The final numbers are in.
The season premiere of “60 Minutes” dropped 21% from last year.
Total viewers were 7.9 million, down from 10 million in 2025.
That would have been a good number if it had been a regular episode last season. But the premiere? No.
New CBS chief Bari Weiss and EP Nick Bilton — each lacking broadcast TV experience — provided one decent segment sandwiched between two cream puffs.
Norah O’Donnell’s big scoop, the interview with the survivor of the Iran shoot down read like a Dept of Justice Press release. It was packaged perfectly with supplied “inside” footage and an interview with Pete Hegseth. The longer it went on, the worse it got. And what about soldier Bravo? He changed his name but not his face?
Lesley Stahl then lay down the law with an old fashioned expose of Donald Trump’s team accepting bribes for pardons. The piece was sharp and bold. If this were a different world, there would have been outrage about Trump and the cast of criminals who’ve paid for pardons. But CBS downplayed it.
Jon Wertheim’s NFL valentine followed. It was as expected.
Tick, tick, tick.
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