tonight, an accidental incredible discovery. oklahoma state university revealing that a 28-year-old ph.d. student has discovered an entirely new dinosaur species. so this is a rendering of that species. a new one that we know. this is what it would have looked like when it lived about 66 million years ago. now, the ph.d. student thought he was studying the bones of a bird-like dinosaur referred to fondly as the chicken from hell. you can see why. then you notice the bones here were even smaller than that. he sent them out for further inspection. the results revealed the truth. it was not a chicken from hell. it was a totally new dinosaur

species. he said it made his heart skip a beat. that's love. time for anderson. tonight on "360," new cnn polling which shows which republican polling does better against president biden. why she likely won't face him. and what voters make of their choices. also, the mother of a school shooter on trial for involuntary manslaughter takes the stand. what she said today in defense of her parenting. later, just in time for our election, cnn brings us the story of a recent election elsewhere which was touched by ai deep fake technology, and the candidate is warning us to brace for impact here. good evening, everyone. john berman in for anderson. we begin with fresh evidence for anyone who believes for better or worse that the republican party is not on its way to nominating the strongest candidate against president biden. new cnn polling as with all polling is just a snap shot.

it does follow a trend. in it, president biden trails donald trump by 4 points. which is just outside the margin of error. that's the same as it was as far back as last october. on the other hand, when matched up against nikki haley, that gap widens to double digits. 13 points. 13 points versus 4 points for trump. her problem continues to be persuading republicans even in south carolina, her home state, where she is the underdog in the primary vote there later this month. jake tapper spoke with her today. >> why doesn't this electability argument mean more to republican voters, do you think? >> that's the argument we're trying to make. i think the reality is 70% of americans don't want a biden-trump rematch. that's a fact. the fact that we would have two 80-year-old presidents running for president is absurd. >> one of those, president biden, was in warren, michigan, speaking with auto workers

trying to capitalize on last week's endorsement by the union, the uaw, in what is expected to be a tough battle this november. with me here now, cnn commentator, trump white house commentator, also in columbia, south carolina, the pride of south carolina, cnn political analyst palmetto state lawmaker, alyssa, let me start with you. the poll is what the poll is. in all of them, it says that nikki haley beats joe biden by much more than donald trump does. so i'll ask you the same question. why doesn't that matter? >> this is the conundrum for this race. there are even bigger margins. at one point she was 17 points ahead of biden in a head to head match-up. the problem is we live, the right lives in this system where they just believe a different set of facts. if you surround yourself with folks who consistently say trump is the best fighter. the most capable. and you have all these congressional endorsements saying that as well, i think

voters start to believe it. and they would rather risk losing with trump than winning with nikki haley. his rock solid hold feels unbreakable despite that nikki haley is hands down a better candidate. >> so last night james carville was sitting here with me saying the longer nikki haley stays in the race, the happier he is. do you agree? is she hurting trump in a way that could help democrats? >> first the pride of south carolina is don staley right now. she's coaching tonight. i actually agree with nikki haley is doing the bidding of democrats as we sit here today and i'm sitting back and enjoying it. the longer she stays in the race, she's weakening donald trump. donald trump, let's just say, i play devil's advocate and the devil doesn't need any advocates. the reason nikki haley is doing far better is that donald trump has lived with the scrutiny since 2016. that light has been very bright on everything that he's done.

we've gone into his history. we know who donald trump truly is. that light has not shone brightly on nikki haley just yet. so that's why she's still doing that much better than joe biden. but look, if the republicans don't want to clues the best candidate, or the person who fares the best, then so be it. there is the result of what the republican party has become. and i don't want to use that lightly but they've become cult-like following people off a cliff. this is not rational. it doesn't make political sense. it doesn't make good common sense. then you have people who represent us in the halls of congress who are following this circus as well. so as a democrat, we want to run against donald trump. we want to run against donald trump badly and thank you, nikki haley, for staying in the race and continuing to wound him. >> how specifically does she wound him, do you think? >> because she's using a lot of the same lines and attack lines about his character. so what happens is, donald trump

