CNN Student News Transcript: May 19, 2008

May 19, 2008

Quick Guide

Message to Mideast - Hear how the president is trying to renew momentum for Middle East peace.

Journey to Wenchuan - Journey into a Chinese region that was devastated by a recent quake.

Prom Night Heroes - Learn how two teens used classroom knowledge to save someone's life.

Transcript

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

MONICA LLOYD, CNN STUDENT NEWS ANCHOR: Welcome back from the weekend, and thanks for joining us as we get started with a new week of CNN Student News. Hi, everyone. I'm Monica Lloyd.

First Up: Message to Mideast

LLOYD: First up, President Bush wraps up his visit to the Middle East and calls on leaders in the region to build on what he called the "hopeful beginnings" of democracy there. The president made that statement during a speech to the World Economic Forum in Egypt yesterday. But he started this trip last Wednesday in Israel, working on a peace plan between Israelis and Palestinians. Aneesh Raman has more on the president's push for peace.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN REPORTER: What began in Israel continued in Egypt, with President Bush reaffirming his hope for peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians soon.

GEORGE W. BUSH, U.S. PRESIDENT: And I firmly believe that with leadership and courage, we can reach that peace agreement this year.

RAMAN: But on this trip, President Bush never visited the Palestinian areas, leading many in the Arab world to suggest he's siding with Israel. On Saturday, Bush was eager to prove them wrong after meeting the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

BUSH: It breaks my heart to see the vast potential of the Palestinian people really wasted. They're good, smart, capable people that, when given a chance, will build a thriving homeland.

RAMAN: As usual on the trip, there was no lack of meetings with key players in the peace process, from the Israeli prime minister and president in Jerusalem, to the king of Saudi Arabia in Riyadh, to the Jordanian king and the president of Egypt in Sharm el-Sheikh. And while White House officials say that tangible progress has been made in what they describe as intensive negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians, they gave no specifics, citing a need for confidentiality. On the ground, prospects seem slim, at best. Bush is in his final year as president, the Israeli prime minister is facing calls for resignation amid a bribery scandal, and President Abbas faces political uncertainty with the Palestinians still divided over his leadership. To close the trip, President Bush used his major address to the World Economic Forum to challenge Arab countries to open up economically, politically and to confront the growing threat from Iran. But it was telling that it wasn't until mid-way thru the speech that he mentioned his hope for a Palestinian state by year's end.

BUSH: I strongly support a two-state solution.

RAMAN: White House officials say President Bush is contemplating returning to the region this fall, hoping still to secure what has proved elusive for decades: peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Aneesh Raman, CNN, Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Word to the Wise

CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS: A Word to the Wise...

two-state solution (noun) When discussing the Middle East, this refers to the creation of an independent Palestinian state that would exist alongside the state of Israel.

Journey to Wenchuan

LLOYD: In China, the Olympic torch relay is on hold, while the country observes three days of mourning for the victims of last week's deadly earthquake. Authorities now say more than 32,000 people were killed by the quake, and another 220,000 were injured. Dozens of countries and organizations are helping with the rescue efforts, as Chinese troops continue to search for survivors. Eunice Yoon joined some of them on a journey to the region where this devastating quake occurred.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EUNICE YOON, CNN REPORTER: It is the start of a long march. Tens of thousands of Chinese soldiers have converged on this place, where a path leads to the epicenter of one of China's deadliest earthquakes. They are gearing up for a day-long trek toward the devastated county of Wenchuan. And we are going with them.

We just made it past the first checkpoint and the land around this area is pretty unstable. As we were walking in, we saw the side of a mountain just crumble into the waters. We are seeing some rescue workers, though, starting to make their way into the hard-hit areas. If you look, there is actually a rescue team that's going in with some large equipment on a raft. Normally, people would get to the remote villages in Sichuan province along this highway; not now. Only tractors, construction trucks and rescue vehicles are allowed; many are full of hitchhiking villagers trying desperately to get out of a region without power and shelter. But some people are trying to get in. Shen Gui Yu and his brothers want to reach the town of Tao Guan.

We got very lucky. We're on the back of a construction truck with a lot of people from the town who are trying to get up to the village. Shen hopes to find his uncle there. He's had no news of him. A group of nurses and doctors offer us a ride. And from here, despite the intense heat of the sun, we start walking again.

