CBS Overhaul of '60 Minutes' Under Billionaire Ownership Sparks Staff Exodus and Fears of Corporate Censorship
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The acquisition of CBS by billionaire David Ellison and the appointment of conservative-leaning Bari Weiss have led to the purging of veteran journalists from '60 Minutes,' raising alarms about corporate interference, the silencing of critical investigative reporting, and the consolidation of media power.
CBS has embarked on a sweeping restructuring of its iconic newsmagazine '60 Minutes' following the network's takeover by billionaire David Ellison's Skydance Media. Under Ellison and opinion columnist Bari Weiss—whose record includes promoting contrarian and right-leaning views—longtime correspondents such as Scott Pelley, Sharyn Alfannon, Cecilia Vega, and senior producers have been dismissed or shuffled aside. Former staff have described the changes as a deliberate move to replace experienced journalists with voices more aligned with corporate and contrarian interests, threatening the program's legacy of fearless investigative reporting.
While the network touts a 9% rise in viewership for the 2025-2026 season and boasts over 2.5 billion social-media video views, executives have chosen to gut the editorial team, prioritizing profit and ideological conformity over journalistic integrity. Weiss, now wielding significant editorial power, reportedly blocked several hard-hitting investigative pieces—including a report on El Salvador’s CECOT prison and a segment on Jeffrey Epstein’s shadowy financial networks—raising serious concerns about censorship and the suppression of stories that challenge the powerful. CBS has attempted to downplay these actions, citing 'editorial timing' as a pretext for the delays.
In the wake of these upheavals, former executive producer Bill Owens, who left CBS in 2025, is reportedly seeking $50 million to launch a new investigative newsmagazine, potentially reuniting with ousted '60 Minutes' staff such as Anderson Cooper and other producers who resigned in protest against the corporate takeover.
Ellison’s aggressive media expansion—marked by an $8 billion acquisition of Paramount and a proposed $111 billion merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, which would place CNN under his control—has triggered antitrust lawsuits from state attorneys general and the Writers Guild of America, even after the Department of Justice gave its blessing. In a recent op-ed, Ellison paid lip service to 'editorial independence,' but many see this as hollow rhetoric amid the ongoing consolidation of media power in the hands of the ultra-wealthy.
The restructuring has ignited a fierce debate about the future of investigative journalism at CBS and the broader dangers posed by unchecked corporate control over the news media.