Anderson Cooper on Monday mentioned he’s leaving his position as a correspondent on CBS’s “60 Minutes” after 20 years, amid massive changes on the community’s information division.
Cooper, nevertheless, will stay in his position as a NCS anchor.
“Being a correspondent at ‘60 Minutes’ has been one of the great honors of my career,” the journalist mentioned in a press release obtained by The Associated Press. “I got to tell amazing stories, and work with some of the best producers, editors and camera crew in the business.”
“For nearly 20 years, I’ve been able to balance my jobs and NCS and CBS, but I have little kids now and I want to spend as much time with them as possible, while they still want to spend time with me,” he added.
CBS News mentioned Cooper “has taken ’60 Minutes’ viewers on journeys to faraway places, told us unforgettable stories, reported consequential investigations and interviewed many prominent figures.”
“We’re grateful to him for dedicating so much of his life to this broadcast, and understand the importance of spending more time with family,” the outlet mentioned in a press release to The Hill. “’60 Minutes’ will be here if he ever wants to return.”
Cooper leaves CBS News not lengthy after former New York Times columnist Bari Weiss was tapped to be editor-in-chief final fall. Owner Paramount Skydance purchased Weiss’s startup media firm The Free Press for a reported $150 million, which raised questions if CBS News was shifting to the precise amid Weiss’s overhaul of the information establishment.
Turmoil later erupted over Weiss’s resolution to pull a story from “60 Minutes” targeted on the Trump administration’s immigration coverage. Correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi mentioned privately the phase was pulled for political functions as the brand new proprietor mentioned more effort was needed to speak to an administration official.
“To win back their trust, we have to work hard,” Weiss mentioned in a memo defending the choice. “Sometimes that means doing more legwork.”
“Sometimes it means telling unexpected stories. Sometimes it means training our attention on topics that have been overlooked or misconstrued,” she continued. “And sometimes it means holding a piece about an important subject to make sure it is comprehensive and fair.”
The “60 Minutes” phase aired a number of weeks later.
CBS News can be contemplating chopping 15 p.c of its employees, sources told Variety on Thursday. A call may come between March and May.
But the outlet has seen quite a few departures within the months after Weiss’ takeover, with 11 out of 40 “CBS Evening News” staffers taking buyouts one month after Tony Dokoupil took the reins of this system.
Cooper’s exit additionally comes after President Trump reached a $16 million settlement with CBS over a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris, which Trump argued was edited within the then-Democratic presidential nominee’s favor.
The Associated Press contributed.
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