The long-delayed CECOT segment finally aired Sunday night on CBS’ “60 Minutes,” weeks after it was abruptly pulled from the broadcast schedule by editor-in-chief Bari Weiss. The report focused on migrants deported to El Salvador’s maximum-security prison, Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo, known as CECOT.
CBS said leadership never abandoned plans to air the CECOT segment. “CBS News leadership has always been committed to airing the 60 MINUTES CECOT piece as soon as it was ready,” a network spokesperson told Fox News Digital. The segment was originally scheduled for December but was delayed hours before airtime after Weiss determined it required additional reporting.
Despite the delay, the original version briefly surfaced on Canada’s Global TV app, where it spread quickly online. The televised segment largely mirrored that earlier cut, featuring correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi interviewing two Venezuelan men sent to CECOT last year. However, the broadcast version included new material, most notably statements from the Trump administration that had not appeared previously.
“In a statement to 60 Minutes, the White House said, ‘President Trump is committed to keeping his promises to the American people by removing dangerous criminal and terrorist illegal aliens…,’” Alfonsi said during the segment. The comments from White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson and Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin were dated Dec. 18 and Dec. 19.
The absence of administration input reportedly played a role in the initial decision to pull the story. Weiss later defended that call, stating, “I held a ‘60 Minutes’ story because it was not ready.” She added that while allegations about CECOT were serious, the reporting needed stronger sourcing and on-the-record responses.
The delayed CECOT segment has renewed debate over editorial judgment, immigration reporting, and the responsibility of major news outlets to present all sides of high-stakes national security issues.
