CBS 60 Minutes Trump Deportation Report Airs After Internal Editorial Clash

Was it an editorial refinement or a political surrender? CBS News finally aired the '60 Minutes' segment on Trump administration deportations that nearly tore its newsroom apart. The story, which focused on deportees sent to El Salvador's harsh CECOT prison, was suddenly pulled just one month ago, sparking intense debate over journalistic independence.

The 60 Minutes Trump Deportation Report Controversy

On December 21, 2025, the report by correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi was struck from the lineup on the orders of Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss. At the time, Alfonsi told colleagues that the decision was "political," not editorial. Weiss countered that the story didn't sufficiently reflect the administration's viewpoint or offer new reporting beyond what other outlets had already covered.

Updates and Administration Pushback

When the story finally aired on January 18, 2026, it remained largely identical in its core body but included new written statements from the White House and the Department of Homeland Security. Alfonsi noted during the broadcast that the administration had repeatedly declined on-camera interview requests, a move she previously described as a "tactical maneuver" to kill the story.

The segment featured a clip of President Donald Trump praising the prison's strict management. Meanwhile, the Associated Press reported that CBS has faced increasing scrutiny over its relationship with the new administration, including threats of legal action from Karoline Leavitt regarding the editing of presidential interviews.