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Colbert Responds to CBS Statement Over Pulled Talarico Interview; 'Progress Was Made' Between U.S. & Iran in Geneva Talks. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired February 18, 2026 - 06:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[06:00:13]

AUDIE CORNISH, CNN ANCHOR: Today in the group chat, red lines and two more weeks of waiting. At what point does the president say enough is enough on talks with Iran?

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J.D. VANCE, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: The president has all options on the table.

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CORNISH: Diplomatic talks or military might. President Trump weighs his options in Iran.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I believe it was a kidnapping.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Targeted kidnapping?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: A setback and a new clue. Eighteen days into the desperate search for Nancy Guthrie, the sheriff says the case is far from cold.

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STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, CBS'S "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT": I got called backstage to get more notes from these lawyers, something that had never, ever happened before.

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CORNISH: Stephen Colbert calling out CBS. An interview scrapped after Trump's FCC's threats. So, how far does the arm of the federal government reach?

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CAPT. RUSSELL GREENE, NEVADA COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: It's just going to be a slow, tedious process.

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CORNISH: Skiers are trapped after an avalanche in Northern California. The delicate rescue operation still ongoing. CNN THIS MORNING starts right now.

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REP. JAMES TALARICO (D), TEXAS STATE REPRESENTATIVE: They went after The View because I went on there. They went after Jimmy Kimmel for telling a joke they didn't like. They went after you for telling the truth about Paramount's bribe to Donald Trump.

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CORNISH: Good morning, everybody. I'm Audie Cornish, and we begin with that interview, because it's been blowing up the group chat this week in a very public fight between Stephen Colbert and CBS. And it's taken a new turn this morning.

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DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: Stephen Colbert slammed CBS, his employer, last night for pulling his interview with Democrat James Talarico.

COLBERT: We were told in no uncertain terms by our network's lawyers, who called us directly, that we could not have him on the broadcast.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: CBS pushed back today in its own statement that said, "'The Late Show' was given legal guidance the broadcast could trigger the FCC Equal Time Rule for two other candidates, including Representative Jasmine Crockett, and presented options for how the equal time for other candidates could be fulfilled."

The question is, how will Stephen Colbert respond to that CBS statement?

COLBERT: They know damn well that every word of my script last night was approved by CBS's lawyers.

For the lawyers to release this without even talking to me is really surprising. I don't even know what to do with this crap. Well, hold on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: OK, so today in the group chat, Michelle Prince, White House reporter for the Associated Press; Alvaro Bedoya, former commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission; Terry Schilling, executive director for the American Principles Project; and Antjuan Seawright, Democratic strategist.

OK, so this seems like a Washington nerdy thing, but we're going to try and break it down for people. So, first, just what we mean when we say equal time.

We're a news organization. If we call up a senator, a Republican in the middle of a campaign race, we think we got to call the other guy, too. We understand that.

And here are some exceptions to the Equal Time Rule: bona fide newscasts, bona fide news interviews, news documentaries, and on-the- spot coverage of news events.

Help me understand how this and the Colbert thing run afoul of each other?

ALVARO BEDOYA, FORMER FTC COMMISSIONER: Sure. So, for 40 or 50 years there has been this rule in place to make sure that, if a network gives one candidate a certain amount of time, they give another one a comparable time.

But since the days of Phil Donahue in 1984 and Jay Leno, it's been clear that the kind of interview that Stephen Colbert did was an exception to this rule.

And what we are seeing now is this rule being used as a pretext to censor coverage on CBS so that Paramount's offer to buy Warner Bros. Discovery gets more favor, not just with the president of the United States. They're increasing their bid to the board. And this is how they increase their bid to the president, not by --

CORNISH: OK. Hold on one second.

BEDOYA: Go ahead.

CORNISH: No, no, no. Because obviously, WBD is our parent company.

BEDOYA: Yes.

CORNISH: So, we -- we do have a stake in this, so to speak. But the implications of what you're saying, I want to underscore, if you're a talk show, right, that somehow it's different.

Is it actually different in an era where being on talk shows, being on social, all those things carry their own political currency?

[06:05:05]

TERRY SCHILLING, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, AMERICAN PRINCIPLES PROJECT: Well, look, I think that this is a story much ado about nothing. I think that what's happening is James Talarico and Stephen Colbert are taking advantage, getting as much spotlight as

they can on this.

