Jeff Fager

In his nearly three-and-a-half-hour interview, Jeff Fager discusses his childhood in Wellesley, MA and what he learned as an English major at Colgate University. He talks about his first news jobs in San Francisco and Boston and how he eventually became the producer of CBS Evening News in London. Fager describes danger he faced reporting in the Middle East, becoming a producer at 60 Minutes, and what he learned from the show’s creator, Don Hewitt. He touches on his time as executive producer of CBS Evening News with Dan Rather and working on 48 Hours at the series’ beginning. For 60 Minutes and 60 Minutes II, Fager describes the process by which stories are produced and edited, and details some of the programs’ most important and controversial reporting including tobacco industry whistleblower Jeffrey Winger, Abu Ghraib, “Memogate,” and Benghazi. He talks about what it meant to take over as executive producer of 60 Minutes from Don Hewitt and discusses working with 60 Minutes correspondents Morley Safer, Ed Bradley, Mike Wallace, Andy Rooney, Lesley Stahl, and Charlie Rose. Fager recounts his achievements during his tenure as Chairman of CBS News and concludes by giving advice to young journalists, discussing his mentors and role models, and sharing how he would like to be remembered. Jenni Matz conducted the interview on June 6, 2016 in New York, NY.