CBS News Says Ta-Nehisi Coates Interview Did Not Meet Its Standards

CBS News management announced to staff Monday morning that reporter Tony Dokoupil’s controversial approach during an interview with author Ta-Nehisi Coates did not meet the organization’s editorial standards, following an internal review of the interview. The leaders said they approached the interview with Dokoupil directly.

Coates appeared on “CBS Mornings” last week to discuss his new book, “The Message,” which criticizes Israel’s approach to its war against Hamas in Gaza after Coates’ own visit to Jerusalem. Co-presenter Dokoupil focused on the portion of his book dealing with Israel and saying that the contents of that section, without Coates’ name, “would not be out of place in an extremist’s backpack.”

Audio of the call with staff was obtained and released by Bari Weiss’ conservative Free Press, which has taken a position in favor of Israel continuing its war in Gaza and beyond. On the call, CBS News chief legal correspondent Jan Crawford defended Dokoupil and said, “Tony prevented a one-sided narrative from being broadcast on our network. »

Internal and viewer reaction was mixed, with some taking issue with Dokoupil’s questions and Coates’ description of the work and believing it indicated bias, while others supported his approach as being journalistically sound in the way he asked difficult questions. Dokoupil wrote about his conversion to Judaism. His ex-wife and two of his children live in Israel.

Some, both inside and outside of CBS, were also concerned about the choice to share the investigation’s results on October 7, the anniversary of last year’s Hamas terrorist attack that triggered the current military conflict.

After the interview, Coates appeared on former MSNBC reporter Mehdi Hasan’s Zeteo channel and said of the CBS interview: “I was a little surprised, and then I realized what was happening. was happening, I was fighting.”

Adrienne Roark, director of CBS News, began her remarks during the internal staff call to make the announcement by noting that covering a story like October 7 “requires empathy, respect and a commitment to the truth. She then added: “We will always ask difficult questions. We will continue to hold people accountable. But we will do it objectively, which means checking our biases and opinions at the door. »

She noted that staff reached out to interview Coates to raise concerns, then added, “I want to acknowledge and apologize that it took this long to have this conversation.” »

Internal discussions about the interview are expected to continue, including at an open forum Tuesday for CBS News morning show staff.

In the interview, Dokoupil challenged Coates and asked him why the author, whose talent he praised, would “leave so much aside.” He discussed issues such as Israel being “surrounded by countries that want to eliminate it,” terrorists seeking to destroy it, and other historical contexts including sustained terrorist attacks against its citizens.

Coates defended his approach by pointing out that he felt that the American media already largely had the perspective Dokoupil outlined, and so he sought to offer something different.

“I’m always very concerned about those who don’t have a voice,” Coates said.

You can watch the original “CBS Mornings” interview with Coates below: