Bari Weiss plans overhaul of CBS News and ’60 Minutes’ standards and procedures

CBS News’ new editor-in-chief Bari Weiss is planning to create a masthead for the broadcaster as part of a broader overhaul of standards and procedures, according to a source familiar with her plans.

Why it matters: The masthead is meant to drive a more streamlined hierarchy and set of processes across show and news gathering teams that are intended to prevent disparate editorial procedures and standards.

Zoom out: The changes come in the wake of a controversy that saw her pulling a story about Trump administration deportations of Venezuelan immigrants to an El Salvador prison, according to a source familiar with her plans.

• One of the main reasons Weiss cited for pulling the segment was that the “60 Minutes” team didn’t include any of the three on-the-record statements from the White House, State Department and Department of Homeland Security that were provided to CBS News journalists.
• According to a source familiar with the “60 Minutes” team’s correspondence with the administration, journalists reached out to press officials at the White House, State Department and DHS, all of which provided comment to CBS News ahead of the piece’s anticipated run date.
• None of those comments, which varied in length and substance, were included in the piece, which has been made public from a recording that was distributed via an app owned by Global TV, which airs “60 Minutes” in Canada.

Between the lines: The segment ends with the correspondent leading the piece saying DHS “declined our request for an interview and referred all questions about CECOT to El Salvador.”

• It does not reference any other part of the over 300-word, on-the-record comment from DHS assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin.

The other side: In her memo to colleagues about the segment being pulled, correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi said, “Our story was screened five times and cleared by both CBS attorneys and Standards and Practices. It is factually correct. In my view, pulling it now—after every rigorous internal check has been met is not an editorial decision, it is a political one.”

• “We requested responses to questions and/or interviews with DHS, the White House, and the State Department. Government silence is a statement, not a VETO. Their refusal to be interviewed is a tactical maneuver designed to kill the story,” she added.

State of play: With the new masthead will come a new structure and set of policies that will require all show teams, not just “60 Minutes,” to provide more visibility to senior editors ahead of sensitive segments and stories.

• Weiss, Axios has reported, first saw the segment on Thursday.

The intrigue: In a “60 Minutes” staff meeting Monday, correspondent Scott Pelley reportedly implied, according to the New York Times, that Weiss missed earlier screenings of the segment. “It’s not a part-time job,” Pelley reportedly said.

The big picture: The reaction to the “60 Minutes” controversy has largely followed party affiliation, with conservatives crying foul over the fact that administration comments were left out, and liberals arguing the situation proves Weiss and Paramount’s new owners are looking to curry favor with the Trump administration.

What to watch: It’s unclear whether the segment will air in the U.S. following the Canada leak.

• Weiss initially said that the segment needed more reporting and that her intention was to eventually have it air.