The home of the 2017 Primetime Emmys, CBS, is also the first network to firm up fall premiere dates. The network announced launches for new and returning shows on Thursday afternoon, and Big Bang Theory spinoff Young Sheldon is naturally getting a prime showcase.

As previously announced, CBS will kick off the season with a special outing of the Young Sheldon pilot after a Monday Big Bang Theory. The Sept. 25 launch, a day after 60 Minutes premieres its 50th season, will also include new season premieres for Kevin Can Wait and Scorpion — as well as the series debut of...

Oprah Winfrey, the inspirational talk-show host, TV executive and interviewer, will join CBS newsmagazine “60 Minutes” in the fall, the network announced Tuesday.

“Her body of work is extraordinary, including thousands of interviews with people from all walks of life. She is a remarkable and talented woman with a level of integrity that sets her apart and makes her a perfect fit for ’60 Minutes,'” said Jeff Fager, the program’s executive producer, in a prepared statement. “I am thrilled that she will be bringing her unique and powerful voice to our broadcast.”

Winfrey has a longstanding and unique relationship with CBS. The company agreed in 1999 to purchase King World Productions, a syndicated-tv powerhouse that launched Winfrey’s famous and durable talk show. At the time, Winfrey, a substantial King World shareholder, was expected to control one-half a percentage point of CBS stock. The relationship stands today: Winfrey is an executive producer of CBS’ syndicated “Dr. Phil” program

One of the most venerable TV franchises in history was under assault Thursday at the CBS shareholder meeting, where activists who dominated the question-and-answer period accused 60 Minutes of airing a misleading segment last year that amounted to anti-Israel "propaganda." The segment, from journalist Bob Simon and called "Christians of the Holy Land," reported that Israelis have been oppressing Christians living in Bethlehem so severely that their numbers have dropped from 30,000 in 1964 to 11,000 now. But Simon got the number of Christians wrong and it is the Muslim majority who are persecuting

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CBS handed out early renewals to an additional 14 series on Wednesday, including The Good Wife, The Mentalist and Hawaii Five-0.

Also getting the green light for the 2013-14 season are NCIS: Los Angeles, Blue Bloods, Elementary, Person of Interest, 2 Broke Girls, Mike & Molly, The Amazing Race, Survivor, Undercover Boss, 60 Minutes and 48 Hours.

Those shows join previously renewed Eye staples Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, NCIS and CSI.

Noticeably MIA: Criminal Minds (which is expected to return once new deals

Mike Wallace, the legendary newsman who hosted 60 Minutes for nearly half a century and interviewed some of the most high-profile subjects of his day, has died, CBS reports. He was 93. One of broadcast television's fiercest, most aggressive interviewers, Wallace was one of the founding hosts of 60 Minutes, television's most popular newsmagazine show. Bob Scheiffer, host of CBS News's Face the Nation said Wallace died following a long illness Saturday night in New Haven, Connecticut, surrounded by family, the New York Times reports. Wallace underwent triple heart-bypass surgery in 2008, a procedure that doctors called "a great success." The CBS News family lost another veteran broadcaster in November when Andy Rooney died at age 92. In an essay for CBS, 60 Minutes colleague Morely Safer wrote that Wallace "took to heart the old reporter's pledge to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. He characterized himself as 'nosy and insistent.' " "So insistent, there were very few 20th century icons who didn't submit to a Mike Wallace interview. He lectured Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, on corruption. He lectured Yassir Arafat on violence," wrote Safer. Wallace - who traveled alongside Martin Luther King, Jr., and also interviewed Malcolm X during his illustrious career - retired in 2006, but occasionally returned to the show to interview high-profile subjects like Mitt Romney, Jack Kevorkian and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. He told reporters late in his life that if he could write his own epigraph, it would read, "Tough But Fair."

Katie Couric will be watching Piers Morgan when he steps into Larry King's shoes this fall.

