60 Minutes Report Leaks One Day After CBS Controversially Stopped It From Airing

The 60 Minutes report pulled by CBS at the last minute has leaked online, just one day after the network controversially stopped it from being aired. On Sunday evening, 60 Minutes pulled a story, titled “Inside CECOT,” from airing hours before the program’s time slot. The reason cited by CBS was a need for “additional reporting” before airing.

The story explores the harsh conditions of CECOT, an El Slavadorian prison where President Donald Trump’s administration has been deporting Venezuelan migrants. This has resulted in a nine-month legal battle and harsh treatment of people at the prison. CBS correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi, who led the story, called CBS’ move to pull it politically motivated given its prior approval.

Now, Variety reports that “Inside CECOT” has leaked online after the 60 Minutes segment was accidentally uploaded to Canada’s Global News’ Global TV app. The full report has since begun its rounds on social media, with multiple sources uploading the whole story. This includes people who filmed their TV sets as well as those who screen-recorded a clean copy.

In the story, Alfonsi highlights the harsh conditions migrants have to face in CECOT, interviewing one Venezuelan man sent there by the Trump administration despite no history of violent crime. The college student, Luis Munoz Pinto, describes the bloody carnage of the prison, including an instance where he was beaten by four guards, breaking one of his teeth.

Credit: Will Oliver/POOL via CNP/INSTARimages.com

The controversy comes in the midst of conflict between Trump and the media. Although the President and Paramount, CBS’ parent company, have a positive relationship with each other, he’s still harshly critiqued programs like 60 Minutes on Truth Social. He claims they’ve targeted him more following their merger with Skydance and CEO David Ellison’s takeover.

The decision to pull the story came from Bari Weiss, CBS’ News’ editor-in-chief and creator of right-leaning website The Free Press. In a scathing leaked email, Alfonsi described how the story was watched five times and approved of prior to its sudden pull from the air. Luckily, Canada’s streaming team didn’t get the memo in time, allowing the story to circulate as intended.

It’s unclear if 60 Minutes plans to air the story, with said “additional reporting” making it unknown in what state it could officially air. Given the rapid online circulation of footage, it seems like there’s no stopping the continued dissemination of the story either way. Depending on what happens, CBS could respond with a new decision.