Colbert does not have a broad viewership. He's been falling in the numbers.

CORNISH: How many views are now of this video that everyone pointed it out? SCHILLING: But no, but that's -- but that's my point, is so he's got

the same amount of viewers, because he's primarily social media driven. Right? So, it didn't --

CORNISH: So, why fight it? This is one of my questions when I think of someone like Brendan Carr, who I'm going to play a clip for you in a moment.

The Republican line is usually he doesn't matter. It's too small. But then they weigh in, right? So, here's Brendan Carr at the end of January, talking about how he thinks about these rules.

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BRENDAN CARR, FCC COMMISSIONER: Congress was clear that the FCC has a role with respect to bona fide news, because otherwise, I think the statutory history is clear. They were worried that TV programmers would, you know, broadly take advantage of trying to claim they were bona fide news when they weren't.

But if you're fake news, you're not going to qualify as the bona fide news exception.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANTJUAN SEAWRIGHT, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: What's clear, I hope, for everyone is that they mean the folks who are in charge clearly are aiming towards state-run TV.

If you are anti this administration, if you're anti their policy, their agenda, they want to silence and suffocate your voices.

And the rule -- the same rules do not apply to FOX News. They do not apply to networks and coverage that praises or uplift the right-wing extreme agenda.

CORNISH: Wait a second. Do you think that? You were just making a sound?

BEDOYA: Absolutely. I mean, this would be much ado about nothing --

CORNISH: Like, when you look at FOX News, you don't --

BEDOYA: Well, we don't see Brendan Carr going out and shutting down interviews on FOX News, do we? And we don't see -- what we are seeing, however, is $16 million going to the president's pocket for a spurious lawsuit around "60 Minutes." You've got coverage around CECOT getting pulled down at the last minute by Bari Weiss.

It would be much ado about nothing if it were just one thing.

CORNISH: Right.

BEDOYA: But it's thing after thing after thing after thing, to prove their loyalty to this president.

SEAWRIGHT: And let me say, the algorithms on social media, we see that changing by way of the dynamics for conservative-leaning news.

We see what's happening with the threats to newscasts that criticize the president.

And we've seen Republicans' administrations before, and we've never had these types of conversations. Because it's never been a thing until Donald Trump came to the scene. And we -- this as Americans, should pay attention to the precedents being set in this moment.

CORNISH: Let -- let me just make sure the others get a chance to talk here.

One thing is that it was always clear -- and Carr said this during the Kimmel conversation and the Colbert situation -- that they feel that the nation's media is culturally captured by the left.

And so, are we witnessing just a swapping for one ideology or another? That they're not actually upset with what happened before. They'd just like to replace it with their own ideology?

SCHILLING: Well, look, to be fair, I -- this Texas primary election is in less than a month, right? It's in just a couple of weeks. I think that this is a fair thing.

And frankly, I don't think that Colbert really wanted to deal with having Jasmine Crockett on the show. We'll see. He can obviously host an episode with her.

CORNISH: But you're not answering the question about is it a swap? Is it basically --

SCHILLING: No, it's not a swap.

CORNISH: Are you now watching an ideology in place that you're like, look, the left, your time is over. It is now the time to balance it more. And therefore, Carr and others are going to be more aggressive about inserting and forcing these conversations about point of view.

SCHILLING: No, I think we have a long way to go before anyone should be worried about the right-wing taking over America's media apparatus.

You've got "The New York Times." You've got "The Washington Post." You've got MSNBC. You know, I think you have a lot of news outlets that are very left-leaning. The right is more decentralized. It's more blogs and podcasters.

SEAWRIGHT: But we're -- we're -- we're at the table with someone who's been banned from the White House. So, we know --

CORNISH: Wait. Is that true?

MICHELLE PRINCE, WHITE HOUSE REPORTER, ASSOCIATED PRESS: The Associated Press is not banned from the White House but from --

SEAWRIGHT: The coverage -- the coverage and the type of news that they want reported coming out of this administration has to be pro this administration. I mean, from the Pentagon to the White House itself. I mean, we have to be serious.

CORNISH: Let me ask one more -- hold on. I want to ask one more question, Antjuan. What is going on in Texas?

