Today on AirTalk, we get the latest from Hong Kong as police continue to clash with protesters at the Hong Kong airport. We also discuss President Trump's recent announcement on delaying tariffs against China and take a look at what the move means for U.S. markets; interview Telemundo co-founder Frank Cruz; and more.
Police Clash With Protesters As Occupation Of Hong Kong Airport Enters Second Night
Riot police clashed with pro-democracy protesters at Hong Kong's airport late Tuesday night, moving into the terminal where the demonstrators had shut down operations at the busy transport hub for two straight days.
Officers armed with pepper spray and swinging batons confronted the protesters who used luggage carts to barricade entrances to the airport terminal.
Police took several people into a police van waiting at the entrance to the airport's arrivals hall.
Police said they tried to help ambulance officers reach an injured man whom protesters had detained on suspicion of being an undercover agent.
Protesters also detained a second man who they suspected of being an undercover agent. After emptying out his belongings, they found a blue T-shirt that has been worn by pro-Beijing supporters that they said was evidence he was a spy.
After a brief period early in the day when flights were able to take off and land, the airport authority suspended check-in services for departing flights as of 4:30 p.m. Departing flights that had completed the process would continue to operate.
It said it did not expect arriving flights to be affected, although dozens were already canceled. The authority advised people not to come to the airport, one of the world's busiest transport hubs.
More than 200 flights were canceled Monday and the airport was effectively shut down with no flights taking off or landing. Passengers have been forced to stay in the city while airlines struggle to find other ways to get them to their destinations.
The protests have built on an opposition movement that shut down much of the city for seven weeks in 2014 before it eventually fizzled and its leaders were jailed on public disturbance charges.
The central government in Beijing has ominously characterized the current protest movement as something approaching "terrorism" that poses an "existential threat" to citizens.
With files from the Associated Press
Guest:
Zhaoyin Feng, Washington reporter for BBC Chinese; she tweets
U.S. Announces Delays In Some China Tariffs, Stock Market Soars
The United States is delaying tariffs on Chinese-made cell phones, laptop computers and other items and removing other Chinese imports from its target list altogether, triggering a rally in beleaguered U.S. markets.
The U.S. Trade Representative said Tuesday 10% tariffs on about $300 billion in Chinese imports will go forward, but tariffs on some goods will be delayed until Dec. 15. Those items include cell phones, laptop computers, video game consoles, some toys, computer monitors, shoes and clothing, meaning a delay in price increases as the country heads in the holiday shopping season. Major U.S. markets jumped more than a percent on the news. It’s unclear exactly why the delay is being put into effect, but the U.S. Trade Representative said the decision was part of its public comment process.
We get the latest updates and to take a look at what the move means for U.S. markets.
With files from the Associated Press
Guests:
Scott Horsley, NPR's Chief Economics Correspondent
Christopher Thornberg, founding partner of Beacon Economics, his focus includes economic forecasting, employment and labor markets and economic policy
CA GOP Calls For Suspension Of Motor Voter Program After DMV Audit Shows Duplicate Records
The California DMV’s new voter registration program is confusing to voters and full of technical difficulties, leading to hundreds of thousands of discrepancies in voter registrations sent to the Secretary of State, according to an audit released Friday.
None of the discrepancies in roughly 3 million voter records reviewed by auditors resulted in major voter registration errors, such as putting someone in the wrong political party or allowing someone to vote who should not have, officials from the state Department of Finance said.
But the audit only examined a set of registrations between April and September 2018 and did not rule out the possibility of major errors in other registrations. Last year, DMV officials said one error may have prevented nearly 600 people from voting and another may have allowed about 1,500 people, perhaps including non-citizens, to incorrectly register to vote.
After the report’s release, the Secretary of State’s office said six people who were registered to vote despite opting out cast ballots in 2018. Deputy Secretary of State Paula Valle said the state can’t confirm if the people were legally eligible to vote, but that none of them obtained driver’s licenses under a program for immigrants living in the country illegally.
California launched the “motor voter” program in April 2018, and it automatically registers people to vote when they visit the Department of Motor Vehicles unless they opt out.
We get the latest.
With files from the Associated Press.
We reached out to Governor Gavin Newsom and Secretary of State Alex Padilla. They were unable to join us for the interview.
We also reached out to Steven Gordon, Director of the California Department of Motor Vehicles. He was unable to accommodate our request for interview, but sent us this statement:
“I welcome the thorough Ernst & Young Independent System Assessment reports of the Motor Voter project.
Many of the point-in-time findings and recommendations have already been implemented by DMV to improve the way we collect information from our customers and provide Motor Voter information to the Secretary of State. We continue to collaborate with the Secretary of State to efficiently and accurately provide voter registration information.
As we move forward to continue our improvements to how we do business, we must not lose sight of the success of the Motor Voter program. Each day 50,000 voter registrations are processed by DMV. Since the program began, 1.27 million new voter registrations have been processed and more than 3.7 million voter registrations have been updated. There have also been 145,000 new pre-registrations.
Business process improvements and quality assurance enhancements continue, but the system is working.”
We also reached out to Amy Tong, State Chief Information Officer and California Department of Technology Director. She was unable to join us, but sent us this statement:
“The California Department of Technology appreciates the work of the joint technical workgroup established by the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Secretary of State’s office. CDT also agrees with the workgroup’s determinations that the differences identified by EY are not errors, but rather are expected differences resulting from architectural differences between their database systems; and the differences did not have an impact on the accuracy or eligibility of the voter registration data. CDT’s involvement with the Motor Voter program formally ended in November 2018 but the department has remained available to assist DMV and SOS with this critical program when requested.”
