White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo)
The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, was recorded warning CBS News that it must air a new interview with US President Donald Trump in full or face legal action.
An audio recording, first reported by the New York Times, captures Leavitt telling CBS anchor Tony Dokoupil that Trump wanted the interview broadcast without any edits.
‘Make sure you don’t cut the tape’
In the recording, Leavitt said Trump had given clear instructions about the interview.
“He said, ‘Make sure you guys don’t cut the tape, make sure the interview is out in full,’” she told Dokoupil.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
When Dokoupil responded that CBS was doing so, Leavitt added: “He said, ‘If it’s not out in full, we’ll sue your ass off.’”
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The exchange took place after Dokoupil conducted a new interview with Trump, a 13-minute segment that aired on Tuesday. CBS later broadcast the full, unedited interview the same evening.
‘The interview ran in full’
The warning came months after CBS’s parent company, Paramount, agreed to pay Trump $16m to settle a lawsuit over the editing of a separate interview with his 2024 election rival, Kamala Harris. Trump had claimed the edits were misleading, while CBS said they were made for time.
CBS News is now overseen by editor-in-chief Bari Weiss, whose leadership has drawn scrutiny over the network’s editorial independence. Paramount is controlled by Skydance, founded by David Ellison, whose father, Oracle founder Larry Ellison, is a friend of Trump.
In a statement on Saturday, CBS said it had already decided to air the interview in full. “The moment we booked this interview, we made the independent decision to air it unedited and in its entirety,” the network said.
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When asked about the recording, Leavitt told the New York Times: “The American people deserve to watch President Trump’s full interviews, unedited, no cuts.” She added: “And guess what? The interview ran in full.”
During the interview, Trump warned of “very strong action” if Iran executes protesters, criticised US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, and defended a federal agent involved in a fatal shooting in Minneapolis.
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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo) 
