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** OPINION
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** CBS News’ new era begins with press freedom concerns and technical stumbles
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New “CBS Evening News” anchor Tony Dokoupil, shown here in September 2024. (Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)

As I mentioned in Monday’s newsletter ([link removed]) , Tony Dokoupil was supposed to start his new gig as anchor of the “CBS Evening News” on Monday, but his debut was moved up to Saturday following the big breaking news over the weekend of the U.S. invasion of Venezuela.

His debut featured a lengthy interview with Secretary of State Pete Hegseth. While Dokoupil did a decent job pressing Hegseth on who was actually in charge of Venezuela at that moment, Hegseth’s appearance overall did not sit well with some.

In a column, Mediaite’s Colby Hall wrote ([link removed]) , “Hegseth’s appearance on ‘CBS Evening News’ followed the Trump administration’s move to sharply restrict access for credentialed Pentagon reporters, sidelining journalists responsible for independently scrutinizing U.S. military power. Yet CBS not only sat down with Hegseth, it allowed him to define a U.S. military operation in Venezuela as a ‘law enforcement’ action, argue Congress need not be notified, and openly discuss American oil interests, all without confronting the administration’s crackdown on the press itself.”

It was only a couple of months ago that reporters from reputable news outlets were essentially kicked out of the Pentagon for refusing to sign a new policy that prohibits journalists from accessing or soliciting information that the Defense Department doesn’t make available to them, including unclassified information.

As Hall points out, it’s not that CBS News should not have interviewed Hegseth. Of course it should have. He is the secretary of defense. The U.S. had just conducted a stunning strike against another country, removing that country's president. It’s huge news, and getting Hegseth was a major get.

“It is about the terms under which the interview occurred,” Hall wrote. “When an administration punishes reporters and dismantles a press corps, access no longer functions as a neutral journalistic transaction. Interviews conducted under those conditions carry an obligation to address the attack on the press itself. CBS did not meet that obligation.”

Dokoupil appropriately asked Hegseth about the invasion, as well as what’s next for Venezuela.

Hall wrote, “But the interview environment seemed to protect Hegseth from sustained scrutiny on the most immediate issue affecting public trust: his role in restricting who can report on the Pentagon and under what conditions. At no point was Hegseth asked to explain why reporters were removed from the building. At no point was he asked why Americans should trust a Defense Department that now controls access more tightly while asking the public to accept its claims at face value. The need for an independent Pentagon Press Association has rarely been clearer than in the days following a major U.S. military action.”

Hall went on to write, “The most important question CBS could have asked Hegseth had nothing to do with Venezuela. It was straightforward: why were reporters locked out of the Pentagon, and why should the public accept information delivered through a narrowed, controlled channel? Dokoupil never asked it.”

One might argue that in that particular moment, in the midst of major breaking news, asking about press restrictions that have been in effect for a while was neither the time nor the place. But it was exactly the time and the place. Hall is right. Pressing Hegseth on press restrictions in an interview reportedly secured by new CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss is critical in building trust in a news organization that currently faces credibility issues due to Weiss’ heavy-handed approach.


**
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A MESSAGE FROM POYNTER
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** Contest now open!
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The 2026 Poynter Journalism Prizes contest is now open for entries. Awards honor journalism excellence in accountability, public service and justice reporting, to writing, editorials and columns, innovation, diversity and First Amendment work. Two new categories for climate change and poverty coverage are being added this year. Early bird entry fee of $75 until Jan. 31. Deadline is Feb. 13.

Enter now ([link removed])


** Stumbling out of the gate
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There was a major hiccup on Monday’s “CBS Evening News” — the first weeknight version with Dokoupil in the anchor chair and his first from the home base of New York City.

The newscast started off well enough with extensive coverage of the latest news involving Venezuela. But then the newscast jumped off the rails for a few seconds.

Dokoupil got a tad rattled when he thought the program was going to a story about Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz not seeking reelection. But the graphic on screen was about Hegseth formally censuring Arizona Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly and launching administrative proceedings against Kelly.

