According to Nielsen overnight ratings, Sunday night’s 60 Minutes, which included Anderson Cooper‘s two-part story on Stormy Daniels, is on pace to be the most-watched episode in nearly 10 years, since a November 2008 Steve Kroft interview with President-elect Barack Obama. (TVNewser)
60 Minutes is currently at a 4.0 rating in adults 18-49 and 21.3 million viewers, more than doubling in both measures compared to last week. The interview also earned a 16.3 rating in Nielsen metered market households. Obama’s interview notched a 17.4 household rating and ultimately came in with 24.5 million viewers. (Variety)
An attorney for Trump lawyer Michael Cohen says his client had nothing to do with an alleged threat made against Daniels. Lawyer Brent Blakely said in a letter late Sunday that Daniels and her lawyer Michael Avenatti made “false and defamatory statements” in the episode of 60 Minutes that aired Sunday night. (THR / AP)
During the interview, Daniels told Cooper that, when Trump won the GOP nomination and media outlets began offering her money for her story, her lawyer said the best deal was from Cohen, offering her $130,000 not to tell her story, which she signed, 11 days before the election, because she was “concerned for my family and their safety.” (Deadline)
Additionally, Daniels is suing Cohen for defamation after he called into question her claim that she had a sexual encounter with Trump, according to court documents filed on Monday. In the filing in federal court in Los Angeles, Daniels’ attorney said “Cohen meant to convey that Ms. Clifford is a liar, someone who should not be trusted, and that her claim about her relationship with Mr. Trump is ‘something (that) isn’t true.’” (HuffPost / Reuters)