The top producer of CBS’ 60 Minutes abruptly stepped down on Tuesday as the legendary newsmagazine battles President Donald Trump in court.
Executive producer Bill Owens told staff in a memo 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,” he wrote.
“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 added.
ADVERTISEMENT
Owens joined CBS 37 years ago and became 60 Minutes’ executive producer in 2019. He is only the third person to run the show in its 57-year history.
The New York Times first reported Owens’ exit. CBS did not respond to an immediate request for comment.
“As Executive Producer, Bill has led 60 Minutes with unwavering integrity, curiosity, and a deep commitment to the truth,” CBS News and Stations CEO Wendy McMahon told staff in a memo. “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.”
McMahon said she and CBS News executive editor Tom Cibrwoski would search for a new leader soon and were “committed to 60 Minutes and to ensuring that the mission and the work remain our priority.”
Owens said McMahon “agrees that 60 Minutes needs to be run by a 60 Minute producer."
And McMahon hinted at her loyalty to Owens over the episode in her memo. “Working with Bill has been one of the great privileges of my career,” she wrote. “Standing behind what he stood for was an easy decision for me, and I never took for granted that he did the same for me.”
Owens’ exit comes as Trump battles CBS in court over a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris, claiming the show defamed him by airing an edited version of the interview he claims made Harris sound better. He sued the company last year and is seeking $20 billion in damages.
CBS—and Owens—have denied the claim, saying they acted within journalistic standards. CBS and Trump are currently seeking a mediator to settle the lawsuit as its court battles continue.
Owens’ exit also follows months of Trump weaponizing both his lawyers and government agencies against his media enemies, forcing many to capitulate.
Trump sued ABC last year after anchor George Stephanopoulos incorrectly said a jury found Trump liable for rape, despite it only finding him liable for sexual abuse. ABC settled in December for $16 million.
The president also sued the Des Moines Register for an Iowa poll that showed him losing the state, though he eventually won the state. The newspaper has called the suit “without merit.”
Trump’s administration is now battling the Associated Press in court over its White House access, and Federal Communications Chairman Brendan Carr has opened investigations into ABC for its diversity, equity, and inclusion policies and into NPR and PBS for sponsorships on public airwaves.
CBS’s parent company, Shari Redstone’s Paramount Global, has sought the settlement in part to clinch regulatory approval for its merger with billionaire David Ellison’s Skydance.
But Owens has refused to acknowledge any wrongdoing on the show’s part, maintaining its editing decisions were in line with journalistic standards.
“There have been reports in the media about a settlement and/or apology,” Owens told staff in February, according to the Times. “The company knows I will not apologize for anything we have done.”
The defiance has seemingly further angered Trump, who has railed repeatedly this year against the long-running newsmagazine.
The president demanded in February that 60 Minutes and CBS be “terminated,” and he suggested last week that the FCC should “impose the maximum fine and punishment” on the show after it aired an interview with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The saga began after an excerpt of the then-vice president’s October interview with 60 Minutes aired on sister show Face the Nation, in which Harris appeared to give one answer to a question about Israel. A different portion of that answer appeared during a special Monday edition of 60 Minutes the next day, in which Trump refused to participate.
Trump seized on it as evidence of his claim of widespread media bias and sued CBS. Carr, who has also tied Trump’s attack on 60 Minutes to the FCC’s potential approval of the Paramount-Skydance merger, opened a formal investigation and demanded the broadcaster turn over the full tape of the interview, which it did in February.
