Return to Transcripts main page
Quest Means Business
Colombian President: Earthquake Kills At Least 111; Trump Signs Executive Order on Childhood Vaccinations; Meta Releases New "Open Weight" A.I. Model; Lucid Motors Announces $14B Cost-Cutting Plan; Researchers Find Online Groups Monetizing Male Loneliness; FDA Seeks To Close Loophole For Food Additives. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired August 10, 2026 - 16:00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:14]
PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: So the Dow down, oh, gosh, not even 75 points now. The markets across the board are really taking a bit of a
breather as it continues to try and parse geopolitical events. Those are the markets and these are the main events: Over a hundred dead in Colombia
after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck west of the capital.
Meta is releasing a new open source A.I. model as its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg criticizes concentrated power in the industry.
And E.V. maker, Lucid Motors went public five years ago to so much fanfare and money. Now, it is facing a slowdown in the industry. We will speak with
the company's new CEO.
Live from New York. It is Monday, August 10th. I am Paula Newton, in for Richard Quest and this is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
And we do begin this hour in Colombia where rescuers are searching through rubble, desperately looking for survivors after a powerful 7.4 magnitude
earthquake. The president says at least 111 people have been killed and dozens injured in the quake, which was the strongest to hit the country in
a decade.
Now, the government has declared a State of National Disaster, saying it is mobilizing more resources at this hour.
Cecilia Dominguez joins us now for more on all this.
I mean, suffice it to say, this is a huge shock for the entire country. I am wondering what more you can tell us that is going on this hour. Because
given the strength of this earthquake, there are still many people trapped.
CECILIA DOMINGUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is, Paula, how are you?
At least 111 people have been killed as you said this morning -- this Monday morning, in different parts of Colombia and more than 1,500 homes
have been affected by this earthquake. The Colombian government has declared a State of National Disaster as you said, authorities say this is
the strongest earthquake the country has experienced in the last decade.
And by declaring a State of National Disaster, the government can now mobilize additional resources and send them to the areas that have been hit
the hardest.
And, Paula, we are now more than seven hours since the earthquake struck, but authorities are still trying to understand the full extent of the
damage. What we know so far is that several cities have been seriously affected. Cali, Pereira, Manizales, Quibdo and Armenia among them and we've
seen buildings damaged.
Rescue teams have already pulled injured people from the rubble, but there are still people who are believed to be trapped. The airports in Pereira
and Quibdo also been affected. We've seen videos on social media with images at the airport and people trying to register, trying to record
everything they could.
In Cali, for example, we learned earlier that several patients are trapped under the rubble of a partially collapsed hospital, and that hospital is
one of at least seven health facilities in Cali that have been evacuated and closed because of structural damage. And overall, more than 20
buildings have collapsed in the city. We are talking just about Cali.
Now, President Abelardo de la Espriella has called an emergency committee to coordinate the response and he said in a post on X that he was heading
to Bogota to focus on dealing with the emergency.
And Paula, this is happening just as he begins his presidency. He was only recently sworn in. So, this is really his first major challenge in office.
He is now facing this this tragedy.
And for many Colombians, the images coming out of Venezuela after the devastating earthquakes there just over a month-and-a-half ago, are still
very fresh, you know?
NEWTON: Well, some of the video we are looking at is just so heartbreaking. And again, you get the sense of terror and loss there just in an instant.
Cecilia Dominguez for us, thank you very much.
Now, Richard Emblin is director and founding partner of "The City Paper." He joins us now from Bogota. And I want to ask you, where were you when
this happened? Did you also feel the tremors? Because it seems with each passing hour, we are learning more about how serious this situation is and
how widespread this was really throughout so many highly populated urban centers.
RICHARD EMBLIN, DIRECTOR AND FOUNDING PARTNER, "THE CITY PAPER": Yes, Paula, I was actually taking a morning walk to the financial district, ones
of the very early errands in the heart of Bogota and a city that's located almost 9,000 feet above sea level on the eastern edge of the Andes
[16:05:10]
So for us to feel such a strong quake, bus stations were rattling. Lampposts were swaying. We could see the large communications towers and
antenna poles on the hills behind Bogota moving quite violently. There was a general sense that people were very calm in Bogota, but everybody stopped
in their tracks.
Buildings immediately started evacuating the few personnel that they had in there at that time in the morning. Most people were heading into the
buildings to start their 8:30 or 9:00 morning shift.
So I witnessed it, I was on the ground floor.
