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NEWS STREAM

Extortion and blackmail - Amazon founder Jeff Bezos goes public against U.S. tabloid "The National Enquirer;" Acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker Will Testify Before The House Judiciary Committee After A Tense Back And Forth Between Congressional Democrats And The Justice Department; In Venezuela, Two Aid Trucks Have Arrived On The Colombian Side Of The Border; Facebook Celebrating Its 15th Birthday. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired February 8, 2019 - 08:00   ET

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


(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF BEZOS, FOUNDER AND CEO, AMAZON: It doesn't get much more explosive than this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WILL RIPLEY, SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN (voice over): Extortion and blackmail - Amazon founder Jeff Bezos goes public against

U.S. tabloid "The National Enquirer."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFFREY TOOBIN, LEGAL ANALYST, CNN: He feels, apparently, that there was political motivation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIPLEY (voice over): Escaping ISIS.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am afraid, all I have left is my daughter and son.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIPLEY (voice over): People recount horror stories of life under siege, but some remember it a little differently.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DURA AHMED, CANADIAN NATIONAL LIVING IN SYRIA: You're there, you're eating Pringles and Twix.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIPLEY (voice over): And inside Facebook.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEX STAMOS, FORMER CHIEF SECURITY OFFICER, FACEBOOK: The truth is, there is a bit of a "Game of Thrones" culture among the executives.

Vidd2

RIPLEY (voice over): What's it like working for Mark Zuckerberg and why are some so afraid to speak out?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a career impact where you might get blacklisted and you're not going to be get hired.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIPLEY (on camera): Hey, I'm Will Ripley in Hong Kong in for Kristie Lu Stout on this Friday. Welcome to "News Stream." The founder and CEO of

Amazon, Jeff Bezos is accusing the publisher of "The National Enquirer," AMI of blackmail and extortion.

In an explosive new blog post, Bezos provides what he says are e-mail threats from AMI executives. Bezos dropped this bombshell accusing the

American tabloid of threatening to release his compromising photos and texts if he didn't call off his own investigation of the tabloid.

The world's richest man has been sparing no expense trying to figure out how the "Enquirer" obtained other private photos and texts involving him

and his alleged mistress and he wants to know why they did it.

Bezos's long time security consultant told "The Washington Post," he thinks the "Enquirer's" reporting was politically motivated. Bezos is the owner

of "The Washington Post" and he says the "Enquirer" was threatening further humiliation if Bezos didn't go public and state that their expose was not

politically motivated.

Now, his blog post is titled, "No thank you, Mr. Pecker." He is talking about this man, AMI's Chairman and CEO, David Pecker. Now, his name has

become public because of his association with President Donald Trump.

Pecker was granted immunity in a Federal investigation into Trump's former attorney, Michael Cohen. In exchange, Pecker agreed to provide Federal

prosecutors information on hush money deals. Pecker is also known on the international stage. Bezos wrote that Pecker and his company have also

been investigated for various actions that they have taken on behalf of the Saudi government.

So much to impact here. Joining me now from New York, CNN political analyst John Avlon and CNN's chief media correspondent and host of

"Reliable Sources," Brian Stelter, and it's great to have both of you here.

Brian, I want to start with you. What could make the publisher of the "National Enquirer" so nervous that they would threaten to go nuclear on

Jeff Bezos and even put it in writing if he doesn't call off his private investigation?

BRIAN STELTER, CHIEF MEDIA CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Right, that's exactly the question we've asked American media, we've asked Pecker and so far they've

had no response at all to these incredible claims from Bezos.

Look, it is remarkable that Bezos is publishing the e-mails, at least, one side of the e-mails so you can see what American media was allegedly

proposing. They wanted to shut down Bezos's investigation into the "Enquirer's" leaks, into the "Enquirer's" probes and they wanted to shut it

down so badly that they said if you put out a statement saying this was not politically motivated, then we will make all of your embarrassing photos

and text messages disappear.

