The Network Heavily Edits Trump's 60 Minutes Interview, Removing Boast Regarding Network Compensating The President Substantial Money

This broadcast network show 60 Minutes heavily edited a conversation featuring the former president that aired on Sunday evening, marking his first sit-down on the show in five years.

The former president sat down alongside journalist Norah O’Donnell for 90 minutes, but only about half an hour aired on television. The full text version of the interview was later published, alongside an extended online version from the interview.

These cuts stand out since, precisely 12 months prior to the president's interview on the program at his Mar-a-Lago resort, he had sued the network regarding the editing from another news program interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris, which he alleged had been manipulated to benefit her campaign during the race.

While many legal experts largely rejected the legal action as “meritless” and unlikely to succeed on free speech grounds, CBS settled with the president for millions in July. Under the settlement, the network committed to release transcripts of future interviews of presidential candidates.

At the beginning of the broadcast, the correspondent informed the audience that Paramount resolved Trump’s lawsuit, but noted that “the settlement did not include any admission or admission of wrongdoing”.

During the interview, in a clip that did not air, the president teased CBS over the settlement and repeated his claims toward the broadcaster.

“Actually the program gave me a lotta money. And you don’t have to include this, since I do not wish to cause you discomfort, and I’m sure you’re not,” the president said. “However the show was forced to pay me a large amount because they took her answer out which was damaging, it proved election-changing, 48 hours prior to voting. They inserted a new answer in. And they paid me a lot of money because of it. We cannot tolerate fake news. We must have legit news. I believe that it’s happening.”

During another segment not broadcast from the discussion, the president commended the sale of CBS to new owners noting the broadcaster's new editor-in-chief, Bari Weiss, is a “great new leader”.

The US president said he didn’t know the editor, yet informed O’Donnell: “I hear she is impressive.

“In my view you have a great new leader, honestly, who’s the young woman now heading your whole enterprise, is superb – from what I know,” he remarked.

The president was especially enthusiastic in praising the executive and his parent, Larry, the new owner of CBS News’ parent company, Paramount, through their company Skydance Media.

“In my opinion a very positive development recently involves this program and the change in ownership, CBS and new ownership,” the president said. “I believe it is a major improvement that’s happened in a long time to a free and open and reliable media.”

The correspondent did not directly respond to the president’s comments about Weiss and the owners.

Among the president's responses that were edited out were several comments doubting the integrity of the 2020 presidential election, which he described “had been manipulated and stolen”.

At one point in the conversation, in a part omitted from the broadcast, the president tried to get O’Donnell to admit that safety had improved in Washington DC, where she lives.

“You live here. You know that too,” Trump said, inquiring of O’Donnell: “Do you see any change?”

“I think I have been occupied excessively,” she replied. “I have not gotten out and about often … I get in my car to the studio and return home.”

Trump responded “that is an evasion” and insisted that O’Donnell had observed a difference.

The president then seemed to suggest that the exchange didn’t need to be aired in the program.

“You don’t have to include that part,” he noted. “No concerns, it's fine, I do not wish to embarrass her.”