60 Minutes underwent a major creative overhaul this past summer, which saw executive producer Nick Bilton and CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss make considerable staff changes. Several notable series alums were fired and, since then, several new employees have been added. However, when the show returned for Season 59 as part of the 2026 TV schedule, some familiar faces were still on the air, including host Lesley Stahl. Now, Stahl is getting candid about remaining with the show under Weiss’ leadership after the firings.
Stahl – who’s been with 60 Minutes since 1991 – opted to remain with the news magazine program alongside fellow series veterans Bill Whitaker and Jon Wertheim. Ahead of the trio jointly confirming their decision to stay, there had been considerable speculation about their plans. Stahl spoke about her choice while being honored at the Power 100 luncheon this past week and claimed that she’d been on the receiving end of backlash for staying with the show. Via The New York Post, Stahl explained why she and her colleagues chose to stay:
I myself have been under attack on social media because of my decision to stay at ’60 Minutes’ under the new regime. It was not an easy decision. It was one I made with my colleagues Bill Whitaker and John Wertheim. There was an urge to walk out and protest in solidarity with our colleagues who had been abruptly and cruelly fired. But we decided to stay out of a fear, a fear that if we didn’t, ’60 Minutes’ would vanish.
On May 28, which has reportedly since been deemed “Black Thursday" within CBS News, 60 Minutes correspondents Cecilia Vega and Sharyn Alfonsi were fired alongside others like series EP Tanya Simon and executive editor Draggan Mihailovich. Days later, longtime correspondent Scott Pelley was fired as well after reportedly accusing Bari Weiss of “murdering” the show. In the months since then, Pelley, Vega and others have made claims of editorial interference against Weiss and claimed they were asked to exude bias in their reporting.
Bari Weiss herself has been at the center of backlash as well due to the claims of journalistic partiality. At this point, the Free Press founder has denied the assertions and emphasized her intention to improve 60. Since the show returned in September, ratings have reportedly been under the average of the previous season. Weiss addressed those concerns during a recent conference and stated that the series was doing “tremendously well.” Stahl also addressed that decrease in viewership while speaking at the luncheon:
Many loyal viewers over the last 58 years have tuned us out, we presume, in protest. To those who stopped watching, I’m asking you please to come back.
Back in June, Stahl discussed the state of 60 Minutes back in June. She addressed the wave of firings and referred to the fallout as the “hardest chapter” of her career. Stahl – who’s been in journalism for over 50 years – also said the series of firings “was by far the worst experience I’ve been involved in, or even witnessed.” At the time, Stahl also said she’d met with Bilton to stress that while she and her colleagues understood that more needed to be done to the show, she hoped that the broadcast wouldn’t be “tampered with.”
Since then, Bari Weiss and Nick Bilton have added Ross Douthat, Gianna Toboni, Trevor Phillips and Sebastian Junger in host and correspondent roles for 60 Minutes. Lesley Stahl’s future on the news program beyond this current season remains uncertain. In any case, it’s evident that a new era is currently taking shape not just at 60 but at CBS News as a whole.
