Paramount has reached a settlement with President Donald Trump, after he sued CBS News for $20 billion over the editing of a '60 Minutes' interview with his Democratic opponent for the presidency, Kamala Harris. No apology was included as part of the agreement.
Paramount has agreed to pay $16 million to settle the lawsuit - was filed in the Northern District of Texas and sought $20 billion in damages -- that had alleged an interview that aired on “60 Minutes” last year with Harris was deceptively edited. Specifically, the lawsuit focused on an answer Harris gave to a question about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In a preview of the interview that ran on Oct. 5, Harris was edited giving one answer; however during the 60 Minutes episode that aired the next night, she was seen giving another answer. A transcript of the entire interview later published by CBS News shows that both responses came from the same, longer answer that Harris gave to the question. Trump and his legal team accused CBS News in the lawsuit of "substantial news distortion calculated to (a) confuse, deceive and mislead the public, and (b) attempt to tip the scales in favor of the Democratic Party."
Paramount Global (the parent company of CBS) said in a statemen that the settlement, reached through mediation, includes plaintiffs’ fees and costs and directs $16 million toward the creation of Mr. Trump’s future presidential library and the legal expenses of the plaintiffs. Neither Trump nor his co-plaintiff, Texas Representative Ronny Jackson, will personally receive any of the funds. The statement read: “The settlement will include a release of all claims regarding any CBS reporting through the date of the settlement, including the Texas action and the threatened defamation action."
As part of the deal, Paramount also committed to ensuring future interviews with presidential candidates on "60 Minutes" will have transcripts made available to the public, though redactions may be applied in cases involving legal or national security concerns.
A spokesperson for Trump's legal team said in a statement: "With this record settlement, President Donald J. Trump delivers another win for the American people as he, once again, holds the Fake News media accountable for their wrongdoing and deceit. CBS and Paramount Global realized the strength of this historic case and had no choice but to settle."
Editorial credit: CryptoFX / Shutterstock.com