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NYT: Source Says Al-Shamrani Watched Mass Shooting Videos; Iranian President Presents Budget Of Resistance; Democrats Drafting Articles Of Impeachment; N. Korea: "Very Important Test" Conducted Successfully; FBI Identifies Shooter As 21-Year-Old Mohammed Alshamrani; NYT: Beirut Asks Countries For Help As Shortages Loom; Indigenous Groups Offer Perspectives At COP25. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired December 08, 2019 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:00:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This person in no way shape or form represents the feelings of the Saudi people.
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: The U.S. President touting the importance of ties with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia after a deadly attack
at a U.S. naval base.
REP. JAMIE RASKIN (D-MD): We're in the process of exploring every possible dimension.
ANDERSON: House Democrats draft their articles of impeachment as they finish their case against Mr. Trump.
GARY VAYNERCHUK, BEST SELLING AUTHOR, NEW YORK TIMES: The biggest poison in us is regret.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Serial entrepreneur marketing guru, social media hero. My interview with Gary Vee. On the street, thousands are calling for urgent
climate action but are world leaders really listening. We take you to the most important Climate Conference of the year.
Well, this hour, even as the American president seems to stand unwaveringly by Saudi Arabia after a horrific mass shooting in his own country. He's
also got some kind words for the Saudis staunch enemy Iran. And this geostrategic juggling act are being highlighted right now by two roiling
stories.
Well, first a grim revelation emerging about the government in that shooting Friday at a naval base in Florida. The New York Times reporting
that according to a source, Mohammed al-Shamrani watched mass shootings videos at a dinner party the night before the attack that killed three
sailors.
And a law enforcement source tells CNN how Shamrani and a group of Saudi nationals travel to New York City of the Thanksgiving holiday. That group
being interviewed by authorities and we have told our being cooperative. Natasha Chen joins us now. She is at the Naval Base in Pensacola, the site
of the attack and our International Diplomatic Editor Nic Robertson is in the shooter's homeland live for you tonight from Riyadh.
Let's start with you, Natasha. What is the latest on the investigation?
NATASHA CHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, the FBI and law enforcement partners are meeting right now for their daily briefing. And they're
trying to determine whether they can release more information to the media today. But late yesterday, they did finally confirm the name of the
suspected gunman whom -- which we have learned from other law enforcement - - law enforcement sources, Mohamed al-Shamrani.
And they also have said that, you know, they're still determining deliberating the term terrorism with this investigation. They're not
prepared at this point to say that this is terror-related, but it is being considered right now. Again, it's still very early in the stages of this
investigation. The disturbing details that we are learning, however, are coming from another source.
The site intelligence group and non-governmental organization based in Maryland, issued a report talking about the social media of the gunman.
They described a posts such as al-Shamrani quoting Osama bin Laden in a will to Twitter and said that also al-Shamrani had some very anti-American
views, expressed hatred toward Americans for what he perceived to be a pro- Israel stance.
And of course, you mentioned, the New York Times reporting where he apparently had a dinner party the night before the shooting to watch mass
shooting videos, and that over the Thanksgiving holiday he visited New York City with friends who are being questioned and are being cooperative,
Becky.
ANDERSON: Nic, the Saudi King, King Salman was quick, very quick to weigh in on the shooting relaying his thoughts through the U.S. President Donald
Trump. Let's just have a listen to what Donald Trump said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: King Salman of Saudi Arabia just called to express his sincere condolences and give his sympathies to the families and friends of the
warriors who were killed and wounded in the attack that took place just recently, just this morning in Pensacola, Florida. The king said that the
Saudi people are greatly angered by the barbaric actions of the shooter, and that this person in no way shape or form represents the feelings of the
Saudi people who love the American people so much.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Now is critics suggesting or deriding to a certain extent, Nick, the U.S. President's first instinct which seemed to be to temper any
suggestion that the Saui government should be held accountable for the government's actions. What has been the response there from those that
you've spoken to?
