‘60 Minutes’ host Scott Pelley blasted over ‘angry and unhinged’ commencement speech slamming Trump admin

WINSTON-SALEM, NORTH CAROLINA: Longtime '60 Minutes' anchor Scott Pelley recently faced backlash after he used a graduation ceremony to launch a political diatribe against President Donald Trump. 

What was supposed to be a joyous day for Wake Forest University’s Class of 2025 turned into a stage for Pelley’s sermon on freedom of speech, the New York Post reported. 

Scott Pelley says there is 'fear to speak' out in America

Addressing the graduating seniors on May 19, the CBS veteran told students, “Your country needs you — the country that has given you so much is calling you, the class of 2025, your country needs you and it needs you today.”

He told the crowd, “This morning, our sacred rule of law is under attack. Journalism is under attack, universities are under attack, freedom of speech is under attack, and insidious fear is reaching through our schools, our businesses, our homes, and into our private thoughts.”

Pelley added, “The fear to speak in America. If our government is, in Lincoln’s phrase ‘of the people, by the people, for the people,’ then why are we afraid to speak? Ignorance works for power...Power can change the definition of the words we used to describe reality...This is an old playbook, my friends. There is nothing new in this.” 

Scott Pelley slammed over his remarks at Wake Forest University’s graduation

Scott Pelley's speech received scattered applause from the crowd, but the reaction on social media was brutal, with many accusing the newsman of hijacking a feel-good event to take partisan swipes.

"It is very sad that CBS/60 Minutes’ Scott Pelley chose one of the happiest days for graduates and their families to display his undeniable case of TDS. Wake Forest University should be ashamed that it allowed this to take place," one person posted on X (formerly Twitter).

"Oh ffs! No he didn’t. He made a graduation commencement speech political. How selfish of him! He used the privilege he was given to speak as his platform to lie on and trash Trump. Why didn’t he talk positively about the graduates and their accomplishments? Shame on him! Disgusting," another fumed.

"If Trump was a fascist dictator, this bloviating moron would immediately be arrested," someone else noted.

"Freely giving a speech while claiming someone is not allowing free speech is some self-defeating nonsense," a comment read.

"His narrative is not winning, so he wants to accuse others of censoring when he in fact wants to censor free speech," another insisted. 

"Pelley is culpable in the destruction of REAL journalism," one individual declared. 

"An educated idiot giving a commencement speech trying to bring back relevance to journalism that continually lied to the public!" another added.

CBS is facing a $20B lawsuit from Donald Trump

This comes as Scott Pelley’s longtime home network, CBS, is in the middle of a colossal legal face-off with Donald Trump himself. The POTUS slapped the network with a $20 billion lawsuit, claiming 60 Minutes edited their fall 2024 sit-down with then–vice president Kamala Harris in a way that unfairly boosted her presidential run.

Sources told the New York Post that Trump’s lawyers are aiming for a potential nine-figure payout, with demands possibly reaching $100 million or more. “Is $100 million or $150 million a possibility? I don’t see why not,” said one insider.

Mediation between Trump’s team and CBS’s parent company, Paramount, began earlier this month, but things are still in the “very preliminary” stage, the source added.

Trump’s side hasn’t officially floated a settlement figure yet, but Paramount may be bracing for a major ask given how hard Trump played against ABC recently.

That case centered around anchor George Stephanopoulos declaring that Trump was “found liable of rape,” something the president’s legal team took serious issue with.

According to insiders, Donald Trump Jr personally got involved in negotiations with ABC and had a tentative deal locked in for around $15 million. But Trump's lawyers amped up the pressure and tripled the demand before the dust settled.

At the end of the day, $15 million went to Trump’s presidential library and another $1 million toward legal fees. “I think what happened with ABC proves Trump will be very aggressive,” the source told the outlet.

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