Bari Weiss shakes up ’60 Minutes’ with a new executive producer; Cecilia Vega and Sharyn Alfonsi exit
“Ellison’s pronouncements that CBS News needs to move more to the political center has led to the perception that the network is trying to placate Trump with more positive news coverage, even as “60 Minutes” has remained tough with its White House reporting.
“60 Minutes” has been under pressure since October 2024, when Trump filed a $20-billion lawsuit against CBS over an interview conducted with then-Vice President Kamala Harris. That suit was settled to clear the regulatory path for Skydance Media’s acquisition of Paramount.
Paramount also has faced blowback over the decision by CBS to cancel its Trump-bashing late-night host Stephen Colbert ahead of the FCC approval of its merger with Skydance Media.
…
From a business standpoint, “60 Minutes” is a curious target for a revamp. The program is one of the most profitable hours on the CBS prime-time schedule while retaining its status as television’s most prestigious journalism operation.
While the ratings for “60 Minutes” get a boost from a lead-in from high-rated late-afternoon NFL games, it remains one of the few network shows that viewers make an appointment to watch. The program’s ad revenue, which research firm iSpot pegged at $67.5 million in 2025, has remained steady in recent years even as traditional TV continues to lose ground to streaming.
But Weiss believes the “60 Minutes” brand name has to do more than just draw a big audience on Sunday night, a point she stressed in her note to staff that was obtained by The Times.”
https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/tv/articles/bari-weiss-shakes-60-minutes-162640079.html