{"id":5991,"date":"2026-08-02T19:41:30","date_gmt":"2026-08-02T19:41:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=5991"},"modified":"2026-08-02T19:41:30","modified_gmt":"2026-08-02T19:41:30","slug":"exclusive-ex-60-minutes-boss-bill-owens-wants-to-launch-rival-news-show-with-scott-pelley-other-fired-staffers-sources","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=5991","title":{"rendered":"Exclusive | Ex-\u201860 Minutes\u2019 boss Bill Owens wants to launch rival news show with Scott Pelley, other fired staffers: sources"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

A former boss of \u201c60 Minutes\u201d wants to launch a rival news series with Scott Pelley and other correspondents and producers who have recently exited the iconic show \u2014 but insiders are skeptical about whether it can get off the ground, The Post has learned.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Read more In-N-Out employee among 2 killed in Idaho mass shooting, CEO reveals<\/a><\/p>\n

Bill Owens \u2013 who resigned last year as \u201c60 Minutes\u201d executive producer amid a dustup between CBS and President Trump over how a Kamala Harris interview was edited \u2013 is looking to raise around $50 million to fund two years\u2019 worth of in-depth and investigative news segments, sources with knowledge said.<\/p>\n

The lump sum Owens is seeking would bankroll everything from staffing and production to marketing and legal, sources added. Still, for the idea to work, former \u201c60 Minutes\u201d journalists would likely be forced to take a drastic pay cut.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think they\u2019re asking for too much money,\u201d a source familar with the plan said. \u201cThey\u2019re looking at the old \u201960 Minutes\u2019 model and they\u2019re all used to mega salaries.\u201d<\/p>\n

A source close to Owens denied the plans.<\/p>\n

Still, some insiders speculated that a \u201c60 Minutes\u201d-style venture could potentially capitalize on recent upheaval at the 57-year-old show after CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss cleaned house in recent months.<\/p>\n

A second source said Owens is angling to enlist the bombastic Pelley, who was fired in June after he tore into Weiss, claiming she was \u201cmurdering \u201860 Minutes\u201d during a staff meeting.<\/p>\n

Indeed, there has been chatter that Pelley\u2019s scorched-earth exit \u2013 in which he also slammed the show\u2019s new executive producer Bilton, telling him he\u2019d \u201cnever be welcomed\u201d \u2013 was partly a ploy to gin up buzz ahead of an upcoming venture.<\/p>\n

Owens could also tap other fired \u201c60 Minutes\u201d staffers including ex-correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega, former executive producer Tanya Simon and senior producers Guy Campanile and Draggan Mihailovich and Matthew Polevoy, a source with knowledge said.<\/p>\n

Owens declined to comment. Other former \u201c60 Minutes\u201d staffers couldn\u2019t be reached for comment.<\/p>\n

As The Post reported last week, the show\u2019s new executive producer Nick Bilton has struggled to hire senior producers and has used interviews with prospective candidates as \u201ctherapy sessions\u201d to vent about his own work conditions.<\/p>\n

Last week, Bilton announced four \u201cnew faces\u201d coming to \u201c60 Minutes\u201d\u00a0\u2014 Ross Douthat, Sebastian Junger, Gianna Toboni and Trevor Phillips, as well as longtime CBS News journo Norah O\u2019Donnell. Some of the hires have been met with skepticism over their broadcast TV qualifications.<\/p>\n

Owens shopped the idea of a rival show earlier this year, but hit some snags \u2014 including securing money and a platform, sources close to the situation said.<\/p>\n

In recent weeks, however, fired \u201c60 Minutes\u201d staffers have put together a business plan and pitch deck. The old gang is hoping to produce a documentary-style program for streaming and potentially digital platforms, according to sources.<\/p>\n

\u201cRather than a chat show, it will be deeply reported, similar to \u201860 Minutes\u2019,\u201d a source said.<\/p>\n

Still, Owens and his colleagues face a major problem \u2014 namely the stiff costs of producing a \u201c60 Minutes\u201d-type program and the challenge of convincing deep-pocketed streamers like Netflix, Apple and YouTube \u2014 or even a TV network like NBC \u2014 to foot the bill.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere isn\u2019t a huge appetite,\u201d from major streaming platforms or broadcast networks, said one TV agent.<\/p>\n

