Awkward! CBS Evening News Airs B-Roll of Kanye in Report About P-Diddy in Brutal Gaffe

CBS Evening News suffered an embarrassing on-air gaffe on Friday after the network mistakenly showed footage of Kanye West during a report about Sean “Diddy” Combs, according to a Wednesday exclusive from the New York Post.

The error occurred during Friday’s East Coast broadcast as anchor Tony Dokoupil covered reports that President Donald Trump was considering a pardon for Combs. In addition to clips of the imprisoned music mogul, the program aired video of West, who had attended Combs’ federal trial last year. According to the Post, the mistake was corrected for the West Coast broadcast and on CBS’ digital platforms.

The mistake comes amid broader scrutiny of CBS News following the January relaunch of CBS Evening News, which put Dokoupil in the anchor chair as part of an overhaul overseen by editor-in-chief Bari Weiss. While CBS declined to comment directly on the error, a network source told the Post it was a “one-off error” that had “nothing to do with short staffing.”

Still, another source pointed to the blunder as evidence of broader production issues, telling the outlet, “They are drinking from a fire hose. This sort of thing should not happen. Where is the quality control?”

The report also detailed behind-the-scenes turmoil surrounding CBS’s live Fourth of July primetime special from Washington, D.C., which was disrupted after severe weather forced an evacuation of the National Mall. One source described the network’s response as “amateur hour,” claiming Dokoupil and co-host Nischelle Turner spent an hour waiting for instructions from executives after being forced off the Mall.

CBS disputed that characterization, with a spokesperson telling the Post, “This is nonsense. Despite the weather evacuation, our exceptional team never missed a step. We seamlessly activated our pre-planned weather contingencies to deliver great coverage for our audience.”

The Post also reported that the special later disappeared from Paramount+, where it had initially streamed live, and on CBS.com. While one source suggested the network was “embarrassed” by the broadcast, a CBS source insisted it was omitted because of licensing agreements.

Per the Post’s reporting, some staffers nevertheless viewed the production as a failure, with one source saying, “It would have been better if they said nothing. We knew it was sh-t,” after executives reportedly sent a congratulatory email to employees involved in the broadcast. Another insider described the news division as “a rudderless ship,” though a CBS source pushed back on that characterization, citing CBS Evening News’ second-quarter ratings growth.

Watch the Friday clip above via CBS.

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