Ex-'60 Minutes' Staffers Attack Bari Weiss After Scott Pelley Fired

Key Points:

• On May 28, CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss abruptly fired six senior “60 Minutes” staffers, including correspondents and producers, sparking internal outrage and accusations of political interference, especially after Weiss pulled a Venezuela prison abuse report due to lack of Trump administration comment.
• Weiss appointed tech reporter Nick Bilton, with no broadcast journalism background, as executive producer of “60 Minutes,” leading to further staff dissatisfaction; veteran correspondent Scott Pelley was fired shortly after criticizing the leadership and firings.
• The turmoil coincides with CBS parent company Paramount Global’s $16 million settlement of a lawsuit from former President Trump over a 2024 “60 Minutes” Kamala Harris interview, shortly before completing a merger with Skydance Media, whose CEO David Ellison is a Trump ally and now oversees CBS.
• Former “60 Minutes” staffers and journalism veterans accuse Weiss of editorial meddling to insert political bias favoring Trump and Israel, undermining the show’s editorial independence and damaging its reputation despite strong ratings and digital growth under previous leadership.
• With Paramount-Skydance’s pending Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition, there are concerns Weiss may oversee both CBS News and CNN editorially, raising fears among former staffers about further politicization and decline of independent journalism at major news outlets.