Remaining ‘60 Minutes’ Correspondents Break Silence on Shakeup, Say They Are Not Leaving

After days of uncertainty about the future of CBS’s “60 Minutes,” the show’s three remaining correspondents, Lesley Stahl, Bill Whitaker, and Jon Wertheim, say they are “deeply” upset by the shake-up, but intend to stay — while making it clear they are not endorsing the network’s “existing power structure.”The ratings-topping newsmagazine has been in turmoil over the ouster of its former executive producer, Tanya Simon, and three correspondents: Sharyn Alfonsi, Cecilia Vega, and Scott Pelley. The latter was fired this week after he accused CBS News’s editor-in-chief, Bari Weiss, of “murdering” the show and criticized the qualifications of the program’s new executive producer, Nick Bilton. CNN’s Anderson Cooper, who had worked as a “60 Minutes” correspondent for roughly 20 years, voluntarily left the show last month at the end of its latest season. The shakeup led network staffers and fans of the storied program to question its future. A major question that, until Friday, had been left unanswered was whether the remaining three correspondents would resign or try to stay on. The three had not publicly commented on the changes at the show.However, in a memo on Friday, the trio said they had a “hard time” deciding whether to stay at “60 Minutes” as they were “deeply upset” by the firings.“We want to express how sorry we are that these principled, fair and honest journalists were treated so shabbily, with such indecency,” they said. “Tanya deserves to be celebrated, not cruelly cast off.”Despite their unhappiness with the changes, the correspondents said they have “decided to stay on.”“We feared that our returning might be construed as an endorsement of the existing power structure. That is simply, categorically not the case,” the memo stated. “Here’s why we are staying: We don’t want to see ‘60 Minutes’ die.”The decision by Ms. Stahl and Messrs. Whitaker and Wertheim to stay on at “60 Minutes” comes a day after Mr. Bilton said in a memo to the show’s staffers that the three correspondents are “core” to its success. Mr. Bilton said he had spoken with the trio about “what makes 60 Minutes exceptional.” He promised that the show would “never be instructed by ownership of the company” on what stories to cover. As part of his effort to win over the show’s staff, he appointed Mr. Pelley’s top producer, Maria Gavrilovic, as a senior producer.The Friday memo from the remaining “60 Minutes” correspondents said they were “heartened” by Mr. Gavrilovic’s promotion and Mr. Bilton’s “‘independence’ memo.”“It went a long way, and now we need to see these commitments to our process and procedures put into action,” the letter said. “If we can continue doing the work that made this show what it is — committing acts of independent, fearless journalism and storytelling — we’re here for it. If not, we leave.”Mr. Pelley, Ms. Alfonsi, and Ms. Vega have spoken out since their firings to allege that CBS executives were meddling with their stories. Mr. Pelley claimed that he was “instructed” to “inject falsehoods and bias into a politically sensitive story,” but said he was able to “ignore or refuse” that alleged demand.CBS News has denied that there has been any corporate meddling. A network spokesman said, “The only ‘interference’ is the normal back and forth between editor and correspondent that happens in every newsroom.”Last year, Ms. Stahl was one of the most vocal critics of executives at CBS’s parent company, Paramount Global, and their efforts to settle Mr. Trump’s $20 billion lawsuit. In a June 2025 interview with the New Yorker, she said she was “angry” at Paramount’s leadership, but she did not identify a “red line” beyond which she would feel compelled to leave the show.

Remaining ‘60 Minutes’ Correspondents Break Silence on Shakeup, Say They Are Not Leaving

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