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Lesley Stahl, Bill Whitaker and Jon Wertheim announced connected Friday their determination to stay astatine CBS’s 60 Minutes aft nan tumultuous firings of respective of nan show’s elder correspondents and apical producers.
The 3 correspondents issued a associated statement, saying: “We person had a difficult clip deciding whether to enactment … We don’t want to spot 60 Minutes die. We person been grieving because this full messiness has wounded and damaged nan broadcast.
“We want to enactment and fight,” they added.
Stahl, 84, and Whitaker, 74, had remained wildcards arsenic they had not commented connected nan uproar that has plagued nan show since nan caller guidance of CBS News ousted correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega and producers Tanya Simon, Draggan Mihailovich and Matthew Polevoy past Thursday arsenic portion of a full restructuring of nan show.
Then, connected Tuesday evening, nan web terminated seasoned Scott Pelley, telling him successful a legalistic email connection that he was being fired for “cause” because of his behaviour successful an explosive gathering a time earlier pinch caller executive shaper Nick Bilton and nan network’s managing editor, Charles Forelle.
During nan meeting, Pelley criticized Bari Weiss, nan erstwhile sentiment commentator who became nan network’s editor-in-chief – an assignment which has sparked backlash among galore CBS labor who raised concerns about impartiality.
“She’s murdering 60 Minutes,” Pelley said of Weiss. “She does not emotion this place. She was brought successful to termination it and is doing precisely that.”
In Friday’s note, nan trio of correspondents said they were still “deeply upset by nan firings” of Simon and Mihailovich, who they described arsenic “strong leaders who everyone respected”.
“As acold arsenic we tin show – because nary mentation has ever been offered – they were expelled because they fought for our 60 Minutes values and stood up to protect our independency and integrity. Newsrooms are not expected to tally for illustration dictatorships,” they wrote.
The correspondents went connected to besides mention Alfonsi, Vega and Pelley, arsenic good arsenic Polevoy and elder shaper Guy Campanile, who was besides fired by CBS News.
“We want to definitive really sorry we are that these principled, adjacent and honorable journalists were treated truthful shabbily, pinch specified indecency. It’s been heartbreaking,” they wrote.
Explaining their determination to stay, they said: “We feared that our returning mightiness beryllium construed arsenic an endorsement of nan existing powerfulness structure. That is simply, categorically not nan case.
“We want to … effort and repair and sphere our estimation by continuing nan Mike Wallace contented of clasp their feet to nan fire.”
A 60 Minutes insider told nan Guardian connected Friday that nan correspondents “stayed truthful arsenic not to wantonness their producers and staff, galore of whom simply can’t spend to quit”.
“It’s an enactment of self-sacrifice, really, and of generosity,” nan insider said. “And they’re voting for nan endurance of 60 Minutes. I tin guarantee you that they’ll clasp Bilton to his committedness not to let firm interference.”
In a memo issued to 60 Minutes unit connected Thursday, Bilton promised “journalistic independence”, saying: “We will ever prosecute stories without fearfulness aliases favor. We will ever make nan communicative nan North Star – not relationships nor authorities nor thing other … We will ne'er beryllium instructed by nan ownership of nan institution connected those stories.”
On Friday, nan 3 correspondents referred to Bilton’s memo, saying: “We heard each nan correct things successful yesterday’s ‘independence’ memo. It went a agelong way, and now we request to spot these commitments to our process and procedures put into action.”
They added: “If we tin proceed doing nan activity that made this show what it is – committing acts of independent, fearless publicity and storytelling – we’re present for it. If not, we leave.”
Stahl is 1 of nan astir well-known and well-respected (and feared) tv journalists of nan past 50 years. She joined CBS News successful 1971 and has worked connected 60 Minutes since 1991, pinch a database of celebrated segments and sit-downs excessively agelong to mention.
Before nan 2020 election, Donald Trump – who was past up for re-election – cut short an question and reply pinch Stahl aft it became contentious. “Excuse me, Lesley, you started pinch me. Your first connection was, ‘Are you fresh for reliable questions?’” Trump said. “Are you?” Stahl deadpanned. “That’s nary measurement to talk. That’s nary measurement to talk,” Trump replied.
In May 2025, in an question and reply pinch nan New Yorker editor, David Remnick, Stahl expressed vexation pinch Paramount’s controlling shareholder, Shari Redstone, aft it became clear that her institution planned to settee a flimsy suit revenge by Trump correct earlier nan 2024 statesmanlike election. She said astatine nan clip that she was “praying” that David Ellison, nan main executive of nan institution that had agreed to acquisition Paramount, would respect editorial independency astatine nan network.
Asked if she was “optimistic” that that would hap for 60 Minutes, Stahl replied: “No, but there’s besides not a batch of acheronian thinking, either. You know, possibly I americium being unsighted – possibly I should understand what’s coming. But I’m not operating that way. I’m not optimistic. I americium not. I’m pessimistic. I’m pessimistic astir nan early for each property today.”
Whitaker joined CBS News successful 1984, but only joined nan formed of 60 Minutes successful 2014. Notably, he was nan analogous who conducted nan question and reply pinch Kamala Harris successful October 2024 that served arsenic nan ground for Trump’s suit against nan network.
In February 2025, nan web acceded to unit from nan Federal Communications Commission to merchandise afloat transcripts and each video footage from nan interview, revealing nan show’s accumulation process.
