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By Michaela Gordoni
CBS News Chief Wendy McMahon just left her position with CBS on Monday due to disagreements with the company’s direction.
She said the reason for stepping down was that she does “not agree on the path forward” with the company, The Independent reported Monday.
“It’s time for me to move on and for this organization to move forward with new leadership,” she continued. She also addressed viewers in her departing statement: “Thank you for your trust. You hold us accountable, and you remind us why this work matters.”
60 MINUTES executive producer Bill Owens recently stepped down from CBS, too. He cited that there was less independence at the network as the company works out a settlement for a Donald Trump lawsuit. Trump’s legal team is asking for $20 billion over content that was aired in two of the network’s shows.
People familiar with the matter told CNBC that Paramount Global CEO George Cheeks asked McMahon for a resignation letter on Saturday.
Last fall, CBS aired different excerpts of Kamala Harris’s response to a to a question about the Israel/Gaza war on 60 MINUTES and FACE THE NATION. Trump’s team said CBS was committing election fraud by hiding Harris’ incoherence, NPR reported.
McMahon and Owens purportedly told their co-workers they were against any kind of settlement with Trump. Lawyers have called the case meritless and unwinnable due to First Amendment protections.
The Federal Communications Commission Chair, Brendan Carr, opened an investigation into CBS and indicated support for the lawsuit.
Related: Trump Releases 60 MINUTES Footage After Claims of Hatred, Bias
CBS’ parent company, Paramount Global, is in a rush to close out the suit as it wants to sell Paramount Global to SkydanceMedia, which needs federal approval.
60 MINUTES correspondent Scott Pelly explained in an episode last month, “Our parent company Paramount is trying to complete a merger. The Trump administration must approve it. Paramount began to supervise our content in new ways. None of our stories has been blocked, but Bill felt he had lost the independence that honest journalism requires.”
Walt Disney Co.’s suit with ABC News also resolved in a similar fashion. The settlement included a multi-million dollar payment to a future Trump Foundation and an apology. Both Owens and McMahon stated they would never sign off on an apology.
Skydance is owned by the son of Oracle founder Larry Ellison, who is a Trump supporter and is financing the Paramount-Skydance transaction.
NPR reached out to CBS for an update on settlement talks, but the network declined to comment.
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