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NEWS STREAM
Typhoon Hagupit Batters The Philippines; Indonesian Domestic Worker Accuses Hong Kong Boss Of
Torture; Northern California Protests Turn Violent; Interview With Ex-Google Plus Developer Chris
Messina
Aired December 8, 2014 - 8:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE
UPDATED.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. And welcome to News Stream where
news and technology meet.
Now surveying the damage from Hagupit as the Philippines endures another powerful storm.
An Indonesian maid testifies about what she says was horrific abuse by her former employer in Hong
Kong.
And paying tribute to a tech pioneer: the man who invented videogame consoles dies at 92.
In the Philippines, at least 21 people are dead from what is now Tropical Storm Hagupit. It first
made landfall as a typhoon on Saturday,
slamming into the eastern island of Samar. It passed just north of last year's hard-hit city of
Tacloban, which this time apparently only received
minor damage.
Now the now downgraded storm system is weakening as it heads northwest to the capital Manila,
but it's that slow moving pace that is cause for
concern. Lingering heavy rainfall is already causing flooding and there are now worries about
potential landslides.
It was just over a year ago that Supertyphoon Haiyan, known in the Philippines as Yolanda, wrecked
havoc. And painful memories are still
fresh for many in Tacloban, a city now synonymous with last year's disaster.
But as our Andrew Stevens now reports, this time around many sought refuge early to ride out the
typhoon.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

2. ANDREW STEVENS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Giving heartfelt thanks, the Tacloban
Redemptionist Church to surviving a second major storm
to hit the city in a little more than a year.
Sunday mass, a serene break from this church's new role as an evacuation center. 1500 people,
almost the entire parish cramming together
with their belongings and pet to ride out "Hagupit."
(on camera): How scared were you that there could be another "Yolanda"?
UNIDENTIFED FEMALE: Really scared because I really -- I imagined what happened last year but I
have to trust god.
STEVENS (voice-over): Some left at first light but many are staying longer until the typhoon is clear
the region or until their damaged homes
are repaired. For virtually, all in the city it stirred raw and painful memories of a little more than a
year ago.
18-year-old Art Martinez (ph) lost both parents when they stayed too late to escape Typhoon
Haiyan's devastating storm surge. As he shows me the
remains of his family home he says he evacuated early this time but said he was still terrified.
ART MARTINEZ, HAIYAN SURVIVOR: I'm the only one who was still awake and still praying god
please help us, please help us. I know that you will
help us.
STEVENS: Do you think he did?
MARTINEZ: Yes.
STEVENS: Reminders of what happened here a little more than a year ago are hard to miss. They
are also potent symbols of the bitter lessons
learned. The most important of those, to get out of harm's way and to get out early.
(voice-over): Nearly 50,000 people fled to evacuation centers, churches and schools even private
families took strangers in. Most
voluntarily, some forced. Authorities here are not going to have a repeat of last year.
But in the end, "Hagupit" did little more than crush Tacloban. Damage limited to localized flooding,
downed trees and roofs ripped through
shanties. Parish priest Father Eliot (INAUDIBLE) of the Redemptorist (ph) church says people have
resigned themselves to the fact that storms will

3. always be a part of their lives.
UNIDENTIFED MALE: They encountered so many questions like that. Is it the will of god or the
wrath of god? But now, no, we feel that it is just
part of nature.
STEVENS: A part of nature they pray won't revisit the city any time soon.
Andrew Stevens, CNN, Tacloban, the Philippines.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: Now lets get straight to the Philippines now where Andrew Stevens is monitoring the
storm from Tacloban. He joins us now live. And
Andrew, the people there are deeply grateful and thankful that they have avoided another major
disaster, but the rain there has been intense. So,
how much concern is there about the threat from landslides?
OK, my apologies there. It seems like we have a technical issue there with our reporter on the
ground, Andrew Stevens. My apologies.
Now let's get the latest on Hagupit's path and what we can expect to see in the coming hours. We
have our meteorologist Ivan Cabrera standing
by. In fact, he joins us from the CNN weather center. He's got all the details. He joins us now -- Ivan.
IVAN CABRERA, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yeah, and to answer your question, though, regarding the
landslides here, I think we still have somewhat of a
threat here, but that is diminishing by the minute as the storm has really weakened here.
Now there are some heavy downpours that are on top of Luzon right now, specifically across metro
Manila. This is about the worst it's been for
them as far as this now tropical storm. Heavy rain moving through. We could pick up as much as 60
millimeters, maybe a little bit more if it
lingers here, but it is moving northwest -- west, northwest at 17, so it'll eventually head off to the
west and leave us alone here.
95 kilometer per hour winds at the center, not seeing gusts anywhere near that. But we could pick
up some strong gusts along with some very
heavy downpours as well.
Let me show you some of these pictures. This is Dolores there, where of course it made landfall as a
very strong typhoon. Not a super typhoon.

