CBS News correspondent Scott MacFarlane on Monday announced his surprise exit from the network – saying he looks forward to “some independence” in the latest shake-up under editor in chief Bari Weiss.
The journo shared a note he sent to CBS staffers on social media after “Tom” – likely CBS News president Tom Cibrowski – announced his exit during a meeting that morning.
“To my incredible colleagues at CBS: I want to personally let you know that my work will soon no longer appear on CBS News. This is my decision, and I appreciate the bosses at CBS for understanding it,” MacFarlane wrote in the note.
CBS News correspondent Scott MacFarlane speaks with US Rep. Jim Jordan in the US Capitol building. Getty Images “For the next phase of my career, I look forward to some independence and finding new spaces to share my work in line with my personal goals … The work will not stop, and I’ll always be a call away.”
CBS and its parent company Paramount Skydance did not immediately respond to The Post’s requests for comment.
MacFarlane joined CBS News in 2021 as a justice correspondent after spending eight years at NBC Washington as an investigative reporter.
He also worked as a fill-in host for SiriusXM’s politics channel and an investigative correspondent at COX Media Group radio and TV affiliate stations across Washington.
MacFarlane was a frequent contributor to CBS News’ morning and evening reports, covering the 1,600 federal cases resulting from the Jan. 6 attacks on the Capitol – and he was on-site during the assassination attempt on Trump in Butler, Penn., reporting the first accounts of the shooting.
It’s the latest high-profile exit from CBS News since Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison last October installed Weiss to bring more conservative voices to the network.
Shawna Thomas, the executive producer of “CBS Mornings” since 2021, announced her exit from the network last week.
MacFarlane said he is looking forward to “some independence” after leaving the network. X / Scott Macfarlane Thomas had been on the hot seat over polarizing programming including a segment last year that featured “Bob the Drag Queen,” which critics claimed alienated traditional morning show viewers, The Post previously reported.
“CBS Mornings” – once seen as a cash cow for the broadcaster stuck stubbornly in third place – saw its ratings plummet below 1.8 million daily viewers in recent months under Thomas’ lead.
CBS News producer Alicia Hastey recently announced her departure from the network in a fiery memo that accused the Weiss-led newsroom of pressuring staffers to “self-censor.”
The Post previously reported that 11 “Evening News” staffers, the majority of them producers, have accepted voluntary buyouts to leave the network ahead of layoffs that could kick off as soon as this month.
The offer came after Weiss told employees during a January town hall that they were free to leave if they didn’t like her strategy for the struggling news division.
Weiss – a former New York Times opinion columnist, founder of The Free Press and outspoken critic of “cancel culture” and “woke” politics – has faced heated backlash since taking the helm at CBS News.
Earlier this year, “60 Minutes” correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi accused her of playing politics when she shelved a segment on El Salvador’s infamous CECOT prison until administration voices were added.
Weiss also faced ire for refraining from immediately ditching Peter Attia – who stepped down as a CBS News contributor last month – after the release of Epstein files revealed the anti-aging researcher’s chummy relationship with the late convicted sex offender.
Since taking the helm at the network, Weiss has also replaced “Evening News” anchors John Dickerson and Maurice DuBois with Tony Dokoupil – who stumbled through his first broadcast behind the desk in January.
