Another One Bites the Dust? Jeanne Meserve

From Page Six:

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CNN's Birthday Bash

TVNewswer's Alissa Krinsky had an exclusive look at the private party former CNNers held this weekend to celebrate the 30th birthday of CNN.
A large crowd of former and current CNNers gathered at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. Saturday night to celebrate the network's thirtieth birthday.
The bash — an unofficial gathering organized by former CNN producer Elissa Free — drew over three hundred people and was emceed by former CNN anchor Bernard Shaw.

Read more »

State of the Union for July 26, 2009

State of the Union with John King started off this morning with an interview with Senior White House Advisor David Axelrod. The first topic that John King covered was whether the stimulus package has been a success. Of course, the conversation soon turned to health care reform. Congress will not complete the task of passing legislation prior to the August recess. Listening to Axelrod, I was reminded of another President's promise of "no new taxes"- I'm afraid that the current President's pledge to not raise taxes on those making less that $250,000 may end up going the same way. Axelrod made the point this morning that the current health care system works for the insurance companies but doesn't work for the insured. It is nice to see that the policy discussion is at least in part starting to include reforms in addition to expanding those that would receive coverage. The next topic was Professor-gate. Oddly, Axelrod seemed to stumble around on this topic a bit.

Is Axelrod worried about the political future of Gov. Palin? Nope. His answer implied that he has more important things to worry about politically (although he was much more diplomatic with his actual answer).

John King spoke with Speaker Nancy Pelosi late on Friday. King taped the behind the scenes preview from the CNN parking area on his way to the interview.

Pelosi was firm that the House bill is ready and that there has been enough debate on the bill and she's very confident that when she takes the bill to the floor of the House that it will pass.

Pelosi dodged the question about whether a public health care option would include coverage for abortion. The question actually seemed to shock her. She was prepared for the question about whether or not those that were in the US illegally would be covered by the bill but didn't have an answer on how hospitals were supposed to deal with it when they show up in the emergency room.

Is it time for another stimulus package? Per Pelosi: no.

King interviewed Senate Minority Leader, Mitch McConnell (R) live in the D.C. studio. They discussed the health care legislation and whether the Republicans would except a public/ government option. The Senator's opinion is that "the only thing bipartisan with this legislation is the opposition to it." And the Senator's first idea on how to fix the legislation: stop lawsuits against doctors. (That smells of lobbyist to me.) The Senator declared the stimulus package a failure and that we haven't seen the last of Gov. Palin.

John King was in Texas this week. He spoke with Gregory Rose, a 23 year old man, who graduated from college and found out he had leukemia. His medication alone costs $5,000 a month. He no longer has health care coverage because he receives too much money from his social security disability. The impression from the report was that Rose could either have health insurance via Medicaid or pay his rent (with his disability check).

In the America Dispatch segment, King also spoke with JPS' CEO and Chief of Medicine about the possibility of "squeezing" Medicaid/ Medicare payments.

Howard Kurtz's Reliable Sources started off with a discussion on the arrest of Professor Gates in Cambridge, MA. The panel included Callie Crossley, Lauren Ashburn, and Roger Simon.

Then the panel turned to the "Birthers". The longer I listen to Lauren Ashburn from USA Today the more I like her. Here was her response to the "Birthers" issue:

ASHBURN: One of the only newspapers -- and here I am, you know, shilling for "USA Today," essentially -- to not cover this since the election is "USA Today." Why?

KURTZ: Yes, why?

ASHBURN: Cottage industry of conspiracy theorists is basically what we're seeing here. And why do you give a voice to that. You know, why not help drive the dialogue forward on issues that are important to Americans like health care and other things that need addressing?

...

ASHBURN: I would go even a step farther to say that it's unethical. It's unethical of the media to be taking this issue and putting it front and center when all of the proof is there to the country.

Source: CNN Transcript, Reliable Sources/ State of the Union with John King, July 26, 2009.

