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Stephen Colbert Pushes Back Against CBS; Avalanche in California; Mark Zuckerberg Testifies. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired February 18, 2026 - 13:00   ET

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

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Does MAGA have any other stars that they could pull from? I feel like he's so saturated, compared to the Democratic Party, where you have all of the music industry in Hollywood.

STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: Yes, it is a little bizarre.

And you kind of wish you could unsee it. But it's not the most bizarre thing happening in American public health right now. And that is -- we may not forget that message, but there's a lot of strange things going on.

DANA BASH, CNN HOST: Yes, yes, I mean, like, I'm sorry, but getting into a cold plunge with jeans. There's so many more things to say, but luckily for the control room, we're out of time.

Thank you for joining INSIDE POLITICS.

"CNN NEWS CENTRAL" starts right now.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: The social network in the spotlight, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg taking the stand in a landmark trial, also set to face parents who accuse his platform and others of harming their kids' mental health.

Plus: an ongoing search for survivors, first responders in a race against time looking for nine skiers still missing after being buried by an avalanche.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: And crisis in Cuba. CNN takes a closer look at the Trump administration's attempt to put the political and economic squeeze on the island nation.

We're following these major developing stories and many more all coming in right here to CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

SANCHEZ: Right now, the head of some of the biggest social media platforms in the world are defending their companies in court as grieving parents watch from the gallery. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is giving what will likely be pivotal

testimony, as jurors will decide if his company and Google's YouTube are responsible for harming the mental health of children. It's a landmark case that could have far-reaching effects for the industry.

CNN's Veronica Miracle is outside the L.A. courthouse where Zuckerberg is testifying.

And, Veronica, the plaintiffs in this case are a mother and daughter, but also several families who have lost children have flown in to be there so they can come face-to-face with Zuckerberg.

VERONICA MIRACLE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's exactly right, Boris.

They flew in from all over the country. They got here very early to ensure that they could get a seat inside the courtroom. And when Mark Zuckerberg arrived, many of those families were already inside waiting for him. He arrived to a crush of media, just hundreds of media here, waiting to see him. He didn't answer any questions.

I asked him did he have a message for the families upon his arrival. He did not. But as he enters today, he will be testifying as a witness in this case; 20-year-old Kaley and her mother are suing Meta. And -- her lawyer says that she started using Instagram, rather, at the age of 9, and by the time that she was a teenager, she was using the app more than 16 hours a day, they say because its addictive nature.

Those grieving parents, they all came in because they wanted to see what exactly is going to happen in this case. Many of those parents say that their children died because of social media apps, including one mother, Julianna Arnold, who we spoke with today.

She says her daughter Coco was 17 when she met an man on Instagram who sold her uphill laced with fentanyl. Coco ended up dying. Here's what Julianna had to say:

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JULIANNA ARNOLD, FOUNDING MEMBER, PARENTS RISE!: We want the truth. We want the truth. We want transparency and we want these companies to be held accountable. That's why we're here today. They need to see -- Mark Zuckerberg needs to see.

Again, we already faced him once in January 2024 in Congress at a hearing where he was forced to apologize to us. And now we really want to hear the truth, because, that day, we did not hear the truth.

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MIRACLE: Yes, a Meta spokesperson says they strongly disagree with all of the allegations in Kaley's lawsuit.

And there are no courtrooms -- or no cameras allowed in the courtroom today, no audio recordings allowed in the courtroom today. So everything that the world will hear from Zuckerberg's testimony will be secondhand from the people who are inside the courtroom, which is exactly why those parents say they wanted to be inside to hear directly from him -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: And, Veronica, this case has far-reaching implications.

Take us through what's on the line, not only for Facebook, but for YouTube as well and potentially other social media companies.

MIRACLE: Yes, that's right Boris. You said that it was a landmark case.

It is because, these companies, they could potentially be on the line for billions of dollars in damages, and it could also open up to -- open them up to liability in many other cases. Kaley's case is one of just 15 -- one of 1,500 other similar cases right now that are going to trial.