In a cringeworthy moment, Dokoupil, shaking his head, said, “First day, big problems here.”

He then asked, “Are we going to Kelly here?” And that was followed by a few moments of silence before rushing through the story about Hegseth and Kelly.

“Now we go to Minnesota,” Dokoupil said.

Look, it’s live TV. These things happen. But the timing couldn’t have been worse, with it being the weeknight debut for Dokoupil.

Before and after that major glitch, Doukopil certainly looked and sounded like an evening news anchor. For the most part, he’s smooth and authoritative.

Monday’s version of the “CBS Evening News” felt a bit more stimulating and much tighter than the last version of the newscast with multiple anchors.

But it doesn’t look all that different from a traditional evening newscast. That’s not a criticism, merely an observation. And it’s just getting underway. We should give it a few weeks, maybe even longer, before coming to any conclusions.


** Meanwhile …
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In his latest piece for The US Guardian ([link removed]) , media reporter Jeremy Barr writes that Weiss’ first three months as CBS News’ editor-in-chief “have been more chaotic than even many of her critics expected.”

An unnamed CBS News journalist told Barr, “There is blood in the water.”

Barr reports that in recent days, a group of former CBS News journalists drafted a letter to Weiss’ boss, Paramount CEO David Ellison, expressing reservations about Weiss’ decision to hold a recent “60 Minutes” story about the notorious El Salvador detention center where the Trump administration deported Venezuelan migrants last March.

An early draft of the letter, which had more than 200 signatures, said, “This clumsy editorial interference endangers 60 Minutes’ role as CBS’s flagship public interest broadcast and as the news division’s most profitable franchise. The crown jewel of the network you recently acquired now faces a crisis of credibility and trust.”

It seems unlikely that such a letter would have much of an influence on Ellison, who personally hired Weiss. But it does show that Weiss apparently has some work to do to build trust among her staff.

One CBS News staffer told Barr, ‘We are a prideful newsroom, and she’s rubbing people the wrong way.”

Barr wrote, “Journalists at CBS News say that Weiss still has not laid out a clear strategy for how she wants the network to change and adapt, though she is expected to do so as soon as this week, sources say.”


** CPB is no more
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The Corporation for Public Broadcasting announced ([link removed]) Monday that its board of directors voted to shut down the organization because Congress cut off its federal funding. CPB funded NPR, PBS and hundreds of local radio and TV stations across the country for 58 years.

In a statement, Patricia Harrison, president and CEO of CPB, said, “For more than half a century, CPB existed to ensure that all Americans — regardless of geography, income, or background — had access to trusted news, educational programming, and local storytelling. When the Administration and Congress rescinded federal funding, our Board faced a profound responsibility: CPB’s final act would be to protect the integrity of the public media system and the democratic values by dissolving, rather than allowing the organization to remain defunded and vulnerable to additional attacks.”

Monday’s official announcement was expected, but that doesn’t make it any less grim.

Ruby Calvert, chair of CPB’s board of directors, said, “What has happened to public media is devastating. After nearly six decades of innovative, educational public television and radio service, Congress eliminated all funding for CPB, leaving the Board with no way to continue the organization or support the public media system that depends on it. Yet, even in this moment, I am convinced that public media will survive, and that a new Congress will address public media’s role in our country because it is critical to our children's education, our history, culture and democracy to do so.”

The New York Times’ Benjamin Mullin writes ([link removed]) , “The end of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, founded in 1968, begins a new era in public media, with local stations across the United States fighting for survival. Donations from listeners are up, and philanthropists have stepped in, but the long-term future of public TV and radio is far from certain.”


