‘60 Minutes' has history of cozy interviews and self-promotion
Beware of those who publicly declare that their stuff doesn't stink.
Recently, CBS newsman and '60 Minutes' regular Scott Pelley made news and noise when he seized the close of the venerable program to deliver an appeal, threat or whatever, depending on how one heard it, to CBS News parent Paramount, as it was reportedly preparing to settle a lawsuit brought last year by President Trump over the show's very cozy interview with VP Kamala Harris during last year's presidential campaign.
Pelley cited the week's resignation of '60 Minutes' executive producer, Bill Owens, adding, 'Paramount began to supervise our content in new ways. None of our stories has been blocked, but Bill felt he lost the independence that honest journalism requires. … Bill made sure they were accurate and fair.
Advertisement
'He was tough that way, but our parent company Paramount is trying to complete a merger. The Trump administration must approve it.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBS News
4 minutes ago
- CBS News
Family of Sarah Milgrim speaks out in first network TV interview since fatal D.C. Jewish museum shooting: "Sarah molded us"
The family of Sarah Milgrim, one of the two Israeli Embassy staffers who was shot and killed outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., last month, is remembering her as courageous, strong and striving for peace. Milgrim's parents, Robert and Nancy, and her older brother, Jacob, spoke to CBS News' Jonah Kaplan for their first network TV interview since the shooting about how they're processing their grief, Sarah's mission to promote peace in the Middle East and the rise in antisemitism in the United States. "Usually, a parent tries to mold their child. Sarah molded us," Robert Milgrim said. "She was a stronger person than I ever was." "I told Nancy after this happened that I'm a different person now than before this happened, from learning so much about what Sarah did and her courage and her striving for peace," he said. Wednesday marks two weeks since Milgrim and her boyfriend, Yaron Lischinsky, who also worked for the Israeli Embassy, were shot and killed as they left an event at the Capital Jewish Museum. Law enforcement officials described the attack as "targeted" and said the suspect shouted "Free Palestine" as he was being detained. He has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder and other crimes. The interview with the Milgrim family airs Wednesday on "CBS Mornings" and "CBS Evening News."
Yahoo
6 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Advisors Say $1,000 ‘Trump Accounts' Won't Benefit Families Who Need Help Most
Are your clients planning on having children? Tell them to hurry it up. Inside the Trump administration's key $4 trillion tax bill is a proposed idea to open accounts for each new baby born in the US until 2028. The so-called 'Trump Accounts' are seeded with $1,000 that gets invested in equities and locked up until the child's 18th birthday. Parents can also contribute up to $5,000 annually. Previously called MAGA accounts, the funds are designed to help parents prepare for their children's financial futures. But, what do advisors think about the proposed accounts? 'They are stupid,' said Catherine Valega, an advisor with Green Bee Advisory, adding that the wealthy have plenty of options to save, while the less affluent won't be able to afford additional contributions. READ ALSO: Bitcoin Rules for Now, but the Crypto Landscape Is Vast and RIA Headcount, AUM Shattered Records in 2024 The idea of funding accounts for newly born children is nothing new. In fact, before the current administration, the accounts were called 'Baby Bonds' and have been floated by politicians on both sides of the aisle. Well-known financial advisor Ric Edelman has been a prominent supporter of the idea, and even started a trust product with annuities for babies in 1999. But today, most advisors said the proposed Trump accounts will largely benefit upper-class families who can afford to contribute annually. 'The real advantage will go to families with enough disposable income to consistently fund the account,' said Edzai Chimedza, a CFP and advisor at Tobias Financial, adding that it's an attractive tool for upper-middle-class and affluent families, who are more likely to be able to contribute after covering essentials, like retirement savings and emergency funds. The accounts aren't the only savings options out there, either. Who can forget those 529 plans that have grown significantly more flexible over the years and are a great option to save for college, Valega asked. A guardian Roth IRA can also help children jump-start their retirement savings, while helping them get up to speed with the stock market. Baby Got Tax. For families that can pitch funds into the accounts, it makes sense to stop and think about a client's intentions, said Sarah Avila, an advisor with VLP Financial Advisors. 'If you are eligible to open the account for your baby, it is worth it to get the free $1,000 from the government,' she said. But clients should be aware that earnings on qualified withdrawals will be taxed at long-term capital gains rates. 'If the idea is to save for college, contributing to a 529 plan is more advantageous, from a tax perspective, because the money is tax free,' she said. This post first appeared on The Daily Upside. To receive financial advisor news, market insights, and practice management essentials, subscribe to our free Advisor Upside newsletter.
