A veteran 60 Minutes producer announced he has left the CBS News show with a parting shot at the chaos surrounding the network’s boss, Bari Weiss.
Henry Schuster, who had been at 60 Minutes since 2007, confirmed his departure from the long-running news magazine on LinkedIn, saying he had been “thinking about leaving for a while.”
Schuster added that he decided to leave when the opportunity “presented itself in February,” suggesting he accepted a buyout.
While Schuster is leaving of his own accord, his post acknowledged that his departure has been “overshadowed by the forced departures of so many colleagues and friends” at 60 Minutes during Weiss’s disastrous tenure.
The Free Press founder had no previous experience in broadcast television news before she was parachuted into the editor-in-chief role at the now Trump-friendly network by CBS’s new owner, David Ellison.
Since then, Weiss has overseen numerous scandals, watched ratings slide across the network, and caused major friction in her attempt to overhaul its flagship 60 Minutes program, which has traditionally enjoyed editorial independence from the rest of CBS News.
Last month, Weiss fired several other figures from the network, including 60 Minutes correspondents Cecilia Vega and Sharyn Alfonsi, and executive producer Tanya Simon, on a day CBS staff have dubbed “Black Thursday.”
Longtime 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley was also fired after he clashed with Nick Bilton, the magazine show’s new executive producer, during a heated meeting in which Pelley accused Weiss of “murdering” 60 Minutes.
Elsewhere, Weiss has frequently intervened in 60 Minutes' editorial matters, including assigning other CBS journalists to conduct interviews for the program instead of its usual correspondents.
Early in her reign, Weiss sparked controversy by pulling an “Inside CECOT” 60 Minutes segment about the notorious El Salvador prison shortly before it was due to air.
In his LinkedIn post, Schuster said he has not yet decided on his next career move.
“What’s next? I ain’t the retiring type, so after a bit of a break, I will think about what comes next. Maybe I will finally get my high school diploma, or see if I have another book in me. Or maybe something else,” Schuster teased.
“I will try to avoid being a cliché, so I’m not starting a podcast or a Substack. At least not now.”
The Daily Beast has contacted CBS News for comment.
