Anderson Cooper is leaving ’60 Minutes.’ Why he’s exiting the troubled newsmagazine

Anderson Cooper, who has reported for CBS’ “60 Minutes” for the past two decades in addition to hosting a weeknight news program on CNN, said Monday that he’s leaving the CBS broadcast to spend more time with his family.

His decision comes at a time of turmoil at “60 Minutes.” Cooper appeared on the show Sunday night, introducing a brief piece on filmmaker Ken Burns. It’s not likely to be his last time on the show; he’s expected to finish the current broadcast season, which ends in May.

“Being a correspondent at ’60 Minutes’ has been one of the great honors of my career,” Cooper said in a statement. “I got to tell amazing stories, and work with some of the best producers, editors and camera crew in the business. For nearly 20 years, I’ve been able to balance my jobs and CNN and CBS, but I have little kids now and I want to spend as much time with them as possible, while they still want to spend time with me.”

Cooper’s exit from what remains the most prestigious show in television news is sure to raise questions about whether it had anything to do with the leadership of Bari Weiss, editor-in-chief of CBS News since last fall. Cooper’s spokesperson said Monday he had no additional comment.

He has contributed stories to “60 Minutes” since the 2006-2007 television season in a unique job-sharing arrangement with CNN. His prime-time cable news show, “Anderson Cooper 360,” has aired since 2003.

In a statement, CBS News praised Cooper for his two decades of work.

“We’re grateful to him for dedicating so much of his life to this broadcast, and understand the importance of spending more time with family,” CBS said. “’60 Minutes’ will be here if he ever wants to return.”

His exit comes at a time of unease at the Sunday night newsmagazine known for its ticking stopwatch. At Weiss’ direction, the show in December held off at the last minute showing a report from correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi about the Trump administration’s immigration policy. She said a greater effort was needed to get an interview with administration officials, while Alfonsi complained privately that the decision was political in nature. The story aired a month later with additional administration comments, but no on-camera interviews.

President Donald Trump sued “60 Minutes” for how it handled an interview with his 2024 election opponent, Kamala Harris. Much to the consternation of many at the broadcast, CBS’s parent company Paramount Global settled with Trump out-of-court.

Cooper’s exit from CBS was first reported by the online news site Breaker.

David Bauder writes about the intersection of media and entertainment for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social.

—David Bauder, AP Media Writer