CBS News has named a new “60 Minutes” executive producer to replace Bill Owens, the longtime EP who resigned from the job just weeks before the network’s parent company settled a lawsuit brought against the program by President Trump.
Tanya Simon, who served as a top deputy to Owens, has been with “60 Minutes” for 25 years, most recently serving as interim executive producer. She is just the fourth EP in the broadcast’s 57-year history and the first woman in the role.
“Tanya Simon understands what makes 60 MINUTES tick. She is an innovative leader, an exceptional producer and someone who knows how to inspire people,” Tom Cibrowski, president and executive editor of CBS News, said in a statement announcing the move.
The news comes at a time of major tension for CBS and its parent company, Paramount Global.
The decision to settle Trump’s lawsuit, which stemmed from an allegation that “60 Minutes” deliberately edited an interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris last fall to cast her in a positive light, has angered many inside the network, across the media and in political worlds.
Last week, CBS announced it was canceling “The Late Show” with Stephen Colbert, a Trump critic and comedian who had called out Paramount for the settlement with Trump, calling it a “big fat bribe.”
Paramount is close to closing a deal to be acquired by fellow entertainment giant Skydance, a multi-billion dollar transaction that will need approval from Trump’s Federal Communications Commission.
Trump has celebrated the settlement and Colbert’s cancelation and alleged “New Paramount” the company that will exist after the merger, has agreed to provide him millions in advertising and PSAs, a claim Paramount has denied.
David Ellison, Skydance’s top executive who is set to preside over the new company, in a recent regulatory filing indicated he was committed to “unbiased journalism” and the new company would embrace a “variety of viewpoints,” after the merger.
