now, this afternoon, we're not seeing any activity. We'll see as the night goes, as we get

closer to that curfew hour, maybe six or seven hours from now.

Most of the protesters, I should say, Max, that are gathered here, they're outside. There's only a handful. They're out on that perimeter and the

state police are not allowing them anywhere near here.

FOSTER: Paint a picture, if you could, Shimon, of what they're protesting about. What is -- what do we know about what's inside that center?

So all we really know is coming from the families of people who have been detained here, who are going through the immigration process, were detained

by ICE because of claims that they're here illegally. Some of them may have some criminal records.

And so they're inside. There's about the facility. Let me just show you here.

Max is here behind me. So there's about 300 people in there that usually houses about 1,000. There's about 300 in there.

And the families and some of the immigration advocates are saying that the food that they're being given is just inedible. You can't eat the food.

There's concerns over medication, health care, that some of the detainees are not getting the proper nutrition.

There was a hunger strike that was going on inside for a number of days. And also some of the local politicians, the state senators, the U.S.

senators and some of the Congress folks who have visited inside are saying that they are concerned about the conditions inside this facility. They're

calling for it to be shut down and for the detainees to be moved.

This is a privately run facility, meaning that a private company runs this and ICE uses it as a way, as a place to detain the people who are going

through the immigration hearings and ICE uses it as a way, as a place to detain the people who are going through the immigration hearings and

removal proceedings.

But the family members, some of the political leaders from New Jersey are all claiming that the situation inside is unsafe, that it needs to be shut

down and that the detainees who are inside need to be moved to another location. The New Jersey governor has said that she tried to bring in some

of the health inspectors inside.

They were only given limited access. So she too has concerns. But for now, they're just trying to keep the peace outside. And for now, that seems to

be happening at least during the day.

FOSTER: Yeah. OK, Shimon, really appreciate it, in New Jersey.

The final moments of trade on Wall Street, stocks are pushing for new all time highs. Would you believe the Dow has been in the red for most of the

day? But headlines from the White House have seen it come back as the closing bell nears.

This is our Business Breakout.

Big news in the world of AI. Anthropic says it's filed plans to go public. The artificial intelligence firm already announced new fundraising last

week that values the company at $965 billion. Anthropic's IPO would be one of the biggest market debuts in years, along with SpaceX, which filed to go

public last month and OpenAI.

Shares in easyJet jumped eight percent after the company said it would consider a possible takeover bid from an investment firm. Castle Lake says

it's in the early stages of considering a bid for the airline. easyJet's board called the timing of the announcement opportunistic as the share

price is struggling due to the war in Iran.

Goldman Sachs has made -- well, maybe it's most important forecast of the year. The bank predicts that Spain are the most likely to win the World Cup

after studying nearly 20,000 matches since 1978. Spain are given a 26 percent chance of winning, followed by France at 19 percent and Argentina

at 14 percent.

If investors are worried about a peace deal with Iran, it's really not showing in the markets. Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq are set to close at

fresh all time highs. If the Dow finishes in the green, that will also be a new record.

Oil prices, meanwhile, have risen today. But even with no prospect of the Strait of Hormuz reopening anytime soon, both Brent and West Texas crude

prices are still below one hundred dollars a barrel.

Let's bring in CNN's Richard Quest live from New York, because someone needs to make sense of this. You were hearing earlier in the show, Richard,

you know, the Iranians are saying we're not talking.

Donald Trump one hour saying, you know, it doesn't matter if there are no talks. The next hour saying they're happening at pace. We don't actually

know where we are with the talks or the oil price. So, why is the market not more freaked out?

RICHARD QUEST, CNN BUSINESS EDITOR-AT-LARGE: Right. That's a very good question and one to which there's no good answer, to be honest. That --

let's us put that straight on the table.

But I think the only way one can look at this now is to take it into put a dividing line down the middle. On one side, you have all the normal stuff

of the market. Anthropic IPO, you've got SpaceX IPO. You've got chips, all the deals. You've got all of that.

And that is what is driving the market at the moment. This huge wealth of information concerning the Mag 7, concerning A.I. You and I can argue and

disagree about whether it's hype or not, but it seems to be real and there's something going on. And that's what's driving the markets that

you're looking at that.

On the other side of the divide, you have the economic growth that slowed. As a result, you've got inflation that's higher because of higher oil costs

and the highly speculative area of what is going to happen vis-a-vis oil prices and the Gulf.

