Transcripts For ALJAZAM News 20141115

And no laughing matter. These regimes are arresting more and more people john stewart makes his directing debut. Our special report, john stewart, the war on journalism. We begin with the Worlds Largest and most influential economic summit, the g20. A group of 20 meetings are set to begin in ausa with an ambitious agenda of creating jobs and world financial growth. President obama arrived in ausa earlier today and spoke about the university of queensland where he said Human Rights Violations in china create a challenge for the economy. I made it clear where the United States stands. We believe that nations and people have the right to live in security and peace. That an Effective Security order. Order. Focuses on russian politics at the university of california berkley. Thank you for joining us. Vladimir putin didnt seem. Yeah. This is a sign that putin might be losing touch a little bit with how to act like a great power. Frankly, his behavior has been a bit erratic lately. But his bigger theme, motive, i think, is to try to show that russia is pipelines and oil and gas activity. That makes very little sense. Reporter the real Battle Ground the the senate. He weighed in during a press conference. Ive been cleared in the past. My position has not changed. That this is a process that is supposed to once a Nebraska Court rules on the possible route. And the president disputes pipeline supporters claim about its benefits. I have to constantly push back against this idea that somehow the Keystone Pipeline is either this massive jobs bill for the United States or is somehow lowering gas prices. I understand what this project is. It is providing the ability of canada to pump their oil send it through our land down to the gulf where it will be sold everywhere else. Reporter if it fails, republicans will likely bring it back up in january when they control both bodies of congress and try again. Next step, the senate and the game of counting votes to see if keystone has the chance of passing. Keystone supporters say it will create jobs. Critics say it wouldnt be many jobs and that the project could hurt the environment. Experts say that pipeline is the safest way to transport Petroleum Products from one place to other but the problem is you cant be everywhere at once on the pipeline. In the this case, its a pipeline newly constructed down from canada into the United States and will join an existing piece of pipeline as it makes its way to the gulf of mexico. A leak can spring anywhere along those lines. There are very hightech systems for remotely monitoring those leaks. Only in 19 of cases was the pipeline Monitoring Technology the first thing to discover the leak. Instead it was usually somebody who just happened to be in the area. In fact, in one case in september of 2013, a farmer in south dakota used his nose to discover that crude oil was leak intoing his field and the when the company came out and dug, they discovered that 20,000 barrels of oil had seeped into the ground. Thats 840,000 gallons of oil. So the fact that, that leak was not detected by the Pipeline System makes environmentalists very nervous about laying this new massive pipeline across the width of the United States. So in small mammals, it gets passed up the food chain into larger predators and then passed into plants and fungi. Its a very toxic material. One drop of oil can contaminate a million drops of water. Thats not just a euphemism. Its very, very toxic stuff, and thats why everyone is so concerned about this pipeline. Thank you. On sunday, well have an indepth with the Keystone Xl Oil pipeline as the u. S. Senate prepares to vote on the plan. There was more violent unrest today in the west bank. The confrontations came one day after israel lifted age restrictions at the mosque in jerusalem. The move was meant to calm tensions. And the mood at the mosque at least was much calmer as tens of thousands of muslims gathered to pray. Heres that story. Reporter between the walls of the old city, this taxi driver would like the last five months to be in his rearview mirror. It was very bad. Much tension between the arabs and the jews. Reporter he knows why. That golden dome in the distance. According to the muslim faith, it sits on the very spot where mohammed stepped before ascending to heaven. Recently muslims were not allowed to pray there and had to pray in the streets. Very, very important for the muslims. Now israel doesnt reporter today was different. After a u. S. Broker deal, israels government allowed everyone in. He walked past Israeli Police who had been stopping him for the last six weeks and friday became a family day. Inside, 40,000 muslims filled the plaza. The mood was calm. Despite muslims of all ages being allowed into the mosque for friday prayers. Today the tension in this city still exists especially in a neighborhood just down the hill from here. With new neighbors we have. So its a lot of problems, everything. Reporter for more than 1,000 years, its been arab. In 1967, israel captured and occupied it. Its still 99 palestinian but for the last few weeks, settlers have been moving in and settling. They bring them to help the jewish that they live here. Reporter over five months in East Jerusalem combined with the war in gaza, it led to months of clashes and this month simmering tensions suddenly boiled. Palestinians