[10:05:21]
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, I think as we would expect, people really following on from what the king has said. And
I think it's very significant that the shooter's uncle has said that they knew nothing was wrong, or they believe nothing was wrong with his nephew
before he went on this training program over two years ago. And across the course of that period, they have seen nothing significant change about him,
nothing to give them any warning signs.
So that's a clear message from the family and also saying and the tribe being, you know, a bigger representation of that same family. The tribe
saying, look, this isn't how -- this isn't the actions representing Saudi Arabia. We don't believe that this is right. The condolences for all
those who were -- who were impacted as a result of his shooting. So I think that message is being echoed.
What I found talking to Saudis -- when I was talking to one former, a very senior military officer who's still involved to this day in training young
recruits, and he was shocked and surprised by this as well. Why quite simply, because to get on -- to get into the military here, you have to
pass reasonable standards. And to get on to the training program that he was on, again, you have to cross a higher threshold.
And the sort of rigor of that and the -- and the scrutiny that would be applied to any young Saudi going on a significant cross military training
program like that would sort of weed out if you will, any bad apples. So he was really shocked that somebody should have done this.
And I think that's broadly what we are seeing here, certainly the message coming down from the king and senior officials.
ANDERSON: It is a busy week for Saudi Arabia. There is an awful lot going on, sporting events, a crucial GCC summit where some say we may -- we may
see a glimmer of normalization with Qatar, this blockade now been going on for some three years, and of course, the listing of Saudi Arabia's largest
asset, Saudi Aramco. This is a very important time for Saudi Arabia and any reputational damage will be extremely painful for the country.
ROBERTSON: Absolutely. The relationship with President Trump and the Saudi King is strong. The relationship between Saudi Arabia and America is
strong at the moment. The Saudis didn't like President Barack Obama.
They found him weak on security. This alliance between the two, you know, the selling of a large amount of weapons by the United States to Saudi
Arabia, since President Obama sort of -- and the Saudis, didn't stand up for regional leaders during the Arab Spring. The Saudis have really
stepped up their own security and defense procurement. They're the third- largest spender in the world.
So all this is at stake and sort of economically in that relationship, at stake as well, the strategic partnership that the United States backs out
is security in the region. Saudi Arabia for its part plays a role in helping project United States power in the region, if you will. So step --
one step beyond that to everything that you're saying there, the message that Saudi Arabia has been wanting to get across in the recent years is the
message of the Crown Prince, the 2030 vision, the reform of the country, the modernization, the allowing women to drive, the music concerts that are
here. And just last night, this huge, very important World Heavyweight Boxing championship. That was the message. That's the sort of thing that
the Saudis want to be known about.
So this shooting is the last thing they wanted the headlines. The Aramco idea, that's another thing they'd like to see on the headline. So this is
-- this comes at a bad time damaging an important strategic relationship. It's many things and none of them are good.
ANDERSON: Nic Robertson is in Riyadh for you, Natasha on the story in Pensacola, thank you to you both. Well, this -- none of this is happening
in isolation in this region, not by a long shot. While all that is going on with Saudi Arabia, Mr. Trump, well, making positive noises towards Iran,
a longtime political adversary, of course, in the Middle East in what is really a rather rare move thanking the Islamic Republic.
This weekend Mr. Trump hailing a prisoner swap between Iran and the U.S. The Iranians releasing a U.S. student who have been held for is on
suspicion of being a spy while in the U.S., the American setting free an Iranian scientist who was detained last year.
Mr. Trump, praising Iran for a fair negotiation and saying, "See we can make a deal together." Well, while a senior administration official said
the U.S. hopes "This will lead to further success with Iran." My next guest is the last American to be free from imprisonment in Iran before this
weekend. Washington Post Reporter Jason Rezaian was a and was arrested and convicted of espionage in 2015. He was held for 18 months in Tehran before
he was released.
