On Monday, Bari Weiss, CBS News\u2019 editor-in-chief, used the network\u2019s morning call to defend the temporary pulling of a 60 Minutes story scheduled to air on Sunday night.<\/p>\n
\u201cI held the story because it was not ready,\u201d Weiss said, according to a transcript from the call reportedly obtained by The Wall Street Journal<\/a>.<\/p>\n She added that the story, which revolved around the Trump administration deporting Venezuelan men to the maximum security prison CECOT in El Salvador, \u201cdid not advance the ball\u201d and needed more, including getting a response from a government official on camera.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is 60 Minutes,\u201d Weiss said. \u201cWe need to be able to make every effort to get the principals on the record and on camera.\u201d<\/p>\n NEW: Bari Weiss addresses her decision to hold last night’s CECOT story on the CBS News morning editorial call: “Our viewers come first, not a listing schedule or anything else\u2026” pic.twitter.com\/TGfHHNcVgG<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Ben Mullin (@BenMullin) December 22, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n News broke on Sunday that Weiss had shelved the story<\/a> on Saturday about the abuse at CECOT, which was reported by Sharyn Alfonsi and had been heavily promoted days before.\u00a0<\/p>\n The network put out a statement, saying, \u201cThe 60 Minutes report on \u2018Inside CECOT\u2019 will air in a future broadcast. We determined it needed additional reporting.\u201d<\/p>\n In an email obtained by Axios<\/a>, Weiss on Sunday shared guidance with 60 Minutes staffers on advancing the CECOT story, including seeking out Trump officials, obtaining more details about the 252 Venezuelans sent to CECOT, and outlining the legal arguments for sending them to that specific prison. She added, \u201cWe do our viewers the best service by presenting them with the full context they need to assess the story.\u201d<\/p>\n New: See the memo Bari Weiss sent to some 60 Minutes staff on Sunday: pic.twitter.com\/3ERieIGXLh<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Isabella Simonetti (@thesimonetti) December 22, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Meanwhile, over the weekend, Alfonsi emailed her colleagues to confirm the story\u2019s pulling<\/a>, reportedly saying she and her producer, Oriana Zill de Granados, had requested a meeting with Weiss to discuss the reason for the story\u2019s spike, but the CBS News editor-in-chief did not grant them that opportunity.<\/p>\n Alfonsi added that the story had been screened five times and cleared by the network\u2019s attorneys and standards and practices division. She called the story \u201cfactually correct\u201d and claimed the reason it was pulled was not an editorial decision but a \u201cpolitical one.\u201d<\/p>\n Alfonsi went on to add that they had \u201crequested responses to questions and\/or interviews with DHS, the White House, and the State Department,\u201d but received no response.\u00a0<\/p>\n 1. BREAKING<\/p>\n Sharyn Alfonsi, a correspondent for 60 Minutes, sent an internal email to colleagues stating that CBS News editor in chief Bari Weiss \u201cspiked our story\u201d about the Trump administration and the transfer of deportees to a prison in El Salvador.<\/p>\n [image or embed]<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Yashar Ali \ud83d\udc18 (@yasharali.bsky.social<\/a>) December 21, 2025 at 10:34 PM<\/a><\/p>\n Weiss has been at the helm of CBS News since October<\/a>, following Paramount\u2019s merger with Skydance Media. Reporting directly to Paramount CEO David Ellison, Weiss was described as bringing \u201ca passion for reaching broad audiences through rigorous, fact-based reporting and a relentless commitment to amplifying voices from all corners of the spectrum.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n During that time, Weiss has been working to remake the news division and has become one of the faces of the network, recently moderating a town hall with Erika Kirk. She also announced new on-air appointments<\/a>, including anchor Tony Dokoupil for its franchise evening news program, CBS Evening News.<\/p>\n