27/08/2016 Reporters

Welcome to Reporters.

I'm Philippa Thomas.

From here in the BBC newsroom, we send out correspondents to bring

you the best stories from across the globe.

In this week's programme, the future of fuel in America.

Ahead of the US election, David Shukman assesses

whether cleaner energy, like solar power, could be a viable

alternative to coal.

A factory like this one is now producing solar panels that

have tumbled in price.

It means that solar power can be roughly comparable in cost

to power produced by coal.

Where are you sleeping?

Here.

On the street?

In the highway.

Chris Buckler meets the teenagers who have risked their lives to get

to Europe, now living alone on the streets of Italy.

The new Saharan gold rush.

Hanan Razek reports from Mauritania, where thousands are hoping

to strike it rich.

Can you show me the gold you found?

One gram.

One gram.

Six grams.

That is a fortune.

After Rio's Olympic success, Secunder Kermani asks whether Brazil

now faces its biggest embarrassment, botching the organisation

of the Paralympics.

There has been a disrespect for the Paralympic Games,

for the potential and the impact that could have made

for the people of Brazil.

And Q in conversation.

As the Proms celebrates Quincy Jones' 60-year career,

Stephen Smith talks to the jazz legend about music, race, politics

and his old friend, Donald Trump.

Do not even talk about it.

We have one choice.

I would leave the country if that sucker won.

First, to the United States, where the result of November's

presidential election is likely to have a far-reaching

effect on the future of America's energy policy.

Donald Trump says global warming is not worth worrying

about and he has pledged to revive the coal industry.

But Hillary Clinton is warning that climate change is one of the most

serious threats facing the world.

She wants the US to invest more in renewable power.

David Shukman reports from Ohio on the political battle

over the future of fuel.

On the Ohio River, a vast fleet of barges laden with coal,

part of a massive industry that has powered the American economy

for more than a hundred years.

But as I visit this sprawling complex, coal is now caught up

in the battle for the White House.

Put simply, Donald Trump supports it, Hillary Clinton does not.

The coal mines here are like underground cities,

stretching for miles.

But because of tough pollution controls and cheaper shale gas,

dozens of mining companies have filed for bankruptcy.

Donald Trump offers them the prospect of revival.

We catch the end of a shift.

By the end of the year, this mine will close.

The miners blame environmentalists and President Obama's

actions on climate change.

One leading mine owner, a Trump supporter, tells me real

damage has been done.

If two coalminers are laid off, if they own anything

it is their homes.

When they get laid off, they have no-one to sell that home too.

Those people who want to work in honour and dignity

are denied that.

It is not the America I cherish, which is why I speak out like I do.

That is why I say Obama is the greatest scourge that America

has ever had in its history.

The problem with coal comes when you burn it.

It releases carbon dioxide, which is blamed for global warming.

Donald Trump says that is not a problem but Hillary

Clinton says it is.

She is offering a greener future instead.

In another corner of Ohio, a clean way of generating power.

At this local company, First Solar, robots and people

churn out a solar panel every single second.

A new industry is rising as an older one declines.

While the debate rages over whether climate change is a threat

or not, there has been an incredibly rapid industrial transformation

so that a factory like this one is now producing solar panels that

have tumbled in price.

It means that solar power can be roughly comparable in cost

to power produced by coal.

Whoever wins the American presidential election,

low carbon power may make sense anyway.

There are solar panels at the Museum of Art in Toledo.

And at the city's zoo.

Renewable energy is becoming more of a feature of everyday life

and great arrays like this one, covering entire fields,

are no longer so unusual.

Panel by panel, America is becoming greener without many

people even realising.

I just think we have some politicians that are

fighting the last war, they are fighting over something,

they still believe solar power is somewhere out

there in the future.

It is here now.

We've probably passed the tipping point, the turning point,

and they just do not know it yet.

All this matters because America is the world's largest economy.

Its decisions on energy could boost or undermine international action

on global warming under the Paris Climate Agreement.

Donald Trump says he will pull America out of it.

Hillary Clinton supports it, so a great deal hangs

on the outcome of this election.

David Shukman, BBC News in Ohio.

It is still one of the biggest crises facing

Europe in a generation.

Latest figures suggest more than 100,000 migrants came to Italy

by boat from North Africa this year.

And more and more of them are children.

The charity Save The Children says as many as 15,000 unaccompanied

minors made this perilous journey.

