CBS News sends Tony Dokoupil to Taiwan after failing to get China visa in time for Trump visit: 'very sloppy'

Key Points:

• CBS Evening News anchor Tony Dokoupil is reporting from Taipei, Taiwan, after the network failed to secure a visa for Beijing, where President Trump is meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping, a misstep described by sources as “very sloppy” and “stupid.”
• CBS News scrambled to get Dokoupil to China but could not obtain the necessary press visa in time, leading to the decision to send him to Taiwan instead, which some insiders view as a controversial and provocative move given China's claims over Taiwan.
• The visa failure highlights ongoing struggles for Dokoupil and CBS Evening News, whose ratings continue to lag behind competitors NBC and ABC, with CBS averaging 3.7 million viewers compared to ABC’s 8.2 million and NBC’s 6.1 million in the key demographic.
• CBS News editor in chief Bari Weiss aimed to position Dokoupil in Beijing after learning ABC’s David Muir would be there, but the late visa application prevented this, resulting in a last-minute pivot to Taiwan coverage amid high geopolitical tensions.
• The situation underscores the broader geopolitical sensitivities around Taiwan, which China claims as its territory, while the U.S. supports Taiwan’s defense under the Taiwan Relations Act; the visa mishap adds to CBS’s challenges during Trump's foreign trip coverage.