Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
    Nostalgia Central
    • Home
    • Blog
      • Lists
    • Television
      • TV by Decade
        • TV – 1950s
        • TV – 1960s
        • TV – 1970s
        • TV – 1980s
        • TV – 1990s
      • Comedy
      • Drama
      • Kids TV
      • Variety
      • News & Sport
      • Advertisements
    • Music
      • Music by Decade
        • Music – 1950s
        • Music – 1960s
        • Music – 1970s
        • Music – 1980s
        • Music – 1990s
      • Artists – A to K
        • Artists – A
        • Artists – B
        • Artists – C
        • Artists – D
        • Artists – E
        • Artists – F
        • Artists – G
        • Artists – H
        • Artists – I
        • Artists – J
        • Artists – K
      • Artists – L to Z
        • Artists – L
        • Artists – M
        • Artists – N
        • Artists – O
        • Artists – P
        • Artists – Q
        • Artists – R
        • Artists – S
        • Artists – T
        • Artists – U
        • Artists – V
        • Artists – W
        • Artists – X
        • Artists – Y
        • Artists – Z
      • Artists – 0 to 9
      • Genres
      • Music on Film & TV
      • One-Hit Wonders
      • Playlists
      • Online Radio
    • Movies
      • Movies by Decade
        • Movies – 1950s
        • Movies – 1960s
        • Movies – 1970s
        • Movies – 1980s
        • Movies – 1990s
      • Movies – 0 to 9
      • Movies – A to K
        • Movies – A
        • Movies – B
        • Movies – C
        • Movies – D
        • Movies – E
        • Movies – F
        • Movies – G
        • Movies – H
        • Movies – I
        • Movies – J
        • Movies – K
      • Movies – L to Z
        • Movies – L
        • Movies – M
        • Movies – N
        • Movies – O
        • Movies – P
        • Movies – Q
        • Movies – R
        • Movies – S
        • Movies – T
        • Movies – U
        • Movies – V
        • Movies – W
        • Movies – X
        • Movies – Y
        • Movies – Z
    • Pop Culture
      • Fads
      • Toys & Games
      • Fashion
      • Decor
      • Food & Drink
      • People
      • Technology
      • Transport
    • Social History
      • 1950s Year by Year
      • 1960s Year by Year
      • 1970s Year by Year
      • 1980s Year by Year
      • 1990s Year by Year
      • Events
    Nostalgia Central
    Home»Television»News & Sport
    News & Sport TV Shows - 1960s TV Shows - 1970s TV Shows - 1980s TV Shows - 1990s 4 Mins Read

    60 Minutes

    Share
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email

    1 9 6 8 – Current (USA)
    1 9 7 9 – Current (Australia)

    In 1967 Don Hewitt conceived of his new programme, 60 Minutes, as a strategy for addressing issues given insufficient time for analysis in two minutes of the Evening News but not deemed significant enough to justify an hour-long documentary.

    60 Minutes was born, then, in an environment of management tension and initial ambiguity regarding its form.

    Bill Leonard, CBS vice president for News Programming, supported the new concept, but Richard Salant, president of the News Division, argued it countered that unit’s commitment to the longer form and risked taking the hard edge off television journalism.

    The series first aired on 24 September 1968 and CBS proclaimed the ground-breaking potential of this magazine form, announcing that no existing phrase could describe the series” configuration and that any attempt to gauge (or predict) demographic appeal based on comparisons with traditional public affairs programming was a limited prospect.

    60mins_1979ratherreasonerwallacesaferYet, by the Spring of 1993, the series success was so established within the history of network programming that CBS and 60 Minutes had competition from six other prime-time magazine programmes.

    From September 1966 to December 1975, network management shifted the scheduling position of 60 Minutes seven times.

    Its ratings were very low according to industry standards, although slightly higher than those of CBS Reports when aired in the same time slot, but critical response remained positive.

    Hewitt predicted high ratings if 60 Minutes packaged stories, not news items, as “attractively as Hollywood packages fiction.”

    A confrontational style of journalism, pioneered by Mike Wallace, grew and was embraced by a more confrontational society. In the 1970s certain correspondents seemed to speak for a public under siege by institutional greed and deceit.

    Wallace’s role remained consistent as the crusading detective, played, as the series began, opposite Harry Reasoner’s calm, analytical and introspective persona.

    As correspondents were added (Morley Safer, Dan Rather, Ed Bradley, Diane Sawyer, Meredith Vieria, Steve Kroft, and Lesley Stahl) Hewitt developed complimentary personas.

    An Australian version of 60 Minutes first went to air on 11 February 1979 with reporters Ray Martin, George Negus and Ian Leslie.

    Taking a lead from its successful mentor on the CBS Network, the Australian version sought to tell stories in what has become the unique 60 Minutes style.

