Remaining staff on CBS News’s flagship 60 Minutes are concerned that the chaos surrounding the network under Bari Weiss will affect the quality of the upcoming season.
The show has been hemorrhaging staff since Weiss was parachuted in as editor-in-chief, including its biggest star, Anderson Cooper, who left after becoming disillusioned with the direction of the now Trump-friendly CBS News.
Weiss also fired several people from 60 Minutes, including correspondents Cecilia Vega and Sharyn Alfonsi, and executive producer Tanya Simon, in a single day last month, which CBS staff dubbed “Black Thursday.”
Elsewhere, executive editor Draggan Mihailovich, as well as veteran producers Michael Gavshon and Henry Schuster, have also left the show. Status also confirmed that fellow producer Nichole Marks has quit 60 Minutes amid the turmoil.
Sources told Status that 60 Minutes staff are becoming “increasingly anxious” about whether the program will be able to produce top-quality reporting when it returns in the fall.
“That’s not to say the program won’t fill its airtime. But some staffers believe the network may need to rely on so-called filler content to get by,” Status’ Oliver Darcy wrote.
Staff are also becoming frustrated by how frequently Weiss intervenes in 60 Minutes’ editorial matters, despite the show having enjoyed editorial independence from the rest of CBS News for decades.
Status reports that Weiss—who had no previous experience in broadcast television news before being given the editor-in-chief role by the network’s new owner, David Ellison—is weighing in on every story and demanding editorial control at a previously unprecedented level, which has “deeply frustrated” staff.
Weiss has already drawn criticism for trying to assert control over how 60 Minutes operates. This has included assigning other CBS journalists to conduct high-profile interviews for the program rather than its usual correspondents.
Weiss also sparked controversy by pulling an “Inside CECOT” 60 Minutes segment about the notorious El Salvador prison shortly before it was due to air.
The move ultimately helped push Alfonsi out the door, as the correspondent frequently clashed with Weiss over the decision to pull the segment, which was critical of the Trump administration’s hardline immigration policies.
Others say Weiss has become the de facto executive producer of the magazine show, rather than Nick Bilton, the former tech journalist whom Weiss selected for the role. Last month, veteran 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley was fired after clashing with Bilton during a heated meeting in which Pelley accused Weiss of “murdering” 60 Minutes.
“A lot is on the line for not only Bilton but also Weiss, given she blew up the most successful television news program in history,” Darcy wrote. “If it falters under her watch, she will be judged accordingly.”
The Daily Beast has contacted CBS News for comment.
