The Tweet That Perfectly Captures the Reaction to CBS News' Bari Weiss Reportedly Spiking This Story

You knew something was going to happen of this nature when Bari Weiss took the helm at CBS News. Weiss, 

 

who is now editor-in-chief following the network’s purchase of her Free Press publication, has been working diligently to retool the brand, which has been marred by bias and incompetence. She’s not a conservative, but a classical liberal. She’s also married to a woman, which makes the attacks against her by the Left even more humorous. Her appointment caused some heartburn among 60 Minutes legacy figures, like Dan Rather, the godfather of fake news. 

 Do we need to rehash the Killian documents affair, folks? Where Danny tried to influence the 2004 election with a story about George Bush’s Texas Air National Guard service, using documents that were totally fabricated? Yeah, that’s what I thought. The latest controversy centers on Weiss reportedly spiking a story about CECOT, a maximum security prison in El Salvador, where the Trump administration has deported some illegal aliens (via Axios): 

CBS News pulled a segment on Trump administration deportations of Venezuelan immigrants to an El Salvador prison from "60 Minutes," causing staffers and media onlookers to question whether the decision was politically motivated. 

Why it matters: The decision comes days after President Trump publicly complained the show was treating him even worse since CBS' parent company was acquired earlier this year. 

That company, Paramount Skydance, is now involved in a politically delicate effort to acquire CNN parent Warner Bros. Discovery.

Driving the news: "60 Minutes" announced on social media around 4:30pm ET Sunday that it was dropping the segment, called "Inside CECOT," from that evening's broadcast lineup, but said that it would air at a later date. 

Sharyn Alfonsi, the segment's correspondent, alleged in an email to colleagues that she learned Saturday that new CBS editor-in-chief Bari Weiss had "spiked our story" after Trump officials refused to be interviewed, per multiple reports. 

Yeah, this tweet sums up my feelings about the matter: 

Weiss is unfazed: 

My job is to make sure that all stories we publish are the best they can be. Holding stories that aren’t ready for whatever reason — that they lack sufficient context, say, or that they are missing critical voices — happens every day in every newsroom. I look forward to airing this important piece when it’s ready." 

Whether it airs or not, it’s nice to see someone pumping the brakes on stories aimed at attacking the Trump administration and enforcing federal immigration laws. I doubt this story will be spiked. It’ll likely air at some point; the folks trying to cause trouble are just mad it’s not being broadcast now. The free-for-all days are over.