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Bari Weiss 'joke' hires leave '60 Minutes' insiders laughing as ratings plummet: report

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Staff at CBS News' flagship news magazine "60 Minutes" are voicing sharp discontent over network chief Bari Weiss' latest round of hires, with insiders saying they doubt the new additions belong on one of television's most storied broadcasts.The most contentious pick is conservative New York Times opinion columnist Ross Douthat, who joins despite having no reporting background and minimal on-camera experience, reported Status. Newly installed executive producer Nick Bilton praised Douthat in an internal memo as a rigorous thinker with deep empathy, a characterization industry insiders reportedly found laughable.“The idea that Ross can be a ‘60’ correspondent is a joke," snorted a veteran TV executive.According to the New York Post, insiders mock Bilton interviews as an excuse for him to air grievances about CBS — calling them "therapy sessions."The Post reports Bilton is telling people he's “assembling ‘The Avengers of news.'" “We’re journalists,” one source said. "Not Marvel movie characters."Douthat isn't the only addition raising eyebrows. Writer Sebastian Junger, former VICE correspondent Gianna Toboni, and ex-Sky News host Sir Trevor Phillips — who has faced past accusations of Islamophobia — round out the new roster of contributors and correspondents, alongside CBS veteran Norah O'Donnell's promotion to full correspondent.Industry figures who spoke with Status measured the newcomers against legends like Mike Wallace, Diane Sawyer, Ed Bradley and Scott Pelley, concluding the new hires wouldn't have made the cut in that earlier era.“These are the most coveted on-air jobs in TV news,” said another news veteran.Paramount Skydance chief David Ellison installed Weiss, who lacked experience in broadcast news and once bragged about not owning a television, as CBS News editor-in-chief in October, and critics say CBS has lurched rightward since her arrival and grown reluctant to air anything critical of the Trump administration.Viewers have rejected the changes under her stewardship.CBS Evening News, anchored by Tony Dokoupil, is on pace to average just 3.8 million viewers in July, marking its fourth straight month below 4 million. CBS Mornings fared even worse, pulling in its lowest monthly average, 1.6 million, in the show's history. One CBS executive told Status the overhaul has driven ratings to record lows, with little sign the "60 Minutes" changes will reverse the trend.CBS News has not yet responded to a request for comment.

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State Department Report Reveals How Cuba Equipped The American Radical Left For 60 Years

The Federalist

1 hour ago

State Department Report Reveals How Cuba Equipped The American Radical Left For 60 Years

A clear-headed American foreign policy should focus on vindicating American interests and defeating Cuba’s revolutionary activities against us.

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'Devastating' probe finds 47 alleged abusers at Epstein-linked arts center: report

Raw Story

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'Devastating' probe finds 47 alleged abusers at Epstein-linked arts center: report

