Trump-friendly CBS News head could be sidelined after turbulent start: reporte

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Raw Story

May 18, 2026 9:55PM ET


Ever since conservative-leaning commentator Bari Weiss was put in charge of CBS News, the network has seen anemic ratings and a lurching series of controversies — and now the higher-ups at Paramount-Skydance are talking about sidelining her.

This comes in spite of the company's head, David Ellison, being notoriously Trump-friendly.

According to Puck News, "Bari has endured her role as media punching bag with relative aplomb, refusing to betray exhaustion or vulnerability while seeming to plow ahead with her plans to overhaul the network. Meanwhile, Ellison and the Paramount brass have afforded her ample leeway because they genuinely like her, endorse the editorial pivot, and, frankly, have far bigger priorities than the news division. But there are signs that the dynamics are starting to shift."

"Members of the senior leadership team have had informal discussions about changing Bari’s mandate at CBS News — and, eventually, CNN — in ways that would give her less control over the linear product," the report continued.

Read more: https://www.rawstory.com/bari-weiss-2676911185/

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Link to Puck News article (email required) - https://puck.news/cbs-news-restructure-bari-weiss-role-being-scaled-back/

[dem4decades]

1. They' bring in someone worse, a pig with different lipstick.

[multigraincracker]

2. Money speaks louder than maga.

Advertisers want big viewer numbers. 70% of viewers don’t want to watch her propaganda.

[twodogsbarking]

3. The damage is done. Suck it up.

[DBoon]

22. Mission accomplished

They destroyed a venerated, credible news source

[Greybnk48]

4. Good luck bringing viewers back. CBS is essentially dead. n/t

[Ray Bruns]

5. Paramount-Skydance You're a day late and a dollar short.

[RedWhiteBlueIsRacist]

6. Not going to get my news from Trump properties, nope.

[SergeStorms]

7. Actions have consequences.

Take your lumps and learn! The MAGA train is falling apart, so stop shoveling "clean burning coal" into the boiler.
Bari wasn't the answer to your problems, Paramount-Skydance.

[truddy777]

8. Media circus again

Feels like every big network is permanently in meltdown mode now. Ratings drop, executives panic, shuffle leadership, repeat every six months lol.

[Wednesdays]

9. "...the network has seen anemic ratings..."

Gee, that's a shame.

[wolfie001]

10. I hate her. She's a backstabbing lizard to the LGBTQ community

She can't toady up enough to these monsters. Will be hilarious when she's kicked out. She'll write a shitty book about it though.

[YodaMom2]

18. She's a professional victim.

Any criticism of her she’ll automatically label as an antisemitic attack, regardless of the nature or source of the criticism. According to the Hysteria YouTube series “The Truth About Their Shitty Past”, she led a Columbia campus organization (with murky outside funding) that sought to silence - and remove - any professor who said ANYTHING even remotely critical of Israel, saying they were spreading antisemitic hate. She tried to cancel people before Cancel Culture was a thing. But if anyone even slightly pushed back, well….they were attacking her because she was Jewish. There’s no such thing as valid criticism of her, only persecution. And she has continued her “I’m a VICTIM!!” schtick to this day.

But according to the Hysteria video, she can be incredibly charming and funny in person. So much so that her girlfriend for some time at Columbia was…none other than Kate McKinnon.

[peppertree]

11. Dave Uglyson and Bibi Weiss tried to turn CBS into a Farce News-Lite - and it all backfired

Imagine that.

[sop]

12. These corporate flunkies are as Interchangeable as Trump's soiled diapers.

[Bengus81]

13. FAFO in action again when it comes to licking Trumps cankles......

And....I'm still canceling my decade+ old Paramount+ account.

[Cherrycheeks]

14. Good..

I do my best to block CBS.

[FakeNoose]

15. I don't really care

She can rot in hell and I'll never watch CBS again.

[SpankMe]

16. "News" is a losing proposition at media companies

They can make money on sports and entertainment (i.e., football and CSI Spokane). But it's hard to eek out profit in the news division.

That's why news sources like PBS and NPR are so good - they don't have a profit motive and can provide solid reporting and analysis.

Most media companies (like the big three) have had internal policies that shield their news divisions from political interference from the C-suite. Unfortunately, they also require their news divisions be profit centers on their own; they won't subsidize the news with cash from more profitable segments of their business. So, the news can be a mix of actual news and fluff or sensationalism to get more viewers and ad revenue. Most network news has remained pretty stable and reliable for the reporting of day-to-day goings on under this model.

Until Trump.

Now, the C-suites are exerting this once banned control in efforts to dodge threats from the administration and curry favor with oligarchs. It's happening with newspapers, too.

While the conservative rich openly contribute to Republican candudates and Trumpers to keep their agenda in force, liberal rich are still feeding and vaccinating children in Africa and promoting green energy. While these are laudible, our republic is in jeopardy. It's time for the rich left to take a different tack until the ship is righted.

It has been suggested that the liberal uber-rich modify their philanthropy a bit and turn their funds toward a new, major news gathering and reporting infrastructure in America, thus relieving the networks of the 'news' burden. This is essentially a super-sized version of the BBC. They could take over full and robust funding of NPR and PBS and turn them into scions of news that effectively analyzes and communicates reality to the people. It would have a stellar reputation as the go-to place for news and opinion.

Yes, feeding and vaccinating the poor and providing clean drinking water is the most honorable use of money. Humanity and all that. But tough times call for tough measures. It's high time for a major pivot of liberal rich from pure humanity to the preservation of Americal democracy.

[mwmisses4289]

23. Why not do both?

It doesn't have to be either or.
How many of us, if we can afford to, contribute to both a favorite dem politician and favorite charities?

[Warpy]

17. Just the latest casualty in the attempt to make CBS into Pox News

They keep brining in these far right firebrands who turn viewers off and lead to the subsequent flight of advertisers, he latter making them notice and go "oh, shit" as they "sideline" the latest wingnut They don't seem to realize that people who like being lied to already watch Pox and won't switch and the traditional centrist and ever so slightly liberal viewers who were the core CBS viewers are going to switch to get away from right wing blather posing as news.

Conservatives seem wedded to trying the same losing strategy over and over again, blaming individuals instead of the fact that the wrong strategy is just never going to work--that's what makes it wrong.

[paleotn]

21. Yep. Rinse and repeat. You'd think they'd learn. Maybe that's asking too much.

[Nasruddin]

19. Money

Chances are, the PTB, they like money more.
Perhaps it depends on what favors they need to bargain for from the Boss.

[paleotn]

20. Conservative leaning?? That's rich. Fire her ass!!!

[progressoid]

24. "... David Ellison, being notoriously Trump-friendly"...???

Didn't David Ellison donate a million dollars to Biden's campaign?

Perhaps the writer of the article is confusing David with his father Larry.

[BumRushDaShow]

26. Billionaires often "give" to whoever is in charge for pay to play

David gave to Biden but then turned around and did this - David Ellison Held Dinner Party “Honoring” Trump Where President Gave Hour-Long Remarks

[bmichaelh]

25. Who is her market?

Does she think that Fox News and News Max viewers are going to switch to her?

John Oliver looked at her journalistic mistakes in the past before she took over CBS News.

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