CBS in the Harsh Public Spotlight Again

Debra Saunders on Sep 3, 2025

WASHINGTON -- In his own fashion, President Donald Trump helped CBS News join the transparency bandwagon.

You could see it after White House correspondent Ed O'Keefe interviewed Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on "Face the Nation" Sunday.

Guest host O'Keefe was fine -- better than the usual host, Margaret Brennan.

It's the editing of a question and answer about a deported Salvadoran national that set off social media -- and gave Noem the perfect opportunity to bash the once-hallowed network.

As Noem posted on X, "This morning, I joined CBS to report the facts about Kilmar Abrego Garcia. Instead, CBS shamefully edited the interview to whitewash the truth about this MS-13 gang member and the threat he poses to American public safety."

"Face the Nation" did air Noem's comments about criminal charges hanging over the Salvadoran and her pledge to "make sure that he doesn't walk free in the United States."

But the live broadcast edited out her assertion that Abrego Garcia is a "known human smuggler, an MS-13 member" and a wife-beater and that he solicited nude photos from minors -- all un-adjudicated charges that can be culled from government documents.

In May, a federal prosecutor charged Abrego Garcia with conspiracy to transport aliens, including MS-13 members, aka human smuggling. The Salvadoran has not had his day in court.

And there have been no criminal charges for the other allegations. Noem should have spoken more carefully.

Back to "Face the Nation." Noem accused CBS of a "whitewash" -- and I'd be inclined to agree except for one thing.

Spoiler alert:

A CBS News spokesperson told Fox News Digital, "Secretary Noem's 'Face The Nation' interview was edited for time and met all CBS News standards. The entire interview is publicly available on YouTube, and the full transcript was posted earlier this morning on CBSNews.com."

That's right. While the live broadcast excluded Noem's allegations, CBS published the full quote -- human-smuggling, wife-beating, truly creepy search for nudes and all -- in the online version of the show, as well as the transcript.

Yes, probably more people saw the live show than the transcript.

But then, this story has more legs because of the omission.

Also: Many Americans don't trust CBS. Just last year, the network's "60 Minutes" was hammered -- righteously -- for editing then-Vice President Kamala Harris' remarks in a way that cleaned up some of her word salad.

Worse, CBS aired two different parts of a Harris quote on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu -- all but an engraved invitation for critics to see unbridled liberal bias.

Here's where Trump comes in.

In 2024, CBS would not release the raw video or transcripts of its "60 Minutes" Harris interview in the face of Trump's demands in the name of transparency.

But amid an FCC inquiry, a couple of weeks after Trump won back the White House, CBS released the full Harris transcript and videos citing "the value of transparency and the public interest here."

It took a presidential election to move the needle, but it's nice to see CBS in the transparency club.

Contact Review-Journal Washington columnist Debra J. Saunders at dsaunders@reviewjournal.com. Follow @debrajsaunders on X.

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