Read more Scorned woman\u2019s divorce party puts husband\u2019s \u2018worst\u2019 acts on full display \u2014 leaving guests\u2019 jaws on the floor<\/a><\/p>\n

Insiders have speculated that a prime target for the series would be Netflix, the prospective archrival to CBS owner Paramount Skydance and its pending, $110 billion merger partner Warner Bros Discovery, the owner of HBO Max.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no clamoring on the Netflix side for overall news,\u201d said one former streaming exec. \u201cBut for a tightly done show that isn\u2019t too expensive, maybe it could work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pivot podcast co-host Scott Galloway has been vocal on his show about why Netflix should hire Pelley and other former \u201c60 Minutes\u201d to create their own version, citing the show\u2019s success.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I were [Netflix CEO] Ted Sarandos, I would call Scott Pelley and Anderson Cooper, pay them $10 million each, you hire whoever the f you want, including an executive producer and Netflix will put something out called. \u2018The Hour,’\u201d he said recently.<\/p>\n

If Owens isn\u2019t able to ink a hefty deal with a streamer, he will need to prepare to make his show on a shoestring budget, said one source who works in the digital video space. Building an audience of subscribers \u2014 a notoriously difficult prospect \u2014 would be also vital to success, the person added.\u00a0<\/p>\n

On YouTube, a video with 1 million views typically earns around $5,000 in advertising revenue. One million subscribers can bring\u00a0in upwards of $1 million a year, and sponsorships can meaningfully increase that amount depending on the sponsor.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Owens\u2019 efforts come as Weiss has decimated the show\u2019s staff in a bid to update the program and address criticisms that it was marred by left-wing bias.<\/p>\n

Pelley had griped that his bosses were trying to interfere with his reports and insert \u201cpolitical bias.\u201d CBS News denied Pelley\u2019s claims and said the edits were part of the normal journalistic process between correspondent and editor.<\/p>\n

Although Owens quit \u201c60 Minutes\u201d last year \u2013 before Weiss\u2019 arrival \u2013 he too complained about interference from higher ups.<\/p>\n

The exec quit the lofty gig last year when the show\u2019s parent company Paramount was settling a lawsuit against President Trump over claims of \u201cdeceptive editing\u201d of an interview with Harris that aired days before the November 2024 presidential election.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

As previously reported by The Post, Bilton has been stewing over how he was treated by Pelley and the staff, who applauded the correspondent for standing up to the new boss.<\/p>\n

Sources told The Post that Bilton\u2019s lack of TV experience is a key issue with higher-ups at CBS, who have expressed concerns that he has \u201cbig ideas\u201d but lacks the \u201cskills to get things done,\u201d which has some worrying about the show\u2019s September debut.<\/p>\n

But there\u2019s no guarantee an Owens-led \u201c60 Minutes\u201d knockoff will be a success.<\/p>\n

One source pointed to CBS\u2019 attempt to rival HBO\u2019s acclaimed \u201cReal Sports with Bryant Gumbel\u201d with \u201c60 Minutes Sports,\u201d which it launched in 2013 with Showtime. The show ultimately shuttered in 2017, after failing to build a large enough audience.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cReal Sports,\u201d the sports documentary show ended its 29-year-run in 2023 when Gumbel retired.<\/p>\n

Read more Freddy Peralta traded to Rays after disastrous stint with Mets<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Former \u201c60 Minutes\u201d boss Bill Owens is looking to launch a streaming news magazine series with Scott Pelley and other correspondents and producers who have recently exited the iconic show, The Post has learned.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5990,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5991","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-media"],"yoast_head":"\nExclusive | Ex-\u201860 Minutes\u2019 boss Bill Owens wants to launch rival news show with Scott Pelley, other fired staffers: sources - Metro Transit Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=5991\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Exclusive | Ex-\u201860 Minutes\u2019 boss Bill Owens wants to launch rival news show with Scott Pelley, other fired staffers: sources - 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