You know, we're seeing the seedy underbelly of the tabloid culture here, and how the "Enquirer" apparently works. Others have accused the

"Enquirer" of blackmail in the past, but the stakes here are so much higher because this involves the richest person in the world.

Apparently, Bezos believes and knows he can afford the embarrassment. He can afford the risk, and so he's exposed this blackmail attempt in pure

daylight.

RIPLEY: John Avlon, I want to read you a portion of Bezos' blog post. It says, "My ownership of "The Washington Post" is a complexifier for me. It

is unavoidable that certain powerful people who experience "Washington Post" news coverage will wrongly conclude that I am their enemy."

You know, Bezos says AMI was blackmailing him to publicly say that "The Washington Post" reporting and the "Enquirer's" reporting was not

politically motivated. So as the former editor-in-chief of the "Daily Beast," do you see a journalistic line being crossed here?

JOHN AVLON, POLITICAL ANALYST, CNN: Absolutely. This is not anything that lines up with anything resembling journalistic best practices, let alone

ethics. You know, what Bezos is saying that when you're a publisher, when you own a news organization, you sometimes get blamed for things that if

you're good at your job and not try to interfere with the editorial process, that you have nothing to do with.

But what the executives at AMI, Dylan Howard, the chief content officer who wrote the e-mail threatening Mr. Bezos.

[08:05:10]

AVLON: And his general counsel, Jon P. Fine, who backed it up are doing is not anything in line with journalistic ethics even though at the end of

Howard's e-mail, he tries to wave out, sort of carry out a fig leaf of ethics to say, "This is an e-mail that no editor would like to send. Let's

hope cooler heads prevail."

But don't let the fancy words mistake you for what this is. This is a threat, this is extortion, this is blackmail and it's tied up with the

President of the United States in trying to get the publisher of "The Washington Post," who happens to be the world's richest man, to deny

there's any political motivation to the leaking of their text messages.

This story is significant. It is going to get worse as more information comes out and it is outside the bounds of anything we've recognized. If

anything deserve to be called fake news, this does, this organization does.

RIPLEY: And Brian, a lot of lawyers are now debating whether or not this fits the legal definition of extortion and blackmail, but what does this

mean for the "Enquirer" and its parent company, and also for David Pecker's immunity deal?

STELTER: The company has been in a precarious position because of these Michael Cohen dealings, these hush money payments that were brokered during

the 2016 election. So you go back to the campaign - you go back to the campaign days, the "Enquirer" was one of Trump's biggest boosters, one of

Donald Trump's biggest supporters. Burying bad news about Trump and promoting bad news about his rivals.

That has continued after election day, the "Enquirer" continued to promote Trump up until the day Michael Cohen's office was raided and the hush money

payments began to be exposed.

The "Enquirer" apparently flipped on Trump. Pecker apparently flipped on Trump, so you wonder now that we've heard about Bezos and this story is,

whether the "Enquirer" and Pecker were trying to get back in President Trump's good graces, or trying to investigate one of Trump's enemies, Jeff

Bezos in order to show Trump that they had his back.

Because that is a part of what's going on here. Bezos and Trump -- there has been a back and forth for years, Trump hate the fact that Bezos owns

"The Washington Post" so you have to wonder about the Trump connection in this story especially given Bezos has hints about that in his blog post.

He refer to what he calls the Saudi angle referring to the "Enquirer's" parent company trying to take on Saudi money, promoting the Saudi Crown

Prince and of course, we all know about President Trump's cozy relationship with the Saudis. So there's a lot of layers here.

Every time you peel back the onion, you see more and more to this story, but at its core, it's about an incredibly powerful man, Jeff Bezos,

rejecting a blackmail attempt and revealing how this shady world sometimes works.

RIPLEY: And John, Jeff Bezos, he owns one of the world's most powerful newspapers. What do you make of his decision to go public in this way?

With a personal blogpost?