[10:10:47]
And Jason joining me now from Washington. And I appreciate your time, sir. This is the first time Iran and the Trump administration have agreed on
anything as far as I can tell. Before we talk about where this might all lead, of all people, you must have been delighted when these prisoners was
announced over the weekend, Jason.
JASON REZAIAN, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Becky, I've been following this story for the past three years, have been in touch with people in the
government about it as well as Mr. Wang's wife very regularly over these last couple of years. So I'm overjoyed, elated that he is free, saddened
that other Americans are still languishing in Iranian prisons, but hopeful that this is a sign that a further swap or other sort of release of
Americans could be coming in the future.
ANDERSON: Yes. And this is a positive move, for all of those who are watching what has been torrid relations, it has to be said between the U.S.
and Iran. And the line, "See we can make a deal," the words of the U.S. President, Jason, do you think this is a real sign that a broader de-
escalation is possible?
After all, it was only a couple of days ago that the administration's representative on Iran, Brian Hook, who was doubling down on Tehran
decrying its crackdown on protesters and emphasizing the internal problems as evidence that the country is close to collapse.
REZAIAN: Well, I think that there is a lot of fanfare and hysteria about the imminent collapse of the Islamic Republic. And you live in that
region, and I think everybody there understands that this is an influential force in that part of the world. And I think the assumptions or
prognostications about its imminent demise are overblown.
I also wouldn't put too much stock into the idea that this could open up a channel of much bigger negotiations over larger issues. But I will say
that the prisoner issue is sort of low hanging fruit that should be easily resolvable.
For the last 40 years, the Islamic Republic has been taking foreign nationals, especially Americans hostage and using them as political
leverage. It continues to be a problem after my release, and the release of other Americans in 2016. Dozens of dual and foreign nationals have been
arrested in Iran.
So I think first and foremost, we have to celebrate the release of Mr. Wang. Remember that other Americans are being held still. But also think
about what are ways that we can end this practice once and for all, make it more expensive for Iran to do this sort of thing in the future.
ANDERSON: Yes. You know, you're making some very good points. Just hours ago, sort of sidebar note, but something that plays into the kind of wider
story here when it comes to sort of U.S.-Iran relations. The Iranian President Hassan Rouhani presenting what he calls a budget of resistance
saying foreign attempts to wreck Iran's economy had quote failed and the country was taking big steps as he calls them towards prosperity while
reducing dependence on oil revenues. A clear message of defiance in the face of the US's campaign of maximum pressure and sanctions. Do you think
what Ronnie is announced as in any way being realistic at this point?
REZAIAN: Well, Becky, five years ago, leading up to the nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, there was a lot of talk about a resistance
economy, the idea that Iran would need to rely on itself and domestic production to fill many of its needs. Well, I think that that might be an
effective tool for growing their economy long term. This is a population that's gotten used to a pretty high standard of living compared to many of
its regional neighbors and that's plummeted over the last couple of years under the weight of us sanctions.
So I think potentially long term for Iran's economy, yes, you know, promoting a plan of domestic production and moving away from oil-based
economy makes a lot of sense. Will it help in the short term to quell dissent and opposition to economic reforms that the people see is making
their lives more difficult? I doubt it.
[10:15:24]
ANDERSON: Fascinating. Jason, it's always a pleasure. Thank you, sir. In another roiling story in the Middle East, that's at the heart of all
these diplomatic relationships, U.S. President Donald Trump says he believes his son in law, Jared Kushner can broker a peace between Israel
and the Palestinians.
Speaking at a pro-Israel event, Mr. Trump also criticized the previous administration's Middle East policies. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: After eight long years in which our alliance was undermined and neglected, I am happy to report that the United States-Israeli relationship
is stronger now than ever before. The toughest of all deals is peace with Israel and the Palestinians. They say that's the toughest of all deals.
