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American Morning
Don Hewitt Recounts "50 Years and 60 Minutes in Television"
Aired April 16, 2001 - 11:36 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, if you are a fan of the news program "60 Minutes," you'll probably be interested in the new book by the program's executive producer. The book is "Tell Me a Story: 50 Years and 60 Minutes in Television."
In it, Don Hewitt recounts some of the highlights from his life, including the triumphs and controversies of "60 Minutes." And there have been a few of those -- Don Hewitt joining us from New York.
Don, good morning. Good to have you with us.
DON HEWITT, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, "60 MINUTES": Daryn, it's a pleasure to be here. Thank you.
KAGAN: As I pulled up on my -- my couch for my weekly appointment with "60 Minutes" last night and watching the tick, tick, tick, I was wondering: Do you still watch? Do you still make it a Sunday night appointment for you?
HEWITT: Oh sure. Oh, yes. It's the highlight of my week. Even though I've seen every one of those stories 10 times, I like to see them on the air the way everybody else seeing them.
KAGAN: It brings me to a part of your book that I found so fascinating, where you talk about how the show is actually put together. So here you have one of the top television programs of all time, you have no meetings, no memos and no assignment desk.
HEWITT: No.
KAGAN: How do you put it together?
HEWITT: You hire great people. And you run it the way a good magazine is run, which is, great writers who go out and find their own stories and bring them to you. I am up to my hips in talent. And I don't try to second-guess them. And I leave them alone and give them their head. And they give me what I like to believe is the best show in television.
KAGAN: Tell us about your big board, how you decide what next week's stories will be.
HEWITT: Well, you're always looking for that crazy mix. Like, this week, you know, Darryl Strawberry... KAGAN: Right, that was last night.
HEWITT: ... Mel Brooks, and the story of a Moroccan princess who was kidnapped and held in despicable conditions made three great pieces of pie for a great dessert.
KAGAN: It was a good show last night. You say in the book that you decide on Monday what will be next Sunday's shows. So have decided today yet what will be next Sunday's stories?
HEWITT: Yes, I think so. There's that fantastic story that Ed Bradley has done with an outfit in Qatar -- or known as "cutter" -- which is an emirate in the Middle East that is broadcasting to the Arab world, no censorship, telling them all the good, the bad, the indifferent and driving other Middle East countries up the wall because they're piercing their iron curtain. And it's just a great television story. They're doing for the Middle East what CNN does for the rest of the world.
(LAUGHTER)
KAGAN: Oh, well, we'll take a plug from you anytime -- any time of day. Don, thanks.
Now, there's also lots of stories in your book that go before "60 Minutes." A lot of people might not know that you were involved in the first presidential debates. These presidential debates of this last election got so much coverage. But you were involved in the Kennedy-Nixon debates. And you write that you found that JFK took these a lot more seriously than Richard Nixon did and that that made a difference in the end, you think.
HEWITT: I think it did. But I also, in hindsight, look back on that night as the night that probably ruined politics in America.
KAGAN: Really?
HEWITT: That's the night that television and politics became engaged, finally got married. They married us for love. We married them for money. And American politics have never been the same since.
It's the cost of television commercials have made it impossible for anyone to run for office who can't raise money. And that's a disgusting thing to happen in a democracy.
KAGAN: Well, speaking of ruining and money, you also, in kind of a self-critical look, think that, in a way, in your views, "60 Minutes," in a way, ruined television news, because it proved that a good product like that could make money for the networks.
HEWITT: Yes, but I don't think it ruined television news. I mean, I don't think -- look, "The New York Times" is making money like it's going out of style. I don't think they've ruined journalism. The "New York Times" guys will brag to you about two things: They cover news better than anyone in the world. And they sell advertising better than anyone in the world. And they're not ashamed of either. And I'm not ashamed of the fact that we made news profitable. If you don't -- you've got to realize, when I started in television, you did news because that's how you buttered up the FCC, got your license to broadcast. That doesn't exist anymore.
So if you're not going to be -- nobody is running a newspaper that's running in the red -- or some of them are, but not on purpose. CNN doesn't want to run in the red. CBS doesn't want to run in the red. And if you help them get into the black, you're ahead of the game.
KAGAN: Well, the franchise has done so well, there is now "60 minutes II."
HEWITT: Yes.
KAGAN: And I understand tomorrow night, a special edition of it -- or a story that you're particularly proud of.
HEWITT: Ed Bradley has done an hour on the story behind Columbine. Boy, I've got to tell you that this country has not figured out a way to get the guns out of the hands of people that shouldn't have them is beyond me. I've always thought that, if we could get the NRA out of the way, reasonable people would find a way to respect the Second Amendment and get guns out of the hands of people that shouldn't have them. That, to me -- it's incredible that this country can't find a way to do that.
I don't mind hunters having rifles. That's fine. But the handguns that are all over America are -- it's a threat to this country that we don't need.
KAGAN: Well, Don, I don't think that you sold too many books to members of the NRA this morning.
(LAUGHTER)
HEWITT: No, no, no, no. No, I know that. Listen
(CROSSTALK)
KAGAN: But are there other great stories in here. It's called "Tell Me A Story" -- your story in news -- television news and behind the scenes in "60 Minutes." Thanks for joining us and we'll look for that "60 Minutes II" special on Columbine tomorrow -- Don Hewitt.
HEWITT: Thank you very much.
KAGAN: Thank you, Don.
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