"No matter if he is dead or not, I have to see him," Shen says.

We have been traveling for about 4 hours now, and these people are actually from the town that we are going to, but even they don't know exactly which way to go because of all the devastation. Buildings we pass are demolished. Survivors live in tents, terrified of staying indoors. No wonder, when their homes look like this.

Chinese soldiers dig through the rubble for any signs of life. And several kilometers later, this at the edge of a collapsed highway. We press on, crawling down the side of a mountain to be guided by the river, when suddenly some good news. Shen bumps into an old friend fleeing the area who tells Shen his uncle is alive.

Everything -- food, water, power generators -- has to be carried. We reach the highway again, or what's left of it. Eventually, we arrive in the flattened town of Yingxiu, which a week ago had a population of 10,000. The Chinese government says only a quarter of the people survived. We are told the bridge to Shen's uncle's home now dangles on its side by two ropes; even so, desperate people are using it to cross a raging river.

Along with Shen, we spend the night with a family of survivors, who despite their situation, make room for strangers and share their meager food with us. The next morning, despite the danger, Shen decides to keep going to make sure his uncle is alive.

"He still needs food and water," Shen says, "I want to take him out." And help his uncle start again, away from this shattered place. Eunice Yoon, CNN, Yingxiu, Wenchuan county, China.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Shoutout

AZUZ: Time for the Shoutout! Which of these is China's flag? If you think you know it, shout it out! Is it: A), B), C) or D)? You've got three seconds -- GO! D is the flag of China; has been since 1949, the year of the communist revolution in that country. That's your answer and that's your Shoutout.

Promo

LLOYD: China, Israel, Egypt: We've talked about all of them on today's show. But can your students track down the nations' locations? Put their geography genius to the test with our downloadable maps! We've got one for every continent. But labeling the individual countries? We're leaving that up to you. Check out the free resources at CNNStudentnews.com!

Prom Night Heroes

LLOYD: All right, now how often have you learned something in school and thought, "When am I ever going to use this in the real world?" Well, some classwork paid off for a couple Indiana students recently, when it helped them save someone's life! Jennie Runevitch of affiliate WTHR tells us about a prom night to remember.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENNIE RUNEVITCH, WTHR REPORTER: The sign hanging in the Ridgeway house, "No act of kindness is ever wasted," never more true for high school senior Sarah than on prom night.

SARAH RIDGEWAY, BROWNSBURG SENIOR: Here's the dress.

RUNEVITCH: She and her date put another couple first. After snapping photos at Sarah's parents', the pair headed to Andrew's house for more pictures when a medical emergency stopped them in their tracks: an elderly couple in obvious trouble.

ANDREW VOILES, BROWNSBURG JUNIOR: We got to about right here, this median, and this lady's in the middle of the road waving her arms. I turn around and I look back and there's this guy laying with his feet in the car, but down on the slope of the ground in the grass.

RIDGEWAY: When he opens the door, I mean, it was just kind of like instinct, like, "Oh my God, there's someone on the ground, someone on the ground!"

RUNEVITCH: Andrew told Sarah to stay in the car. But undeterred, Sarah took off her high heels, hiked up her fancy dress and ran across the road.

RIDGEWAY: Just immediately I went down by the head and was checking for a pulse.

RUNEVITCH: Meantime, Andrew...

DISPATCHER: 911, what's your emergency?

RUNEVITCH: ...called for help.

DISPATCHER: Is he breathing?

VOILES: Yes, he's breathing. He's alert.

RIDGEWAY: Talked to him the whole time until paramedics got there.

RUNEVITCH: These teens knew what they were doing, they've been medically trained...

RIDGEWAY (IN CLASS): What's my pulse?

RUNEVITCH: ...through their high school's EMT class.

RIDGEWAY They got very lucky they got two EMT students. What's the odds of that?

RUNEVITCH: Teenagers there at the right time, doing the right thing, just in the wrong outfit.

VOILES: I just didn't want her to get dirty, 'cause I still wanted her to look nice. She looked pretty good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

Goodbye

LLOYD: Sarah and Andrew did make it to prom, just a few minutes late and with a really good excuse. That's where we dance on out of here. We'll see you back here tomorrow for more CNN Student News.