use cars and stabbings to kill more israelis in the past month than in the previous two years and Israeli Forces have killed a palestinian in the occupied west bank every five days. Even today israeli troops fired tear gas towards Palestinian Protesters trying to get to jerusalem. For jews, the mosque and the dome of the rock compound is known as the temple mount. What palestinians object to is not only the restrictions put on them to access the mosque but also the increase in access given the right wing israeli jews. Like israeli law makers, two weeks ago, Police Closed the compound so he could walk around. In israel, despite the controversy, the idea of jews entering the temple mount is becoming more main stream. Now were planning to come up to have a right to be there. Were not destroying anything and we are for all we are peaceful. Reporter and so the tension over this site will remain. But today it stayed below the surface. No problems. So this will be better. This will be better. Reporter today the mood was calm, even fun. But here, the guns. The guns. The guns are never far away. Tonight there were reports of those guns being used. One report of a young girl being shot by Israeli Forces. Another report, an Israeli Police officer has been injured by Palestinian Protesters. But compared to the last 24 hours, the last few weeks, the decision made definitely diffused some of the tension but this is a long running conflict and obviously this tension remains just below the surface. Still ahead, drawing tourists from china. Its a big part of californias economy. How business is trying to keep it that way. And bet on it. For the first time, the nba speaks out in favor of sports gambling. And remember to join us monday night for an indepth look at issues surrounding the Keystone Xl Oil pipeline. It airs monday at 8 30 and 11 30 eastern. The Ronald Reagan president ial library released audio between reagan and margaret thatcher. He apologized to her for not notifying her about the American Invasion of grenada. Hello . Id throw my head in the door before i came in. Listen, im we regret very much the embarrassment this caused you and i would just like to tell you what the story is from our end out here. When your word came of your concerns, by the time i got it, the the zero hour had passed and our forces were on their way. And of course the time difference made that it was later in the day when you learned of it learned of it and for us it was 5 30 in the morning. But i want you to know that it was no lack of confidence at your end. Its at our end. Its a good thing we did it because im very much aware. Well we just hope that it will be successful. Well, were sure it is. Its going beautifully. I just hope that manage to put together well, were i tell you, those people on those other islands, theyre pretty remarkable. Theres a lot of oh, yes. Yeah. And very quickly. We think that the military part of it is going to end very shortly. That is. Well, as i say, im sorry for any embarrassment we caused you. But please understand it was our fear of our own weakness over here with regard to secrecy. It was very kind of you to call. How is nancy . Shes fine. Give her my love. I shall. All right. Thank you. I must return to the meeting. Go get them. Eat them alive. Tomorrow, well amphetamine fresh per suspective on the reagan and thatcher relationship. Well also look for president obamas push for net neutrality. Join us tomorrow for our show power politics. Wer politics. On a train trip to china this week, president obama announced plans to make visas for Chinese Tourists valid for ten years. When they come to the United States, most visitors head to los angeles. More than a half Million People a year. With vacation money to spend. Jennifer london reports on whats drawing them there. Reporter the world famous hollywood sign, venice beach, must see places for most tourists visiting los angeles. But Chinese Tourists arent like most. The Single Largest Group of overseas travellers visiting Southern California shores have little interest in going there. Instead theyre coming here. Cow coupons and maps. Reporter to the outlet malls. I spend most of my time shopping with my life. Reporter outlet malls are so popular with Chinese Tourists there are welcome bags and a red carpet awaiting their arrival. Theres a vip room and a currency exchange. Much of los angeles is also china ready. The Hilton Los Angeles serves a chinese style breakfast. And Universal Studios offers their back lot tour in mandarin. A report from the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation finds tourism from china nearly quadrupled in 2013. The surge in chinese travellers is fuelled in part by chinas emerging middle class. 