Chris Wallace says his father and '60 Minutes' are responsible for the breakdown in news media
Chris Wallace, formerly of Fox News, now with CNN+, joined The Late Show With Stephen Colbert Monday, where he stunned Colbert when he blamed his legendary father, Mike Wallace, and 60 Minutes, where he worked for 40 years, for the distrust Americans have for the media.
“There has been a lot of talk about loss of trust by the American public in the media,” Colbert said. “If you had a magic wand, you could waive it, what would you change, either presently or historically, about the media to try to restore that trust?”
“In a funny way,” Wallace responded, “I blame my father for this, Mike Wallace and 60 Minutes.”
Wallace went on to explain how 60 Minutes negatively affected the news media landscape.
“It used to be in the old days, and I can remember growing up with my father in the ’70s, that news didn’t make money. It was a public service, and the networks viewed it as a public service,” Wallace said. “And then 60 Minutes came along and showed you could make phenomenal amounts of money with the news business.”
Wallace believes that the only way to fix the problem is for the focus to be on the news itself and not the potential profits.
“I think when you look at what goes on everywhere, probably particularly cable, and on the left as well as the right, people are chasing audiences,” Wallace said. “So I think that if there was not — if people just accepted, we’re not trying to make money off this, we’re just trying to perform a public service, I think we’d have better news.”
Video Transcript
STEPHEN COLBERT: If you had a magic wand, you could wave it, what would you change either presently or historically about the media to try to restore that trust?
CHRIS WALLACE: In a funny way, I blame my father for this, Mike Wallace and "60 Minutes."
STEPHEN COLBERT: Wow.
KYLIE MAR: Former Fox News host Chris Wallace joined "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" where he blamed his father for the current state of and distrust in the news media. Mike Wallace spent 40 years at, "60 Minutes," a show that Wallace said changed the news and not for the better.
CHRIS WALLACE: It used to be in the old days, and I can remember growing up with my father in the '70s, that news didn't make money. It was a public service.
STEPHEN COLBERT: Right.
CHRIS WALLACE: And the networks viewed it as a public service. And then "60 Minutes" came along and showed you could make phenomenal amounts of money with the news business.
KYLIE MAR: Wallace believes that the desire to chase ratings and make money is what needs to change if the news and the public's faith in it are to be restored.
CHRIS WALLACE: When you look at what goes on everywhere, probably particularly cable and on the left as well as the right, people are chasing audiences. So I think that if there was not-- if people would just accept that we're not trying to make money off this, we're just trying to perform a public service, I think we'd have better news.