AVLON: I think that's actually profound because he's trying to create a degree of separation between his own personal shakedown attempt that he is

dealing with and the outlet he runs. And to also underscore just how much there is a separation, a legitimate news organizations between the personal

lives and personal views of even the publisher and the owner and the work the journalists do day in and day out. Something that Donald Trump and

other critics don't begin to understand.

And I think, we sometimes lose sight of the fact how unusual it is for the President of the United States to be attacking the publisher of "The

Washington Post" and the questions that are raised by this.

As Brian just laid out, is it just whether or not David Pecker and AMI actually undid their agreement? But the fact they were trying to cover for

the President as well as themselves, and the Saudi angle that Mr. Bezos raises with some excellent reporting about basically a supermarket tabloid

glossy by promoting Saudi Arabia, that appeared suddenly, that was obviously a pay to play deal, it really raises questions about these

relationships and what strings are trying to be pulled.

This may be standard operating procedure inside AMI. It's not in any legitimate news organization and this deserves to have the doors blown off.

RIPLEY: John Avlon, Brian Stelter, more to come with this story. Thanks for being with us.

STELTER: Yes.

AVLON: Thanks.

RIPLEY: Acting U.S. Attorney General Matthew Whitaker will testify before the House Judiciary Committee in the next hour after a tense back and forth

between Congressional Democrats and the Justice Department.

Democrats want to press Whitaker on two subjects; first, his decision not to recuse himself from overseeing Robert Mueller's Russia investigation

despite his past public rebuke of that probe; and second, his conversations with President Trump about the Russia investigation.

CNN congressional reporter Lauren Fox joins me now live from Washington. Lauren, Congressional Democrats clearly have a lot of questions for the

acting Attorney General. How do you see this showdown playing out?

LAUEN FOX, CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER, CNN: Well, Will, we didn't even know if Matthew Whitaker would appear before this Committee yesterday afternoon.

There was this very tense back and forth between the Committee and the Justice Department about a subpoena and whether or not it would be used if

Matthew Whitaker refused to answer some of those key questions that you pointed out.

[08:10:05]

FOX: Now, President Trump is very confident that Matthew Whitaker is going to do a stellar job today. Here is what he said about Mr. Whitaker's

testimony.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Should Matthew Whitaker testify tomorrow, Mr. President?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He is an outstanding person. I would say if he did testify, he'd do very well. He is an outstanding

person, a very, very fine man. Thank you all very much.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOX: Now, Will, you know, one thing to be watching today is exactly how Democrats ask these questions. You know, the fireworks involved here may

be more substantive than the answers that they get from Matthew Whitaker.

We do know that, you know, he is concerned about answering any questions about his conversations that he's had directly with the President, whether

or not he claims that executive privilege, all something worth watching today at that House Judiciary hearing.

RIPLEY: Lauren, is this a taste of things to come? I mean, this is the first high profile oversight hearing since Democrats retook the House.

Clearly, it won't be the last.

FOX: Clearly, and I think this week has been full of some on blockbuster hearings. There is this hearing today with Matthew Whitaker. But

yesterday, there were two very notable subcommittee hearings in the House of Representatives. One of them on family separation policy at the

southern border, another one on the precedent of getting the President's tax returns. That is another hot button issue that Democrats are going to

be pursuing up here on Capitol Hill.

So I think this is a taste of things to come, and this is really just coming days after the President's State of the Union address, of course, a

moment that typically tries to unify the country.

So a lot of division up here on Capitol Hill and definitely more to come when it comes to probing the President -- Will.

RIPLEY: To say the least, Lauren Fox on Capitol Hill, thanks for joining us.

FOX: Thank you.

RIPLEY: I want to turn now to the escalating crisis in Venezuela. Two aid trucks have arrived on the Colombian side of the border. You can see them

right there. A U.S. officials says they are carrying food. They are carrying medical supplies for Venezuela. But President Nicolas Maduro's

government has been blocking international aid deliveries.

