The “60 Minutes” story on the El Salvador prison that led to a rocky start for CBS News Editor in Chief Bari Weiss made it to air Sunday.
The segment, “Inside CECOT,” detailed the Trump administration’s treatment of hundreds of Venezuelan migrants who were deported to an El Salvador prison known for its harsh conditions. The story was scheduled to run Dec. 21 but was pulled the day before air by Weiss who believed it needed additional reporting, including a more robust response from the White House.
Sharyn Alfonsi, the “60 Minutes” correspondent who worked for months on the piece, protested the move by Weiss, calling it politically motivated in an email she sent to colleagues.
The appointment of Weiss, made in October by Paramount Chief Executive David Ellison, is seen by many CBS News insiders as a move to placate the Trump administration. The company wants a smooth regulatory path as it pursues the acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. Pulling a “60 Minutes” segment critical of the administration after it had already been promoted only intensified that perception.
CBS News maintained that the story would eventually run.
“CBS News leadership has always been committed to airing the 60 MINUTES CECOT piece as soon as it was ready,” the network said in a statement. “Tonight, viewers get to see it, along with other important stories, all of which speak to CBS News’ independence and the power of our storytelling.”
Weiss insisted Alfonsi’s story needed more reporting and remarks from a talking head from the White House. The version of the segment that aired Sunday has three and a half minutes of additional information but no new interviews.
The White House did provide statements, which were read by Alfonsi at the top and end of the segment. Data on the number of criminals apprehended by ICE was added to the story.
The program also revealed that one of the prisoners who described the abuse inside CECOT to Alfonsi had a swastika and three sixes tattoos on his body, which are associated with the Aryan Brotherhood, a gang of white supremacists.
The administration has used tattoos as a means to determine if an undocumented migrant is a gang member. The interview subject denied that he belonged to a gang and said he had no knowledge of what the tattoos represented.
The decision to pull the CECOT piece became a major media industry story. Weiss initially played down its importance saying it was a “slow news week.” But it was widely believed inside the news division that Weiss’ move was a major snafu that reflected her lack of experience as a TV news executive and awareness of the fishbowl nature of an industry where every action is scrutinized.
People close to Weiss say she since acknowledged she was not familiar with the process where the contents of a news program are distributed for promotional purposes and on-screen TV listings ahead of airtime. Weiss has also told colleagues she should have been involved earlier in the screening and vetting process for Alfonsi’s story. She did not see it until the Thursday before the Dec. 21 “60 Minutes” air date.
Trump has long criticized “60 Minutes,” often accusing the program of treating him unfairly. He extracted a $16 million settlement from CBS News after he sued over an interview with his opponent in the 2024 presidential race, Kamala Harris.
Trump claimed the program was deceptively edited to help Harris’ election efforts. While CBS News would have likely prevailed in court, the company made the payment to clear the way for Paramount’s merger with Skydance Media.
Weiss joined CBS News after Paramount acquired her digital news site the Free Press, which gained a following with its sharp critiques of leftist policies. Her first major move at the network was to provide a prime-time town hall for Erika Kirk, the widow of slain right-wing activist Charile Kirk.
Weiss has also overseen the so-far inauspicious revamp of “CBS Evening News” with its new anchor Tony Dokoupil. The early days of the program had technical glitches and was criticized for coverage that was too friendly to the Trump administration. One longtime senior producer, Javier Guzman, was fired after repeatedly expressing his disagreements with the direction of the program.
The program has had a number of embarrassing moments including President Trump telling Dokoupil that he would not have gotten the anchor job if Harris had won the 2024 presidential race.