My wife in a six-storey apartment close by was absolutely shocked and terrified. She was calling me in panic. Things were moving and it was quite
a violent quake. Given the fact that San Jos del Palmar is almost 240 miles west of where we are and very on the Pacific lowlands, so it was a -- we
knew something big had gone down in Colombia.
NEWTON: Yes, I mean, we were just looking at some of the video now. What you've described is absolutely terrifying and of course, you make the
point, you weren't even that close to the epicenter.
Now, as we just had mentioned, Colombia has a new government, a new President in place. This is a crucial test. What have you seen so far in
the intervening hours? And what is it crucial for the government to do now? Because we are looking at collapsed buildings that surely still have people
trapped in the rubble.
EMBLIN: Absolutely, Paula. It is actually quite -- the death count stands at 111, but will definitely climb tragically. Over 60 buildings have
collapsed across Colombia, including some large scale buildings and some historical buildings in downtown Cali.
Obviously, clearly, the hardest hit regions of Colombia is the coffee zone. The three departments Quindio, Risaralda and Caldas, that make up the whole
heart of the coffee growing triangle.
Abelardo responded immediately. He cut short his day's agenda. He has arrived in Bogota. He has announced that he is flying to the capital of the
Choco department, which is the department where the epicenter and the earthquake really was concentrated. It is a very impoverished part of
Colombia. Its largely Afro-Colombian and has largely been abandoned in many ways by the state, but Abelardo has said he will be there tomorrow.
He has turned up at the Unified Command Post right now, and he is coordinating all efforts, having declared a National State of Disaster.
So proactivity, yes, and it seems that this is not only a litmus test for the first couple of hours and days of this new administration, but it will
definitely make him and his Vice President, Jose Manuel Restrepo show all their support to the Colombians, to their people, and they are already --
most mayors in Colombia are rallying behind the presidency and will be given all the support from this administration.
NEWTON: Yes, and to be clear, that support needs to be expedited because they only have a certain amount of hours right now, anybody that is
trapped, and then after that, it will move to certainly humanitarian assistance.
I want to ask you, Richard, as we mentioned before, this was one of the strongest earthquakes in Colombia in a decade, but it also struck along
many urban areas.
I mean, is this something that is on the minds of Colombians? And I am talking about drills, building codes, emergency preparation kits. Is this
something that is front of mind, or do you believe that we have seen a shift now in Colombia where more people will have it front of mind?
EMBLIN: Well, absolutely. The largest earthquake since this one in over a decade took place in 1999 in almost the same area at the heart of the
coffee triangle and affecting, impacting and destroying Pereira, which today, again, we saw in scenes was the scene of horrific building collapse.
Now, there is one aspect to this area, as it is, Colombia's agricultural heartland for coffee production. Most of the coffee plantations in Colombia
grow alongside bamboo. And so the poor architecture in Colombia, the more colonial architecture is structured or built with bamboo, which makes it
seismically very flexible.
So unfortunately, these are the more modern buildings or buildings that have been constructed in downtown concentrated urban centers are not
necessarily the right type of materials that have collapsed.
The rural areas where people live in these kind of more mud and wattle huts with bamboo suspension would have been spared much of the destruction. But
what we are seeing though is, and we have seen in Colombia is regular drills every couple of months in large centers to get people out on the
streets.
[16:10:10]
And what I saw today in Bogota were the office workers carrying their stretchers in preparation, their first aid kit, knowing that there could be
aftershocks.
And I think this shows a level of preparedness in Colombia that an earthquake is always imminent. However, people have always concentrated or
the general feeling is that Bogota, it could be hit by a severe earthquake. But once again, it seems to be like in Venezuela, the same fault line that
runs along the Pacific that is now causing so much destruction.
NEWTON: Yes. It is interesting insight, though, that you give us the fact that you did see people going through the motions, things they had drilled
for and no doubt saved lives and injury.
Richard Emblin, we will leave it there for now, but we will continue to check in with you. Thanks so much.
EMBLIN: Thank you.
NEWTON: Now, just a short time ago, President Trump signed an executive order that could shake up childhood vaccinations in the United States. The
order is proposing to reduce the total number of shots recommended for young children. It also advises that the MMR vaccine be split into three
different shots, even though that's against scientific consensus. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I saw this early on and I've seen proof of it where they have a vaccination that looks
like the size of a bottle of soda poured into a little child's body, and bad things happen in many cases -- too many cases, because this is an
explosion. This is an epidemic.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Alayna Treene is with us at The White House. Look, it is an executive order and so many in the United States and quite frankly, beyond,
rely on advice from the government in terms of what to do. It can be a terrifying prospect to understand, as a parent what to do and if you're
doing their best.
