A hair under six months ago, I wrote in this space that the clock may soon be running out for the news magazine show “60 Minutes.” Ladies and gentlemen, we’re here.
A staff shakeup involving correspondents, another change at the executive producer role, and the fiery dismissal of longtime correspondent Scott Pelley has resulted in the beloved CBS News Sunday night staple transitioning from a show that’s known for reporting deeper past the headlines to becoming the headline.
It is truly remarkable to see what is still widely considered as one of the most integral outlets in American journalism history turn into a shell of itself in a matter of six months. But for those not up to speed on how we got here, allow me to catch you up.
The rise of Weiss and fall of CBS
Media mogul and multimillionaire David Ellison acquired Paramount (CBS News’ parent company) and merged it with his media company, Skydance Media, in August 2025. One of the first moves he made as CEO of the newly named Paramount Skydance Corporation was acquiring “The Free Press” from co-founder Bari Weiss for $150 million. Weiss, who had no broadcast journalism experience, was subsequently appointed as editor-in-chief of CBS News.
Weiss has had a history of steering toward conservative commentary in her opinion pieces, something that she has every right to do. However, there were concerns that her leanings could sway into the television product of CBS News to curry favor with the Trump administration. Those concerns were validated within months.
In late December 2025, 60 Minutes pulled a segment titled “Inside CECOT” hours before it was set to air. The segment was slated to provide a deep dive into the Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT) facility in El Salvador, where the Trump administration was sending some Venezuelan migrants.
The decision to pull the segment was made by Weiss herself, who sought additional context from the Trump administration despite requests for comments going unanswered or outright declined. The correspondent for the story, Sharyn Alfonsi, pushed back on this, calling the decision to pull the segment “political” and not editorial. Eventually, the segment aired with minimal changes after it was accidentally aired on a Canadian affiliate (oops!).
Things simmered down a little bit over the next few months. The show was still producing quality stories and even landed an exclusive interview with President Trump following the White House Correspondent Dinner shooting. But all good things must come to an end, right?
That’s what Weiss seemingly thought when she fired Tanya Simon, the show’s executive producer, and Draggan Mihailovich, the executive editor, two weeks ago. Weiss tapped Nick Bilton, a technology writer and documentary producer with no television experience, to take over as the show’s new EP.
Weiss also fired correspondents Cecilia Vega as well as the aforementioned Alfonsi, both without cause.
Fast forward to Monday, and Bilton held his first meeting with the 60 Minutes staff since his hiring. Within minutes, Pelley — who is a 40-year veteran of CBS News — went scorched earth on Bilton, Weiss and CBS executives in a fiery meeting.
Pelley accused Bilton of having no qualifications for his job and Weiss of having slim qualifications for hers. Pelley accused Weiss of “murdering” 60 Minutes, claiming that’s what she was brought in to do. According to multiple media reports claiming to have audio dialogue of the meeting, several of Pelley’s colleagues applauded him when Bilton left the room.
A quick side note — How unpopular do you have to be to have every major legacy outlet in the world be in possession of an audio recording at a rival network? This meeting happened on Monday morning and news spread word about the contentious exchange within the hour. I find that to be truly fascinating. But I digress.
Pelley then met with CBS executives on Tuesday afternoon, including Weiss and Bilton. No common ground was reached, and Pelley was fired for cause after 40 years with the company.
Live by the sword, die by falling on said sword
Now that we’re caught up, let’s call this what it is: Pelley lived by the sword and died by falling on it.
He believed in a world where journalism and truth are sacred and editorial control is protected from the suits in power. But it’s clear the suits in charge are starting to influence the product.
Don’t believe me? Here’s what Pelley said himself.
“For my part, new management has instructed me to inject falsehoods and bias into a politically sensitive story. I’ve been told to include assertions that are unverified. To date, in every case, I have managed to ignore these instructions or refuse them. Recently, politicians have been invited to choose correspondents for interviews on the broadcast. Giving politicians control over 60 Minutes interviews is not how this is done. Finally, incompetence and unprofessionalism in the new management have wreaked havoc. In a case involving one of my stories, the entire program came within 19 minutes of not getting on the air at all.”
This isn’t exactly a new concept. The wall between journalism and dollars and cents has seemingly fallen over the years. Whenever that happens, the truth gets distorted by whatever makes you the most money. It’s a shame to see this happen anywhere; it’s a travesty to see it happen at CBS News.
Pelley ends up as the winner in my personal book. He chose to stand for what he believed in, which is honest, fair and untainted journalism over money and corporate influence. Not many people are willing to do that these days.
Most importantly, he wasn’t going to be sold a bag of gold that, in reality, is actually fool’s gold.
Shame on CBS News, Bari Weiss, Nick Bilton and all of the corporations and companies that try to change or influence a type of journalism that isn’t broken for the purpose of political influence, power and the almighty dollar.
The best type of journalism is one that makes money but isn’t integrity-compromised. How long will we see this type of journalism continue? If 60 Minutes is the latest casualty of it, then I shutter to believe what could be next.
But I choose to remain optimistic about the future. Because that’s really all that can be done. Pelley put it best in his departure statement a few days ago.
“I pray for a day when those people and their ideals are honored again,” Pelley said “...a day when sanity, competence, and courage return.”
Evan Newton is the managing editor of The Covington News. He can be reached at enewton@covnews.com.
