A 60 Minutes segment aired on Sunday night focusing on the “growing trend of right-wing book bans.” The report suggested that this trend was influenced by the parental rights group Moms for Liberty.
The segment, presented by correspondent Scott Pelley, featured an interview with the group’s co-founders, Tina Descovich and Tiffany Justice. Pelley began by criticizing activist parents who opposed sexually explicit content in school libraries, accusing them of spreading “conspiracy theories” and intimidating librarians. He also referred to school board members as “groomers.”
The report highlighted the book battles in Beaufort, South Carolina, primarily involving young adult novels featuring minority, LGBTQ+, and transgender characters found in high school libraries.
However, the CBS report failed to mention similar conflicts in other regions, such as Montgomery County and Carroll County in Maryland, where parents protested sexually explicit and LGBTQ+-themed books in school libraries and classrooms.
60 Minutes suggested that the push for book bans originated from the website “BookLooks,” disregarding the viral social media activism of parents attending school board meetings to expose inappropriate content in their children’s libraries.
The segment then turned to the Moms for Liberty co-founders for their perspective, leading to a heated exchange where Pelley frequently interrupted with commentary.
“Parents want their children to be educated, not indoctrinated,” asserted Moms for Liberty co-founder Tiffany Justice.
Pelley challenged them by asking what ideology they found troubling, to which Descovich responded by highlighting concerns about age-inappropriate sexual content being introduced to young students.
In response to the 60 Minutes report, Moms for Liberty posted on social media, criticizing the editing and spin that was applied to the interview recorded in October.
Descovich released the unedited transcript of the interview to provide a different perspective on their views and concerns.
The segment concluded with social media reactions criticizing 60 Minutes for misrepresentation and dishonest reporting regarding Moms for Liberty.