** What aren’t you reading?
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In a photo from September of 2018, copies of Bob Woodward's "Fear" are seen for sale at Costco in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Veteran media reporter Paul Farhi has an interesting new piece in The Atlantic: “Trump Books Aren’t Selling Anymore.” ([link removed])

It wasn’t all that long ago that the public couldn’t get enough of books about President Donald Trump, especially books about Trump in the White House. Famed Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward wrote three books himself about Trump’s first term as president. There was Michael Wolff’s “Fire and Fury” and a bunch of others, too.

Farhi noted, “All told, during his first term, at least 20 Trump-related books hit the top spot on the Times list.”

So what about now?

As Farhi writes, “The Trump-book bubble has burst.”

And why is that? Farhi explains, “This is no doubt partly the result of reader fatigue—there are only so many Trump books any one politics junkie can be expected to buy. But the president himself might be personally undermining the value proposition of books about his favorite subject. During his first term, Trump books promised juicy revelations about behind-the-scenes conflict, offensive comments made in private, and crazy plans narrowly averted. This time around, Trump’s team seems united, his offensive outbursts are made in public, and the crazy plans aren’t averted. There may just be less for the chroniclers to reveal.”

Check out Farhi’s smart piece for more about how the topic of Trump has gone from can’t-miss to can’t-read.


** Coming back
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Dan Bongino, who left a very successful radio show/podcast to become deputy director of the FBI, is a private citizen again. Monday was his first day out of the FBI.

When rumors started swirling last month that he would leave the FBI, everyone figured he would return to hosting his radio show/podcast. So it was no surprise Monday when he tweeted ([link removed]) , in part, “Thank you for your interest in the show and its return date. We will have something for you soon.”

Going back to his show seemed like a no-brainer, especially after he whined on Fox News ([link removed]) last May about how hard he worked. Being a podcaster isn’t nearly as taxing as being the deputy director of the FBI.

While it’s a good move for him personally and for those who liked his show, it also seems like a good move for the country.

As MS NOW’s Steve Benen wrote last month ([link removed]) , “By any fair measure, this was a job Bongino never should have had in the first place. When the president tapped him for the FBI leadership post in March, it was immediately recognized as a ridiculous choice: Bongino, a right-wing provocateur and podcast personality, was spectacularly unqualified.”


** The Hill climbing
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At a time when many media outlets are cutting back on their print versions, The Hill is actually expanding its print offering. ​​Beginning today, The Hill will expand its print publications to every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday while Congress is in session. Until now, it had been printing a product once a week.

The publication is a must-read for those in Washington, D.C., especially politicians and those who actually work on Capitol Hill. It also continues to have a robust website. The Hill says it has a digital audience of more than 45 million.


** Media tidbits
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* Mediaite’s David Gilmour with “Versant Has Officially Split From Comcast and NBC – Here’s What It Means.” ([link removed]) CEO Mark Lazarus said in a statement, “We enter the market with the scale, strategy and leadership to grow and evolve our business model.”
* The Hollywood Reporter’s Alex Weprin with “Rupert Murdoch’s Newspaper War in L.A. Will Begin This Month.” ([link removed])
* The Wall Street Journal’s Alexandra Bruell with “The Year the Newsletter Business Reached a Fever Pitch.” ([link removed])


** Hot type
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* Catching up on this haunting story from late last month. It’s The New York Times’ Steven Kurutz with “She Tried to Kill a President. He Loved Her Anyway.” ([link removed])


** More resources for journalists
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* Deadline tomorrow: Join 650+ women leaders transformed by this leadership program since 2015. Apply by Jan. 7 ([link removed]) .
* Join a foundational career and leadership development 101 course — fully virtual for ambitious media professionals without direct reports. Apply now ([link removed]) .
* Join 300 newsrooms receiving free digital preservation training and Internet Archive services. Apply by Jan. 9 ([link removed]) .
* Get tools to cover America’s loneliness epidemic. Sign up today ([link removed]) .

Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .

The Poynter Report is your daily dive into the world of media, packed with the latest news and insights. Get it delivered to your inbox Monday through Friday by signing up here ([link removed]) . And don’t forget to tune into our biweekly podcast ([link removed]) for even more.
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