Tension erupts at CBS as Bari Weiss’s memo sparks pushback and the union sides with defiant employees.NH
A union that represents CBS News journalists told staffers they won’t be punished if they ignore a memo from their new boss Bari Weiss that has asked for details on their work duties, The Post has learned.
CBS “informed us that you will not be disciplined if you do not respond to the email, indicating that a response is optional,” Writers Guild of America East told employees in a message obtained by The Post.
Any replies also will not be used against workers as “a basis for discipline, discharge or layoff,” according to the message.
Representatives for CBS News, Paramount and WGA East did not immediately respond to The Post’s requests for comment. It wasn’t immediately unclear whether Weiss or other CBS management also told staffers directly that they didn’t have have to respond to the message.
Weiss faced “mass confusion” at the network this week as staffers received conflicting orders on whether to respond to her memo, according to Variety.
Just hours after she sent the memo on Friday, WGA urged union staffers to ignore the missive.
Meanwhile, some producers at CBS News told journalists to respond to the note, three people familiar with the matter told Variety.
Some of these producers are not covered by a union contract and may feel pressured to get on Weiss’ good side, according to the report.
David Ellison – chief executive of Paramount Skydance, which owns CBS News – announced Weiss’ new role last week, along with the company’s $150 million acquisition of her contrarian news site The Free Press.
It came as a shock for many at the network, as Weiss – a pro-Israel, anti-woke reporter who previously worked as a New York Times opinion columnist – has no experience running a major news network.
The 41-year-old journalist, who started in the top role on Monday, wrote in her note to staff that she was seeking “to understand how you spend your working hours — and ideally, what you’ve made (or are making) that you are most proud of,” according to Variety.
The memo quickly drew comparisons to Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, which earlier this year asked employees for a weekly update on their accomplishments – then slashed 300,000 federal positions.
Employees at the network are fearful of layoffs, as CBS programming has remained stuck in third place behind rival morning and evening news shows from NBC and ABC.
Weiss, however, also emphasized that she wanted to listen — polling recipients for “your views on what’s working; what’s broken or substandard; and how we can be better,” according to the outlet.
CBS News has seen some major changes since the FCC greenlit parent company Paramount’s $8.4 billion merger with Skydance Media, putting billionaire David Ellison — son of Oracle’s Larry Ellison — at the helm of the joint company.
But more shake-ups are expected as Norah O’Donnell — who stepped down as host of “CBS Evening News” earlier this year — has surfaced as a contender to take back the anchor seat, The Post exclusively reported.
Trump jabbed at the possibility this week, telling reporters: “So who’s going to be the head anchor at CBS? Not Norah O’Donnell. I don’t believe it.”