The coverage of the nude photos of EPSN's Erin Andrews was criticized by Callie Crossley, Christine Brennan and Lauren Ashburn. The panel agreed that the media was just as guilty as those who took the peep hole pictures since they showed them on air and in print. The next topic was ESPN not initially covering sex charges made against a quarterback.

Roger Simon, Ryan Lizza, and Debra Saunders discussed the President's prime time press conference and how Lynn Sweet's question about Louis Henry Gates' arrest became the headline - not the topic of the press conference which was health care. The President has been doing more interviews than is typical: filling the void so that his opponents can't.

Kurtz interviewed Ben Mezrich the author of The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal. The book is non-fiction, but has a based on a true story feel to it with dialogue recreated and condensed in order to keep the story moving. Kevin Spacey is reportedly involved with the upcoming movie version of the book. Mezrich is also the author of the book that was the basis for the movie 21.

The pundit hour started with a review of the Sound of Sunday and then followed with a round table discussion with Paul Begala, Alex Castellanos, Bill Bennett, and Marc Morial. The first topic for the panel was the controversy over the President's remarks concerning Professor Gates' arrest. (The first part of the discussion ended with a debate on what type of beer one drinks.)

The final minutes with this panel were spent talking about the future for now former Gov. Palin. The mention of Alaska gave Paul Begala the perfect opportunity to show off a picture from his vacation to Seward, Alaska. (If you had seen Begala earlier in the week - he was sporting some facial hair - a left over from his vacation.) As to the question at hand: Begala is hoping she runs in 2010; Castellanos thinks she will split the party; and Bennett doesn't have or at least wasn't willing to share his opinion.

While King was in Texas, he stopped in to Norma's Cafe in Dallas to tape the CNN Diner segment where he spoke with Connie Obenhaus, Chase Robinson, and Theresa Moreno. They shared their health care stories and they discussed whether abortion should be included if the Congress approved a tax payer funded health care option and about whether illegal immigrants should receive care.

The next panel included Joe Johns, Ed Henry, and Dana Bash. Health care dominated the first part of the conversation. When they came back from commercial break, they discussed the economy and the impact of the recovery act (short term or long term?). Next, they visited the President's comments about Professor Gates' arrest.

During the last hour of the program, a flashback to the 9AM hour with a repeat of the interview with David Axelrod, Speaker Pelosi, and Senator Mitch McConnell.

The Last Word went to the Mayor of Cambridge, E. Denise Simmons to discuss with the controversy over the arrest of Louis Henry Gates.

And here are your podcast links for the week:

• State of the Union (video)
• Reliable Sources (video)
• State of the Union (audio)

A few extras this week... clips from The Situation Room that caught my eye. First, imagine this: Wolf Blitzer and the Beastie Boys... Too Many Rappers the latest song from the Beastie Boys featuring NAS mentions the CNN anchor.

Here's the full version of the new single:

What Blitzer didn't mention is that the Beastie Boys made news earlier in the week with the announcement that they will be delaying the release of the their new album Hot Sauce Committee PT 1 and canceling several concert dates because rapper MC is having a cancerous tumor removed from his neck.

Are George and Hank terrorists? Its incredible the unintended consequences well meaning laws have on the little guys. CNN's Jeanne Meserve reported about mule handlers having to get TWIC cards along the Lehigh Canal.

And the final item for the night... Tom Foreman's latest Metro article: Washington’s Secret Society. Here's an excerpt:

Less than a year ago, President Barack Obama (then a mere candidate) was storming the campaign trail making some of those “Come on kids, let’s change government for the better!” promises that enthralled the fans. And among them was this little gem. He said as he prepared his health care initiative, he would not merely insist on keeping his meetings open, but also “have the negotiations televised on C-SPAN, so that people can see who is making arguments on behalf of their constituents, and who are making arguments on behalf of the drug companies or the insurance companies.”

Maybe my cable company has done another of those squirrelly channel realignments, but somehow I’ve missed that reality show. Instead, the Obama administration, much like the Clinton administration years ago, has held virtually all of its health care meetings on this signature subject in private, doors closed, “do not disturb” signs hanging outside.