Now, his rival, opposition leader, the self-proclaimed interim President, Juan Guaido wants the military to let those supplies in and that plea is

echoed by the U.S. State Department.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELIOT AGRAMS, SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE ON VENEZUELA, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT: There are dire needs, and I think many people, again, in the Venezuelan

Army feel those needs for themselves and their families. So we're hopeful that that at least initial decision on the part of Maduro can be turned

around if he sees a real demand on the part of the people of Venezuela. Let it in. That's all we're asking. Let it in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIPLEY: It is one thing to hear from government officials, but CNN's Isa Soarez has been hearing directly from the people who are suffering because

of this and she joins me live from Cucuta on the Colombian-Venezuela border. Isa, I have been watching your excellent reporting. You've been

bringing us these stories. They are so heartbreaking. Do you see this actually getting worse?

ISA SOAREZ, SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Well, that's really the question, Will, that so many people have been asking me day in and day

out, as I stand on the main pedestrian bridge. So just to give you a sense of where we are right now, we are roughly about two minute' walk from that

Simon Bolivar Bridge, the main pedestrian bridge that you've seen me talk to people the last couple of days.

So what happens is, people come out of this bridge before they start doing their shopping for those groceries, for those basic staples. They come to

Western Union. And this is early. It is 8:00 here. Have a look at the queue already. It starts right here. There is a bit of a gap, people

queueing in already to wait, sitting down, waiting.

But if I can get Jose just to turn the camera around and I'm just going to snake through here. [Speaking foreign language]. And if we snake, have a

look at this queue. It's the 8:00 hour and there's already a long queue snaking around the corner on to the main road for people to try and get

money.

Now, what we know from speaking to people here, Will, is that the majority of them are coming here to get money from relatives really, that have

deposited into the bank account. So what happens is, relatives are all over the world -- Spain, Argentina, Chile -- that's what majority have been

telling me. They deposit it into their accounts. They come and pick it up in pesos and then some of them actually go and buy groceries, others

actually use it to go elsewhere.

Let me ask -- come on over here, Jose -- let me ask some of these people what exactly they're doing. Good morning. [Speaking foreign language].

I'm asking what she's doing with the money. To buy food. [Speaking foreign language]. How often do you do this, I'm asking her. Every 15

days. Sending her money from abroad from Peru. So she has relatives sending her money from Peru in order for her to buy food. [Speaking

foreign language]. The same. Together.

[08:15:07]

SOARES: [Speaking foreign language]. Also food. [Speaking foreign language]. Good morning. [Speaking foreign language]. Also from Peru.

So it gives you a sense really how people are dependent, so dependent on family to send them money abroad because, obviously because of

hyperinflation, Will, there is just not enough money -- very little they can buy in fact back in Venezuela.

I spoke to two individuals yesterday, one was going to Chile, the other one was going to Argentina. They are coming with their suitcases packed. They

collect their money and then they go, whichever way they can. Coached, taxi -- whatever, finding a way to get out of Venezuela which is of course,

as you've been seeing, a real humanitarian crisis unfolding in front of our very eyes -- Will.

RIPLEY: And eventually, family members run out of money to send and then what? Isa Soarez, thank you so much for keeping us up to date and we will

keep checking back with you there from the Colombian-Venezuelan border.

A deadly fire at the youth training center for one of Brazil's biggest football clubs. According to state-run media, fire tore through a

dormitory where players were asleep. This is the training ground for the Flamingo Football Club. At least 10 people were killed, three others

injured. The cause of that fire is being investigated right now.

Next on "News Stream," lured into a war zone against her will.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's like, you - you have to come here. He's like, it's obligatory for you to come here. You have no choice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIPLEY: A so-called Caliphate collapses on itself in Syria. Ben Wedeman speaks with civilians as they flee the ruins. Plus, former Facebook

employees are describing a cult-like work environment and a "Game of Thrones" culture. CNN gains unprecedented access as the social media giant

turns 15.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RIPLEY: Just about 19 minutes past 9:00 on a Friday night here in Hong Kong. You're watching "News Stream." With just 49 days - 49 days until

Brexit, Prime Minister Theresa May is crusading to deliver a deal on time. And in a few hours, she will have dinner with the Irish Prime Minister in

Dublin as she fights to resolve the Irish border issue.

