Karoline Leavitt warns Trump will sue CBS over | TV Shows

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, delivered a firm warning to CBS News and its Evening News anchor, Tony Dokoupil.

In an audio clip secured by the publication and featured in their January 17 report, Karoline declared, “He said, ‘Make sure you guys don’t cut the tape, make sure the interview is out in full.” Tony acknowledged, saying, “Yeah, we’re doing it, yeah.” To which Karoline shot back, “He said, ‘If it’s not out in full, we’ll sue your a– off.'”

The lawsuit-prone president had beforehand taken legal motion against CBS in 2024, which led to a $16 million settlement from the community’s guardian company, previously called Paramount Global, reviews the Mirror US.

Per the NYT, the CBS News employees was caught off guard by Karoline’s comment, with government producer Kim Harvey replying, “Oh, great, OK!” Tony tried to lighten the temper with a quip, noting, “[Trump] always says that!”

Nevertheless, Karoline appeared unamused and remained stone-faced. Some CBS staffers who witnessed the exchange indicated that Karoline could have been joking, according to an insider who briefed the outlet.

The full, uncut interview, filmed in Michigan, aired in its entirety on Tuesday night time. CBS verified that this had been their plan all along.

“The moment we booked this interview, we made the independent decision to air it unedited and in its entirety,” CBS News announced in a assertion, as quoted by the NYT. Karoline echoed this sentiment, saying, “The American people deserve to watch President Trump’s full interviews, unedited, no cuts. And guess what? The interview ran in full.”

In 2024, Trump sued CBS over alleged manipulative enhancing of a 60 Minutes interview with then-Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, accusing the community of “deceptive doctoring.”

Despite many legal specialists dismissing the lawsuit as groundless, Paramount opted for a settlement.

It was widely speculated and reported that Paramount was involved Trump’s lawsuit might threaten Skydance’s acquisition deal, which required regulatory approval including the switch of FCC licenses. After Paramount’s $16 million settlement, Trump gave his blessing for the merger in August 2025.

David Ellison, Skydance’s CEO, appointed the controversial Bari Weiss as CBS News’s editor-in-chief in October 2025, following the new company’s buy of her publication, The Free Press. Trump has also been embroiled in legal disputes with other media shops, including the Wall Street Journal and the BBC, and he secured a $15 million win in a defamation lawsuit against ABC News.