is old, donald trump is beyond the pale, donald trump, the e. jean carroll suit was right and just. when we hear these attacks on donald trump that come from somebody who has the conservative credentials of nikki haley, they may start to stick. now, they're not going to stick with the people who wear the little red hats. but they will stick with people like suburban women, independent voters, college women. the best messenger may not be bakkari sellers. the best is nikki haley. go nikki! >> one of the best times he's ever said that. jake sellers asked about trump's political action committee paying $50 million. picking up the tab for his legal bills. listen to that exchange. >> it is unconscionable to me that a candidate would spend $50

million in legal fees. it explains why he's not doing many rallies. he doesn't have the money to do it. it explains why he doesn't want to get on a debate stage. he doesn't want to talk about why he's doing it. it explains why he had a temper tantrum the election night in new hampshire. he wants me out of the race and he wants to be the presumptive nominee so all that cash starts going to him and he doesn't have to spend anymore. >> unconscionable temper tantrum. they weren't around a month ago. >> i love this nikki haley and taking a different approach, i think it is better for the country. i think hearing a credible conservative. he's using his donors to pay his legal bills. that is literally it. >> do voters care? >> i'm not sure they do. the florida legislature, some republican members introduced a bill to make the state of florida pay for his bills. it won't happen. desantis would veto it. that shows the die-hard fans,

they think this is a witch hunt and they need to be with him. the fault does lie with other elected republicans for actually saying these cases were witch hunts. we're not coming out telling the god's honest truth that he mishandled classified documents. yeah, he will enter the general election not with the money he needs to win. >> let me ask you the questions about south carolina. there's a new poll that shows nikki haley trailing badly there. 58-32. i always wonder about south carolina. maybe you can explain this to me. there is no party registration in primaries there. yet we don't see what we see in new hampshire where you have this massive crossover voting in primaries there. could there be this time? could you see democrats and moderates coming out to save her in the republican primary? >> absolutely not. democrats aren't going to waste their time voting on february 24th. we're going to vote february 3rd

in the democratic primary. the parties here, unlike maybe new hampshire and other states where there is a shade of difference between democrats and republicans, there is a stark contrast between democrats and republicans in the state of south carolina. and democrats know nikki haley. we remember nikki haley for being the one who didn't accept medicaid and hospitals shut down. we remember the assault on the poor. we remember the assault on women. we still have shame on leadership. democrats aren't fools. to the point made a minute ago, donald trump is very scared of nikki haley. and south carolinians know that nikki haley is a very shrewd politician. i think most people would want to see nikki haley and donald trump on the stage together. we know that is not the case. i was watching go the other night and pablo escobar said there's only one man he's ever been frayed of. i believe there's only one plan

the donald trump is afraid of and that's nikki haley. >> have a wonderful evening. keeping them honest. he with give you a lawmaker saying the quiet part out loud and using the president's poll numbers to justify it. >> why would we do anything to help with the 33%? >> do you believe if joe biden's approval rating was at 53%, we would even be talking about the border? >> that's texas republican troy kneels when asked about backing the border bill and military aid package for ukraine and israel which now looks close to a vote. >> discussions are going well. i want members to be aware that we plan to post the full text of the national security supplemental as early as tomorrow, no later than sunday. as for the timing of the vote, i plan to file cloeture on the motion to proceed on monday leading to the first vote on the

national security supplemental no later than wednesday. >> whether it gets the 60 votes needed is unclear. if and when it hits the republican-controlled house is not. from congressman neals to johnson, it faces stiff republican opposition to put it mildly. even though as republican senator lisa murkowski said yesterday, reaching this deal is precisely what house republicans asked them to do. even though the top republican negotiator is james lankford who recently described it there way. >> there bill focuses on getting us to zero illegal crossings a day. there is no amnesty. it increases officers, detention bes so we can quickly detain and deport individuals. it ends catch and release. it focuses on additional deportation flights out. it changes our asylum process so people get a fast asylum

screening at a higher standard and then get returned back to their home country. >> so this is what the congressman is speaking out against. a bill neither he nor his house colleagues have even seen. texas congressman neals. he also has policy differences preferring house republicans' original bill. it's not the first time he's voiced his partisan political motive for opposing the compromise. almost a month ago to the day, he said let me tell you, i'm not willing to do too damn much to help a democrat and to help joe biden's approval rating. as we and others have been reporting and republican senators allege, that's also the former president's motivation. donald trump's motivation. none of which is sitting well with another republican in the texas delegation. >> i'm extremely disappointed in the very strange maneuvering by many on the right to torpedo a potential border reform bill.

