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Another Supermodel Accuses Cosby of Assault; Sony Emails Reveal Ugly Side of Hollywood; Children's Relationship with Technology; ABLE Act for Children with Disabilities

Aired December 12, 2014 - 08:30   ET

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


BEVERLY JOHNSON, MODEL AND ACTRESS: What changed for me was a number of things, once again, but the women coming out and telling their story, I would just look at that television and just think how brave they are. And also, you know, listening to Janice Dickinson, who was a friend of mine, who, to me, I've known her for 30 years, was never a liar. If anything, she's uncensored, and there's no filter there. So, if anything, you're getting the truth and the absolute truth from her. And how she was being treated and how they were being vilified. And that's the norm also, that women who do have the courage to speak about a sexual assault are -- they are put -- you know, they are the people that are, you know, shamed and --

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Sure, re-victimized in many ways.

JOHNSON: And victimized all over -- thank you, re-victimized all over again, once again. So, I wanted to stand with those women. And this, for me, is not about Bill Cosby. This, to me, is about violence against women. This, to me, is about one out of every five women are sexually assaulted in their lives, and they don't say anything. And when they do, they have to relive the whole incident in front of a judge and jury, and some of them don't believe them, and they're basically crucified and vilified for coming out and telling their truth.

So it was - it was very difficult for me to come to the point where I wanted to speak out. I tell you, it was only maybe 24 hours ago that I finally decided, yes, this is what I want to do. I was vacillating back and forth, I mean, with the climate of what's happening with black male in America, we're having this race conversation that was so needed for so long. And why does this have to come out now, and Bill Cosby being a black man. But then I realized that this is not about Bill Cosby, and he's not that man that has been attacked by police. And, I mean, he's had a very privileged life that I felt he need to know that, as women, we just weren't going to just, you know, stand by and let him get away with what he thought he was going to get away with.

CAMEROTA: And, Beverly, what do you want to see happen to Bill Cosby?

JOHNSON: I don't want to see anything happen to Bill Cosby. What I want to see happen is that women come out and speak their truth. That's what I want. I want this to be a platform for women, men, boys, girls, to realize that it is OK to come out, to speak out, to go to the police, to get into therapy and talk about what has happened to them and how they've been sexually assaulted or abused in any way.

I sit on the board of Barbara Sinatra's children's center. And most of these children, for the last four years -- and I speak to these children, and I come in first - I come in contact with these very brave, you know, young women and boys. And I felt like a hypocrite if I did not come out and say what happened to me. So, that's another reason why I wanted to come out today and talk about what happened to me 30 years ago.

CAMEROTA: We think with you coming forward, there are now more than 20 women who have some of the same exact story of Bill Cosby. Bill Cosby, of course, has denied this through his attorneys. They've said that these stories are implausible. It doesn't make sense why women would have stayed quiet for so many decades. Do you believe we will see more women come forward?

JOHNSON: Well, I'm hoping that, you know, we will see, you know, women and men and children feeling safe to be able to tell their story of what's happened to them. One of the most powerful things that happened to me, before I decided to release this story to "Vanity Fair," was, I called a number of girlfriends. And there was one particular girlfriend I told about being drugged by Bill Cosby, you know, having that angel on my shoulder that day that I don't think that I was raped. And she began to tell me a story of how she was molested and raped. And I was mortified. And this is a woman I've known for 25 years. And I said, well, why didn't you tell me? She said, I'm only telling you because you told me your story. And at that moment, I said, this is something I have to do.

CAMEROTA: That's understandable. We've heard that from other women, too, who feel that the truth will set them free, despite the risks, despite the fact that your reputation may be sullied somehow or you may get some unpleasant feedback on social media, things like this that we've seen. Do you think that Bill Cosby is done? Is this the end of his career as we all have known it?

JOHNSON: I don't know. All I know is I have a daughter and I have a granddaughter, and if my daughter told me -- came to me and told me, mom, someone drugged me, I would want her to speak up, to speak out and to speak loudly. And my family and my friends were very hesitant for me to go out because they love me and they care about me and they didn't want anyone saying anything bad about me. And why are you doing this, you know, you have such a great reputation? And I -- basically I asked my daughter, you have a daughter now. If your daughter came to you and said, mom, you know, I've been drugged, what would you do? What would you say to her? And she got it then. She said, mom, you're doing the right thing. I support you. I love you. And, yes, I would tell my daughter to speak out. I would make sure she spoke out and we went to the proper authorities to take care of whatever happened to her.