Leo Varadkar has made it very clear that Ireland doesn't want a no-deal Brexit. But they are increasingly prepared for that scenario.

Now, on Thursday, May returned to Brussels and she implored E.U. leaders to renegotiate the deal that they already agreed upon back in November. With

the clock ticking down, the Prime Minister remains unwavering.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THERESA MAY, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: Well, I've set out very clearly the positions in Parliament that we must have legally binding changes to the

withdrawal agreement in order to deal with Parliament's concerns over the backstop. What I see and hear from leaders is a desire for us to work

together to ensure ...

[08:2010]

MAY: ... that we can deliver the U.K. leaving the European Union with a deal. My work is to deliver Brexit, to deliver it on time and I am going

to be negotiating hard in the coming days to do just that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIPLEY: The European Parliament Brexit coordinator says Theresa May assured them there will a backstop, which may be the way out of this

impasse.

Today is the deadline for the White House to respond to the U.S. Senate about the murder of Saudi dissident journalist, Jamal Khashoggi. A source

tells CNN the administration is expected to double down on its defense of the Saudi Crown Prince.

Back in October, senators triggered an act that would require President Trump to determine whether Mohammed Bin Salman or MBS was responsible for a

gross human rights violation. The "New York Times" also reporting that U.S. Intelligence intercepts show that MBS told an aide that he would use a

bullet on Khashoggi and that was a year before the journalist was killed.

ISIS has seen its territory shrink to a sliver, forcing out some of the final remaining people who were living under their rule. Some came

willingly, others say they had no choice, but they are all leaving now for an uncertain future. With me now, CNN's senior international

correspondent, Ben Wedeman. He is in Eastern Syria, Ben, you've been listening to the stories of people who have lived under ISIS rule, as you

hear all of them talk to you about what they endured, what stands out?

BEN WEDEMAN, SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN: What strikes me is that some of these people, you know, they came from Canada, from the United

States and elsewhere. They've been in - under the rule of the Islamic State for as many as four or five years. They've moved from place to place

as the front lines of moves back and back and back, and despite this, many of them either have nothing bad to say about the Islamic State or actually

openly remain loyal to the Islamic state, Will.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

WEDEMAN (voice over): They arrive in pickup trucks, dusty shell-shocked, exhausted and afraid from the town of Baghuz Fawqani, all that's left of

the so-called Islamic State. Adult males are immediately taken aside for questioning. American, British and French personnel are here searching for

ISIS members, but we were forbidden to film them.

Twenty eight year-old Dura Ahmed from Toronto, Canada arrived at this barren spot in the vast Eastern Syrian plains this morning. She came to

Syria at her husband urging.

AHMED: I don't anything about ISIS or anything. He said just come and see, just come and see.

WEDEMAN (voice over): So she came four years ago.

WEDEMAN (on camera): But you knew there is a war in Syria.

AHMED: But when you come to Raqqa, it doesn't look like -- it doesn't look like a war. You're there with -- you're eating Pringles and Twix bars.

You're just saying, you know, it doesn't -- do don't feel like you're in a war.

WEDEMAN (on camera): Do you still believe in the idea of (inaudible) the Caliphate?

AHMED: I believe in Sharia, wherever Sharia is, you know.

WEDEMAN (voice over): Was it worth it?

AHMED: Do I regret it? Coming? You mean? No. I don't. In a sense I had my kids here.

WEDEMAN (voice over): We also met this 34-year-old former graphic designer from Alberta, Canada. She declined to give her name or show her face. Her

husband ordered her to come to Syria.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's like, he's like, "You have to come here." He's like, "It's obligatory for you to come here. You have no choice." As your

husband, he's like, "I'm telling you to come here. And as a Muslim wife, you have to obey." Even though it was really hard for me to do it, I had

to.

