Ross Douthat, an opinion columnist at The New York Times, is leaving the newspaper to join the CBS News program “60 Minutes” as a correspondent, the show’s executive producer announced in a memo to staff on Tuesday. Douthat is part of a new wave of hires for the program’s 59th season, set to premiere on September 13.
Joining Douthat as contributors will be writer Sebastian Junger and former Vice News correspondent Gianna Toboni, alongside British journalist Trevor Phillips, who joined CBS last month. Norah O’Donnell, the former anchor of “CBS Evening News,” will also be a correspondent for the program.
These appointments mark the first major additions to “60 Minutes” since CBS News editor in chief Bari Weiss initiated a significant restructuring of the program earlier this year. The shake-up led to the departure of three senior correspondents, including veteran journalist Scott Pelley, as well as the dismissal of the show’s senior leadership team, including former executive producer Tanya Simon.
The personnel changes followed the firing of correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega, actions that reportedly prompted Pelley to protest and subsequently led to his dismissal. Another correspondent, Anderson Cooper, left the program voluntarily.
Under the new leadership of Weiss and executive producer Nick Bilton, who succeeded Simon in May, “60 Minutes” aims to rebuild its staff and reassert its standing in broadcast journalism. Bilton, a tech journalist and documentarian with no prior broadcast news experience, has expressed a desire to modernize the program and integrate it more deeply into CBS News, while maintaining its core commitment to investigative reporting.
Douthat, known for his conservative commentary and authorship, previously served as an editor at The Atlantic before joining The New York Times in 2009. He hosts a Times podcast called “Interesting Times,” where he has interviewed various public figures, including Vice President JD Vance and former Senator Ben Sasse. Weiss and Douthat were colleagues in The Times’s Opinion section prior to her departure in 2020.
Katie Kingsbury, The Times’ opinion editor, highlighted Douthat’s intellectual rigor and willingness to engage with complex issues in a memo to staff.
O’Donnell’s promotion to correspondent comes after a series of high-profile segments during the previous season, including interviews with former President Donald Trump. Her work helped the program continue its tradition of in-depth and sometimes contentious reporting.
The future of “60 Minutes” faces challenges amid allegations from the dismissed correspondents that CBS News executives, including Weiss, attempted to inject political bias into the program's content, claims the network has denied. Weiss maintains that editorial oversight is a normal aspect of her role as editor in chief.
Bilton expressed optimism about the show's future in his memo, emphasizing its longstanding reputation for “fearless, independent and impartial reporting” and welcoming the incoming journalists. The changes signal a new chapter for “60 Minutes” as it prepares for its highly anticipated 59th season.