Bari Weiss, the media provocateur David Ellison appointed as editor in chief of CBS News, has been a disruptive and controversial presence at the news outlet ever since she came on board about a year ago. Now, according to a new report, Weiss’ “meddling” into a piece by longtime correspondent Lesley Stahl about Israeli settlers attacking Palestinians in the West Bank, which aired this past Sunday, had driven Stahl to “the brink of quitting.”
Stahl, who has worked at the CBS newsmagazine since 1991, “never threatened leadership with a formal resignation,” but she “privately floated the possibility of quitting ‘60 Minutes‘ over Weiss’ meddling” with the Israeli settlers story, according to a report by media newsletter Status’ Oliver Darcy.
In response, a CBS News spokesperson said in a statement, “This is a ludicrous, twisted narrative. All ‘60 Minutes’ pieces go through a famously rigorous editorial process — which includes edits from editors. This piece received far fewer edits than most.” A rep for Stahl did not respond to a request for comment.
“60 Minutes” described the piece, titled “Lost Sheep,” which aired on Oct. 11, like this: “There’s been a surge in violence in the West Bank in recent months where some militant settlers have been seeking to drive out the Palestinians who live there. With the Israeli elections weeks away, ’60 Minutes’ Lesley Stahl reports from the region on a group called the Hilltop Youth who have carried out violent attacks, the Jewish activists working to stop them, and the Palestinians being driven off the land.” The segment was produced by Shachar Bar-On, who has worked with Stahl on more than 80 reports, investigations and interviews for the program.
Given the “pro-Israel” positions of both Weiss and Ellison, who last week closed the merger of Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery, Stahl’s piece “caught some observers by surprise,” according to Darcy’s report.
The review process ahead of air for “Lost Sheep” initially was “routine,” per Status’ account. However, Weiss became “very, very hands-on” and involved a “clash” with Stahl that involved managing editor Charles Forelle, per the report: “The precise nature of her objections remains unclear, but I’m told they were not confined to a particular factual assertion or isolated element of the report. Rather, her concerns were much broader, setting the stage for what spiraled into a highly contentious editorial process.” Status quoted an anonymous source who said that leading up to Sunday night’s broadcast, the “60 Minutes” team “didn’t know if [the segment] was going to air because the screenings got so heated.” The report noted that it is “unclear what edits, if any, Weiss ultimately secured, or whether she was satisfied with the final product.”