Politics'60 Minutes' Faces Backlash From Critics Over 'Softball' Pete Hegseth Interview: 'It Looks Like a Total Propaganda Piece'
One critic called CBS 'a bunch of sellouts.'
Sept. 14 2026, Published 11:28 a.m. ET
60 Minutes faced intense public backlash after its 59th season premiere on Sunday, September 13, as viewers and critics widely panned Norah O'Donnell's interview with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as a "softball" puff piece.
The segment focused on a U.S. military operation that rescued an F-15 weapons systems officer stranded in Iran. Viewers flooded social media platforms, calling the segment "state TV" and "pure propaganda," noting that O'Donnell, who has officially returned to CBS Mornings as a permanent third co-anchor, offered plenty of nodding but zero hard questions or pushback against the Trump administration official.
Social Media Weighs In
'60 Minutes' was called 'pathetic' for not pushing back on Pete Hegseth's interview.
“Pathetic 60 Minutes, you tried so hard to make Pete Hegseth look like a brave, heroic leader. It looks like a total propaganda piece,” one commenter wrote in response to a clip shared by the show on X.
"You asked him 100 percent softballs. No pushback. Pathetic. Propaganda,” said another.
“Wow. riveting stuff from a bunch of sellouts. do yourself a favor y’all and turn this propaganda off,” a third critic penned.
Before the broadcast, CNN reported that Hegseth and Pentagon political appointees heavily pressured the two rescued Air Force crew members to appear on the episode.
Inside the Changes at CBS
The Pentagon denied pressuring two rescued Air Force crew members to appear on '60 Minutes.'
While one crew member agreed to go on camera under the call sign "Bravo," the pilot declined. The Pentagon strongly denied applying any undue pressure.
Media critics linked the interview's friendly tone to sweeping changes at CBS News. The network's editor-in-chief, Bari Weiss, has faced ongoing internal friction from long-time staffers over efforts to reshape 60 Minutes into a more conservative, "MAGA-friendly" program.
“Norah absolutely willing to play the part of dimwit reporter used as a propaganda tool," Zeteo’s media columnist, Justin Baragona, said.
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Will '60 Minutes' Get Canceled?
Journalist Brian Stelter said 'everyone will have an opinion about' the '60 Minutes' episode.
According to Baragona, a senior CBS staffer said 60 Minutes was over.
“The show is dead. We’re just looking at some Frankenstein of bits sewn together of mismatched pieces,” Baragona said the employee told him.
CNN media analyst Brian Stelter posed his own question on X, asking followers for their opinions on the venerable news magazine's return.
“No thanks,” one user replied. “Won’t be watching its transition into State TV.”
“Will never watch it again unless CBS makes major changes. It’s dead to me,” another wrote.
Pete Hegseth promoted the Trump administration’s military agenda on '60 Minutes.'
The embattled Defense Secretary served as both an on-camera interview subject and the behind-the-scenes driving force orchestrating the entire segment.
On-camera, Hegseth used his sit-down with O'Donnell to heavily promote the Trump administration’s military agenda. He claimed that the U.S. has "historic" devastation over Iran's capabilities.
He stated, "we have all the control in the world about what this outcome looks like," using the segment to project total strategic victory despite waning public support for the campaign.
Tami Radabaugh, Hegseth's former Fox News producer and now his senior adviser at the Department of Defense, directly managed coordination between the Pentagon and CBS.
