The End of CBS News?

The announcement that Bari Weiss would be the new Editor-in-Chief of CBS News landed with a thud inside the network, and the emails and texts immediately started pouring into the FTVLive inbox.

To say that many CBS News staffers are displeased with the move would be an understatement. The overwhelming sentiment from those reaching out to FTVLive is one of dismay and concern for the network's future.

Weiss, a former New York Times opinion columnist who left the paper in 2020 accusing "wokes" on staff of "bullying" her, has since built a brand crusading against "cancel culture." Her publication, The Free Press, will also be acquired by CBS parent company Paramount for a reported $150 million as part of the deal.

The move comes after Paramount was acquired by Skydance in a merger approved by the Trump administration. As part of that deal, Skydance promised to bring "unbiased journalism" and "diverse viewpoints" to CBS News, eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, and install an ombudsman to monitor for alleged bias.

The hiring of a polarizing figure like Weiss is seen by many inside CBS as a direct fulfillment of that promise—a clear signal that the network is shifting its editorial direction to be more friendly to conservative viewpoints.

In a statement, Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison said, “Bari is a proven champion of independent, principled journalism, and I am confident her entrepreneurial drive and editorial vision will invigorate CBS News.”

However, the staffers contacting FTVLive are not invigorated; they are worried. They point to Paramount paying President Donald Trump $16 million to settle a lawsuit over a “60 Minutes” episode as the first sign of the network caving to political pressure. They see the hiring of Weiss, who will report directly to Ellison, as the next, and most significant, step in what they fear is the dismantling of a storied news division.