4. But remember some of these structures don't need a super typhoon to go down. And they have gone
down.
Rhonda (ph) do we have the aerials? I want to show some of those pictures because it's just
devastating stuff here across -- look at this.
This is dramatic video coming out of Dolores there across Samar island here. Some of these homes
have just been completely destroyed. Some
people in homes that are probably structurally compromised, that could come down and shouldn't be
in them, but they are because it's their home and
that's where they want to be.
But as you can see here, widespread damage here.
Now this is of course -- you can't compare it with Haiyan, that was just an incredible event that will --
may not be repeated in decades here,
but this is a pretty bad storm if you were in the path of it here across Dolores. And it is going to take
some time for those people to get their
lives back together and get their homes in the shape they were before this thing hit.
But certainly not the storm surge that can kill thousands of people as it comes up. That did not
happen with the storm as it weakened as it
headed in across Samar.
Here's the forecast now as this tropical cyclone now begins to move off to the west and by the time
we get into 72 hours could bring some
rainfall to Vietnam. I don't think it'll be a big deal for them.
Additional rainfall for Manila, there you see our latest computer model run anywhere from 60,
perhaps as much as 80 millimeters, that could
produce some localized urban flooding, but I don't think it's going to be as big of a deal for you in
Manila as the heaviest of the rain begins to
push off towards the west. We'll watch it closely.
The rains that did produce some flooding and significant, severe flooding. Look at this, 200 to as
much as almost half a meter of rainfall
in some areas. Of course that was across the eastern part of the Philippines where the Typhoon
made landfall.
I want to take you to the track history, if you will allow me, because this storm -- watch what
happens here, a lot of people have been asking why

5. no storm surge. This was a Super typhoon at this hour, Thursday 5:00 GMT. If it had made landfall
with this intensity we would be talking about a
different story here, but it didn't. It weakened, briefly became a super typhoon again. Watch this,
that's the key, as it made landfall there,
Kristie, it weakened significantly and thankfully. But as you see there not enough to prevent damage
to some of those homes.
LU STOUT: Yeah, thanks for sharing that with us and our audience, that is what prevented that
deadly storm surge from returning from roaring
ashore again. But still, a lot of heavy rain, risk for flooding there, thank you very much indeed for
your update. Ivan Cabrera, thank you.
Now a court ruling in South Africa is welcomed by one family, but is absolutely devastating for
another. A judge has thrown out the high-
profile murder case against Shrien Dewani, the British millionaire accused of hiring a hit man to kill
his new bride Anni in 2010.
Now the judge said that the case was riddled with contradiction and fell below the threshold for
conviction.
Now after the ruling was announced, Anni's family quickly left the courtroom in shock.
You're watching News Stream and coming up this hour, a riveting account of torture and abuse in
Hong Kong, an Indonesian maid testifies
against her former employer. We'll tell you what she said and what her case means to thousands of
foreign domestic workers.
And demonstrators flood the streets across the U.S. over an African- American who died after a
white policeman placed a chokehold on him. We'll have a live report on these racially charged
protests.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: All right, welcome back to News Stream. Let's give you the latest on Hagupit, the latest
major storm system to strike the Philippines.
Let's go straight to the Philippines where Andrew Stevens is monitoring the storm from Tacloban.
And Andrew, what is the latest on the conditions
there and the aftermath of the storm?
STEVENS: Well, Kristie, it's an absolutely beautiful evening, it's a clear, clear sky. The stars are out.
There's a full moon. There's a bit
of blue sky. There is absolutely no trace that there was a major storm that came through this part of
the world a few days ago except from the