... to continue reading this article visit: Washington’s Secret Society

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Terrorists and Pirates

The news this week was dominated by the high-seas hostage drama as an American captain was held by heavily armed Somali pirates on a small lifeboat in the Indian ocean. Navy SEALS ended the standoff yesterday, and the captain is on his way home now, but some of the background pieces on the pirates reveal important insights on the on-going trend.

Thursday, American Morning aired a piece from Nic Robertson about the possible links between the pirates and al Qaeda. Just who is funding these attacks and benefitting from the enormous ransoms being paid?

Saturday gave us a NewsRoom report from Stan Grant, who is in Mombasa, Kenya (where the ship was originally heading and is now currently docked.) Local fishermen and tourists react to the acts of piracy:

And here's a perspective that most of us have not studied since junior high: what is the affect of piracy on world trade? Ali Velshi and Christine Romans spoke with Richard Quest on the weekend edition of Your $$$$$ about the bottom line:

Meanwhile, Nic covers a second news story on Thursday, a different (dare I say "more normal"?) type of terrorism -- a cell gets rolled up in Manchester, England. The raids had to be started earlier than planned after an all-too-human blunder: Top Secret documents were photographed being carried into 10 Downing Street, with the names/addresses of the targets plainly visible:

A second report aired on The Situation Room a few hours later, with some local reaction to the arrests:

Finally, a word about a different kind of terrorism: Jeanne Meserve explains the concerns that cyber-terrorists could attack US power grids. Kyra Phillips talks to former CIA operative Robert Baer about the newest aggressions:

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Thursday's Mix Bag of Goodies

Tonight I have a variety of things to share with everyone. A big thank you to Julie for the great tips

A great article about John King by Charles Geraci for Editor and Publisher

John King: CNN's 'Ink-Stained Wretch'

WASHINGTON CNN's John King says he wants his new Sunday morning show to be different, and he's already using newspapers to help him do it.During the debut of "State of the Union" ten days ago, King--broadcasting his inaugural coverage live from the rooftop of the Newseum in Washington--showed the headlines of several newspapers from around the nation in an effort to demonstrate that one of his goals for the show early on is to go "outside the Beltway" and look at the needs of communities across the country.King sat down with Editor & Publisher last week to talk about his impressions of the inauguration, his new four-hour show and to have a little fun in the process."Four hours is a challenge, but it's a great opportunity to do more and to be different," King said. "We will be different than any other show on television on Sunday morning. And that's not to criticize the others ... but with the time and with my passion to get out of Washington, we're able to do some things differently that I hope give it a greater connection to people who aren't in Washington."Two days after traveling to Ohio last Friday to tape an interview with now-President Obama--King was the only anchor to have Obama on the Sunday before Tuesday's inauguration--he made reference to the Cleveland Plain Dealer on his show."Because of my show, we brought in some newspapers from around the country, just to take a look at how the Obama pre-inaugural coverage was going," King told E&P.He also looked at headlines in The Miami Herald and the Omaha World-Herald, along with detailing the offerings of Sunday's Chicago Tribune."This is Barack Obama's hometown newspaper, the Chicago Tribune," King told his viewers. "(It's) a little breezy up here on the roof of the Newseum, but (the headline reads) 'Bound for Glory: With White House as last stop, Obama rides rails into history.' Special graphics, 'Two days to the White House.' Special sections. Pretty extraordinary newspaper there."He also read headlines from The Boston Globe and the Philadelphia Inquirer.Extensively incorporating newspapers into his first show should not come as too much of a surprise, though, since King, who has been with CNN since 1997, used to write for the Associated Press, heading AP's political coverage of the 1992 and 1996 presidential elections. Obama's inauguration was the sixth he's covered in his career.Calling the troubles of the newspaper industry a "sad chapter in our business right now," and noting the effects of a "digital age," King called himself an "old, ink-stained wretch...."I like to have newsprint on my hands in the morning," he said. "I like when people tell me, 'You know, you've got a big smudge on your nose.' That means I've read my third or fourth or fifth newspaper."He added, "I'm pretty predictable in the morning--make some coffee, read the papers."But King wasn't all serious in his interview with E&P.Since he did a lot of reporting from the rooftop of the Newseum that inauguration week--E&P received a tour of the operations and can testify to the wind at the anchors' backs--King took some time to dispel any notion that Anderson Cooper harbored any hostility toward Wolf Blitzer for "stealing all the heaters," a comment Cooper made last week that has gotten picked up by several blogs.King said, "Anderson was just being funny," adding that the space heater was located by Blitzer to keep it out of the television shot.When the topic of dancing at inaugural festivities came up, King also poked a little fun at Blitzer before complimenting him, recalling his moves recently on The Ellen DeGeneres Show."Bastard!" King quipped, while smiling widely. "Wolf was showing us all up there.""See, Anderson's a comedian," King joked. "Wolf, it turns out, should be on 'Dancing With The Stars.' I'm gonna stick to being a lowly reporter."