CAMEROTA: Yes.

JOHNSON: So, that's my focus, are these women and men, boys and girls who have been sexually assaulted who have no voice. And hopefully I -

CAMEROTA: Yes.

JOHNSON: Can speak out for them and create this platform for them to come forward and to tell their story. That's what I'm here for.

CAMEROTA: Yes. You have, obviously, turned this ordeal into something positive and getting a voice for women or children or victims of any kind. But there is still a fascination with what was going on with Bill Cosby. And what we hear people say is, he was a huge celebrity. He was a big star. He could have had any woman that he wanted in the '80s. Why would he have to drug women? Since you lived through what you claim you lived through, how do you explain it? Do you believe that Bill Cosby was a predator?

JOHNSON: I'm not a doctor, so I cannot tell you the psychology of his motives. So I wouldn't even attempt to do that. But what I do know, that this was a secret in Hollywood. And after I had to let certain people in my business know what I was about to do, the response was, oh, yes, we know he's been doing that for quite a while. It was like everyone knew. But, you know, people like myself, I most certainly wouldn't have gone to Bill Cosby's brownstone if I knew the reputation he had with assaulting women. So this has been, you know, something that's been going on, not only in Hollywood, but around the world where certain powerful people are protected and choose to keep their secret.

CAMEROTA: Well, Beverly Johnson, we appreciate you speaking out live on NEW DAY today. It's wonderful to see you, and we look forward to having more conversations. And, of course, we invite all of you listening to share your thoughts on this. You can find me on Twitter @alisyncamerota or go to @newday and tweet us.

Let's go over to Chris.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Alisyn. I mean the conversation just needed to be had and we haven't heard it any better than that yet. So, thank you for that.

When we come back, private e-mails made public. Sony executive and producer talking smack about actors and even the president of the United States. Big questions raised about Hollywood, but also about the media using the hacked e-mails. Provocative stuff, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CUOMO: Boy, did you hear about the drama in Hollywood? Two executives apologizing after a massive hacking of Sony e-mails revealed insensitive comments about the Hollywood elite, but more importantly about President Obama. Still, the e-mails have the Internet buzzing and actress Zoe Saldana even tweeted, "being hacked sucks, but not as much as being an actress at the mercy of these producers' tongues. Now everyone knows!"

So, where does Hollywood go from here and should we even be having this conversation? Let's bring in Michael Smerconish, host of CNN's "Smerconish" and the Michael Smerconish program on Sirius XM. Good to have you. Let's begin at the beginning. Am I wrong to be having these e-mails in play because they were hacked and it is a crime?

MICHAEL SMERCONISH, HOST, CNN'S "SMERCONISH": Did we have the Snowden conversation? I think that's --

CUOMO: But that's national security.

SMERCONISH: Yes, I think it's the same principle, though, because you're raising the issue of, this was theft, therefore, is it proper for the media to have this dialogue? I think it probably is. It is an (INAUDIBLE) interest that we have it. It's like a wreck on the highway. You turn your head. You can't turn away from it because it's fascinating.

But there are a whole host of interesting issues about this. Here's what I was thinking. If you were to pitch this to Hollywood as a movie and you said, I've got this idea, you know, Seth Rogen in a comedy and he pitches the --

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: Not plausible. Not plausible.

SMERCONISH: Yes, they'd say it's too fantastical, right? And yet it apparently happened. We're not even having the conversation yet about the underlying premise of the movie. What about the premise of the movie, which is the assassination of a current world leader? What if this movie were being produced overseas and someone were making it about President Obama? We'd be pissed, right?

CUOMO: Uh-huh.

SMERCONISH: And rightfully so.

CAMEROTA: Yes, but it's not, should we be having the conversation. It's OK to have the conversation. Should we be reading these e-mails? They're stolen! It's like looking at somebody's dirty laundry on the line. I mean these were stolen. They weren't supposed to be seen.

