Bill Owens, the executive producer of 60 Minutes, said that he is resigning from the program, telling staffers that he had lost his ability to make independent decisions about the show.
“Over the past months, it has also become clear that I would not be allowed to run the show as I have always run it,” he wrote in a memo obtained by Deadline. “To make independent decisions based on what was right for 60 Minutes, right for the audience. So, having defended this show- and what we stand for – from every angle, over time with everything I could, I am stepping aside so the show can move forward.
“The show is too important to the country, it has to continue, just not with me as the Executive Producer.
The New York Times first reported on his exit.
Owens’ departure comes amid settlement talks between CBS and Donald Trump‘s team over a lawsuit that he filed over the way that 60 Minutes edited an interview with Kamala Harris. Many legal observers call the lawsuit frivolous, but CBS’s parent company, Paramount Global, needs administration approval for its proposed merger with Skydance. A mediator was recently selected to try to resolve the dispute, sources said.
In his note, Owens wrote that Wendy McMahon, the president and CEO of CBS News and Stations, Has always had our back, and she agrees that 60 Minutes needs to be run by a 60 Minutes producer.”
In her own note, McMahon wrote, “As Executive Producer, Bill has led 60 Minutes with unwavering integrity, curiosity, and a deep commitment to the truth. He has championed the kind of journalism that informs, enlightens, and often changes the national conversation. His dedication to finding and nurturing talent will be felt across CBS News for years.”
She wrote that she and Tom Cibrowski, president and executive editor at CBS News, “are committed to 60 Minutes and to ensuring that the mission and the work remain our priority. We have already begun conversations with correspondents and senior leaders, and those will continue in the days and weeks ahead.”
More to come.
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