CBS News said it learned last week of the US-Russian prisoner swap that set WNBA star Brittney Griner free on Thursday but held off on reporting it at the request of the White House.
Margaret Brennan, the moderator of the Sunday morning show “Face the Nation,” appeared on the network’s morning show on Thursday to break the news of Griner’s release from Russian captivity.
Griner, 32, returns to the US after the Biden administration agreed to send back Viktor Bout, a convicted Russian arms dealer known as the “Merchant of Death” who was serving a sentence in federal prison.
SPECIAL REPORT: WNBA star Brittney Griner was released by Russia in a 1-for-1 prisoner swap for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, according to a U.S. official. https://t.co/7Nn4j0ryxH
— CBS News (@CBSNews) December 8, 2022
“CBS first learned that this swap was going to happen last Thursday,” Brennan said. “CBS News agreed that the Briner-for-Bout swap, which we knew was underway … that we would not report the details of it.”
“This was at the request of the White House, which asked us not to make it public because officials expressed grave concern about the fragility of the emerging deal and feared it would impede the safety — perhaps put those Americans at risk,” Brennan added.
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