CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss said declining ratings for 60 Minutes are not her main focus and described the show as doing “tremendously well.” The program’s latest episode drew 5.64 million viewers, below last season’s average of 9.1 million, though its 4 October edition averaged more than 10 million.
Key Facts
Weiss spoke about 60 Minutes’ ratings at an industry conference organized by The Information.
She said she could not build the program by focusing on how many people watched a particular segment on a given Sunday.
Weiss overhauled 60 Minutes in late May, replacing its executive producer and parting ways with three senior correspondents, including Scott Pelley.
Last season, 60 Minutes averaged 9.1 million viewers per episode.
The latest episode drew 5.64 million viewers, according to the article.
The program’s ratings vary depending in part on whether a highly watched NFL game airs before it.
The 4 October edition averaged more than 10 million viewers.
Weiss said she wants to focus on CBS News rather than running CNN, which is part of Warner Bros Discovery.
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Nearly 40 million votes have been cast in races that will affect control of Congress and local and state offices. PBS News says it will rely on the Associated Press again next Tuesday to track results, and the report examines how the AP counts votes.
Key Facts
Nearly 40 million votes have already been cast.
The races will help determine who controls Congress.
The races include governor contests.
The races include mayoral contests.
The races include city council contests.
PBS News has relied on the Associated Press to track results for many years.
PBS News plans to rely on the AP again next Tuesday.
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Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. issued a policy directing HHS not to enforce restrictions on compounding pharmacies that make six specific peptides. The policy does not change the peptides’ regulatory status, and FDA scientists have said evidence of their safety and effectiveness is insufficient.
Key Facts
The six peptides are BPC-157, Epitalon, KPV, MOTS-c, Semax, and TB-500.
In 2023, the FDA removed the peptides from a list of substances that compounding pharmacies could use because of safety concerns.
The new policy says HHS will not take enforcement action against certain pharmacies for making the peptides.
The policy was posted on the Federal Register on Wednesday, with final publication scheduled for October 30.
An FDA advisory panel voted in July to add the six peptides back to the list of substances pharmacies could compound.
Kennedy added eight members to the panel before the vote; at least six had ties to peptide-related businesses or clinics, according to the article.
HHS says allowing compounded versions could steer people away from products sold on gray or black markets.
Peptide sellers and advocates publicly praised the policy.
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Nearly 35 million Americans are expected to vote in congressional districts redrawn ahead of this year’s midterm elections. The report examines the history of gerrymandering and its continued role in U.S. politics as the country marks its 250th anniversary.
Key Facts
Nearly 35 million Americans will vote in redrawn congressional districts.
The districts were redrawn ahead of this year’s midterm elections.
The redistricting has followed partisan battles over political maps.
The report explores the origins of gerrymandering.
It examines why gerrymandering remains influential in American politics.
The report is part of Judy Woodruff’s series, “Crossroads: America at 250.”
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Flavio Bolsonaro said he was Brazil’s rightful leader after arriving in the United States to begin what the article describes as self-imposed exile. The article reports that Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won Brazil’s presidential runoff on Sunday and quotes a University of Oklahoma scholar who said a U.S. challenge to the election result was unlikely.
Key Facts
Flavio Bolsonaro was Brazil’s defeated right-wing presidential candidate, according to the article.
He arrived in the United States and said he was Brazil’s rightful leader.
The article says Bolsonaro went to the United States to begin a self-imposed exile.
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won Brazil’s presidential runoff on Sunday, the article reports.
Fabio de Sa e Silva, an associate professor at the University of Oklahoma, said Bolsonaro’s effort to make the dispute international would not succeed.
De Sa e Silva said the opposition faced a leadership vacuum that others might seek to fill.
De Sa e Silva said the United States was unlikely to question the Brazilian election results.
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Abdul El-Sayed is urging Democrats to vote in Michigan’s Senate race. About 1.2 million early votes have been cast in the state, according to the article.
Key Facts
Abdul El-Sayed is a candidate in Michigan’s Senate race.
El-Sayed is trying to encourage more Democrats to vote.
About 1.2 million early votes have been cast in Michigan.
CBS News correspondent Aaron Navarro reported on the race and early voting.
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A group called the Department of Peace and cybersecurity researcher maia crimew published information on more than 41,000 Department of Homeland Security personnel. The data includes names, work addresses, phone numbers and descriptions of employees’ roles, including staff at Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection.
Key Facts
The information was posted Wednesday in a database called Icepick on a website hosted by Distributed Denial of Secrets.
