Anderson Cooper is leaving CBS’s “60 Minutes” after nearly 20 years as a correspondent, saying he wants to spend more time with his young sons as the main reason for stepping away from the long-running news show.
The longtime journalist will depart at the end of the current broadcast season in May, as first reported by Breaker. Cooper joined “60 Minutes” during the 2006-2007 TV season while also hosting CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360,” which launched in 2003.
“Being a correspondent at 60 Minutes has been one of the great honors of my career,” Cooper said in a statement to the Associated Press. “I got to tell amazing stories, and work with some of the best producers, editors and camera crew in the business.”
Cooper has two surrogate-born sons: five-year-old Wyatt Morgan Cooper and four-year-old Sebastian Luke Maisani-Cooper. He co-parents them with his ex-partner, Benjamin Maisani. The two were together for almost a decade before their 2018 separation. In 2020, when Cooper—then single—announced the birth of his first child through surrogacy, he shared that he would be raising the baby with his former partner.
“For nearly 20 years, I’ve been able to balance my jobs at CNN and CBS, but I have little kids now, and I want to spend as much time with them as possible, while they still want to spend time with me,” Cooper said in his statement.
Although Cooper has announced his exit, he will finish the stories currently in progress before officially leaving. He recently appeared on a broadcast introducing a segment from documentary filmmaker Ken Burns.
CBS News thanked Cooper for his years of work on the program, noting that he would be welcomed back to “60 Minutes” in the future, leaving open the possibility of a return to the newsmagazine, which first aired in 1968.
Cooper’s unusual arrangement between CNN and CBS allowed him to hold high-profile positions at both outlets. His reporting for “60 Minutes” spanned investigations, global coverage, and major interviews that helped uphold the show’s status as television’s most respected news program.
The announcement comes during a period of major turmoil at CBS News and “60 Minutes.” Executive producer Bill Owens left in April 2025, saying it had become clear he would no longer be able to run the show as he had in the past.
Owens’ exit happened as Paramount, CBS’s parent company, pursued a merger with Skydance. That corporate activity overlapped with broader changes at the network following Bari Weiss’s appointment as editor-in-chief of CBS News in October 2025.
In December 2025, “60 Minutes” drew controversy when Weiss pulled a segment from correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi about El Salvador; the report aired on January 18. Alfonsi publicly criticized the decision as politically driven.
The network also faced legal issues from President Donald Trump, who sued CBS over an interview with Kamala Harris during the 2024 presidential campaign. Paramount settled with Trump for $16 million, without issuing an apology.
When asked whether Cooper’s departure was connected to changes in CBS News leadership, his spokesperson declined to comment beyond his official statement.
CBS News leadership had actually been hoping to expand Cooper’s role at the network rather than see him depart. Weiss had explored bringing him on as a full-time CBS News figure, including discussions about anchoring “CBS Evening News” — a job that ultimately went to Tony Dokoupil. The failed talks make Cooper’s exit even more noteworthy, with one industry insider calling it “another black eye” for the new CBS News leadership.
Cooper’s departure is a major loss for “60 Minutes,” which depends on veteran correspondents to maintain its standing as the nation’s most-watched news program. The show has endured many transitions over its more than 50-year history, continuing to emphasize long-form investigative work and detailed storytelling.
The timing of Cooper’s announcement — following Owens’ departure and occurring amid continuing corporate restructuring at Paramount — raises questions about where the iconic newsmagazine is headed. The program has increasingly grappled with balancing editorial independence and corporate pressures as traditional broadcast news faces shrinking audiences and shifting business realities.
As the current broadcast season runs through May, viewers will still see Cooper complete his remaining “60 Minutes” stories while he continues his daily work at CNN. His exit marks the close of a significant chapter for the program.