‘Friction’ is looming in new CBS News boss Bari Weiss’s marriage to her business partner Nellie Bowles, insiders close to the couple tell Daily Mail.

Their friends worry that Weiss’s demanding new position as editor-in-chief for the network might ‘take over her life,’ leaving little time for family and putting stress on their relationship as they handle raising two young children.

It was officially confirmed on Monday by Paramount CEO David Ellison that Weiss, 41, will oversee the Tiffany Network’s historic news division, which includes the famous 60 Minutes.

The lucrative agreement involves The Free Press, a popular news and commentary website with 1.3 million subscribers, co-founded by Weiss and Bowles, 38, who were both former writers for the New York Times.

But mutiple sources see trouble ahead, as another asserts, ‘The CBS gig could ignite friction in what’s always been a joyous union and partnership. 

‘Bari is very driven and ambitious,’ a source said, ‘and Nellie is concerned she’ll devote herself entirely to managing the CBS News operation constantly, which will be challenging for them.’

The source continued, ‘Nellie is also upset because she feels Bari has become too “mainstream” by joining CBS, and she feels a bit lost since Bari will spend all her time at CBS news headquarters in New York.

The couple has enjoyed a very happy and comfortable life in their Los Angeles home, so it’s uncertain whether they’ll have a bicoastal marriage or if Nellie, who loves living in LA and reported on technology for the Times in San Francisco, will relocate to New York.’

Bowles scoffed at the idea. ‘It’s flatly untrue’, she told Daily Mail.

‘The only friction would have been if she didn’t take the CBS job!! I’m beyond proud of my brilliant and gorgeous wife.’

With Bari Weiss’s rise to editor-in-chief of CBS News, friends of the journalist and her wife Nellie Bowles (left) told Daily Mail that the demanding role may create ‘friction’ in their marriage 

The long-rumored deal for Weiss, 41, to helm the legacy network’s newsroom – including the iconic 60 Minutes – was officially announced Monday by Paramount CEO David Ellison 

The acquisition of Free Press, which was founded just four years ago, is reportedly worth a staggering $150million in cash and stock to Weiss. 

The deal also solidifies her new power as an industry outsider, having transitioned from a one-time opinion writer to now running one of the biggest names in network news, despite having no TV experience. 

In a statement, Ellison welcomed Weiss and the Free Press into the company, declaring: ‘We are thrilled.’

Ellison noted: ‘Bari is a proven champion of independent, principled journalism, and I am confident her entrepreneurial drive and editorial vision will invigorate CBS News.

‘This move is part of Paramount’s bigger vision to modernize content and the way it connects – directly and passionately – to audiences around the world.

‘This is an important initiative for our company and Bari will report directly to me – leading the work of The Free Press and collaborating with our CBS News team in the pursuit of making it the most trusted name in news.’

A billionaire with close ties to frequent fake news critic President Trump, Ellison stressed: ‘We believe the majority of the country longs for news that is balanced and fact-based, and we want CBS to be their home.’

As a member of the LGBTQ community, Weiss has been criticized for being outspoken against the trans rights movement and gender-affirming care and is in line with the Trump administration on those issues.

Paramount CEO David Ellison said Weiss would be reporting ‘directly to me,’ sparking concern among the network’s journalists who fear she could act as a ‘spy’ because of his close ties to President Trump 

Weiss has faced criticism for her outspoken views on the trans rights movement and gender-affirming care, positions that align closely with those of the Trump administration, despite being a part of the LGBTQ community herself

According to the deal, Weiss will work outside the current CBS News organization and report directly to Ellison, which has already stirred controversy, with fears that she will be a spy on her coworkers.

As one company staffer told The Hollywood Reporter after Monday’s announcement: ‘I have to imagine she will be his eyes and ears inside CBS News.’

Insiders say panic has rippled through CBS News and its top on-air talent – especially among the ranks of 60 Minutes, the network’s fiercely guarded fiefdom – after word leaked earlier this year that Weiss would be joining in a top executive role, especially since she was a broadcast news and documentary neophyte.

Equally shocked by Weiss’s decision to, as one source put it, ‘take the big bucks and run from the online world to Big Daddy CBS’ is conservative former Fox News Channel star and NBC anchor Megyn Kelly, who abandoned the bright lights of cable and network news to start her own hugely successful Megyn Kelly Show and podcast on YouTube and satellite radio.

In a recent commentary on her show, Kelly expressed shock that Weiss would give up the independence of running The Free Press and get involved in the CBS bureaucracy, where she is feared and distrusted.

‘While I really love Bari and Nellie, too,’ declared Kelly, ‘I’m worried they’re going to eat her alive because CBS is among the worst when it comes to being insular…like you have to be raised at CBS to be respected by the CBS people.

‘Ask Katie Couric if you don’t believe me. Ask Catherine Herridge, if you don’t believe me,’ she said, noting ‘They hated Couric’s guts.’

With a decline in her ratings, Couric left CBS News in 2011, where she reportedly encountered sexism in the vast media company that she felt wasn’t ready for a primetime female anchor.

Former Fox News and NBC anchor Megyn Kelly said in a recent segment that she was shocked by Weiss’s decision to give up her independence and join the CBS bureaucracy, where many reportedly fear and distrust her 

Kelly referenced Katie Couric and Catherine Herridge’s negative experiences at CBS News and the factors that drove them out as reasons she believes the network is a bad fit for Weiss

Herridge, an acclaimed former Fox News investigative reporter, who joined CBS News and was fired last year after developing exclusive stories on the Hunter Biden laptop story, accused the network of ‘journalistic rape’ for seizing her files.

Herridge accused at a congressional hearing, ‘Fighting for a Free Press: Protecting Journalists and their Sources.’

In her commentary, Kelly, discussing Weiss’s decision to join CBS News, asked: ‘Why would you go into mainstream media right now?

‘It’s dead. It’s dying…and to go to a TV network that’s not Bari’s background at all.’

Kelly added that, referring to Weiss: ‘There’s no way they’re going to respect someone who did a stint at The Wall Street Journal and the Times as TV editorial boss.’

Weiss and Bowles, 38, both former New York Times writers, co-founded The Free Press alongside Bari’s sister Suzy Weiss (left)

Meanwhile, Weiss is expected to assume her new role immediately. The Free Press that she and Nellie cofounded will continue to operate independently under Paramount ownership.

The couple met in 2018 after Weiss ended a three-year marriage to environmental engineer Jason Kass.

Bowles has said she fell in love with Weiss the first time they met. She converted to Judaism for her and gave birth to their daughter in 2022 and a son last year.

But insiders worry Bari’s new power position will take precedence over their loving union. 

‘It’s going to take time,’ said one