In the absence of any facts, people are just going to continue to trade, to tread water. And that is what you're seeing at the moment. They are

basically they've priced in, Max, lower growth. They priced in higher inflation, all the economic impacts of oil at $95 to $100 a barrel.

And that's where we are. And they're basically the market is basically saying, "Show me, don't tell me."

FOSTER: Anthropic was interesting, wasn't it? Because the value is extraordinary. And, you know, the history with open A.I.

QUEST: It's fascinating because of the problems and the future revenue streams. It's just -- it's the same story redux for all of the IPOs in the

A.I. industry. Everybody knows it's going to be bigger than anything we can possibly know or have conceived. But the issue is, are you the player and

when is it going to happen? And at the moment, Anthropic has got the wind in the sails. At the moment, the numbers are absolutely ginormous.

And what is more interesting on top of that, people are plowing into those investment funds that already have investments in Anthropic and all the

other companies involved, because when they do go public, that's going to be a vehicle in a way in which they'll be able to realize some serious

profits.

[15:40:18]

Richard, as ever, thank you so much.

More from Richard, of course, in "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" coming up.

Still to come, changing sides. YouTube sensation KSI says he's leaving his massively popular group The Sidemen. We look at what it means for the world

of online content creators.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: There are those moments in pop culture where you remember exactly where you were when you heard the news. John leaving the Beatles, Gerri

leaving the Spice Girls, and now YouTube icon KSI's major announcement is causing a stir for his tens of millions of fans in Europe.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KSI, CONTENT CREATOR: This is honestly the hardest video I've ever had to make in my life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: The massively popular content creator posted this video to his 18 million followers, announcing he is leaving his online collective, the

Sidemen. The group is known for viral videos that have earned them a combined audience of almost 50 million subscribers and followers, and the

remaining Sidemen say they were blindsided by this news.

What we don't know is why is KSI leaving one of YouTube's biggest channels.

Joining me now is Kat Tenbarge, the internet culture journalist and writer of the online newsletter SpitfireNews.com.

Thank you so much for joining us.

KAT TENBARGE, INTERNET CULTURE JOURNALIST, SPITFIRE NEWS: Thanks so much for having me.

FOSTER: I mean, they are huge, aren't they? Certainly in the U.K., certainly in Europe. But just describe the Sidemen and KSI to people who

might not be aware on the other side of the Atlantic, for example.

TENBARGE: Yeah, so Sidemen and KSI in particular, they're not just some of the biggest YouTubers in the U.K.

[15:45:05]

They are also generation-defining YouTubers. And KSI in particular, he's the most famous one from the group. He was one of the first YouTubers to

get into boxing, now with the Paul brothers, it's enormous. He was one of the first YouTubers to have a huge debut in music, you know, rising to the

tops of the charts.

He had his Prime energy drink that really changed the landscape for influencer consumer products. And he's had a massive legacy on the lives of

millions of viewers who grew up alongside him.

FOSTER: It's interesting, isn't it? Because I was around a little young people at the weekend, this was their massive breaking news. They just

could not figure out, they were really shocked by it.

People outside the U.K. may not be aware that he's appearing in a mainstream Saturday night show here in the U.K. on TV. Is that linked? I

mean, is he shifting platform? Why do you think he's done it?

TENBARGE: So it's interesting when you look at his statement, his video he released talking about his reasons for leaving, he emphasized that he felt

cold in a million directions, and also that he's really grown up with these guys, but that he's ready to move on. And I think when you look at his

career, it's true that he's been able to cross over to the mainstream in a lot of ways, which is what we've seen happen with a few of these early

massive YouTube stars.

I think there's a big business advantage to him going solo to not being tied to the other members of the group who may not have had similar

independent careers. And also, even though he's 32, which is still extremely young, you see a lot of YouTubers really take off in their teens

and 20s, and then kind of grow out of the lifestyle and want to do things like build a family and move on as they get a little older.

FOSTER: What's fascinating, though, isn't it? You know, he's -- he, you know, he was integral to creating one of the biggest franchises on YouTube.

And this is something that so many creators, but indeed brands, would kill for. And he's walking away from that, potentially towards mainstream media.

I mean, in terms of your reporting, do you see, this is a fascinating turning point, isn't it? It's flipping.

