Jeff Fager, executive producer of CBS News’ “60 Minutes,” is leaving the company amid sexual harassment and assault accusations from several women.
According to Washington Post and CNN reporters, CBS News president David Rhodes circulated a staff-wide memo Wednesday announcing Fager’s departure.
“Jeff Fager is leaving the company effective immediately,” Rhodes wrote. “Bill Owens will manage the 60 Minutes team as Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews and I begin the search for a new executive producer of the program.”
“This action today is not directly related to the allegations surfaced in press reports, which continue to be investigated independently,” he continued. “However, he violated company policy and it is our commitment to uphold those policies at every level.”
Fager was named in reporter Ronan Farrow’s recent piece centered on Les Moonves, former CBS Corp. chief executive. Both Moonves and Fager have been accused by multiple women of sexual harassment and assault, which was allegedly part of a broader hostile workplace for women at CBS. Moonves has left his post but is currently staying on in an advisory role while outside law firms investigate the accusations brought by 12 different women against him.
In a statement, Fager denied the allegations and added that the termination was unrelated to them.
“The company’s decision had nothing to do with the false allegations printed in The New Yorker,” the statement reads. “Instead, they terminated my contract early because I sent a text message to one of our own CBS reporters demanding that she be fair in covering the story. My language was harsh and, despite the fact that journalists receive harsh demands for fairness all the time, CBS did not like it. One such note should not result in termination after 36 years, but it did.”
