CBS News on Monday criticized one of its morning anchors, Tony Dokoupil, over an interview he had with author Ta-Nehisi Coates last week in which Dokoupil disagreed with Coates‘ views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. criticized.
CBS executives said in a newsroom-wide call that the interview fell below the station’s editorial standards. Executives said the criticism was sparked by concerns from internal staff, but at least one veteran CBS journalist said after the call that he was confused about what exactly Mr. Dokoupil had done wrong.
The episode began last Monday when Mr. Coates visited “CBS Morning” on a tour to promote his book, “The Message.” One section compares Israel’s treatment of Palestinians to the Jim Crow laws of the American South. In describing what he witnessed on a 10-day trip to the region last year, Coates criticized other journalists for “increasing the complexity of facts over self-evident morals.”
Mr. Dokoupil directly challenged this framework from the beginning of the interview, telling Mr. Coates, “The contents of that section would be comfortable in an extremist’s backpack.” Castor added, “What specifically angers you about the existence of a Jewish state that is a safe place for Jews?”
“There is nothing that offends me about the Jewish state. I am offended by the idea that a state anywhere is built on nationalism,” Coates responded. The men responded nervously but politely for several minutes, and at one point Mr. Coates said: “Is apartheid right or wrong? It’s really, really simple.”
Their exchange ended on a lighter note when Mr. Dokoupil, who is Jewish, told Mr. Coates that he was still invited to the High Holidays. The shooting scene was filled with laughter.
The interview caused an uproar on social media. Coates’ fans accused Dokoupil of bias, and one Vox reporter called Coates’ questioning “hostile, belligerent and disrespectful.” Others were more optimistic, including a Washington Post reporter who wrote that the conversation was “passionate but gentle,” bringing rigor to the typically breezy realm of morning television. .
Late last week, a group of CBS News employees raised concerns about Dokoupil’s handling of the interview with executives, according to two people familiar with the matter who requested anonymity to share internal discussions.
Dokoupil met for an hour with members of CBS News’ standards and practices team and the company’s race and culture department, which advises on the “context, tone and intent” of news programming. The conversation focused on Dokoupil’s tone of voice, phrasing and body language during his meeting with Coates, one of the people said.
Dokoupil, who joined CBS News in 2016 and became morning anchor in 2019, is a rising star at the network who recently took over an additional hour on “CBS Morning.” He continues to appear on the air.
Coates did not respond to a request for comment Monday. CBS News declined to comment.
Executives who discussed the interview on a conference call Monday asked staff to keep their comments confidential. But their comments were reported by Pac within hours, and Free Press, a news and opinion site run by Bari Weiss, published an audio recording of the meeting.
Adrian Roark, the network’s president of editorial and reporting, said: “After reviewing the coverage, including interviews, it is clear that some aspects of the story do not meet our editorial standards.” “This problem has been solved and will continue to be a problem.”
Mr Rourke, who took up the role in August after his predecessor abruptly resigned, added: We will continue to hold people accountable. That’s also part of our job. But we intend to do so objectively, and that means checking our own biases and opinions clearly at the door, and that applies to each of us. ”
Jan Crawford, chief legal correspondent for CBS News, said in a subsequent call that she did not understand why Dokoupil’s questions did not meet editorial standards.
“As Coates himself acknowledged, when someone appears on our broadcasts with a one-sided explanation of a very complex situation, we, as journalists, need to give our viewers access to that worldview. “I understand that I have an obligation to challenge that worldview, whether it’s the truth or a more detailed explanation,” Crawford said. “To me, that’s what Tony did.”
Crawford said CBS correspondents are confused about how to proceed with their work. “When we conduct our own interviews, what are the objective criteria for others?” she asked.
“Thank you for bringing this up,” Rourke replied. “I know this is a lot for everyone to process.” She said she planned to follow up with Crawford after the call.