TENBARGE: Yes, and I think that there are pros and cons to pursuing sort of a mainstream media pathway versus a new media pathway. And the common

wisdom over the past decade-plus now has been that there's more money, there's more freedom, there's more opportunity going down this digital

path.

I think creators right now are actually craving stability and the types of things that the more traditional pathways may offer.

The difference is that very few YouTubers and influencers would even be able to consider doing what KSI is doing. He is truly one of the A-listers

from the 2010s YouTube era. So he is uniquely positioned to be able to say, you know, I'm going to do this recurring TV gig.

But you can see also on a practical level why that might be appealing. The types of videos that the Sidemen were doing were these really labor-

intensive prank videos where they had to be acting, where they had to be doing ridiculous things all the time, constantly trying to up the ante with

their audience.

The modern structure of YouTube and the incentive is to just be churning out extreme content all the time. You can see why someone would burn out

and want to take a step back from that.

FOSTER: Yeah, definitely. I mean, the amount of work that goes into the videos for sure.

But do you think we should just stop talking about this digital media, mainstream media, creators, mainstream talent? I mean, do you have all

those divides gone away now?

TENBARGE: I don't think that the divides have gone away, but I do think that they are changing. You're going to see more of a class divide between

different types of creators, just in the same way that we see a class divide between working actors in Hollywood and then the A-listers. That's

what we're seeing with the generation of YouTubers from the 2010s and beyond.

And, in fact, I think this conversation is only going to become more relevant because now you have a class of 2020s creators, even younger stars

who took up on TikTok. Are they going to be able to transition to mainstream pathways? What are their futures going to look like? There are

still a lot of questions to be answered, but fans are going to be tuning in to hear them.

FOSTER: I know, it's fascinating. Kat Tenbarge really appreciate your thoughts and analysis on that.

Still to come, tennis legend Serena Williams says, she'll be back on the court.

[15:50:00]

Why she's coming out of retirement after nearly four years.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: A tennis legend returning to the court next week. Queen's Club confirms Serena Williams will play in the doubles competition at the HSBC

Championships here in London. No word yet though on who her partner will be. It's been nearly four years since the last competitive match for the

23-time Grand Slam singles champion.

Whilst the 44-year-old never officially announced her retirement, Williams said she was evolving away from tennis after losing in the U.S. Open in

2022.

CNN World Sports Don Riddell joins us now from Atlanta.

I mean, it's pretty excited here in London, I have to say, Don, and that it's going to happen here.

But what is the story?

DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: More questions than answers, I think, Max. I mean, you've pretty much just outlaid all the details that we know on this

story. Serena Williams is making a comeback, although if she never retired, can we even really call it a comeback? Certainly, there is a lot of

excitement, interest and intrigue about Serena's return to the game.

As you say, it's going to be in the doubles competition at Queen's next week. Queen's is a tournament she's never played before because the women

actually didn't play there from the early `70s up until just last year.

So that's what we know. We don't know who her partner is going to be. It's rumored to be Victoria Mboko, who's a 19-year-old Canadian sensation. The

video that announced this was really cool. It has to be said, just a really brief Nike clip of Serena on a practice court and you can hear her phone

just blowing up with incoming phone calls and text messages.

She has said that Queen's is going to be the perfect place to begin this next chapter. So that doesn't sound like it's going to be a one-off.

So does that mean she's planning on playing Wimbledon as well? Queen's for the men has always been a traditional warm-up event before hopping over to

the other side of town to play Wimbledon. Of course, Serena is a seven-time singles champion at Wimbledon. What's going to happen after that? Is she

playing doubles or is she going to play singles as well?

I've heard somebody suggest that maybe this is a start of some kind of comeback that's going to lead to the Los Angeles Olympics in two years'

time, which would complete this incredible narrative arc because L.A. is where the story began in Compton for Serena all those years ago.

But we just don't know. And until Serena starts playing competitively again, starts giving interviews and answering questions in press

conferences, we really don't know what the plan is.

[15:55:07]

But at the moment, it is for sure certainly very exciting.

FOSTER: It really is. Don, thank you.

Before we go, a huge explosion of the fireworks factory, of all places.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

FOSTER: That is northern Malta.

Police say the explosion was so strong that two men in nearby fields were taken to hospital with minor injuries, though. They say all workers

connected to the factory have been accounted for, and none were at the building at the time of the explosion. The cause of the blast being

investigated.

I'm Max Foster. That is WHAT WE KNOW. Do stay with CNN. More after the break.

END

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