So this -- what happens here is going to be very instrumental moving forward. It could also potentially require these companies to change their apps fundamentally, change their algorithms -- algorithms, rather, change the way that these apps operate.

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So, many eyes watching what will be happening here in this case -- back to you, Boris.

SANCHEZ: Veronica Miracle, thank you so much for that reporting in Los Angeles for us -- Brianna.

KEILAR: Every minute counts as a dangerous search for survivors of an avalanche is intensifying right now in California.

Authorities say nine backcountry skiers are missing and six others made it out alive after a wave of ice, rock and debris hit their group yesterday morning. They were all on the final stretch of a three-day trek near Lake Tahoe in an area known as Castle Peak.

This is video showing some of the dozens of rescuers heading out yesterday, teams approaching the disaster area from multiple directions.

Let's turn now to CNN's Stephanie Elam to talk a little bit about this and get the latest on this search.

Tell us about what you're finding out, Steph.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this was not the time to be in the backcountry, Brianna, just from what we know.

We know the National Weather Service was warning about this storm system that was heading in, that it wasn't going to drop inches, it was going to drop feet. We know that this group of skiers went out on Sunday for a three-day trek. It was 11 customers and four guides, according to Blackbird Mountain Guides that was leading this trip, is what we understand. We also know that there was extreme weather happening at the time.

Now, when this avalanche happened, it was around 11:30 in the morning yesterday. Six of those people were able to be rescued, but 11 hours later. They did have beacons and that's how the sheriff's department was able to communicate with them and they were able to do some limited texting and they were able to put up a tarp to protect themselves.

They have various different injuries. Still, though, there are these other nine skiers that are missing out there. And just to take a listen to what dispatch sounded like when this first call came in, take a listen to this.

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DISPATCH: Medical for an avalanche in the area of Castle Peak, reported as nine to 10 people buried, three others attempting to dig them out.

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ELAM: And just to give some perspective, a few years ago, I went up to Canada to do a story on avalanche dogs. And while I was up there reporting, I learned that, if you do not get to somebody within those first 15 minutes, it really is detrimental; 90 percent of people who are rescued in that first 15 minutes survive.

But after you get past two hours, the likelihood of survival goes way down. And also, keep in mind, when the snow comes down the way it does, human bodies are just three times denser than the snow. And so they tend to fall deeper down in that snow, which, after an avalanche, is like concrete, so you can't even move a muscle to try to get out.

And then, on top of it, you have got the fear of asphyxiation. It is a terrifying situation to be in, and very terrifying for these people who were going in there after dark last night to handle these rescues as well and get those six people out.

KEILAR: Yes, that's the thing, Steph. They're facing incredibly treacherous conditions. We are looking at them on our screen here. What are they up against?

ELAM: Just the idea of the snow coming in sideways, heavy snow, which, again, they were getting three to four inches of snow per hour yesterday. Now, it's tapered off some, but it's still snowing a bit up there in the Lake Tahoe area.

The Sierra Nevada saying they could get eight feet of snow once this storm system is completed. This -- I mean, look at that. That's basically whiteout conditions. This is not the time to be out there.

What's not clear, though, is whether or not they were trying to get back earlier. We're hoping to get more information on this, but this was definitely a dangerous situation to be out there when you're talking about snow coming in sideways and visibility being basically nil. KEILAR: Yes, tough for these rescuers.

Stephanie Elam, thank you so much for the very latest there.

Still to come, we have some new details about the DNA in the Nancy Guthrie case, specifically about what investigators found in the 84- year-old's home.

Plus: no fuel, no food, no visitors. Inside the U.S. pressure campaign on Cuba, as the Trump administration reportedly holds secret talks with Raul Castro's grandson.

And, later, CNN talks to Quad God, Ilia Malinin, following his heartbreaking Olympic loss.

We will have that and much more coming up on CNN NEWS CENTRAL.

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KEILAR: As investigators are hunting for new clues in the search for Nancy Guthrie, the display of yellow flowers and support keeps growing outside of her home, one new sign today reading "Let Nancy come home" alongside the quote "It's never too late to do the right thing."

