Anderson Cooper’s defection is just the ‘tip of the iceberg’ at CBS

As for Anderson, he said in a statement that he was leaving purely for personal reasons: “For nearly two decades, I have been able to balance my jobs at CNN and CBS,” he said. “But I have small children now and I want to spend as much time with them as possible, while they still want to spend time with me.”

CBS, in turn, issued its own statement, expressing the following: We are grateful to (Cooper) for dedicating such a large part of his life to this broadcast, and understand the importance of spending more time with family. 60 minutes will be here if he ever wants to return.”

However, Radar has learned that this is not necessarily the whole story. That’s according to Hollywood insider Rob Shuter, who writes further SubstackWeiss has taken on an aggressive, hands-on role since assuming her role in October, and Cooper’s work environment has become increasingly untenable.

“Bari made it clear she wanted a different tone,” an insider told Shuter. “Every script was scrutinized. Every edit was questioned. It stopped feeling like trust and started feeling like a test.”

Another source was more direct: “(Anderson) didn’t give up. He was pushed. If management makes things that uncomfortable, the only option left is to walk away.”