CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss drew intense backlash from her own newsroom staff after personally directing changes to a headline about Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed that critics said falsely insinuated ties to the September 11 attacks. According to reporting from media newsletter Status, Weiss praised the story in a Monday morning editorial meeting on August 30 and requested the headline explicitly mention El-Sayed’s deleted tweets referencing 9/11.
The article, written by Washington, D.C.-based producer Zak Hudak, examined two social media posts El-Sayed deleted from his account after scrubbing all tweets predating July 2023. In one 2020 post, the former epidemiologist noted that COVID-19 had killed more Americans than the September 11 attacks and argued the government should respond to the pandemic with similar urgency and resources. In another post from September 11, 2021, El-Sayed mourned the 9/11 victims and wrote that he would also mourn lives lost in conflicts abroad.
The original headline read, “For Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed, Sept. 11 commemoration invites scrutiny of past remarks.” Weiss reworked it to the published version: “Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed’s deleted tweets on Sept. 11 attacks invite scrutiny of past remarks.” The change prompted one CBS News staffer to tell Status the piece represented “a small nugget of news, forced into something much larger, and messed up,” while a former senior staffer called it “shameful” and noted the “racism is overt.”
The backlash extended beyond the newsroom. Democratic lawmakers, including Michigan Representative Rashida Tlaib, accused CBS of a coordinated attack. Atlantic writer Helen Lewis criticized the headline as a political dog whistle that created guilt by association by placing El-Sayed’s name next to the phrase “9/11 attacks.” El-Sayed’s campaign responded that he has “always unequivocally condemned terrorism and the September 11 attacks” and characterized the coverage as part of a “bad-faith” effort by his Republican opponent, Mike Rogers.
The controversy marks another chapter in Weiss’s tumultuous tenure atop CBS News, which began in October 2025 when billionaire David Ellison, son of Oracle founder Larry Ellison, elevated her to editor-in-chief. Weiss, who founded The Free Press after departing the New York Times amid controversy, had no prior broadcast news experience. Since her appointment, she has faced repeated staff criticism over editorial interventions, including decisions to spike a 60 Minutes segment on torture in El Salvador, oversee significant layoffs, and make controversial hires.
In June, veteran 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley accused Weiss of “murdering” the program after being fired from the network. The New Yorker reported in January that her tenure had been marked by “hostile takeover” dynamics as she attempted to reshape the network’s editorial direction. Staff concerns have centered on what they view as political interference and a departure from traditional news judgment.
The El-Sayed article incident occurred as CBS News prepared coverage of the 25th anniversary of September 11. Critics noted the framing would be unlikely if El-Sayed were not Muslim, a point Status reporter Oliver Darcy emphasized: unlike figures in the MAGA movement, El-Sayed did not praise the attacks or promote conspiracy theories—he simply compared the pandemic death toll to 9/11 and called for robust public health investment, a mainstream position at the time.
Sources
- The Hollywood Reporter — Weiss’s personal involvement in reworking the headline, original vs. published versions, and staff reaction
- The Daily Beast — Staff quotes, story context, and Weiss’s previous editorial controversies
- Arab News — Confirmation of Weiss’s role and broader pattern of editorial intervention criticism
- DataForSEO search results — Multiple outlet reporting on the controversy, Weiss’s tenure, and El-Sayed’s background as Democratic nominee
