OPINION:
Journalist David Brinkley once observed: “Objectivity is impossible to normal human behavior. Rather, we should strive for fairness.”
Fairness is at the heart of the ongoing shake-up at CBS News, and especially at the legendary “60 Minutes.”
Because television is a business that requires high ratings and credibility to attract advertisers and make money, it is more important what viewers think about a program than what those producing it think about themselves.
Correspondent Scott Pelley violated a cardinal principle, not just in journalism but also in any job. He bit the hand that had been feeding him.
In a staff meeting, Mr. Pelley reportedly excoriated management for having the temerity to shake up the news division, which Bari Weiss, the new editor-in-chief, was hired to do.
Reading an interview Mr. Pelley did for The New York Times after his firing reveals the attitude of many journalists at the top of the profession. Mr. Pelley thinks it is all about him, not the audience.
It appears he believes that his decades at the network entitle him to stay on until he expires or resigns. I have been fired — or my shows canceled — from NBC, CNBC and Fox News. I did not complain. In fact, on my final Fox show, I said: “It’s their network; they can do as they please.”
What has become collectively known as “the media” are selling what much of the public is not buying. Public trust and confidence in the mass media to report the news fully, accurately and fairly is at a record low.
Gallup’s polling reveals that Americans’ trust in the media has fallen from a relative high of 68% in 1972 to today’s record low of 28%. It is the first time it has gone below 30%. Until Ms. Weiss was hired, networks ignored this trend.
The 2022 American Journalist Study, a survey of U.S. journalists, found that about 36% of journalists identified as Democrats, compared with just 3.4% who identified as Republicans. A plurality of journalists — nearly 52% — identified as independents. No one will convince me that one’s political worldview does not influence which stories are covered (and which are ignored) and how they are reported.
I have spent many years in newsrooms and at journalist gatherings. It has been my experience that most people claiming the title of “journalist” are liberal Democrats who have a secular-progressive worldview.
The conservative Media Research Center (mrc.org) has compiled some examples of Scott Pelley’s biased reporting, including this gem: “It’s too soon to tell how serious President Trump is in defiance of the Constitution. In his first 28 days, he signed an order to nullify birthright citizenship for some — a right guaranteed by the 14th Amendment. And he has closed agencies and frozen spending that Congress mandated by law.” (Feb. 16, 2025)
A balanced report might have noted that although the goal of the 14th Amendment was primarily to protect formerly enslaved people after the Civil War, it was also written to apply to all Americans. The Trump administration, however, has challenged the constitutionality of birthright citizenship. The Supreme Court is expected to decide shortly whether Mr. Trump or the Constitution has the final say.
Here is another Pelleyism: “Joe Biden is among the longest-serving politicians in Washington. If there is less bounce in the step than there once was, if the words don’t flow like they used to, maybe there’s something to be said for know-how, five decades on the Hill and in the Oval. … You have lived a long life of triumph and tragedy. In November, you’ll be 80. And I wonder what it is that keeps you in the arena.” (Sept. 18, 2022)
This at a time when it was becoming increasingly evident to many — except perhaps Jill Biden, Kamala Harris and others who did not want people to believe what they saw and heard — that the president had lost more than a step.
Maybe Ms. Weiss can make changes that will draw more viewers and improve credibility at CBS News. If she succeeds, will ABC and NBC follow her example?
• Readers may email Cal Thomas at tcaeditors@tribpub.com. Look for Cal Thomas’ latest book, “A Watchman in the Night: What I’ve Seen Over 50 Years Reporting on America” (Humanix Books).
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