“60 Minutes” begins its 47th season Sunday night. And for the first time, you’ll be able to see Sunday’s stories on your mobile device the following week, without having to purchase the $4.99 app.
Last season,”60 Minutes” averaged 12.2 million viewers each Sunday, finishing most weeks in the Top 10. But the program suffered a black eye in November when correspondent Lara Logan was forced to apologize for her report on the 9/11/12 consulate attack in Benghazi, Libya. A CBS News internal review found the story “deficient in several respects.” Logan and producer Max McClellan took extended leaves of absence from the network. Logan returned earlier this year, and made her first appearance on air on “Face the Nation” in June.
This week’s premiere episode includes a 2-part report from Scott Pelley who traveled to Iraq earlier this month reporting on the terror group ISIS, and a Steve Kroft story on criminals who use stolen social security numbers to get fraudulent tax refunds, to the tune of billions of dollars.
While new stories will be free the week following the broadcast, the “60 Minutes” app for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch has expanded its archive to more than 300 stories, including the first episode in 1968.
The new season also includes some new faces: Bill Whitaker is now a correspondent for the show and former “CBS Evening News” EP Patricia Shevlin is a producer.