"I've never seen him do an interview but it will be interesting to watch how it unfolds," Couric -- who reportedly turned down the opportunity to replace King last spring -- told The Hollywood Reporter at Friday night's celeb-studded Stand Up to the Cancer benefit in L.A.

"I'm a real student of interviewing, so I will be intrigued to see how he peels the layers off the onion," added Couric of the "America's Got Talent" judge's self-professed "slightly cheeky" Q&A style.

 

Couric tells THR she "has no plans" to step down as anchor of the CBS "Evening News" despite the constant speculation.

"I love my job," she said. "I feel my interests are more than satisfied at the moment. It's a very demanding job to do every night, but I love it.

By Steve Pond

"The Hurt Locker" won best feature film at the Producers Guild of America awards, often considered a reliable predictor of the Oscar for best picture.   The PGA handed out its awards Sunday night at the Hollywood Palladium.   Complete list of winners:   Feature film: "The Hurt Locker"

Animated feature: "Up"

Documentary feature: "The Cove"

Episodic TV drama: "Mad Men"

Episodic TV comedy: "30 Rock"

Long-form TV: "Grey Gardens"

Non-fiction TV: "60 minutes"

Live ente...

U.S. news pioneer Don Hewitt has lost his battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 86.

The 60 Minutes creator, a veteran newsman at the CBS network, died on Wednesday. He was diagnosed with a small, contained tumour earlier this year and underwent treatment for the disease.

Hewitt created the popular news programme in 1968, 20 years after joining the network, and served as the show's executive producer until his retirement in 2004. The show pioneered the TV news magazine format, winning 73 Emmy Awards, 13 DuPont/Columbia University Awards and nine Peabody Awards with Hewitt on board.

His own honours include the second annual Lifetime Achievement Emmy presented by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and the Founders Emmy presented in 1995 by the International Council of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

The newsman is the author of Tell Me a Story: Fifty Years and 60 Minutes in Television, which chronicles his life as a journalist. His death comes just one month after that of CBS colleague, fellow news legend Walter Cronkite.

Hewitt and his wife, Marilyn, had four children.

Don Hewitt, who helped shape TV news and in 1968 created the feature-magazine program 60 Minutes, died Wednesday at his Bridgehampton, N.Y., home, CBS announced on its Web site. He was 86 and reportedly had been battling pancreatic cancer. Hewitt started at CBS News in 1948 and went on to oversee the network's nightly 30-minute broadcast with Walter Cronkite starting in 1963. In 1960, he directed the decisive first televised debate between presidential candidates John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon. He was portrayed by the actor Philip Baker Hall in the 1999 movie The Insider, about 60 Minutes' exposé of the tobacco industry, and he stepped

Don Hewitt, who created "60 Minutes" and pioneered many of TV's news reporting methods, has died. He was 86. The cause of death has not been announced.

"60 Minutes" was the first TV program to use a newsmagazine format and has been widely copied. According to industry estimates, CBS' profits from "60 Minutes" are in excess of a billion dollars, the most of any program in TV history.

During his more than 50 years at CBS, Hewitt produced and directed broadcasts of the last half-century's major news events, including the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, the installation of Pope John Xxiii and the first face-to-face debate between presidential nominees John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon during the 1960 campaign.

After his longtime stewardship of "60 Minutes," Hewitt stepped down as executive producer in June 2004 at age 80 but continued as a consultant to Jeff Fager and as an executive producer at large for CBS News. It was not

Emmy Award-winning producer Don Hewitt has revealed he is battling pancreatic cancer.

Medics have found a small, contained tumor and Hewitt, the mastermind behind top American news programme 60 Minutes, is scheduled to check into New York's Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center on Friday to begin treatment.

The veteran newsman, 86, is an eight-time Emmy Award winner. He was inducted into America's Television Academy Hall of Fame in 1990.

Hewitt served as executive producer of 60 minutes - the longest-running primetime broadcast on American television - until his retirement in 2004.

"30 Rock" and "Mad Men" continue to collect kudos. The shows, which took home top series honors at this year's Emmys and earned Writers Guild Award noms this week, are among the TV nominees for the 20th annual Producers Guild Awards, announced Wednesday.

