Scott Pelley is fired. What's it say about 60 Minutes' future?

0:00It's Consider This, where every day we go deep on one big news story. Today, the future of 60 Minutes. The sound of that stopwatch has opened the premier news magazine for almost six decades. And over that time, the program has exposed bad actors at home and abroad, questioned presidents, world leaders, and the notorious. We're in nicotine delivery business, and that's what cigarettes are for, most certainly. It was this picture and dozens of others that prompted an investigation by the U.S. Army. You know, I'm not sitting here as some little woman standing by my man like Tammy Wynette. Now CBS News leadership seems intent on changing how the work gets done and changing the stories that get told.

0:40The only explanation is, is that they're feeling pressure from the White House not to do any stories that are critical of the president of the United States. Consider this. For almost six decades, 60 Minutes has been one of the most trusted news programs in America. Is CBS leadership making changes that could destroy the program's future? We'll talk about it with one of the show's most prominent correspondents. From NPR, I'm Scott Detrow.

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2:12It's Consider This from NPR. Over the past week, some of the biggest names at 60 Minutes have been fired from CBS News. Executive producer Tanya Simon, correspondents Sharon Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega, and last night, Scott Pelley. Pelley was fired after he confronted CBS leadership for, as he put it, trying to gut and, quote, murder the show. Now the most iconic program in broadcast journalism is in free fall. I spoke to retired 60 Minutes correspondent Steve Croft about the turmoil on Wednesday. I just want to start with what has been going through your head over the past three days. Disbelief.

2:50I think I'm totally surprised that one of the most successful and popular news programs on television could be essentially destroyed under the instructions of the president of the United States. Tell me more about what you think from your perspective is going on because you gave this quote to the media news site status before this latest twist. Since I retired, I often wondered what would happen to 60 Minutes, but I never expected it would be executed by the president of the United States. Tell me what you mean by that. Well, I mean that the only possible explanation for the moves that have been made by CBS corporate, meaning Paramount, the only explanation is that they're feeling pressure from the White House not to do any stories or air any programs that are critical of the president of the United States.

3:52until and unless the situation with the merger between Warner Brothers and Paramount is complete. Yeah. I mean, what to you is the best way to explain to somebody who's not in the news business what the megaphone, what the platform of a 60 Minutes is compared to other news outlets when it comes to the implications of censoring the type of news that a program like that is covering? I think that the characteristics that I would say have been most valuable and kept it on the air for 58 years is its credibility with the audience and its integrity, its willingness to take on unpopular causes, important people, and confront them sometimes with accurate and true information that they would rather not have to deal with.

4:47Do you agree with Scott Pelley that current management at CBS is, quote, murdering 60 Minutes? Yes. I use the word executed because it was – murder sounded really bloody, and I wasn't sure I could get an indictment. But, yes, I agree with it totally. It's the only explanation. Today Scott put out a memo of his conversations with Barry Weiss yesterday, the meeting in which he was fired. and we ask a bunch of very simple questions. Why did you fire Tanya Simon? Why did you fire Cecilia Vega? And she said, I'm not going to answer those questions. Now, normally, if you make that kind of change, you have reason to do it.

5:33But the facts are a little baffling since the show had a very successful season last year, at least in terms of ratings and a 9 % growth. And they seem to be saying eventually this show is going to run out of gas, even though it hasn't in 58 years. But we want to take it in a new direction now before things get rough. Look, you know full well that there's a lot of people out there who are cheering this news. They think Scott Pelley and many other journalists with big platforms are anti-Trump or biased. What is your response to that criticism? them? Well, I think that this is about something much bigger than 60 Minutes and a television news program.

6:17I think this is part of a continuing insidious assault against the First Amendment, or at least against people who choose to pick fights with this administration. I don't think there's any other conclusion that you can reach. They have been very vocal in their thoughts of particularly the president and particularly the commissioner of the FCC, about their dislike for 60 Minutes and about the desperate need for change. Do you think that broader assault is working? Do you think journalism is weaker than it was a year or two years ago? I think, yes, I do believe that. I think you can see it by watching the evening newscasts.

6:58You know, there's a real reluctance to cover what's happening in Washington. I think there is you know, it's intimidation. They've created a climate of fear to make the news organization unwilling to tackle the problem and report the news. Given all of this, I'm wondering next fall when the show airs a big sit down with President Trump or a member of the Trump administration, will you trust what you're seeing? um no not like i have done in the past i i think that that's the that goes to speaking about the credibility that the show has had and i think that there has been constant assaults on the credibility by the uh the administration and with political motives involved i think that there's been a breach of trust.

7:54I don't want to, you know, I wish Nick Dalton the best of luck. I hope the approaches of this job and hopes with the idea of maintaining the things that 60 Minutes has stood for in the past, but I don't have much confidence in that. Steve Croft, long-time correspondent on 60 Minutes. Thank you so much for talking to us. My pleasure, Scott. NPR asks CBS asked for comment. A representative speaking on condition of anonymity pointed to an interview Bilton gave CNBC saying his hiring was not political. I will prove it with the work, he said, adding he's, quote, dedicated to holding people in power to account.

8:35This episode was produced by Tyler Bartlom. It was edited by Sarah Handel and Courtney Dorning. Our interim executive producer is Courtney Dorning.

8:47Let's consider this from NPR. I'm Scott Detrow.

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