\u201cHow embarrassing,\u201d one network staffer told The Independent. \u201cBari\u2019s been Editor-in-Chief for five seconds and has revealed that all she really wants is to be on TV herself.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Guardian first reported this week<\/a> that Weiss \u2013 the heterodox founder of \u201canti-woke\u201d digital media outlet The Free Press who was tapped this fall to lead the Tiffany Network\u2019s newsroom \u2013 is scheduled to host the event with Erika Kirk, which is set to air December 13 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS News.<\/p>\n The network later issued a press release for the town hall Thursday morning, providing additional details about the event and noting that Kirk \u201cwill open up about life, loss, the state of political discourse\u201d following the assassination of her husband three months ago. <\/p>\n \u201cThe event, filmed before a studio audience, will feature Kirk fielding questions from young evangelicals, prominent religious leaders and figures across the political spectrum. The conversation will also focus on our country\u2019s political divide \u2013 and how we can find our way out,\u201d the network\u2019s press release stated. <\/p>\n open image in gallery<\/p>\n Bari Weiss is scheduled to make her first on-air appearance for CBS News, moderating a town hall featuring Erika Kirk. (Getty)<\/p>\n \u201cLike so many people around the world, I will never forget the moment that Erika Kirk forgave her husband\u2019s killer,\u201d Weiss said in a statement. \u201cI am eager to speak to her\u2014and thrilled to be doing so in front of a group of Americans who I know will elevate the conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n Kirk, who has assumed the mantle of chairman and CEO of right-wing youth organization Turning Point USA following the death of her spouse, has emerged as a prominent voice in the conservative media and political ecosphere in recent months. Besides sitting down<\/a> with various right-wing media outlets and podcasters for interviews, she\u2019s appeared at TPUSA live events<\/a> and closed out the New York Times\u2019 DealBook summit<\/a> this week.<\/p>\n According to CBS, the one-hour town hall will air on CBS Television Network and stream later on Paramount+ and CBS News 24\/7. The special will preempt the network\u2019s previously scheduled broadcast of the 28th annual Family Film and TV Awards, which will be moved to the following Saturday night.<\/p>\n According to a previously unpublicized sign-up form<\/a> that solicited attendees, the event will be taped before a studio audience in New York City on December 10 at noon. Those who requested to be in attendance for the town hall were asked a series of questions, such as \u201cdo you consider yourself a conservative,\u201d whether they are \u201cgrieving the loss of a loved one,\u201d and if they are evangelical Christians.<\/p>\n Since Paramount chief David Ellison installed her to lead the newsroom in October, complete with a mandate to hold \u201cboth American political parties to equal scrutiny\u201d<\/a> with CBS News\u2019 coverage, Weiss has been looking to shake things up at the network. This has included her efforts to poach a big-name talent<\/a> from other news organizations to revamp CBS News\u2019 perennially third-place evening broadcast.<\/p>\n Weiss has also played a significant role in organizing CBS News interviews with influential public figures such as Hillary Clinton and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but had yet to step in front of the camera. Suzy Weiss, Weiss\u2019 sister and co-founder of The Free Press, has already sat down<\/a> for CBS News segments since Ellison purchased the digital site for $150 million.<\/p>\n However, now that the top editor \u2013 who has already been heavily scrutinized by much of the staff<\/a> over her perceived lack of qualifications in broadcast journalism \u2013 has given herself a primetime televised special, employees at the network are less than impressed.<\/p>\n \u201cBonkers,\u201d one reporter said, adding that the staff was initially left in the dark about this event when The Guardian first reported on it.<\/p>\n open image in gallery<\/p>\n \u2018Bari\u2019s been Editor-in-Chief for five seconds and has revealed that all she really wants is to be on TV herself,\u2019 one CBS News staffer said about Weiss moderating a network special. (YouTube)<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve been told nothing about this officially,\u201d the reporter added. \u201cNo emails or press release or anything. It\u2019s absolutely absurd.\u201d<\/p>\n The same source also suggested that Weiss \u2013 who reports directly to Ellison \u2013 was using her perch atop the newsroom to promote herself. \u201cShe wants to be on TV \u2013 not make it,\u201d they declared.<\/p>\n The network staffer, who echoed those sentiments, also wondered whether Ellison \u2013 who took over Paramount after the politically fraught merger with Skydance Media was approved by the Trump administration in August \u2013 was perhaps already regretting his hiring of Weiss.<\/p>\n \u201cIt doesn\u2019t get more toe-curling than this,\u201d the staffer said. \u201cDavid Ellison must be mortified by his $150 million investment in someone who\u2019s so quickly revealed themselves to be the most shallow, least interesting person in TV news.\u201d<\/p>\n While Weiss has made her presence known within the newsroom since arriving, whether it\u2019s replicating<\/a> Elon Musk with a Department of Government Efficiency-style email to staff, wanting to take down the network\u2019s Standards and Practices unit<\/a> or stepping in<\/a> to save a correspondent\u2019s job over his pro-Israel views, she hasn\u2019t spoken much publicly about her vision for the newsroom. <\/p>\n![\"Bari](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Splitaa.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"\u2018Bari\u2019s](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-Capture-2025-11-25-12-40-30.png\")
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