Chris Buckler met some of them as they arrived on a rescue ship

in the port of Catania in Sicily.

Arriving from Africa, both young and old see

Europe's wealth.

A different world from the poverty and in some cases turmoil that many

are trying to leave behind.

But each new face that appears in places like Catania adds

to the pressure on resources.

That is particularly true for the children who arrive

all too often alone.

It is obvious in the city around this port that many live

on the fringes of the system that is supposed to protect them,

if not completely apart from it.

Among the teenagers we found here was Fattah.

He travelled by himself from the troubled country of Somalia

to try to get an education.

We are not showing his face because he is only 14.

Are there not dangers for you because your mum is not

here, your dad is not here?

You're by yourself.

So where are you sleeping?

On the street?

In the highway?

Yes.

That is dangerous.

Have you made friends?

You do not have friends?

Workers from the charity Save The Children were with us

when we spoke to Fattah.

They helped to find him somewhere safe to stay that evening.

In towns and cities across Italy, that is becoming increasingly

difficult, with reception centres filling up as boats continue

to arrive with vulnerable children.

Today, there was one girl who was 15 years old from Eritrea

and she was eight-months pregnant.

Many children choose to continue their journey alone

and this is extremely dangerous because they are constantly

falling into the hands of smugglers and traffickers.

They are at risk of exploitation.

Many girls are forced into prostitution in order

to make their way.

Keeping a separation between the worlds of children

and adults is proving to be a challenge.

There are children who simply leave the reception centres

and there is little the staff there can do to stop them.

But there is a wider issue.

Europe is starting to struggle to provide the education,

shelter and stability needed by the unaccompanied children

arriving on its shores.

For refugees and migrants of all ages, home is both something

that has been left behind as well as something

they have still to find.

Chris Buckler, BBC News, Catania.

Now, this could be the world's newest gold rush.

Thousands of people are flocking to a mineral rich area

of the Sahara Desert in the hope of making a fortune.

It follows the Mauritanian government's decision to allow

people to dig in the sand, which has seen some give up

everything in the hope of striking it rich.

Hanan Razek reports from Mauritania on tales of dreams

and despair in the desert.

Here, in the middle of the desert, thousands of Mauritanians

are chasing one dream, to become rich.

Tales of making tens of thousands of pounds have

triggered a gold rush.

Can you show me the gold you found?

This is only today?

One gram.

One gram, how about yourself?

Six grams?

That is a fortune.

In a country of high unemployment, being given the opportunity to dig

for gold is irresistible.

Some have found enough gold to buy a house.

Firstly, they dig the sand out of these holes, lay it flat,

then sweep it with a metal detector.

Whether it is a success or not is really down to luck.

In the baking heat, with little water, and no easy medical access,

they spend their days digging.

Only their dreams make these punishing conditions bearable

and some will risk everything.

Ahmed has put his future on the line.

TRANSLATION: I came back from abroad, for the opportunity

of working in my country.

I brought my children and my wife.

I sold everything, I wanted to get some gold and have a new life.

Before making the long journey, Ahmed needed to buy

a digging licence and spend thousands more on equipment.

Now there are calls for Mauritania's government to highlight

the financial risks.

TRANSLATION: The decision was based on a popular demand.

Since the living standard here is quite low, the government

has sought to regulate the digging at an affordable price

for the licence.

The equipment prices in comparison with average wages are high.

Some people make less than a dollar a day.

But with more than a quarter of Mauritanians living below

the poverty line, the government said its decision to allow gold

digging will improve the lives of many families.

After Ahmed's big gamble and spending 27 days here,

all he has found is six grams of gold, worth 1%

of what he has spent.

Yet, like many others, he still comes back,

hoping to turn his luck around.

Hanan Razek, BBC News, Mauritania.

You've got to hand it to Rio.

When it came to the Olympics, they got away with it,

more than got away with it.

Whatever the worries, the mishaps, the less

than crowded stadiums, the Games were actually great.

And in a city that does not have the resources

of London or Beijing, they showed you can still host

a successful Olympics with less.

But when it comes to the Paralympics, Rio does not seem

to be on such firm ground.

Ticket sales are appalling.

Budget cuts are biting, some teams are not even coming.

Secunder Kermani has been finding out how much of the setback

the Paralympics could be for Rio's Olympic legacy.