CNN
6 minutes ago
- CNN
‘It is a whole different environment': Republicans revisit key Biden investigations with new momentum
The House Judiciary Committee is expected to interview former Hunter Biden special counsel David Weiss behind closed doors on Friday, two sources familiar with the interview told CNN, as part of a broader Republican effort to revisit previous probes into the Biden family that stalled last Congress but are gaining new momentum now that Republicans control both chambers of Congress and the White House. The scheduled interview, which could still be moved, would be the second time the Republican-led panel will interview Weiss about his work as Republicans continue to probe whether the investigation was hampered by political interference. Weiss has still never testified publicly about his six-year criminal probe into the president's son, which included three convictions, but was ultimately short-circuited as a result of the former president's unconditional pardon of his son. House Judiciary Republicans have long wanted to call Weiss, the Trump-appointed US attorney, back for questioning after his first closed-door interview in 2023. Committee Republicans were also able to finally secure interviews with two Department of Justice tax division prosecutors involved in the Hunter Biden probe who they had been aggressively pursuing for months, one of the sources familiar told CNN. The Justice Department is working with Weiss to provide access to documents he may need for his interview, a person briefed on the matter said. Any delays in getting access to documents would be a scheduling issue and the ability to have personnel who can oversee it, the person briefed on the matter said. It's not the only Biden investigation Republicans are reexamining that leans into a fresh political appetite with GOP control of Washington. House Oversight Chair James Comer is returning to his probe of the former president's mental fitness in an entirely new landscape after a recent book by CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios' Alex Thompson put Joe Biden's physical and mental decline back in the spotlight. Comer told CNN he is in the process of scheduling key interviews with Biden's White House physician, Dr. Kevin O'Connor, and other senior aides who had all rebuffed his efforts last Congress. Beyond the five initial interviews from Biden's orbit, the Republican Chairman told CNN he wants to look at the executive orders Biden signed in his last six months in office and use of the autopen. In the weeks immediately after Biden's disastrous 2024 debate performance that unraveled his presidential campaign and upended the Democratic party, Comer requested to interview Biden's doctor and subpoenaed three senior Biden aides to discuss their roles in the Biden White House, which never materialized. Now, Comer said in an interview with CNN, 'it is a whole different environment.' At the time of his 2024 interview requests, Comer's impeachment inquiry into the Biden family's business dealings had fallen apart and the Biden administration felt no incentive to comply with the House Oversight Committee. Probing Biden's decline now, Comer says, will be a lot easier than trying to convince his colleagues of an alleged Biden family foreign influence peddling scheme, which even Comer conceded was difficult to do, particularly in a minute or less on Fox News. Republicans failed to uncover evidence to support their core allegations against the president, and lacked the votes in their divided, narrow majority last Congress to impeach the president. 'The money laundering and the shell companies, the average American couldn't understand that. I mean, that was hard to understand,' Comer told CNN. 'You know, I did not do a good job explaining that.' But with his investigation into Biden's mental and physical decline, Comer said, 'people see a president that clearly is in decline. They saw it in the debate.' Democrats sought to dismantle the Republican-led 11 month impeachment inquiry into Biden last Congress at every turn. Comer told CNN that although those Democrats aren't jumping at the opportunity to cooperate now, he does not see them as being obstructive either. 'I take that as a step in the right direction,' he told CNN. Tapper and Thompson's book documents how Biden, his closest aides and his family forged ahead with the former president's doomed 2024 reelection bid despite signs of his physical and mental decline. In a previous statement to CNN, a Biden spokesman criticized the book, saying that evidence shows that 'he was a very effective president.' Former Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips, who launched a long-shot challenge to Biden and was outspoken about his concerns over the former president's age, told CNN he did not think there needed to be an investigation on Capitol Hill at this point into Biden's fitness as president. 'This case already went to trial, the jury of American voters convicted the party of the accused, and handed out the harshest political punishment possible-losing the single most consequential election in modern history,' Phillips told CNN. Instead, Phillips called on Biden to authorize his physician to disclose his health file and condition under oath. 'Only if the former president refuses, or if questioning uncovers possible criminal activity, should an investigation be initiated,' Phillips added. Biden was recently diagnosed with an 'aggressive form' of prostate cancer.
