CBS criticized for omitting alleged criminal history of Abrego Garcia, according to Noem's censorship accusation
In a series of events that have sparked controversy, the Trump administration deported Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran man, to El Salvador in March, despite a 2019 order. This move comes amidst allegations of interview editing and manipulation by CBS News, as well as accusations of affiliations with the MS-13 gang and human smuggling.
Prior to his deportation, Abrego Garcia had been living under federal supervision in Maryland with his American wife and children since his release in 2019. However, in July, Paramount agreed to pay a $16 million settlement to Trump over the editing of an interview, with the funds earmarked for Trump's future presidential library, not the president himself.
The settlement does not involve an apology from Paramount or CBS. In her unedited remarks, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, who accused CBS News of editing her interview on "Face the Nation," listed out the allegations against Abrego Garcia, including that he is a member of the MS-13 gang, a human smuggler, and that he abused his wife. Noem also stated that Garcia solicited nude photos from minors.
Noem posted her unedited statement to social media, claiming CBS News was trying to cover up the truth. The CBS version of the interview reportedly cut 26 seconds of Noem's answers.
This is not the first time the Trump administration has accused CBS of omitting parts of an interview. In 2020, Trump filed a $20 billion lawsuit against CBS and "60 Minutes" before the 2024 election, accusing the program of misleadingly editing an interview with then-Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris.
Abrego Garcia's wife subsequently sued to bring him back to the U.S. Under pressure and following a U.S. Supreme Court order, the Trump administration returned Abrego Garcia to the U.S. in June, where he faced federal charges of human smuggling. The administration moved to deport him again in August. Abrego Garcia has since expressed his intent to reopen his immigration case in Maryland and seek asylum once more, his lawyers said.
Despite the controversy, there are no search results indicating any media company reached a settlement with the Trump administration in 2021 related to the publication of an interview with Abrego Garcia about allegations of reporting manipulation or paid any compensation.
Trump's lawyer, Edward Andrew Paltzik, claimed that Trump suffered "mental anguish" due to the editing of the interview by CBS News. Administration officials have alleged that Abrego Garcia is affiliated with the MS-13 gang, a claim he denies.
The judge issued an order preventing Abrego Garcia's deportation to El Salvador due to credible threats of violence from a gang that had terrorized him and his family. In 2019, a U.S. immigration judge denied Abrego Garcia's asylum request because he applied more than a year after fleeing El Salvador.
The saga surrounding the deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia and the allegations of interview editing and manipulation by CBS News continues to unfold, with potential implications for the future of journalistic integrity and immigration policy.
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