CBS News staff resist editor's push on Alaska ballot scandal

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 30 Oct, 01:26 · Archive

CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss faced staff resistance when pressing to cover an alleged Democratic scheme to field a candidate named Dan Sullivan in Alaska.

CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss declared a New York Times report about an alleged Democratic scheme in Alaska 'a scandal' during a Thursday 9 a.m. staff meeting, according to network insiders. The report alleged Democrats schemed to find a candidate named Dan Sullivan to run against incumbent Republican Senator Dan Sullivan, hoping to aid Democratic opponent Mary Peltola. Weiss faced 'significant resistance' from staff, with several pushing back at her enthusiasm for the story.

Multiple CBS News staffers downplayed the allegations as routine politics. When Weiss asked for other examples of ballot confusion, 'Face the Nation' moderator Margaret Brennan pointed to New Hampshire Senate candidate John Sununu, suggesting voters might confuse him with his brother, former governor Chris Sununu. CBS News political correspondent Ed O'Keefe stressed that the Alaska scheme 'could be a dirty trick, but it's not illegal', noting such tactics have happened before. He cited a 2016 Alaska Senate race when a former Anchorage mayor named Dan Sullivan ran against incumbent Senator Lisa Murkowski in the Republican primary, also hoping to benefit from name recognition.

One CBS staffer told Fox News Digital that colleagues were providing context rather than attempting to downplay the scandal.

How it is being reported

• Bari Weiss faced ‘significant resistance’ from CBS News on the ‘Decoy Dan’ scandal: insiders sayCBS News editor Bari Weiss pushed staff to cover an alleged Democratic plot to run a second Dan Sullivan in Alaska, drawing internal pushback.New York Post · 30 Oct, 01:15
• Bari Weiss faced 'significant resistance' from CBS News staffers about Alaska ballot scandal, insiders sayCBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss faced resistance among staff at a meeting when talking about the New York Times' report on the Alaska ballot scandal.Fox News · 29 Oct, 19:51

In this story: Bari Weiss · CBS News · Dan Sullivan · Mary Peltola · Margaret Brennan · Ed O'Keefe · Alaska · New York Times

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