I don't think that whole analogy that he just gave would pass any kind of scientific fact check. Having said that, why has The White House seized of
this at this moment?
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, Paula, it is a great question. It is actually something we know that the President has been
fixated on for some time. He has actually been pushing his Health and Human Services Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., to come out with a new vaccine
schedule for children for months now.
I would note as well that and you heard the President talk a little bit about this in that Oval Office signing ceremony that, you know, this idea
that perhaps vaccines could be tied to autism.
I want to make very clear that there has been a ton of different scientific research on vaccines and you know, what they could cause, there is no link
to them creating autism. It is actually something the President acknowledged that they don't have the research to prove, but still talked
about it in that event.
I do want to get into a little bit of the specifics of this order, and then I will also walk through just the timing of it and the political side of
it, because that is, I think, important context to all of this as well.
As you mentioned, this order does reduce the total number of immunizations that are recommended for children. And then also splitting up the MMR
vaccine into different categories. Of course, that's mumps, measles and rubella. Essentially, you heard the President repeatedly saying how he
believes that they should be given these different vaccines at different times, rather than have it all be in one vaccine.
Now, the new policy from the administration states that all children are recommended to receive these vaccines for measles, mumps, rubella. They
also list a number of others -- diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio, HPV, chicken pox -- the list goes on.
But then one of the different changes here is that only high risk populations are now advised to receive respiratory, I will just -- you
know, everyone knows this as RSV, so I will leave it at that, to receive RSV, they essentially are saying, this is a difference in the schedule that
is currently recommended. I would note the current schedule recommends all children receive most of those shots.
To get into the timeline and to your question, Paula, specifically about why this is a fixation and why the administration is doing this, I would
remind you that this is very similar, this order to what we saw HHS try to do earlier this year. They wanted to whittle down the number of recommended
vaccines that children get in their schedule. That was actually challenged by a number of groups who had sued the department against this and a judge
had ruled with the groups' in favor, so I think that's important to keep in mind here.
I would also note that this has been a controversial topic, of course, not only, you know, as we are discussing it today, but because the President
has been pushing this for some time. We know from our reporting that some of the President's political advisers had, you know, advised perhaps not to
do this at this moment, particularly just a couple of months out from the November midterm elections, because of the controversial aspects of it.
However, of course, we did see the President push forward with this and have this executive order signing today. So I think all of that to keep in
mind here.
[16:15:10]
I will note as well, though, you did hear the President say on a number of different occasions during this event that this will have to be discussed
with children's doctors, with parents, you know, talking to the doctors about what's right for them. But again, really a fixation of the President
that he wanted there to be less vaccines for children, arguing that the U.S. is different from other countries.
But all to say, going against a lot of scientific research and what medical groups have recommended in the past.
NEWTON: Yes, and it is good to hear that the President is saying that people should discuss this with their family physician, with their
pediatrician, because at the end of the day, each case is different.
Alayna Treene for us at The White House. Thanks for breaking it down.
Now, it is the great A.I. debate, open source versus closed source?
Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerberg is laying out why he thinks some of his A.I. rivals are all wrong.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: So Meta is throwing down the gauntlet to A.I. rivals with its latest model, Muse Glimmer, as it is called, can be downloaded and modified
by anyone. The move comes in stark contrast to rivals like OpenAI and Anthropic, who have called for tighter controls over the technology.
Now, in a letter accompanying the release, Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerberg criticized that approach, claiming that it concentrates A.I. power in the
hands of just a few companies.
Clare Duffy is with me. As always, Clare, you're following this closely, but for me, this is a real confusing state of play. We have some saying
that this open source is actually safer, better or is it? It is difficult to actually understand where each company is on this and where everyone
will land, even a few months, never mind years.
CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: Yes, Paula, this really is the big debate and it was especially confusing a few weeks ago when Mark Zuckerberg first
came out with this big statement in support of open source A.I., given the fact that Meta had just released its first closed source A.I. model.
But now the company and Zuckerberg are doubling down on open access to A.I. technology with the release of this Muse Glimmer, which is an open weight
version of its most advanced A.I. model, that means that the calculations that determine how the model works are public. And as you said, users can
download it for free onto their own devices, make some modifications that, of course, in stark contrast to models like ChatGPT where there are much
more restrictions on how that model can be used.
And Meta has for a long time been in support of open source technology.
