New Delhi: US President Donald Trump suffered “mental anguish” from CBS News’ editing of a “60 Minutes” interview with Democratic opponent Kamala Harris last fall, his lawyers are arguing in court papers.
Trump’s status as a “content creator” was also damaged by the attention given to the interview, lawyers said.
It was part of their argument opposing CBS parent Paramount Global’s effort to dismiss the president’s USD 20 billion lawsuit against the company, filed Wednesday in US District Court in Amarillo, Texas.
Trump has claimed the editing was done to advantage Harris, which CBS rejects.
Even with the effort to dismiss the case, Paramount is engaged in settlement discussions with Trump. The prospect of a settlement has so rattled CBS News that two of its top executives have resigned in protest.
Trump, who did not agree to be interviewed by “60 Minutes” during the campaign, has protested editing where Harris is seen giving two different answers to a question by the show’s Bill Whitaker in separate clips aired on “60 Minutes” and “Face the Nation” earlier in the day.
CBS said each reply came within Harris’ long-winded answer to Whitaker, but was edited to be more succinct.
Trump’s lawyer, Edward Andrew Paltzik, said that “this led to widespread confusion and mental anguish of consumers, including plaintiffs, regarding a household name of the legacy media apparently deceptively distorting its broadcasts, and then resisting attempts to clear the public record”.
Because they were misled, voters withheld attention from Trump and his Truth Social platform, Paltzik argued.
Trump, described as a “media icon” by his lawyers, was “forced to redirect significant time, money and effort to correcting the public record”, he said.
Paramount and controlling shareholder Shari Redstone are seeking the settlement with Trump, whose administration must approve the company’s proposed merger with Skydance Media.
CBS News’ president and CEO, Wendy McMahon, and “60 Minutes” executive producer Bill Owens, who both opposed a settlement, have resigned in recent weeks.
Meanwhile, the Freedom of the Press Foundation, a media advocacy group that says it is a Paramount shareholder, said that it would file a lawsuit in protest if a settlement is reached.
Seth Stern, the foundation’s advocacy director, said a settlement of Trump’s “meritless” lawsuit “may well be a thinly veiled effort to launder bribes through the court system”.
Senators Ron Wyden, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have said they are investigating whether a settlement would violate bribery laws.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that Paramount has offered USD 15 million to settle but that Trump wants more money — and an apology.
A company representative would not comment on the report.
