“Pandemonium on Primetime! Trump Unleashed! 60 Minutes Eruption!” Bombastic headlines about Norah O’Donnell’s sit-down interview with President Trump at Mar-a-Lago blared across the pages of the internet. Opinions about the 60 Minutes interview on CBS, which lasted 73 minutes but was condensed to 27 minutes, are what you would think — divided along party lines.
But the behind-the-scenes slugfest revolved around what answers to put on the broadcast and what to leave on the cutting room floor.
Recently, these types of decisions have been called out by politicians—including Trump, who sued CBS and won at least $16 million for what he called “deceptive editing”—and are at the center of newsroom discussions around the world.
In this case, preemptively, CBS published the full-length version on YouTube, and the network made a full transcript available, saying the interview was “condensed for clarity.”
The scrutiny in recent months stems from Trump’s lawsuit against 60 Minutes for deceptive editing of a Kamala Harris interview right before the election. “CBS and 60 Minutes defrauded the public by doing something which has never, to this extent, been seen before,” he said.
It seems odd that he has gone back to the same program to be interviewed himself. But after all, this is a new CBS, with new corporate and news management. Trump only has rosy things to say about both Bari Weiss, editor-in-chief of CBS News, and David Ellison, son of Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison, who has made clear he wants a new direction.
In September, CBS’ Face the Nation made the decision to only air live or live-to-tape interviews after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem cried foul, saying the network misleadingly edited her comments about Salvadoran Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was illegally deported. After her complaint, CBS released the transcript and the unedited video.
It was a smart move that, in Trump’s interview, CBS released both without prompting. The network was willing to be transparent from the beginning, and it should be applauded. The curtain is unveiled, and all can see the masters of the media make decisions by comparing what was edited versus unedited.
The network omitted segments including topics about immigration raids, potential intervention in Venezuela, and the government shutdown, which Trump blamed on Democrats.
In all of my years editing pieces for time, it has been the journalists’ prerogative to trim the interview to make for a clearer and more cohesive segment. This is a good practice as long as it’s not a deliberate, deceptive manipulation of the interviewee’s words.
In 30-minute shows, reporters are usually given about two minutes to put together an interview. How else are you going to air a 20-minute conversation with a person if you are only allotted two minutes of air time?
I did this over and over again as I interviewed countless congressmen, presidents, and even rock stars in my 35 years in the business. I even edited out Billy Joel’s mean comments about me being a cub reporter.
Critics say the edited segments of Trump’s interview are politically significant and a shining example of bias. Others argue that the network should have editorial discretion to decide the most significant moments of the interview. There’s also the question of press freedom. When CBS settled the Kamala case, some saw it as capitulation to a strongman trying to manipulate the media.
According to The New Republic, President Trump didn’t seem concerned about the editing of the interview. “…in fact, he repeatedly told them it was OK to cut his answers short.” Of course, he knew his 73-minute interview would not air in a, well, 60-minute broadcast.
Left out of the broadcast interview was his praise of CBS’ leadership and ownership, his gloating that he won $16 million from the old network, the discussion of his pardon of Changpeng Zhao, the founder of the crypto exchange Binance, and comments questioning the integrity of the 2020 election. During these exchanges, he complimented CBS’ Weiss, saying she would do a “good job.”
Also omitted was a bit of back-and-forth about crime in Washington, D.C., where O’Donnell lives. He asked her the question about crime and said she should notice it. Then he told her, “You don’t have to use that one.” It didn’t air.
While he did threaten to walk out at one point, the bigger question was whether he would complain about the edits. So far, he hasn’t. The White House said in a statement it was a “powerful interview” that the president used to “showcase record stock market gains, global peace breakthroughs, and his unwavering commitment to law and order.”
Many others on both sides did complain, but not so much about the editing.
Megyn Kelly said O’Donnell was biased in her questions. “She loathes him. It was seeping out…every time he tried to make a point, she stepped on him.”
The Poynter Institute, a non-profit journalism school and research group, praised O’Donnell for staying “tough and on task.” Many conservative viewers were upset with the way O’Donnell addressed the president as “Mr. Trump.”
The Washington Post summarized how a published article about the interview was received. It said reader comments “overwhelmingly criticize the 60 Minutes interview with President Trump, focusing on his perceived dishonesty and lack of accountability. Many commenters express frustration with the interview’s format, suggesting it was more of a platform for Trump to spread misinformation without being challenged.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) wrote on X, “Maybe I should file a complaint with the FCC against the Trump White House for editing his unhinged 60 Minutes interview…it will use the exact same language Trump lodged against Vice President Harris.”
The larger issue is whether editing for time will become a thing of the past. Will all shows make a decision like we saw on Face the Nation, where interviews will only be the length of time that will air on the broadcast? I hope not. The reason for lengthy interviews is to try to draw out of the subject more than rehearsed answers. Sometimes the best soundbites are the ones that happen when the person finally relaxes. And that takes time.
It’s a step forward that the network released all of the footage and the transcript so that viewers could see exactly what was left out and make decisions about whether 60 Minutes was fair to the most powerful person in the world. Norah O’Donnell was aggressive, but the lack of follow-ups that aired gave ammunition to those who wouldn’t be satisfied unless the president was left battered and bloodied.
Trump is a man who mostly receives extremely critical press from the mainstream media. But he seems to agree—for now—that this interview was a fair attempt at righting what he sees as media wrongs against him.
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