Now, of course, what they've revealed is a really interesting conversation that in Hollywood there's a dirty underbelly, as we all know of Hollywood, and they were talking -- saying nasty things about Angelina Jolie and even saying these racially tinged comments about --

SMERCONISH: The president.

CAMEROTA: Right, the president, about Barack Obama. So, it's an important conversation. But it is a little dicey reading the e-mails, isn't it?

SMERCONISH: It absolutely is, but I think you raise an interesting point that if we said well, we're not going to discuss their contents, particularly the ones that are racially biased, then we'd give the appearance of covering up for what's going on here, one of the strongest corporations in the world.

CUOMO: Strong point, strong point. Makes me feel better.

PEREIRA: And, you know, it's so funny to think that we haven't even seen the most of this yet. Because I think that this is now pointing out a vulnerability, right? I think that we have all known, look, Hollywood's a dirty place.

SMERCONISH: Right.

PEREIRA: Right? This is not a surprise to us, but the fact that some of these companies have systems that are that vulnerable, it does -- I know that there are conversations going on in Hollywood right now, making sure that every one and zero is accounted for, right?

SMERCONISH: It's troubling I think for all of us, because I look at it, and I say, well, if they were able to penetrate the e-mail system for Sony, what about a mom-and-pop business? What about a medium- sized corporation? You know there were health records? It's fun to talk about Angelina Jolie.

PEREIRA: You're right.

SMERCONISH: There were health records of some employees caught in this web that were outed and I think that it's a wake-up call. It's a clarion call for everybody that when you touch that send key, you'd better be darn sure that you haven't put something in that you're not going to want to see in public later.

PEREIRA: And delete should actually say archive not delete, right? Because there's - -

SMERCONISH: There's no such thing, as we tell our kids, as delete.

CAMEROTA: Good point. All right, well we want to ask you about the interview that we just did here with Beverly Johnson, supermodel from the '70s and '80s. She, for the first time, live today on NEW DAY, came out and told her story of being attacked, drugged and attacked by Bill Cosby. She got away she says, she believes she got away, and she stayed conscious enough in order to confront him. But she is -- there are now more than 20 women who have come forward. What did you think as you watched her?

SMERCONISH: I hope this doesn't sound sexist. I thought, my God, she's stunning.

PEREIRA: She is stunning.

SMERCONISH: She's a stunning grandmother, my God.

CUOMO: It's just a fact.

SMERCONISH: Yes, it is a fact. Look, it's hard to believe, they all fit the same pattern. I feel the same way I felt about Sandusky. When one came out and two came out, you could question their credibility. When they all told the same story, after a while, you say, my God, are they all making it up? They can't all be making it up. There's an interesting question here. The LAPD says that they'll, if requested, investigate Bill Cosby, even in circumstances where the statute of limitations has run. I'm not sure of that, I've never heard that before, where a police department would commit resources to that kind of a case. You're shaking your head no.

CUOMO: Well, look, they'd have an obvious legal barrier to it. However, what they could say is we're investigating it because if it happened before, maybe it's happened more recently. That would be the legitimate angle for them.

PEREIRA: I found it very interesting, one of the things that she talked about very frankly is this conundrum of talking with her family about do we do this, do I say, do I come forward, but also the fact that this was an African American male, and don't African American males have enough issues right now? Do we really need to be doing this? And it was so interesting to hear that this, as a black woman, she's having this struggle in her mind.

CAMEROTA: Yes. And in fact, she also says that that's part of what kept her silent for so long is because he is this icon, he is this father figure, but he was a great icon to the black community. Whites loved him, blacks loved him. She didn't want to bring down - other people have said this, too. They didn't want to bring down a man like that.

PEREIRA: Is it going to bring him down?

SMERCONISH: He's done. I mean, I heard your question --

CUOMO: But what does that mean? That's one of the frustrations of this story.

SMERCONISH: I think that no network is going to put -- NBC is not certainly going to put him in a sitcom. I would be shocked if he's able to continue to perform in front of live audiences, and I watched that footage. I know that as this was unfolding people were still giving him - -

PEREIRA: Still buying tickets and ovations. Yes.

SMERCONISH: Something that told me that it's reached the tipping point is in my hometown of Philadelphia when he resigned from the Temple University board of trustees, because he has been so integral to the growth of Temple.

