Bill Owens, executive producer of television’s most popular and influential newsmagazine since 2019, said in a note to staff that it has “become clear that I would not be allowed to run the show as I have always run it, to make independent decisions based on what was right for ’60 Minutes,’ right for the audience.”
“The show is too important to the country,” he wrote. “It has to continue, just not with me as the executive producer.”
At the same time, CBS parent Paramount Global, run by Shari Redstone, is seeking approval for a merger with Skydance Media, founded by Larry Ellison. They are reportedly in mediation to settle the lawsuit with Trump, a prospect that has been bitterly opposed by Owens and others at “60 Minutes.”
I mean tbf people have been calling 60 minutes a legacy production of the bygone era of quality journalism for years now.
“this show is so important, it must continue, but instead of dying on that hill and getting fired, I’m gonna quit so I can be replaced by someone who won’t rock the boat”
Isn’t it amazing how so many people have used the reasoning “I want to fight fascism, and I think the best way to do it is to quit and give my job to a fascist”?
Yeah, you’d think a guy in that position would be smarter. If you don’t fight facism, you’ve already lost.
Although he could be afraid I guess.
probably looking for another gig.
can’t wait to see which former faux news producer gets the gig.
Sounds like maybe we should be more interested to see what Bill Owens does next.
Well, HBO has Oliver, Apple had Stewart, so I’d wager with a Disney/ABC streaming news show, unless they have one.
Apple lost Stewart because they didn’t allow him to even talk about China.
Yeah, I knew as soon as he signed up it wouldn’t last. Apple is not known as a bastion of free will. Everything they do is a walled garden.
Pete Hegseth is going to be needing a job soon.
can’t wait for all the sweet puff pieces with conservatives.
Is this a crack pipe joke
It appears one of them will be looking for a new job soon, so this is good timing.
Challenges to the citizenship birthright, bypassing due process and courts, deporting legal residents, putting them in a famously brutal concentration camp, and now taking more news media companies captive under the accusation that they’re the “lying press.” Yep, totally normal.
approval for a merger with Skydance Media
NO
STOP IT
Actually enforce anti-trust instead
I wonder if this lawsuit could also affect The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
You’ve got fascists in charge. It’s going to be a hard fight to keep any kind of free press or broadcasting going.
on the bright side, maybe Colbert will have to go back to doing The Colbert Report
That show wouldn’t work anymore, Colbert got out of that at the exact right time. No matter how ridiculous of a parody of the right wing he could come up with, the real life idiots would be saying and doing things even more ridiculous the next day.
basically Onion is no longer relevant as well.
lol, that’s true. good point
That would be a net benefit for society.
Comedy Cental is owned by Paramount, which also owns CBS. It’s more likely the Daily Show would be a casualty.
I sure hope so. Colbert is a pompous dick.
