There was big breaking news Tuesday afternoon as a judge ruled for The Associated Press and against President Donald Trump in the battle over the AP’s access to the president. I’ll get to all that in just a moment, but I wanted to lead today’s newsletter by focusing on a superb special report from CNN senior national correspondent David Culver.
On Tuesday, Culver had exclusive access to El Salvador’s high-security prison — CECOT, also known as the Terrorism Confinement Center — following the arrival of the latest round of deportees from the United States. Three weeks ago, 238 Venezuelan migrants were flown from Texas.
Culver filed a live report Tuesday from the side of the road a few miles from the facility. He had to do it there, he reported, because the area in and around the prison is next to impossible to get cell service or any other kind of signal because it has been purposefully jammed.
In his report, Culver said, “Why is CECOT so important? Why is it making headlines right now? This is the mega prison, a massive facility — it's equated to roughly seven football stadiums — that is now holding deportees from the United States.”
That includes what the Trump administration claims is 238 gang members. Culver reported the facility has some 1,000 guards and looks to be, quite literally, in the middle of nowhere. The men deported there are living in “the same” conditions as convicted gangsters. The prison, according to his reporting, houses well over 20,000 prisoners.
Culver — along with Abel Alvarado, Evelio Contreras and Rachel Clarke — wrote for CNN, “That would mean the deportees’ heads have been shaved and they are kept in communal cells holding up to 100 men each for 23½ hours a day. Two sources told CNN the situation is less regimented for the deportees, but the facilities are the same. The cells have no privacy, and no furniture beyond rows of stacked metal bunks with no mattresses or pillows.”
The CNN story did say, “CNN was not permitted inside Sector 8 of Cecot, officially known as the Terrorism Confinement Center, where the deportees are being held.”
In some makeshift reporting from the side of the road, Culver and a photojournalist showed video from inside the prison by airing Culver’s laptop, which was sitting in the back of their SUV. The laptop’s images showed prisoners, wearing only towels around their waists with their hands cuffed behind their backs, being hustled out of cells and seated on the ground while guards inspected their cells. While the photojournalist filmed the laptop screen, Culver described what we were watching.
Culver said even officials at the prison call the conditions “harsh.” But Culver said local citizens feel “freedom” when they see those behind the prison walls because it symbolizes the end of years of gang dominance and extortion.
We still don’t know for sure if those sent to the prison from the U.S. are criminals or gang members. In fact, earlier this week, “60 Minutes” and CBS News’ Cecilia Vega reported, “The government has released very little information about the men. But through internal government documents, we have obtained a list of their identities and found that an overwhelming majority have no apparent criminal convictions or even criminal charges.” The CNN story noted, “But they also include Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, a sheet metal worker and father-of-three from Maryland, who was mistakenly removed from the US through an ‘administrative error.’”
Culver has since filed several reports for CNN. On Tuesday, I had a chance to ask CNN’s Culver a few questions via email. His answers have been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.
Tom Jones: Can you describe what you are hearing and seeing about the conditions inside the prison?
David Culver: CECOT is a massive facility, about 90 minutes outside San Salvador, and it’s become a powerful symbol in El Salvador. For many Salvadorans we spoke with — from cities across the country — the prison represents long-awaited safety after years of gang control and extortion. Most support the government’s tough stance, though some question the methods and raise concerns about human rights.
The first time we visited, in October 2024, we didn’t know what to fully expect. As we entered Sector 4 — one of eight — we were met by hundreds of inmates packed into giant, hangar-like modules. They all wore identical white T-shirts and shorts, many with gang tattoos and shaved heads. Each cell holds about 100 men (when we first went, there were about 80 per cell). They spend nearly 24 hours a day inside, sleeping on bare metal bunk beds with no mattresses or pillows. Lights stay on 24/7. There are two open toilets per cell, a shared bucket for bathing, and one large jug for drinking water.
Despite the harsh setup, the place is surprisingly clean — far more orderly than many prisons in the region. Salvadoran officials call it a facility for the “worst of the worst” and that “no one gets special treatment.”
Jones: Have you been able to talk to anyone — prison authorities? prisoners? — and what are they saying?
Culver: Yes. We interviewed El Salvador’s defense and public security ministers, along with the prison director. They all defend CECOT’s conditions, arguing they’re necessary given the crimes these men are accused of. When human rights are brought up, officials often redirect — saying the focus should be on the rights of “innocent citizens.” One told us plainly: “No one is ever getting out.”
We’ve also spoken with two prisoners on separate visits. Both admitted to killing dozens. One of them, 41-year-old Marvin Vásquez, told us, “I robbed and murdered people.” When we asked, “You killed people?” he didn’t flinch. “Yeah, that’s the gang-banging life.” He added: “It’s probably not a hotel with five stars, but this is what is for us. They give you food three times a day. You get some programs, some church or religion. But you know, that’s how it is. We got to get used to what we got to get used to. We did bad things. We pay it the rough way — doing time.”
Jones: Can you describe the reporting challenges you are experiencing?
Culver: Access to CECOT is rare — and tightly controlled. We’re guided the entire time, and every area we enter is preapproved. We’re the first U.S. network to return since the prison began housing deportees from the U.S., but even now, places like Sector 8 — where those deportees are reportedly held — remain off-limits. We’ve been allowed into Sector 4 on both visits.
The prison director, Belarmino García, has been open to a range of questions — from inmate conditions to broader policy. But the bigger challenge is confirming individual deportee cases. Officials won’t provide names or details, and the prison director told us he isn’t familiar with any deportee’s background. When it comes to Salvadoran gang members, though, they’re more forthcoming — even sharing criminal histories.
Jones: What do you want viewers to take away from your exclusive reporting there?
Culver: This isn’t just a prison story. It’s about how a country reclaims security and what that costs. CECOT is a symbol. For many here, it’s strength. For others, it’s repression. And now, with U.S. deportees reportedly held inside, the story reaches far beyond El Salvador.
We’ve been inside CECOT twice and we want viewers to see what justice looks like in a place like this. To hear from the officials enforcing it. To witness the silence inside and understand the growing questions outside about due process, punishment and human rights.
We’re not here to decide what’s right. We’re here to show what’s real — and help people see the full picture.
My thanks to CNN’s David Culver. Now, onto the rest of today’s newsletter …