Those words, of course, are from the latest plea from "Today Show" host Savannah Guthrie that she made to whoever may have her mom. And now, 18 days into what Savannah has called her nightmare, investigators appear to be focusing more on genetic genealogy, what they may be able to glean from the suspect's gun.

Joining us is former FBI counterintelligence operative Eric O'Neill. He's also the author of "Spies, Lies, and Cybercrime."

Eric, I mean, first off, let's just take a look at where we are right now; 18 days in, there obviously is a lot of work that investigators are doing around the clock. Where would your focus be right now?

ERIC O'NEILL, FORMER FBI COUNTERINTELLIGENCE OFFICER: Well, right now, there are two areas of focus that are good leads. One is the DNA that was found in the house and the DNA in the glove, kind of the 2-B to the 2-A, DNA in the house, and that backpack, the Ozark Trail backpack that has been identified from the video that was recovered from Nest and Google that shows the suspect, the prime suspect, that looks like he was breaking into that home.

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So following up on those two leads could lead to something and probably did lead to a list of individuals that I know the FBI are now going to different gun dealerships and asking whether any of those individuals has bought a gun in the past 30, 60, 90 days.

KEILAR: So you think they already have a list of names and they're essentially looking for a Venn diagram of different products they believe this perpetrator had?

O'NEILL: That's certainly a good theory.

They probably put a list of names -- now, there are a number of ways they could get there, although we don't know. One is by going to all of the Walmarts in the states and pulling point of sale for anyone who bought that Ozark backpack in the last number of months.

You can get a list and then you can cross-reference that name of the person who bought it to the composite they have built from the video that was recovered, which shows a man who is between 5'9'' and 10'' of average build. The FBI will get an approximate weight from that, and then they can compare that to driver's license information and maybe get a sort of a face.

If they can compare all of that information together, that might have given them a list. They have also probably identified, if not the firearm, the very unique holster that he was wearing in that video. And we're not sure exactly where they have gone with the DNA yet. They know that it is not a match to the FBI's Combined DNA Index System, otherwise known as CODIS, database of DNA.

So, the person doesn't have a record. He's not in the FBI system. And now what they will do is, they will take that DNA and try and compare it to some genetic genealogy, which means that they go to outside databases or other databases, like Ancestry.com or 23andMe.

KEILAR: Yes. Yes, and that could lead them not necessarily to the individual, but someone related to the individual and all around the world, right?

I do wonder, if you don't know this person on this video, then you don't know them. But it's hard to imagine seeing someone you are familiar with this clearly, even with this mask on, and not having some kind of inkling that it is them.

Do you have any doubt that there is someone or some people out there who have an inkling of who this individual is?

O'NEILL: That is an excellent point and one that has led to, I suspect, somewhere around 30,000 to 40,000 tips that have come in.

Someone out there recognizes that person. And the goal right now for the FBI and local law enforcement is to sift through those many tips to find that one nugget, that gem of someone who says, I recognize that person, I think he's this person, right?

Now, I'm sure that some of those tips have led to -- we have seen one. A delivery driver was a person of interest. Last Friday, we saw this incredible amount of activity around a residence about two miles away, where the FBI sent SWAT and forensics teams and then found another person of interest and released them.

These are coming from those tips. When they have a good tip and it looks actionable, the FBI and local law enforcement is moving rapidly to try to determine whether it's good or bad. So I'm sure that, as they move through more of those, that information that's coming in from the public, they might get closer to the individual who has abducted Nancy Guthrie.

KEILAR: Eric, great to speak with you and get your perspective on this. Thank you so much.

And for those who have seen anything suspicious, if they know anything about the potential whereabouts of Nancy Guthrie, you are asked to call the Pima County Sheriff -- the number is there on your screen -- or 1-800-CALL-FBI.

Next, some brand-new reporting about what may have influenced CBS' decision to scrap Stephen Colbert's late night interview with a Democratic lawmaker.

And farmers race to save their crops as a wildfire the size of Chicago crosses from Oklahoma into Kansas. We have the latest on that fast- spreading fire.

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KEILAR: Late-night host Stephen Colbert is pushing back against CBS over why an interview with a Texas Democrat never aired on TV.