But if Jared Kushner can't do it, it can't be done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: There you go. If Jared can't do it, it can't be done. Ahead on the show, full steam ahead in Washington as Democrats prepare for their
next impeachment hearing. The House Judiciary Committee Chairman says a jury would convict President Trump in three minutes flat. That after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I know this that the impeachment thing is a total hoax, the numbers have totally swung our way. They don't want to see impeachment, especially
in the swing states they swung away. I've never seen this swing like this because people realize it's a total hoax.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, he says it is a hoax, but it looks like U.S. President Donald Trump is about to be impeached as we speak. Democrats leading the
inquiry are drafting what are known as the Articles of Impeachment, deciding how many they will include, and which ones they will be.
Now, these articles of impeachment will go into what is a formal document listing charges against the president and why he should be removed from
office. We could see that this week. House Democrats will say holding at mock hearings and preparing for Monday's hearing when evidence against Mr.
Trump will be presented.
Now, how the Articles of Impeachment are crafted and how wide-ranging they will be could be crucial to whether the Democrats can move the needle with
the public on this. That hasn't really happened today. Donald Trump is saying that people are swinging in his favor. That's not true but people
aren't swinging against him either. And how voters will in swing states will respond in the 2020 election is sort of where all this is headed.
On Saturday, the House Judiciary Committee released a report laying out historical arguments for impeachment. The report doesn't directly charge
the president, but Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler said in the statement, President Trump abused his power, betrayed on national security, and
corrupted our elections all for personal gain. W ell, our Chief Political Correspondent Dana Bash spoke with him a short time ago about what we
should expect on Monday.
[10:20:59]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
REP. JERRY NADLER (D-NY): Well, we're going to have a hearing tomorrow in which the Intelligence Committee is going to present the evidence. And we
have to consider the evidence which just shows overwhelmingly that the President put his own personal interests above the interests of his
country. It shows that -- and the evidence is virtually uncontested.
It shows that, you know, he worked with the Russians in trying to affect the election in 2016 and then he tried to cover it up. And then he learned
nothing and try to get the Ukrainians to intervene and help him in the election for 2020. He was trying to cover that up. This poses a real
threat to the integrity of our elections. It's a matter of urgency.
DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: So you will be hearing evidence about the Mueller investigation and report during tomorrow's what
you're calling a trial?
NADLER: Well, we'll be hearing the evidence that the Intelligence Committee reports to us and we'll see what that includes.
BASH: So Congressman Max Rose and others who are urging it to be narrow are members of Congress who won in Trump districts gave you the majority,
made you chairman, they're the most vulnerable and could lose elections because of this. How much are you listening to them as you draft these
articles?
NADLER: Well, we're going to have to take a lot of considerations into account, what is the level of proof with the various allegations, how do
they relate together, what is the level of support in our caucus and in the House for them, what might we persuade to set it up. All these things have
to be taken into account, realizing again, that the central allegation, it's all of the pattern.
The central allegation is that the President put himself above his country several times, that he sought foreign interference in our elections several
times, both for 2016 and 2020. That he sought to cover it up all the time, and that he continually violated his oath of office. And that all this
presents a pattern that poses a real and present danger to the integrity of the next election, which is one reason why we can't just wait for the next
election to settle matters. We have to go forward with considering articles of impeachment because of the threat that his pattern of conduct
poses to the election.
BASH: I have a feeling that you have a rock-solid case.
NADLER: Yes. We have a very rock-solid case. I think the case we have if presented to a jury would be a guilty verdict in about three minutes flat.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: It gets presented though to the Senate, of course. Ahead on the show, a key ally who have Donald Trump's attorney Rudy Giuliani has agreed
to testify about a conspiracy theory now debunked that Ukraine not Russia meddled in the 2016 election.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They tried to spread my stories for that story of Putin. And if Russia was smart enough, they'll be quiet and let me talk.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Ahead, more on that impeachment inquiry and Rudy Giuliani's gut- digging trip to Europe.
