CBS News (digital content rated Lean Left) appears to have altered its 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris by changing her original answer to a question about Israel, which some, like The Daily Mail (Right bias), had called an unfocused “word salad.” CBS was also accused of editing House Speaker Mike Johnson’s interview regarding the federal response to Hurricane Helene.

This type of bias has come up on both sides of the aisle this election cycle. Fox News (Right bias)  edited Trump’s recent Town Hall on the network and was accused of deceptively editing an interview with Donald Trump in June.

While news outlets creating shorter clips from longer footage is not inherently a problem, those clips should not omit important parts of a subject’s statements or caricature their views. And news outlets should always make full, unedited footage publicly available so readers can come to their own conclusions. 

CBS Edits Harris

In a preview of the 60 Minutes interview that aired on CBS’s Face the Nation Sunday, Harris and interviewer Bill Whitaker had the following exchange, beginning at 1:40:

CBS News is under fire after it emerged that the network edited out a portion of Vice President Kamala Harris’ recent interview on 60 Minutes, which many labeled as a “word salad.”

The original, unedited clip is below… meanwhile 60 minutes uploaded new edited version onto… pic.twitter.com/wi1ViRnT0u

— SHO’NUFF (@IAMSHO_NUFF) October 8, 2024

Bill Whitaker: But it seems that Prime Minister Netanyahu is not listening.

Harris: 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.

But the transcript and the full interview that aired on CBS’s “60 Minutes” Monday night show Harris giving a different answer, with the response she gave in the preview nowhere to be found in the transcript or full interview:

Bill Whitaker: But it seems that Prime Minister Netanyahu is not listening.

Harris: We are not gonna stop pursuing what is necessary for the United States to be clear about where we stand on the need for this war to end.

This edited answer is much more confident.

Fox News was among the critics of the change by CBS, saying her original answer was “mocked by conservatives.” 

“Sometimes interviews are edited to save time, but when CBS aired the interview on Monday night, Harris had a different answer to the exact same question,” Fox reported.

"On Sunday, 60 Minutes teased Kamala's highly-anticipated sit-down interview with one of her worst word salads to date, which received significant criticism on social media. During the full interview on Monday evening, the word salad was deceptively edited to lessen Kamala's idiotic response," Trump campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt said. "Why did 60 Minutes choose not to air Kamala's full word salad, and what else did they choose not to air?"

Trump was also invited for an interview by 60 Minutes, but declined.

CBS has not released a transcript, but did release a statement on October 20. The statement reads:

Former President Donald Trump is accusing 60 Minutes of deceitful editing of our Oct. 7 interview with Vice President Kamala Harris. That is false.

60 Minutes gave an excerpt of our interview to Face the Nation that used a longer section of her answer than that on 60 Minutes. Same question. Same answer. But a different portion of the response. When we edit any interview, whether a politician, an athlete, or movie star, we strive to be clear, accurate and on point. The portion of her answer on 60 Minutes was more succinct, which allows time for other subjects in a wide ranging 21-minute-long segment.

Remember, Mr. Trump pulled out of his interview with 60 Minutes and the vice president participated.

Our long-standing invitation to former President Trump remains open. If he would like to discuss the issues facing the nation and the Harris interview, we would be happy to have him on 60 Minutes.

CBS Edits Mike Johnson

Speaker Mike Johnson said that following a 15-minute interview with CBS News, they cut out five minutes in which he gave a firsthand account of hurricane relief efforts. 

Johnson also linked videos where they edited interviews about election integrity and the SAVE Act. 

Johnson framed these edits as efforts to undermine Republicans by cutting some of the evidence he provided for his responses.

Fox Edits Trump’s All-Women Town Hall

According to CNN (Lean Left), Fox News edited its broadcast of Trump’s town hall, which aired on Oct. 16. CNN alleges that the audience was not just women, but women who already supported Trump and the parts that were edited out were their expressions of support for Trump. The network said the event was hosted by Fox, not associated with any Republican group.

For example, CNN says that Fox edited out, “I proudly cast my vote for you today. I hope they count it,” from a woman’s foreign policy question. “While it’s common for a pre-taped event or interview to be edited for time, Alicia’s short remark came in the middle of her question, which remained intact on the broadcast,” CNN added.

“During another moment missing from Fox’s broadcast, Trump asked the crowd who they were voting for, leading to a chant of ‘Trump, Trump’ breaking out by the attendees,” said CNN.

Fox Edits Trump Interview in June

Fox was accused of similarly editing a Trump interview on “Fox and Friends” earlier this year. 

check out the cut here. Trump's interview on Fox & Friends was clearly heavily edited pic.twitter.com/l2BTMrHST4

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 2, 2024

The New Republic (Left bias) accused Fox of editing the interview because “Trump can’t answer questions or speak coherently anymore.”

As Semafor (Lean Left) pointed out, Trump’s full answers were cut from parts of the broadcast, but resurfaced later.

Editing candidates’ answers is an example of bias by slant and omission. The edits apparently seek to make answers appear more polished and direct. Releasing the full, unedited interviews would give Americans a much clearer picture of Harris’ and Trump’s approach to tough questions.

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Henry A. Brechter is AllSides’ editor-in-chief. He has a Center bias.

Reviewed by:

Julie Mastrine, Director of Marketing and Bias Ratings (Lean Right)

Evan Wagner, Product Manager (Lean Left)

Johnathon Held, News and Bias Analyst (Lean Right)