"30 Rock" will vie for the Danny Thomas Producer of the Year Award in Episodic Television -- Comedy along with fellow NBC series "The Office"; two HBO shows, "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and "Entourage"; and Showtime's "Weeds."

AMC's "Mad Men" was cited as a nominee for the Norman Felton Producer of the Year Award in Episodic Television -- Drama along with FX's "Damages," Showtime's "Dexter" and a pair of ABC series: "Boston Legal," which had its series finale this week, and "Lost."

In the nonfiction category, two magazine shows -- PBS' "Frontline" and CBS' "60 Minutes" -- will compete with Discovery Channel's "Deadliest Catch," Bravo's "Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List" and Showtime's "This American Life."

New York -- "60 Minutes" has snagged the first interview with President-elect Barack Obama.

The newsmagazine, which rocketed into the top-ranked position with last week's interviews with Obama's top advisers, will speak to Obama and the future first lady, Michelle Obama. The interview with Steve Kroft will take place Friday in Chicago and air Sunday.

It's likely to give "60 Minutes" another big boost, just seven days after it was the week's top-rated program with 18.5 million viewers. The lead spot on last Sunday's program were Election Night interviews with David Axelrod, David Plouffe and Valerie Jarrett by Kroft.

"60 Minutes" had several sitdowns with Obama before Election Day, including a Sept. 21 hourlong broadcast that featured Kroft's interview with Obama and Scott Pelley's sitdown with Sen. John McCain. Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden were interviewed on "60 Minutes" on Aug. 31, also by Kroft.

While the election is now more than two weeks past, the

The season finale of ABC's Oprah's Big Give (10 million viewers, 3.2 rating among adults 18-49 and a 9 share) won its time period and concluded on a solid note.

ABC is trying to avoid making any more series pickup announcements until its upfront presentation to advertisers next month, but feel free to consider Big Give a likely contender for the return list.

ABC won the night with the top three shows, yet had some disappointing numbers by comparison to earlier this year. Desperate Housewives dropped 7% to post another series low (15.6 million, 5.5/13). With the weaker lead-in, return of Brothers & Sisters to originals was down 18% from its prior average (10.5 million, 3.6/10).

Fox was second with six animated comedy repeats (averaging 4.3 million, 2.0/6). CBS was third with 60 Minutes (10.6 million, 1.5/5), Big Brother (6.8 million, 2.3/6) and the original movie Sweet Nothing in My Ear (8.2 million, 1.5/4). NBC had Dateline (1.2/4) and repeats, including USA Network repurposed shows (averaging 1.2/4). The CW was on par (averaging 0.5/1).

NEW YORK -- The cancellation of the April 27 North Carolina Democratic debate has dealt a serious blow to the chances that "CBS Evening News" anchor Katie Couric will moderate a debate.

After several weeks of behind-the-scenes negotiations with the campaigns of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, the state party announced Monday that they were canceling the debate that would have aired on CBS following "60 Minutes".

Clinton had immediately agreed to the debate, which would have been held in Raleigh, but Obama's camp had delayed a decision until at least the results of the North Carolina primary were in. The party couldn't continue at this point without a commitment from Obama due to fund-raising.

An attempt to hold a debate with Couric and "Face the Nation" host Bob Schieffer in December in Los Angeles was canceled because of the WGA strike.

CBS News senior vp Paul Friedman challenged the notion that CBS News or Couric has been hurt by not having a debate.

NEW YORK -- A British journalist working for CBS News was rescued Monday after two months being held hostage in Iraq.

Richard Butler, a freelance producer working for 60 Minutes, was kidnapped with a translator in the southern city of Basra on Feb. 10.

The Iraqi Army said Monday that Butler had been freed during a rescue mission that led to the capture of his kidnappers. Butler, who was unhurt, was in good condition. CBS News didn't release any further information.

"We are incredibly grateful that our colleague, Richard Butler, has been released and is safe," CBS News said in a statement Monday.