Colbert says he was told he had to scrap it, but the network says the show was simply given legal guidance on the matter and that Colbert wasn't prohibited from broadcasting the interview.

SANCHEZ: He, of course, offered a very different account on his show.

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STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT": We were told in no uncertain terms by our network's lawyers, who called us directly, that we could not have him on the broadcast.

(BOOING)

COLBERT: Then I was told, in some uncertain terms, that not only could I not have him on. I could not mention me not having him on.

(LAUGHTER)

COLBERT: And because my network clearly doesn't want us to talk about this, let's talk about this.

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SANCHEZ: CNN's Brian Stelter joins us.

Brian, the interview was posted online and racked up millions of views. What are you learning about how this all went down? BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: That's right.

And it's probably getting a lot more attention as a result. Talarico is certainly benefiting. We can get into that in a minute. But this is all a result of Trump ally and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr making a big change to how the FCC under Trump is interpreting the equal time rule and enforcing the equal time rule.

This rule dates back almost 100 years. I don't want to put on a history class here, but it dates back to the dawn of the radio and TV age in 1927. And this rule was meant to ensure that candidates for office had a fair shot at reaching the public in an age of total media scarcity with only a handful of stations.

A lot of people think that rule is completely antiquated now in the YouTube age. But Carr told reporters about an hour ago in Washington that he is going to enforce this rule -- quote -- "across the board." And he confirmed CNN's reporting about the FCC opening an investigation into "The View," the ABC talk show "The View," about a possible equal time violation.

Carr called it an enforcement action, which sounds really serious, maybe a little bit scary. But legal experts tell me it's likely not going to amount to much. The FCC's enforcement powers are really limited. So this seems to be about making political noise and causing a chill at networks and stations.

That may well be the point. And, if so, it's working, because CBS was concerned about the possible investigation at "Colbert." That's why the lawyers called. That's why the Talarico segment was moved to YouTube. As Jimmy Kimmel recently said, this is a sneaky little way of keeping anti-Trump voices off the air.

That's what Kimmel claims Carr is trying to do, trying to chill broadcasters and influence content, although Carr says he's not trying to do that at all.

KEILAR: Well, whatever it is, it appears to have had a different effect than intended, if that was the effect, because, this morning...

STELTER: Yes.

KEILAR: ... one, this is all we're talking about, right? And Talarico's campaign actually said it raised $2.5 million in the 24 hours after "The Late Show" visit, which sets a single-day record, as he is in a primary race trying to go for that seat that a Republican holds in Texas.

It seems like this has really been great for him.

STELTER: It's a lot like the Kimmelgate episode from last September, where Jimmy Kimmel came out stronger afterwards.

We could put Talarico's tweet on screen. He said: "The FCC banned our 'Colbert' interview." And he's wrong about that. The FCC did not ban the interview. And that's what is actually so interesting about this. It's about the impression, the possibility of interference causing the networks to possibly self-censor.

CBS read the proverbial room. They sensed that the FCC might try to aggressively enforce these rules, and thus encouraged Colbert to just put it on YouTube and keep it off the public airways. And, like I said, past chairs of the FCC have not prioritized these rules, but Carr is going to move forward with this.

And it reminds me of a term Timothy Snyder has used. He's the author of the book "On Tyranny." He talks about this as being an example of obeying in advance. He says most of the power in authoritarianism is given freely by individuals who think ahead to what a repressive government is going to do and then do it themselves. They obey in advance.

And that's what many critics say CBS is doing in this instance. It also reminds me of what Don Lemon recently said when he pled not guilty to those charges in Minnesota. He said the process is the punishment. Lemon is probably going to be found not guilty. He's going to get out free after a jury trial. But the process is the punishment.

And there's something similar happening here with the FCC.

SANCHEZ: Yes. It's not cheap to have to go to court. It's also, to a degree, humiliating as well.

Brian Stelter, thanks so much for the reporting.

So, new reporting alleges Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been holding secret talks with Raul Castro's grandson, as the Trump administration puts unprecedented pressure on Cuba. We will take you live to Havana right after this.

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