CBS rejects allegations they deceptively edited 60 minutes interview with Kamala Harris

Earlier this month, the network was slammed for airing two different answers to the same question in the "60 Minutes" interview with the Democratic nominee. CBS previously had not responded to the public outcry.

A clip was played on Face the Nation early in the day to advertise the upcoming interview with Harris but when the full interview aired, the question and answer were different. Though both clips featured a similar exchange between 60 Minutes anchor Bill Whitaker and Harris, noticeable differences caused many to speculate that the Democratic nominee got a do-over after botching the original answer.

According to the statement, "Former President Donald Trump is accusing 60 Minutes of deceitful editing of our Oct. 7 interview with Vice President Kamala Harris. That is false.”

The statement continued, "60 Minutes gave an excerpt of our interview to ‘Face the Nation’ that used a longer section of her answer than that on 60 Minutes. Same question. Same answer. But a different portion of the response. When we edit any interview, whether a politician, an athlete, or movie star, we strive to be clear, accurate and on point. The portion of her answer on 60 Minutes was more succinct, which allows time for other subjects in a wide-ranging 21-minute-long segment."

The network went on to note that former President Trump "pulled out of his interview with ‘60 Minutes,’" despite the Trump campaign denying it had accepted the invitation.

The liberal-leaning network has not released an unedited version of the interview or a full transcript, despite public outcry to do so.

According to Fox News, the Trump campaign responded to the statement, saying, “60 Minutes just admitted to doing exactly what President Trump accused them of doing. They edited in a different response - from another part of her answer - to make Kamala Harris sound less incoherent than she really was. Their statement is not a denial, it is an admission that they did exactly what they were accused of. This is another reminder of how hopelessly biased 60 Minutes is, and how correct President Trump was to decline their invitation to be subjected to their fake news hackery. Release the Transcript!"

Last week, The Center for American Rights (CAR) filed a complaint against CBS News, accusing the network of "news distortion."

"This complaint concerns an act of significant and substantial news alteration, made in the middle of a heated presidential campaign,” CAR wrote. According to the group, in the 60 Minutes clip that aired on Face the Nation, Whitaker asked Harris about her position on the Israel-Hamas War, and following her response the anchor said "But it seems that Prime Minister is not listening."

Harris replied, "Well, Bill, the work that we have done has resulted in a number of movements in that region by Israel that were very much prompted by or a result of many things, including our advocacy for what needs to happen in the region."

However, after the full interview aired the following day, in response to Whitaker's question, Harris replied, "We are not gonna stop pursuing what is necessary for the United States to be clear about where we stand on the need for this war to end."

CAR stated in the complaint, "CBS crosses a line when its production reaches the point of so transforming an interviewee’s answer that it is a fundamentally different answer."