Turmoil continues at '60 Minutes' as Scott Pelley slams Bari Weiss

Increasingly outspoken "60 Minutes" correspondent Scott Pelley apparently has harsh words for his new CBS bosses.

The anchor, during a reported staff meeting, accused network Editor in Chief Bari Weiss of "murdering" the news institution, according to a recording obtained by The New York Times and reported Monday, June 1. Pelley, who has been with the network for nearly 40 years and on "60 Minutes" for over 20, also laid into newly hired executive producer Nick Bilton, digital news outlet and newsletter Status also reported, based on the leaked audio.

USA TODAY has reached out to CBS for comment.

On Tuesday, following media coverage of the exchange, CBS News terminated the correspondent after more than two decades at "60 Minutes," USA TODAY understands. Pelley, 68, was left without severance or other benefits effective immediately.

In a termination note obtained by USA TODAY, Bilton told Pelley that he was hoping they could pave a "path forward together" following the "misconduct" but said, "You made it clear that you are not interested in such a path."

The New York Times and Status report that the staff meeting was to serve as an introduction to Bilton, a former Times technology columnist and investigative journalist, who was selected to lead "60 Minutes" in late May.

In a tense reported exchange during the meeting, in which The New York Times reports Pelley called Bilton's qualifications "slender," the broadcast journalist questioned Weiss' commitment to the prosperity of the news program.

Bilton's career, which includes investigative work at Vanity Fair as well as writing and producing documentaries, has largely existed in print. He has not worked in broadcast journalism, nor led a newsroom.

At one point, Bilton purportedly told staffers that Weiss "loves this institution" and "loves '60 Minutes,'" which apparently set Pelley off.

"She's murdering '60 Minutes,'" Pelley interjected, the outlets reported. "She does not love this place. She was brought in to kill it, and she's doing exactly that."

Pelley also interrogated Bilton about recent mass firings at the network – which has been dubbed by the news industry as "Black Thursday" – reportedly including longtime "60 Minutes" senior leaders like executive producer Tanya Simon, executive editor Draggan Mihailovich and correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega. In public statements, Alfonsi and Vega said their firings had political motivations.

Pelley continued, per the Times, "She has no qualifications for her job. You have slender qualifications for this job. The changes that she's made at the 'Evening News' have been catastrophic, so why should we expect that any of this is going to be any better?"

Weiss, who was purportedly not present at the meeting, has made other changes at the network, moving Tony Dokoupil, who'd been cohosting "CBS Mornings" alongside Gayle King, to the anchor chair of "CBS Evening News" on Dec. 10. Dokoupil's tenure, which followed the 2024 departure of anchor Norah O'Donnell, began Jan. 3 and still lags far behind its competitors.

Bilton reportedly assured Pelley that he would "show" his commitment to improving things at "60 Minutes."

"That is my plan over the next two weeks," he said, per the Times. "I'll be meeting with everyone. I'm very excited to meet with everyone, yourself included."

The changes at CBS have received much criticism in and around the news industry, including recently departed "60 Minutes" executive producer Bill Owens, who recently emphasized that the network is not a place "where partisans and ideologues should be employed."

Contributing: Bryan Alexander and Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY