Former US President Donald Trump is calling for a “formal investigation” into the CBS “60 Minutes” interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic Presidential nominee, alleging that the news organization heavily edited the interview to portray her in a more presidential light and make her responses appear more coherent, international news outlets reported.
In a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump claimed that Harris’s answers seemed unnaturally polished and suggested they were edited multiple times within single sentences. He argued that this alleged editing constitutes a significant campaign violation and demanded an immediate public apology, asserting that the investigation should commence without delay.
Social media users are circulating a video clip from the interview shared by CBS, in which they say Harris’s responses differ notably across various segments of the footage.
During the interview, journalist Bill Whitaker questioned Harris about the U.S.’s influence over Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In one version, she provided an extensive answer, while in another, her response was shorter and more direct, they claim.
The discrepancies between the two video segments have raised questions about whether they were edited for clarity or brevity.
Trump chose to withdraw from his own scheduled interview with 60 Minutes complaining about being “fact-checked” by CBS, something the channel does in all presidential interviews, according to the station.
The Harris campaign said it is not involved in editorial decisions made by networks. A number of news media outlets are characterizing the former president’s claims as “baseless.”
60 Minutes has been a “traditional platform” for presidential candidates since 1968, according to the Huffington Post.