CBS's 60 Minutes has named five new on-air additions — correspondent and contributor hires that refill a roster thinned by high-profile departures.

Ross Douthat, a conservative columnist at The New York Times Opinion section, joins as a correspondent. So does Norah O'Donnell, the former CBS Evening News anchor, who is being promoted into the role from within the network. Sebastian Junger, author of The Perfect Storm, and Gianna Toboni, an Emmy-winning senior correspondent formerly at Vice News, come aboard as contributors — a designation meaning they will appear regularly but are not full-time staff correspondents. Trevor Phillips, named Senior Global Affairs Correspondent last month, has also been added as a contributor. The announcement was first reported by Deadline on 28 July 2026 and confirmed by Variety and The Hollywood Reporter the same day (Deadline; Variety).

The New York Times posted the Douthat news on its official Facebook page, confirming the move directly (NYT Facebook).

The new arrivals follow the departures of Scott Pelley, Anderson Cooper, Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega, leaving Lesley Stahl, Bill Whitaker and Jon Wertheim as the returning correspondents from the previous line-up. Nick Bilton, the programme's Executive Producer, posted the new-hire announcement online.

The hiring round arrives against an explicit editorial push to widen the broadcast's appeal. Bari Weiss told staffers in January that the show's strategy had been to "cling to the audience that remains on broadcast television," and warned that sticking to that approach would leave them "toast" (Deadline).

There is also corporate context. In June 2026, The New York Times reported that Paramount CEO David Ellison promised to respect the editorial independence of 60 Minutes in a call with Lesley Stahl — a reassurance made as Paramount's acquisition of the network proceeded (NYT).

For viewers, the upshot is a visibly different 60 Minutes come the new season. A sitting Times opinion columnist with a conservative perspective on the correspondent bench is an unusual hire for a programme long associated with its own stable of veteran reporters. Junger brings literary non-fiction credentials; Toboni brings a younger, field-reporting sensibility from Vice; Phillips adds global-affairs heft.

None of that is a verdict on how the new line-up will land. What is certain is the shape of the change: four correspondents out, five names in, and a new executive producer making his first major roster move.