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CBS takes veiled dig at Trump over accusation of ‘deceitfully’ editing Harris '60 Minutes' interview; ex-President fumes
Responding to Trump's accusation of deceitful editing of the interview, the CBS issued a statement on Sunday, saying: “That is false.”
‘60 Minutes’ has broken its silence following Donald Trump's claim that the CBS newsmagazine manipulated their October 7 interview with Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris in a bid to support her.
Responding to Trump's accusation of deceitful editing of the interview, the CBS issued a statement on Sunday, saying: “That is false.”
“60 Minutes gave an excerpt of our interview to Face the Nation that used a longer section of her answer than that on 60 Minutes. Same question. Same answer. But a different portion of the response. When we edit any interview, whether a politician, an athlete, or movie star, we strive to be clear, accurate and on point,” the statement read.
“The portion of her answer on 60 Minutes was more succinct, which allows time for other subjects in a wide ranging 21-minute-long segment,” it added.
Taking a veiled dig at Trump, the CBS recalled that “Trump pulled out” of the interview with 60 Minutes, but Harris participated.
It, however, stated that their long-standing invitation to Trump is still open. “If he would like to discuss the issues facing the nation and the Harris interview, we would be happy to have him on 60 Minutes.”
Earlier on Sunday, Trump, while appearing in an interview on Fox's MediaBuzz, said that his Democratic rival should be investigated for her appearance on “60 Minutes”. He reiterated his claims that the interview with correspondent Bill Whitaker was manipulated by CBS News. “They took the answer out in its entirety and put a completely different answer in that looks – that makes her look like she’s normal,” Trump told host Howard Kurtz.
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Trump campaign reacts to CBS News statement
Following CBS' statement, Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt persisted in criticising 60 Minutes for falsely asserting that the network “admitted to doing exactly what President Trump accused them of doing.”
“They edited in a different response - from another part of her answer - to make Kamala Harris sound less incoherent than she really was,” Leavitt added, as per CNN.
Earlier this month, Trump demanded that CBS “lose its license” in response to his claims that the network changed Harris' remark to “make her look better.” Jessica Rosenworcel, chair of the Federal Communications Commission, denounced Trump's statement as “threats against free speech.”
