Rather worked at CBS News for 44 years.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(webp)/Dan-Rather-070225-b8f967bef9f1451d817de1727ea033cd.jpg)
Dan Rather in 2017.Credit: Mike Coppola/Getty
Dan Rather, who worked at CBS News for 44 years before his 2006 departure, is speaking out against the settlement his former network’s parent company reached with President Donald Trump.
Trump had sued Paramount over the way CBS News edited a 60 Minutes interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris.
As part of the agreement, the company will pay $16 million, including Trump’s legal fees, with most of the sum going to the president’s future presidential library.
In addition, Paramount will release transcripts of future interviews with presidential candidates.
But the company made no apology.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(webp)/donald-trump-02-070225-5ab577700a914522ae143ce4233f14dd.jpg)
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to press at the White House on June 27.Hu Yousong/Xinhua via Getty
A Trump spokesperson called the settlement “a win for the American people.”
The career newsman sees it differently.
“Trump knew if he put the pressure on and threatened and just held that they would fold, because there’s too much money on the table,” Rather told Variety on Wednesday.
“Trump is now forcing a whole news organization to pay millions of dollars for doing something protected by the Constitution — which is, of course, free and independent reporting.
Now, you take today’s sell-out.
And that’s what it was: It was a sell-out to extortion by the President. Who can now say where all this ends?”
Rather, who has spoken out against Trump before, said that he was “disappointed, but I wasn’t surprised” with what transpired.
The settlement comes as Paramount seeks federal approval for a merger with another company, Skydance.
“Big billionaire business people make decisions about money,” Rather said.
“We could always hope that they will make an exception when it comes to freedom of the press, but it wasn’t to be.”
He called it “a sad day for journalism.”
“It’s a sad day for 60 Minutes and CBS News,” continued Rather, who left the network after being removed from the anchor chair over a story about President George W. Bush’s time in the Texas Air National Guard. “I hope people will read the details of this and understand what it was.
It was distortion by the President and a kneeling down and saying, ‘yes, sir,’ by billionaire corporate owners.”
Sign up for Entertainment Weekly’s free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.
Trump had claimed that the news program deceptively edited Harris’ interview — his lawsuit called it “news distortion” — to affect the election in which she ran against against Trump.
Rather, a former 60 Minutes contributor, argued that Paramount “didn’t have to settle.”
“You settle a lawsuit when you’ve done something wrong,” he said.
“60 Minutes did nothing wrong. It followed accepted journalistic practices.
Lawyers almost unanimously said the case wouldn’t stand up in court.”
He said that his support for his former colleagues is “total, absolute.”
News
💔 “SHE DIDN’T PLAN TO BE A HERO — SHE JUST COULDN’T WALK AWAY.” 🌧️ When Rachel Maddow landed in Jamaica to cover the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa, she expected devastation. What she didn’t expect… was her. A little girl, barefoot in the wreckage, clutching a soaked teddy bear and whispering one word: “Mama.” Reporters looked away. Cameras kept rolling. But Maddow — silent, trembling — stepped forward. That night, she stayed. Days later, she signed the papers that changed both their lives forever. Now, as the world reacts to her unexpected act of love, one haunting question remains: Was this journalism… or destiny?|KF
1. The Storm That Took Everything The storm had no mercy. Hurricane Melissa tore through Jamaica with winds that howled…
😱 “NO CAMERAS. NO PRESS. JUST ACTION.” 💥 When Hurricane Melissa left Jamaica in ruins, everyone expected statements — not silence. But that night, Rep. Jasmine Crockett made a call no one knew about. Hours later, a private shipment — blankets, medicine, and water filters worth $500,000 — quietly left U.S. soil. No press release. No credit. Just a note inside the first box that made rescuers burst into tears. Now, the world wants to know: what did she write?|KF
When Hurricane Melissa finally loosened its grip on Jamaica, what remained was not silence but the faint hum of survival…
💥 “THE TAPES WERE NEVER MEANT TO LEAVE THE BUILDING.” 😳 A Turning Point USA insider has come forward — and what they just leaked about Erika Kirk and the Chief of Staff is sending shockwaves through conservative media. Behind closed doors, secret recordings. Late-night meetings. Deleted emails that someone thought were gone forever. And now, the story is unraveling — faster than anyone can contain it. The insider’s confession doesn’t just expose one scandal… it hints at a network of cover-ups stretching far beyond TPUSA. 👀 Either way, the receipts are coming — and they could change everything. 👉 Full leaked details in the comments (CMT) before they disappear… 🔥👇👇|KF
Late last night, an anonymous insider from Turning Point USA (TPUSA) dropped a bombshell that has sent shockwaves through conservative…
“LIVE MELTDOWN ON NATIONAL TV” — WHOOPI GOLDBERG’S EXPLOSIVE MOMENT LEAVES ‘THE VIEW’ IN CHAOS 😱💥 It started like any other morning at The View. Laughter. Headlines. Controlled chaos. Then — a single note changed everything. As producers slipped Whoopi Goldberg a message mid-segment, cameras caught something no one was supposed to see. With a glare sharper than a knife, she snatched the paper, ripped it to pieces, and tossed it aside — live, unedited, and on national television. The studio froze. Her co-hosts went silent. Viewers at home could feel it — that thick, electric tension pulsing through the screen|KF
Inside Whoopi Goldberg’s Live Meltdown — and the Crisis Shaking Disney’s Daytime Empire It started with a folded piece of…
💥 “NO CAMERAS. NO PRESS. JUST THREE NAMES THE WORLD THOUGHT THEY KNEW.” 🌪️ When the Category-5 monster Hurricane Melissa tore through Jamaica, help was nowhere in sight. Then — without a single announcement — a private jet touched down at dawn. Inside: Rachel Maddow. Stephen Colbert. Joy Reid. No sponsors. No cameras. No entourage. They brought 5 tons of food, medicine, water filters, and $1.5 million in aid, all paid from their own pockets. Locals said they worked through the night — lifting boxes, feeding children, treating wounds — not a single word about fame or press. And when a volunteer asked why they came, Joy Reid quietly answered: “Because the news doesn’t need to cover this — humanity does.” By morning, they were gone. No selfies. No headlines. Just whispers spreading across the island — “Were those really them?” Nobody knows who leaked the flight manifest. But one thing’s certain: this wasn’t charity. This was rebellion — against the silence of comfort. 🕯🌎 👇 Full uncovered story before it disappears…|KF
No cameras. No sponsors. Just three journalists who decided to act, not speak. When Hurricane Melissa struck Jamaica — the…
End of content
No more pages to load
