60 Minutes is a newsmagazine show that premiered on CBS on September 24, 1968. It was distinguished from other news programs from the start by its unique style of reporter-centered investigation. The first season featured just two correspondents — Harry Reasoner and Mike Wallace. Over the following decades, the roster expanded significantly, and the show became a fixture of Sunday night television.
The show airs Sunday evenings and has occupied the 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time slot since December 7, 1975. Three long-form news stories typically air per episode, each led by a different correspondent. Since the 2023-24 season, the show has occasionally expanded to 90 minutes for special episodes. Unlike other news magazines, 60 Minutes has never used a single anchor — each segment belongs entirely to the correspondent who reported it.
60 Minutes has marked 51 consecutive years as America’s number one news program, closing the 2024-25 broadcast season at the top of the ratings. It has been honored with almost every major broadcast journalism award, including 25 Peabody Awards for excellence in television broadcasting. Season 58, which began September 28, 2025, featured seven correspondents: Scott Pelley, Bill Whitaker, Anderson Cooper, Sharyn Alfonsi, Jon Wertheim, Cecilia Vega, and Lesley Stahl.
However, the show entered a period of turmoil in 2026. Anderson Cooper appeared in his final broadcast on May 17, 2026, choosing to leave to focus on his role at CNN. Correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi was fired on May 28, 2026, followed immediately by the firing of correspondent Cecilia Vega and executive producer Tanya Simon. CBS’s leadership then fired Scott Pelley in June 2026, after he publicly accused new executive producer Nick Bilton of lacking the credentials to lead the show. As of June 2026, only three correspondents remain: Bill Whitaker, Lesley Stahl, and Jon Wertheim.
