‘60 Minutes’ segment controversially spiked by CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss finally airs
CBS News finally aired its 60 Minutes exposé on a brutal prison in Latin America, nearly one month after the network’s editor-in-chief Bari Weiss made the extraordinary decision to pull the segment.
The story, which broadcast shortly after 7 p.m. ET Sunday, examines the conditions within a maximum security prison in El Salvador, known as CECOT, which has faced serious and repeated accusations of human rights abuses.
It features exclusive interviews with two Venezuelan men who describe the torturous conditions they endured after they were deported to the prison early last year by Donald Trump’s administration.
In March of last year, more than 200 Venezuelan men were deported to the prison — the largest in Latin America — under the president’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act, despite federal court orders that blocked the flights and ordered their returns. By July, most of those detainees were released to their home country as part of a U.S.-Venezuela prisoner swap after spending months in lock-up.
The segment features an updated introduction, in which correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi notes that the Trump administration carried out a military operation in Venezuela in early January, leading to the capture of deposed leader Nicolas Maduro. The story was allegedly held because administration officials did not provide comment, but the newly aired segment still does not include any statements from the Trump administration.
“Since November, 60 Minutes has made several attempts to interview key Trump administration officials, on camera about our story,” she said. “They declined our request.”
One of the formerly detained men recalled his arrival at CECOT, when the prison director gave him a chilling welcome. “The first thing he told us was that we would never see the light of day or night again. He said ‘welcome to hell. I’ll make sure you never leave,’” the man said.
Another man said he was kept in a dark cell, where guards came to beat him every 30 minutes. “And they pounded on the door with sticks to traumatize us while we were in there,” he said.
Weiss, who was tapped to lead CBS News late last year, made a last-minute decision to hold the “Inside CECOT” segment in December.
The self-described “radical centrist” and founder of online news site The Free Press defended her decision in a Christmas Eve memo to CBS News staff, writing that she is on a mission to “win back” the trust of the American people.
“[S]ometimes it means holding a piece about an important subject to make sure it is comprehensive and fair,” she wrote.
Weiss added that “in our upside-down moment,” that alleged commitment to fairness may “seem radical” and “will surely feel controversial to those used to doing things one way,” but that “no amount of outrage — whether from activist organizations or the White House” should deter them.
But by withholding the piece, which had been fact-checked and run by a team of lawyers, Weiss drew fierce criticism from network staffers, with some accusing her of attempting to curry favor with the Trump administration.
“Holy f***ing dumpster fire,” one staffer told The Independent. Another reporter said that Weiss likely “crossed the Rubicon” when she stepped in and yanked the story.