[10:25:00]
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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I have a very good relationship with Kim Jong-un. I think we both want to keep it that way. He knows I have an election coming up. I don't
think he wants to interfere with that. But we'll have to see. The relationship is very good but you know, there is certain hostility, there's
no question about it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: And in the last few minutes, President Trump took to Twitter to warn North Korea's Kim Jong-un to denuclearize, saying he doesn't want to
avoid his special relationship with the President of the United States. But after 18 months of very high profile summiting, things look to be
taking a turn for the worse. North Korea says it has carried out what state media calls a "very important test that one of its satellite launch
sites." Let's get more for you on this.
Will Ripley has visited North Korea no less than 19 times in the last five years. Earlier he filed this report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Becky, North Korea has been deliberately cryptic in the way they've described this what they say
significant test at they're known missile test site at the Sohae satellite launching ground. But we can put the pieces together.
Remember, it was a few days ago an arms control expert analyze satellite images that were provided to CNN that appeared to show activity at the
Sohae engine test stand. This is, by the way, an engine test and that Kim Jong-un had promised President Trump he would dismantle. But we know that
after the summit talks in late February collapsed when President Trump rejected the North Korean offer and walked out on Kim Jong-un leaving him
and his team essentially blindsided, well, work resumed at this site.
And what we've seen in the last ten months or so is a series of provocations by the North Koreans as they've tried to regain their footing.
There have been 14 weapons tests so far this year. President Trump has essentially brush most of that off because they were of the short-range
variety, something that did not pose a direct threat to the mainland United States.
But this 14th test this weekend feels different, because if it is, indeed the kind of engine that could power an intercontinental ballistic missile,
then this test could be the precursor to something far more provocative and far more dangerous from the viewpoint of the United States, testing the
kind of missile that could reliably send a nuclear warhead to the mainland.
President Trump has said repeatedly he would not accept that. He -- you know, the rhetoric between the two has really been sharpening. You had
President Trump called Kim Jong-un Rocket Man last week after their latest short-range launch. The North Koreans were not happy about that and they
responded with their own insults reviving the use of the word dotard which means old senile lunatic.
And it's that kind of hostility that is especially concerning for career watchers, because despite all of these diplomatic obstacles ever since this
diplomatic detente began with North Korea's self-imposed moratorium on long-range launches and nuclear tests that began at the beginning of 2018,
it was the personal relationship between Trump and Kim that was the glue holding this fragile diplomatic process together.
If that is now gone, if this is really unraveling as it seems to be, well, then the Christmas gift that North Korea could be preparing to send could
be starting 2020 off on a very dangerous footing, Becky.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Fascinating. Will Ripley reporting for you. You with CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi. This is our middle east
broadcasting hub. Still to come in the next hour or so, a call for help. Lebanon asking other countries for money going cap in hand, if you will, so
that it can feed its people. We have details of a country in crisis.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:30:00]
ANDERSON: Welcome back. First, a reminder of our top story. We are learning more about the Saudi national, implicated in the U.S. naval base
shooting in Florida.
Now, the FBI has officially identified the gunman as Mohammed Alshamrani, a 21-year-old lieutenant in the Saudi Arabian Air Force and student naval
flight officer.
The New York Times reports, according to a source, Alshamrani watched mass shooting videos at a dinner party the night before the attack. I'll get
you the very latest on this at the top of the next hour.
Well, Lebanon is in crisis on both the financial and political fronts. Weeks of protests calling for the end of what many people see is a
dysfunctional and corrupt governing class.
They blame for the mess that is Lebanon today. Well, the country battling an economic crash so bad. But now it is calling for help to make sure its
people will still have access to food.
Over the last two days, it wrote countries including France and the U.S., asking to borrow money for the very basics. Amidst all of this, it's a
leadership in a holding pattern Saad Al-Hariri is still serving as a caretaker prime minister.
