EXCLUSIVE: The Real Reason Bari Weiss Won't Be Fired as Boss of CBS News — Despite '60 Minutes' Chaos Spiraling Out of Control

Embattled Bari Weiss's job as CBS News editor-in-chief is safe – for now – despite the chaos currently enveloping the division and flagship broadcast 60 Minutes.

RadarOnline.com has learned there is a specific reason the network needs to keep the controversial boss around, and it's all about Donald Trump.

After CBS legend Scott Pelley was fired for going off on the new leadership, combined with a mass revolt of staffers at 60 Minutes, Weiss's name and job have been rumored to be on thin ice.

However, one competing industry executive exclusively told Radar that Weiss is key to parent company Paramount Skydance's multi-billion dollar merger with Warner Bros, which will need President Trump's approval.

Weiss was handpicked by Skydance founder David Ellison, a personal friend of Trump, reportedly to give CBS a new "anti-woke" approach, which many have equated to doing the president's bidding.

"While the merger is still in play, Bari is safe," the source said. "It’s clear the Ellisons tapped her to appease an audience of one – Donald Trump."

But after the acquisitions are approved, the executive said Weiss will be out of luck.

"Once the mergers are finalized, they will have no further use for her," the insider continued. "The problem with that thinking is – there might not be anything left at CBS News to salvage."

Pelley's comments and subsequent termination have shed a new light on the inner turmoil at CBS, according to Mike Fahey, head of Fahey Communications.

"When a journalist of Scott Pelley's stature publicly accuses leadership of undermining the institution and is terminated almost immediately afterward, it tells me there is a deep fracture inside the organization," Fahey told Radar. "Deeper than anyone may have believed before."

"Whether you agree with Pelley or management, neither side appears interested in pretending things are normal anymore," Fahey continued. "There's no more keeping up with appearances."

And he says Weiss appears to be the main catalyst of the chaos, as all eyes are on her to see how she responds and recovers from a messy first few months at the network.

"Bari has entered what I would call the 'prove it phase' of leadership," Fahey continued. "Every leader gets a honeymoon period. Hers appears to be over. This is where the rubber meets the road."

"The challenge for Bari isn't convincing her supporters," he added. "It's convincing her critics. Right now, she doesn't just have to run the newsroom. She has to convince skeptical journalists, viewers, and industry observers that she's capable of protecting the integrity of a brand that existed long before she arrived."

Weiss has already attempted to start damage control, telling employees on Wednesday that the "foundation" of trust and respect had been "broken" following Pelley's brutal comments.

In a transcript of the call obtained by The New York Post, Weiss went on to explain, "Despite our attempts to engage with Scott Pelley and to find a way back, unfortunately, we weren’t able to do so, and so we had to part ways."

She noted, "We did not want that to happen, but that’s the path that he chose."

Meanwhile, the newsman himself went on to claim his firing was put forth from the get-go during their meeting.

Whatever the truth, the now-very public vitriol and hostility is taking its toll on the entire network news division.

"The irony is that the people involved may think they're fighting over the future of 60 Minutes. In reality, they're fighting over something far more valuable: trust," Fahey explained. "Trust is the currency of journalism, and right now, CBS is spending it faster than it's earning it."