CBS News Editor Bari Weiss Pulls 60 Minutes Segment on El Salvador Prison Conditions Amid Controversy
Bari Weiss, CBS News editor-in-chief, pulled a 60 Minutes segment on El Salvador prison conditions and allegations regarding Venezuelan migrants reportedly sent by the Trump administration just days before it was set to air. The piece had been thoroughly edited, fact-checked, cleared by standards and legal teams, and had promotional trailers that reached millions of viewers.
The removal of the segment has been characterized as an act of censorship by an editor seeking to protect powerful, wealthy, and influential interests as well as the oligarchy. Sharyn Alfonsi, the correspondent for 60 Minutes, stated that the show sought substantive comment from the Trump administration but was denied, effectively invoking a “kill switch” for the story.
Despite its cancellation, the story remains newsworthy as it included on-camera testimony from an abused migrant and footage depicting inhumane treatment. Additionally, a federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to either plan returns or grant hearings for such migrants.
Weiss reportedly answers to David Ellison, whose company Paramount Skydance controls CBS’s parent company. Paramount Skydance is pursuing a bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, a move that may influence the editorial leadership at CBS if successful. This context includes a prior settlement with the Trump administration related to a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris that had been edited, which Stephen Colbert referred to as a “big bribe,” with the merger moving forward afterward.
The author of the critique argues that Weiss’s decision undermines CBS News’s integrity and calls on her to approve the segment and fulfill her role as an editor rather than serving as a tool for oligarchic interests.
