CBS Bari Weiss hire causes stir with cryptic '60 Minutes' message that 'clock is ticking'
Tom Boggioni
September 14, 2026
RAW STORY
The CBS broadcasting logo is seen outside the CBS Broadcast Center in Manhattan, New York on July 30, 2018. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton
The “60 Minute” premiere on Sunday night ended on an odd note as one of the new conservative contributors added a cryptic — and scripted comment — that seemed divorced from his central topic.
Appearing for the first time as the venerable newsmagazine began its 59th season, ex-Washington Post columnist Ross Douthat appeared in a segment called “The Last Minute” tacked on by controversial CBS News head Bari Weiss and equally controversial new Executive Producer Nick Bilton.
As the Daily Beast’s Cameron Adams noted, Douthat blandly issued a warning about AI, stating, “…no story looms larger than the latest developments in artificial intelligence” before segueing to “That clock is ticking, and so is ours.”
“For almost 60 years, it has meant the same thing. Journalism you can trust. Where we’re headed, we’re going to need it,” he cryptically added.
That specific aside was highlighted by CNN media critic Brian Stelter on X, with the Beast’s Adams noting, “The line was the only reference to the show’s controversial changes in the lead-up to the newest season.”
As his report noted, there has been a serious debate among media watchers whether “60 Minutes” will survive under Weiss and Bilton, neither of whom came to their jobs with the requisite experience in news reporting and after purging the show of respected producers and on-air personalities.
Variety noted that the premiere seemed to rely on older hosts to get through the first night, before adding, “Keep an eye on subsequent weeks of the program. Weiss’ overhaul of the show interrupted a critical off-season period when correspondents typically try to file and finish a segment for the fall. Bilton and crew will enjoy a cushion thanks to having the new NFL season as a lead-in every Sunday for the next several weeks. Still, they won’t have the luxury of stories that may have been in the works for weeks, which may shortchange the amount of attention they can devote to segments from new on-air personnel who are still learning the ropes.”
The CBS broadcasting logo is seen outside the CBS Broadcast Center in Manhattan, New York on July 30, 2018. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton
The “60 Minute” premiere on Sunday night ended on an odd note as one of the new conservative contributors added a cryptic — and scripted comment — that seemed divorced from his central topic.
Appearing for the first time as the venerable newsmagazine began its 59th season, ex-Washington Post columnist Ross Douthat appeared in a segment called “The Last Minute” tacked on by controversial CBS News head Bari Weiss and equally controversial new Executive Producer Nick Bilton.
As the Daily Beast’s Cameron Adams noted, Douthat blandly issued a warning about AI, stating, “…no story looms larger than the latest developments in artificial intelligence” before segueing to “That clock is ticking, and so is ours.”
“For almost 60 years, it has meant the same thing. Journalism you can trust. Where we’re headed, we’re going to need it,” he cryptically added.
That specific aside was highlighted by CNN media critic Brian Stelter on X, with the Beast’s Adams noting, “The line was the only reference to the show’s controversial changes in the lead-up to the newest season.”
As his report noted, there has been a serious debate among media watchers whether “60 Minutes” will survive under Weiss and Bilton, neither of whom came to their jobs with the requisite experience in news reporting and after purging the show of respected producers and on-air personalities.
Variety noted that the premiere seemed to rely on older hosts to get through the first night, before adding, “Keep an eye on subsequent weeks of the program. Weiss’ overhaul of the show interrupted a critical off-season period when correspondents typically try to file and finish a segment for the fall. Bilton and crew will enjoy a cushion thanks to having the new NFL season as a lead-in every Sunday for the next several weeks. Still, they won’t have the luxury of stories that may have been in the works for weeks, which may shortchange the amount of attention they can devote to segments from new on-air personnel who are still learning the ropes.”
'The show is dead': Insiders say CBS star ‘absolutely willing’ to be a ‘propaganda tool’
Alexander Willis
September 14, 2026
RAW STORY
Bari Weiss (Photo via Michael Blake for Reuters)
Prominent CBS News correspondent Norah O’Donnell was alleged by her own colleague to be “absolutely willing” to be “used as a propaganda tool” for the Trump administration, a CBS staffer revealed Sunday, according to journalist Justin Baragona.
The fiery claim was made as CBS News’ “60 Minutes” aired its season-premiere episode on Sunday with an exclusive interview with an Air Force pilot who was shot down in Iran. The episode, according to insiders, didn’t sit well with CBS News staff.
“The show is dead,” said a senior CBS News staffer who spoke with Baragona on the condition of anonymity, Baragona claimed. “We’re just looking at some Frankenstein of bits sewn together of mismatched pieces.”
The interview with the downed Air Force pilot was conducted by O’Donnell, a veteran CBS News journalist who joined the network in 2011. According to another CBS News staffer, however, she was allegedly willing to compromise her journalistic ethics on the administration's behalf, going so far as to let herself be co-opted for its messaging.
“Norah absolutely willing to play the part of dimwit reporter used as a propaganda tool," the CBS staffer allegedly told Baragona.
CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss has faced mounting scrutiny for her reshaping of the network since taking the helm, including the controversial firing of veteran broadcast journalist Scott Pelley and the decision to scrap a "60 Minutes" report on Trump administration deportees held at El Salvador's CECOT prison.
Weiss has also drawn fire for allegedly pushing a false report targeting New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, further fueling concerns among staffers that the network's flagship news program has been reshaped to avoid antagonizing the White House.
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