CBS spokeswoman said the segment will air later after additional reporting|Epicgenius|CC BY-SA 4.0
CBS News has pulled a 60 Minutes segment investigating the Trump administration’s deportations of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador’s notorious CECOT prison after the administration declined to grant an interview.
Criticizing the decision, correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi called the move a “kill switch,” saying the White House’s refusal effectively gives it control over stories it finds inconvenient.
The segment, titled “Inside CECOT,” included interviews with released prisoners who described brutal conditions, including torture and sexual assault, reported by Human Rights Watch.
A CBS spokeswoman said the segment will air later after additional reporting. Alfonsi noted the story had cleared multiple internal reviews and that sources risked their lives to speak.
She warned that making government participation a prerequisite turns investigative journalism into a state-controlled broadcast. Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss reportedly made the call to pull the story.
The network had promoted the segment days before removing trailers from its website.