that's what we all ran on doing. if we have a bill that decreases illegal immigration, we need to see what's in it. if we have a bill that on net significantly decreases illegal immigration, and we sabotage that, as inconsistent as what we told our voters we would do. and people will make up whatever reasons they want to. there's a number of them, i'm sure. it would be pretty unacceptable dereliction of your duty. >> congressman crenshaw had this to say. the height of stupidity, he said, is having a strong opinion on something you know nothing about. more now from melanie who joins us from the capitol. is this move by senator schumer to have a vote next week likely to force republicans' hand? >> it's certainly going to be a showdown. chuck schumer said we are expected to see the long-awaited bill tax sometime over the next

few days. then they are expected to start voting early next week with the senate adding some days to its schedule in order to anticipate this vote next week. as a reminder, it is not only going to improve the border security deal but aid for ukraine, israel, and taiwan which is what president biden had initially requested. it is very unclear whether this is going to pass. as a reminder, anything needs 60 votes in the senate to advance. this package is already facing opposition from the right from former president trump and even from the left with some democrats concerned that this conservative proposal goes too far in leading to some republicans' demands. even if it passes the senate, this bill is dead on arrival in the house. right now, there is a lot of uncertainty about the path ahead. there are some growing doubts even among republican leaders that this will wind up on biden's desk. >> so what is plan b if or maybe when this package fails? >> well, there is some talk

among leadership about trying to split off the bill and trying to do a stand-alone bill for israel and ukraine. even that is likely to face head winds inside the gop. there's many republicans who are resistant to more ukraine aid. that's why there was this effort in the first place to try the pair ukraine aid with border security policy changes. something that republicans had been demanding. something that they've wanted for many decades really on capitol hill. ironically, john, those same republicans who were demanding that the two issues be linked are now the same republicans who are criticizing and throwing cold water on this deal even though it has yet to be released. zbll next, he is charged with involuntary manslaughter for what her school shooter son did. next, what jennifer crumbley did as a parent. later, the migrants charged

with attacking two nypd officers may be fleeing. new reports on their possible whereabouts on "360."

in this country, no parent has ever faced involuntary manslaughter charges for a school shooting their child carried out. until the parents of michigan's school shooter were, which means

until jennifer crumbley took the stand today no, mother has had to testify in her own defense in connection with the deadly actions of her son. more now from jean casarez. >> that was the hardest thing i had to stomach. that my child harmed and killed other people. >> the mother of the oxford, michigan shooter who killed four high school students in 2021 for the first time defending herself in court. >> i've asked myself if i would have done anything differently. and i wouldn't have. >> if you could change what happened, would you? >> absolutely. i wish he would have killed us instead. >> jennifer crumbley charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter after she and her husband got a gun for their 15-year-old son days before the massacre. she has pleaded not guilty and appears to be shifting blame to her husband in her testimony.

>> who is responsible for storing the gun? >> my husband is. >> okay. explain why you say he's responsible for that role. >> i just didn't feel comfortable being in charge of that. it was more his thing. i let him handle that. >> she maintains she had no reason to believe her son was a danger to anyone else. >> as a parent, you spend your whole life trying to protect your child from other dangers. you never would think you have to protect your child from hurting somebody else. that's what blew my mind. >> she recounted the moment her husband called telling her the gun was missing. >> just like, oh, my gosh. he has the gun. i didn't actually think he was at the school shooting it. i thought maybe he walked home and got the gun and was in the field by the school. i didn't imagine my son actually going to the school and

