CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss was reportedly “blindsided” by comments made by Anderson Cooper during his final sendoff segment on last Sunday’s (May 17) 60 Minutes.
According to Oliver Darcy’s Status newsletter, Weiss was not given a heads-up about Cooper’s remarks, which he made in an interview that aired on 60 Minutes’ Overtime series on YouTube. In the interview, Cooper reflected on his 20 years at the iconic news magazine show and shared his thoughts on its future, which some took as criticism of Weiss.
“I hope 60 Minutes remains 60 Minutes,” Cooper stated, noting how important it is that the show keep its independence. “There’s very few things that have been around as long as 60 Minutes has and maintained the quality that it has. And things can always evolve and change, and I think that’s awesome. And things should evolve and change, but I hope the core of what 60 Minutes is always remains.”
He also said that the person overseeing the program “requires an appreciation of the history and the sacrifices and the hard work of the people here,” which some interpreted as a shot at Weiss, who has been putting her stamp on 60 Minutes in recent months.
Weiss was reportedly “furious” over the comments, per Darcy, especially that they aired on a CBS News platform. He noted that the humiliation must have stung extra hard, since Weiss had tried to keep Cooper at the network and expand his presence there.
In February, Cooper announced he would be leaving 60 Minutes after more than 20 years. While he stated it was to spend more time with his family, sources told Darcy that Cooper wasn’t aligned with the “rightward direction” of CBS News under Weiss and Paramount-Skydance CEO David Ellison.
During his final episode, Cooper told viewers, “I don’t think the reality has hit me that I’m not going to be doing this any longer, you know, to give up something you’ve watched since you were a kid. Yeah, I will miss this.”
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