White House Warns CBS: Air Trump Interview in Full, or ‘We’ll Sue’
In previously unreported remarks, the White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told CBS News that Mr. Trump would “sue” the news outlet if it did not air an interview unedited.
It was an aside, caught on camera, that said a lot about the uneasy business of conducting journalism today.
Moments after President Trump finished taping a 13-minute interview on Tuesday with the “CBS Evening News” anchor Tony Dokoupil in Michigan, Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, approached Mr. Dokoupil and his colleagues to convey a message from the president.
“He said, ‘Make sure you guys don’t cut the tape, make sure the interview is out in full,’” Ms. Leavitt said in an even tone, according to a recording of the exchange obtained by The New York Times.
“Yeah, we’re doing it, yeah,” Mr. Dokoupil responded.
Ms. Leavitt replied: “He said, ‘If it’s not out in full, we’ll sue your ass off.’”
Related Knowledge Center: The CBS submission
Corporate pressure has led to capitulation by CBS News in a number of conflicts with the Trump regime — including its newly ideological coverage philosophy.
Related Knowledge Center: Democracy and politics
News organizations are scrambling to find a coverage approach that adequately informs the American public about the country’s slide from democracy to authoritarian rule.