Bari Weiss lays out vision for CBS News, shoots – Business News
CBS News editor in chief Bari Weiss revealed her vision for the struggling information outlet Tuesday, saying she desires to increase its footprint past tv — and shot down accusations she was “pressured” to shelve a controversial “60 Minutes” piece final month.
During a city corridor assembly with staffers, Weiss denied the Trump administration or her boss David Ellison, the CEO of CBS’ guardian company Paramount Skydance, had urged her to yank a “60 Minutes” phase on El Salvador’s infamous CECOT jail.
“I want to say this as plainly as and clearly as possible: I was not pressured by David Ellison or anyone else,” Weiss stated during the Q&A portion of the closed-door assembly at CBS News’ Broadcasting Center in New York City’s Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood.
CBS News editor in chief Bari Weiss revealed her vision for the struggling information division to increase its footprint past tv. Getty Images for The Free Press
According to a transcript of the city corridor obtained by The Post, she stated the “only conversations” she’s had with Ellison since earlier than she joined the community have been “conversations about fairness.”
He “never” noticed something in regards to the phase earlier than it aired, Weiss added.
The politically charged bidding battle between Paramount and Netflix to buy Warner Bros. Discovery has loomed within the background of Weiss’ stewardship of CBS News.
Since dropping out final 12 months, Paramount has been attempting to dam Netflix from buying the media giant. The White House has supported Paramount’s CEO and his dad Larry Ellison, a billionaire and main Trump backer, as The Post beforehand reported.
Meanwhile, “60 Minutes” correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi claimed in a leaked inside memo that Weiss’ determination to shelve the CECOT piece was “politically motivated.” The phase wound up operating earlier this month with a handful of adjustments.
Weiss opened Tuesday’s city corridor by telling workers she desires to “earn their trust” as she remakes CBS News.
Weiss stated that her boss David Ellison didn’t stress her to tug the “60 Minutes” phase on the CECOT prision. Zuffa LLC
“I’m not going to stand up here today and ask you for your trust. I’m going to earn it like we have to do with our viewers,” she stated, including that she was employed to “make CBS News fit for purpose in the 21st century.”
“We have to look honestly at ourselves. We are not producing a product that enough people want,” Weiss added.
She stated the community must stop working as “fiefdoms” with a purpose to win — alluding to the longtime MO for numerous CBS News reveals.
Sharyn Alfonsi accused Weiss of shelving the CECOT piece for political causes. Facebook / Sharyn Alfonsi
“60 Minutes” has usually operated as its own unit and answered solely to the chief producer, who runs the show and retains its programming and journalism below wraps till it airs.
As reported by The Post, Weiss has labored to change that tradition — a level of competition inside the decades-old show. At the city corridor, she revealed she desires to increase the “60 Minutes” model past the TV show on Sunday.
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Sources close to Weiss — who offered her startup The Free Press to Paramount Skydance for $150 million as she joined CBS News final 12 months — stated that might embody stay occasions and podcasts.
During the city corridor, Weiss stated she desires to amp up the community’s reporting throughout platforms and reveals, giving the instance of a story starting as a video on CBSNews.com and YouTube after which being featured the next day on the “Evening News” and “CBS Mornings” — lastly airing in a more in-depth fashion on “60 Minutes.”
During the city corridor, which was held at CBS News’ Broadcasting Center in New York, Weiss stated she desires to rework the community past linear TV. Getty Images
“We create the wave and then we ride it,” Weiss stated — noting that “transformation” within the industry will “mean transformation” within the workforce.
She didn’t say how many layoffs might be within the works after CBS News fired about 100 staffers in October.
She additionally stated she desires to invest in more “revelatory journalism” and emphasize “investigative scoops,” in addition to monetizing journalism with paywalls and subscription choices.
Weiss hopes to increase “60 Minutes’” footprint past its Sunday night program.
She stated with a purpose to try this, she is going to work carefully with CBS News president Tom Cibrowski, senior vice president of editorial and stations Wendy Fisher, managing editor Charles Forelle, deputy editor Adam Rubenstein and senior vice president of newsgathering Terri Stewart.
Weiss stated she is including 19 new contributors to the fold, together with conservative historian Sir Niall Ferguson, podcasters Andrew Huberman and Peter Attia, and Patrick McGee, who focuses on tech and China and is a contributor to Weiss’ The Free Press.
Other contributors embody chef Clare de Boer, doctor Mark Hyman, writer Caroline Chambers, Casey Lewis, who has a Substack about rising trends in youth tradition, and former National Security Adviser HR McMaster.
