'60 Minutes' producers rail against Trump's 'bulls---' lawsuit, dread prospects of Paramount making settlement

"Tick, tick, tick" is the dependable "60 Minutes" viewers perceive each Sunday evening connected CBS. It's besides the dependable that journalists some wrong and extracurricular of CBS News proceed to perceive arsenic the network's genitor institution Paramount Global mulls settling a multibillion-dollar suit filed by President Donald Trump. 

Both Trump and Paramount person entered mediation, which could reason astatine immoderate time. 

Last October, Trump sued CBS News and Paramount for $10 cardinal implicit allegations of predetermination interference involving the "60 Minutes" interrogation of then-Vice President Kamala Harris that aired weeks earlier the statesmanlike predetermination (the magnitude has since jumped to $20 billion). 

There person been reports that a colony betwixt $30-50 cardinal could beryllium reached, thing Paramount hopes would wide the pathway towards its planned merger with Skydance Media, which seeks support from Trump's FCC. Also fueling colony rumors was Monday's abrupt resignation of CBS News CEO Wendy McMahon.

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One seasoned "60 Minutes" shaper called President Trump's suit "complete bulls---." (Screenshot/CBS News)

"The unanimous presumption astatine ‘60 Minutes’ is that determination should beryllium nary settlement, and nary wealth paid, due to the fact that the suit is implicit bulls---," 1 seasoned "60 Minutes" shaper told Fox News Digital.

The CBS suit stems from the "60 Minutes" primetime predetermination peculiar that aired past October featuring an interrogation with then-Vice President Kamala Harris, specifically an speech Harris had with "60 Minutes" analogous Bill Whitaker, who asked her wherefore Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wasn't "listening" to the Biden administration.

Harris was wide mocked for the "word salad" reply that aired successful a preview clip of the interrogation connected "Face the Nation." But erstwhile the aforesaid question aired during the primetime special, Harris had a different, much concise response. Critics astatine the clip accused CBS News of editing Harris' "word salad" answer to shield the then-vice president from further backlash starring up to Election Day. 

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The earthy transcript and footage released earlier this twelvemonth by the FCC showed that some sets of Harris' comments came from the aforesaid response, but CBS News had aired lone the archetypal fractional of her effect successful the "Face the Nation" preview clip and aired the 2nd fractional during the primetime special. 

However, Trump has repeatedly asserted that CBS News took comments from a wholly abstracted Harris effect and inserted them successful the speech astir Netanyahu.

President Donald Trump is suing CBS News and its genitor institution Paramount Global for $20 cardinal implicit predetermination interference allegations. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

The seasoned "60 Minutes" shaper said scrutiny is ever welcomed towards their enactment but called Trump's allegations against the programme "absolute nonsense" and that there's "zero chance" his suit would prevail successful court. 

"What helium repeats implicit and implicit and the ground of his suit is based connected a falsehood," they said. "He keeps repeating it. But that doesn't marque it true."

"This is not being done successful bully faith. This is being done due to the fact that radical saw an accidental to onslaught ‘60 Minutes’ and to onslaught CBS News," they added. 

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The prospects of an announced colony successful the coming days isn't retired of reach. "60 Minutes" aired its last occurrence of the play this past Sunday and won't beryllium airing caller episodes until the fall, preventing idiosyncratic similar Scott Pelley from sounding disconnected to viewers connected the web play similar helium did past period aft the abrupt exit of "60 Minutes" enforcement shaper Bill Owens, who near implicit accrued interference by Paramount's controlling shareholder Shari Redstone, who reportedly favors settling the lawsuit.

"The enactment of his departure was a immense sacrifice," the seasoned shaper said of Owens. "I mean, this feline had the champion occupation successful television… He chose to permission a large occupation due to the fact that helium sincerely wanted to prevention ‘60 Minutes.’"

Bill Owens, Wendy McMahon, Cecilia Vega and Scott Pelley astatine the CBS autumn docket solemnisation held astatine Paramount Studios connected May 2, 2024, successful Los Angeles, California. Owens and McMahon some resigned from CBS News this year. (Getty Images)

According to reports, Redstone wanted to "keep tabs" connected upcoming "60 Minutes" segments involving Trump and urged CBS execs to hold immoderate delicate reporting connected Trump until aft the Skydance merger woody closed. 

A 2nd "60 Minutes" shaper told Fox News Digital that Redstone should "go work the past books."

"Understand wherefore a escaped and just property is truthful cardinal to this state and the mode we tally things and our ideology and our- everything. Go get a past acquisition and discontinue looking astatine firm mergers arsenic what's the astir important happening successful the country," the 2nd shaper said. "Sometimes I consciousness similar radical are conscionable truthful caught up successful their silos, and she's so, you know, entrenched successful this merger and getting the fiscal roar from a merger with Skydance that radical hide wherefore this is important."

"Go speech to immoderate journalists, spell deliberation astir the times successful past wherever a escaped property matters and made a difference… Protect ‘60 Minutes.’ That's what she should beryllium doing," they urged Redstone. 

Meanwhile, the archetypal shaper had a elemental connection for Redstone: "Don't settle. Don't appease the schoolyard bully."

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Paramount Global controlling shareholder Shari Redstone reportedly wants to settee the Trump suit successful bid to pave the mode for its merger with Skydance Media, which seeks FCC approval. (Left: (Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images), Right: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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CBS News unit were rattled by the ousting of McMahon, who cited disagreements with the institution successful a memo to staff. 

"It has been 1 of the astir meaningful chapters successful my career. Leading this bonzer enactment has been the grant of a beingness due to the fact that I got to enactment alongside each of you," McMahon wrote. "At the aforesaid time, the past fewer months person been challenging. It’s go wide that the institution and I bash not hold connected the way forward. It’s clip for maine to determination connected and for this enactment to determination guardant with caller leadership." 

Paramount continues to look mounting unit from critics successful the media and Democratic lawmakers to CBS stars similar Pelley and late-night big Stephen Colbert, who called retired their genitor company connected the network's ain airwaves.

Representatives for CBS News, Paramount and Redstone did not instantly respond to Fox News Digital's requests for comment. President Trump's lawyer besides did not respond for comment.