The pair were kidnapped by gunmen who raided the Sultan Palace Hotel. His translator was freed earlier. CBS kept quiet on the identities of Butler and his translator, and much of how they were kidnapped.

ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition topped a modestly rated Sunday evening, but the reality hit's freshman lead-outs Oprah's Big Give and Here Come the Newlyweds continued to decline.

Airing four hours of unscripted shows, ABC won the night among adults 18-49 and total viewers (9 million, 3.2/9). ABC ran America's Funniest Home Videos (7.4 million viewers, 2.3 rating in 18-49 and a 7 share), Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (12.0 million, 4.1/11), Big Give (9.7 million, 3.6/9) and Here Come the Newlyweds (7 million, 2.9/8).

Fox came in second with six half-hour comedies, mostly repeats. A rerun of Family Guy was the highest rated (6.7 million, 3.4/9). Fox also aired originals of King of the Hill (6 million, 2.8/7) and Unhitched (4.4 million, 2.3/6), the latter falling 8% from last week.

CBS and NBC tied for third, with CBS airing 60 Minutes (11.1 million, 2.0/6), Big Brother (6.3 million, 2.3/6) and repeats. NBC had two hours of Dateline (8 million, 1.9/6) and repeats. The CW had repeats and Everybody Hates Chris (1.1 million, 0.5/1) and Aliens in America (900,000, 0.4/1).

Also, on Friday, Fox's new sitcom The Return of Jezebel James (3.2 million, 1.0/4) debuted with back-to-back episodes and posted the network's worst time period performance since fall's The Next Great American Band. CBS' The Price Is Right (8.7 million, 2.0/7) won the night but declined yet again.

Rufus Wainwright, MTV Networks president Brian Graden and the CBS soap opera As The World Turns were among the big winners Monday at the 19th annual Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Media Awards.

Strand Releasing's Middle East political romance The Bubble and Paramount's fantasy Stardust (featuring Robert De Niro as a gay pirate) took home outstanding film awards, as did First Run's religion documentary For the Bible Tells Me So.

Turns won outstanding daily drama. The show includes a gay romantic story line.

Judy Shepard won the top Excellence in Media Award for her efforts to stop anti-gay violence after the death of her son Matthew Shepard. Graden took home the Vito Russo Award for his networks' inclusion of gays in programming, and cable network BET J won special recognition for the same.

ABC's Boston Legal won outstanding individual episode (in a series without a regular lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered character) for Do Tell.

Segments from CBS' 60 Minutes (Don't Ask Don't Tell) and ABC's 20/20 (My Secret Self: A Story of Transgender Children) saw the shows tie for outstanding TV newsmagazine journalism.

WASHINGTON -- The FCC is launching an investigation into a mysterious signal loss by an Alabama CBS affiliate during a 60 Minutes segment concerning allegations that the state's imprisoned former Democratic governor was railroaded by Republicans in the Justice Department.

FCC chairman Kevin Martin told reporters Tuesday that the commission received several complaints about the 12-minute blackout of Huntsville station WHNT-TV's broadcast on Feb. 24. The blackout occurred at the beginning of the broadcast of the 13-minute segment concerning ex-governor Don Siegelman.

"I have instructed the staff to handle this like we do all the other complaints," Martin said. "We got some 20-odd complaints about it. I've asked the staff to send a letter (to the station) with the complaints attached, asking them to respond to it."

Despite claims that a GOP-engineered conspiracy caused the blackout, the event was caused by a malfunctioning receiver at the station, WHNT general manager Stan Pylant told the Associated Press.

"The receiver failed at the worst possible time, and there's nothing I can do to make some people believe it," he told the AP.

Revered TV broadcaster Mike Wallace is recovering after undergoing triple heart bypass surgery last Friday. The veteran 60 Minutes correspondent, who was operated on at New York's Lennox Hill Hospital, is already walking around following the procedure. Doctors have described the 89-year-old's operation as a "great success."