    800 programmes and more than 2,000 stories later, 60 Minutes became a Sunday night staple in Australian households. Over the years it beat off challenges from more than 100 shows on rival channels, including the best of British and American drama and sitcoms.

    The most explosive segments of 60 Minutes accuse companies, government agencies, or organisations of massive deceit and of harming public welfare.

    Correspondents, often in alliance with an ex-employee or group member, have confronted the Illinois Power Company, Audi Motors, the Worldwide Church of God, tobacco companies, Allied Chemical Corporation, the U.S. Army, adoption agencies and land development corporations.

    Smaller entities and individuals, such as owners of fraudulent health spas, used car dealers, or clothing manufacturers, often put faces and names on compelling images of deceit.

    The high stakes involved in such public confrontations led Herb Schmertz, former vice president of the Mobil Oil Corporation, to write a guide for corporate America instructing companies and individuals how to prepare and withstand an interview by 60 Minutes‘ correspondents.

    But public figures still appear, seeking to enhance their position or rectify a situation. In doing so they risk unexpected changes in the direction of public opinion, as demonstrated by Ross Perot’s drop in approval ratings after raising questionable topics in his interview.

    Critics, researchers, and the public continue to investigate the reasons behind the longevity of 60 Minutes as a popular culture phenomenon. The series’ timeliness, its bold stand on topics, its confrontations with specific individuals all provides audiences with the pleasure of knowing accountability does exist.

    USA 
    Mike Wallace
    Harry Reasoner
    Morley Safer
    Dan Rather
    Ed Bradley
    Diane Sawyer
    Andy Rooney
    Meredith Vieira
    Steve Kroft
    Leslie Stahl

    Australia
    Ian Leslie
    George Negus
    Ray Martin
    Jana Wendt
    Liz Hayes
    Richard Carleton
    Liz Hayes
    Charles Wooley
    Tara Brown
    Peter Overton

    Related Posts

    • This Day Tonight
      This Day Tonight
      1 9 6 7 - 1 9 7 8 (Australia) Commonly abbreviated to TDT, This Day Tonight was Australia’s first nightly current…
    • Scene At 6.30 (Scene)
      Scene At 6.30 (Scene)
      1 9 6 3 - 1 9 6 8 (UK) Unheralded by advance publicity, a new and vital ITV programme…
    • Four Corners
      Four Corners
      1 9 6 1 - Current (Australia) Four Corners debuted on the Australian ABC network on 19 August 1961 and went on…
    • Walter Cronkite
      Walter Cronkite
      The commentary of former CBS Evening News anchorman Walter Cronkite defined issues and events in America for almost two decades.…
    • Big Breakfast, The
      Big Breakfast, The
      1 9 9 2 - 2 0 0 2 (UK) Departing from the established news and magazine-based format of other breakfast…
    • Granada In The North
      Granada In The North
      1 9 6 5 - 1 9 6 7 (UK) Produced by Granada’s Head of Light Entertainment Johnny Hamp and…
    • Newsday
      Newsday
      1 9 7 4 - 1 9 7 8   (UK) This 40-minute programme from BBC2 presented news and opinions on…
    • Prime Time
      Prime Time
      1 9 8 6 (Australia) 60 x 30 minute episodes Prime Time was a 1986 Australian soap about the cut and thrust…

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email
    Previous ArticleBold Ones, The
    Next Article 20/20

    Comments are closed.

    Follow us
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    • Instagram
    You May Also Like
    • Bobby Kennedy
      1 9 2 5 – 1 9 6 8 Younger brother and close associate […]
    • Lost World: Jurassic Park, The (1997)
      There’s another island full of genetically created […]
    • Catweazle
      1 9 7 0 – 1 9 7 1 (UK) 26 x 30 minute episodes In 11th […]
    • Dovells, The
      The Dovells were an American vocal group, formed at Overbrook […]
    • Blackenstein (1972)
      Eddie Turner (Joe Desue) is a Vietnam veteran who loses his arms […]
    • Alvin Purple
      1 9 7 6 (Australia) 13 x 30 minute episodes Alvin Purple was a […]
    Twitter Feed
    Please note


    Nostalgia Central covers the period 1950 to 1999 and contains some words and references which reflect the attitudes of those times and which may be considered culturally sensitive, offensive or inappropriate today.
    Popular Tags
    1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1975 1976 Action Figures Amicus Arcade games Australia Beach movies Beatles Blaxploitation Board games Britpop Canada Crime Disney Doo-Wop Elvis Presley Girl groups Glam Goth Hammer Heavy Metal Irwin Allen Labels Merseybeat Mod revival Motown New Romantic New Wave NWOBHM Oi! One-hit wonders Power Pop Pub rock Punk Radio Scotland Ska Soul music Sport Surf music
    Search Nostalgia Central
    Copyright © 1998, 2022 Nostalgia Central
    • About Nostalgia Central
    • Contact
    • FAQ

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.