[16:20:10]
It had been releasing open source models up until earlier this year, releasing its first closed source version and this is all part of what
Zuckerberg calls his vision for personalized superintelligence. He thinks that it is very important for every person to have access to the most
advanced A.I. technology, and that that is how humanity will see the most benefit.
IN that letter that you mentioned released along with this model, he writes: "The history of democracy and economics has shown that there is no
single objective answer to how people define the best life and therefore, the best approach is letting people decide what matters in their own lives.
He is also hitting at the sort of doomers in the industry, you could call them, like OpenAI and Anthropic who have talked about the risks that this
technology poses and the need to therefore centralize and control access to this technology. Zuckerberg said that he thinks that could be dangerous
because then ultimately, you have only a few players deciding how this technology gets used.
But I do think there is a question for Zuckerberg about if you put this very advanced technology in the hands of everyone, what happens when then
bad actors decide to do dangerous things with it? He thinks that people, good people with A.I., will be able to sort of battle the bad people with
A.I. But I think that is going to be a defining question in this industry going forward in these next few months -- Paula.
NEWTON: Yes, and it is actually startling to hear the people closest to this technology still having these very profound debates about how this
should unfold in the coming months and years.
Clare Duffy for us. Appreciate it.
Now, Zuckerberg will be hoping that open source models can help disrupt the A.I. horse race. Anthropic and OpenAI have taken an early lead, and
Zuckerberg argues that closed source models help them maintain those positions.
Meta and Google, on the other hand, are backing open source models, which they say allows greater space for competition and innovation. And as you
just heard Clare say as well, safety.
Mohit Agrawal is research director at Counterpoint Research, and he joins us now.
So fill us in. What does this move mean by Zuckerberg? And could this new model, and open approach actually shift the competitive picture? Because we
know that's what Meta is after.
MOHIT AGRAWAL, RESEARCH DIRECTOR, COUNTERPOINT RESEARCH: Yes, thanks. Thanks for having me on the show.
So first of all, I think this is a comeback positioning from Meta. So in some sense, I would say it is even an aggressive or a disruptive
positioning from Meta. So, it had lost out to players like OpenAI and Anthropic. And in the last few weeks, we have seen that companies like --
or influential tech CEOs from NVIDIA and other players, they have talked about the importance of open models in the western ecosystem.
And that's where we are seeing that Meta is now coming in with this open model. And this open model is really important because it is going to throw
open the space in the western world. So if you look at the western players, they really want the open models because the open models from China -- they
have geopolitical risk, they have compliance risk. So in that sense, it is providing them that safeguard.
NEWTON: In terms of the safeguard, though, there are a lot of question marks here about whether or not Meta can actually have any success. I am
not even sure that they have the bench in terms of A.I. leadership to carry this out, but fill me in. What do you think?
AGRAWAL: On the contrary, I think they do have assets that can actually make them successful in this market. So if you look at the model itself, it
is a very competitive model and it is comparable to the open system or open model that you have from Alibaba. So it is very -- it is extremely
competitive in that sense, and plus, it has been optimized for the edge devices.
And if you look at Meta, Meta has Reality Labs, so it has other assets. It has apps where it can train its model, the open source model, and it can
get the spatial intelligence and the other data points from the physical suite. So it has the ability to then expand into the physical A.I.
NEWTON: interesting. And I note that you know the answer to the first question, you called it a disruptor. So you believe this could change
things. I am wondering how this differs from the other frontier models that we have seen?
I mean, of course, we know about OpenAI and Anthropic and even Gemini. But then there are also things like Apple on the horizon and the fact that they
are trying to embed the A.I. into the product.
In terms of who will win out and what our A.I. applications will look like, where do you think we are headed on that?
[16:25:10]
AGRAWAL: Yes. So, I mean, the space is wide open and there is space for everybody to win in this market right now. So if you look at from the edge
devices' perspective, there are a variety of consumer devices as well as the enterprise devices and the jury is still not out what kind of models
will be winning over there.
So Apple is going with proprietary models at the moment. So they have recently evolved with the Gemini. Whereas if you look at Meta, Meta, what
they are trying to do is work with AMD, work with NVIDIA and optimize the models on their hardware.
So there is a wide or there is a big ecosystem out there for developers and the western players who would really want to run these models on the edge
devices so that they are able to lower the cost. So cost has been a big issue in the recent times.
And moreover, it increases the competitiveness because the developer ecosystem comes in and improves upon the open models.
NEWTON: We will see and we know, as I said, so this could be a real disruptor in what is going on in A.I. And we will see its applications in
the weeks and months to come. Thanks so much. Appreciate it.