WEDEMAN (voice over): It's difficult to determine who might be with ISIS and who is not. The answers to our questions often ambiguous. Dalha Hatib

is from Western Syria and he told me he was just visiting a friend and couldn't return home because of the fighting. "There are many foreigners,

including Chechens in ISIS's last enclave, the town of Baghuz Fawqani," he told me. "It is strange," I say, "That you find a Chechen in Baghuz

Fawqani, isn't it?"

"I don't know if it is suspicious or not," he responds. But among those fleeing, there are real horror stories of life under siege. Abdul Rahman

from Iraq recounts that his home was hit with an air strike at 3:00 a.m. He lists those who were killed that night.

[08:25:00]

WEDEMAN (voice over): "My mother, my brother, his wife, his son, my sister, my wife, my daughter, my uncle, his wife and their two children,"

he says. Only Abdul Rahman, he's kid sister and his father, Salam, survived, but were badly wounded.

"I'm afraid," says Salam. "Do you understand I'm afraid? All I have left is my daughter and son."

This experiment implemented twisted version of God's will on earth has brought nothing but death, destruction, displacement and despair.

WEDEMAN (on camera): This is how the mad dream of Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, the self-proclaimed Calipho or Caliph of the Islamic State comes to an end.

WEDEMAN (voice over): The subjects of the dying caliphate herded on to buses bound for already crowded camps further north, all illusions

shattered.

(END VIDEO END)

WEDEMAN (on camera): And the fact that people are still loyal to the idea of the Islamic State underscores the sort of challenge that will face

Syria, Iraq and other countries when the last geographical area controlled by ISIS is completely cleared.

The problem is, the idea, the appeal of the Islamic State will live on despite the death of the actual entity itself -- Will.

RIPLEY: Ben Wedeman, thank you for that. Just extraordinary and very important reporting there in Eastern Syria. You are watching "News Stream"

and still ahead, she is a champion. She's a sailor, an Instagram star, oh, yes, and a Princess. And now, this high profile member of Thailand's royal

family could become its next Prime Minister.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

RIPLEY: I am Will Ripley in Hong Kong. You're watching "News Stream" and these are your world headlines. Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos is accusing the

"National Enquirer," their publisher of extortion and blackmail. Bezos alleges that American Media threatened to release compromising photos of

him unless he dropped his private investigation of their supermarket tabloid "The Enquirer" and also publicly state that an expose that had

published about him and his alleged extramarital affair was not politically motivated.

[08:30:04]

RIPLEY: Two trucks arrived on the Colombian side of the Venezuelan border on Thursday, but they are being blocked by President Nicolas Maduro's

government, stopped from entering the country to deliver badly needed food and medicine. The U.S. official says those supplies must get in.

More than a ton and a half of methamphetamine bound for Australia is now in the hands of U.S. authorities after a joint operation between the two

countries. This was the largest ever shipment intended for Australia, worth almost $1 billion. Australian police arrested six people in the

operation.

Turning now to Thailand and the King's sister has been nominated by one political party as its candidate for Prime Minister. This has never

happened before. The pro-military party is challenging the move. They say that it might actually breach election law, but whatever the outcome, the

nomination is certainly unprecedented, in fact, experts are calling it a political earthquake.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

RIPLEY (voice over): The Princess versus the General in a high stakes election matchup that has the Kingdom of Thailand talking. Political

activity in Thailand has been outlawed since 2014 when the Thai Army ousted the elected Prime Minister, rewrote the Constitution and replaced democracy

with what they called national harmony.

Family members and friends no longer need to be anxious over who belongs to which faction or color code, General Prayut Chan-o-cha said after he made

himself Prime Minister.

Next month, he wants to be elected to the job he took by force, but this time, he faces an opponent and it's not just any politician. Her Royal

Highness, Ubolrat. At 67 years old, she's a singer, film star, Instagram celebrity, MIT trained biochemist and first child of the former King. The

semi-deified, Bhumibol.

