CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss pulled a 60 Minutes segment on alleged abuse at a Salvadoran prison housing Venezuelan deportees just 36 hours before airtime, prompting correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi to call the decision political rather than editorial in an internal email.
The segment, led by correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi, focused on CECOT, described by CBS as one of El Salvador’s harshest prisons. The Trump administration sent hundreds of Venezuelan migrants there in March. CBS News had already promoted the piece on air and through a press release, which referenced “the brutal and torturous conditions” that some recently released deportees claim they endured. A promotional video was also aired before being pulled along with the story.
According to internal sources cited by NPR, Weiss blocked the segment because it lacked an on-the-record response from senior administration officials. She pushed producers to secure an interview with a figure such as Trump adviser Stephen Miller. Alfonsi, in an internal email, denounced the move as “not an editorial decision, it is a political one,” and argued that refusal by government officials to participate should not serve as a veto on coverage. She stated: “Government silence is a statement, not a VETO.”
The decision was made amid an increasingly visible editorial shift at CBS News. Bari Weiss was appointed editor-in-chief in October after Skydance Media, led by David Ellison, acquired CBS’s parent company, Paramount Global. Weiss, founder of the Free Press and an opponent of what she describes as left-leaning media orthodoxy, has emphasized restoring trust in journalism through engagement between center-left and center-right viewpoints. Her leadership has coincided with broader restructuring efforts under Ellison, including layoffs and anchor shakeups at CBS.
Weiss defended the call to shelve the CECOT story in a staff meeting, arguing that while the piece contained “powerful testimony of torture,” it “did not advance the ball” and needed higher-level sources on the record. She maintained that for a show like 60 Minutes, which operates on long-lead investigative reporting, “we need to be able to get the principals on the record and on camera.”
This is not the first contentious move following CBS’s leadership transition. In December, CBS announced that Tony Dokoupil would assume the anchor role for the CBS Evening News in early 2026, replacing co-anchors Maurice DuBois and John Dickerson. Breitbart News reported internal backlash to the appointment, quoting anonymous CBS staff who criticized the selection as aligning with editor-in-chief Bari Weiss’s pro-Israel views and cited Dokoupil’s prior confrontation with author Ta-Nehisi Coates over antisemitism. Breitbart News characterized Dokoupil’s questioning as a rare instance of pushing back against media orthodoxy, which it suggested Weiss viewed favorably.
Weiss reportedly sought to recruit Fox News anchors Dana Perino and Brett Baier for the CBS Evening News anchor role before ultimately selecting Tony Dokoupil. Both reportedly declined due to contractual obligations. Weiss’s leadership at CBS News has coincided with ownership changes under Paramount chief David Ellison, whose family — particularly Oracle founder Larry Ellison — is known for supporting President Donald Trump. During the Skydance-Paramount merger process, David Ellison made promises to federal regulators that CBS would become more hospitable to conservatives.
The editorial recalibration at CBS comes amid internal debate over the handling of the CECOT report. NPR reported that the segment had undergone full reviews by senior producers, news executives, and the network’s legal and standards teams, according to two people familiar with the process. In an internal email, correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi said the decision to pull the piece reflected political considerations rather than an editorial judgment. A CBS spokesperson declined to comment, but indicated the revised programming announcement noted the story would air at a later date.
Weiss has said she aims to bring greater narrative balance to CBS News by encouraging engagement between center-left and center-right viewpoints. Her handling of the CECOT segment, however, has highlighted tensions over how immigration coverage is framed at the network. In earlier reviews, Weiss objected to describing the detainees as “Venezuelan migrants,” reportedly favoring the term “illegal immigrants,” language commonly used by the Trump administration. Many of the individuals sent to CECOT had applied for asylum and were awaiting decisions on their cases.
Trump has continued to criticize CBS following its acquisition by new ownership. After a 60 Minutes segment featuring Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, he posted on Truth Social: “THEY ARE NO BETTER THAN THE OLD OWNERS, who just paid me millions of Dollars for FAKE REPORTING about your favorite President, ME!” The remark referred to a $16 million settlement paid by Paramount’s previous ownership to resolve a lawsuit Trump brought over the editing of a 60 Minutes interview. The settlement included no apology or admission of wrongdoing and was part of efforts to facilitate Paramount’s sale to the Ellison family.
The CBS newsroom, meanwhile, has experienced substantial upheaval. Nearly 100 jobs were slashed, including high-profile departures and the planned overhaul of CBS Saturday Morning. Sources at the network described the atmosphere as “depressed and unhappy.”