AGRAWAL: Thanks. Thanks for having me on the show.
NEWTON: Next for us, life in the fast lane. We speak to CEO of E.V. maker, Lucid Motors about whether the U.S. has the potential to overtake China in
this highly competitive market.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: Hello, I am Paula Newton and there is more QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in a moment when we speak to the CEO of Lucid Motors, the company battles an
E.V. slowdown, tariffs and so much more.
[16:30:00]
And a new report shows how online influencers are profiting from male loneliness. We'll discuss it with one of the authors of that report. And we
will want to stick around for that interview. But before that, here is the headlines this hour.
Rescue crews are searching for survivors following a powerful earthquake in Colombia that killed dozens of people. The epicenter of the deadly quake
was located 240 kilometers west of Bogota. Colombia's president has declared a national state of emergency.
More than a dozen people are dead following a Ukrainian drone strike deep inside Russia. Local authorities say it happened in an area more than 1,000
kilometers east of Moscow, at the site of an oil refinery. And while it's not entirely clear what was struck, videos geolocated by CNN show flames
and plumes of smoke near what appears to be an oil facility.
Israel says it rejects U.S. President Donald Trump's disarmament plan for Gaza. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israeli troops will not
withdraw until after Hamas is disarmed. The U.S. plan calls for those steps to happen together in phases.
Hamas says it remains committed to the plan, which also calls for an end to all attacks in Gaza.
The new CEO of Lucid Motors says the U.S. cannot stay isolated in the electric vehicle market. It has been a challenging time for the E.V.
startup. It recently announced a cost-cutting program worth $1.4 billion. And stocks have continue its stock. In fact, has continued to slide.
You see it there, down more than six percent as some investors fear the company's future.
Despite U.S. tariffs and restrictions, China continues to dominate the market globally, and that is key here. The CEO of Lucid Motors, Silvio
Napoli, joins us now.
Welcome to the program. We are all interested in where the next phase of E.V. development goes. So, where does that involve Lucid, and what are your
plans? Because you have been extremely blunt that the struggle is real.
SILVIO NAPOLI, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, LUCID MOTORS: Paula, thanks very much for having me.
Before I answer your question, I would like to make sure that people listening, understand what we are talking about.
Lucid makes the highest performance electric vehicles. Our ambition today is to combine that with the greatest customer experience possible. So, to
your questions about our plans, our plans exactly that: is to make sure that this engineering legacy that this company has built over a few years
is now combined with a sustainable business model and also with a great customer experience. That is our plan at the moment.
NEWTON: How long will this take, though? Because you have been at this for several years. There hasn't been an uptake. You yourself have said that.
Has not developed the way you wanted it to. And will your money last? I mean, is bankruptcy a real risk here?
NAPOLI: So, first of all, thank you for the question.
Bankruptcy is based on absurd rumors, which already denied publicly. And thank you for the opportunity to do it again.
So, maybe also to give some perspective to the audience here. It is -- today is actually my first day on my third month on the job. So, I've been
brought here precisely to make sure that we build on the strength and build a solid future.
So, what are we doing at the moment? We are making sure that we build a solid business structure, operational discipline, and clear and well-
structured capital location about everything we do.
As we speak, this company is doing two tremendous projects to set the future.
One is launching a new platform, our mid-size. The other one is to build a mega factory in Saudi Arabia. So, these are two very ambitious projects.
Now, you combine that with the fact that the automotive business is, in fact, a cash-intensive industry, and you understand why, at the moment,
until those two projects are finished, yes, we are consuming cash. But that is indeed with the idea to build a very solid future as soon as those will
be -- will be finished, and a new platform will be in the market.
NEWTON: So, Silvio, what are your projections now about when you can realize some of those ambitions? And I will say, they are very ambitious
targets. But also, you know the struggles, and anybody who tries to buy an E.V., tries to run an E.V., especially in the United States, knows the
struggle. It's expensive. It's inconvenient, Americans have turned away from E.V.s. And then, you have the issue of the Chinese competition because
those vehicles, the reviews are fantastic, and quite frankly, much better price points.
NAPOLI: Paula, very good question.
So, listen, the market short term midterm will do what it does.
[16:35:00]
In fact, one thing is for sure: E.V. adoption is increasing worldwide, and it's also increasing in the U.S. And that will continue. There is no way
back. And so, while we are in this period, I like to say customers don't buy transition; they buy great products. That's what we do. And if you
combine that with great user experience, great customer acknowledgement of what we do differently, we very much intend to be part of this growth going
forward.
