Latest news with #LesleyStahl
The Independent
13 hours ago
- Business
- The Independent
‘60 Minutes' legend Lesley Stahl says she's ‘angry' at CBS boss Shari Redstone over Trump lawsuit
Lesley Stahl, who has spent decades as a correspondent for the seminal Sunday night newsmagazine 60 Minutes, is making it clear that she is 'angry' with her corporate boss for looking to settle Donald Trump's 'frivolous' lawsuit against CBS News. The legendary newswoman also said she is 'pessimistic' about the future of 60 Minutes, adding that 'we're in very dark times' and that she's already preemptively 'mourning' the potential destruction of the long-running program amid an upcoming merger and the president's attacks on legacy media. In a wide-ranging conversation with The New Yorker's chief editor David Remnick this past weekend, Stahl sounded off on CBS parent company Paramount's efforts to make Trump's $20 billion lawsuit over the way 60 Minutes edited an interview with Kamala Harris, which the president contends was done 'deceitfully' to interfere in the 2024 election. Following Trump's return to the White House, Paramount's top shareholder Shari Redstone has pushed for a settlement as the company needs the administration's approval for an $8 billion merger with Skydance Media, which pro-Trump business mogul Larry Ellison backs. Additionally, Redstone has not only pressured 60 Minutes to ease up on its Trump coverage amid the lawsuit and merger drama, but also criticized the show over the way it's covered the Gaza war. Amid the discussions with Trump's legal team about a settlement, 60 Minutes executive producer Bill Owens and CBS News chief Wendy McMahon – who had said they would not apologize as part of any deal with the president – abruptly resigned. Paramount's board has reportedly offered Trump a $15 million settlement, which is in line with ABC News' capitulation to the president, but Trump is demanding at least $25 million and an apology. Asked by Remnick what is behind the president's lawsuit, Stahl — who has interviewed Trump four times — said that it is an effort 'to chill us,' noting that 'there aren't any damages' suffered by Trump. 'I mean, he accused us of editing Kamala Harris in a way to help her win the election. But he won the election,' she added. Trump's legal team has since argued in court that the interview caused the president 'mental anguish.' Labeling it as a 'frivolous' lawsuit, Stahl went on to describe Owens as a 'hero' to the newsroom while lobbing criticisms towards Redstone over the 60 Minutes producer feeling the need to step down. '[H]e was being asked to either not run pieces or to change parts of the stories, and he was standing up to that. I don't know, frankly, if there was one request that led to it or just an accumulation, one after the next,' she said. 'That was just painful. Painful,' she continued, speaking about Owens' resignation. 'Everybody at '60 Minutes'—I think everybody, most of us—really appreciated his standing up to the pressure, and saw him in heroic terms. So when he announced that he was stepping down, it was a punch in the stomach. It was one of those punches where you almost can't breathe.' Adding that McMahon had also served as an 'intermediary between us and the corporation, and she sided with CBS News,' Stahl then expressed disappointment over the likelihood that Paramount will settle with the president. 'Are you angry at Shari Redstone?' Remnick wondered, prompting Stahl to reply: 'Yes, I think I am. I think I am.' At the same time, though, the veteran CBS reporter said that while Owens being forced out may have been a bridge too far for much of the staff, she claimed he urged everyone on the show to stay. 'Bill Owens leaving was a line, and here we all are,' she stated. 'He asked us not to resign. He explicitly asked us not to resign. Because it was discussed that we would leave en masse.' Stahl also said it was 'hard' and 'not a small thing' that Redstone had been applying pressure on the news division over its coverage, making her wonder if 'any corporation should own a news operation' going forward. 'It is very disconcerting,' she proclaimed. As for CBS News' new 'corporate overlords' at Skydance if the merger goes through, Stahl said she's 'praying' and 'hoping' that they'd allow the network 'to be independent' and for journalists to do their jobs. Still, she acknowledged that it could be a 'little Pollyannaish' to believe that will be the outcome. 'I'm not optimistic. I am not. I'm pessimistic,' she told Remnick. 'I'm pessimistic about the future for all press today. The public doesn't trust us. The public has lost faith in us as an institution. So we're in very dark times.' Stahl also expressed concern about the 'fragility' of press institutions as a whole, especially with mega-billionaires and large conglomerations pressuring the news organizations they own to soften their coverage of the current administration while they cozy up to the president. 'The pain in my heart is that the public does not appreciate the importance of a free and strong and tough press in our democracy,' she lamented, adding: 'We are a headache. An expensive headache. And that's part of the fragility.' Amid the continued push to reach a settlement with Trump, Democratic lawmakers have warned the Paramount board and Redstone that paying the president to kill the lawsuit could run afoul of anti-bribery laws, considering that the company is hoping to coax the administration to approve a merger. The California State Senate has now opened an inquiry into Paramount over whether it violated state laws on bribery, inviting both Owens and McMahon to testify. Paramount executives, in fact, have even discussed the possibility of being held liable or criminally charged if the business settles the complaint. The Freedom of the Press Foundation has since threatened to sue the company if it reaches a settlement with the president.
