Lesley Stahl Had 'Long Dinner' with New “60 Minutes” Boss Nick Bilton After Scott Pelley Firing

Brenton BlanchetFri, June 5, 2026 at 4:31 PM UTC

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Lesley Stahl; Nick BiltonCredit: Dominik Bindl/Getty; Albert L. Ortega/Getty -

60 Minutes' new executive producer had a dinner with longtime correspondent Lesley Stahl on Wednesday, June 3 following a series of firings at the newsmagazine

PEOPLE has obtained a letter to staff from Nick Bilton, who revealed that he met with the show's three remaining correspondents after the headline-making termination Scott Pelley

Pelley has accused CBS execs of prioritizing political bias and currying favor with the White House

60 Minutes' new executive producer sent a message to staff about the newsmagazine's three remaining correspondents: Lesley Stahl, Bill Whitaker and Jon Wertheim.

Former investigative tech journalist Nick Bilton — who was appointed EP in May as part of a major staffing overhaul at the legacy news program — shared in a memo with the show's staff on Thursday, June 4 that he's spoken to the three remaining correspondents about how to move forward amid a period of headline-making shakeups.

PEOPLE has obtained the letter, initially reported on by The Hollywood Reporter. PEOPLE can also confirm that Bilton has spoken to the correspondents and had a long dinner with Stahl, 84, on Wednesday, June 3.

"It has been a trying and difficult few days. I know that. I've spent a lot of time in conversation with many of you, and especially in consultation with Lesley, Bill and Jon," Bilton wrote in his note to staff. "We talked about what makes 60 Minutes exceptional, about the traditions and legacy of the past, about how you do the work that produces such momentous pieces. We also talked about change: About new audiences, new platforms, and new ways of storytelling that these new audiences need. We'll speak more about that in the weeks to come."

Credit: Gilbert Carrasquillo/GC Images; Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty; Jamie McCarthy/Getty

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Bilton's note comes days after the explosive firing of longtime correspondent Scott Pelley. The overarching staffing overhaul has also involved the exits of Pelley's colleagues Cecilia Vega and Sharyn Alfonsi, as well as Bilton replacing executive producer Tanya Simon, who was fired by CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss and CBS News president Tom Cibrowski.

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Bilton initially accused Pelley of an "ambush" and "misconduct" following a staff meeting the day prior in a termination letter obtained by PEOPLE on Tuesday, June 2. In his own statement, Pelley accused CBS execs of prioritizing political bias and currying favor with President Donald Trump.

Scott PelleyCredit: Michele Crowe/CBS News via Getty

In his latest memo to staff, the EP praised the show's "commitment to accuracy and care" and the staff's "standards of excellence in presentation, reporting and production." He insisted the "North Star" of the show will be stories, rather than "relationships" or "politics."

"Lesley, Bill and Jon are core to this show's success," he wrote. "They have sat across from the most powerful people in the world and refused to blink. Audiences trust them because they have proved it, story by story, for decades. Working with them is a privilege and every journalist's dream. Over the past few days, I have thanked each of you for your work, and I will say it again here: thank you. It's been a hell of a first week."

During a staff meeting held by Bilton on Monday, June 1, Pelley accused Weiss of "murdering" 60 Minutes, per multiple reports. According to The New York Times, he reportedly told Bilton that Weiss had "no qualifications for her job; you have slender qualifications for this job."

While Bilton later claimed the journalist was showing "performative display[s] of hostility," Pelley said the newsmagazine "lost its DNA when our entire senior leadership and two of our best on-air correspondents were cruelly fired without cause." He also alleged that executives "instructed" him to "inject falsehoods and bias into a politically sensitive story."

"I depart after 37 years at CBS with one emotion—a heart brimming with gratitude for the men and women of CBS News who encouraged and enriched my work, very often at the risk of their own lives," Pelley wrote, in part. "I pray for a day when those people and their ideals are honored again—a day when sanity, competence, and courage return."

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