Bari Weiss Delivers Blunt Assessment to CBS News Staff in First Town Hall
In her inaugural address to CBS News employees as editor-in-chief, Bari Weiss delivered a stark warning about the network's future direction, while also expressing some regret over a controversial editorial decision. The town hall meeting, held on Tuesday, marked Weiss's first major communication with staff since joining the network in October following Paramount Skydance's acquisition of her company, The Free Press, for a reported $150 million.
'We Have to Earn Trust'
Weiss began by acknowledging the "tumult and noise" surrounding her appointment and the understandable skepticism among staff members. "I just want to start by saying: I get it. And I get why, in the face of all this tumult and noise, you might feel uncertain or skeptical about me and about what I'm aiming to do here," Weiss stated, according to an audio recording obtained by the Guardian.
She made clear she wouldn't be asking for immediate trust from employees. "I'm not going to stand up here today in front of all of you and ask for your trust: I'm going to earn it, just like we have to do with our viewers," Weiss declared. "What I can give you is what I've always tried to give my readers and listeners as a journalist: and that is transparency, clarity, and straight talk."
A Radical New Strategy for CBS News
Weiss outlined her vision to "make CBS News fit for purpose in the 21st century," describing the network as "the best-capitalized media start-up in the world" with the resources to transform. However, she warned that sticking to current approaches would be disastrous.
"The honest truth is: right now we are not producing a product that enough people want," Weiss told staff bluntly. She pointed to declining trust in mainstream media and insufficient reach through new formats as critical challenges.
"Our strategy until now has been: cling to the audience that remains on broadcast television," she explained. "I'm here to tell you that if we stick to that strategy, we're toast. Starting now, we have to focus on what we're building, not on what we're maintaining."
Editorial Positioning and New Talent
Weiss positioned CBS News as serving "the center, we're for the center-right, and we're for the center-left," describing this as representing "the vast majority of the country." As part of her transformation plan, she announced the addition of 18 new on-air contributors, including medical expert Mark Hyman, historian Niall Ferguson, neuroscientist Andrew Huberman, and former national security advisor H R McMaster.
The network plans to invest more resources in "producing revelatory journalism every day," which Weiss described as "the only kind that's going to matter in the 21st century."
Addressing the 60 Minutes Controversy
During the question-and-answer session, Weiss addressed her controversial decision to pull a 60 Minutes segment about Venezuelans sent to a notorious Salvadoran prison just before its scheduled December airing. The segment eventually aired on January 18, but without an on-camera interview with a Trump administration official that Weiss had requested.
"It's always going to be my prerogative as editor of this newsroom to say that I want more information and to push to get new information," Weiss explained. "Now, am I ever going to hold something again after it has been put out there with promos? I don't want to make that exact same decision again. No, I do not."
She attributed part of the problem to being new to the company and unfamiliar with 60 Minutes' screening schedule. "That specific logistical nightmare – that's never going to happen again," Weiss assured staff. She also denied that Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison had pressured her to hold the story, saying their only conversations had been about "fairness."
Staff Concerns and Internal Climate
Anonymous questions submitted by employees revealed significant concerns about the newsroom climate under Weiss's leadership. One staffer wrote: "Certain decisions and editorial choices have scared us. At Evening News, people are afraid for their jobs and afraid to even speak for fear of retaliation. There has been a chilling effect within our newsroom."
Another employee described feeling that offering feedback or constructive criticism might result in "targets on our backs."
A Rallying Cry and Mixed Reactions
Morning show host Gayle King offered support near the end of the event, dismissing rumors about her potential departure. "We've had a lot of incoming," King said. "People come and pet me like a puppy and say, 'I'm so sorry that you're leaving CBS. I won't watch you guys again. And it's not the same place.' And when I come here, what I see every day are people who really love what they do."
King praised Weiss for laying out her vision, noting that "for many people, they've never even heard your freaking voice. So it's good for them to see you're a real person and this is what you want and how you feel about us and how you feel about this job."
Despite the applause that concluded the event, one CBS News staffer described the town hall as "so produced" and "so forced," suggesting mixed reactions to Weiss's leadership style and message.
Weiss acknowledged that her ambitious transformation plans might not suit everyone. "Start-ups aren't for everybody," she said. "If that's not your bag, that's ok. It's a free country, and I completely respect if you decide I'm not the right leader for you, or this isn't the right place at the right time."
She concluded with a determined vision: "We are going to transform CBS News. And if everyone here does their jobs right, and together, in a year's time CBS News is going to look different. This will be one hell of a fight. But I don't just think that we can win it, I know that we can."