A two-year investigation identified 47 adults accused of sexual misconduct against students at a Michigan arts institution with deep ties to Jeffrey Epstein, drawing on more than 70 firsthand accounts of abuse dating back to the 1950s, MLive reported Tuesday night.Epstein has a well-documented history with Interlochen Center of the Arts, having attended the institution in 1967 when he was around 14 years old. In the 1990s, Epstein became a major donor to the institution, and previous reporting has revealed how he and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell used the center to target young girls. Recent reports also revealed that Epstein had set up his own lodge at the institution, and was accused by the mother of soap opera actress Nadia Bjorlin of trying to groom her daughter when she was 13.Carried out by Sanghavi Law Office at the behest of the institution, the new investigation revealed that the scope of abuse was far greater than previously known, including new allegations of abuse by Epstein himself.“The information gathered during this investigation is, simply, devastating,” reads Sanghavi Law Office’s report. “Despite the deep and positive connections that many individuals expressed to the investigative team regarding Interlochen, some of these same individuals detailed the significant negative impact of the conduct that they reported.”The law office’s investigative team forwarded the names of the alleged abuser to the Grand Traverse County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, though a significant number of accused adults are now deceased, per the report. Having conducted around 180 interviews, the law office also uncovered a previously unreported allegation against Epstein.“One alum said that when she met Epstein and Maxwell at Interlochen, they offered to pay for her tuition, which they did. She noted that they withdrew financial support for subsequent schooling after she did not engage in requested conduct,” the law office’s report reads. “This alum said that during the time she interacted with Epstein and Maxwell at Interlochen, they asked her to Epstein’s lodge on campus, and that while there, Epstein engaged in sexual conduct with her, brushing against her body over her clothes, in a manner in which he indicated was accidental.”The same alum told investigators that she visited Epstein at his home in New York on three occasions while a student at Interlochen, during which Epstein would make unwanted sexual physical contact, and that she “did not tell anyone about Epstein’s conduct towards her until decades later.”In another new revelation, investigators discovered that a male faculty member at the institution had allegedly made unwanted physical advances and contact with a female student. That student told investigators that she confronted the faculty member and read aloud a letter to him: “Can you promise me that you won’t do this to anyone else?”The faculty member, according to the student, “told her that this was part of how he expressed love, and that he could not promise he would not do it again with anyone else,” the law office’s report reads.Per the report, the student informed leadership at the institution of the alleged unwanted physical contact. Within days of informing leadership, the male faculty member accused of abuse received a letter of recommendation from an institution administrator, and a second letter of recommendation from another administrator a month later.

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Trump pardons megadonor 'fraudster' who cut 'massive' campaign check: report

Raw Story

2 hours ago

Trump pardons megadonor 'fraudster' who cut 'massive' campaign check: report

President Donald Trump pardoned a Republican megadonor linked to a massive fraud scandal after he contributed to a high-stakes swing state campaign, according to a new report.Adam Kidan — who pleaded guilty in the lobbyist Jack Abramoff conspiracy case —received a pardon from Trump just days after making a $2,600 to Rep. Ryan MacKenzie's (R-PA) leadership PAC on June 30, NOTUS reported Wednesday."Trump traveled to Mackenzie’s eastern Pennsylvania district on June 23 to campaign with him," the report stated. "The president pardoned Kidan on July 3."Mackenzie’s office denied communication with Trump regarding the pardon but did not respond to question about whether the campaign would keep the cash, NOTUS reported. Neither the White House nor Kidan replied to requests for comment.But his Democratic challenger Bob Brooks's campaign told NOTUS they are livid as it fights to win a “toss-up” race, according to the report.“Three days after a convicted fraudster cut Ryan Mackenzie a massive campaign check, that same fraudster walked away with a presidential pardon," Brooks campaign manager Jenna Kaufman told NOTUS. "That is corruption in plain sight.”Kidan donated about $270,000 to Trump-affiliated committees during the 2024 election cycle and hosted fundraisers at Mar-a-Lago, according to the report.He pleaded guilty to federal charges of conspiracy and mail fraud in 2005."As part of his sentencing, Kidan and Abramoff were ordered to pay a total of $217 million in restitution," the report stated. "It’s unclear whether Kidan paid the full amount, and Trump’s pardon is likely to erase any remaining financial obligations."

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ICE takes its deportation crusade to the tarmac as airports become hunting grounds: report

Raw Story

11 hours ago

ICE takes its deportation crusade to the tarmac as airports become hunting grounds: report

