Former CBS Head Says Network Settled With Trump Because He Might Have Caught Them Red-Handed

Shari Redstone, the former controlling shareholder for CBS’ parent company Paramount Global, said Paramount agreed to settle with President Donald Trump because of worries about what his legal team may find in discovery, The New York Times reported on Tuesday.

Paramount agreed in July to pay $16 million to Trump to settle his lawsuit pertaining to the editing of a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris. Redstone told the NYT that CBS employees informed her that former President Joe Biden appeared exhausted and needed to be nudged to answer questions during “60 Minutes” correspondent Scott Pelley’s October 2023 interview with him.

She and her son were concerned that CBS could face allegations of editing in order to hide Biden’s issues, according to the NYT.

“This case was never as black-and-white as people assumed,” Redstone told the NYT.

One individual who saw the interview in person, along with another who recently evaluated the raw footage asserted the Redstones’ worries were excessive and that Biden did not need to be nudged, according to the NYT. Pelley had described Biden as appearing “tired” on air.

Paramount said its payment, minus the legal fees, would be paid to Trump’s future presidential library and consented to publish the written transcripts of future “60 Minutes” interviews with presidential candidates, the NYT reported at the time. The settlement did not feature an apology.