A tautology is a needless repetition of an idea using different wording. For example: “Sooner or later the inevitable is bound to happen.” In this case, Bari Weiss is under fire from the stable of leftist, so-called journalists at CBS’s “60 Minutes” program. The rebellion is over a story (in fact, a hit piece), recently scheduled to run, about the Trump administration’s deportation of illegal immigrants to El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement CECOT prison. The story was “spiked” (in journalist lingo: killed or withheld) by Weiss in her capacity as their boss, the new editor-in-chief of CBS News.
Weiss, a self-proclaimed centrist, was hired for that job in October 2025 by Paramount Skydance (CBS’s parent company) presumably to expand its audience by creating more balanced reporting than the typical leftist and anti-Trump content on CBS, NBC, ABC, PBS, and CNN. Weiss’s role is to ultimately oversee and edit CBS News content, which is why I describe this conflict as “inevitable.” Weiss had earlier been hired by the NY Times in 2017 as a token moderate within its overwhelmingly left-wing opinion staff. Predictably, that didn’t work out. She publicly resigned in 2020 citing the narrow-minded, left-wing culture at the Times, open hostility and bullying from colleagues who called her “a Nazi and a racist,” intolerance of different viewpoints, and no interest in open debate. Facing a similar culture at CBS News, Weiss’s mission will be challenging.
Sharyn Alfonsi, the “60 Minutes” correspondent who produced the CECOT prison piece, publicly criticized Weiss claiming, “the story was factually correct and had been cleared by CBS lawyers and its standards division.” Alfonsi argued that, “pulling it now after every rigorous internal check has been met is not an editorial decision, it is a political one.” Weiss explained the story was one-sided, but that she’d air Alfonsi’s piece in a future broadcast when it was better balanced and ready. (Balance on “60 Minutes? Perish the thought.)
While Alfonsi’s story may contain some correct facts it can still be loaded with progressive, pro-Democrat, anti-Trump political spin, as is commonplace at “60 Minutes.” Alfonsi’s lame proof of fairness was the approval of CBS lawyers, its standards division, and rigorous internal checks, which is like having the fox guard the hen house.
Weiss stated that “the only newsroom I’m interested in running is one in which we are able to have contentious disagreements about the thorniest editorial matters with respect and, crucially, where we assume the best intent of our colleagues.”
Wading into this dispute was the Associated Press, an omnipresent international wire service even farther left than “60 minutes,” that notoriously puts out biased opinion pieces masquerading as news stories. Predictably defending “60 Minutes,” the AP described the program as, “one of journalism’s most respected brands.” Of course, it’s respected and revered by lefties and naïve viewers, but certainly not by conservatives and savvy objective followers of public policy. In its so-called news story, the AP noted that “60 Minutes” was “a frequent target of Trump,” which is true. But it failed to note that’s because Trump was a frequent target of “60 Minutes,” from which he defends himself. Furthermore, the AP feared Weiss’s appointment might be a signal that CBS News, “was headed in a more Trump-friendly direction.” Good Heaven’s, no! God forbid that CBS could be headed in a less unfriendly direction and treat Trump fairly.
Regarding CBS’s journalistic credibility, in October 2025, “60 Minutes” recorded an extensive interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, then the Democrat candidate for president. On October 6, CBS’s “Face the Nation” aired a clip from that recording in which “60 Minutes” correspondent Bill Whitaker asked a question about Israel and the behavior of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In her answer, Kamala rambled through one of her typical incoherent word salads. The very next day a prime time-special edition of “60 Minutes” aired a long version of the interview in which the word salad in Kamala’s answer had been edited out to spare her the embarrassment. After this trickery was publicly exposed on YouTube, CBS claimed it was edited to save time. Come on.
Trump subsequently sued CBS News and “60 Minutes” for $20 million over this scam, arguing it was deceptive editing. CBS and its parent, Paramount, settled out-of-court for $16 million, with the funds going to Trump’s future presidential library and his legal fees, but denied any wrongdoing saying the editing followed its standard journalist practice. It’s beautifully ironic that CBS’s defense is a virtual admission that its “standard journalist practice” was intentionally deceptive!
Longtime KOA radio talk host and columnist for the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News Mike Rosen now writes for Complete Colorado.
