By: Krug Stillo

The NY Post reported that CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss stepped in to prevent the layoff of a Rome-based foreign correspondent who had expressed strong support for Israel, instead removing another reporter from the termination list. The move comes amid a sweeping round of cuts across the Tiffany Network, sources told the Post.

As the NY Post reported Thursday, Weiss terminated Debora Patta, a 12-year CBS veteran based in Johannesburg, during the staff reductions, which have affected roughly 100 employees across the network. Patta had recently signed a new three-year contract and was considered one of CBS News’ most experienced war correspondents, covering conflicts in Syria, Ukraine, and the Israel-Hamas war.

The decision followed an appeal from Rome-based correspondent Chris Livesay, who reportedly complained directly to Weiss about being sidelined and requested assignment as CBS’s Israel correspondent. Sources told the Post that Weiss replaced Livesay’s name with Patta’s on the layoff list, a switch first reported by The Independent, which did not name the male correspondent.

The Post learned that Patta’s dismissal came months after former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee publicly criticized her, claiming she edited an interview in a way that misrepresented his comments about starvation in Gaza. Huckabee had accused CBS News producers of stripping key context from his remarks to portray him as indifferent, posting the full transcript on the U.S. embassy website to show the allegedly altered portions. Patta, 61, denied any wrongdoing, and colleagues described her to The Independent as a “fearless and fair” reporter committed to verified facts.

Weiss, who joined CBS earlier this month after selling her media outlet The Free Press to Paramount Skydance, is overseeing her first major layoffs at the network. She has described herself as a “Zionist fanatic” and is known for her outspoken pro-Israel stance. Sources told the Post that she intervened specifically to preserve the position of a pro-Israel correspondent, reflecting the sensitivity of Israel coverage within the network.

The layoffs coincided with CBS shuttering its Johannesburg bureau, with coverage now shifted to London. Planning for the reductions reportedly began months before Weiss’s arrival, but the final decisions — including Patta’s replacement — occurred under her supervision. The cuts have affected personnel across every major CBS program and have sparked concern among employees about the network’s handling of international coverage.

Patta had been assured she was safe from layoffs before learning her name had been added to the list, sources told The Independent. She is reportedly considering legal action following her dismissal.

The Post noted that CBS’s coverage of Israel has long been a flashpoint within the newsroom, with reporters and executives navigating criticism over perceived biases. Last year, “CBS Mornings” co-host Tony Dokoupil was reprimanded after pressing author Ta-Nehisi Coates about omissions in his book critical of Israel, while former Paramount executive Shari Redstone later publicly claimed the network displayed an anti-Israel bias.