Salant's legal work for CBS led him to join that company in 1952 as a vice president. He represented CBS in hearings before the Federal Communications Commission and Congressional committees and headed the CBS legal team in litigation with RCA–NBC over which side would develop the standards and technology for color television. Although CBS lost the suit, he impressed the network's president, Frank Stanton, who influenced him to pursue broadcast journalism. Salant worked as Stanton's assistant for nine years and would become the president of the CBS News Division when Stanton appointed him to replace Sig Mickelson in February of 1961.