'60 Minutes' pulls story about Trump deportations from its lineup
[December 23, 2025]
By DAVID BAUDER
An internal CBS News battle over a “60 Minutes” story critical of the
Trump administration has exploded publicly, with a correspondent
charging it was kept off the air for political reasons and news chief
Bari Weiss saying Monday the story did not “advance the ball.”
Two hours before airtime Sunday, CBS announced that the story where
correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi spoke to deportees who had been sent to El
Salvador's notorious CECOT prison, would not be a part of the show.
Weiss, the Free Press founder named CBS News editor-in-chief in October,
said it was her decision.
The dispute puts one of journalism's most respected brands — and a
frequent target of President Donald Trump — back in the spotlight and
amplifies questions about whether Weiss' appointment was a signal that
CBS News was headed in a more Trump-friendly direction.
Alfonsi, in an email sent to fellow “60 Minutes” correspondents said the
story was factually correct and had been cleared by CBS lawyers and its
standards division. But the Trump administration had refused to comment
for the story, and Weiss wanted a greater effort made to get their point
of view.
“In my view, pulling it now after every rigorous internal check has been
met is not an editorial decision, it is a political one,” Alfonsi wrote
in the email. She did not immediately respond to requests for comment
from The Associated Press.
Alfonsi said in the email that interviews were sought with or questions
directed to — sometimes both — the White House, State Department and
Department of Homeland Security.
“Government silence is a statement, not a VETO,” Alfonsi wrote. “Their
refusal to be interviewed is a tactical maneuver designed to kill the
story. If the administration's refusal to participate becomes a valid
reason to spike a story, we have effectively handed them a ‘kill switch’
for any reporting they find inconvenient.”
“Spike” is a journalist's term for killing a story. But Weiss, in a
statement, said that she looked forward to airing Alfonsi's piece “when
it's ready.”
Speaking Monday at the daily CBS News internal editorial call, Weiss was
clearly angered by Alfonsi's memo. A transcript of Weiss' message was
provided by CBS News.
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The CBS logo at the entrance to its headquarters, in New York Dec.
6, 2018. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)
“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,” Weiss said. “Anything else is completely
unacceptable.”
She said that while Alfonsi's story presented powerful testimony
about torture at the CECOT prison, The New York Times and other
outlets had already done similar work. “To run a story on this
subject two months later, we need to do more,” she said. “And this
is ‘60 Minutes.’ We need to be able to get the principals on the
record and on camera.”
It wasn't clear whether Weiss' involvement in seeking administration
comment was sought. She reportedly helped the newscast arrange
interviews with Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff this past fall to
discuss Trump's Middle East peace efforts. Trump himself was
interviewed by Norah O’Donnell on a “60 Minutes” telecast that aired
on Nov. 2.
Trump has been sharply critical of “60 Minutes.” He refused to grant
the show an interview prior to last fall’s election, then sued the
network over how it handled an interview with election opponent
Kamala Harris. CBS’ parent Paramount Global agreed to settle the
lawsuit by paying Trump $16 million this past summer. More recently,
Trump angrily reacted to correspondent Lesley Stahl’s interview with
Trump former ally turned critic Marjorie Taylor Greene.
“60 Minutes” was notably tough on Trump during the first months of
his second term, particularly in stories done by correspondent Scott
Pelley. In accepting an award from USC Annenberg earlier this month
for his journalism, Pelley noted that the stories were aired last
spring “with an absolute minimum of interference.”
Pelley said that people at “60 Minutes” were concerned about what
new ownership installed at Paramount this summer would mean for the
broadcast. “It’s early yet, but what I can tell you is we are doing
the same kinds of stories with the same kind of rigor, and we have
experienced no corporate interference of any kind,” Pelley said
then, according to deadline.com.
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