500 million strong and growing. And the chinese want to travel and spend money shopping. Why not come here . Going out to see the world. Buy things. Reporter the irony is that much of what theyre buying here in los angeles is made in, you guessed it, china. But it is significantly cheaper to purchase it here by as much as 50 . Theyre looking for authentic purchases and designer labels that represents that western experience because thats what theyre connecting to more than anything is this culture that we have in california. Reporter tourists in Southern California buying into and bringing home a piece of the lifestyle with luxury goods made in their own backyard. A surprising announcement from nba commissioner adam silver about legalized sports gambling. He supports it if its closely regulated. An estimated 400 billion is wagered illegally on sports every year. Michael, why the change of heart . I believe what hes addressing is the fact that people are going to gamble anyway, and if you legalize it, and then you bring in regulation to it, it would be so much better not only for those who choose to gamble but for the leagues themselves if theres government intervention. One of the most money wagered sports the nfl football. What does Roger Goodell think about it for his league . Neither league has said anything about it. The nfl became popular because of sports betting. Not just legalized gambling in las vegas but also fantasy sports. Everyone does it for the money, not the entertainment. So the league has been built on gambling, but from a public standpoint, hes not come out in favor of gambling, but he also has not tried to get in the way of anyone as it relates to that movement. And is there much push back . No. I think times have changed. If you go to england, you can actually place a bet from your home on your phone. So thats the thing. Now, the question is will it actually get to the point where the government will step in and give the states the right do that. Right now, only four states have legalized sports gambling. And only one of them, nevada, can do it on single game wagering status. New jersey wants it. But if you ask the average fan, theyre all for it. Tonight we mark the lengthy hibernation and likely death of the space orbiter sitting on a comet has now run out of power. The mission cost about 1 had the. 4 billion euros. Before powering off, it drilled and collected soil deposits that may prove prove that life on earth began when comets bombarded our planet. Still ahead, our special report. As the definition of journalistic spans, these regimes are arresting more and more people. John stewart on his dramatic film, rose water. It was supposed to be funny. A comedy on the daily show with an iranian journalist. But iran didnt think it was a joke. They arrested him for 140 days. Telling that shocking story took john stewart from behind the desk to the directors chair. Tonight both then sit down with us and talk about the new film and the injustice they say is spreading. We have to get these Political Prisoners released. Theres just no purpose in it. Tonight our special report, john stewart, the war on journalism. Journalists are harassed, detained, and even killed for doing their job around the world. The second worst year on record was last year. Tonight a closer look at the crackdown on the freedom of the press and a new movie that tells the story of one reporter imprisoned in iran written and directed by comedian jon stewart. I believe my plan then was called colt 45. Hes a pro at punch lines, but now the comedian is taking a new role as a filmmaker. And his first feature is definitely not for laughs im covering the elections for news week magazine. Reporter its called rose water debuting friday the movie is inspired by the harrowing story of the canada iranian journalist who travelled to iran in 2009 to cover the countrys elections. He was in at the ran documenting the riots over the outcome of the voting. While there, he was interviewed by the daily show in a comedy sketch about the elections. This is a clip that was shown. We headed to a coffee shop for a clandestine meeting with an iranian journalist. Why was his country so terrifying . Misunderstanding. Shortly after that interview, he was arrested by Iranian Police. The charge . Spying against the country. He was jailed and beaten and brutalize by an interrogator he called rosewater because of the scent of his cologne. Much to his surprise, he cites his appearance on the daily show as evidence. Americans and iranians have more in common than differences. Who do i have in common with you . A comedy show. Its stupid. Reporter he says he was forced to make a false confession on tv. He was released after four months in prison. He wrote a best selling book about his experience called then they came for me. From that book, the movie, one jon stewart directed and one that offers an unflinching look into irans war against the press. I met with them and asked why they wanted to make this film. As the definition of journalistic spans, these regimes are arresting more and more people whether it be iran, turkey, saudi arabia, the United States has its way of pressuring journalis journalists. This is happening. I wanted to make sure not to limit it to one part of the world or one regime. You go to prison. You write a book. You get a movie. Whats this been like for you . Its been a little bit strange. To put it mildly. [laughter]. Because usually when they make films about people, its usually about nelson mandela. Theyre usually dead to start with. The good thing is that im not dead. But im not mandela. Your father and sister were imprisoned in iran. Didnt you worry about the fact that you might get into trouble . Yes, you are worried. You are thinking about it sometimes. But it cannot stop you from doing your job. And i was i mean, i was very cautious if you ask anyone who worked with me, they know that i was very cautious. I always respected people. I always respected the laws. But i could not do anything