Streamer Dean Withers Grills CBS on Unaired Debate Footage
Streamer and political commentator Dean Withers put CBS on blast for failing to put out a debate between himself and another streamer. He suspects that Bari Weiss is preventing the release of the episode.
In a TikTok video, Withers claimed that CBS flew him to Washington, DC, to be a part of a debate moderated by anchor Maurice DuBois. All expenses were paid, and Withers said he had to debate a MAGA influencer. The political commentator noted that “it didn’t go well” for his opponent. He emphasized that he “very effectively” addressed the failures of the Trump administration and the Republican Party.
“Coincidentally, this thing films right before Bari Weiss took control over CBS. And in my opinion, I think that she tended to censor the truth,” Withers concluded. He also explained why he thought Weiss had the incentive not to publish the debate.
“If you don’t know who Bari Weiss is, she is a pro-Trump propagandist who took control over CBS last year, and one of the very first things we know that she did is the fact that she censored a documentary going over the very inhumane conditions and tortures that occur in CECOT and El Salvador.”
Withers’ revelation stokes fears of censorship
Withers also posted on X to ask CBS why his debate footage hasn’t been released.
There were a few who doubted that Withers was invited to debate, but he showed a photo of the behind-the-scenes. Many more expressed concern over censorship, with one comment from TikTok saying CBS “sold out.” Others vowed not to watch another episode from the network.
But why would Dean Withers be debating matters of political importance on screen? Dean Withers shot to fame after a Jubilee debate video with deceased conservative activist Charlie Kirk. In the episode, they debated about abortion—and the clip of their exchange went viral. Withers went on to debate other conservatives, making a streaming career for himself on TikTok and YouTube.
Weiss’ CECOT documentary
On Withers’ claim, Bari Weiss infamously pulled the plug on a 60 Minutes documentary about Venezuelan migrants held in CECOT. The documentary would “mistakenly” air in Canada and would be posted online. Because of Weiss’ censorship, the documentary trended on social media and garnered far more attention than expected. 60 Minutes would later release the documentary on January 19 this year. Needless to say, the comments are riddled with criticism for CBS for the network’s failure to release it immediately.
A man named Louis Munoz Pinto, who was a college student in Venezuela, hoped to seek asylum in the United States. He spoke to 60 Minutes about his harrowing experience with US immigration and his subsequent detention in CECOT.
Pinto claimed that he waited in Mexico until his scheduled appointment with US Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Although he denies having a history of crime, going so far as to say that he never got a traffic ticket, Pinto was still detained by the CBP in the United States for six months, then deported to El Salvador.
They were essentially treated like prisoners. Pinto said that they were bound, forced to kneel, and had their heads shaved.
“Four guards grabbed me, and they beat me until I bled—to the point of agony. They knocked our faces to the wall, and that was when they broke one of my teeth,” Pinto said. His story is not unique, as he described people screaming and bleeding upon entering the prison.
Needless to say, Weiss, as a supporter of the administration, may have had incentive to shelf the documentary entirely. Although unconfirmed, it’s certainly an unsettling conjecture.
(featured image: Dean Withers)
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