And so, in this perspective, I do think that the future for this company is very solid, and we are working on it day after day.
NEWTON: I know you say you're working on it. I don't have a lot of time left, but if anyone wanted to buy an E.V. from Lucid, so very quickly,
price in your new mid-size model, what would be the range?
NAPOLI: Well, the new mid-size will triplicate, if not more, multiply by five in addressable market. The pricing will be part of our -- of our
launch plan, and we plan to be around the $50,000, which then -- will indeed help us to address a market, which is in addition to the primo mark,
we are already very well established.
That is what I'm sure --
(CROSSTALK)
NEWTON: Range? So, how long would it go on a charge?
NAPOLI: Sorry?
NEWTON: How long would it go on a charge? How long -- how far could you drive it on a charge? Range.
NAPOLI: On a charge, we are -- we are -- we are 400 miles plus.
NEWTON: 400 miles plus. OK, $50,000. Silvio, we are going to hold you to that, and we'll see how far this goes. Because, as I said, it is quite a
struggle and a challenge. Even though so many people had really the ambition to come to the market with so many different E.V.s, hasn't really
worked out that way, at least in the United States.
Silvio Napoli for us. We will continue to check in with you. Thanks so much.
NAPOLI: Thank you, Paula.
NEWTON: Now, the influencers now monetizing male loneliness and its epidemic.
The co-author of a recent study tells me how it's being done, and this is important here: how it could be stopped.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: We turn now to the epidemic of loneliness among young men and the industry that has been found to be using it for profit.
Researchers from the digital safety organization Reset Tech and the nonprofit Equimundo have been investigating how online accounts and
influencers are using persuasive tactics to actually target young men.
[16:40:02]
They are encouraging them to spend money on schemes like crypto investments and coaching courses, all in the name of being more masculine and building
relationships with other similar men. Those behind the schemes, meantime, are making millions. That's according to this research.
Kristina Wilfore is Director of Innovation and Global Projects at Reset Tech and co-author of "The Grift Economy: How Young Men Are Being Sold Fake
Belonging and Fake Wealth Online" I have to tell you, when I heard about your research, it is incredibly alarming, and it matters to all of us
because none of this seems to be regulated in any matter.
You know, and to boot, now, we have got A.I., which lowers the cost of manufacturing this so-called false authority, as you call it. Fake
community, there is no proof that any of this works. It is, as you guys describe it, fraud at scale. And this this algorithm is at work against
lonely men.
What have you found in terms of why this is working and why no one seems to be noticing?
KRISTINA WILFORE, DIRECTOR, INNOVATION AND GLOBAL PROJECTS, RESET TECH: Thank you so much for the opportunity to talk about this. This is the key
point: is that we have been sold this culture war conversation that focuses on debates between men and women, which in essence operates from our
research, as we can see, as a form of a distributed media franchise, let's say, a pipeline that goes from innocent searches to some form of body
dysmorphia at scale, and we should be focusing on the commercial actors in this ecosystem, not just the influencers at the top.
NEWTON: I found it so striking that there is a lack of self-awareness, like as if when men are taking this in, they believe it, they trust it. Why have
you found that? Because, perhaps, in other areas of their life, they are also lacking confidence, so, they believe in this. What are they so eager
to hang on to here?
WILFORE: I think, sometimes -- if I look at the conversations over the last year, we focus a lot on men and what's happening and their individual
experience, and sometimes at a disservice. Their real sense of economic anxiety, their desire to show up for their families, the questions around
what being a "real man" is are important to the world. And we do need the role of men.
But that's being exploited in order to create a marketplace that is predatory in nature, and no individual person can really be resilient to
this.
So, we really need to be asking who are the commercial actors who have benefited from an ecosystem developed primarily from the mainstream social
media companies. A.I. is an accelerant, but A.I. is not the worry. The distribution system is based on social media.
And if we think about scam marketing and throughout history, there is been scams. But billboards didn't talk back. Billboards didn't collect your data
to know your most vulnerabilities, to know your emotions, to know what's driving you, to know what kind of porn you like.
I mean, there is so much information in these devices that we give every moment, every single second that we are on these phones, and that is
exploited.
NEWTON: It's exploited, and it is predatory, and it obviously targets men who are lonely, and it leads to significant monetization.
So, when you have been looking at this, what solves that problem? We need several actions.