# Send her victorious.

# Happy and glorious...

Beaming smiles and flashing medals as Olympic Team GB

arrived back home.

While success in Rio helped overshadow criticism

of how the Games were run, there are now concerns over the fate

of the Paralympics.

Problems like green swimming pools have led to money intended

for the Paralympics being spent on the Olympics instead.

The budget has been slashed, whilst dismal ticket sales

could mean even more empty seats.

It has almost become an Olympic tradition to question how ready

a host nation is before the Games begin, but this does feel like it is

on a completely different scale.

Just the other week, the head of the International

Paralympic Committee said that the Games had never faced

circumstances like these in their entire history.

The Paralympic cycling team is training here in Newport.

They are focusing on winning medals, but the controversies

are also on their mind.

Is there disappointment about the ticket sales?

Yes, it is really disappointing.

The last time I read it was about 12%.

Clearly that is a lot of empty seats.

It would be nice if they were filled, not just from the athletes'

perspective and the spectators' perspective and the atmosphere,

but from the funding perspective and the exposure to the sport

and the atmosphere in general.

The Paralympic Games is parallel parity.

It's meant to be running in line.

We always come afterwards anyway because of the way

the calendar works.

The way they treat us is not definitely the same, is it?

According to official documents, the Brazilian authorities had

initially hoped to raise $170 million for the Paralympics.

But we have been told they are nowhere near the amount they need.

One reason is just 12% of tickets have been sold compared

to 92% of Olympic tickets, although even then there

were empty seats.

There are also just 28 Paralympic sponsors compared

to 60 Olympic ones.

As a result, they have decided to make cuts to the workforce,

cuts to transport services for athletes, and changes

to the venue of some events, allowing the closure of one

of the three Olympic Parks.

London's 2012 Paralympic games were hailed as being

the most successful ever.

The former Paralympic athlete who helped deliver them

says that legacy looks like it is in tatters now.

More than a step backwards, this is a leap into Paralympic prehistory.

The economic and political backdrop are certainly very different

to when Rio won the bid.

But this does not have so much to do with the economics, this has to do

with cannibalisation of the Paralympic budget,

to bail out and backfill Olympic elements that did not need to go

wrong in the first place.

There has been a disrespect, a misunderstanding,

a lack of understanding for the Paralympic Games,

for the potential, and the impact that could've made

for the people of Brazil.

A legacy for the 45 million disabled people in Brazil

would really make a difference.

Many still struggle with being accepted and feeling included.

TRANSLATION: I was disappointed, but not surprised at the lack

of funding, because historically disabled people have been left

behind in this city.

Having said that, there have been some improvements to public

transport because of the Games.

Despite everything, Rio is what Paralympic athletes have

spent years training for, and all the athletes we spoke

to were clear about the need to make the most of the Games.

People will organise it or they will not organise it,

they will sort it or they will not.

We have to deal with it as it happens, whereas the performance

of riding the bike as fast as we can, that is totally

within our control, so we can make sure we do everything we need to do

in training to get the best performances out of ourselves.

Delays to travel grants being paid out by Brazilian Paralympic

authorities had raised concerns some countries would not even be able

to afford to come to Rio.

It no longer looks like it will come to that, but many are seeing these

Games as a missed opportunity.

He is one of the most influential figures in the history of modern

music, who has worked with some of the biggest artists

of modern times.

Quincy Jones' career spans six decades and

incredible 28 Grammy Awards.

Now, at the age of 83, some of his most famous work

is being celebrated at the Proms here in London and he has been

speaking to the BBC's Stephen Smith about his remarkable

life and talent.

# Land of hope and glory, mother of the free...

Ah, the Last Night Of The Proms, or a young Conservative's

idea of New Year's Eve, as one wag has called it.

But look what they are doing to the Proms, Ma!

They are dropping a bomb on them...

with the jazz song book of Mr Quincy Jones.

The man is sharp, look at him.

Well, I had to make an effort.

I do that every day, man.

You're still outdressing me.

I like the detail.

I got this in China.

I designed these three-quarter sleeves.

I just like them.

Every time I go, I get about 28 suits.

I have got a bunch of them.

Look out, they are behind us, you'd better put your foot down,

we will lose them easy.

I had such a good time in England in the '60s, man.

Oh, God.

My son was born here.

I was scoring The Italian Job.