when they wanted to implicate me. Part of what appealed to me was his ability he spoke earlier about hes trained to distance himself from it so his observations in the memoir that he wrote are so keen and so layered and we spoke earlier about his family. The idea of generations lost to these oppressive regimes. His father was taken by the shah, our al lie, and his sister was taken by khomeni who was still practicing traditions passed down through generations. There are so many different and universal aspects to this story. I just want to go back to your appearance on the daily show. I didnt see you there. I asked him a question on every westerns mind. Why was his country so terrifying . Misunderstanding. They dont understand each other. They dont know the values of the other side or how to talk to the other side. And actually ive written about that for a Music Magazine several times. Did you ever dream that, that might be used against you . No, never. I mean, i had worked with many different broadcasters and been on many different shows and channels. And as i said, they had a scenario for me. They wanted to implicate me because i worked with the foreign press. And when they came to iran and i mess them, unknown to all of us, i was being monitored. And then when they imprisoned me and charged me with spying for cia, mossad, and news week, in the absence of any evidence, because i was not a spy, they brought forward ridiculous evidence like being on the daily show. So you hear about this. Sure. What goes through your head . We didnt hear about the part, you know, that they had shown him obviously in interrogations. We did know that hed been arrested along with other people that had participated. Did you worry you might have had an impact on it . Well, not so much we didnt worry we had an impact on getting him arrested only because, you know, within the context of what was happening in iran at that time, there was a tremendous amount of violence and crackdown. So we assumed that the people that would generally talk to us more than likely were part of a Reformist Movement and more than likely, that movement is going to receive the brunt of the governments ire. But when you do a segment and the daily show goes into the editorial process and youre in a meeting, do you ask the question if this segment will get someone killed or put in prison . Oh, no. Do you ever think about that . No. Get somebody killed or put in prison . Generally, no. We do there are discussions sometimes of thats not fair or dont, you know, that person, i think, you dont want to do that. That person is thats an innocent mistake. Dont do that. But obviously anything you put on television has real life repercussions. But the thing you also have to look at is how do you live your life. He made a great point earlier when you said are you nervous about going to prison. I guess, but i have to do my job. How do you live your life to the level of those that would weaponize something so stupid. The impression i get, you seem joyful, positive, energized now that youre out. There doesnt seem to be a lot of vindictiveness in you. No. Theres no point in vindictiveness and anger. Of course, when that was happening to me, i was angry but when you put a distance between yourself and the experience, you have to sublimate your bad experiences with something positive. And you did that with the book . The book, the campaign, talking to you, many of my friends and colleagues going through the same thing. He did it even with his interrogators. One of the things thats really appealing in the book is these are not necessarily maybe sympathetic but theyre humans. They have vulnerabilities. Theyre not he never portrays them as monsters. But they were. They were not monsters. No. They were doing awful acts. They were torturing people. Torturing you. Torturing me. Insulting me. Humiliating me. Putting me in front of camera for forced confessions. Those are bad things. But those are bad acts that are done by a human being. Is rose water still alive . Im sure he is and im sure hes going to watch this interview. Hes going to watch the film. He must have read the book. Yeah. Were going to have more from my interview with jon stewart in just a few minutes. Welcome. Thank you for being with us. First of all, whats the climate for journalists in iran right now . . Well, its one where theres a lot of threat and theres a lot of intimidation. I think that a lot of the media was very hopeful after the president s election last year that, that would usher in a new era of reform, increased press freedom. What happened . Were not seeing that. Just from july to august alone of this year, we had several reformist journalists, journalists that work for reformist papers in iran who like to talk about cultural, social, issues, many of them were arrested and detained. Clearly this has a chilling affect on journalists but where is the line and how do you know where it is . In iran, theres something we call red lines. And thats journalists engaging in what could be selfcensorship knowing that if they speak about something in a political way, it could result in very serious repercussions for them. Anything that has to do with politics, discussion of religion. Anything that could be perceived as insulting to intoxilyzer lam are all things that can land a journal itself in very hot water. Sometimes the government invites