6. constant hammering of people putting new roofs on houses and people generally still sweeping up
some of the debris.
So, Tacloban was very much back to business today.
But what we did today, Kristie, was we got a little bit further now. We go to the town of Dolores. We
took a chopper up to Dolores. And
Dolores took a direct hit from Typhoon -- from the typhoon. And that was when Hagupit was at its
most intense, winds of around 230 kilometers an
hour and the real fear was that there would be a storm surge associated with the storm hitting that
town.
We got there. We couldn't stay there for too long, but certainly speaking to the people there, there
was no evidence of a big storm surge.
There was a lot of houses unroofed. People I spoke to there who were at an evacuation center, they
were using the school in the middle of town as
their -- as a safe haven. People there say that their homes had been destroyed.
And looking at it from the air -- and that was the best way we could to get around the town, we didn't
see a lot of completely devastating
buildings. As I say, a lot of roofs off. There was one hotel right on the seafront, which -- the facade
had come down onto the sand.
But generally, it was wind damage there, trees down, but talking to the people there no casualties.
Now this was right at the sharp end, if you like, of Hagupit. So, there, they weren't reporting
casualties. There was damage, but it really
does sort of underline the fact that it could have been so much worse not just here in Tacloban, but
pretty much across the Philippines. This was a
super typhoon not that long ago. And now it's swept through. There have been some deaths, less
than 10, and really as we talked with James
Reynolds, our storm chaser, he was saying the Philippines really dodged a bullet this time.
LU STOUT: Dodged a bullet indeed. Andrew Stevens reporting live for us reporting on the aftermath
of the storm, the conditions there and the
damage, especially in communities like Dolores. But reporting from Tacloban, a city spared this time
around. Andrew, thank you very much
indeed for your reporting.
Now, the ride-sharing service Uber is now banned from operating in New Delhi after a woman
reported being raped by one of its drivers. Now the

7. victim says she ordered an Uber car to take her home, but the driver took her to a remote area and
attacked her. Investigators say it took time to
find the suspect because his address and background had not been verified by police.
Now Uber's chief executive says the company will work with the government to establish clear
background checks, but police say background
checks are already part of established practice.
Now in Hong Kong, a court case is placing a spotlight on a minority group in the city: foreign
domestic helpers. An Indonesian maid has
accused her former employer of torture. As Anna Coren reports, while reported cases of abuse are
rare some workers may have remained silent out
of fear.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA COREN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's a case that sparked outrage and
condemnation around the world. And it all began when this
image went viral. 23-year-old Erwiana says it was her Hong Kong employer who caused these
horrific injuries. The Indonesian domestic helper
interviewed by CNN back in January while recovering in hospital after being flown home says she
was subjected to six months of physical abuse.
"I got hit if I made even a small mistake," she explains. "If I misundertood orders, I got punched in
the face."
Her former employer, 44-year-old Law Wang-tung has been charged with 21 counts, including
grievous bodily harm with intent. If convicted, she
could face seven years in prison.
Some of the charges relate to two other former domestic helpers Law hired who also came forward.
Law, a mother of two and former beautician,
has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Erwiana's case has highlighted the rights of domestic workers in Hong Kong. TIME magazine named
her one of this year's 100 most influential
people in the world alongside Pope Francis, Russian President Vladimir Putin and American pop star
Beyonce.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Erwiana is us, us is Erwiana. We don't want any migrant worker like
Erwiana or become Erwiana.

8. COREN: Almost 300,000 maids, mostly from Indonesia and the Philippines, work in the Asian
financial hub. The remittances they send
home are part of the multi-billion dollar industry driving the export of overseas workers from these
countries.
And while cases of severe abuse are rare, activists say there is an overwhelming reluctance to report
it, because maids are fearful of losing
their jobs and being deported. Some, who are brave enough, end up in NGO- run shelters like these
where they wait to find out if they can get legal aid to fight their cases.
But many are hopeful that Erwiana's story will put employers on notice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hopefully it will be an open, you know -- it will open their minds that they
are not their slaves, they are not their
commodities, they are not their properties.
COREN: A lesson in decent humanity that all too often is forgotten.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: Now Anna Coren joins us now with more on the court testimony. And Anna some -- we
talked about this earlier -- I mean, truly
shocking testimony was heard in court today. What did you hear?
COREN: Yeah, it was extremely disturbing to learn that this 23-year- old Indonesian maid had just
suffered so much. She came to Hong Kong last year to earn money, to provide a life -- a better life
for her family, and
yet she claims that she was tortured by her 44-year-old employer Law Want- tun, this mother of two.
But Erwiana noted a number of instances where she was abused. She talks about being beaten,
being punched in the face, where a number of her
teeth were broken. She was knocked unconscious. On one occasion she had a vacuum cleaner, the
nozzle of a vacuum cleaner shoved her mouth, twisted
around, which caused, you know, horrific injuries.
This is a woman who has just endured so much, who was not just beaten with this vacuum cleaner,
but also with a coat hangar and a ruler and a
mop.
She talked also about her working conditions. She was forced to work 20 hours a day and was only
allowed to sleep for four hours in the
afternoon.

