CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss addressed the firing of Scott Pelley, the news station’s longtime fixture, who was fired from “60 Minutes” on Tuesday after a persistent confrontation with the news magazine’s new executive producer.
Weiss faces the risk of a full-scale revolt at “60 Minutes” following a series of dramatic shakeups at the venerable show, including installing former tech journalist Nick Bilton as executive producer and ousting veterans including former EP Tanya Simon. CBS News fired Mr. Perry late Tuesday after getting into a heated argument with Mr. Bilton during a company meeting the day before.
At the beginning of a conference call with CBS News staff Wednesday morning, Weiss addressed the elephant in the room. Variety confirmed the comments she made at the meeting.
“Before we get into it, I need to talk about what’s happened in the newsroom over the past two days and what’s in the news,” she said. “I know I speak for myself, and I hope I speak for everyone here, when I say I’m only interested in working in a newsroom that is built on trust and mutual respect.”
Weiss continued, “We can’t do our job without it. That foundation crumbled on Monday and despite trying to engage with Scott Pelley and find a way to turn around, unfortunately we couldn’t and we had to part ways. We didn’t want that to happen, but that’s the path he chose.”
After news broke about Weiss’ comments, Perry released a statement accusing Weiss of lying.
“I was saddened to see the recording of CBS News’ morning editorial meeting,” Perry said in a statement. “Ms. Bari Weiss knows that what she said is not true. At Tuesday’s meeting, where I was effectively removed, no effort was made to ‘find a way back,’ as Ms. Weiss said in the editorial meeting. At no time did anyone at Tuesday’s meeting suggest that either side might take steps that would lead to a resolution.”
Perry said that during the June 2 meeting, Weiss and Tom Cybrowski, president and editor-in-chief of CBS News, were “openly hostile from the beginning. Within the first 15 seconds, Cybrowski brought up “termination.” CBS executives maintained that at no time did anyone suggest “backtracking.” It would be dishonest to say that now. and they know it. In fact, Weiss, Cibrowski, and Nick Bilton refused to answer my questions. According to Perry, he asked Weiss many questions about “why she fired the entire senior staff” of “60 Minutes,” but she would not answer.
“I am saddened by the misunderstanding by the CBS News staff on Wednesday morning’s conference call. These executives cannot earn the trust of their staff by lying,” Perry said. “This is the antithesis of everything we stand for and reveals our contempt for the conduct of journalists.”
In a call with CBS News staff, Weiss said the “disappointing outcome” of Perry’s firing “does not diminish the outstanding contributions and work that Scott Perry has done for CBS and 60 Minutes throughout his career.”
She cited journalists’ stories on last season’s show, including “Havana Syndrome” and an “incredible” interview with former Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse, who has metastatic pancreatic cancer. Weiss said those stories “will be aired in September for Season 59, with Nick Bilton, along with the great team we have now, and hopefully some new people joining us.”
Mr. Cibrowski also weighed in on the matter Wednesday, saying after Mr. Weiss’ remarks that he would “reflect all of his thoughts.” “Scott has been an integral part of 60 Minutes, CBS Evening News and this entire news organization for decades,” Cibrowski said, adding that his “incredible body of work” has “always been part of the history of CBS News and Scott will be sorely missed.”
“I know that these events, developments, and changes are a lot for each of you in this room and on this call to process. And they are happening frequently. And to do the job that we’re asking you to do, we need to hold our heads high. All we can say is that we take this very seriously and we’re here to support you. I mean, we’re not going to do that on this public call, but if you want.” We will try to reach as many of you as possible, but please give us a call. We will continue to discuss this during this time. ”
In a letter Bilton sent to Perry informing him of his termination, the new “60 Minutes” EP wrote, “Your antipathy towards the future of the show has been made clear to me. And I have heard you. Therefore, I write on behalf of CBS News to inform you that my employment with CBS is terminated effective immediately.”
Perry struck a defiant tone late Tuesday in a statement about his firing from “60 Minutes.”
“Last month, 60 Minutes lost its DNA when all of our senior executives and two of our best on-air correspondents were brutally fired without cause,” Perry said. On May 28, CBS News expelled Simon, 60 Minutes editor-in-chief Dragan Mihailovic, and correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega.
“Good people were silenced for standing up for our audience,” Perry said in a statement. “They asserted fairness against the forces of political bias and professionalism against chaos.”
Mr. Perry slammed Weiss’s appointment as head of CBS News, claiming that “the new management’s incompetence and unprofessionalism have caused havoc.” He said in a recent “60 Minutes” article that the entire show “went off the air at all within 19 minutes.”
Perry claimed: “The new management instructed me to inject falsehoods and bias into politically sensitive stories. I was told to include unverified claims. So far, in each case I have been able to ignore or refuse these instructions. These days, politicians are asked to choose correspondents for broadcast interviews. Giving politicians control over 60 Minutes interviews is not the way to go.”
Alfonsi, a former 60 Minutes correspondent, commented on Perry’s firing in an Instagram post on Wednesday: “He was fired for asking a question, but that’s his job. If you ever needed a line to tell you exactly what happened to CBS News under Bari Weiss, that’s it.”
Brian Steinberg contributed to this article.
