Overview

• President Trump sued CBS for $20 billion over its edit of a ‘60 Minutes’ interview with Kamala Harris, and many legal analysts consider the case frivolous.
• Paramount Global has held settlement talks to secure Trump administration approval of its pending Skydance Media merger, but no agreement has been reached.
• Scott Pelley told Anderson Cooper that any apology or financial settlement would damage the reputations of CBS and Paramount and signal corporate interference in journalism.
• The resignation of ‘60 Minutes’ executive producer Bill Owens in April cited loss of editorial autonomy under mounting corporate pressure.
• CBS correspondents warn that settling would resemble extortion and could set a dangerous precedent that chills press freedom.