The Daily Collegian had a great conference with Donna Brazile in attendance. To read about it you can click here


Campbell Brown wins 2009 Matrix Award from New York Women in Communications
Congratulations to Campbell. You can read about the award here

Wanna intern for Jeanne Meserve??? Who does not? Well here is your opportunity. You can apply for the position here

I end tonight with a little side note. Last Tuesday I was in Belfast, Northern Ireland when President Barack Obama was sworn in and you would not believe how many people there and all over the United Kingdom sent well wishes to my American travel mates. This truly is a new time and the rest of the world is excited for this change that is coming. Until next week ~ Sapphire


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Out with the old...

Since everyone is focused on the DC coverage today, just some quick clips from CNN.com I wanted to highlight:

Stan Grant, now back in Abu Dhabi, interviews an Iraqi man who escaped from Saddam's army and now worries about Iranian influence taking over his former home:

Jeanne Meserve looks at the countermeasures being taken by the Secret Service sniper team:

Here's something I bet you never thought of -- Zain Verjee compares the preparations for Inauguration Day with the Hajj in Mecca:

And on Sunday's GPS, Fareed Zakaria spoke about what he believes was President Bush's biggest blunder. There are a lot to chose from, in my opinion, and I would not have thought of this one, but he makes a persuasive case:

That's all for today... back to the party! Boy, we have earned this one!

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Ten days to go...

With just ten days to go until Inauguration, I thought I would post some of this week's videos focusing on the next president and the plans for next week.

First up is a discussion from American Morning -- Kiran Chetry talks to a psychologist about how Obama's childhood and blended family influenced him and mirrors the new reality of American life:

This has to be the coolest thing ever... okay, if you're a comic book geek, anyway! Obama stars in the next issue of The Amazing Spider-Man. Alina Cho reports:

Jeanne Meserve on recreating a famous train trip. I imagine the Secret Service damn near fainted when this was proposed, but as always, they saluted sharply and figured out a way to make it happen. (They don't get an iota of the credit they deserve.) This will be something that every person who is fortunate enough to see will remember their entire life:

(Fredricka Whitfield mentioned yesterday that her father, one of the Tuskegee Airmen, will be attending the Inauguration. This is the first time the remaining Airmen have been personally invited.)

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Well, here's something you don't see every day: from BackStory, Nic Robertson gives us a look at how the reporters are trying to stay warm on the cold hillside in Israel where they have been watching the Gaza border. Anderson Cooper makes a cameo appearance...in a blanket. (Thanks to Délie for the clip!)

BkS 01/09 Cold night in Sderot
Uploaded by Delie31

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Where in the World...?

SATURDAY: Betty Nguyen and Ron Marciano anchored Saturday Morning and Newsroom from 7am through 11am; Fredricka Whitfield anchored from noon until 4pm; Don Lemon anchored at 5 and 6pm; at 7pm, Domestic took the International feed, with Jim Clancy anchoring; at 9pm Wolf Blitzer hosted a special edition of Larry King Live, then Don was back for 10 and 11pm. Christiane Amanpour is in Jerusalem; Nic Robertson, Paula Hancocks, and Ben Wedeman are at the Israel/Gaza border; Karl Penhaul is at the Egypt/Gaza border.