Guests:
Bryan Anderson, political reporter for the Sacramento Bee and host of the Bee’s California Nation podcast, where he has been following this story; he tweets
Shannon Grove, California Senate Republican Leader and California state senator representing the 16th district, which encompasses Kern County, parts of Tulare and parts of San Bernardino County
Los Angeles Opera’s Placido Domingo Facing Sexual Misconduct Allegations
For decades, Placido Domingo, one of the most celebrated and powerful men in opera, has tried to pressure women into sexual relationships by dangling jobs and then sometimes punishing the women professionally when they refused his advances, numerous accusers told The Associated Press.
Regarded as one of the greatest opera singers of all time, Domingo also is a prolific conductor and the director of the Los Angeles Opera. The multiple Grammy winner is an immensely respected figure in his rarefied world, described by colleagues as a man of prodigious charm and energy who works tirelessly to promote his art form.
But his accusers and others in the industry say there is a troubling side to Domingo - one they say has long been an open secret in the opera world. Eight singers and a dancer have told the AP that they were sexually harassed by the long-married, Spanish-born superstar in encounters that took place over three decades beginning in the late 1980s, at venues that included opera companies where he held top managerial positions. One accuser said Domingo stuck his hand down her skirt and three others said he forced wet kisses on their lips - in a dressing room, a hotel room and at a lunch meeting. The AP also spoke to almost three dozen other singers, dancers, orchestra musicians, members of backstage staff, voice teachers and an administrator who said they witnessed inappropriate sexually tinged behavior by Domingo and that he pursued younger women with impunity.
Seven of the nine accusers told the AP they feel their careers were adversely impacted after rejecting Domingo's advances, with some saying that roles he promised never materialized and several noting that while they went on to work with other companies, they were never hired to work with him again.Only one of the nine women would allow her name to be used - Patricia Wulf, a mezzo-soprano who sang with Domingo at the Washington Opera. The others requested anonymity, saying they either still work in the business and feared reprisals or worried they might be publicly humiliated and even harassed.
With files from the Associated Press
AirTalk invited both the Los Angeles Opera and Plácido Domingo to participate in our discussion. We received this statement from a Los Angeles Opera spokesperson:
"We believe all employees and artists should be treated respectfully and feel safe and secure within their work environment. LA Opera has robust human resources policies and procedures in place. In accordance with those policies, LA Opera will engage outside counsel to investigate the concerning allegations about Plácido Domingo. Plácido Domingo has been a dynamic creative force in the life of LA Opera and the artistic culture of Los Angeles for more than three decades. Nevertheless, we are committed to doing everything we can to foster a professional and collaborative environment where all our employees and artists feel equally comfortable, valued and respected."
Guest:
Brian Lauritzen, classical music host for Classical KUSC; he tweets
Telemundo Co-founder On Spanish-Language Media And Today’s Media Landscape
History professor, journalist and broadcast media executive Frank Cruz has reported on a number of issues often discussed today, including immigration and issues around diversity, equity and power.
These are topics Cruz investigated early on in his career, but they remain consistent topics of conversation and debate. Cruz’s memoir, “Straight Out of Barrio Hollywood: The Adventures of Telemundo Co-founder Frank H. Cruz, Chicano History Professor, TV Anchorman, Network Executive, and Public Broadcasting Leader,” looks to add context to important decades-old topics and events, while touching on his upbringing in Barrio Hollywood in Tucson, Arizona. The book moves from the halls of congress to important moments that happened during the 1960s, 70s and 80s,
Guest:
Frank H. Cruz, author of the new memoir “Straight Out of Barrio Hollywood: The Adventures of Telemundo Co-founder Frank H. Cruz, Chicano History Professor, TV Anchorman, Network Executive, and Public Broadcasting Leader” (Outskirts Press, 2019)
Thank You, Thank You Very Much: New Book Explores Why Elvis Has Las Vegas To Thank For His Comeback
It was 1968, and Elvis Presley had hit a rough patch.
At 33 years old, he was an international celebrity and had just welcomed his first child with his wife of less than a year, Priscilla. But his career seemed to have plateaued. His singles weren’t charting as well as they had in the past, and his films weren’t received with the critical acclaim that one might expect of a movie with his name on the marquee. “The King,” it seemed, was on the verge of relinquishing his throne.
But then, a breakthrough. Elvis’ agent finagled a deal with NBC for a television special, simply called “Elvis.” It was a gamble. Elvis hadn’t performed live in seven years. But the special turned out to be a huge hit, racking up 42 percent of NBC’s total viewing audience that season. Soon enough, the offers started coming in for Elvis to start performing live again. He took a gig at the newly-constructed International Hotel in Las Vegas, which had the city’s largest showroom at the time, and showed everyone why he was still “The King.” The performance turned from a one month engagement to a five year residency with Elvis playing gigs at the hotel in February and August.
To this day, Elvis’ time in Las Vegas remains a topic of contention. Some say that Las Vegas was the beginning of the end for Presley, the time when his drug use and disenchantment with his career began to spiral out of control. But others, like author and journalist Richard Zoglin, say that Elvis’ run in Vegas was the spark that ignited his comeback to music and set the tone for every major artist’s Vegas residency that would follow.
Today on AirTalk, Larry speaks with author Zoglin about how Las Vegas revitalized Elvis’ career and how he created the prototype for what we know today as the Las Vegas residency.
Guest:
Richard Zoglin, author of “Elvis in Vegas: How the King Reinvented the Las Vegas Show” (Simon & Schuster, August 2019); he is a contributing editor for TIME Magazine and tweets