Joe Rogan
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A flat denial from CBS News has done little to calm the turmoil surrounding America's most storied newsmagazine, which is now losing talent and credibility at a striking pace.

CBS News appears to be in freefall. Since editor-in-chief Bari Weiss took the helm of the network in October 2025, 60 Minutes, the highest-rated news programme on American television, has lost two correspondents, its veteran executive producer and its most recognisable face in Anderson Cooper, all within a single season. Now, a tabloid-driven rumour that podcaster Joe Rogan is being lined up to fill the void has forced a rare public denial from the network itself.

On Thursday, 4 June, a CBS News spokesperson told Forbes that reports claiming Rogan was under consideration for a role at 60 Minutes were false. The rumour had originated with RadarOnline, a celebrity gossip site, which published a report claiming CBS executives were considering Rogan as the 'spiritual successor' to Cooper, based on a single anonymous 'insider' whose connection to either Rogan or CBS was unclear. The story was later amplified by the Austin American-Statesman, the newspaper in Rogan's home city.

The Rumour And Its Roots

RadarOnline described Rogan as the 'ultimate outsider and alpha male' whose global reach had caught the eye of CBS brass, framing the move as a response to criticism that American broadcast television exists as a left-leaning echo chamber. Anonymous sources cited in the original report leaned heavily on Rogan's numbers. One television industry insider claimed it was 'not stunt casting, it's strategy,' arguing Rogan 'opens a direct pipeline to the massive MAGA audience CBS has struggled to reach for years.' A second media executive added that Rogan 'speaks to viewers who feel ignored or mocked by legacy media' and claimed his hiring could 'solve the ratings and credibility problems of CBS overnight.'

Rogan boasts 20.9 million subscribers on his YouTube channel, 'PowerfulJRE', in addition to millions of podcast listeners across platforms. One anonymous source quoted by Rob Shuter's Naughty But Nice Substack conceded that money would not be a factor in any such conversation, noting that Rogan 'makes more from podcasting than CBS could realistically offer.'

Rogan himself has not commented on the speculation. He has routinely expressed disdain for legacy and mainstream media throughout his career, making the premise of him joining one of America's most established news institutions a difficult one to take at face value.

Cooper's Exit And The Weiss Overhaul

The vacancy that sparked the Rogan speculation belongs to Anderson Cooper, who spent nearly two decades as one of 60 Minutes' most trusted correspondents. Cooper announced in February 2026 that he would not renew his contract with the programme, citing a desire to spend more time with his two young sons. 'For nearly twenty years, I've been able to balance my jobs at CNN and CBS, but I have little kids now and I want to spend as much time with them as possible,' he said in a statement. His final broadcast aired on 17 May. 'I hope 60 Minutes remains 60 Minutes,' he said on his way out.

Sources suggested the decision was not purely personal. Cooper's final broadcast carried sharp subtext about institutional friction and 'editorial independence' under the network's more aggressive corporate regime. His departure followed a tumultuous period at the programme, including a controversial Trump–CBS legal settlement widely seen as tied to Paramount's merger with Skydance Media, and Weiss's decision to delay airing a 60 Minutes segment on a notorious El Salvador prison where the Trump administration had sent undocumented immigrants.

A Newsroom In Open Conflict

The Cooper vacancy was only the beginning. Weiss moved quickly. She dismissed veteran executive producer Tanya Simon, along with correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega, before installing Nick Bilton, a former technology journalist with no broadcast news experience, as the show's new executive producer.

The appointment ignited a rare public revolt. During Bilton's first staff meeting on Monday, 1 June, veteran correspondent Scott Pelley confronted him directly, accusing Weiss of trying to 'kill' 60 Minutes. When Bilton told the room that Weiss loved the programme, Pelley replied: 'She is murdering 60 Minutes. She does not love this place. She was brought in to kill it, and she's been doing exactly that.'

Bilton dismissed Pelley in a termination letter the following day, firing him 'for cause' after the confrontation. Weiss addressed the firing on a CBS News staff call on Wednesday morning, saying that trust had been 'broken' and that it was 'the path he chose.' Pelley pushed back. In a statement, he denied Weiss's claim that the network had sought common ground with him. 'In the meeting on Tuesday, in which I was effectively fired, there was no effort of any kind to find a way back,' he said. 'Weiss and Tom Cibrowski were openly hostile from the start. Firing was raised by Cibrowski in the first fifteen seconds.'

In total, more than a dozen reporters and staff have left or been dismissed from CBS News since Weiss was appointed in October 2025.

What Follows For 60 Minutes?

CBS has not announced any replacement for Cooper, nor outlined any clear direction for the programme heading into its next season. The network has not confirmed discussions with Rogan or any other candidate. The Rogan rumour, then, says less about CBS's actual strategy than it does about the anxiety surrounding what 60 Minutes is becoming under Weiss, a programme whose institutional identity is being contested in real time, correspondent by correspondent and meeting by meeting.

For a programme that has defined American television journalism for nearly six decades, the question is no longer whether Joe Rogan is joining. It is whether there will be a 60 Minutes left worth joining at all.

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