‘CBS Evening News’ anchor thanks Scott Pelley during broadcast: ‘He believed Freedom of the Press’
Pelley was fired by CBS from his role on '60 Minutes' earlier this week.
Liam Carter 
During Wednesday's broadcast, CBS Evening News anchor Tony Dokoupil took a moment to publicly thank recently fired journalist Scott Pelley, reflecting on the veteran reporter’s influence at the network.
Honoring a Mentor
Dokoupil shared his personal connection to Pelley, noting that when he first arrived at CBS, Pelley was still anchoring from the same desk while juggling multiple segments for 60 Minutes. "He believed Freedom of the Press, to quote (James) Madison, was the right that guaranteed all the others and that the stakes are always that high," Dokoupil said, emphasizing the standard Pelley set for those around him. He concluded the segment by addressing Pelley directly: "Well, Scott, from all of us, thank you."
Turmoil at 60 Minutes
Pelley's departure comes in the wake of a massive leadership shakeup at the long-running program. CBS News fired the 68-year-old journalist on Tuesday, just one day after a heated staff meeting where Pelley reportedly claimed Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss was “murdering the show” and questioned the qualifications of the program's new leadership.
According to a report from Status, Pelley challenged the program's new executive producer, Nick Bilton, during the meeting. In a termination notice obtained by The Associated Press, Bilton accused Pelley of staging an "ambush" and displaying "remarkable incivility and contempt" during his first staff meeting.
Pelley has maintained that 60 Minutes has strayed from its core identity under current management. In a statement, the journalist accused network leadership of pressuring him to include "falsehoods and bias" in his reporting.
The Associated Press contributed to this report for 205focus.com.
