CBS News Significantly Trims Donald Trump's TV Program Sit-Down, Removing Claim Regarding Network Compensating Him Substantial Funds

The CBS News program 60 Minutes heavily edited an interview featuring Donald Trump broadcast on Sunday evening, representing the initial one-on-one on the show in five years.

The former president sat down alongside journalist the CBS anchor for 90 minutes, but only approximately half an hour aired on television. A complete text version of the interview subsequently released, alongside a 73-minute online version from the interview.

The edits stand out because, exactly one year before Trump's interview with O’Donnell in Florida, he had sued CBS regarding the editing of a 60 Minutes segment featuring the vice president, claiming it was deceptively edited to help her chances in the presidential election.

While many legal experts widely dismissed the lawsuit as “meritless” and improbable to succeed on free speech grounds, CBS reached an agreement with Trump for $16m this past summer. As part of the agreement, the network committed to publish full records of future interviews of presidential candidates.

During the opening of Sunday’s show, the correspondent informed the audience that Paramount resolved Trump’s lawsuit, but noted that “the settlement did not include an apology or admission of wrongdoing”.

In the conversation, in one segment that did not air, Trump teased the network over the settlement and repeated his allegations against the network.

“Actually the program gave me a lotta money. You need not put this on, since I do not wish to embarrass you, and I’m sure that you are not,” the president stated. “But the show had to compensate me a large amount since they took her answer from the segment that was so bad, it proved decisive, 48 hours before the election. They inserted a different response in. And they paid me handsomely for that. We cannot tolerate fake news. You’ve gotta have legit news. And I think that it’s happening.”

In a separate segment not broadcast from the discussion, Trump praised the sale of the network to the Ellison family noting the broadcaster's recently appointed head, Bari Weiss, is a “great new leader”.

Trump admitted he was not acquainted with Weiss, but told the interviewer: “I hear she is impressive.

“I think you've acquired a great new leader, honestly, that individual now heading your whole enterprise, is a great – based on what I've heard,” he remarked.

The president was particularly enthusiastic in praising David Ellison and his father, Larry Ellison, the recent purchaser of the network's parent firm, Paramount, through their company Skydance.

“I think one of the best things recently is this show and new ownership, CBS and new ownership,” the president commented. “I believe it is a major improvement that’s happened in a long time to a free and open and good press.”

The correspondent offered no direct reply regarding these remarks about Weiss and the owners.

Among the president's responses which were cut were several comments doubting the integrity of the last election, which he said “had been manipulated and unlawfully taken”.

During one exchange in the conversation, in a segment that was not aired, the president attempted to persuade the journalist to acknowledge that safety had improved in the capital, where she lives.

“You live here. You are aware of this,” the president said, asking O’Donnell: “Have you noticed a difference?”

“I believe I have been occupied too hard,” she replied. “I have not gotten outside that much … I drive to the studio and I go home.”

The president said “that is an evasion” maintaining that the journalist noticed a difference.

Trump then implied that the back-and-forth need not be included in the program.

“You don’t have to use that one,” he noted. “Don’t worry, don’t worry, I don’t want to embarrass her.”