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Tuesday, December 23, 2025 |
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Merry Christmas Eve Eve. We'll be in your inbox tomorrow with a year-in-review edition, then on holiday until the New Year. Today, we have exclusive details about the "60 Minutes" reporting process, plus what the White House said in response. But first, the political dimensions of this drama... |
"60 Minutes," viewed politically |
"This is one of those moments in Donald Trump's presidency when an event that would otherwise be recognized as a death knell for democracy somehow fails to elicit the outrage it deserves," The Atlantic's Franklin Foer argues in this new piece.
Trump is turning the bidding war for CNN's parent Warner Bros. Discovery into a "medieval tournament, in which the king invites rival bidders to compete for his approval," Foer asserts.
Foer sees a connection to the current crisis at the CBS newsmagazine "60 Minutes" — and he's not alone.
Several things are happening simultaneously: CBS parent Paramount is chasing WBD, everyone involved knows that any deal would require Trump's approval, and Trump is publicly pressuring Paramount for more favorable news coverage.
Say what you will about the president, but he is an expert at identifying pressure points. Just a few months after calling Larry and David Ellison his friends and "supporters," he's now saying that they are treating him "worse" than the previous owners of Paramount.
Nevermind the fact that media moguls aren't supposed to be involved in news coverage — Trump thinks they are and wants them to stop the scrutiny of his administration.
So it's inevitable that this week's "60 Minutes" controversy is being seen through a political prism.
David Ellison, who installed Bari Weiss at CBS News, "has an incentive to crush CBS's independence and similarly renovate CNN, because the ultimate success of his conglomerate hinges on Trump blessing his bid for Warner Bros," Foer wrote.
To be clear, WBD remains in control of CNN, and there's no renovation happening right now. Furthermore, the CBS newsroom is doing great work day in and day out, despite the corporate circumstances. But CBS staffers have been reaching out to me unsolicited, saying that morale is exceedingly low and fear of retaliation is high. Correspondent
Sharyn Alfonsi perceives that her job is at risk.
But Alfonsi has many supporters inside and outside the CBS building. Just as in the
Jimmy Kimmel suspension case, a consumer backlash is now underway: CBS fans are hearing about the "60 Minutes" imbroglio and complaining about it. Viewers are calling and emailing local stations to register their concerns, and "we have no real support," a reporter at one of those stations told me.
CBS staffers listened closely to this morning's editorial call, waiting to hear what Weiss would say about the controversy, but she didn't mention it at all...
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In a statement last night, Jane Fonda and the recently reconstituted Committee for the First Amendment contemplated the news out of Paramount this year — the Trump settlement, the firing of Stephen Colbert, the hiring of a CBS ombudsman, etc. — and called the shelving of Alfonsi's story "beyond concerning."
The group said "this leads us to ask one question: Is Paramount, once again, kowtowing to appease the president, as its owner seeks administration approval to further expand his media empire with a hostile takeover of Warner Brothers Discovery?"
"Make no mistake about it: This is a sign, a flashing red light, warning us that political power and corporate power are working together at the expense of the First Amendment."
And like I said up above, CBS fans are paying attention. Media scholar Michael Socolow hit on this in a must-read new column with eight takeaways about the crisis. "From now on," he wrote, "the program will be viewed with additional suspicion by those who previously trusted it."
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Weiss tried to shelve it, but Alfonsi's report has reached a worldwide audience anyway, thanks to an (apparently inadvertent) stream by Global TV, which has the rights to air "60 Minutes" in Canada.
Networks like CBS sometimes deliver taped shows to affiliates like Global in advance. That appears to be what happened in this case: The "60" episode containing Alfonsi's report was thought to be finished on Friday, so it was digitally shipped up north and then posted online. Weiss forced the "60" crew to remove the Alfonsi report and remake the episode over the weekend — but someone neglected to tell Canada.
The Canadian video clips went viral on Reddit, Bluesky, and other platforms last night, even as Paramount tried to get some of them taken down, since the segment is copyrighted content. I wrote about it here.
While certainly embarrassing for Weiss and CBS, the incident proved what my late mentor David Carr wrote back in 2008: "Information not only wants to be free, its consumers are cunning, connected and will find a workaround on any defense that can be conceived."
>> Former "60" producer Chris Whipple watched the bootlegged segment and told CNN's Elex Michaelson last night: "It's a really strong investigative piece squarely in the tradition of '60 Minutes.' But here's the good news: If Bari Weiss thought she was burying the story, she's done exactly the opposite. It's become a cause célèbre."
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'60 Minutes' EP defends segment |
Executive producer Tanya Simon, who took charge at "60 Minutes" last summer, told colleagues yesterday that she defended the Alfonsi segment to Weiss but ultimately lost the battle, WaPo's Liam Scott and Scott Nover reported. "In the end, our editor in chief had a different vision for how the piece should be, and it came late in the process, and we were not in a position to address the notes," Simon said, according to a partial transcript obtained by WaPo. "We pushed back, we defended our story, but she wanted changes, and I ultimately had to comply."
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Here's the unanswered question: |
Why didn't Weiss speak up sooner? That's what the process part of this controversy is all about.
Some conservatives are coming to her defense, lamenting "liberal holdovers" at CBS who produced a biased piece, and cheering Weiss for trying to improve it.
Those arguments are predictable, but they don't engage with the big unanswered question: If you picture Weiss with a big red "STOP" button, and the ability to press it at any time, why didn't she do so until the episode was already finished and publicized?
As editor in chief, Weiss could have watched the story and weighed in at any point last week. She waited until late Thursday night, and she didn't hit the "STOP" button then, either. Instead, she gave perfectly standard feedback that the team addressed on Friday, three sources said.
