Blunder prevents CBS News' MAGA-friendly anchor from finishing trip for Trump-Xi summit

CBS News anchor Tony Dokoupil traveled halfway around the world to broadcast from China, but a logistical blunder is keeping him from completing his journey.

The embattled news network suffered another public embarrassment after failing to secure a visa to China for Dokoupil, who will instead broadcast from Taiwan this week as President Donald Trump and U.S. business leaders for a highly anticipated summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, reported Semafor.

"NBC News’s Tom Llamas [will] be anchoring from Beijing, as will ABC News’s David Muir," Semafor reported. "CBS appears to have planned similar coverage, and was forced to change course at the last minute: On the CBS morning planning call Wednesday, they discussed plans for Dokoupil to broadcast from the Taiwanese capital [Taipei], according to a person on the call."

Two sources briefed on the matter told the outlet that Dokoupil had not been able to obtain a Chinese visa, although it's not clear whether the lapse was due to a late application or another issue.

CBS News, which has seen its ratings erode since conservative pundit Bari Weiss took over as editor-in-chief, declined to comment on the visa issue, and the Chinese embassy in Washington didn’t respond to requests for comment on the matter.

A network source told Semafor that CBS News had two correspondents who would be traveling with the president in China, and that person added that Dokoupil’s broadcasts from Taipei would highlight the importance of Taiwan, which will almost certainly be a major topic at the summit.