CUOMO: Right.

SMERCONISH: And such a part of their success. And I know he was being forced out, and when that happened, I thought, okay, this now is the end.

CUOMO: You are a big intellectual other side guy. You take other sides all the time on issues. Can you make the case for Bill Cosby right now?

SMERCONISH: Sure. He hasn't been convicted of anything and this is all just claims that have been made based on allegations, some of which are so old they couldn't possibly be proven or disproven.

CUOMO: But that's a facile explanation at this point, isn't it, because of the numerosity?

SMERCONISH: Hey, you're asking me to play the other side. It's not easy in this case, okay?

CUOMO: All right.

SMERCONISH: I mean, the best I can --

(LAUGHTER)

CUOMO: That's the best you've got? The best you've got is that all 20 of them are lying?

SMERCONISH: No, the best I've got is that in this country, you're innocent until proven guilty and he's been proven of absolutely nothing.

CAMEROTA: Yes. Michael Smerconish, great to see you.

PEREIRA: Great conversation.

SMERCONISH: See you guys.

CAMEROTA: Be sure to catch Michael's show, "SMERCONISH" Saturdays at 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Eastern.

CUOMO: All right, you know, if you have kids and they're over the age of let's say 3 days old, they're probably on social media. They're exposed to cyber bullying. You know this. They can be completely monopolized by the devices even more than ever before. So, how do you parent your way through it? And I'm really asking myself this, because we're struggling with it - -

PEREIRA: Help's on the way, Chris!

CUOMO: - - in our house. We have good tips for you and for me coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PEREIRA: All right. Welcome back for our latest edition of NEW DAY, New You. Today it is a new challenge for parents, combating the threat of cyber bullying. It can affect any family, even hit the first family recently when a Republican staffer targeted the president's daughters. Our next guest has written a book, it's called "Screen Smart Parenting," offering guidance for protecting your kids and your family from the potential perils and pitfalls of social media. Dr. Jodi Gold is here, she's a friend of the show.

I'm an auntie, not a parent, but I sure know that this is something that we need to be watchful of and be aware of. First off, I think one of the things that I hear from parents a lot is, there's technology everywhere. Kids want to play with my phone. At what age do you actually allow them to have a mobile gadget, at least to play with and be exposed to?

DR. JODI GOLD, AUTHOR, "SCREEN SMART PARENTING": Well, I think the reality is that your digital identity and digital footprint begins at birth, so kids are being exposed to stuff from a very young age. In terms of when to give your children a phone, that's very personal and it's developmental. But my basic guideline is, is that when they're ready to use it as a tool and not a toy, then it's probably time to give it to them.

CAMEROTA: I just feel like that's the moment of loss of innocence.

(LAUGHTER)

CAMEROTA: Then it's offer. It's off to the races. Once you give them their own phone and they could be on social media, and I'm really trying to shield my 9-year-old at the moment from that, though they're clamoring for it. They want phones.

GOLD: Yes, but that's the point is that just because they have a phone doesn't mean they need to be on social media. The key to looking at the digital landscape is looking at it developmentally, which means it might be appropriate for a 10-year-old to have a phone, but it might not be appropriate for him to be on social media until he's 12 or 13.

CUOMO: What about that? I mean, social media's such a jungle. It's so toxic, you know? You can put all these parental controls in there, but they can still pretty much go anywhere they want, you know, especially on the smartphones, you know, as opposed to the laptop controls. And then they tell you it's mine, it's not yours. You gave it to me. This is my privacy. What is the line there?

GOLD: Well, this is one of the reasons that I wrote the book, because I really think it's important from the very beginning the parents build a foundation. It's not theirs. It's yours. It is a privilege to have your device. They don't own it. It's a tool, not a toy. And that's the foundation that you build upon. You should always have your kids' passwords, but the key is you have to have their passwords from the time they're 7 or 8. You can't wait until they're 14. It's not going to work.

PEREIRA: The bullet's already out of the gun. And part of it is their attitudes around technology and their behavior on it. For example, social media. We've seen recently, we just mentioned about the first daughters and their brush with cyber bullying, if you will. I think one of the things all of us that have loved ones that are teens and tweens, we want to protect them from that. How do we manage that? Because there's a lot to it. You want them to come to you. You want to be honest. You don't necessarily want to spy on them, but maybe you have to. What are your thoughts on?

