Newly-minted CBS Evening News anchor Tony Dokoupil was reportedly caught on tape caving to President Trump's demands after Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt threatened that the administration 'will sue' if they didn't comply.
Dokoupil, 45, took over the network's flagship nightly news broadcast earlier this year with a rocky start, as critics accused him of softening coverage on the president.
Following an interview with Trump last week, Dokoupil was reportedly threatened by Leavitt to play the full 13 minute conversation un-edited, or the White House would 'sue your a off.'
According to a recording obtained by the New York Times, Leavitt issued the blunt warning after the interview concluded, telling Dokoupil and his producers: '(Trump) said, "Make sure you guys don't cut the tape, make sure the interview is out in full."'
'Yeah, we're doing it, yeah,' Dokoupil replied, according to the report.
'He said, "If it's not out in full, we'll sue your a off,"' Leavitt added.
Kim Harvey, the executive producer of CBS Evening News, reportedly responded excitedly and agreed to air the interview in full.
The exchange offers a candid look into Trump's efforts to influence media coverage in his second term, with the White House having previously sued a number of news organizations including the New York Times, the BBC and CBS News.
Earlier this year, Dokoupil's employer CBS agreed to pay a $16 million settlement to Trump to settle a case over the editing of a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris during the 2024 election.
Karoline Leavitt reportedly threatened CBS with a lawsuit if they didn't air the president's full interview.
Tony Dokoupil reportedly laughed off the threat and caved to the president's demands.
CBS aired the full 13-minute interview with Trump at an assembly line last week.
Following his interview with Trump last week, Dokoupil reportedly laughed off the threat of a lawsuit from Leavitt, joking: 'He always says that!'
However, Leavitt hadn't appeared to be joking and didn't laugh, the report claimed.
'The American people deserve to watch President Trump's full interviews, unedited, no cuts. And guess what? The interview ran in full,' she told the New York Times.
The network did air Trump's unedited interview, adding in a statement to the Daily Mail: 'The moment we booked this interview we made the independent decision to air it unedited and in its entirety.'
The Daily Mail has reached out to the White House for comment.
The 13-minute interview aired from an assembly line in Michigan and saw Dokoupil grill Trump on a wide range of issues including Iran, the economy, the investigation into Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, the killing of Renee Nicole Good by a federal agent, and the president's own morality.
Trump defended the administration's actions abroad and maintained the federal government's position that Good was justifiably shot.
During a discussion about grocery prices and the economy, Trump suggested that Dokoupil would be out of a job if Kamala Harris won the 2024 election.
Dokoupil breezed past the insinuation but defended himself at the end of the interview, telling Trump: 'For the record, I do think I'd have this job even if the other guys won.'
'Yeah, but at a lesser salary. Thank you very much,' Trump quipped.
Leavitt reportedly didn't laugh after threatening to 'sue your a off' to CBS executives.
Trump has had a controversial relationship with the network after suing CBS in 2024.
CBS News has a complicated history with the president. Trump filed a $10 billion lawsuit against the network in 2024 for airing an edited interview with Harris.
CBS's parent company, Paramount, settled the lawsuit last July for $16 million. Just a few weeks later, the Federal Communications Commission approved MAGA allies Larry and David Ellison's purchase of the media company.
The acquisition then saw David Ellison tap controversial news figure Bari Weiss as CBS News' editor-in-chief in October.
The network has since experienced massive changes, with anchor shakeups, sensational resignations, and a highly scrutinized decision from Weiss to pull a 60 Minutes segment on the CECOT confinement center in El Salvador.
Critics accused Weiss and the network of pulling the segment because it was critical of Trump's policies.
Sources recently told The Independent that Weiss and Trump kissed each other on the cheek after the president sat down for an interview with 60 Minutes anchor Norah O'Donnell in November.
'He was so happy to see her and she was so excited to meet him, they both leaned in and exchanged kisses on the cheek,' one source told the outlet.
David Ellison purchased Paramount last July.
CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss has been at the center of backlash from critics who believe the network has caved to Trump under her leadership.
Another source told The Independent that other reporters and producers in the room were shocked by the chummy exchange.
In response to the report, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung shared a photo on X of CBS producers laughing with Trump.
'Here are the other 60 Minutes executives who were having a great time with President Trump, laughing at his jokes,' Cheung said.
Leavitt's threat to sue CBS isn't unprecedented. In addition to Trump's former lawsuit with the network, ABC News also settled a lawsuit with him for $16 million over a mistake anchor George Stephanopoulos made while reporting on the president's sexual abuse trial.