I know you're asked all the time about Michael Jackson,

so do you think, ultimately, that is a tragic story?

It is a tragic story.

I talk about it all the time.

I said a lot of stupid things after he died.

Anyway, you cannot make records like that without extreme love,

trust and respect.

# Cos this is thriller.

# Thriller night.

# Girl, I can thrill you more than any ghoul could ever dare try.

# So let me hold you tight and share a killer thriller.

There were stories of him bringing snakes and things...

And chimpanzees.

The whole menagerie.

I did not like that.

A snake used to wrap around the seat and my leg.

I did not like that at all.

It would crawl across the console.

Muscles.

I am not into snakes.

So who won there?

Did he...?

He kept them there.

One day we went out at Hayvenhurst.

I said, where is Muscles?

We went downstairs, and Muscles was in the parrot cage right

there, and the parrot, they did not like each other.

He had just eaten the parrot and his head

got stuck in the cage.

# Let's dance.

# Put on your red shoes and dance the blues.

# Let's dance.

We have lost some great people this year.

The last two years, George Martin, David Bowie.

Oh, man, it just does not stop.

Prince.

Maurice White, it is frightening.

All my friends, you know.

I lost a lot of friends this year.

Did you know Bowie?

Can you tell us about your time with him?

David Bowie?

Yeah.

Every year we would rent his yacht.

He lived in Switzerland.

Was he as good as everyone says?

He was.

The music can never be any more or less than

you are as a human being.

Bowie was a great human being.

When it comes to the musicians the composer has known and worked

with, it is hard keeping up with Jones.

That goes for presidents, too.

What about the presidential election?

Do not even talk about it.

We have one choice.

I would leave the country if that sucker won.

I assume you're referring to Mr Trump?

Yeah, whatever.

He is a very clever man.

He knows how to say what they want to hear, uneducated rednecks.

He knows how to talk to them.

He's not like that at all.

I used to hang out with him.

Did you?

Yeah.

Were you friends back then?

Yes, but he was not like that at all.

He would fly on his helicopter with his name on the bottom of it.

And what about how things are in your country now?

We keep reading reports of these difficulties

between the police and...?

Black kids.

It has been like that all the time.

You should have seen the '30s, '40s and '50s.

I came up in that.

In the '30s in Chicago, during the Depression,

I was a street rat.

I wanted to be a gangster until I was 11.

All I saw were dead bodies and tommy guns and piles of money in back

rooms and all that stuff.

This right there, I was on the wrong street, and they took a switchblade

and nailed my hand to the fence.

Right there, they put an ice pick on that.

My daddy hit them on the head with a hammer.

# I love you.

And as for racism, Jones remembers playing in Las Vegas in 1964,

backing Frank Sinatra as part of the Count Basie Orchestra.

Belafonte, Lena Horne, they had to eat in the kitchen.

They could not go in the casino.

They slept in a black hotel across town.

When we came there, Frank said, we're not going to have that.

He said, he old man wants to see you over at the slot machines.

Basie's old man was there, and 18 goombahs.

He put one with each guy, like a bodyguard.

He said, if anybody looks at them funny, break both of their legs.

Frank was tough, man.

He was tough.

He stopped racism.

So it was burgers with Sinatra on the Strip, but also fish

with Picasso on the French Riviera.

Didn't you live near Picasso for a while?

Yes, in Cannes, right next door.

We had lunch with him one year.

We had sole meuniere together.

After he finished, he took the bones and pushed them on the Croisette,

we were eating on the Croisette.

He pushed it out so the sun could parch the bones,

then he took the colours out of his pocket, a blue,

a yellow, and a red, and drew his designs on it.

When the check came, he pushed that out there.

Along all of the walls, all of his food was marked up.

That is how he paid for his dinners.

Unlike his fellow bandleader, the late, great James Brown,

Jones says he would not dream of fining musicians for missing

a beat and such misdemeanours.

What is the secret of getting the best out of them?

It is love, man.

Come on, that is not necessary, to be that kind of disciplinarian.

That is why I did not like that...

What was that movie that won the Oscar?

Whiplash.

It is BS.

No jazz musician would take that, throwing a chair at

a drummer, get out of here.

They'd kill him.

Thank you very much, everybody, and thank you to Quincy Jones

for the beautiful music.

What an amazing man.

Well, that is all from Reporters for this week.

From me, Philippa Thomas, goodbye.