CBS Cancels 60 Minutes Episode to Prevent White House Backlash and Epstein Survivors Blast Justice Department
CBS pulled a 60 Minutes segment on El Salvador's CECOT mega-prison where Trump deported Venezuelan migrants amid editor concerns about White House backlash.
Good morning, everyone. As I said last night, this week is already shaping up to be intense—but I need to start with something deadly serious. Media is dying in real time. Bari Weiss killed a 60 Minutes segment on the CECOT terrorism facility because it would upset the White House. That is censorship—plain and simple.
This morning, one of my videos on TikTok was censored for quoting statements directly from Epstein survivors. That is also censorship. This isn’t accidental. It isn’t moderation. It’s control.
That’s why independent media matters more now than ever before. I am not afraid of this White House. I am not afraid for my safety. I do not answer to political power, corporate media, or tech platforms. I answer to you.
If you believe in independent journalism, if you believe the truth should not be filtered to protect the powerful, subscribe today and support my work. Together, we will challenge those in power and expose the stories they want buried.
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The truth doesn’t need permission—and we’re not asking for it. Here’s what you missed overnight:
This morning, I have obtained a new statement from more than one dozen Epstein survivors blasting the Department of Justice for failing to redact the information of survivors and failing to communicate with survivors. The statement calls for immediate Congressional action to ensure that survivors are protected and to force the Department of Justice to follow the law when releasing the files. This is the most forceful statement from survivors to date.
CBS News pulled a planned 60 Minutes segment about a maximum-security prison in El Salvador where the Trump administration sent Venezuelan deportees, saying the piece required additional reporting; the late decision, made under editor in chief Bari Weiss, sparked massive internal criticism. This is the trailer of the 60 Minutes episode Weiss does not want you to see:
Sharyn Alfonsi told fellow correspondents that she learned at the last minute that CBS News editor in chief Bari Weiss had pulled a planned 60 Minutes segment on a maximum-security prison in El Salvador where the Trump administration sent Venezuelan deportees. In a Sunday email to colleagues including Lesley Stahl, Scott Pelley and Anderson Cooper, Alfonsi said the story was “spiked” and argued the move was political rather than an editorial judgment. Read her email here:
While CBS won’t report what’s happening at CECOT to avoid criticism from the Trump Administration, I will. A joint investigation by Human Rights Watch and Cristosal found that Venezuelan migrants deported by the United States government to El Salvador’s CECOT mega-prison were subjected to arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, and systematic torture—including beatings, incommunicado confinement, and sexual violence—despite many having no criminal records, concluding that both the US and El Salvador government violated international human rights law and the principle of non-refoulement.
Donald Trump appointed Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry as special envoy to Greenland, reviving U.S. ambitions to bring the self-governing Danish territory under American control and triggering sharp criticism from Denmark and Greenlandic leaders, who stressed respect for Danish sovereignty and Greenland’s right to decide its own future.
MSNBC reports that FBI Director Kash Patel has drawn scrutiny for requesting and using specially armored luxury BMW SUVs—departing from the bureau’s traditional use of Chevrolet Suburbans—and for previously pressing, unsuccessfully, for a costly new FBI jet, fueling criticism from lawmakers and former officials who argue the moves reflect questionable use of taxpayer-funded security resources despite Patel’s claims of cost savings and operational necessity.
NBC News reports that deep tensions have emerged within the Trump administration over diplomacy on the Russia–Ukraine war, with special envoy Steve Witkoff repeatedly sidelining Secretary of State Marco Rubio through unilateral travel, opaque negotiations, and a Russia-leaning peace plan, raising concerns among U.S. and European officials about coordination, security lapses, and whether U.S. foreign policy is being shaped by an informal power broker rather than the State Department.
A Guardian investigation found that the U.S. Department of Justice has failed to distribute nearly $90 million in congressionally approved funding for organizations that support survivors of human trafficking, forcing more than 100 groups to cut services, housing, and staff and prompting lawmakers to accuse the Trump administration of illegally withholding funds and putting vulnerable survivors at risk of homelessness, deportation, and re-exploitation.
Reuters has confirmed that the U.S. Coast Guard is actively pursuing a sanctioned “dark fleet” vessel off the coast of Venezuela that U.S. officials say is evading sanctions by flying a false flag and operating under a judicial seizure order, marking a potential third U.S. interdiction in the Caribbean as tensions escalate between Washington and Caracas. The pursuit has drawn condemnation from ALBA, whose members accuse the United States of piracy and illegal seizure of Venezuelan oil, while the Trump administration signals a tougher posture that could further strain bilateral relations.
The Trump administration has escalated pressure on Venezuela by seizing a second sanctioned oil tanker and pursuing a third, prompting President Donald Trump to plan a public announcement alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as critics warn the actions—framed by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem as targeting sanctions evasion—risk provoking wider conflict, disrupting oil markets, and drawing bipartisan concern, including warnings from Sen. Rand Paul about a slide toward war.
According to NBC, Paramount has strengthened its hostile bid for Warner Bros. Discovery by adding a $40.4 billion personal guarantee from Larry Ellison and raising the breakup fee, even as Warner Bros. Discovery presses ahead with a competing deal to sell key assets to Netflix, a battle that has also drawn attention to political sensitivities around CBS News and the recent pulling of a “60 Minutes” segment under editor in chief Bari Weiss.
Kansas Reflector reports that Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Marla Luckert will resign as chief justice on Jan. 2 and retire by early February following an October stroke, a decision that will elevate Justice Eric Rosen to chief justice and give Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly another appointment to the court as voters prepare to weigh possible changes to the state’s judicial selection system in 2026.
Good news:
An anonymous “Secret Santa” in Idaho is donating $1 million to families facing medical crises, housing loss, and other hardships, delivering cash, vehicles, and gift cards to residents such as parents of conjoined twins, a displaced new mother, and a teacher whose home was damaged by fire, spreading holiday relief and community solidarity across the state.
The Environmentalist Foundation of India, led by Arun Krishnamurthy, has restored more than 600 lakes, ponds, and reservoirs across India using a blend of traditional ecological knowledge and innovative landscape engineering, improving water quality, biodiversity, flood control, and groundwater recharge while reinforcing the cultural and spiritual significance of water for local communities.
Ionic Mineral Technologies has identified what may be the largest known “shovel-ready” deposit of critical minerals in North America at its Silicon Ridge project in Utah, uncovering extractable lithium, gallium, tungsten, vanadium and other rare-earth elements in already-permitted clay deposits that could accelerate U.S. supply-chain independence for advanced technology, energy storage, and defense manufacturing.
New research published in American Psychologist showing that swearing can measurably improve physical performance by increasing psychological disinhibition, flow, confidence, and focus, with experiments led by Richard Stephens at Keele University finding that participants who swore were able to sustain strength and endurance tasks significantly longer than those using neutral words.
