Who is Sharyn Alfonsi? Reporter at center of ’60 Minutes’ controversy

CBS News is in the middle of a major controversy when “60 Minutes” correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi harshly criticized editor-in-chief Bari Weiss’ decision to delay the airing of her episode about the infamous El Salvador prison CECOT.

Alfonsi, a longtime reporter for the newsmagazine, finds himself part of the story after sending a memo to colleagues outraged by Weiss’ decision to publish the story, “Inside CECOT,” claiming it was for political rather than editorial reasons. The Trump administration did not grant an interview to CBS for this episode.

The fight leaked to the public, causing a media frenzy and causing yet another headache for the Tiffany Network.

Who is Sharyn Alfonsi?

Alfonsi is a “60 Minutes” investigative reporter. According to her online bio, she first appeared on the show in 2015 and has won several awards, including two Emmys for her reporting on the survivors of the Parkland school shooting in 2018.

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Following his tenure at ABC News, he rejoined CBS. Before going to ABC, he worked as a CBS correspondent in New York and other local CBS-owned stations.

He has produced a series of profiles for “60 Minutes” and investigative segments, including on the death of Jeffrey Epstein, and has reported from war zones, including coverage of the Biden administration’s chaotic Afghanistan troop withdrawal in 2021. His most recent story discussed the dangers of artificial intelligence bots chatting with minors.

What is his CECOT story about?

Alfonsi’s “Inside CECOT” episode was to feature interviews he conducted with some of the released people from the infamous prison, who “described the brutal and torturous conditions” there.

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Inmates with MS-13 gang tattoos look out from their cells as Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem tours the Center for Confinement of Terrorists (CECOT) in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on March 26, 2025. (Alex Brandon-Pool/Getty Images)

“Earlier this year, the Trump administration deported hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants to El Salvador, a country with which most had no ties, claiming they were terrorists. The move sparked an ongoing legal battle, and nine months later the U.S. government still has not released the names of those deported and placed in CECOT, one of El Salvador’s harshest prisons.” Press release Read on for the episode.

Has Alfonsi had any controversial news before this?

Alfonsi came under fire in a “60 Minutes” segment in 2021 for challenging Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and telling a story about supermarket chain Publix giving him preferential treatment in the distribution of COVID vaccines because the PAC donated $100,000 to his campaign.

But the story has faced significant criticism, including from Democrats like Florida Department of Emergency Management Director Jared Moskowitz. Publix had more than 800 locations in the state, making it an ideal place to distribute vaccines to a state with a high elderly population.

Publix also lashed out at the idea that DeSantis was essentially bribed, calling the suggestion “wrong and offensive.”

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CBS stood by the story at the time, even though the “pay-for-play” narrative had been debunked. Additionally, DeSantis accused CBS of cheaply editing an aired exchange between him and Alfonsi that omitted context for the story.

What did Bari Weiss write about her story?

In a memo quickly leaked to the media on Sunday night, Alfonsi told colleagues that Weiss had exaggerated the story and did not give him the opportunity to discuss the matter further.

“Our story has been featured five times and has been approved by both CBS attorneys and Standards and Practices,” Alfonsi wrote. “It is actually true. In my view, withdrawing this decision now, after all stringent internal controls have been put in place, is a political decision, not an editorial decision.”

He added that “60 Minutes” has submitted requests for comment to the White House, the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department. Their silence was their statement, he wrote, and allowing it to delay the story effectively gave them veto power.

“If the Administration’s refusal to participate becomes a valid reason to push a story, we have effectively given them a ‘kill switch’ for any report they deem inappropriate,” he wrote.

Alfonsi said it would be wrong to abandon the sources who spoke to them at personal risk.

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“We have been promoting this story on social media for days,” Alfonsi wrote. “Our audience expects it. If it is not published without a credible explanation, the public will accurately describe it as corporate censorship. We are trading 50 years of our ‘gold standard’ reputation for a single week of political silence.”

He also touched on the infamous Jeffrey Wigand saga in his memo, in which “60 Minutes” was pressured by company executives not to air an interview with the tobacco industry whistleblower for fear of lawsuits. The scandal dazzled television and became the subject of controversy. 1999 movie “From the Inside”.

What did Bari Weiss say about the story?

Weiss defended the decision to keep the episode, saying it was not ready for broadcast and did not advance the story in a meaningful way.

“My job is to make sure that all the stories we publish are the best they can be,” he said in a statement Sunday. “Stories that are not readily available for whatever reason, such as lacking adequate context or missing critical voices, happen every day in every newsroom. I look forward to publishing this important article when it is ready.”

On Monday, he told staffers on a morning editorial call: “The only newsroom I’m interested in running is one where we can respectfully disagree on the thorniest editorial issues and, most importantly, assume the best faith of our colleagues. Anything short of that is simply unacceptable.”

CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss sent a memo to employees asking each member of the organization to detail what they do and what they believe is working or not working. (Leigh Vogel/Getty Images for Uber, X and Free Press)

“I did a ’60 Minutes’ story because it wasn’t ready yet. Although the story provided powerful testimony about torture at CECOT, it didn’t move the ball forward – [New York] The Times and other media outlets had previously conducted similar studies. The public knows that Venezuelans are subjected to terrible treatment in this prison. We need to do more to publish a story on this issue in two months. And this is ’60 Minutes’. We need to be able to record and videotape principals. Our audience comes first. It’s not a listing program or anything. That’s my north star, and I hope it’s yours too.”

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According to reports, Weiss monitored the story on Thursday and ultimately decided it wasn’t ready for publication, citing the Trump administration as having no on-the-record response.

Tanya Simon, executive producer According to Washington PostHe said during a private meeting that he stood by the story but was unable to calm Weiss.

“Ultimately, our editor-in-chief had a different vision of what the writing should be like, and that came late in the process, and we weren’t in a position to handle the notes,” EP Tanya Simon said, according to a partial transcript of the meeting obtained by the Post. “We stood back, defended our story, but he wanted change and ultimately I had to comply.”

Weiss has already become a lightning rod given his history of ideas and pushback against “woke” ideology, and some of his moves and rhetoric during his brief tenure at CBS News have irritated media liberals.

President Donald Trump has reached a settlement with CBS News and its parent company over what he claims was election interference over how “60 Minutes” edited his interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris. (Left: (Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images), Middle: Screenshot/60Minutes, Right: (Photo: Andy Manis/Getty Images))

What other controversies has “60 Minutes” been involved in lately?

The show is still reeling from President Donald Trump’s lawsuit against the network over how it edited an interview with his 2024 rival, Kamala Harris. Trump accused the media of election interference after airing portions of Harris’ response about Israel on two separate nights before the election.

Trump sued parent company Paramount and CBS for an eye-popping $20 billion. Behind the scenes, Paramount was seeking Trump administration approval for its merger with Skydance Media. Ultimately, Trump received a $16 million settlement that covered legal fees, litigation costs and future contributions to his presidential library or charitable cause.

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The saga left “60 Minutes” staffers outraged that their corporate parents paid what late-night host Stephen Colbert said was a “massive bribe” to make the merger happen, even though the network’s lawyers said the case was meritless.

Fox News Digital has reached out to CBS and Alfonsi for comment.