SUNDAY: At midnight the International feed was back on, with Hala Gorani anchoring until 4am when Rosemary Church took over until 6am; Betty and Rob anchored at 6 and 7am, Fredricka at 4 and 5pm, and Don at 6, 7, and 10pm.

MONDAY: Rob was in for John Roberts; Anderson Cooper was at the Israel/Gaza border (above).

TUESDAY: Candy Crowley is back in DC; Cal Perry was in Damascus, Syria; Dr. Sanjay Gupta was in the headlines as nominee for Surgeon General.

WEDNESDAY: John King and Candy were both in The Situation Room; Anderson was back in New York.

THURSDAY: Cal was in Beirut; Ed Henry was in Fairfax, Virginia for the Obama speech; Wolf was in Los Angeles to dance with Ellen DeGeneres.

FRIDAY: Wolf was back in Washington.

That's it for me today... hope everyone is keeping safe, keeping warm, and keeping their New year's resolutions!

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Hurricane Ike: The Morning After

Producer Tommy Evans posted this shot on the AC360 blog:

Here's a picture of what we’re dealing with driving down
towards the Texas Coast. This is the I-10 - 59 Split.

Some more images from overnight and this morning:
Rick Sanchez does a mime-impression and loses his hat in the process:

Rob Marciano talks to a resident of Galveston who lost his house but kept his sense of humor:

Betty Nguyen shows some of the damage in downtown Houston:

Jeanne Meserve is in an area of downtown Houston where broken glass covers the roads:

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Where in the World...?

Remember last week when I said there would be a one-week-only color coding? Umm... Well, reporters covering Hurricane Hanna are in blue, those covering Hurricane Ike are in red.

SATURDAY: Dan Lothian was in Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina; Reynolds Wolf was in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina; Kathleen Koch was in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; Susan Roesgen was in Key Largo, Florida; Suzanne Malveaux was in Terre Haute, Indiana with the Obama campaign.

SUNDAY: Susan Roesgen was in Key West and Islamadora, Florida; Karl Penhaul was in Cap-Haitien, Haiti; Suzanne was in Chicago.

MONDAY: John Roberts was off and Alina Cho filled in; Jessica Yellin was in Anchorage, Alaska on Palin patrol; Dana Bash was Lee's Summit, Missouri with the McCain campaign; Suzanne was in Farmington Hills, Michigan with the Obama campaign.

TUESDAY: Michael Ware was in New York; Suzanne was in Lebanon, Virginia with the Obama campaign; Dana was on Lancaster, Pennsylvania with the McCain campaign; Nic Robertson was in Islamabad, Pakistan.

WEDNESDAY: John King was in Rochester, Minnesota reporting on states vital to the election; Candy Crowley was in New York; Suzanne was in Washington with the Obama campaign; Ed Henry was in Fairfax, Virginia with the McCain campaign; Jessica was in Fairbanks, Alaska; Hugh Riminton reported from Seoul, South Korea on the reports of Kim Jong Il's death/illness.

THURSDAY (9/11): Suzanne was in New York; Dana was in Seven Springs and Shanksville, Pennsylvania with the McCain campaign; Lou Dobbs was in Washington for his Independent Convention (also Friday); Gary Tuchman was in Galveston, Texas; Susan Candiotti was in Surfside Beach, Texas.

FRIDAY: Carol Costello was in for Kiran Chetry; Dana was in New York; Candy was in Concord, New Hampshire with the Obama campaign; Gary Tuchman and Rob Marciano were in Galveston, Texas; Anderson Cooper, Jeanne Meserve, and Sean Callebs were in Houston; Rick Sanchez was in Morgans Point, Texas; Susan Candiotti and Reynolds Wolf were in Clute, Texas; Ali Velshi was in Baytown, Texas.

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and may not be used without consent of the blog administrator.