He quit five months -- sorry, he quit more than five weeks ago. As CNN's senior international correspondent Ben Wedeman is in Lebanon's capital for
us.
Now, and Hariri quit as prime minister in the face of these nationwide protests against the government. He's already said he doesn't want the job
going for, but he is now sort of going through his Rolodex as it were calling on those he considers friendly nations for help. Just how bad are
things at this point?
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, really this -- these letters have appeal to all of these countries really bring into sharp
focus just how desperate Lebanon is at this point.
It imports 80 percent of what it consumes and it needs to use dollars for those and there's a severe shortage of dollars. So, importers simply
cannot raise the funds to bring in things like fuel, and medicine, and food. And therefore, that's why these appeal has been sent out. Although,
it's not altogether clear how many countries are going to respond.
[10:35:13]
Now, late -- later this coming week, in Paris, the international support group for Lebanon is going to discuss how to help the country out of its
current crisis. But this was the same group which in 2018 approved $11 billion in aid to Lebanon on the condition that it would carry out
structural reforms, which still haven't taken place.
So, the crisis is deepening and we went up to Tripoli, the second-largest city in Lebanon in the north to see just how desperate some people are.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WEDEMAN: The kitchen of the revolution as they call it is open. Feeding up to 2,000 people every evening in Tripoli, Lebanon second-largest city.
Linda Borghol runs the kitchen with an iron fist.
The people of Tripoli have stepped in to fill the vacuum left by a government widely accused of corruption and incompetence.
The revolution happened because everyone's lives have been destroyed, says Linda. The government robbed us, people have become poor. Nearby another
group of volunteers, hands out used clothing. So, poverty rate in Tripoli has more than doubled in the last 10 years and is twice the national
average.
There are many reasons behind this protest movement some people call it a revolution. And one of them is that many people simply can't make ends
meet. And no more so than in Tripoli's old city where we met the Kashif family. They use to have feed 16-year-old (INAUDIBLE), mentally and
physically disabled since birth.
Prior to the outbreak of nationwide mass protests, Mohammed was a daily worker in a furniture factory.
I was able to earn every day just enough for food and drink, he says, but now nothing. I begged the boss, give me two days' work a week. The boss
said, no.
The family already among the poorest of Lebanon's poor has reached rock bottom.
Nawal's daughters have stayed at home while their father is out searching for work. For this mother of four, the protests have made their already
difficult life even harder.
The crisis has gotten worse, says Nawal. Everything is more expensive, how can a family live? She asks.
A question many here are asking and for which no one has an answer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WEDEMAN: And also, we're seeing here in Beirut signs of desperation. It was just about 24 hours ago, right beneath our window that a man apparently
doused himself with gasoline, set himself on fire. Fortunately, he was saved for by the crowd, he just suffered burns to his leg, but there seems
to be an increase in suicides as a result of the economic crisis on top of Lebanon's political crisis that is still unresolved. Becky.
ANDERSON: Ben Wedeman is in Beirut, finding that report that he shot in Tripoli. Thank you, Ben.
Well, huge numbers of pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong have once again staged a massive march in the city. Organizers claim 800,000 people
participated, while police say it was less than 200,000.
Unlike many of the recent protests, police actually signed off on this one. It comes just weeks after pro-China candidates suffered devastating losses
in what were local elections in Hong Kong.
Well, coming up on this show, CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson. His name is synonymous with hustle and serial entrepreneurship. Coming up,
my interview with Gary Vaynerchuk or Gary Vee.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:41:49]
ANDERSON: Hello, I was hoping to hear a little message. We're talking Gary Vaynerchuk, serial entrepreneur, marketing guru, and motivational
speaker. He's also known as Gary Vee.
He has written five "New York Times'" bestselling books and inspires millions literally with his YouTube show, the DailyVee. While recently
caught up with Gary in Dubai, have a listen to what he told me.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VAYNERCHUK: I just don't think people believe me.
