Trump, CBS parent company set for mediation in $20 billion ’60 Minutes’ lawsuit
CBS’ parent company, Paramount Global, and President Donald Trump are set to begin mediation in his $20 billion election interference lawsuit, Fox News Digital has confirmed.
Trump is seeking $20 billion in a lawsuit against CBS, alleging election interference over its handling of a "60 Minutes" interview last year with Vice President Kamala Harris.
The president has accused CBS of aiding his 2024 Democratic opponent through deceptive editing one month before they faced off in the presidential election. The saga began when Harris was widely mocked for a "word salad" answer she gave to "60 Minutes" correspondent Bill Whitaker during a preview of the interview on "Face the Nation," and CBS then aired a different answer to the same question during a primetime special.
The upcoming mediation, which was first reported by The New York Times, is designed to help the sides reach a settlement.
"President Trump is committed to holding those who traffic in fake news, hoaxes, and lies to account. CBS and Paramount committed the worst kind of election interference and fraud in the closing days of the most important presidential election in history. President Trump will pursue this vital matter to its just and rightful conclusion," Ed Paltzik, attorney for President Trump, told Fox News Digital.
CBS and Paramount Global did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump’s legal team previously requested "all documents in CBS Interactive’s possession, custody, or control, wherever located, including documents in the possession of its representatives, attorneys, or other persons directly or indirectly retained by CBS Interactive, or anyone else acting on its behalf or otherwise subject to its control" pertaining to the "60 Minutes" interview.
The demand included all communications between CBS and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the Biden administration, the Harris campaign and the DNC from Sept. 22, 2024, through Feb. 11, 2025.
Any communications pertaining to the lawsuit between CBS and Paramount employees have also been requested, along with any communications about advertising or commercials during the programs that aired the Harris interview.
Critics accused CBS News of editing Harris' "word salad" answer to shield the former vice president from further backlash.
Earlier this year, FCC Chair Brendan Carr ordered CBS News to hand over the unedited transcript as part of its investigation into whether the network violated the FCC's "news distortion" policy after a complaint was filed. CBS had refused to release the unedited transcript until the FCC got involved.
The raw transcript and footage showed CBS News had aired only the first half of Harris' response to Whitaker's question about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not "listening" to the Biden administration in a preview clip that aired on "Face the Nation," but aired only the second half of her response during the primetime special.
Trump's attorneys amended its lawsuit to include multiple excerpts from the unedited transcript in hopes of bolstering their case that CBS News withheld unflattering exchanges in order to help the Democratic nominee.
CBS and its parent company, Paramount Global, have insisted the network did nothing wrong. Paramount Global is reportedly considering settling the suit ahead of a planned merger with Skydance Media in hopes of preventing potential retribution by Trump's FCC, which has the authority to halt the multibillion-dollar transaction.
Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn and Brooke Singman contributed to this report.