'Trump is committed to holding those who traffic in deception and fake news accountable,' the president's attorney says
CBS airs different parts of Harris answer to same 60 Minutes question
CBS aired one part of a Kamala Harris answer to a question about Israel from its 60 Minutes correspondent on Oct. 6, and then aired a shorter, different part of the answer a day later.
President Donald Trump may be on the verge of another legal victory.
In October, Trump filed a $10 billion lawsuit against CBS News alleging election interference over its handling of the "60 Minutes" interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris, accusing the network of aiding his Democratic rival through deceptive editing.
Earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal reported that CBS parent company Paramount Global was considering settling the suit ahead of a planned merger that ultimately must pass muster with the new Trump administration.
The New York Times reported on Thursday night that "settlement discussions between representatives of Paramount and Mr. Trump are now underway," citing "three people with knowledge of the talks."
TRUMP SUES CBS NEWS FOR $10 BILLION ALLEGING 'DECEPTIVE DOCTORING' OF HARRIS' '60 MINUTES' INTERVIEW
President Trump and others were not pleased with CBS News’ "60 Minutes" over the controversial edit of its interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris. (Left: (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images), Center: Screenshot/60Minutes, Right: (Photo by Andy Manis/Getty Images))
The Times added that there is "no assurance" the talks will result in a deal but "Shari Redstone, Paramount’s controlling shareholder, strongly supports the effort to settle."
"Many executives at CBS’s parent company, Paramount, believe that settling the lawsuit would increase the odds that the Trump administration does not block or delay their planned multibillion-dollar merger with another company, according to several people with knowledge of the matter," the Times reported.
The Wall Street Journal previously suggested Paramount honchos wanted to reach a deal ahead of a merger with Skydance Media.
Ed Paltzik, an attorney for President Trump, said CBS needs to be held accountable.
"President Donald J. Trump is committed to holding those who traffic in deception and fake news accountable. CBS and its parent company Paramount deceived the American People by unlawfully tampering with their interview of Kamala Harris, and then hiding the transcript from the public in an attempt to save the failing, and now failed, Harris campaign, all in desperate commercial pursuit of increased profit and viewership," Paltzik told Fox News Digital.
"Real accountability for CBS and Paramount will ensure that the President is compensated for the harm done to him, and will deter the Fake News from further distorting the facts to advance a partisan agenda," Paltzik continued. "President Trump looks forward to seeing this case through to a just conclusion."
In October, President Trump filed a $10 billion lawsuit against CBS News alleging election interference over its handling of the "60 Minutes" interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, accusing the network of aiding his Democratic rival through deceptive editing. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio; Screenshot/CBS News)
Trump’s lawsuit focused on an exchange Harris had with "60 Minutes" correspondent Bill Whitaker. In a preview clip that aired on "Face the Nation," Harris was asked why it seemed like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wasn’t listening to the U.S.
"Well, Bill, the work that we have done has resulted in a number of movements in that region by Israel that were very much prompted by, or a result of, many things, including our advocacy for what needs to happen in the region," Harris responded in the "Face the Nation" clip.
Harris was mocked by conservatives for offering a lengthy "word salad" to Whitaker. But when that same question aired the following night in the primetime election special, a shorter, more focused answer from the vice president followed.
"We are not going to stop pursuing what is necessary for the United States to be clear about where we stand on the need for this war to end," Harris said in the primetime special.
Critics accused CBS News of editing Harris' "word salad" answer to shield the vice president from further backlash. Trump lawyers argue that news organizations "are responsible for accurately representing the truth of events, not distorting an interview to try and falsely make their preferred candidate appear coherent and decisive, which Kamala most certainly is not."
CBS News and Paramount did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's requests for comment.
Bill Whitaker’s "60 Minutes" interview with Vice President Kamala Harris is at the center of a high-stakes lawsuit. (Screenshots/CBS News)
CBS News previously refused to release the full transcript, citing the First Amendment, and rejected the assertion that it had "doctored" the Harris interview to mislead the American people. The network insisted that "the interview was not doctored" and that the program "did not hide any part of the vice president’s answer to the question at issue."
CBS settlement speculation comes just weeks after ABC News settled its defamation lawsuit filed by Trump, resulting in giving him $15 million and a written apology.
Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn and Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
Brian Flood is a media editor/reporter for FOX News Digital. Story tips can be sent to