I think 99.9.
Your country is not the variable of your hustle, my friend. Now, the environment -- that like entrepreneurship is glorified in the U.S., the
U.K. wants to be more reserved. Different like -- you know. But your hustle, your work ethic, your drive is not predicated on your zip code.
ANDERSON: So, you said, I think, 30-second spots on T.V. are bad. I think five-second pictures, eight-second videos on TikTok are good. And I think
three minute, 19-second little docu-series on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram are good because they're being deployed against places where people are
actually watching it.
VAYNERCHUK: I love that sentence. I don't know what to say. It sounded exactly right. I mean, the reality is this like -- it's so funny. I have
no interest in holding up the past. I ask people, why is it that writing with a pen on a piece of paper a message and then sending it in the mail is
heralded as this noble act, but a text is demonized as not warm or great communication.
The reality is it's the message, not the medium. And so, for me, I'm just super focused on. If a client gives me $10 million to make something
happen, I want that to be successful. And that requires being a day trader of where communication is, not a mutual fund buyer based on past
performance.
ANDERSON: So, what does being a contemporary communicator mean?
VAYNERCHUK: It means that you were blindly religious around this.
Striking a platform while it's hot matters way more than if that platform actually exists in a decade.
It means that you understand where people are paying attention. Whether that's twitch or TikTok or believe it or not, organic reach on LinkedIn.
It's understanding that modern television commercials and modern print ads and modern radio ads are overpriced outside of the Super Bowl.
And it means that -- you know, the Facebooks, and Twitters, and the Instagrams, and the YouTubes, and the pre-roll Spotify are grossly
underpriced. And then, are you capable of creating the creative -- the videos, the pictures, the written words that are contextual to those
platforms not taking commercial and putting it on YouTube to make the agenda successful?
ANDERSON: You are a pain in the ass to the industry who ought to know all of this. Nothing you are telling me actually is brand-new. This has been
around for some time. So, what makes you different from the rest of the industry?
VAYNERCHUK: Listen, let's call this straight. I'm going to look in camera here. I was 34 years old before I ever made a video. This is not a guy
who ran to Hollywood at 18 and waited tables and needed or wanted fame.
[10:45:05]
VAYNERCHUK: No, I'm not all about my brand from the way that I think people perceive it. I'm all about the freedom that my brand gives me to
actually do innovative work that my clients would never let me do on TikTok, on LinkedIn, on these platforms which leads to first move
advantage, which leads to me unlike that executive being a practitioner, not pontificator. And so, I'm all about it as a test kitchen, a lab. But
not about it for I'm pumped that I take selfies at the Dubai Airport.
ANDERSON: You've talked about those in the business of marketing strategies being a full day behind the curve.
VAYNERCHUK: Yes.
ANDERSON: To remain relevant, you need to be -- you know, on the day as it were.
VAYNERCHUK: Yes.
ANDERSON: On the money. What's happening tomorrow, Gary?
VAYNERCHUK: I don't know. See, that's the beauty of being completely and utterly day-trading focused. I don't know. Look, I clearly see trends
that make me believe that voice; you know, Google Home, Alexa is going to be incredibly powerful as a front-facing framework.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Cancel anytime terms in the Alexa.
VAYNERCHUK: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Should I start your free trial and play I'm still standing?
VAYNERCHUK: Yes. How dangerous is that?
When I get most heralded, people talk about me being a futurist or a Nostradame, I laugh. I'm like I'm none of those things. What I'm very
good at is when TikTok is happening right now, I'm very loud about it, and I see it, and more importantly I make on it, and I test it, and I see the
business results.
All I keep hearing is but my parents, but my parents, but my parents. Let me make this real simple for you two ways to attack. Number one, stop
living for your parents. Number two, stop living off your parents.
