Esra Tekin
January 19, 2026•Update: January 19, 2026
ISTANBUL
The White House press secretary warned CBS News executives that legal action would be taken if an interview conducted with US President Donald Trump last week was not broadcast in full, according to an audio recording first reported by The New York Times.
In the recording, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt can be heard speaking to CBS anchor Tony Dokoupil after he interviewed Trump.
“Make sure you guys don’t cut the tape, make sure the interview is out in full,” Leavitt told the journalist, according to the audio.
"Yeah, we’re doing it, yeah,” Dokoupil replied.
Leavitt then relayed a message from Trump: “He said, ‘If it’s not out in full, we’ll sue your ass off.’”
CBS News aired the complete, unedited interview later that evening.
“The moment we booked this interview, we made the independent decision to air it unedited and in its entirety,” the company said in a statement on Saturday.
Leavitt later commented on the controversy to The New York Times.
“The American people deserve to watch President Trump’s full interviews, unedited, no cuts.” she said. “And guess what? The interview ran in full.”
