Questions for Scott Pelley, formerly of '60 Minutes'

The actual news story is being ignored.

Scott Pelley photo by John Ramspott

My time in network news showed me the chasm between the public perception and reality of some TV news figures. No matter what they’re like behind the scenes, the handful of overpaid hosts with multi-million-dollar contracts often become symbols in people’s minds, associated with positive ideas and feelings.

That’s as clear as ever this week, as people rush to weigh in on CBS’ ousting of 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley. Just about any company would fire an employee who lashed into a new boss before the boss even had a chance to get to work, which is what Pelley did.

But the media has built a victim narrative around CBS, casting its new leaders as Trumpist villains, and the “old guard” as the heroes. Facts are ignored — like David Ellison, the man in charge of CBS, being a big donor to Biden’s re-election campaign. Listen to Episode 90 for details:

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People who scream the sky is falling at CBS keep being proven wrong.

Sharyn Alfonsi, another recently-ousted 60 Minutes correspondent, publicly accused CBS’ Editor in Chief Bari Weiss of spiking a story. But the story was not spiked. It aired, with a significant correction included.

In an ideal world, Pelley’s firing would barely garner public attention. The news industry should be about truths that matter, not the people hired to deliver them.

Ironically, there is a piece of potential news in all this. But big media have missed it. In a statement, Pelley claimed:

“New management has instructed me to inject falsehoods and bias into a politically sensitive story. I’ve been told to include assertions that are unverified. To date, in every case, I have managed to ignore these instructions or refuse them.”

If this is true, it’s big. We need details. But no one seems to be asking for them. The disastrous New York Times spoke with him, and there’s no sign they even requested details or proof.

There’s no clear way to contact Scott. (He spoke with the Times, a site he could be sure would support and never challenge him.) So I’m posting questions here:

What falsehoods were you told to include? What bias were you told to inject? Who instructed you to do these things? Please share specifics and evidence.

CBS insiders leak their complaints to avowedly left-wing media constantly. Why have we not heard about these instances?

Under previous management, CBS had a long string of fiascoes. Have you ever spoken out about these? If not, why not? Here are just four examples:

1. CBS punished a morning news host (Tony Dokoupil) for daring to challenge an antisemitic writer (Ta-Nehisi Coates), politely.

2. Face the Nation took guidance from the Russian government in interviewing a Russian official.

3. 60 Minutes went beyond even Hamas’ inflated claims about Gaza.

4. 60 Minutes failed to fact check a lying, pro-terror activist who invented a backstory.

Scott, where were you when all this and more happened? What were you doing?

You claim to stand for “fairness” and against “political bias.” If this is true, let’s discuss for They Stand Corrected.

JL

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