Fox News
19 hours ago
- Business
- Fox News
'60 Minutes' reporter Lesley Stahl says she's angry with CBS' Shari Redstone over Trump lawsuit
Longtime CBS journalist Lesley Stahl admitted she was "angry" with Paramount Global chairwoman Shari Redstone over how things are being handled over President Donald Trump's lawsuit against the network on Friday. The "60 Minutes" reporter discussed the ongoing lawsuit and its effects on her program on The New Yorker Radio Hour podcast. She reflected on top producer Bill Owens stepping down in what she called a "painful" experience after he claimed that he was being restrained by the network on what stories to produce. After CBS News president Wendy McMahon's abrupt resignation, she called the situation at the network "hard" and partially blamed Redstone for putting pressure on them in what appears to be an appeasement to the Trump administration. "To have a news organization come under corporate pressure—to have a news organization told by a corporation, 'do this, do that with your story, change this, change that, don't run that piece.' I mean, it steps on the First Amendment, it steps on the freedom of the press," Stahl said. "It steps on what we stand for. It makes me question whether any corporation should own a news operation. It is very disconcerting." Still, she declined to use the word "turmoil" to describe the situation, although she revealed there was consideration for journalists to leave "en masse" after Owens' resignation. Stahl added that there's a sense of "fragility" in the press now thanks to things like Trump's "frivolous lawsuit" and a lack of trust in the media. "The pain in my heart is that the public does not appreciate the importance of a free and strong and tough press in our democracy," Stahl said. "Even the Founding Fathers recognized that we need to have a strong fourth estate to hold our elected officials accountable, and to continue to cleanse the system. The public doesn't seem to want what we do to be part of our public life." She predicted Paramount Global, CBS' parent company, will ultimately settle with Trump to complete a merger with Skydance Media. If that were to occur, she hoped that the new owners would "hold the freedom of the press up as a beacon." The interview was recorded before news broke on Friday about Trump rejecting a $15 million settlement for his $20 billion lawsuit. Fox News Digital confirmed that the president's team is demanding at least $25 million and an apology from CBS News. Last October, Trump sued CBS News and Paramount for $10 billion over allegations of election interference involving the "60 Minutes" interview of then-Vice President Kamala Harris that aired weeks before the presidential election (the amount has since jumped to $20 billion). The lawsuit alleges CBS News deceitfully edited an exchange Harris had with "60 Minutes" correspondent Bill Whitaker, who asked her why Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wasn't "listening" to the Biden administration. Harris was widely mocked for the "word salad" answer that aired in a preview clip of the interview on "Face the Nation." However, when the same question aired during a primetime special on the network, Harris had a different, more concise response. Critics at the time accused CBS News of deceitfully editing Harris' "word salad" answer to shield the Democratic nominee from further backlash leading up to Election Day. Stahl denied there was any effort to make Harris look better and that the network simply aired two different halves of the answer. She claimed the lawsuit is being made only to intimidate them. "What is really behind it, in a nutshell, is [an effort] to chill us. There aren't any damages. I mean, he accused us of editing Kamala Harris in a way to help her win the election. But he won the election," Stahl said. Fox News Digital reached out to CBS and Paramount Global for a comment.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
‘60 Minutes' Staff Almost Quit ‘En Masse' Over Trump Suit
Lesley Stahl revealed that she and her fellow 60 Minutes correspondents came close to quitting 'en masse' after their boss left the show with a dire warning about Donald Trump. The 33-year 60 Minutes veteran admitted she was 'angry' with Paramount head Shari Redstone on the Friday episode of The New Yorker Radio Hour. 'It is a frivolous lawsuit,' Stahl said of Trump's $20 billion legal action against CBS News. When host and New Yorker editor David Reminick asked Stahl whether she was 'angry' with Redstone, Stahl admitted, 'Yes, I think I am. I think I am.' Stahl also offered a theory for why Trump pursued the lawsuit against CBS News, in which he is accusing 60 Minutes of 'deceptively editing' Harris' interview to make her look better, in the first place. 'What is really behind it, in a nutshell, is to chill us,' Stahl said. 