Status founder Oliver Darcy took to his newsletter Monday night with a predictable target in CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss with a predictable set of wingmen (and women) in anonymous sources inside the network. The topic? They threw a collective hissy fit over chief Washington correspondent and longtime political journalist Major Garrett scoring the 60 Minutes interview with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Of course, Darcy’s nearly 1,200-word airing of grievances barely touched on the substance of Garrett’s probing interview. Instead, it was all about process and a collective declaration that Weiss didn’t do things how it was supposed to be done, which is let the (elitist snobs) at 60 Minutes have full autonomy and send Lesley Stahl.
His headline and subhead reeked of bitterness: “The Major Trouble at ‘60'; Bari Weiss’ decision to hand another high-profile “60 Minutes” interview to Major Garrett—who is not a correspondent on the show—prompted backlash inside the newsmagazine, Status has learned.”
Because journalists love being the story, Darcy quickly conceded his story was much to do about nothing before devolving into the prepubescent snipping, stating “[f]rom a public-facing standpoint, the interview was a success” as it “generated a string of newsmaking headlines[.]”
From there, however, Darcy said “Status has learned that famed ‘60 Minutes’ correspondent Lesley Stahl had also been gunning for the interview but was upstaged by CBS News boss Bari Weiss, who booked Netanyahu herself and handed the interview to Garrett, who is notably not a ‘60 Minutes’ correspondent.”
This, he asserted, “sparked hostility and amplified the already strained relationship between Weiss and the reporting team at the iconic newsmagazine” as per “the accounts of five people familiar with the events that unfolded[.]”
Darcy pulled on this thread that Weiss has crossed a line that shall not be crossed when it comes to letting this supposed crown jewel operate however they see fit (click “expand”):
Traditionally, CBS News chiefs have not meddled in the inner workings of “60 Minutes,” even though the program has technically fallen under their purview. Instead, they have generally allowed it to operate with a high degree of autonomy, leaving the executive producer to call the shots. Weiss, however, has opted for a far more hands-on approach, something that became clear when she infamously held correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi’s CECOT piece in December.
Weiss’ involvement has extended beyond editorial review and into bookings. In recent months, she has played a direct role in securing high-profile guests for the program, Status has learned. And while that may not sound controversial on its face, it is who Weiss has assigned those interviews to that has triggered blowback internally.
In noting this was the second time Garrett created “intern frustruation” by securing a high-profile interview for 60 Minutes (with the other being Secretary of War Pete Hegseth), Darcy went low in dissing Garrett as though he’s some nobody: “While Garrett is a veteran newsman respected in Washington, his only dedicated platform at the network is on its little-watched streaming service.”
“According to people familiar with the matter, Stahl had already spent months attempting to secure an interview with Netanyahu for the program to no avail. When she and the other correspondents learned Netanyahu had agreed to a sit-down for the show, but that the assignment had instead been handed to Garrett, tensions quickly escalated,” Darcy complained, adding the 60 Minutes crew feel like Netanyahu went “around Stahal...and that Weiss had assisted him in doing so[.]”
These godless liberals treat Stahl as though she’s a saint: “The extraordinary move is unlikely to sit well with Stahl, whose contract has been on a year-to-year basis for some time and is set to expire at the end of the current season, Status has learned.”
Darcy later closed by acting a Deep State mouthpiece warning President Trump not to cross them, saying Weiss should “be wise to think carefully about” altering “such rigid internal traditions” at the famous show.
The New York Post followed Tuesday by saying Netanyahu agreed to speak with CBS “only after giving him a choice between Stahl and Garrett.”
Mediaite founder Dan Abrams pushed back on this hullabaloo:
Not sure why this is a story. Networks let big interview subjects pick or approve the interviewer all the time as long as their network gets the interview. https://t.co/fAVe2VxPO2
— Dan Abrams (@danabrams) May 13, 2026
In Tuesday’s newsletter, Darcy doubled down on his dictatorial bent, huffing that Weiss “[a]llowing a sitting head of government to select his interviewer runs afoul of ethical norms and runs counter to the editorial standards of ‘60 Minutes’” and “has generated significant consternation behind the scenes at CBS News[.]”
Once again, none of this has concerned the substance of Garrett’s interview. Rather, it’s all about the personality and snipes you’d expect from rival groups of high school teens.