foreign journalists in to talk about important people but these days how does the government view foreign journalists . Its a complicated thing. Theres a lot of restrictions on foreign media including dual nationals. Many websites in iran are filtered and actually iran, the iranian government has plans for a National Internet. If they launch the National Internet which theyve been laying down the foundation to do so, they would have ultimate control over peoples personal information, over what sites they wish to access. So theyd have their own internet. Thats the plan. How difficult is it for them to do that . A lot of countries have implemented it. China. South korea even. But the key thing is not so much the implementation of that but the fact that what they would be using that information for if they have absolute control and it is to surveil their citizens and thats on the great concern. Absolute control. Still ahead, jon stewart talking about silencing journalists. Bahari talk about silencing journalists. Their films message about freedom of the press. And a personal story of one of our own jailed in iran for 100 days. All of that is coming up. An al jazeera special report, jon stewart, the war on journalism. Iranian police accused her of being a spy. Heres her story in her own words. In 2009, i was arrested and held in prison for 100 days. Im half iranian and at the time i didnt know know much about my iranian identity. So i wanted to move to iran and learn about that part of my history and to report from the country because i knew it was going to be an important country for years to come. But supporters of the government say theyre not trying to reverse his achievements. I was trying to write a book about iran beyond the headlines so i was interviewing a lot of people you dont usually hear from in the news and i was working on that for about two years when one morning i was arrested. I was sleeping and four men forced their way into my apartment. They were with Irans Intelligence Ministry and they took me away to another building after going through all my belongings. They questioned me for several hours and then told me i was not cooperating so they took me to prison which is known as the most notorious prison in iran. They said at first that i was threatening National Security or endangering National Security. They accused me of being a spy. I did confess to being a spy under a great deal of pressure even though it was a false confession because they promised they would free me and i was too afraid of what would happen if i stayed especially because no one knew where i was. I was put in solitary con feignment for the first two confinement for the first two weeks and that was the most difficult part for me because we as human beings need to interact with human beings and when you have nothing to do except think you can start go insane. I had begun to realize that people outside prison in other countries in the United States as well were calling for my freedom and that greatly empowered me because i realized i wasnt alone anymore. Shes an american citizen. And i have complete confidence that she was not engaging in any sort of spying. I think that all this pressure added up and helped push the iranian authorities to release me after 100 days. I felt happy that i was free. I felt very happy that my parents wouldnt have to suffer anymore because of my imprisonenment. But at the same time, i felt very sad for the women i was leaving behind because they served freedom as much as i did. And two of them are still in prison. Theyve been sentenced to 20 years each because of their religious beliefs. A month later Iranian Police visited maziar bajari. Jon stewarts new film rose water is the story of his arrest and time in prison. I was struck at the end of the film that you really wanted to make a statement about journalism around the world. Can you talk about what that is . I think it was more if i was to say its a statement of the unsustainability of that, the apparatuses that these regimes build, all regimes build. In the United States were moving towards a strange deep state of Security Apparatus that exists in the nsa and other security operations. Its to keep information that they dont want to the state than any piece of information that could arise. Its about the sustainability of it. And that think of how hard how much money and time and effort and Human Capital is exposed in trying to keep someone like maziar from just filming something. He didnt do anything. He filmed something. Give us your reaction to journalists around the world. Especially our friends in al jazeera. We have a friend who does a show very similar to mine in egypt who was arrested, harassed, driven off the air. Can no longer do his show there. This is the government coming in and say were going to listen to the will of the people but it wont allow them to speak up. Theyve arrested three of your colleagues. The trial footage is pieces of horses and found footage with no bearing on anything. Theres no accountability for whats going to happen to them. This is an al lie of the United States. We give them 1. 