WASHINGTON (Diya TV) — The Federal Communications Commission is weighing an investigation into CBS News after a complaint about the network for allegedly muddling up a pre-election interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris.
The probe surfaces as President Trump has a $10 billion lawsuit claim against CBS on allegations that the network manipulated the responses of candidate Harris in a “60 Minutes” interview to damage his presidential reelection campaign back in October of 2024. CBS owned by Paramount noted Monday that they have submitted the full transcript and footage to the FCC.
Republican FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, appointed after Trump’s return to the White House, announced last week that the commission had reopened the complaint. “CBS played the same question on two different programs, and the words of the answers were very different,” Carr told Fox News, questioning whether the edits were for clarity or other reasons.
CBS maintains that the edits were made to condense Harris’ lengthy response to fit within the program’s time constraints and denies any deliberate manipulation. “The Face the Nation snippet and the 60 Minutes episode featured the same question and answer,” a CBS spokesperson said.
The probe was strongly opposed by Democratic FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez, who referred to it as “a retaliatory move by the government against broadcasters whose content or coverage is perceived to be unfavorable.”
The FCC doesn’t regulate networks per se but controls individual broadcast stations that are licensed.
Complaints about the way ABC managed the pre-election debate between Trump and President Joe Biden and NBC allowing Harris to appear on “Saturday Night Live” before the election are also being considered.
The pressure on media coverage of the election is renewed amidst Paramount’s FCC approval bid for its proposed $8.4 billion merger with Skydance Media.