Because it feels, also, as though Jasmine Crockett has not come out and necessarily said, like, Hey this is bad for all of us. She's like, Yes, they should have called me. They didn't call me.

And it just feels like it's part and parcel of this conversation about that congressional race. And I'm sorry, the presence of Democrats there who are trying to rise in Democratic politics and are kind of sniping at each other on the way.

SEAWRIGHT: Well, certainly everything is big in Texas, including the stakes in this race. And I think that's why you see this -- the race and the conversations around this race intensifying.

Representative Crockett has been on news programs before, like Colbert, late-night shows and others. So has James Talarico. So, it's not anything new.

I think where the Crockett corner may be frustrated by is the timing. Early voting started in Texas. All of a sudden, this young, charismatic candidate who is, quite frankly, leading the money race, shows up on late-night TV where he gets a bigger audience than her.

[06:10:11]

And I think the conversation is more around timing than it is around actual substance.

CORNISH: Yes. And in the meantime, the interview itself, 5 million views and counting. Because as always, if you tell people not to watch something, you'll all go watch it.

Thank you so much for being here. Appreciate your time.

BEDOYA: Thanks for having me.

CORNISH: That's Alvaro Bedoya.

In the meantime, CNN, we're talking about whiteout conditions and an actual avalanche. At least nine skiers still missing this morning in the Northern California mountains.

Plus, today Mark Zuckerberg takes the stand to answer the question: Can you be addicted to social media?

And as we remember the life of the Reverend Jesse Jackson, we look at the art of the boycott. How he used it as a tool to bring about change.

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REV. JESSE JACKSON, CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER: I need to demand from corporate America, racial justice, gender justice, environmental justice.

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[06:15:34] CORNISH: It's now 15 minutes past the hour. Here are five things to know to get your day going.

We're going to talk about the rescue teams who have saved six skiers trapped by an avalanche in Northern California. At least nine others are actually still missing.

Blizzard conditions continue, and the threat of more slides actually hinder rescue efforts. And this is all near Lake Tahoe.

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GREENE: They're doing their best they can. They have taken refuge in an area. They have made up a makeshift, you know, shelter with a tarp and doing everything they can to -- to survive and wait for rescue.

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CORNISH: So, two of the six rescued skiers have been transported to the hospital for undisclosed injuries.

Meanwhile, in Geneva, Russian and Ukrainian delegations have ended their second day of U.S.-brokered negotiations to try and end the war in Ukraine.

They made no major breakthroughs, although Ukraine's negotiators said some progress was made.

Russia announced a new round of talks that would take place in the near future.

Also, no deal in sight. The White House rejected a counter-offer from Democrats as this partial government shutdown enters its fifth day.

Democrats are demanding changes to immigration enforcement or else they say they won't help pass funding for the Department of Homeland Security.

Meanwhile, nearly all DHS workers remain on the job, even if many won't get paid until that shutdown ends.

And more news from DHS, with its top spokesperson stepping down. Tricia McLaughlin is set to leave her job as an assistant secretary next week. She was one of the agency's most vocal defenders following the deadly shootings of two U.S. citizens by federal agents in Minnesota.

And figure skater Alysa Liu could end a 20-year Olympic medal drought for Team USA. She finished third in the short program, several spots ahead of her teammates, and she'll take the ice Thursday afternoon for the finals.

And after the break on CNN THIS MORNING, the pacemaker and the doorbell cameras. How officials are using technology to help find Nancy Guthrie.

Plus, the U.S. and Iran leave the negotiating table with key sticking points. And now Iran is teaming up with Russia, preparing for joint military drills. So, is this timing a coincidence?

In the meantime, good morning, New Orleans. Everybody is still asleep after yesterday's Mardi Gras festivities.

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[06:22:20]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VANCE: In some ways, it went well. They agreed to meet afterwards.

But in other ways, it was very clear that the president has set some red lines that the Iranians are not yet willing to actually acknowledge and work through.

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CORNISH: Negotiations and military posturing. The U.S. and Iran made some progress, but much more work needs to be done this morning as the U.S. awaits a detailed proposal that addresses the gaps in their positions.

So, you've got Iran actually conducting drills and closed parts of the Strait of Hormuz, where nearly a fifth of the world's oil production flows through.

