BIBERY IN PLAIN SIGHT

During the 2024 presidential campaign, Kamala Harris sat down with 60 Minutes for an interview during which Bill Whitaker asked her why Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu was not listening to the Biden administration.

“Well, Bill, the work that we have done has resulted in a number of movements in that region by Israel that were very much prompted by, or a result of many things, including our advocacy for what needs to happen in the region. And we’re not going to stop doing that. We are not going to stop pursuing what is necessary for the United States to be clear about where we stand on the need for this war to end,” she answered.

When it aired, 60 Minutes aired the second portion of her answer, ad the first was aired a day prior on Face the Nation.

That slicing up of her answer triggered two lawsuits, one By Donald Trump, whose lawyers stated it caused him “mental anguish”, and the conservative group Center for American Rights.Editing interviews for brevity is commonplace, but Donald Trump claims the network was attempting to make his opponent sound better.At the time, FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel dismissed both the lawsuits, warning that the agency “should not be the president’s speech police.”

But a new administration brought a new FCC Chair, Brendan Carr, who revived the lawsuit and demanded that CBS hand over the entire unedited transcript and video.

Donald Trump has called for revoking networks’ licenses who are critical of him, and while unprecedented, Carr would not rule out sanctions or fines. CBS was vehement that the unedited content showed there was never any deception, and legal experts said the lawsuit had no legal standing.

In a shocking move, CBS parent company Paramount announced it would be settling Trump’s $20 million dollar lawsuit for $16 million, essentially backing down from defending their journalists under pressure from the administration.

“Since the transcript and video of the Harris interview showed no evidence of wrongdoing, Paramount would have prevailed on the facts and law if it had pursued the case,” said Anna M. Gomez, an FCC commissioner and Democrat. “But instead of standing on principle, Paramount opted for a payout,” Gomez said.

Many point out the timing of the settlement, as Paramount CEO was granted permission to finally merge with Skydance, something that the FCC had repeatedly blocked in the past.  

The deal “could be bribery in plain sight,” said Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass, and called for an investigation, which would likely not occur unless midterms swayed Congressional control away from the GOP.

Paramount shareholders have threatened a lawsuit, and First Amendment advocates are ready to fight the emboldening this settlement gives the Trump Administration.Paramount’s settlement is another in a string of settlements Trump has garnered against journalists, with threats of more to come.