The episode was announced, the social media promo was posted, all was well... Until Weiss hit "STOP" on Saturday. The odd timing — especially viewed in light of Paramount's Monday morning revised offer for WBD — is why so many people inside CBS are suspicious about their editor in chief's motivations.
According to the NYT's Michael Grynbaum, "even some of her supporters privately conceded on Monday that she was still learning the ropes of broadcast journalism and that she had mishandled the timing of her feedback."
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What the emails actually show: |
According to internal CBS documents I've reviewed, the Alfonsi report was in the works for months. The first official request for comment (and for an interview with Kristi Noem) was submitted to the Department of Homeland Security in November. Multiple follow-ups were sent in December. Pretty standard stuff.
Noem's press secretary said on Dec. 15, after several nudges, "we will let you know when we can accommodate this but not right now." The next day, the "60" team sent a detailed list of questions to the department.
Weiss can (and has) argued that the team should have tried harder. On the other hand, once the team contacted the White House for comment on Dec. 18, the response was exactly what a reporter would expect: A provocative jab at the media that didn't relate to the story Alfonsi was telling.
"60 Minutes should spend their time and energy amplifying the stories of Angel Parents, whose innocent American children have tragically been murdered by vicious illegal aliens that President Trump are removing from the country," Trump spokesperson Abigail Jackson told "60 Minutes" producers in an email I obtained.
Ordinarily, CBS would publish a comment like that on the web, perhaps, but not feature it on air. This is ultimately all about power — and Alfonsi's warning about giving the government a "kill switch" to suppress a story.
As Parker Molloy wrote at her Substack, The Present Age, "Think about what this standard would have meant historically... No Watergate, unless the burglars agreed to go on camera."
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WBD says it will review Paramount's amended bid |
WBD shares are moving back toward the $30 mark today after Paramount amended its takeover offer. After we sent out yesterday's newsletter, WBD "confirmed receipt" of the revised offer and said the board "will carefully review and consider" it.
>> In this newly published interview with Reuters, a major WBD shareholder said "the changes in Paramount’s new offer were necessary, but not sufficient," adding, "if Paramount is serious about winning, they’re going to need to provide a greater incentive." Meaning, more than $30 per share...
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How the NYT is ringing in its 175th anniversary |
Every New Year's Eve, I remind my (unimpressed) kids that Times Square is named for (my former employer) The New York Times. And the Times gets credit for the midnight celebration, too:
"Publisher Adolph Ochs wanted to celebrate his new building and the resurgent newspaper that had found success focusing on reporting 'without fear or favor.' At midnight, Ochs lit up the sky with a midnight fireworks display launched from the top of The Times building that still stands as One Times Square. Three years later the fireworks were replaced by an electrified orb. It became an instant tradition."
That's from this NYT announcement about its "yearlong celebration" of the publication's 175th year. Carolyn Ryan previewed the plans on "Morning Joe"...
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Poring over new Epstein files... |
Journalists who thought this holiday week would be blissfully news-free, think again. CNN's big homepage headline right now is "New trove of Epstein files is released with Trump's name in many places." A group of reporters are "reviewing the latest trove" of documents as I type. Here are the live updates...
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'Melania' on Trump's stage |
Brett Ratner's "Melania" documentary will premiere at the Kennedy Center, which the board recently renamed the "Trump Kennedy Center," as THR's Mia Galuppo reports here. No date for the premiere has been set.
>> Speaking of that questionable name change, Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty, an ex officio trustee, filed a lawsuit yesterday that challenges the board's action, CNN's Tierney Sneed reports.
>> BTW, the pretaped Kennedy Center Honors telecast will air tonight on CBS. Trump, wanting big ratings, is touting the show on Truth Social ahead of time. "Tell me what you think of my 'Master of Ceremony' abilities," he wrote. "If really good, would you like me to leave the Presidency in order to make 'hosting' a full time job?"
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'Inside ICE's media machine' |
In this exclusive WaPo report, Joyce Sohyun Lee and Drew Harwell document how ICE's public affairs arm "has rapidly transformed into an influencer-style media machine, churning out flashy videos of tactical operations and immigration raids," partly "to satisfy the White House." The report is based on thousands of internal chat messages. Read it here...
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>> Megyn Kelly talked to VF's Aidan McLaughlin and railed against Ben Shapiro and Bari Weiss, claiming they both are trying to "cancel me." (VF)
>> Asawin Suebsaeng says he keeps "hearing from Trump administration officials about how much of a problem for them that Candace Owens has become." (Zeteo)
>> Discovery Global (CNN's future parent) says Gap vet Adrienne O'Hara will become chief communications and public affairs officer. (Variety)
>> Versant will remain in the historic New York Times building rather than relocate to all-new digs. (TheWrap)
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>> Electronic Arts shareholders have "approved the $55 billion sale of the company... in a deal led by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund." (Bloomberg)
>> ChatGPT rolled out a Spotify Wrapped-like feature titled "Your Year with ChatGPT" to "eligible consumers in select markets.” (TechCrunch)
>> Threads "will launch podcast previews, or the ability to upload snippets of shows that play directly in user feeds, as part of a broader effort to encourage podcasters and their fans to spend more time on the social network." (Bloomberg)
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>> Vince Zampella, one of the creators behind the "Call of Duty" franchise, died Sunday. He was 55. (CNN)
>> "Barry Manilow has been diagnosed with lung cancer. The 82-year-old singer shared the health news on Instagram on Monday." (NY Post)
>> Universal Pictures has released the first official trailer for Christopher Nolan’s "The Odyssey." (YouTube)
>> "Mariah Carey's 'All I Want for Christmas Is You' adds a record-extending 21st week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100." (Billboard)
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