'There aren't any damages. He accused us of editing Kamala Harris in a way to help her win the election. But he won the election.' Settling the lawsuit would pave the way for Paramount's planned merger with Skydance Media, which would reportedly result in a $530 million personal payout for Redstone—and has to be approved by Trump's FCC officials. Paramount offered Trump $15 million to settle the lawsuit this week, but the president turned it down, citing 'mental anguish' over the Harris interview. He now wants $25 million and an apology to put his complaint to rest. The attempt to settle with Trump over the interview, which staffers have insisted was edited according to its usual standards and was not politically motivated, has caused internal tension at the network, culminating in the shock exits of 60 Minutes executive producer Bill Owens and CBS News President Wendy McMahon. Stahl said Owens' resignation 'was one of those punches where you almost can't breathe,' calling Owens and McMahon 'barriers' between 'us and the corporation.' Those barriers were tested even before Trump's lawsuit, Stahl recalled Friday. As for what 60 Minutes will be like once out of Redstone's hands at Paramount, Stahl said she's 'Pollyannaish' that Skydance will 'hold the freedom of the press up as a beacon, that they understand the importance of allowing us to be independent and do our jobs.' 'I'm expecting that. I'm hoping that, I want that, I'm praying for that,' Stahl said. 'And I have no reason to think that won't happen.' Reminick asked Stahl to consider what happens if it doesn't, and what it would take for her to follow Owens and McMahon out of the CBS News door. 'It depends,' she said. 'You ask me where my line is. I'm not sure. I don't think I can express what it is, but there is a line. Of course there is a line.' Stahl said that Owens resigning was one of those 'lines' and she and her fellow correspondents actually considering quitting 'en masse.' But their outgoing boss talked them out of it. 'It is hard' to 'have a news organization told by a corporation, 'Do this, do that with your story, change this, change that. Don't run that piece,'' Stahl explained, recounting what it was like to 'quietly resist' Redstone's complaints about 60 Minutes' Gaza coverage. 'The message came down through the line, through Wendy McMahon to Bill,' Stahl said, which she found 'very disconcerting.' 'It steps on the First Amendment. It steps on the freedom of the press. It makes me question whether any corporation should own a news operation,' she continued.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Paramount Plan To Pay Off Trump Sparks California Senate Probe, Requests For Ex-CBS News Brass To Testify
Lesley Stahl is certain Paramount are going to pay off Donald Trump to end POTUS' $20 billion 60 Minutes lawsuit, and Scott Pelley exclaims journalism is under attack. However, if Shari Redstone thinks a big check and an apology to Trump for a piece last year from the vaulted newsmagazine series he didn't like is enough to grease the regulatory wheels for Skydance's $8 billion absorption of the company, the California state senate has a news alert for her. In a letter today sent to former 60 Minutes EP Bill Owens and ex-CBS News and Stations boss Wendy McMahon, plus the Paramount Global board and the state Attorney General, the heads of Senate Energy, Utilities & Communications Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee in Sacramento began an investigation to see if Golden State bribery and unfair competition laws are about to be violated. More from Deadline '60 Minutes' Veteran Lesley Stahl Expects To Soon Be "Mourning, Grieving" Paramount Settlement Of "Frivolous" Trump Lawsuit Lester Holt Signs Off As 'NBC Nightly News' Anchor: "Facts Matter" Trump Sued By PBS To Stop $500M Funding Cut Whether or not such a probe from the Democratic dominated state Senate and voluntary (well, voluntary for now) testimony from the obstructing and now exited Owens and McMahon could derail the big bucks merger Redstone is banking on is unlikely. Yet, it's sure to make it very uncomfortable for the current owners and the potential future ones. 'Your recent resignations from CBS's leadership, amid public reports of internal concern about the editorial and ethical implications of the proposed settlement, suggest that you may possess important, first-hand knowledge relevant to our legislative oversight responsibilities,' state Senators Josh Becker and Thomas J. Umberg wrote to Owens and McMahon Friday. 'This hearing will mark the beginning of our inquiry,' the committee chairs added. 'Should additional testimony or documentation become necessary, both committees retain full subpoena authority under California law. We respectfully encourage you to participate in this important hearing. Your cooperation will help safeguard the values you have each worked to uphold in your distinguished careers.' Owens and McMahon both jumped ship from CBS in the past several weeks before they were given a fatal shove by George Cheeks for resisting the motivations of the C-suites and Redstone to tone down critiques of the former Apprentice host and reach a settlement to the ludicrous priced lawsuit Trump filed just before last year's election. To that, Senators Becker and Umberg want Owens and McMahon to consider the big picture and Redstone and Skydance's David Ellison to realize they are dancing with the devil in a red tie. 'Perhaps even more concerning is the potential chilling effect of Paramount's settlement on investigative and political journalism,' the state politicians declared. 