‘60 Minutes’ Calls Out Paramount for Supervising Content ‘In New Ways’, Explains Bill Owens Exit

“60 Minutes” spent the last few minutes of its CBS broadcast Sunday explaining the hasty exit of longtime executive producer Bill Owens, with correspondent Scott Pelley saying that parent company Paramount “began to supervise our content in new ways.”

“None of our stories has been blocked, but Bill felt he lost the independence that honest journalism requires,” Pelley said, adding that “no one here is happy about it – but in resigning, Bill proved one thing: He was the right person to lead ’60 Minutes’ all along.”

The explanation was the topic of “60 Minutes'” “Last Minute” segment Sunday night, and aired as CBS News parent Paramount Global is working on a merger with Skydance Media. Owens made the surprise announcement last week, saying he would to leave the show as Paramount fights a lawsuit by President Donald Trump alleging “60 Minutes” altered former Vice President Kamala Harris’ candidate interview.

“Stories we pursued for 57 years are often controversial,” Pelley said Sunday. “Lately the Israel-Gaza war and the Trump administration. Bill made sure they were accurate and fair. He was tough that way, but our parent company Paramount is trying to complete a merger. The Trump administration must approve it. Paramount began to supervise our content in new ways.”

Owens wrote last week that over the last several months 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.”

Pelley concluded by saying: “It was hard on him and hard on us, but he did it for us and you.”

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