Mediaite Editor-in-Chief Joe DePaolo wrote an op-ed this week telling “60 Minutes” staffers to stop complaining about recent changes at CBS and get back to work.
His piece began with praise for CBS’ flagship news program, but the tone quickly changed to one of tough love: “Shut up, quit crying and go to work.”
DePaolo’s article was in response to recent firings and departures, which left some staffers so upset that they openly cried and had emotional outbursts.
Former CNN reporter and “Status” founder Oliver Darcy covered the staff changes last week, and it reads like an obituary.
He interviewed various employees who were upset at CBS Editor-in-Chief Bari Wess and owner Larry Ellison for shaking things up to restore public trust.
“Tears flowed openly in the newsroom,” Darcy wrote. “Staffers exchanged texts expressing not only heartbreak, but genuine anger at Weiss and Ellison for upending a program they treasure.”
“They’re gutting us,” one staffer lamented. “It’s over. I don’t see how ‘60’ will be able to function after this.”
DePaolo’s response? “Tough. Deal with it.”
In addition to the firing of Scott Pelly — who challenged Weiss’ authority and threw a tantrum after he was terminated — multiple correspondents and producers were either let go or didn’t have their contracts renewed.
“See, at this point, it’s not really about whether CBS News editor in chief Bari Weiss is ‘murdering’ the storied newsmagazine, as newly-fired correspondent Scott Pelley claimed,” DePaolo wrote. “It’s about whether those still around at ‘60 Minutes’ really want to be part of its demise. Because if they really want to save ‘60 Minutes,’ they need to do the exact opposite of what Scott Pelley did.”
He accused Pelley of “grandstanding in front of his colleagues,” adding that it “accomplished nothing.”
“It didn’t change one iota of public sentiment,” the story continued. “If, three days ago, you believed Bari Weiss was taking a wrecking ball to ’60 Minutes’ on behalf of corporate bosses trying to curry favor with President Donald Trump, you still believe that. If you didn’t, Pelley did absolutely nothing to convince you.”
DePaolo said Pelley should have been more professional and stuck around to improve the show, rather than “cut and run.”
Additionally, he went after Pelley for bragging about his wartime coverage, saying that the correspondent has never “been in combat,” despite his claims to the contrary.
The opinion piece also slammed the CBS staffers who complained about their work, citing “millions upon millions of Americans” who “go to work at jobs they don’t love, for bosses they don’t agree with. Doesn’t matter how clueless they think the leadership might be. They grit their teeth, roll up their sleeves and punch the clock. It’s the ‘60 Minutes’ staff’s turn to do the same.”
Perhaps most surprisingly, DePaolo said Weiss critics must “admit they haven’t really given her a fair shake” regarding her attempts to revive the network’s news division.
He did, however, write that even if Weiss is acting in bad faith, the worst thing staffers can do is complain or quit.
“The old guard obviously sees themselves as the heroes of the ‘60 Minutes’ story,” DePaolo concluded. “If that’s true, then now is the moment when they prove it. Heroes don’t run from an obstacle, even — and especially — when that obstacle seems insurmountable. Heroes dig in and overcome those obstacles. And it makes for a heck of a story when they do.”
These comments come after rumors circulated about podcaster Joe Rogan replacing Pelley, or stepping in for outgoing correspondent Anderson Cooper.
CBS News spokesperson Jeremy Adler told Forbes, however, that these rumors are “false.”
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
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