Bill Maher supported the firing of longtime "60 Minutes" correspondent Scott Pelley, telling his panelists on Friday's episode of "Real Time.".
«"What do the panelists think about the recent shakeup at '60 Minutes'? I'm all for it," Maher asked Murphy and former US Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice during his "Extra Time" segment, posted on YouTube.
Murphy offered a contrary view, noting, "Look, you're looking at the creation of a state based on censorship. Trump is using his powers as the President of the United States to install only loyal owners at major media companies. He's using regulatory powers to punish those who oppose him.".
He continued, "I find it amazing that all our major institutions have failed us, haven't they? From academia to the corporate world to the major media—they've all merged with him.".
Still, Murphy remained optimistic, pointing out that the midterm elections are five months away.
«"We might be able to hold free and fair elections," he said. "It's amazing that people in this country, even when the corruption in our democracy is happening in the media, in the corporate world, even in Donald Trump's inner circle, have decided that they're still clinging to this democracy.".
Maher disagreed, however, saying, "You just made a very serious accusation that 60 Minutes itself and CBS itself are now fully supportive of the MAGA movement. I don't think so.".
Pelley was fired from "60 Minutes" on Tuesday following a clash with new executive producer Nick Bilton earlier this week, during which he accused editor-in-chief Bari Weiss of "killing" the program. In his farewell statement released after his dismissal, Pelley lashed out at Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison, writing, "Now our network's new owner is throwing out that narrative, seemingly to please the Trump administration. It's appalling.".
On "Real Time," Murphy acknowledged that the network isn't "fully pro-MAGA," but defended the president, saying he "clearly intends to appoint people who will tell his story and keep his critics off the air.".
Maher also questioned whether any of the claims by Pelley or others pushing for changes to 60 Minutes would have been obvious "if I hadn't read about it all the time.".
«"Yes, but it's not just '60 Minutes,' and part of that is because you don't know what they're choosing not to air, and part of that is because of accusations that they're suppressing stories that could embarrass the president," Murphy retorted. "So it's hard to know what you're missing under the censorship.".
Maher was unconvinced, noting that he had seen coverage of the events "not very favorable to the president.".
«"I don't know if I would have noticed anything different if I hadn't read about it," Maher replied. "Besides, I just don't think being a 60 Minutes correspondent is that hard. I don't think Scott Pelley is a national treasure.".
Correspondent Cecilia Vega, who was fired from the station in late May, said crews were pressured to "introduce political bias into our reporting," adding: "Reporters are holding back from submitting proposals on important news topics for fear of internal repercussions.".
«"Let's call a spade a spade: censorship, both imposed and initiated by the participants themselves," she noted. "It's dangerous for the show and dangerous for democracy.".
Watch the conversation between Maher and Murphy in the video above.
The article "Bill Maher Celebrates Scott Pelley's Firing From '60 Minutes': 'I'm For It' | Video" first appeared on TheWrap.