CBS News chief Bari Weiss pulls a '60 Minutes' story on deportations, sparking an outcry

CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss controversially pulled a "60 Minutes" segment detailing alleged abuses at an El Salvador detention center, just 36 hours before its scheduled broadcast. Weiss reportedly cited the need for an on-the-record comment from a high-level administration official, specifically seeking an interview with Stephen Miller. Correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi condemned the decision in an email to colleagues, calling it "political" rather than "editorial" and expressing concern that government silence could now be used to "veto" reporting. The story had passed multiple reviews by senior producers and legal teams. Weiss stated the segment, which featured testimony of torture, "did not advance the ball" beyond existing reports and that "principals" needed to be on the record. This action has sparked an outcry, especially given Weiss's background with The Free Press, a publication critical of mainstream media's perceived liberal bias. Her appointment at CBS under new ownership has been scrutinized, with promises made to make the network more hospitable to conservatives. The pulled story focused on Venezuelan migrants sent to the El Salvador facility by the Trump administration, with Weiss having previously objected to their description as "migrants" instead of "illegal immigrants."