ANDERSON: Gary, how do you stay relevant? If you scale your own business, how do you avoid becoming that traditional media agency?
VAYNERCHUK: All I do is pay attention to what people are doing. Nothing else. Nothing else. That is probably the thing that I'm most competent
about, which is that this has been written and I will continue to rinse and repeat this model. At 55, at 66, at 77, at 88, and if I don't because I
got stale, or tired, or complacent, I deserve to lose.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Gary Vee, next hour. After that interview the man behind a multi-million dollar digital advertising company, the reason why we are all
glued to our phones 24/7? I will tell you why. Stay tuned.
You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson. Still, to come, we are following the protests, the promises, and perspectives from a global
climate summit as thousands try to take action against climate crisis. That after this.
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[10:50:19]
ANDERSON: Half a million ordinary people taking to the streets, begging people in power to take tangible action against climate crisis while there
is still time.
These were the scenes on Friday, protests in Spain this time running alongside the U.N. climate change conference. And on Saturday, activists
trying to tell the naked truth. They state the protest by stripping off their shirts at the talks.
Well, around 25,000 leaders, scientists, and activists, attending what's known as COP25. And, well, I guess, we are realizing more and more that
all these speeches conferences and promises, they come up a pivotal point for our planet. But talk is cheap and the cost of not acting is a price
that we can't afford to pay on Friday.
One of the most famous faces in the fight against climate change spoke at the conference. Greta Thunberg pointed to rising greenhouse gas emissions
and said a global wave of school strikes has achieved nothing. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRETA THUNBERG, STUDENT AND CLIMATE ACTIVIST: And we have been striking now for over a year, and still basically nothing has happened. The climate
crisis is still being ignored by those in power, and we can't go on like this. It is not a sustainable solution that children skip school. We
cannot go on like that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ADERSON: Well, CNN's Senior International Correspondent, Arwa Damon is in Madrid with a look at some of what is going on.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There are different indigenous populations who have come to COP25 because they want to make
their voices heard.
For this group, it's about what an oil spill is doing in their region in Brazil, but it's also about how indigenous communities are being impacted
today by the climate crisis, and by the fossil fuel industry.
What they are also trying to do throughout the course of COP25 is present solutions that they have to the climate crisis. Because they say, they
have lived in harmony with nature for centuries.
MIRIM JU YAN GUARANI, COORDINATOR, FEDERAL DISTRICT INDIGENOUS COUNCIL: We feel pain. We don't want that all humanity to feel this pain of -- that
what we feel.
DAMON: And that in many ways some would argue is the crux of the problem. Developed nations, communities that aren't necessarily feeling the effect
of the climate crisis in the same way that these indigenous communities are.
And experts are arguing that, that is perhaps one of the main reasons why we're seeing this disconnect between the realities that are being faced by
these kinds of communities when it comes to the direct effect that the climate crisis having on their lives today, and the pace of the discussions
that are taking place behind closed doors.
ANDREW STEER, PRESIDENT, WORLD RESOURCES INSTITUTE: This is going to be very difficult to reach a goal of 1.5 degrees without the United States
playing the leadership role that we need it to play.
Having said that at the level below the federal government, there is some remarkable things going on, technologically, economically, financially some
real commitments. 120 major U.S. companies have committed to decarbonize fully throughout their supply chains.
So, that's a very important measure but it will be much more difficult without the federal government.
DAMON: There is an effort on the part of some consumers. There is an effort on the part of some companies, and we do see those efforts growing.
But companies and consumers cannot on their own reach the needed targets. We need governments to be on board, we need these negotiations to actually
move this process forward. We do not have the luxury of time.
Arwa Damon, CNN, Madrid.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Well, I'm going to be back in a moment with a lot more news. I got an hour to go for you before we do that. Though a moment of Zen as the
climate emergency puts a lot of species under threat. One of the world's hottest countries right here, UAE, doing something about that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[10:54:54]
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