shooting. when we got more updates, oh, my gosh. he's a school shooter. he's going to kill myself. in my mind that's what school shooters have done. they kill themselves after. i yelled, ethan, don't do it. i thought he would kill himself. >> revealed in court before crumbley took the stand, journal entries of the shooter days before he opened fire, killing four classmates. he writes, i have zero help from my mental problems and it is causing me to shoot up the f'ing school. my parents won't listen to me about help or a therapist. the journal seen here was found in the shooter's backpack that he brought with him that morning. spilled out on the school's bathroom floor. however, jennifer crumbley testified her son never asked her to get help for mental health issues. >> do you recall there ever being a time where he asked you to go to a doctor or to get help and you said no? >> no. >> or laughed at him. >> no. there were a couple of time where ethan expressed anxiety

over taking tests. anxiety about what he was going to do after high school. but not to a level where i felt he needed to go see a psychiatrist or a mental health professional right away, no. >> crumbley describes threats she said she and her husband received after the shooting. >> i was feeling pretty scared. >> scared of what? >> scared that somebody might hurt us. >> the defense also attempted to portray jennifer as a normal mother. >> every year, around thanksgiving, i always cook thanksgiving dinner. the day after, we go cut our christmas tree down. he was a big history buff. we could play trivial pursuit and he gets me every time. >> first thing tomorrow morning cross-examination by the prosecutor. i think it will be long, extensive, scathing. the prosecutor is just going to try to get every hole that they can find from that direct examination.

>> key points? >> i think key points are many involving the gun. because the gun case was open. she talked about the cable lock that was always on it. we see the gun case was open in the master bedroom on the bed. so ethan took the gun. where's the cable lock? we don't see that anywhere. if it was locked all the time, wouldn't you find it? many other things that they'll focus on. >> okay. stick around. i want to bring in laura coates. what did you make of jennifer crumbley's testimony today? specifically her references to her husband and the fact that he purchased the gun and was responsible for storing it? >> i was really riveted by today's testimony. i was wondering what she would say. how she would appear. what would be her demeanor. how she would respond to the give and take of the questioning. how she would turn to the jury. how would she present herself? empathetic? self-assured? a lot of it came out in how she related the story.

particularly on the point you're talking about. notice her husband and i are not being tried together. that should have been the first clue you'll have a little finger pointing to suggest wasn't me. i'm not the one holding the bag. she referenced only him purchasing the gun but his knowledge that guns were his thing. she wasn't comfortable with it. she deferred to him on these issues. also, she pointed toward the school. and their handling of that day. that fateful day. the different drawings and beyond. they're what seemed to her was a lack of urgency. the sage advice about perspective treatment in the future but not actually talking about a real present and imminent threat to bodily harm and death. so i think she was looking at a way to suggest that look, if i am the person who is supposed to be blamed, well, there's blame to go around and i didn't have the knowledge. she talked about, i know jean said this as well. there were moments in the discovery process, a fancy with

a of saying when the prosecution has to give you evidence they'll use against you. it was not until then she learned about some of the troubles he was facing at school. so without that foreseeability and notice, she's trying to make the defense that i had no idea and had i known, had i known, i would have been armed with the appropriate tools. but i didn't. >> the judge ruled that the shooter's two jail psychiatrists will not be able to testify. why is that significant? >> this is significant, just what laura is saying. once he got in jail he told his psychiatrist, yes, i texted to my friend that i asked my parents for help and they wouldn't help me but i was lying. i really didn't ask them. and other things are coming in. he wrote in his journal that he was researching. he wasn't sure if he wanted to be a serial killer or a mass murderer. he said i think i'll be a mass murderer. he said i was born this way, he writes, and no one can stop me.

that's not coming to this trial before this jury. >> there was a moment at the end of proceedings which really peaked my interests. the defense attorney said they did not agree about how to handle the rest of the defense's case. so what do we think that means? how common is it? why would a defense lawyer say that? >> that was a really important moment. i'm so glad you noticed it. the lawyers in charge of the legal arguments, obviously, the strategy overall. they must defer in many respects to have that relationship maintained. she was signaling to the court in no shortage of term. we have a disagreement about the rest of the people who will testify in this trial. what she might use in evidence and who might take the stand. perhaps the lawyer is saying, you might want to call that person. you may think that person is helpful to you. you can be attacked on credibility. they can be impeached. not just a political term but in a courtroom to mean their credibility is attacked. that something that's a part of the trial may come up.

