Bari Weiss Named New Editor-in-Chief Of CBS News

October 8, 2025 Charlotte Smith

Out lesbian Bar Weiss is known for her “anti-woke,” “Trump-friendly” stances. What does this mean for the future of journalism at CBS News?

Featured Image: Bari Weiss. Photo by Leigh Vogel/Getty Images for Uber, X, and The Free Press.

Bari Weiss, co-founder and CEO of The Free Press, has been appointed the new Editor-in-Chief of CBS News.

On Monday, October 6, Paramount announced its acquisition of The Free Press, a digital media outlet known to be hyper-critical of left “wokeness.” Weiss will remain CEO and Editor-in-Chief of The Free Press, but she will report directly to the Paramount CEO, David Ellison.

Weiss’s new position at CBS has brought up many questions about the future of journalism and the lean towards right-wing media. The Guardian called Weiss a “weird and worrisome choice” for Editor-in-Chief. The New Republic referred to her as “Maga-Lite.” MSNBC labeled The Free Press as a “Trump-friendly site,” pointing out its overwhelming number of right-wing contributors in the op-ed section. The organization has reportedly received seed money from several right-wing investors, including at least one member of the Trump Administration, according to MSNBC.

Weiss’s“anti-woke” reporting didn’t get its start at The Free Press. The 41-year-old spent years as an op-ed editor for the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. She became a controversial figure at the Times, writing articles defending both cultural appropriation and comedian Aziz Ansari after he faced Me Too accusations, penning a 2018 attack on so-called liberal intolerance, and appearing on MSNBC to publicly question the sexual assault allegations towards Brett Kavanaugh and whether he should be disqualified as a Supreme Court nominee. Even more publicly, she stepped down from her role at the Times following the publication of an op-ed piece written by Republican Senator Tom Cotton, which argued for sending in military troops to U.S. cities to quash unrest that had broken out in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd. In a series of tweets, Weiss claimed that there was a “civil war” that has been “raging” inside The Times between the “wokes” and older “liberals.”

Paramount CEO David Ellison, who was appointed Chairman and CEO in August 2025, is considered a Trump ally and is the son of one of the richest men in the world, Larry Ellison—a staunch supporter of Israel with close ties to Donald Trump. In recent months, Paramount reportedly paid $16 million to settle a lawsuit filed by Trump, who claimed their reporting in the 2024 Presidential Election was biased. The lawsuit specifically targeted CBS’s editing during a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris, which Trump claimed was “deceptively” done in order to shield her from backlash. With such a long history of well-respected journalism, their settlement in this case came as a shock to many.

With the future uncertain, all we know is that the addition of Weiss will play a key role in shaping the network’s editorial direction, and her appointment came at a crucial moment, should Paramount wish to continue to expand its appeal among right-leaning viewers.