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have a new strategy to round people up for mass deportation: head to the airport.According to The New York Times, "Immigration agents in plain clothes have whisked away targets at check-in counters and arrival gates, with enforcement actions in at least 15 airports in recent weeks. Some of the arrests have occurred quietly, while others have happened as angry fellow passengers filmed the encounters" — and it all seems to be the result of a partnership between ICE and the Transportation Security Administration.This comes after a December report from The Times "that ICE officers were arresting people with deportation orders at airports with the help of information provided by airlines to the T.S.A."A huge source of illegal immigration into the United States comes from people who enter on lawful visas but overstay. Not all of them have even broken any law on purpose, The Times noted: "Many with expired visas occupy a legal gray area, as they are awaiting visa extensions or green cards and have been issued work permits. Such individuals were not prioritized for deportation in the past unless they had committed crimes, and they were rarely detained while waiting for visa extensions or green cards."Under the Trump administration, however, these people are fair game to deport.A viral video this week showed one such arrest, of 27-year-old Ecuadorian national Chantal Morales Rojas, who was held back by plainclothes officers in the jetway after scanning her Southwest Airlines boarding pass from Denver to Oakland, California. The video showed her being seized and led through a side door, while she shouted in panic.ICE has not just been relying on data from airports; another recent report indicated ICE can gain information on where people live whenever they take out a new credit card.As the administration has ramped up mass deportation efforts and imposed ever more stringent arrest quotas on ICE agents, reporting from the Washington Examiner suggests that even within ICE itself, morale over their job has plunged to new lows.

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Trump privately raging as one of his 'biggest headaches' refuses to budge: report

Raw Story

12 hours ago

Trump privately raging as one of his 'biggest headaches' refuses to budge: report

President Donald Trump is downplaying his frustrations with a key Republican senator, according to a recent report.Despite a recent public spat, Trump has privately said that Senate Majority Leader John Thune is giving him more trouble than he's let on, wrote Jonathan Lemire in a Tuesday piece for The Atlantic.A senior adviser told Lemire that Trump considers Thune "one of my biggest headaches." The frustration with Thune spilled into public view last week, when White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the president's "patience is running out" with Thune. During an event in Georgia that week, Trump also called Thune out as he told attendees to call Thune and demand he pass the SAVE America Act, a stalled voting bill.Lemire noted that Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Monday that his relationship with Thune was "fine," however. Axios also reported on Tuesday that Thune plans to attend Trump's midterm GOP convention in Dallas.Trump's problems with Thune stem from White House pressure on Republicans to gut the filibuster and push through the SAVE America Act, per Lemire. Trump has demanded that the Senate eliminate the 60-vote threshold to pass the SAVE Act, which would require voters to provide proof of citizenship and, critics warn, make casting a ballot harder. Thune has refused to blow up the filibuster to do it.Lemire pointed out that Thune's resistance contrasts with how "the GOP marched in lockstep to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill Act tax legislation" last year.White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson reiterated to Lemire that the SAVE Act "has always been a top priority for President Trump and it remains one." She added that Trump "will not stop fighting until it is passed."

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'Very bad facts' emerge as Comey fights Trump prosecutors over seashells: reporter

Raw Story

12 hours ago

'Very bad facts' emerge as Comey fights Trump prosecutors over seashells: reporter