that you open the door for the prosecution in their rebuttal case after we rest as a case to come against you. there could be a real at-odds moment. also, all the discussion about hallucinations and whether he was somebody who was not in his right mind throughout. she really downplayed discussion on this. i wonder how that will play in later in the trial. >> all right. laura, we'll see you at 11:00. jean casarez. we'll see you tomorrow. ahead, new developments in this attack on two new york police officers over the weekend. seven migrants charged. and word now that four may be trying to flee. john miller joins with us the very latest only. plus the house ethics committee investigation into matt gaetz may be expanding as they say they have someone who was once very close to him they now want to question. details ahead.

the fight over the border security bill takes place as a senior official tells cnn that four of the seven migrants charged in this attack last week on two new york police officers, they've left the city and they may be fleeing to mexico. they're believed to be headed by bus to california. the officers are trying to break up a disorderly group in times square. we're joined by a former nypd deputy commissioner, john, what are you hearing from your sources tonight? >> what we're seeing is kind of a clash, a collision of themes that have deeply affected new york and the country while

congress talks about our border bill. one is the waves of migrants who have come here and the city's struggle to be able to provide for them with what the mayor has said many times. eric adams, not enough help from the federal government. at the same time, you have this incident that highlights some of the tensions where you've got an assault on police officers trying to make an arrest by a group outside a migrant shelter. and then they are tracked down and arrested by detectives, brought to court where the district attorney' office does not ask for them to be held on bail even though they have no rights in the community. and now, they are traveling, according to my sources and the nypd, on a bus toward the mexican border, under false names, after getting tickets from a fated-based charity organization. so you see a lot of tension here. and some anger on the idea of

what the police detectives u union. >> so they're on a bus. they're known to be on baas. can they be pursued? apprehended and brought back here? >> so the obvious answer is not yet. they were released on their own recog recognizance. had they been held on bail, had they made bail, had their been restrictions saying don't leave town, that would be different. it would be a violation of their conditions. since they're released on their own recognizance, the assumption has to be innocent until proven guilty, but also that they'll return to court. it's just that generally people who will return to court don't travel under false names. this is what is stirring anger with the police union, the critics of the criminal reform bills. >> that was a local prosecutor's

decision not to seek bail? >> that's right. you have a district attorney who doesn't ask to seek bail and you have a judge saying, shouldn't we set bail here? it's a bailable offense. even under the new laws. it is a crime where you have to weigh what is the likelihood of their return to court which is getting thinner by the minute. >> let me play this from the nypd patrol. >> reprehensible. cowards. you have eight people attacking a lieutenant and a cop, running up to them, trying to kick they will in the face and kick they will in the face. you want to know why cops are getting assaulted? there are no consequences. we must change this. end of story. >> police seem ticked off. >> to say the least. i don't think we've heard the last of the story but we'll stay on it. >> all right. thank you for this reporting. the exclusive reporting. back to congress where we

have an important update on the house ethics committee on the matt gaetz. they say members have reached out to someone who was a key witness in the federal investigation of gaetz that end ad area ago, assigned that it might be expanding. paul rejoins us with the latest on this. who is this witness? how did they figure into the ethics investigation? >> i want to be clear. we're not talking about the woman who was still 17 when she allegedly had a sexual encounter with a congressman. we reported last week that individual has been contacted by the committee. now we're talking about a different woman. she's a former capitol hill staffer who has been linked romantically to the congressman as far back as 2017. that time period is significant because that's when the congressman allegedly had sex with a minor. now, this ex-girlfriend ended up being a key witness in the federal investigation into the congressman. she was granted immunity for any criminal liability she could have and she testified before