First, we have to identify this for what it is. An industry that is targeting men in a predatory nature, made possible by mainstream social
media companies who profit. As well as the individual -- the other layer, let's say, of advertisers and a whole set of commercial actors who are also
profiting, but at what cost?
When we look at something like a viral trend of looksmaxxing that is encouraging young boys and men to either break their jaw or to manipulate
their jaw, so that it looks more manly, we can sort of laugh off of these little, you know, campaigns and think how big is it?
But in fact, that data that we collected shows that the overall reach of looksmaxxing as a hash has, in fact, reached 14 6 billion views.
A young man looking to -- I don't know think about his jaw and how it measures up may choose to watch one video, but did he choose to watch the
10 additional videos that are served up to him algorithmically because it keeps him engaged in fear and open to some of these products?
[16:45:02]
NEWTON: How did you find that this mirrored so much of what we have seen in young girls, in young women, and what goes on online? And I am wondering
what the difference is here. I got to be honest; I am completely shocked at how this has been monetized to this extreme.
WILFORE: It's really hiding in plain sight, because there is so much of the personalities that dominate the media discourse, I would say. So, you have
almost like a T.V. reality show.
So, with different characters, different influencers, but who is plugging in the T.V.? Who is providing the means in which it's distributed? And so,
that's the new conversation we need to have, which is what's the role of the social media companies.
How much is enough? What are the opportunities of even state A.G.s to use existing infrastructure around consumer fraud, which is what this is in
many cases? Or to even look at the health and medical community, and what they can do to prevent young men from a lifetime of potential medical
problems.
If you're going down the path of using peptides and testosterone supplements at a young age without medical supervision, all sorts of things
that lead to. The crypto schemes, the economic AlphaBro memberships that are trying to appeal to this real vulnerability.
Now, the difference between women who have -- who have been, let's say, some would say, have been looksmaxxing for a long time, women are sold a
self-empowerment message: improve yourself. This is, is upgrading your looks.
Men are given the grievance bunker. Fix your face, or society will reject you. You will not have prospects. You will not have a job. You will not
have opportunities. And there is a certain cruelty in that, as men are needing to participate economically in the world in ways that builds upon
their strengths and not operate from a fear that they're missing out and that they need to distort their body in order to either get a job or a
marriage or be accepted by society is cruel at the end of the day.
NEWTON: Kristina Wolfer, we will have to leave it there for now. But I hear you, they just had a ruling, certainly against Meta in one of these social
media cases, and I hear you that the state A.G.s have to get involved because this is fraud, just like, you know, it's a decades-old industry.
It's just being delivered in a different way.
Kristina Wilfore for us. Thanks so much. We really appreciate it.
WILFORE: Thank you. Thanks.
Now the Trump administration is announcing new action as part of its drive to make America healthy again.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is seeking to close a loophole that lets manufacturers put certain chemicals and products without notifying
regulators. The U.S. Health Secretary says the proposal is a win in the war against ultra-processed food.
Jacqueline Howard has more now.
JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: The regulatory loophole that the FDA is planning to reform is a program called GRAS, G-R-A-S, or Generally
Recognized As Safe.
The agency is describing this reform as a step toward stronger oversight of food ingredients. GRAS was first established in 1958, and it was intended
to be applied to commonly used food ingredients like garlic, vanilla, or baking soda.
These are ingredients that are commonly seen as safe, and this essentially allowed manufacturers to make their own judgments on whether certain
substances or ingredients are generally recognized as safe under the conditions of their intended use.
But then since the late 1990s, food companies have been applying grass to ingredients like additives and food dyes. One analysis estimates that
nearly 99 percent of new chemicals used in foods or food packaging since the year 2000 were deemed as generally recognized as safe by companies
under GRAS.
Here is how Secretary Kennedy described this loophole in the event where he announced the FDA's proposed reform. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR., UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: Industry hijacked the loophole and drove a convoy of chemical
trucks through it straight into the American food supply. The FDA was left with a major blind spot.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOWARD: Now, the reform that the FDA is proposing would require manufacturers to notify the agency whenever they conclude that the use of a
substance added to human or animal food is generally recognized as safe under GRAS.
This reform is a proposed rule in the Federal Register and has not yet been finalized. But federal health officials say once finalized, it will be a
major change in oversight. Back to you.
[16:50:06]
NEWTON: Our thanks to Jacqueline Howard there.
He was shot and killed almost 30 years ago. Now, the case is finally in Court. The details of the murder trial of hip hop -- hip hop icon, Tupac
Shakur.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: Jury selection is underway in the murder trial of hip-hop icon, Tupac Shakur, who was killed nearly 30 years ago in a drive-by shooting.
