CBS News sells its soul
And why did Brenna Bird drop out?
Apologies for two columns this week. I aim for only one but sometimes news events require a quick response. This is one of those times.
Two developments Wednesday to touch on – the decision by Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird not to run for the Republican nomination for governor. More on that in a moment.
But first, the terrible, awful, no-good, very bad decision by Paramount to settle the lawsuit filed against CBS News by President Trump. It was a sham of a lawsuit, with Trump claiming “mental anguish” over a 60 Minutes interview with then Vice President Kamala Harris. CBS ran one part of a long Harris answer on one newscast and a different part of the same answer on another newscast. Trump claimed that was misleading and sued for $20 billion. That’s a lot of mental anguish considering he won the election.
It’s preposterous. Journalists need to be free to edit interviews in any way they feel best serves the needs of their readers and viewers. As I’ve written previously, it was a routine editing decision made multiple times per day by every newsroom in the country.
But now the news division’s owner, Paramount, has agreed to settle for a $16 million payment to the future Trump presidential library. I don’t know where or when such a library will be built, but it ought to be called the “Trump Hall of Extortion” because it’s paid for with millions from CBS and ABC News, which settled a similarly ridiculous lawsuit earlier this year. (Of course, it’ll need to be big enough to hold the “gifted” luxury 747 from Qatar.)
How can we ever trust them?
This is a devastating moment. As someone who grew up watching CBS News, interned at a CBS station, and worked for 40 years at a CBS affiliate, I’m heartsick. I remember watching Walter Cronkite announce the Soviet ships had turned around during the Cuban Missile Crisis. I remember him crying when Kennedy died. I believed in CBS News.
Now I’m not sure we can trust them.
What makes this worse is what came with the settlement: a promise to release full transcripts of future 60 Minutes interviews with presidential candidates. That’s not transparency. That’s surrender. Journalists don’t release their raw notes or unedited transcripts—because the edited final product is what matters. That’s how good journalism works: decisions about what to include and what to leave out are made with care, not conspiracy.
If the owners don’t care, why should we?
This settlement stabs all journalists in the back. It encourages Trump to continue filing frivolous lawsuits anytime he’s unhappy with a story.
How will we ever again trust that a story produced by CBS News wasn’t sanitized by corporate owners afraid of angering the fragile ego in the White House? How can we ever judge whether a journalist is self-censoring to avoid scrutiny? We can’t!
For that reason, I am boycotting CBS News. I realize it’s not the journalists’ fault in the newsroom. But when owners don’t care about their news division’s credibility, why should viewers?
(That boycott, by the way, does not extend to your local CBS affiliate. Local stations are usually independently owned and have their own journalistic standards—many of which are far higher than the network’s at this point.)
Did Bird get frightened off?
What’s behind AG Brenna Bird’s surprise decision NOT to run for governor next year? At this point, we can only speculate. Maybe she received some discouraging polling. Maybe she couldn’t lock down the Trump endorsement she’s groveled for. Maybe she got scared off by Congressman Randy Feenstra’s early TV ad blitz doing his best to tie himself to Trump.
Although she wasn’t a lock for the Republican nomination, pundits considered her the front runner, particularly if Trump endorsed her. Maybe we’ll know more when Trump visits Des Moines later today. Could an endorsement of Feenstra be in the works?
KCCI political analyst and Iowa Writers’ Collaborative colleague Dennis Goldford tells me, “My impression is that Bird clearly wants to be governor at some point, but Feenstra’s TV blitz has been overwhelming for someone who has not announced formally.” He wonders if party insiders pressured her to back off to avoid a bruising primary.
Her exit opens the door for other Republicans. And frankly, something doesn’t smell right.
The mind conjures up all kinds of fascinating theories, like Trump fires Pete Hegseth or Tulsi Gabbard and taps Senator Joni Ernst to replace one of them. Then Governor Reynolds names Bird to the open Senate seat, giving her a leg up on re-election next year at a time when Ernst is struggling to overcome her “We’re all going to die” remark.
I wouldn’t put anything past a party that stole a Supreme Court seat from President Obama and pulled the Terry Branstad to Beijing/Kim Reynolds moves up to governor switcheroo.
Let’s end today with two questions for you:
1. Do you favor a boycott of CBS News or am I overreacting?
2. Why do you think Brenna Bird decided not to run for governor?
Hit the comment button. As always, I look forward to your insight!
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This news so very troubling, yet not unexpected. I can't imagine the sting you must feel from this, given your long and upstanding career affiliation with CBS News.
1) A decision to boycott, whatever the target, is so personal that I withhold any judgment.
2) I boycott Attorney General Brenna Bird in all forms and forums!
In favor of boycotting any news media that bows to this POTUS’s demands.
Bird saw eventual defeat to Rob Sand’s even if she survived Feenstra challenge