CBS News’ new unit, CBS News Confirmed, which focuses on misinformation and disinformation, has named Rhona Tarrant as executive editor.
Based in New York and reporting to Claudia Milne, senior vice president for CBS News and Stations and head of standards and practices, Tarrant will begin her new duties on Monday, April 1.
“Rhona is an outstanding hire with impeccable credentials,” said Wendy McMahon, president and CEO of CBS News and Stations and CBS Media Ventures.
Milne also supported the hire, saying Tarrant is one of the leading journalists in the information verification space.
“She has developed new tools to uncover misinformation and disinformation and has worked across multiple platforms,” Milne said. “Her experience and leadership will be an asset to CBS News Confirmed.”
Tarrant, a verification expert and experienced international investigative journalist, joins CBS News from Storyful, where, as head of editorial, U.S., she oversaw all editorial output in North America, including award-winning visual investigations, newswire reports and breaking news alerts. She also set standards and protocols for open-source investigations and visual verification practices.
At Storyful, she built a team of a dozen journalists who verified social media footage for a newswire serving the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, CBS News, ABC, Gannett and others for the last five years. In addition, Tarrant was selected for two Berkman Klein Center fellowships at Harvard University in 2020 and 2021, where she researched disinformation and AI, leading a team that created a database to help journalists better understand influence operations on social media.
“The rise of generative AI and online misinformation has made the role of journalists more critical than ever,” Tarrant said. “I am thrilled to join the exceptional team at CBS News to lead this new unit dedicated to visual verification and fact-checking. Together, we’ll support CBS News’ unwavering commitment to journalistic excellence and empower our audience to sort fact from fiction.”
The new CBS Confirmed unit represents an investment in several key areas, including hiring forensic journalists, new training, state-of-the-art technology and other tools, all focused on ensuring that the news division can combat misinformation and ensure the accuracy of its reporting.