Liberal comedian Rosie O’Donnell criticized CBS for allegedly yielding to President Donald Trump, labeling a $16 million settlement of his ’60 Minutes’ lawsuit as a ‘bribe.’ She expressed these views during her appearance on ‘Bleep! with Ana Navarro.’ O’Donnell cited Stephen Colbert, a former CBS late-night host, who had previously used similar language against the agreement on his show.

O’Donnell argued that the settlement compromised the integrity of an independent press. ‘We need a vibrant, independent media,’ she stated. ‘And we no longer have it in this country.’

The CBS case centered around its editing of an October 2024 ’60 Minutes’ interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump accused CBS of altering Harris’ response about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to her advantage before the presidential election. CBS and Paramount Global settled the lawsuit in July 2025 without admitting any journalistic wrongdoing and made no payment directly to Trump.

Trump’s legal representatives hailed the settlement as a triumph over media bias. They claimed CBS recognized the case’s strength and opted to settle.

O’Donnell called the settlement a ‘bribe’ on Ana Navarro’s ‘Bleep!’ podcast. During the discussion, she also referred to Trump as a ‘convicted sexual rapist,’ though Navarro warned her about the accuracy of the description. Trump’s legal encounters included findings of liability for sexual abuse and defamation in a civil suit involving E. Jean Carroll, but not a criminal conviction.

ABC News separately settled a similar claim for $15 million after anchor George Stephanopoulos mischaracterized Trump’s legal outcome regarding rape charges.

O’Donnell reiterated Colbert’s criticism that the settlement with Trump resembled a ‘big fat bribe,’ as Paramount awaited federal approval of its merger with Skydance Media. CBS later canceled ‘The Late Show,’ a decision made public in a press release emphasizing that it was financially motivated, unrelated to Colbert’s content.

The Federal Communications Commission approved the $8 billion Skydance-Paramount merger soon after the settlement. Paramount stated that the lawsuit was unconnected to the merger or FCC proceedings.

CJ Womack, an associate editor at Fox News, reported on this. Womack joined Fox News Digital in 2026. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Journalism from Long Beach State University.