Lesley Stahl’s Toast To ‘60 Minutes’ Staffers Says A Lot About The Climate At CBS

“60 Minutes” correspondent Lesley Stahl gave a telling toast over Champagne this week to colleagues at the CBS news show.

“My toast was, ‘to us,’ meaning the survivors,” Stahl told The New York Times on Tuesday. “Maybe ‘us’ with a twinge of survivor’s guilt.”

Stahl was moved to pop the cork on a promise from Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison to respect the editorial freedom of “60 Minutes,” according to the newspaper.

But that remains to be seen.

Under Donald Trump pal Ellison’s corporate stewardship, CBS News’ Editor-in-chief Bari Weiss has pushed the network rightward. Firings have claimed Stahl’s fellow correspondents Scott Pelley, Sharyn Alfonsi, Cecilia Vega and producer Tanya Simon.

Previously departed correspondent Anderson Cooper, who publicly attributed his exit to wanting to spend more time with his children, pleaded for the show to maintain its independence in a farewell speech that rankled Weiss.

Stahl and fellow stars Bill Whitaker and Jon Wertheim have told the staff they would remain so “60 Minutes’ doesn’t “die.”