Jon Wertheim Defends ’60 Minutes’ For Edited Kamala Harris Interview

Longtime Sports Illustrated journalist Jon Wertheim, who was hired as a correspondent for CBS’ “60 Minutes” in 2017, joined OutKick’s Dan Dakich on Wednesday. 

Dakich started the interview with the burning question: what’s the deal with that Kamala Harris interview on “60 Minutes” that was heavily edited to hide her ineptitude at answering questions. 

Although Wertheim didn’t have any role in the interview, he still felt compelled to stick up for the network. 

“Things are edited in every story,” Wertheim said before relating it to his time at Sports Illustrated. “Any time you write something for Sports Illustrated, sometimes the online version isn’t exactly the same as the version that’s in the magazines.

“When would you do a story and not edit and not make choices and not [publish] selective quotes,” he continued. 

Sports Illustrated journalist and CBS correspondent Jon Wertheim joined OutKick’s Dan Dakich and defended “60 Minutes” for edited Kamala Harris interview.

(Getty Images)

The host of “Don’t @ Me” pressed further. 

“Do you think that 60 Minutes should release the full transcript?” Dakich asked. 

“I think there are things that get said in a transcript with a subject that are not going to make sense in context. It’s kind of not the way the game is played,” Wertheim responded. 

“I don’t know what the ground rules are for the staff. That is above my pay grade. But, more than anything, honestly, I’m just sort of confused by it all.” 

Wertheim then explained that every pre-recorded interview has elements that don’t make the final product. 

“Don’t [interview subjects] work on the assumption that not everything [they] say is going to make it into the story or the final piece?” he said. 

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While Wertheim makes some fair points, there is the matter that CBS might have taken some of Harris’ answers and edited them into questions that she wasn’t actually answering. If that’s true, then “60 Minutes” actively doctored the footage. 

That’s a breach of journalistic ethics. 

But the point goes deeper than that. People aren’t upset that CBS edited the Kamala Harris interview. They’re upset that CBS edited the interview to make her look better. 

It’s one thing to cut down an interview to the best content or to trim the length; Wertheim is right, all journalists/networks do that. 

It’s another thing entirely to purposefully edit to make sure the subject is portrayed in a certain light, particularly when it completely goes against what happened in the actual interview. 

It’s further proof that many of the legacy media outlets are not just rooting for Kamala Harris to win – they’re actually trying to help her get elected. 

That’s not the job of the media. 

In fact, it’s the exact opposite. 

“Don’t @ Me” airs Monday-Friday on OutKick.com from 9-11 a.m. ET.