David Letterman calls CBS News a ‘wreck’ under newly installed leadership

Former CBS late-night host David Letterman has criticized his former network, calling its news division a “wreck” under its newly installed leadership.

“By the way, what about those idiots at CBS?” Letterman, 78, said in a clip posted to his YouTube channel on Friday from his appearance on The Barbara Gaines Show, a podcast hosted by his former executive producer. “CBS News is a wreck – it’s just gone.

“CBS News for decades, going back to [the second world war], before [it], Ed Murrow would be broadcasting the blitz of London from the rooftop of buildings in London for CBS Radio, and it was that mentality that drove the integrity of CBS News, that has been trampled on, pissed on, and eviscerated by these idiots that have taken it over,” Letterman added.

“And I’m at a point now where it really is hurting my feelings, because I’m sick and tired of people saying: ‘Oh, wait until those midterms.’ Kids, we’re far downstream of the midterms having any effect on this.”

CBS did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Letterman’s comments.

Those remarks come amid sweeping changes at CBS News in recent months, amid the finalized merger of the network’s parent company Paramount with Skydance Media, founded by billionaire David Ellison.

In July, Paramount reached a $16m settlement with Donald Trump over a CBS 60 Minutes interview that aired during the 2024 election which vaulted Trump to a second presidency. And as Paramount sought approval from the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for the merger, CBS announced it was cancelling The Late Show With Stephen Colbert – just several days after the host criticized Paramount’s settlement with Trump.

Then, in October, several months after the merger was finalized, Paramount named Bari Weiss as the new editor-in-chief of CBS News. Weiss did not have any television experience, and it was announced that the company would acquire her startup The Free Press, which became known for criticizing “woke” – or left-leaning – culture.

CBS employees have since described Weiss’ first few months on the job as chaotic.

In December, she hosted a town hall with Erika Kirk, the widow of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, which reportedly drew weak ratings. Weiss also overhauled the evening news broadcast, installing Tony Dokoupil as anchor, and soon abruptly terminated one of the show’s top producers, causing confusion in the newsroom.

Also in December, Weiss faced backlash after indefinitely shelving a 60 Minutes investigation into a notorious prison in El Salvador, citing issues, including a lack of a response from the Trump administration. The decision prompted outrage, and earlier in January it was reported that a group of former CBS News journalists sent a letter to Ellison expressing concerns over the decision.

In the podcast clip published on Friday, Letterman also addressed the brief suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show in September which followed pressure from two of ABC’s biggest affiliate partners, Nexstar and Sinclair, as well as the FCC. Kimmel’s suspension ended in part after calls to boycott products of ABC’s owner, Disney.

“What people don’t understand [is] Jimmy Kimmel single-handedly brought the people at Disney, and all of those other network television owners, to their knees,” Letterman said in the clip. “Jimmy Kimmel singlehandedly made them seem … to be the fools they are and continues to call attention to the plight.”

Letterman also said NBC late-night host Seth Meyers is “very good, and I’m telling you, we’re running out of places where you hear these voices”. He lamented “Stephen Colbert and that franchise” going, as he put it, “adios”.

“If we had a president … who was a Democrat and behaved the way this Republican president is behaving, Jimmy would be attacking the Democrat just as much as he attacks” Trump, Letterman said. “So it’s not like it’s all politically driven, it’s driven by the behavior the person in the office.”