Thai law actually bans criticism of the King and Queen. The Populist Party that has now picked the Princess says she won't be above Thailand's tense

politics. "We all play by the rules," the party chair said. No one has privileges or exclusive rights or anything.

Far from Bangkok's high society, Ubolrat will vie for the rights of Thailand's rural and working class, the millions who supported the now

exiled former Prime Minister's toxin and Yingluck Shinawatra known as red shirts.

Their bitter rivalry with royalist elites known as the yellow shirts has led to deadly street protests and political disappearances in a country

that has had 12 military coups in recent history. Many hope a candidate that bridges the divide between the Royals and the people can keep the Thai

Military at bay.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

RIPLEY: The candidacy of a close member of the Royal Family has never happened before in Thailand. Political analysts say it must have been

backed by the new King.

You are watching "News Stream" and we have more for you here. Facebook celebrating its 15th birthday, but CNN is speaking with a former executive

talking about the workplace atmosphere at the social media empire.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The truth is there is a bit of a "Game of Thrones" culture among the executives.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[08:35:04]

RIPLEY: Can you believe it was 15 years ago this week, 15 years ago since Mark Zuckerberg founded Facebook. It makes me feel really old. This

website would ultimately become a social media empire used by a third of the world's population each month.

But with scandals from user data breach to U.S. election meddling by Russian bots, Zuckerberg is facing growing scrutiny. CNN's senior

technology correspondent Laurie Segall probably knows more about Facebook than any reporter out there and she joins me now live from New York.

Hi, Laurie. I actually e-mailed you recently because the access that you have gained is unprecedented. The interviews that you have gotten. Is

there anything new that you learned while filming this documentary about Facebook?

LAURIE SEGALL, SENIOR TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Yes, look, I think I've interviewed Mark Zuckerberg four times over the last couple of years.

He's not someone who loves being on camera. He's a behind the scenes guy and I think spending so much time on Facebook's campus during a lot of what

has been an incredibly controversial couple of years, you know, there does seems to be sometimes a bit of a disconnect.

I have talked to former employees, and people kind of speaking out saying, Facebook's power makes it very hard to speak out. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STAMOS: The truth is, there is a bit of a "Game of Thrones" culture among the executives and one of the problems about having a really tight-knit set

of people making all of these decisions, if you keep the same people in the same places, it's just very difficult to admit you were wrong, right?

SEGALL (voice over): The company is powerful and after spending time behind Facebook's walls, there was another theme that emerged. Folks who

had something to say, but were afraid to say it.

ROBOTIC VOICE: Working at Facebook can feel a little bit like being part of a cult.

SEGALL (voice over): This former employee asked us to protect their identity.

ROBOTIC VOICE: Speaking out against the company is not welcome. There is a career impact where you might get blacklisted and you're not going to get

hired.

SEGALL (voice over): Ironically, in a place that has connected billions, this former employees cites a disconnect within.

ROBOTIC VOICE: People aren't really encouraged to bring bad news to Mark because generally, Mark doesn't handle bad news well. In a public setting,

he politely argues against it, but in a private setting, he's more likely to really aggressively go against that information or challenge the source

to challenge the assumptions to honestly not believe the bad news.

SEGALL (voice over): Facebook is in transition. Many executives have left over rumored disputes about the company's direction, including the

founders of Instagram and WhatsApp. Amidst all the controversy, there's been speculation. Should Zuckerberg who is CEO, Chairman, and the majority

shareholder in Facebook step aside?

MARK ZUCKERBERG, CEO, FACEBOOK: That's not the plan.

SEGALL (on camera): That's not the plan. Would anything change that?

ZUCKERBERG: I mean, like eventually over time. I mean, I'm not going to be doing this forever.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

SEGALL: And, you know, Will, I should mention not all employees feel this way, but there's certainly something there, that's something we heard. It

was very difficult, to be honest with you, to get some sources to come on the record and talk about these nuanced complicated issues Facebook is

dealing with as it's turned 15 because of the sheer power.

