Overview
- Speaking at Colby College as he accepted the Lovejoy Award, Bill Owens gave his first public account since resigning from 60 Minutes in April.
- He said Paramount executives pressed him to apologize for the program’s edit of a Kamala Harris interview tied to Trump’s lawsuit, which he refused.
- Owens recounted being told through intermediaries not to pursue additional Gaza segments after what he said was Shari Redstone’s objection to prior coverage.
- He said he was encouraged to scale back references to Donald Trump, including a call questioning whether his name needed to be mentioned so often.
- He tied the pressures to the company’s Skydance merger approval effort, noting the network later settled Trump’s suit for a reported $16 million before the FCC cleared the deal, and Paramount declined comment.