the grand jury in that investigation. but of course, the justice department wrapped up its probe into the congressman last year without any charges being filed. now, this outreach is significant because it's another sign that this ethics probe is expanding to include looking at potential sex trafficking, possible illicit drug use, and questions about whether the congressman received anything improper in terms of trips and other gifts he may have received. these are the kind of things his ex-girlfriend was asked about in the federal investigation and may be asked about here. she is not expected to cooperate voluntarily in the ethics probe. so it is expected they would likely have to subpoena her. >> what is congressman gaetz saying about all this? >> he's clearly not very happy about tethics probe. he previously blamed kevin mccarthy for resurrecting this ethics probe that had been put on hold while the federal investigation moved forward. after cnn broke the news that

this ethics investigation, they were starting to reach out to witnesses, gaetz privately blamed mccarthy and ousted him. then the ethics committee is engaging in payback for ousting the person who appointed every republican. now mccarthy has denied being really the power behind this ethic probe. i want to point out that since mccarthy has been ousted, this investigation has not only continued. it has expanded and become much more aggressive than it was when he was speaker. >> all right. cnn chief legal affairs correspondent, thank you very much. just ahead, the story of a closely divided electorate in a deep fake scandal days before votes were cast that may have had an effect on the outcome. this is a cautionary tale for u.s. politics, next.

it has been more than a week since ai in biden's voice told people not to vote in the primary. we don't know who is behind it. it worries experts, particularly as ai-generated speech exists in a legal gray area and lawmakers are far from any kind of legislative solution. there is no indication that this robocall affected results, but a report a close election in

europe where a last-minute deep fake may have had an effect. >> does this sound like you? >> it does sound like me. >> it sounds like him but it isn't him. this is michael. he's the leader of the opposition party in slovakia. on the eve of this country's elections, he was the target of a deep fake. >> my party was add indicating a strong pro western european course to help itself end the russian aggression. >> two days before voting began in the high-stakes election, this audio began circulating online. it purported to be a conversation in which he talks about stealing the election. >> this didn't come out of the blue. it came against the back drop of a narrative that the elections were to be legitimate. >> his party progressive slovakia went on to lose the election by a few points. >> do you think this could have

changed the results? >> no way of knowing. we have stats on facebook alone, 100,000 views. but it probably had some effect. >> slovakia is a country of some 5.5 million people and it is bordered by poland and ukraine. so a lot of experts say americans should be paying closer attention to what is happening in eastern europe as it could be a sign of what is to come in the united states. >> brace yourself for upcoming barrage of fakes. >> he ran a government agency in slovakia that countered disinformation. >> in my professional capacity, i believe this is part of a wider campaign by russia to interfere in slovakian elections. >> on the same day, the russian foreign intelligence agency pushed a similar conspiracy theory that the u.s. government and he were working to rig

slovakia's elections. the director of nato said that the deep fake and that statement correspond to each other and promote the same false narrative. >> so you don't think the statements and the deep fake, that they came out almost at the same time. you don't think it is a coincidence. >> no. a much more likely explanation to me is that this is all part of a wider operation that was aimed to affect the outcome of the elections. >> one of the earliest postals came from a pro russian politician in slovakia who also pushed conspiracy theories on russian tv. >> some of the first people to share it on russian tv here seemed to be pretty russia-friendly politicians. >> they are. it can be proven that this is has some russian origin. of course, the loss for

progressive slovakia and the win for the other side would and does serve russian interests. that's for sure. >> kremlin officials did not apply for request for comment. even today, months after the election in slovakia, there are still versions of that deep fake circulating on social media including facebook. >> it was very inconsistent, incoherent. in some cases, they put a label that this is most likely this information. they removed the recording. in other cases they left the video untouched. put your house in order. >> asked about ai misinformation, facebook's parent company that we label it and downrank it and feed so fewer people see it. but cnn found multiple instances where the company did not label it deep fake and the statement did not explain why. regardless, once it spreads the damage can be done. even his own supporters were

confused. >> people who are educated follow politics, they were still confused. >> really. >> so people who are politically engaged, supporters of you. >> absolutely. so i think this might be the year when we see a deep fake boom in election complaints across the world. >> that's ominous with our election just ahead. you mentioned this could be a sign of what's to come. what is the u.s. government doing about this? >> yeah. absolutely. from officials we've spoken to, this is something very, very much on their radar and there are concerns about how this could play a factor in not just a presidential election but elections all down the ballot and across the country. and the thing is, this technology, you know, to make fakes like this, to make a fake of my voice, or your voice, now the technology, you only need a few minutes.