Facebook is trying to burst their own filter bubble a little bit over the last couple of years, trying to get help from the outside because some of

these issues they're dealing with, whether it was with speech, protecting democracy, these are beyond Facebook and they need to kind of get outside

their Silicon Valley bubble and get help which is what they've been trying to do over the last couple of years.

RIPLEY: You know, obviously, the numbers for Facebook are incredible, 1.5 billion daily users on Facebook alone. But, you know, I talk to a lot of

young people and I'm sure you do, as well, who say they just don't use it. They think it's old fashioned. What does that mean for the future of

Facebook?

SEGALL: It's interesting because, you know, a lot of folks I talk to, same thing. But Mark Zuckerberg did something very smart as the company was

going public years ago. He went out and he bought Instagram. He looked at that as the future of Facebook. And then he also bought WhatsApp. So when

you look at the future of Facebook, it might not necessarily look like Facebook, but they've been very strategic in purchasing companies that do

represent where a lot of users and younger users are going. So their numbers are great, despite a lot of the issues.

But Silicon Valley, as always, there's always a battle for relevance, for zeitgeist, for keeping your attention. So they're going to have to make a

lot of changes and be very strategic over the next couple of years, but you do go back to those numbers, people are still on Facebook and those numbers

are still very good despite the controversy.

RIPLEY: Yes, you compare ten years ago to today, it's incredible how much it has changed our lives and the way that we document our lives. Curious

also, Laurie, what Zuckerberg has to say about these allegations about his temperament. I will be watching and be sure that you watch as well

Laurie's special report, "Facebook at 15: It's Complicated." That is Sunday at 9:00 p.m. on U.S. East Coast, 10:00 a.m. Monday morning here in

Hong Kong. Only on CNN.

[08:40:07]

RIPLEY: In today's "Iconic Qatar," we bring one of the greatest collections ever of Islamic art. The artifacts and the spectacular museum

that showcases them are now inspiring a new generation of artists.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice over): In the heart of Qatar's capital, Doha, the Museum of Islamic Art has become a unique feature of the city's landscape.

Built on its own manmade island, its cream colored stone limestone captures the light and shade during the day.

JULIA GONNELLA, DIRECTOR, MUSEUM OF ISLAMIC ART: The Museum of Islamic Art is the most important museums of the Islamic art worldwide. It's a museum

which was built by the Chinese-American architect, IM Pei, worldwide famous architect.

Every day, you see something else because it's also very beautiful with the weather. Sometimes it's dusty and misty and then you see it just, like, a

shadow. Sometimes you have strong sunlight. It's a very strong building.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice over): Its interior is no less spectacular. From its vast atrium to the 45-meter tall window, giving panoramic views for

21st Century architecture of Doha.

GONNELLA: Our permanent galleries, we have really beautiful objects. One of the big famous objects, especially with the children is our ottoman

horse. We have very nice jeweled falcon, amazing jewelry from the Mogul period, from India, very popular with the Indian population. Beautiful

brass and metal works from Syria and Egypt, box and manuscripts. We have very early Qurans.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice over): Over the last decade, millions of visitors have marveled at its riches. But its impact has been much more than

showcasing the Islamic world's vast treasurers.

The past ten years of the Museum of Islamic Art were instrumental in fostering knowledge of art, curiosity in art, production of art. It

inspires artists, contemporary artists.

REEM AL-THANI, DIRECTOR OF EXHIBITIONS, QATAR MUSEUMS: There's a lot of investment in arts and culture because we are going into a more knowledge-

based economy at this point and we really need to invest into our youth, our public, people who are here. We are a multicultural city and we really

need to bring that in there. You go anywhere in the world and you find the same thing, so why not here?

(END VIDEO TAPE)

RIPLEY: And that is "News Stream" on a Friday night here in Hong Kong. Connect with me anytime @WillRipleyCNN. Stay with us. "World Sport" with

Amanda Davies is next.

(WORLD SPORTS)

[09:00:00]

END