CBS News Significantly Trims Trump's TV Program Interview, Removing Claim Regarding Network Compensating The President Large Funds

The CBS News program the long-running news magazine heavily edited an interview featuring the former president that aired Sunday night, representing his first one-on-one with the program in five years.

Trump sat down alongside journalist the CBS anchor for 90 minutes, yet merely about 28 minutes aired on television. A complete transcript of the interview was later released, together with a 73-minute digital cut from the interview.

These cuts are notable since, precisely 12 months prior to the president's appearance on the program in Florida, he filed suit against CBS regarding post-production changes of a 60 Minutes interview with then-Vice President the vice president, claiming it was deceptively edited to benefit her campaign during the race.

While numerous legal experts widely dismissed the lawsuit calling it baseless and improbable to succeed under the first amendment, CBS settled with the president for millions in July. Under the agreement, the network had agreed that it would release full records of future interviews with candidates.

During the opening of Sunday’s show, O’Donnell informed the audience that the parent company settled Trump’s lawsuit, but noted that the resolution lacked any admission or expression of regret”.

In the conversation, in one segment omitted from broadcast, the president teased the network about the agreement restating his claims against the network.

“In fact 60 Minutes gave me a lotta money. And you don’t have to include this, since I do not wish to cause you discomfort, and I trust that you are not,” the president stated. “However 60 Minutes had to compensate me a large amount because they took Harris’s response from the segment that was so bad, it proved decisive, two nights prior to voting. And they put a different response into the broadcast. And they paid me a lot of money for that. You can’t have false reporting. We must have legit news. I believe this is occurring.”

In a separate segment not broadcast of the interview, the president praised the acquisition of CBS to new owners and said the broadcaster's new editor-in-chief, the journalist, was a “excellent addition”.

The US president admitted he was not acquainted with Weiss, but told the interviewer: “I hear she’s a great person.

“In my view you have a talented director, honestly, that individual that’s leading your entire organization, is a great – from what I know,” he remarked.

Trump was particularly effusive in praising the executive and his parent, Larry Ellison, the recent purchaser of CBS News’ parent company, Paramount, via their firm Skydance Media.

“In my opinion one of the best things recently involves this program and the change in ownership, the network under new management,” the president said. “I think it’s the greatest thing that has occurred for years toward a transparent and good press.”

The correspondent did not directly respond to the president’s comments concerning the editor and the Ellisons.

Included in Trump’s many answers which were cut were multiple statements doubting the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election, which he said “was rigged and stolen”.

At one point in the interview, in a segment that was not aired, the president attempted to persuade the journalist to admit that crime was down in Washington DC, her place of residence.

“You live here. You know that too,” the president said, asking the correspondent: “Do you see any change?”

“I think I have been occupied too hard,” O’Donnell responded. “I have not gotten out and about that much … I get in my car to the studio and return home.”

Trump responded “that is an evasion” and insisted that the journalist had observed an improvement.

Trump then implied that the exchange need not be included on the show.

“You don’t have to include that part,” he said. “Don’t worry, don’t worry, I do not wish to cause her embarrassment.”