CBS Rocked by Fresh Scandal as Rising Star Accused of Shocking Crimes

CBS News has been plunged into another controversy after high-profile correspondent Matt Gutman was named in a lawsuit containing sexual harassment allegations dating back to his years at ABC News.

Gutman, one of CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss’ biggest hires, is accused by former ABC News field producer Samira Said of making sexually inappropriate comments toward her on more than one occasion while the pair worked at ABC between 2021 and 2025, according to the lawsuit.

The allegations could not come at a worse time for CBS, where Gutman had reportedly been gaining serious momentum as a possible future face of the network’s flagship evening broadcast.

“This is exactly the kind of distraction Bari Weiss does not need right now,” one CBS insider told RadarOnline.com.

Gutman joined CBS after spending 17 years at ABC and quickly became one of Weiss’ most closely watched recruits.

According to previous reports, CBS executives had even considered Gutman as a potential replacement for Tony Dokoupil on CBS Evening News amid concerns about the struggling broadcast’s ratings.

Those rumors intensified in July when Gutman filled in for Dokoupil while the anchor was on vacation.

The result reportedly caught executives’ attention.

Gutman’s week behind the desk pushed CBS Evening News above 4 million viewers for the first time since late March and delivered the program’s strongest weekly audience in months.

“It’s a bad sign for Tony when your substitute anchor reels in over 100,000 more viewers than you,” one CBS source previously said.

At the time, insiders openly questioned whether Weiss might eventually make an anchor change if Gutman continued outperforming Dokoupil.

Now, however, the lawsuit could dramatically complicate any such plans.

Network insiders say the controversy is especially damaging because it comes amid a turbulent stretch for Weiss and CBS News.

“The issue isn’t one allegation. It’s the accumulation of problems,” another source told RadarOnline.com. “At some point, people stop calling it bad luck and start asking about leadership.”

CBS News has already undergone a dramatic shakeup involving several of its biggest names.

Longtime 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley publicly blasted Weiss, accusing her of “murdering the show” after his departure.

Anderson Cooper also exited weeks earlier, while correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega reportedly raised concerns about editorial interference before losing their jobs during the network overhaul.

Against that backdrop, the claims involving Gutman could put even more scrutiny on Weiss’ judgment and her effort to rebuild CBS News.

Gutman’s future at the network will likely depend heavily on how the lawsuit develops and what evidence ultimately emerges.

The allegations remain claims contained in a civil lawsuit and have not been proven in court.

But the controversy may have already changed the internal power dynamics at CBS.

Dokoupil, whose future had reportedly looked increasingly shaky, may suddenly find himself in a much stronger position.

“Tony just got something every anchor wants: a reason not to be replaced,” one insider said.

Weiss is not believed to be facing an immediate threat to her job, according to the report, but sources say her room for another major controversy may be shrinking.

That could become particularly important as Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery explore a potential corporate combination that could dramatically reshape the media landscape and potentially put CBS and CNN beneath the same corporate umbrella.

For CBS, another headline-grabbing scandal involving one of its rising stars is the last thing executives needed.

And for Gutman, a correspondent who appeared to be moving closer to one of the most coveted chairs in television news, the lawsuit has suddenly thrown his once-promising CBS trajectory into uncertainty.