Bill Maher cheers Scott Pelley’s “60 Minutes” firing: ‘I never liked him’

Key Points

• Bill Maher is pushing back on the claim that Scott Pelley’s 60 Minutes firing is political interference.

• The Real Time host dismissed Pelley’s firing and the other shakeups at CBS News as the company just “chang[ing] hands.”

• Maher added that he “never liked” Pelley and doesn’t think his job is “that hard.”

Bill Maher doesn’t see why Scott Pelley’s 60 Minutes firing is such a big deal.

On Friday’s Overtime edition of Real Time With Bill Maher, the host was dismissive of the tumult surrounding recent changes to the venerated CBS News program, particularly when one of his guests argued that Pelley’s firing was an example of political interference from the Trump administration.

“What does the panel think of the recent shakeup at 60 Minutes?” Maher asked guests Sen. Chris Murphy and former United Nations Ambassador Susan Rice.

Maher then quipped, “I’m for it — goodnight,” and pretended to walk off. Sitting back down, he posed the question again. “What do you think of the shakeup at 60 Minutes?”

“You’re watching a censorship state be created,” Murphy, the junior Democratic senator from Connecticut replied. “Trump is using the powers that he has available as president of the United States to install only friendly ownership at the big media companies. He’s using regulatory powers to punish people who oppose him.”

Pelley, who was publicly fired from his longtime role at 60 Minutes after clashing with new leadership, represents the latest in a series of major shakeups at the show and CBS News overall. Since February, 60 Minutes has shed four correspondents — Pelley, Anderson Cooper, Sharyn Alfonsi, and Cecilia Vega — in addition to executive producer Tanya Simon and executive editor Draggan Mihailovich. Only three correspondents remain: Lesley Stahl, Bill Whitaker, and Jon Wertheim.

Pushing back on Murphy’s claims, Maher dismissed the idea that Pelley’s firing — and those of the other correspondents — make for a dire situation.

“I just don’t think being a 60 Minutes correspondent is that hard. I don’t feel like Scott Pelley was a national treasure,” Maher said, which earned some shocked laughter from the live audience. “I never liked him, sorry. I just never did.”

Maher continued, “Companies change hands. People bring in their own people, their new ownership. I feel like we see everything through such a partisan lens. ‘Oh my God! 60 Minutes has a new cast!’ So does Saturday Night Live!”

“It’s not just 60 Minutes,” Murphy argued, pointing to the exit of Late Show host Stephen Colbert, whom he dubbed one of Trump’s “chief late night critics.”

CBS has been under intense scrutiny on the heels of Paramount-Skydance CEO David Ellison‘s insertion of Bari Weiss atop the network’s news division. That coincided with the cancelation of The Late Show, a heavily criticized decision that has proven all the more controversial as the network’s parent company seeks approval from Trump regulators to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, parent company of Maher’s employer, HBO. All of this has resulted in speculation that the recent changes to news programming are an effort to appease the president.

“I get it. I agree, he’s a danger to media,” Maher said of Trump. “He’s a danger to freedom of speech. But just 60 Minutes? I don’t know. And I’m not gonna make that decision until I see a smoking gun,” he continued, joking, “Something like, ‘Oh wow, Candance Owens and Alex Jones on 60 Minutes!”

Murphy argued, “They’re always going to maintain a veneer of objectivity. The good ones who are trying to carefully transition a country from democracy to autocracy don’t do it overnight. It is methodical that over time you feel like you don’t have the space to criticize and if you are going to put forth the administration’s propaganda you get an elevated seat at the table. That doesn’t just turn on a dime.”

“When I see actual evidence of that, I’ll be on your side,” Maher replied.

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Pelley’s exit came after an explosive staff meeting on June 1 saw him clash with Weiss and Nick Bilton, a former New York Times technology columnist who was recently appointed to run 60 Minutes. Pelley accused Weiss of “murdering 60 Minutes,” and slammed Bilton for having “slender qualifications for this job.” He was terminated the next day.

On June 7, Pelley gave his first interview since the firing and stood by his decision to speak out in the meeting.

“I felt that somebody had to stand up not just for the broadcast but for the people,” Pelley said, getting emotional. “There are people in that room who go to war zones when they are pregnant. Newsrooms are sort of like the military or the police or the beautiful people at the FDNY down the street. It is a life-threatening job in many instances. And to have people running CBS News, who don’t know that, have never felt that, and don’t understand it, is a tragedy.”

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