CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss privately considered replacing “Face the Nation” host Margaret Brennan earlier this year — and now has an opportunity to reshape the Sunday political program as two of its senior producers prepare to leave, according to media newsletter Status.
The potential move against Brennan never materialized, but the program faces a leadership shake-up following Wednesday’s announcement by Mary Hager, its senior executive producer, that she is leaving CBS News after 35 years.
Hager, who has also served as executive editor of politics since 2022, played a prominent role in the network’s Washington bureau and its coverage of successive presidential elections.
Anne Hsu, the show’s executive producer, is also departing her position to take a new assignment at CBS News’ Hong Kong bureau, Status reported.
The two departures will leave Weiss with an opportunity to install new editorial leadership at “Face the Nation,” whose future she has privately weighed, according to the report.
A CBS News insider pushed back on suggestions that the departures have thrown “Face the Nation” into turmoil, telling The Post that Hager has been planning to retire at the end of the year and has discussed her intentions with colleagues for some time.
Hager, who has spent 35 years at CBS News and 15 years in her current position, is a beloved figure at the network whose departure will be felt by colleagues, the insider said. But the source disputed any suggestion that her retirement was unexpected or the result of acrimony within the organization, noting that longtime employees eventually retire or pursue other opportunities.
The insider also noted that Hsu, who is originally from Hong Kong, will be working out of the network’s bureau there rather than leaving CBS News altogether.
As for Brennan, the source pointed to “Face the Nation” being the No. 1 Sunday public affairs program, ahead of NBC’s “Meet the Press,” while declining to speculate about the host’s future or how CBS News might deploy her going forward.
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