60 Minutes Premiere Draws 7.9 Million Viewers, Down 21% in Bari Weiss Debut
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Sep 15
60 Minutes Premiere Draws 7.9 Million Viewers, Down 21% in Bari Weiss Debut
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 15
Summary
7.9 million viewers watched Sunday’s “60 Minutes” season premiere, down from 10 million a year earlier and marking the show’s lowest-rated premiere in recent memory.
The weak debut is an early setback for Bari Weiss, whose overhaul ousted senior leaders and correspondents before installing Nick Bilton to modernize the CBS newsmagazine.
CBS’s lead-in likely also mattered: “60 Minutes” usually follows NFL games, and last year’s premiere benefited from an exclusive marquee late-afternoon matchup, while this Sunday CBS split viewers with Fox airing a game at the same time.
The ratings drop lands after a chaotic off-season and a heavily promoted return that featured an exclusive interview with an Air Force pilot shot down over Iran, sharpening scrutiny of whether the revamp can lift the long-running franchise.