The segment, titled “Inside CECOT,” focused on Venezuelan men who said they were sent to the Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT) prison under the Trump administration’s deportation policies, where they allegedly endured abuse and harsh conditions
CBS News stirred controversy this week after it abruptly pulled a planned 60 Minutes investigative segment that examined the treatment of migrants deported from the United States to a notorious maximum security prison in El Salvador.
The decision came just hours before the show was scheduled to air.
The segment, titled “Inside CECOT,” was produced by veteran correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi and focused on Venezuelan men who said they were sent to the Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT) prison under the Trump administration’s deportation policies, where they allegedly endured abuse and harsh conditions.
The report had been promoted by 60 Minutes ahead of the broadcast and was cleared by legal and standards reviews before being pulled.
Reporter calls decision ‘political’
In an internal note to colleagues, Alfonsi hit back at the decision, saying that pulling the story after it had passed rigorous reviews wasn’t an editorial decision but a political one. She argued the segment was “factually correct” and that blocking it set a dangerous precedent.
“If the administration’s refusal to participate becomes a valid reason to spike a story, we have effectively handed them a ‘kill switch’ for any reporting they find inconvenient,” she wrote in the note.
While CBS News leadership said the story needed more reporting and context, including interviews with relevant officials, the timing of it all had led to intense internal and external pushback.
The controversy has spilled into public debate, with some critics accusing CBS of political censorship and others defending editorial caution. Supporters of the network’s leadership argue that journalistic standards require thorough reporting, especially on sensitive international issues.
Despite being pulled, the segment found its way online.
The nearly 14-minute segment, reviewed by The Guardian, offers a detailed look inside El Salvador’s Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (Cecot), beginning with aerial footage of the mega-prison and scenes of detainees being placed in shackles as they arrive in the country.
The episode later appeared on a streaming service operated by Global TV, the Canadian broadcaster that holds the rights to 60 Minutes.
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