Overview
- CBS Evening News led with roughly 14 minutes of unedited, commercial‑free remarks from President Trump, covering the economy, protests in Iran, the ICE killing in Minneapolis, and the Justice Department probe of Fed Chair Jerome Powell.
- During the interview, Trump told Tony Dokoupil he likely wouldn’t have the anchor job if Kamala Harris had won, referencing CBS parent leadership; Dokoupil briefly pushed back before closing the exchange.
- New York Times reporting, cited across outlets, attributes the Jan. 5 teleprompter gaffe in part to last‑minute script rewrites by editor‑in‑chief Bari Weiss and her aides.
- Nielsen data show Dokoupil’s first week trailed year‑ago ratings even as CBS touted small gains versus its recent averages and increased digital traffic.
- Weiss has faced criticism inside and outside CBS for editorial calls, including postponing a vetted 60 Minutes report on deportations to El Salvador’s CECOT prison, as staff and media watchers question the network’s direction.