Now, the suspect accused of orchestrating the killing has entered a not guilty plea for decades. The case has spurred theories on who was behind
the murder. And now, it's hoped this trial could finally bring some answers.
CNN's Nick Watt reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, Keith, Metro Police, come over here.
NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Duane Keith Davis, A.K.A. Keffe D, was arrested three years ago.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, what they got you for, man?
DUANE KEITH DAVIS, SUSPECT, TUPAC SHAKUR KILLING: Biggest case in Las Vegas history.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, yes?
WATT (voice over): The shooting, the killing of Tupac Shakur at a stoplight in Vegas late one night after a Mike Tyson fight nearly 30 years ago.
Back then, many thought Tupac's death was down to the East Coast-West Coast rap rivalry that had flared up in the early 90s. Just three months before
he was killed, Tupac released "Hit 'Em Up", dissing and threatening his friend turned rival Biggie Smalls and other East Coast rappers.
TUPAC SHAKUR, FORMER RAPPER AND ACTOR: Westside, when we ride, come equipped with game. You claim to be a player, but I -- your wife. We bust
on Bad Boys -- for life --
WATT (voice over): Biggie was gunned down and killed six months after Tupac. No one has ever been charged with his murder. But here is what
prosecutors will argue at Keefy D's trial that starts this week, detailed by a homicide detective, just after Duane Davis Keffe D's arrest.
LT. JASON JOHANSSON, LAS VEGAS METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT: As we all know, Tupac Shakur was a artist who was signed with Death Row Records. And
that Death Row Records and its CEO Marion Shug Knight were closely affiliated with the Mob Piru criminal street gangs, and that they had an
ongoing feud with the Southside Compton Crips.
Duane Davis was the leader and shot caller of the Southside Compton Crips.
WATT (voice over): Members of both gangs were, say, police, at the Tyson fight in the MGM Grand that night. And afterwards, in the lobby, Tupac,
Knight, and others spotted Keffe D's nephew, Orlando Anderson, and beat him up.
[16:55:06]
JOHANSSON: Little did anyone know that it is this incident right here that would ultimately lead to the retaliatory shooting and death of Tupac
Shakur. Duane Davis began to devise a plan to obtain a firearm and retaliate against Suge Knight and Mr. Shakur for what occurred inside the
hotel against Mr. Anderson.
WATT (voice over): Anderson, his uncle Keffe D, and two other men allegedly got into a white Cadillac and followed Knight and Tupac, who were in a
black BMW enroute to a club.
Investigators allege it was Anderson who actually pulled the trigger.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Were you involved in any way in the death of Tupac Shakur?
ORLANDO ANDERSON, KEFFE D'S NEPHEW: No, I was not involved.
WATT (voice over): Anderson was shot and killed eight months after that interview with CNN. Keffe D is the only man who was in that white Cadillac
who is still alive. He is now 63. No one says he pulled the trigger, but he was, they say, the shot caller. And under Nevada law, he can still be
charged with murder.
JOHANSSON: Within the first few months of the investigation, our detectives knew most of the information I just briefed you on. However, we never had
the necessary evidence to bring this case forward.
WATT (voice over): His own words, say investigators were Keffe D's undoing.
JOHANSSON: Specifically, Duane Davis' own admissions to his involvement in this homicide investigation that he provided to numerous different media
outlets.
WATT (voice over): He described the moment, he says, he handed Anderson, who he calls Lane, a gun while riding in the white Cadillac. It's an audio
featured in the documentary, "Murder Rap: Inside the Biggie and Tupac Murders."
DAVIS: I gave it to DRE and DRE was like, no, no, no. And Lane's like, dude, fuck you.
WATT (voice over): But in July, Keffe D denied being involved in the killings, telling a Las Vegas news station he wasn't even in Nevada when
Tupac was killed. Suge Knight is also still alive, right now serving 28 years for manslaughter in an unrelated case. He is on the prosecution's
witness list.
DAVIS: I am not worried though, I didn't do -- so --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I mean, that's what court's for right?
WATT (voice-over): Tupac died six days after he was shot. And now, nearly 30 years later, Keffe D gets his day in court.
Nick Watt, CNN Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: So, Wall Street is taking a summer breather after the best week since April. All three major indices did close lower. The Dow fell 61
points. The S&P 500, you see it there, largely flat, down four points, and the NASDAQ lost 85 points.
See what the rest of the week brings. That is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS. I'm Paula Newton. "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper starts now.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