sometimes even less. the audio of their voice and you can make it sound like they said anything. in the past this type of thing might have been only available in the realm of nation state actors and governments to create this sort of disinformation. n now anybody can do it. >> thank you very much. so what do you do if people are not saying nice things about you online? if you're china, apparently you censor them. how the government is doing its best to wipe the internet clean about anything negative about one of their major sources of pride. that's next.

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and hold them accountable. vote yes on e. china is known for cracking down on critics, and now the government's internet sensors have focused on a growing target, critics of the nation's economy. details from cnn's ivan watson. the world's second largest economy had a tough year in 2023. now, one of the beijing's answers to the challenge, ban and erase criticism of it. in december, china's ministry of state security issued this order. resolutely crack down and punish illegal criminal activities that endanger national security in the economic security field. apparently, that includes disappearing negative commentary from the already heavily censored chinese internet.

[ speaking in a non-english language ] >> reporter: on december 1st, this prominent economic professor advised people not to invest in the falling chinese stock market. now all of professor lu's social media accounts are frozen. and when you click to follow him, you get this message which translates, tds forbidden to follow this user due to their violation of relevant rules. cnn found similar freezes temporarily imposed on at least five other chinese economic analysts. also removed from the internet, this documentary highlighting economic hardship among chinese migrant workers. >> i think the chinese economy is at a -- at the moment. i don't think it has stopped falling off the cliff yet, but it's getting to a point where things can get much more difficult. >> reporter: officially, the chinese economy grew by more than 5% last year. but the country youth

unemployment rate keeps hitting record highs. then there's china's all important real estate sector, which along with related industries, used to make up 30% of the chinese economy. >> this is the hong kong office of the biggest symbol of china's real estate crisis, ever grand. until two years ago, this company was the largest home builder in china, employing some 200,000 people. then the company defaulted on its debt. and now a court here in hong kong has ordered the liquidation of evergrande. across the country, prozests as angry new home buyers demand completion of unfinished homes that they've already paid for. perhaps the only other sector gloomier is the country's stock market. in the past three years, the combined chinese stock market lost more than $6 trillion. >> translator: i haven't made any money out of the stock market, so i sold all my stocks.

>> translator: the chinese economy is strong, and it will be stronger, says this beijing resident. >> reporter: perhaps she got the message from this recent meeting of the country's top propaganda officials. their order, amplify fright prospects of the economy, as china heads into 2024. >> so, before i bring ivan in, i want to show you cnn's feed of this program, as it's being seen in china, or more accurately, at what chinese sensors replaced it with as soon as we mentioned the story that you just saw. again, color bars there. it's not going out. so, ivan, if china is censoring economists and cnn is reporting about it and most of their economic data is released, it comes from the chinese government. how hard is it to get a true picture of the state of the chinese economy? >> it's a big question. it's long been a big question for economists and investors.

the reliability of these numbers, especially back in august, when the government announced it would stop publishing youth unemployment numbers after several months of record highs. the mood has changed a lot. you know, foreign companies, they used to line up to try to get access to the huge chinese market. last year, for the first time in 25 years, john, foreign direct investment into china went into the negative. that means foreign companies appeared to be pulling out more money than they were investing into their corporations, into their operations. companies like vanguard, that asset management company, telling cnn it was selling its stake and closing its office in shanghai at the end of last year. the chinese government has got a long way to go to rebuild its credibility with international corporations and also, i would argue, with chinese consumers. and i'm not sure that censorship and ordering officials to paint rosy pictures about the economy, that that's a winning strategy

to build consumer confidence in an economy that clearly has some big problems. >> revealing report there. thank you very much. we'll be right back.

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