Scott Pelley is reportedly weighing legal action following his dramatic firing from CBS, bringing a bitter end to his 37-year run with the network, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The 22-year 60 Minutes vet was let go on June 2, a day after he brutally ripped into the show’s new executive producer, Nick Bilton, and CBS News chief Bari Weiss about their lack of “qualifications” to preside over the storied investigative series’ direction and decision-making.
“Scott believes he was pushed out because he refused to compromise his journalistic standards. Now he’s considering his options,” a source close to the situation told Hollywood insider Rob Shuter, who wrote about it on his Naughty But Nice Substack.
Pelley claimed in a statement shortly after his firing that his bosses tried to undermine his journalistic integrity.
“For my part, 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,” he declared.
The veteran correspondent also raged about how Weiss had just cleaned house, firing 60 Minutes executive producer Tanya Simon, executive editor Draggan Mihailovich, and correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega in a May 28 “Black Thursday” termination spree.
Her hand-picked replacement, Bilton, was announced as the new executive producer later that day.
“Last month, 60 Minutes lost its DNA when our entire senior leadership and two of our best on-air correspondents were cruelly fired without cause. Good people were silenced because they stood up for our audience. They stood for fairness against the forces of political bias; they stood for professionalism against chaos,” Pelley raged, as insiders now say the statement was a “warning shot” against CBS News brass.
“That statement was a warning shot. Scott wanted everyone to know exactly why he believes he was forced out,” a network insider said to Shuter.
Pelley held some of the most high-profile positions at CBS, serving as the anchor and managing editor of the CBS Evening News from 2011 through 2017, and as the network’s White House correspondent in addition to his duties at 60 Minutes.
“This isn’t some disgruntled employee,” a media insider dished. “It’s one of the most respected journalists in television. His credibility is his greatest weapon.”
“Scott is furious about what he believes happened to 60 Minutes,” the source revealed, indicating that his fight is not purely financial. “He sees this as a fight over journalism, not a fight over compensation.”
“A lawsuit could expose internal conversations and decision-making,” the insider explained. “That’s what has people nervous.”
After the terminations of Pelley, Alfonsi, and Vega, 60 Minutes is now at half-staff, with just three remaining correspondents as the show’s direction remains uncertain under Bilton and Weiss’ oversight.
“Scott thinks he was wronged,” the insider revealed. “If he decides to sue, he’s prepared to make his case in public.”
Pelley’s termination came a day after he raged at Bilton that Weiss was “murdering” 60 Minutes during a meet-and-greet with the show’s staffers.
He then went on to fume, “She has no qualifications for her job; you have slender qualifications for this job. The changes that she’s made at the Evening News have been catastrophic, so why should we expect that any of this is going to be any better?”
Bilton announced Pelley’s “termination with cause” late on June 2, after saying CBS brass was unable to “find a common ground” with the embittered newsman.