As controversy continues over a decision by the top editor of CBS News to spike a “60 Minutes” story critical of the Trump administration shortly before air time, the piece is now available on a Canadian streaming service. The story, “Inside CECOT,” focused on immigrants sent to the notorious Salvadoran prison by the Trump administration.
Journalists inside and outside CBS News criticized the decision by Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss, who took over the news organization in October after running a conservative website, The Free Press. Weiss says the story needed more reporting, including an on-camera response from the White House. But the story was held as the network’s parent company is pushing a hostile bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery — including CNN — and is reportedly seeking the backing of the Trump administration.
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What did the ‘60 Minutes’ episode show?
The story at the center of the controversy includes interviews with several people deported from the U.S. and sent to El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center, known as CECOT, under President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.
Those featured in the episode recount torture and physical and sexual abuse they suffered at the prison, according to NBC News.
“When we got there, the CECOT director was talking to us,” one detainee, Luis Munoz Pinto, told CBS. “The first thing he told us was that we would never see the light of day or night again.”
“He said, ‘Welcome to hell. I’ll make sure you never leave.’”
“60 Minutes” confirmed that authorities later released him from the facility. He said that he was awaiting a decision on his asylum claim in the U.S. when immigration authorities deported him.
Why was the show pulled?
Less than two days before the episode was scheduled to air, Weiss requested editors to schedule, shoot, edit and add an interview with White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, who reportedly has devised much of Trump’s immigration policy.
While last-minute edits frequently happen in the news, this wasn’t the first time Weiss had seen the episode and asked for edits, according to The New York Times. A day before, Weiss had suggested small changes and producers added them to the show. By Friday afternoon, “60 Minutes” editors gave CBS management the okay to start airing promotions of the show, according to The Times.
The publication also reported that Weiss did not appear at five screenings of the episode as producers worked on it. They say she could’ve raised concerns during any of those meetings.
Weiss defended her decision during a routine staff meeting Monday.
“I held that story because it was not ready,” Weiss said, according to a recording of her remarks obtained by several news outlets.
Weiss said that while the stories of those detained were “powerful,” other outlets had already published similar stories on the topic.
“The public knows that Venezuelans have been subjected to horrific treatment in this prison,” she said. If “60 Minutes” wanted to do the story, she said, “We simply need to do more.”
Producers from the show said they had asked the Department of Homeland Security, the White House and the State Department for an on-camera interview, but all three declined.
Newsroom’s reaction to the decision
Criticism of Weiss’ decision was swift. The “60 Minutes” correspondent who reported the story, Sharyn Alfonsi, said the decision gave the White House veto power over stories it doesn’t like.
“If the administration’s refusal to participate becomes a valid reason to spike a story,” she wrote in an email to colleagues, “we have effectively handed them a ‘kill switch’ for any reporting they find inconvenient.”
Journalists agree that it’s important to seek comments from all sides to give readers or viewers a full picture of an issue. However, that’s not always possible, and occasionally a side doesn’t want to give its opinion. When that happens, most stories will note the unsuccessful effort to obtain comment but will ultimately still publish the story.
Experts worry that allowing any party, especially a powerful entity like the White House, to prevent an outlet from publishing a story by simply declining an interview would create major problems.
The frustrations over the weekend carried over into the Monday staff meeting, according to The Times. Weiss said she wanted a newsroom “where we are able to have contentious disagreements about the thorniest editorial matters and do so with respect” during the meeting.
But in a later meeting with “60 Minutes” staff, Alfonsi reportedly said Weiss had never contacted her after pulling the episode.
“Disagreement requires discussion,” Alfonsi said.
Who is Bari Weiss?
In early October, CBS announced that it would hire Weiss as editor-in-chief of CBS News. She brought no traditional news reporting or editing experience to the job, having begun her career at the opinion pages of The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. Weiss left the Times in 2020 after three years, saying she was “bullied” by colleagues over her political views.
She created a successful Substack that attracted more subscribers than any other political newsletter on the platform. It became so successful that Weiss hired 10 employees and adopted the name The Free Press. Paramount Skydance, CBS News’ parent company, acquired The Free Press for $150 million earlier this year.
The deal came shortly after the company paid Trump $16 million to settle a lawsuit in which he claimed “60 Minutes” had edited a 2024 interview with Vice President Kamala Harris to boost her campaign against Trump. Legal experts agreed that the lawsuit had little merit since editing full interviews into small clips is an essential part of television news.
In the wake of the Trump settlement, Weiss’ entrance into CBS News’ top newsroom position was met with concern. Many worried her lack of newsroom experience and experience with reporters would hinder the company.
Many also raised concerns over her possible conflict of interest since she reports directly to David Ellison, head of Paramount Skydance. David Ellison is the son of Larry Ellison, who is also a close friend of Trump and the largest shareholder of Paramount Skydance.
The Guardian recently reported that Larry Ellison had discussed who he would fire from CNN if Paramount Skydance purchased Warner Bros. Discovery, CNN’s parent company. Paramount is also in the middle of a hostile counter to a deal between Netflix and Warner Bros.
By pulling the “60 Minutes” episode, Weiss added to concerns that she would skew the news to favor Trump. However, supporters say she makes editorial decisions without regard to David Ellison, according to The Times. But they have conceded that she was still “learning the ropes” and admitted she had mishandled the timing of her feedback.
