CBS Weighs 2nd Night of ’60 Minutes’

NEW YORK —  CBS is considering creating a second night of “60 Minutes” for its prime-time schedule but the show’s creator and his star correspondents are strongly opposed to the idea.

“Certain broadcasts come along once in a lifetime--they don’t come along twice in a lifetime,” creator and executive producer Don Hewitt said in an interview Thursday.

“We’re all opposed to it,” echoed “60 Minutes” commentator Andy Rooney. “It’s a terrible idea.”

Leslie Moonves, the CBS programming chief who was recently named chief executive officer of the entire network, strongly favors the idea of trying to clone the success of the venerable newsmagazine with a “60 Minutes II.” The new program would likely feature Bryant Gumbel in a prominent role, along with other CBS News correspondents.

“Public Eye With Bryant Gumbel,” the former NBC anchor’s newsmagazine on CBS, has not done well in the ratings and may not be renewed for next season. A “60 Minutes II” would not go on the air before mid-season next year.

Moonves and other network executives are eager to emulate the success--and profits--of NBC’s “Dateline” newsmagazine. “Dateline,” which is anchored by Stone Phillips and Jane Pauley, is a promotional and financial juggernaut that is “branded” across four nights. The network is even considering adding a fifth night for the fall season.

Hewitt and the “60 Minutes” stars fear diluting their successful franchise. “60 Minutes,” they note, involves investigative reporting by many producers--and the correspondents are very involved in the reporting of their stories.

“There are strong arguments on both sides” of the question, CBS News President Andrew Heyward said Thursday. “It’s an intriguing idea to add a second night, but there is strong opposition within ’60 Minutes,’ and I understand why they’re opposed.”

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Heyward said that no decision has been made yet. In the meantime, network executives are said to be trying to change Hewitt’s mind about the idea. Although Hewitt would not be envisioned as the daily producer of a second night, his participation is considered important.

The question, sources said, is whether the network would try to do a “60 Minutes II” without Hewitt’s blessing.

“I think the entertainment executives think they can just put a couple of anchors in front of stories and call it ’60 Minutes,’ ” said one staffer on the show.

“I don’t own the title,” Hewitt noted. “They could take the Ann-Margret show and call it ‘I Love Lucy.’ ”

ABC, meanwhile, must decide by mid-May whether it will merge some of its newsmagazines under the umbrella title of “20/20,” to present a more unified brand name as NBC has done with “Dateline.”

ABC’s entertainment division, sources said, wants the news division to add a fourth night of newsmagazines next season. ABC News already produces two nights of “20/20,” co-hosted by Barbara Walters and Hugh Downs, and sources said a third night--possibly co-hosted by Charles Gibson and Connie Chung--is under discussion.