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Former “60 Minutes” managing editor Guy Campanile, who was fired in May alongside some top correspondents, has spoken out about his sudden ouster from the venerable CBS News program.
In a private Facebook post obtained
by The Guardian and recirculated by reporter Justin Baragona, Campanile wrote that “after some time and deep reflection,” he is “now comfortable and prepared to talk about” his exit. Campanile, who worked at CBS News for 34 years, said he and his former colleagues — including fired correspondents Scott Pelley and Sharyn Alfonsi, to name a couple — “refused to be accomplices in the destruction of the most prestigious news program on American television.”
“We would not compromise our principles or reputations by jamming unverifiable notions or White House talking points into our reporting,” Campanile continued. “We objected when told to conduct interviews arranged by the administration. We insisted on asking the most challenging questions to business and political leaders without fear or favor. We did what reporters worth their salt do — we questioned authority … including our own bosses. That’s how the best newsrooms work. To be clear — we were told to leave because we insisted on doing our jobs.”
CBS did not immediately respond to Variety‘s request for comment.
The long-running newsmagazine has faced scandals, internal dissent and media backlash ever since CBS News was taken over by Paramount Skydance and the Ellison family, which installed Free Press founder Bari Weiss as editorial chief. Many former “60 Minutes” staffers have spoken out against the new regime, with Pelley alleging editorial decisions were made to “curry favor with the Trump administration” and “good people were silenced because they stood up for our audience” and “fairness against the forces of political bias.”
In his lengthy Facebook post, Campanile echoed many of Pelley’s concerns. “What has happened recently at ’60 Minutes’ – where I believe editorial independence has become a casualty of corporate priorities and ideological intrusion – was tragic,” he wrote. “But it was part of an inevitable progression in the cascade of afflictions that have devalued our most trusted sources of news.”
He issued the statement the same day “60 Minutes” teased its new season (premiering on Sept. 13) with a photo of its lineup of correspondents, including mainstays Lesley Stahl and Bill Whitaker alongside newcomers Norah O’Donnell and Ross Douthat.
Without naming names, Campanile criticized the ways in which information has become “commoditized in the attention economy.” “Making matters worse is the cadre of self-described influencers and on-line opinionists who market themselves as ‘journalists,'” he wrote. “Some have been given control of our most precious reporting institutions — including CBS News.”
Campanile concluded his remarks by saying he left CBS News “with my head held high and integrity intact.”
“I am excited about the opportunities ahead. In the meantime, I cannot remain silent as trust built over decades by my colleagues and mentors is wrecked,” he wrote. “The audience deserves so much better. Thomas Jefferson wrote, ‘Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost.’ It’s dangerous to ignore his warning. As for my friends that remain at my former employer: Hold the line. Don’t give an inch because they will keep scraping away until there’s nothing left worth a damn.”
While Campanile did not mention specific incidents at “60 Minutes,” Pelley previously said “new management has instructed me to inject falsehoods and bias into a politically sensitive story” and that “recently, politicians have been invited to choose correspondents for interviews.” Last year, a segment about the “horrific treatment” of detainees deported from the U.S. to a prison in El Salvador was yanked by Weiss a few hours before airtime. Weiss said the segment “wasn’t ready,” while correspondents pushed back against their new boss, with Alfonsi claiming Weiss’ interference was “not an editorial decision, it is a political one.”