Meantime, the U.S. continues to increase its military assets in the region. Both leaders are making thinly veiled threats.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALI KHAMENEI, IRANIAN SUPREME LEADER (through translator): The U.S. president keeps saying this. The U.S. Army is the strongest army in the world. The strongest army in the world may sometimes get slapped so hard that it cannot stand up straight.

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: I would say they're bad negotiators, because we could have had a deal instead of sending the B-2s in to knock out their nuclear potential.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CORNISH: Joining us now in the group chat, Kim Dozier, CNN global affairs analyst. And this is the kind of thing that's actually in your group chat. That's why you're here. So, thank you for being here.

KIM DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Yes. CORNISH: It feels like the thing that Iran and Russia are good at doing is delay. So, when we say, look, there's negotiations to come, is this another instance of delay? Or does the military activity around it make you think differently about it?

DOZIER: You know, one of the top Iranian negotiators involved in these talks has written a book about negotiations and compared it to, like negotiating for a carpet in the bazaar, but also talking about you work on the details.

Essentially, what Iran does is they -- they want to have talks about the talks. And then once you set up the format --

CORNISH: Yes.

DOZIER: -- for the future talks, you know, by the time you get to the substance of it, you've basically marathoned your way into -- you're outlasting the other side, by drilling down into the details.

The fact of the matter is, neither side has moved from their very hardline positions. On nuclear enrichment, the U.S. wants it stopped entirely. Iran is saying no.

CORNISH: Yes.

DOZIER: On ballistic missiles, the U.S. wants limits on ranges, amounts, et cetera. Iran's like this is existential for us. Israel can reach us. You -- this is our only way to defend ourselves.

CORNISH: But Trump is different I mean, going in and actually dropping those bombs on the nuclear facility, whatever progress that did or did not make. Does the White House think, like, no no, no, everyone this is different because of the sheer volume of what we've moved into the region: 250 military cargo planes, 16 planes on the tarmac, people showed.

[06:25:09]

And the U.S. aircraft carrier and three warships arrived in the Middle East last month.

Michelle, what does the White House say they're trying to build up to here?

PRICE: I mean there's certainly a lot of pressure that -- that they're building up on the Iranians here. The White House, you know, there's like this very public aggressive stance that both Iran and the U.S. are making here.

But we have no real insight into the character of these private talks and how much progress they're actually making.

But one thing with, with Donald Trump is we don't know where his patience will run out. We don't know whether he's just going to decide, even before these two weeks are up, whether he thinks there is actually any room for progress to be made, or whether they are so far apart that he's going to try to move forward with one of these military options.

I think the one issue is we don't know what the Plan B is, the Day Two plan is if he does take military action. It doesn't feel like the White House has a lot of great options right now, if we do have another military action in another foreign country.

DOZIER: And Israel is pushing for some sort of military action, especially to strike ballistic missile production sites, et cetera.

CORNISH: To dismantle completely the nuclear program in Iran.

DOZIER: Yes.

CORNISH: That's their goal.

DOZIER: Well -- well, those are two different things: the ballistic missiles and the nuclear program.

But the problem is where does it stop? Because if you're going to try to do a series of strikes like last time, you can say that you've crippled part of it, but you haven't erased it completely. That's what talks are for.

Iran also hasn't gone to its most extreme measures. It's closed the Strait of Hormuz right now, that -- that 20-mile part of the waterway where most of something like a large amount of the world's traffic goes through for oil. But it hasn't -- it's closed it temporarily for a military exercise.

It could blockade it for a longer period. And then, that would put its forces in direct conflict with U.S. naval forces, if they try to reopen it. So, those kind of things, that's where you could end up tumbling if you start with what's supposed to be some sort of police action, and then Iran steps it up, and then the U.S. has to respond.

CORNISH: We are not there yet. We are still at everyone's talking about talking.

DOZIER: Exactly.

CORNISH: At this point. Stay with me, Kim.

For the rest of you, stay with me, as well.

Straight ahead on CNN THIS MORNING, remember that kind of Russia, Russia, Russia investigation? President Trump has not forgotten it. And now, his DOJ is actually opening an investigation into the handling of it.

Plus, there are dangerous wildfires moving through the plains. A look at when conditions could actually improve.

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