'Such a settlement would signal that politically motivated lawsuits can succeed when paired with regulatory threats. It would damage public trust in CBS News and other California-based outlets, diminishing the state's stature as a national leader in ethical journalism. Paramount's capitulation would also undermine two essential pillars of a liberal democracy: a free press and an impartial, rule-of-law regulatory system.' Laughably, in a recent filing trying to stop Paramount getting the suit tossed out, Trump's lawyers claimed that the so-called tough guy POTUS suffered 'mental anguish' over editing of a 60 Minutes interview with his then ballot box rival Kamala Harris. Filed in Texas, Trump's suit alleges violations of the Lone Star state's Deceptive Trade Practices Act, which typically is used by consumers for false advertising claims. In the weeks before he was promoted to FCC chair, Brendan Carr said that the 60 Minutes complaint was 'likely to arise' as part of the Paramount/Skydance merger review. Trying sometimes to out Trump Trump, loyalist Carr has since said earlier this month that his boss' lawsuit has nothing to do with the merger consideration and regulatory approval – a statement no one with an ounce of real-world knowledge believes for one minute. Last week, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) warned Redstone that any deal with Trump could constitute a violation of federal bribery laws. She clearly didn't care what the trio had to say because earlier this week, Deadline confirmed the gist of a May 28 Wall Street Journal report that Paramount had offered Trump an 'eight-figure' settlement in the $15 million range. Smelling more lucrative blood in the water, it was a settlement that Trump rejected. Sources say that Trump wants more money and that talks are ongoing — which means he'll likely get more money so the Skydance deal can be green lighted. Semafor first reported the news of the California state Senate letter. Best of Deadline Sean 'Diddy' Combs Sex-Trafficking Trial Updates: Cassie Ventura's Testimony, $10M Hotel Settlement, Drugs, Violence, & The Feds 'Poker Face' Season 2 Guest Stars: From Katie Holmes To Simon Hellberg 2025-26 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Tonys, Emmys, Oscars & More
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
PBS Sues Trump, Claims Defunding Order Violates First Amendment
PBS sued the Trump administration on Friday, arguing that Trump's move to cut off funding violates the First Amendment. The lawsuit also argues that Trump has violated the statutory framework that established the service in 1969, and which was designed to keep its editorial content free from political interference. In an executive order on May 1, Trump called PBS 'corrosive' and said that its news broadcast is 'biased and partisan.' More from Variety At Cannes, Politics, Penny-Pinching and Strict Red Carpet Rules Overshadow the Glitz, Good Times and Glamour Lesley Stahl, Scott Jennings Join PBS Tense News-Panel Series 'Breaking the Deadlock' Ukrainian Filmmakers Weather 'Turbulence,' 'Uncertainty' of Trump 2.0, Set Sights on Post-War Rebuild: 'We Are Still Here' 'PBS disputes those charged assertions in the strongest possible terms,' the lawsuit states. 'But regardless of any policy disagreements over the role of public television, our Constitution and laws forbid the President from serving as the arbiter of the content of PBS's programming, including by attempting to defund PBS.' PBS joins NPR, which filed a similar lawsuit seeking to block the executive order on Tuesday. The order directed the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to cut off funding to both entities to 'the maximum extent allowed by law.' The CPB gives out government funding to local TV and radio stations, which in turn pays licensing fees to carry PBS and NPR programming. The CPB pushed back on Trump's order, saying that Congress established it as an independent agency outside of presidential control. Trump has also sought to fire three CPB board members — Tom Rothman, Diane Kaplan and Laura Ross — who have sued him to try to block their firing. In the latest case, PBS is joined by Northern Minnesota Public Television, based in Bemidji, Minn. The suit recounts numerous comments made by Trump and the White House attacking PBS' content, to underscore the point that the defunding is motivated by disagreement over speech. In a Truth Social post on April 1, Trump demanded that Republicans defund PBS and NPR, 'THE RADICAL LEFT 'MONSTERS' THAT SO BADLY HURT OUR COUNTRY!' Among the grievances cited by the White House was a 2017 panel discussion about 'white privilege' and 'what it means to be woke,' a 2020 Sesame Street town hall aimed at addressing racism amid the Black Lives Matter protests, and a 2021 children's program featuring a drag queen. 'PBS disputes those examples and assertions as inaccurate — and misrepresentative of the variety of PBS programming,' the lawsuit states. The suit, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., seeks an injunction to block the order from taking effect. Best of Variety What's Coming to Netflix in June 2025 New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week 'Harry Potter' TV Show Cast Guide: Who's Who in Hogwarts?
