The Scoop
Paramount owner Shari Redstone in recent days sought to know which upcoming 60 Minutes stories were about President Donald Trump, according to two people familiar with the situation — triggering a series of events that ended with the Tuesday resignation of the show’s longtime producer.
Producer Bill Owens resigned abruptly this week, complaining that he no longer had the editorial independence to run the iconic Sunday evening news show.
In a note first shared with The New York Times, Owens said that “over the past 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.”
“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,” he wrote.
His resignation was the culmination of months of tensions between 60 Minutes and Paramount, which has taken greater interest in oversight of CBS News.
Following Trump’s demand that the FCC inflict “punishment” on CBS over a recent 60 Minutes piece on Greenland and Ukraine, Paramount executives, including Redstone, asked the program to provide a list of upcoming Trump-related pieces it was reporting on for the duration of its season, which ends in May.
A spokesperson for Redstone denied that she saw or sought to see 60 Minutes pieces, and emphasized to Semafor that Redstone and Paramount were not seeking to kill stories. But one person familiar with the situation noted that Redstone had both publicly and privately criticized 60 Minutes in recent months, a trend that resulted in Paramount’s decision in January to appoint Susan Zirinsky, the former CBS head, to oversee its standards.
A fourth source who spoke with Owens in recent days said the former producer had grown concerned that CBS’ corporate parent was becoming too interested in 60 Minutes — and that was making him uncomfortable. Owens also did not enjoy the additional scrutiny from Zirinsky, who since January had been reviewing sensitive stories as part of a push for stricter standards within CBS that was supported by Paramount.
Owens’ resignation comes as Paramount is hoping to close its merger with the entertainment company Skydance, which continues to be under review by federal regulators. Last year, the Trump campaign sued CBS over what it said was deceptive editing of a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris. While CBS has stood by its reporting and editing, Paramount has sought to settle the lawsuit, reportedly choosing a mediator to oversee the talks.