Bari Weiss Says 60 Minutes Is "Doing Tremendously Well" as Ratings Draw Attention
CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss said that 60 Minutes is "doing tremendously well," speaking at an industry conference organized by The Information. Her remarks addressed the program's audience, which has been lower in recent weeks than in past seasons.
According to The Guardian, 60 Minutes averaged 9.1 million viewers per episode last season. Its most recent episode drew 5.64 million viewers, while the 4 October edition averaged more than 10 million total viewers. Weiss said she could never build anything if she were focused on the exact number of people watching the second feature on a given Sunday. She said her approach has been to "put the blinders on, tune out the noise and focus," and that she is not doing anything for popularity's sake.
Weiss has overseen a series of changes at the newsmagazine since late May. She ousted the show's executive producer and parted ways with three top correspondents, including Scott Pelley, and installed a new head of the program, saying it was time for a new approach and a new chapter. Pelley later accused Weiss of "murdering" 60 Minutes, according to the Associated Press. In May, CBS News also declined to renew the contract of correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi, who had clashed with Weiss, Reuters reported.
Earlier, in December 2025, Weiss pulled a 60 Minutes segment on the deportation of Venezuelan migrants, Bloomberg reported. The program opened its 59th season on CBS in September.
Asked about interest in running CNN, Weiss said she wants to focus on CBS News, which she called a big enough challenge. At the same conference, she told critics of her leadership to "judge us by the journalism," and defended CBS News' Israel-Gaza coverage, The Information reported.
