Pelley grew up in Lubbock, Texas, and started working in newsrooms at fifteen, as a copyboy for the local paper. He studied journalism at Texas Tech, then worked his way through Texas TV stations before CBS brought him to New York in 1989. At CBS, Pelley made a name for himself covering war zones, from Iraq to the Gulf, Bosnia, and later Ukraine, Afghanistan, Syria, and Sudan.

He joined 60 Minutes full-time in 2004 and spent 22 years there, becoming the most awarded correspondent in the broadcast’s history. From 2011 to 2017, he doubled up as anchor of the CBS Evening News, where ratings climbed for the first time in years. He also interviewed sitting presidents, from George HW Bush through Joe Biden.

Scott Pelley also served as moderator of the town hall special episode on Things That Matter, where he interviewed former United States Senator Ben Sasse. However, his career at CBS came to an end in June 2026, when the network terminated him after he confronted incoming 60 Minutes executive producer Nick Bilton in a staff meeting and accused network leadership of political bias. He is yet to announce a new role since his departure.