9. Also, Kristie, she was only fed three pieces of bread and a bowl of rice, that was her meal each day.
So you'd have to say her treatment was nothing short of cruel and inhumane.
LU STOUT: That's right, the torture she described was truly horrific. Anna, we thank you for your
reporting on this story. And please follow up
for us right here on News Stream. Anna Coren there joining us live from Hong Kong.
You're watching News Stream. And still to come on the program, anger continues over the death of
an unarmed black man in New York after a white
police officer put him in a chokehold. The case has triggered sometimes violent protests on the
opposite side of the country. We got the details
straight ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, you're back watching News Stream.
Now anger fueled by allegations of police abuse continues to resonate across the U.S. Now northern
California saw more protests on Sunday night.
Now police in Oakland say eight people were arrested after a rally turned violent. And in Berkeley,
five patrol cars were damaged and some
local businesses were looted and vandalized.
Now in New York, people got pretty creative, not violent, during a fifth night of protests. They
expressed their feelings about the death of
Eric Garner in song, so-called justice carols.
Now Garner's case has gained momentum ever since a grand jury chose not to indict the New York
police officer who put him in a chokehold
shortly before he died.
Now for more, Alexandra Field joins me now live from New York. And Alexandra, there were
protests across America last night and many turned
violent. What happened?
ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Overwhelmingly, Kristie, we've seen these protests
in different places over the last few days. And these
have been really largely peaceful protests. There have been arrests for certain violations, but for the
vast majority of these protests it has been
peaceful. That was not the case during a couple of protests in northern California over the weekend.

10. Now police there say that the crowd was unruly -- throwing things, hurling objects, looting and
vandalizing, causing severe damage to a number
of businesses, that's why officers say they were forced to step in.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FIELD (voice-over): Violence erupting for a second night in Northern California after 500 protesters
swarm an Oakland freeway. A standoff with
police officers who eventually deploy tear gas and arrest a small number of people.
In Berkeley, demonstrators looting multiple businesses. A peaceful protester trying to stop a looter
was hit in the face with a hammer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A guy with a crowbar comes in and starts stealing stuff, like as much as they
can get.
FIELD: This after a grand jury decided last week not to indict Officer Daniel Pantaleo in Eric
Garner's chokehold death.
GWEN CARR, ERIC GARNER'S MOTHER: Peace is the message. We don't want any violence, but
keep on keeping on.
FIELD: Just the night before, a group of agitators in Berkeley, California, broke windows and threw
what they could at the hundreds of
local police in full riot gear. Some demonstrators saying on social media police were firing rubber
bullets. Police have yet to comment.
In New York City over the weekend, a few hundred people clashed with police, staging die-ins at
Grand Central Station, Apple's flagship store,
and Macy's in Herald Square.
The national outcry even hitting the field.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He gets away, but he goes down.
FIELD: Washington Redskins defensive lineman Chris Baker making the "hands up, don't shoot"
gesture after a play Sunday, and several NFL and an
NBA player wearing "I can't breathe" T-shirts.
ERIC GARNER, KILLED BY POLICE: I can't breathe.
FIELD: New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio tells ABC News this week his predecessor, Rudy Giuliani,
fundamentally misunderstands the reality.
BILL DE BLASIO, MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY: You cannot look at an incident in Missouri, another
incident in Cleveland, Ohio, and another incident in

