CBS News announced that the White House’s “unprecedented decision to” release its footage from the upcoming “60 Minutes” interview will not deter the show.
President Donald Trump posted 38 minutes of his “60 Minutes” interview with journalist Lesley Stahl Thursday – days before its intended Sunday release by the network. Trump criticized Stahl after the interview, which he reportedly abruptly ended Tuesday.
“The White House’s unprecedented decision to disregard their agreement with CBS News and release their footage will not deter 60 MINUTES from providing its full, fair and contextual reporting which presidents have participated in for decades,” the network wrote in a statement.
“60 MINUTES, the most-watched news program on television, is widely respected for bringing its hallmark fairness, deep reporting and informative context to viewers each week. Few journalists have had the presidential interview experience Lesley Stahl has delivered over her decades as one of the premier correspondents in America and we look forward to audiences seeing her third interview with President Trump and subsequent interview with Vice President Pence this weekend,” the network continued.
NEW: @CBSNews statement on White House “unprecedented” decision to release full @60Minutes interview: https://t.co/46YUR1MK3Z pic.twitter.com/LXXiNY1a1r
— Paula Reid (@PaulaReidCBS) October 22, 2020
The president told viewers to “look at the bias, hatred and rudeness on behalf of 60 Minutes and CBS” in a tweet with a link to the White House’s footage of the interview. (RELATED: CBS Defends Lesley Stahl After Trump Posts Video Of Her Maskless Inside White House)
“Tonight’s anchor, Kristen Welker, is far worse!” he said, referring to the NBC News journalist moderating Thursday’s presidential debate.
CBS News’ “60 Minutes” has not noted if the video posted by Trump is the full interview.