President Donald Trump is returning to 60 Minutes for his first interview since suing CBS, which resulted in parent company Paramount Global settling in a $16 million payout.
Norah O’Donnell sat down with Trump on Friday for an exclusive interview that will air on Sunday at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Over the summer, Paramount settled a lawsuit Trump filed over the editing of a 60 Minutes interview with 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris. Part of the settlement agreement included stipulations for Paramount to release 60Minutes transcripts of interviews with presidential candidates post-air.
In addition to returning to 60 Minutes for the first time since his lawsuit, Trump’s sit-down will be his first on the CBS News program as the 47th president and first since David Ellison was named the new Paramount Skydance CEO and The Free Press‘ Bari Weiss was named CBS News editor-in-chief. The president formerly backed out of a planned interview with Scott Pelley in October ahead of the 2024 presidential election.
His lawsuit against CBS claimed “deceptive doctoring” in Harris’ 60 Minutes interview. Before the settlement, legal observers’ predicted that the suit would be dismissed due to industry norms pertaining to interview editing. Sources told The Hollywood Reporter Paramount believed the lawsuit could deter Skydance’s deal to acquire the company, which required regulatory approval, including the transfer of FCC licenses. The merger was later approved in August.
Following the settlement, the legal team for President Trump said in a statement, “With this record settlement, President Donald J. Trump delivers another win for the American people as he, once again, holds the fake news media accountable for their wrongdoing and deceit.”
“CBS and Paramount Global realized the strength of this historic case and had no choice but to settle,” continued the statement. “President Trump will always ensure that no one gets away with lying to the American People as he continues on his singular mission to Make America Great Again.”
Then-CBS co-CEO George Cheeks, meanwhile, said at a shareholders meeting, “Companies often settle litigation to avoid the high and somewhat unpredictable cost of legal defense, the risk of an adverse judgment that could result in significant financial as well as reputational damage, and the disruption to business operations that prolonged legal battles can cause. A settlement offers a negotiated resolution that allows companies to focus on their core objectives, rather than being mired in uncertainty and distraction.”