GOLD: No, we're not spying on our kids. We are monitoring our kids.

CUOMO: What's the difference?

GOLD: There's a clear distinction, okay? Let's be clear about the distinction here. PEREIRA: I call it spying, but you actually believe it's monitoring.

GOLD: So, I believe it's monitoring. I think there should be transparency. That's why there has to be a technology plan in your family from the beginning. You should be on all social media with your kids, but you can be seen and not heard. No reason to comment, no reason to make a big deal, but you want to help your children cultivate their digital identity.

PEREIRA: Responsibly, yes.

GOLD: Responsibly. You want their identity online to reflect who they are offline.

CUOMO: How do you teach them that? What are some good tips for that, because there's something about social media that exaggerates personality.

PEREIRA: It's true.

CUOMO: Especially in the negative. So, what do you tell them?

GOLD: Well, you tell them, you go on with them. That's why you need to be on, because you need to be able to comment quietly offline to them when they say something that's too sexy or they say something that's too obnoxious or mean. The only way to teach them to be kind online is to be online with them so that you can comment when they're not so kind. And that's the other thing, we have to allow kids to make mistakes.

PEREIRA: Yes, it's hard.

GOLD: Which is why we have to stop taking away the phone and teaching them how to use the phone more wisely.

PEREIRA: We're going to leave you with that little tease because this is a great book, "Screen Smart Parenting," might be a good stocking stuffer for those you know. All the guys in here have been thumbing through it as well as their parents. Dr. Gold, really a delight, thank you. These are tough conversations to be having with our kids, but they're really vital.

CAMEROTA: Thanks.

GOLD: Thanks for having me, thank you.

CUOMO: Avoiding the conversation's a mistake.

So, from good tips to Good Stuff. Today's Good Stuff comes from a place you would never expect, Congress.

PEREIRA: Huh?

CUOMO: Yes! Lawmakers could approve legislation as early as today to create tax-free savings accounts for families with kids who have severe disabilities like Down Syndrome or Autism. Dana Bash has this story behind the ABLE Act.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): GOP Congresswoman Cathy McMorris-Rodgers will never forget the moment her doctor broke the news about her first baby.

REP. CATHY MCMORRIS- RODGERS, (R) WASHINGTON: He was diagnosed with Down Syndrome three days after he was born, and with that diagnosis comes a long list of potential complications.

BASH: And a warning.

MCMORRIS- RODGERS: They said, now, don't put any assets in his name.

BASH (on camera): Why did they say that to you?

MCMORRIS- RODGERS: In case Cole, our son, would ever have to qualify for some of these programs, they didn't want the assets to disqualify him.

BASH (voice-over): To qualify for many government services, people with disabilities can only have $2,000 in assets. And having a disability is expensive. Doctors, special schools and transportation, a financial strain for some 60 million disabled Americans and their families. Now Congress is creating tax-free savings accounts to pay for special needs.

REP. PETE SESSIONS, (R) TEXAS: My 21-year-old Down Syndrome son, Alex Sessions, an Eagle Scout, a cool guy.

BASH: For Republican Pete Sessions, it's also personal.

SESSIONS: And he's learning how to do things, to be independent, and this act will help him and tens of thousands more.

BASH: The issue created something rare, overwhelming bipartisanship, because so many can relate. Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar's daughter, okay now, was born unable to swallow.

SEN. AMY KLOBUCHAR, (D) MINNESOTA: I was able to see life through the eyes of a parent with a child with disability.

BASH (on camera): What do you think your message, sitting together as a Democrat and Republican getting this done, should mean?

MCMORRIS- RODGERS: I would say take heart.

KLOBUCHAR: There are still people of good will that want to work together to get things done, and that's how we have to go into this new year.

BASH (voice-over): Dana Bash, CNN Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE) CUOMO: Amen, and good thing for the ABLE Act. That's it for us right now, there's a lot of news, though, so let's send you over to the "NEWSROOM" and Ms. Carol Costello. TGIF, my friend.

CAMEROTA: Have a great weekend.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Have a fantastic weekend. Thank you so much. NEWSROOM starts now.