11. New York City, all happening in the space of weeks, and act like there's not a problem.
FIELD: Giuliani blasted de Blasio on FOX News last week, saying it's, quote, "racist" to not
acknowledge block on black crime after de Blasio
said he tells his biracial son to take special care around police. RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER MAYOR
OF NEW YORK CITY: You should spend 90 percent of
your time talking about the way they're actually probably going to get killed, which is by another
black.
FIELD: Garner's widow told NBC's "Meet the Press" she fears for her children.
ESAW GARNER, WIDOW OF ERIC GARNER: I'm so afraid of what could happen to them in the
street by the police. I'm afraid of the police.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FIELD: And we are now hearing more from police in Oakland, California about what happened there
overnight. They say that five patrol cars were
damaged and that two officers had minor injuries during those demonstrations, Kristie.
LU STOUT: And again as you reported, these acts of violence were anomalies in these ongoing
protests there in America. Alexandra Field
reporting live from New York, thank you.
Now a slow moving typhoon is punishing the Philippines and a reporter there is getting a true sense
of its fury.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And look at that over there, that's not fog, that's not mist, that is thick
rain and that brings with it a fear of a lot
of flooding.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Still ahead, CNN's Saima Mohsin looks at the impact the storm is having on one city in
its way.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. You're watching News Stream. And these are your
world headlines.
Now the Red Cross says Hagupit has killed at least 21 people in the Philippines. The strongest storm
of the year was downgraded from a typhoon

12. hours ago, but it's still bringing heavy rain and flooding.
Now a judge in South Africa has dismissed murder charges against British millionaire Shrien
Dewani. He had been accused of having his wife
murdered on their honeymoon in 2010.
The judge says there isn't enough evidence to prove that.
The Syrian government and an opposition group say Israel carried out air strikes inside Syria. They
report two areas were hit on Sunday,
including one near Damascus International Airport. Israel has not responded to the accusations.
At least eight people have been arrested in protests in Oakland and Berkeley, California. Now some
demonstrators threw explosives, bottles and
rocks. Police and businesses were looted or vandalized. Now protests have been seen across the U.S.
since the grand jury did not indict a white New
York policeman in the death of an African-American.
Now back to our top story, the deadly path of Tropical Storm Hagupit. The downgraded typhoon has
been losing strength as it moves northwest
toward Manila. But it is still unleashing heavy downpours.
Now Saima Mohsin takes a look at the destruction left behind in the city of Legazpi.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAIMA MOHSIN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Still hundreds of kilometers away,
Typhoon Hagupit alerted Legazapi of its arrival, like an
unwanted guest late Saturday night it banged at the windows, the wind howling as it neared. Sunday
morning, and Typhoon Ruby, as it's known
locally, was passing through the Albay province, sweeping south of Legazpi.
These people have lived through many storms, but the fear of death and destruction doesn't
diminish.
"We came here because our house is near the sea," this lady tells me. "I'm afraid that the house
might be blown away. And we have babies. We're
so scared because the wind is strong and the waves are high."
Pillar (ph) and 13 members of her family, who all live in the same home, have chosen not to take any
risks and come to this school turned
evacuation center.

13. There are no beds or chairs, just a concrete floor, and more importantly a solid roof over their heads.
"I am worried. I'm thinking about my children and grandchildren. They are so young, that's why
we're here," Pillar (ph) says. "It's so hard
for me, because every typhoon damages our home. We don't have the money to fix it."
Many men, the heads of the household, chose to stay in their homes rather than evacuate.
This man tells me he doesn't want to leave his property empty for looters and criminals. If it gets
really bad, I'll go to my neighbors," he
says.
This city of 200,000 people has turned into a relative ghost town. We saw the odd person out and
about, or children playing in the rain.
But by and large families chose to stay indoors or move to evacuation centers inland, which has
helped keep them safe. Fisherman stayed out of
the water and locals didn't come to the beach.
But, there's always one.
The water is incredibly choppy and the wind very powerful, and it's coming in at great speed. But
what's more worrying is the fact that the
storm is moving incredibly slowly, bringing in these driving sheets of rain. They are hitting my face
like hundreds of pins it's so powerful.
But look at that over there, that's not fog, that's not mist, that it thick rain and that brings with it a
fear of a lot of flooding.
Last year's Typhoon Haiyan, known here as Yolanda, taught painful lessons.
JOEY SALCEDA, GOVERNOR OF ALBAY PROVINCE: There are 128,217 vulnerable families and they
are right now in more than 3,000 shelters.
Because of the phobia -- Yolanda phobia. I think it sees here to convince people to move to safe
shelters.
MOHSIN: Flooding, a storm surge and landslides are all major concerns here. Typhoon Ruby's rush
past Legazpi is low gentle touch.
Saima Mohin, CNN, Legazpi, Philippines.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: As the tropical storm continues to make its way along the island nation, there's
something that you can do to help the victims of