"Very bad facts" have been revealed in former FBI Director James Comey latest motion demanding a federal judge throw out the criminal case over a social media post showing sea shells arranged to spell "86 47," legal experts revealed Wednesday.Comey's lawyers' argument — that the prosecution is part of a multi-year attack by President Donald Trump to punish Comey for First Amendment-protected speech — contains explosive claims about the government's efforts to charge him, reported MS NOW."[Defense attorney] Pat Fitzgerald cites some very bad facts re the prosecution of James Comey," said MS NOW's Carol Leonnig, linking to work by her colleagues Fallon Gallagher and Lisa Rubin. "Worth reading all the ways the president and his aides ordered up the surveillance and prosecution of Jim Comey for a threat to Trump's life – despite agents concluding no threat existed."Comey's attorneys allege the U.S. Secret Service illegally surveilled him electronically at the direction of a senior official, tying the surveillance to Trump's involvement in pushing the case forward. Alongside the dismissal motion, Comey's team filed additional requests, including one to unseal grand jury audio over alleged irregularities in how prosecutors presented the case, and another to suppress evidence they say was obtained through misrepresentations and omissions.At the heart of the case is the phrase "86 47," which prosecutors argue constituted a true threat against Trump, the nation's 47th president. Comey's lawyers dispute that interpretation, noting that "86" is common restaurant-industry slang for discarding or refusing something, not a term for violence.They point out that most dictionaries don't even include "kill" as a definition, and they've submitted a declaration from former federal judge and mob prosecutor John Gleeson stating that in his organized-crime experience, "86" carries no connotation of murder. They also note Comey deleted the post within hours, saying he hadn't realized some people associate the numbers with violence.The filing notes that prosecutors obtained warrants by misleading a judge about interviews with a witness identified as "Person 1" and described by defense attorneys as an "estranged" associate who believed he had committed crimes as FBI director, but that individual testified that he "only" understood "86" to be restaurant slang until hearing a Rudy Giuliani's podcast that convinced him Comey would have known understood it as mob slang."A key witness hated Comey, openly wanted him jailed, disclosed having been in 'rehab' for unspecified reasons, admitted to offering only 'speculation,' and yet supported the defense theory of the case — until the person found a Rudy Giuliani podcast convincing," summarized Adam Klasfeld of All Rise News.The defense further argues selective prosecution, since "86 47" is widely used on protest signs and merchandise nationwide — usage a Washington federal judge recently found is protected First Amendment speech — yet Comey alone faces charges over it.This marks Comey's second indictment in under a year. His first case, brought in Virginia after Trump publicly pressured then-Attorney General Pam Bondi to pursue him, was dismissed on the grounds that the prosecutor who secured the indictment, Lindsey Halligan, had been unlawfully appointed — before a judge could rule on the vindictive-prosecution claims.Judge Louise Flanagan, a George W. Bush appointee, will now decide whether this second case should be dismissed. Courts rarely side with defendants on vindictive or selective prosecution claims, though it does happen — a Tennessee judge recently dismissed charges against Kilmar Abrego-Garcia on similar grounds.

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Dems reject Trump’s top spy pick after demanding replacement, leaving counter-terror tool in air

Latest Political News on Fox News

14 hours ago

Dems reject Trump’s top spy pick after demanding replacement, leaving counter-terror tool in air

Jay Clayton's party-line confirmation as DNI has yet to break the partisan logjam over Section 702 FISA reauthorization in the U.S. Senate.

Right

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Damning rebuke causes Trump diplomats to walk out on 'deeply worried' UN officials: report

Raw Story

14 hours ago

Damning rebuke causes Trump diplomats to walk out on 'deeply worried' UN officials: report

American diplomats walked out of a United Nations meeting after they were confronted with harsh criticism about President Donald Trump, The Guardian reported.During a U.N. Security Council meeting on the Ukraine-Russia war, United States diplomats staged a walkout after months of foreign diplomats and U.N. officials blasting Trump's human rights record, according to reporting by The Guardian.The condemnation came after the Trump administration imposed sweeping tariffs on dozens of countries it alleged were using "forced labor," The Guardian reported, noting that U.S. lawmakers also took issue with the tariffs. Critics dismissed the allegations as a "convenient" justification for Trump's tariffs, The Guardian added.The Trump administration has also come under fire for criticizing the U.N. human rights system and opposing the reappointment of U.N. human rights chief Volker Türk, according to The Guardian.Türk said in March that he was "deeply worried by the fundamental shift in direction" in the US. In June, Türk called for "prompt, independent, impartial and effective investigations" into immigration custody during the Trump administration.The U.S. was one of ten countries that voted against Türk's reappointment last week. The U.S. voted against Türk's reappointment alongside Russia, North Korea, Nicaragua, Israel, and Mali, which led French diplomats to call it out via a social media post, per The Guardian."The U.S. used to be a beacon of human rights. Not anymore," French diplomats wrote in a post on X. "Today, it stands alongside North Korea, Nicaragua, Mali & Russia, isolated. And the world no longer listens to it."

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Bari Weiss 'joke' hires leave '60 Minutes' insiders laughing as ratings plummet: report

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Bari Weiss 'joke' hires leave '60 Minutes' insiders laughing as ratings plummet: report

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