5 billion a year in aid and there has to be a method that we can get these Political Prisoners being held in these countries, get them some visibility and hopefully enough pressure on these regimes to get them released. Theres just no purpose in it. Theres no purpose in it. These people have done nothing. What did you think of the film . I was involved in writing the scripts, i was on the set, i saw the rough cut. I think going back to your question, the film is about go carcino democracizing information. There are regimes that can arrest people, shut down but when it comes to digital technology, social media, the internet, they dont know what to do. So what they do is they resort to the same old methods like in egypt that they said they could not use the dvd player and as a result they look ridiculous. And thats where the humor humor comes from. Its a great film. Congratulations. Rose water opens in theaters today. Well be right back. There are conflicting reports a Washington Post reporter. An american iranian report reporter, was arrested in july, and he has not made an appearance in court. The iranians have accused him the security of the state. Several days ago, a Senior Iranian official said he could be released in less than a month. But a different official now says he wont be released until an investigation is complete. His brother joins us now from san francisco. Welcome. Its good to have you on the program. Thanks, john, for having me. So do you understand why your brother is being held . You know, theyve really never told us why. Theres been no special allegations against him and so its kind of a mystery as to what they think hes done. As far as you know, he has not been charged. Thats correct. My understanding is that in iran if he had been charged, then he would have access to a lawyer and other activities would be going on. But to this date he has not had access to a lawyer. Hes not gone into the court. So theres no charges pending right now as far as i know. Where are you getting your information and have you been in contact with him . I have not spoke on the my brother since last week in july before he was taken or detained. Weve got several different sources that we use that we believe are credible getting us information thats good information. So tell us about the conditions in which hes being held. So what weve been told is that jasons been in solitary confinement since july 22nd of this year. You know, hes been interrogated between six and eight hours a day or more, five days a week typically. And that we dont really know what theyre interesting about. But we do know that the conditions arent ideal and its caused him to have a number of Health Issues that he didnt have before and that we are really starting to get concerned about. Do you suspect theres some who have suggested that hes a pawn in a power struggle between the United States and iran regarding their nuclear program. Do you suspect that might be the case . You know, i dont really know. What i will say is that jason has nothing to do with the u. S. Government. He doesnt have ties with the iranian government. And its really very cruel if thats the case. Hes just a guy doing his job, a journalist like yourself, and was trying to get, you know, a really positive message about iran out to the world and if thats the case, its just its very difficult to believe that, that would be a good way of going about their diplomacy. How is this for your family . Its been very difficult. My mom is living overseas. Weve talked a lot. She has a great support structure but its become a new job. So its constant, 24 hours a day things going on with the time zones and what not. Getting to work with really good people that want to help us out, help jason out and get him here, but it takes a toll. Can you tell us about your brother a little bit . Sure. Hes just a wonderful guy. Hes the kind of guy that makes friends wherever he goes. Hes been fortunate to be able to travel around the world and make friend there is. And wherever he goes, he was telling people that he lived in iran and they would ask why and he would say its a great place. Come and see it. And he loved helping people understand the iranian culture and what it was like to live over there and that it really was a very modern and complicated place. What about the risks . Did he talk about the risks of his job and specifically about being in iran . Well, you know, i think he talked about what, you know, how to mitigate the risk. He talked a lot about what the rules were, wanted to make sure that he followed the rules. Theres a set of rules that journal itselves in iran credentialed journalists need to follow and he was meticulous about doing that. He wanted to make sure that he stuck to where he was supposed to be and not cause any trouble that would start to trigger problems for him. Well, ali, we sin sincerely hopes he gets home soon. Good luck. Thank you al jazeera continues to demand the release of the three journalists held in prison in egypt. They Vice President spent 321 days in jail. They were convicted of helping the outlawed muslim brotherhood. Al jazeera denies those charges. Theyre scheduled to appear in court on january 1st to appeal their conviction. Thats our report. Thanks for watching. Im john seigenthaler. If we dont have a verdict by one oclock its gonna be another day. Well its either gonna be before noon, or they get to come back at one thirty. The waiting is what will knock you for a loop. If she goes to jail again i think shell come out in a body bag. Are they out . We are sitting right there in my office on pins and needles. The fact that they