14. Hagupit. Head to our website CNN.com/impact. And there you will see a list of organizations on the
ground in the Philippines.
Now still to come right here on News Stream, we pay tribute to the creator of the first ever video
game console. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: Welcome back. Now North Korea has responded to allegations that it is behind the
recent cyper attack on Sony Pictures. In
short, the government says it's not sure who did it, but it applauds whoever did.
Now a statement at North Korean media calls the attack, quote, "a righteous deed." But it says
reports of North Korea's involvement are,
quote, a wild rumor.
Now Pyongyang also says it doesn't know exactly where Sony Pictures is located and that it couldn't
be behind a cyber attack on a country, quote,
so far across the ocean.
Now as more and more of our personal data gets stored online, controlling your digital identity is
critical. Now Chris Messina used to
work on Google Plus and we spoke earlier today. And I began by asking him why internet identity is
something that he's passionate about and some of
the problems he's experienced with Google's platform.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRSI MESSINA, FRM. GOOGLE PLUS DEVELOPER: When I think of internet identity it's kind of
the key that unlocks all sorts of online services for
you. It's what gives you access to your accounts online and it also unlocks things like personalization
payments and access. So, to me it was
really important that the future of digital identity was not determined simply by one company that is
Facebook, that Google actually started to
really move forward with its efforts there and started to describe the ways in which I thought about
digital identity and the ways in which it's sort
of uniquely positioned to help do a good job as a steward of people's data online.
LU STOUT: Why should we entrust Google with our digital identity? Your thoughts?
MESSINA: For me the more important thing is about competition in the marketplace. When I use a
lot of apps today I'm asked to sign in with

15. Facebook. These apps are looking for my name and my face and my email address and who my
connections and friends are. And that provides me a
great deal of utility and convenience, but I think that it's really important that people have choice.
It's not simply about saying that Google is the only one or the only company that I think people
should place their data with, I think they
should be one of many that users are able to chose from when deciding such an important topic as to
where to host information about themselves or
about their friends.
LU STOUT: Now, let's move on and talk about Google Plus, Google's social network. I've seen on a
rival social network you've posted up a
picture that says it all, an example of a lack of quality assurance at Google Plus.
You used some very strong language for the title of your blog post. And it was, quote, "I F-ed Up, So
is Google." I mean, why do you feel so
strongly about the failings of these two tech initiatives of a company that you left a year ago?
MESSINA: To be fair, it's still (inaudible) Google Plus, the subtitle had the more colorful language.
But, you know, you make a good point. I
care deeply about these issues because to me issues around digital identity in particular, less about
the social network, more about digital identity,
determine I think a great deal of the future of an individual's abilities and rights to use the web, to
get online, to take advantage of individuals
abilities and rights to use the web, to get online, to take advantage of a huge number of amazing
advancements that we've had in the last decade,
since for example Firefox came out. And it's very important to me that we continue to have freedom
of choice, that we have the ability to get our
data our and to move it to other providers if we choose to, that we are not simply locked in to the
kind of situation that we were locked into, for
example, with Microsoft before.
Every time someone uses a new application, they're subtly agreeing to these terms of service. Terms
of service actually determine the ways in
which your data will be treated, the way it's collected, the way that it's shared, the way that it may
be sold or anonymized. And all of these things
are sort of swept by the wayside to get to this convenience, to get to this value. And I think we as
individuals and as consumers need to think a

16. little more critically about what we should be demanding from these companies, the questions that
we should be asking, the ones that are
salient and that are important.
And that when I think about a company like Google, they have a I think a huge opportunity as well as
perhaps a responsibility to start explaining
these choices to consumers and individuals in a way that gives them more empowerment over these
choices.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LU STOUT: Beyond his work with Google, Messina also lays claim to inventing the hashtag, one of
the most common forms of expression used on
social media today.
Now before we go, we want to pay tribute to a tech pioneer who passed away this weekend: Ralph
Baer. Now he invented the Magnavox Odyssey, the
world's first videogame console.
Now the Magnavox Odyssey was released in 1972, well before Atari's pong systems. And it's worth
noting that Baer didn't invent videogames
itself, but he was the first to bring it to the home in a box that could be connected to your TV. So in
that sense the Odyssey began the console
revolution.
Now the Atari 2600, the Super Nintedo, the Playstation and the XBox are all descended from the
system right over here, all from the work of
Ralph Baer.
And that is News Stream. I'm Kristie Lu Stout, but don't go anywhere, World Sport with Alex Thomas
is up next.
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http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1412/08/nwsm.01.html