The Department of Peace said it accessed DHS employee profiles through Okta, a single sign-on service used to manage access to internal platforms.
Okta said it was aware of the claims and had no evidence that its systems or data were compromised.
A DHS representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Department of Peace and DDoSecrets said the release was intended to promote accountability, rather than create a directory of every DHS agent.
The article describes this as the third recent leak or hack targeting a government agency.
Last month, a group called ShinyHunters took personal information about thousands of FBI agents, according to the article.
The Federal Election Commission was recently taken offline after a suspected hacking attempt.
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A high-speed train collision in Spain killed at least 68 people and injured dozens on Wednesday, October 28. Authorities opened an investigation after the transport minister said a communications failure triggered a red signal and the Renfe train was mistakenly allowed to proceed despite a stationary train ahead.
Key Facts
The collision occurred in Castilla-La Mancha, south of Madrid, between a Renfe train and an Iryo train.
At least three carriages went down an embankment, and rescuers searched the wreckage for additional victims.
Spain's health minister reported 80 injured people, including 15 in very serious condition.
Transport Minister Oscar Puente said a computer communications failure triggered the red signal and traffic stopped automatically.
Puente said an erroneous decision was made to restart the Renfe train.
The crash was Spain's second fatal rail accident this year; a January collision involving trains operated by the same companies killed 46 people.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the crash would be investigated and that the causes of the two accidents appeared unrelated.
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Dolores Huerta, a labor leader and civil rights activist, died Wednesday from cancer at her home in Bakersfield, California. She was remembered for her pioneering work and lasting legacy.
Key Facts
Huerta died Wednesday.
She died from cancer.
She died at her home in Bakersfield, California.
Huerta was a labor leader.
She was a civil rights activist.
Amna Nawaz looked back at Huerta’s life and legacy.
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An eight-year-old girl was seriously injured in a wolf attack at Johannismühle wildlife park in Brandenburg, Germany. Police are investigating how the incident happened, and the park has temporarily closed.
Key Facts
The attack happened at a wildlife park in Baruth/Mark, south of Berlin.
The girl was inside an enclosure with a staff member and two other children.
She was taken to hospital by helicopter on Wednesday.
Police said no one else was injured and the circumstances remain under investigation.
The park keeps grey and Arctic wolves, as well as other animals.
The park website said it was due to reopen on 2 November.
German newspaper Bild reported that the girl suffered head injuries and that the incident may have occurred before the park opened.
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HHS said it will temporarily allow compounding pharmacies to make six peptides available by prescription. The agency said the policy does not establish that the substances are safe or effective, and doctors warn that products may be contaminated or incorrectly dosed.
Key Facts
The six peptides are BPC-157, TB-500, epitalon, MOTS-c, KPV and semax.
The policy requires patient-specific prescriptions, traceable ingredients, quality testing and safety reporting, according to HHS.
HHS said the policy does not grant FDA approval or establish clinical safety and effectiveness.
The peptides have been promoted online for claims including tissue repair, skin benefits and longevity.
The article says no published clinical trials show that these six peptides are effective in humans for any condition.
An independent FDA advisory panel voted in July to recommend the six peptides for a list of ingredients that compounding pharmacies can use.
In 2023, the FDA classified 19 peptides as unsafe to compound; Kennedy has previously said that action was illegal.
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Barack Obama is preparing to campaign in Georgia to support Democrats ahead of the midterm elections. The article provides no details about his schedule or the events he plans to attend.
Key Facts
Obama is preparing to campaign in Georgia.
His campaign visit is ahead of the midterm elections.
The article says he aims to boost Democrats in Georgia.
CBS News correspondent Skyler Henry reports on the planned visit.
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A newly published summary of a 2021 Australian Defence Force investigation says some SAS officers knew soldiers were planting weapons on dead Afghans to make them appear to be combatants, but failed to act. The report describes weakened command and discipline in the regiment, while linking the problems to factors including secrecy, repeated deployments and officers’ reluctance to challenge senior non-commissioned officers.
Key Facts
The report was commissioned in 2021 by then defence force chief Angus Campbell and examined the culture of the special operations command.
The investigation found that officers who knew of misconduct, including the use of throwdowns, did not take effective steps to investigate or stop it.
The report said the Brereton Inquiry, published in 2020, found credible information that Australian special forces personnel murdered 39 Afghan civilians and prisoners.
The Brereton Inquiry largely attributed the criminal conduct it identified to patrol commanders, who are usually corporals or sergeants.
The investigation said the SAS developed an uncontrolled “warrior” ethos and that repeated dangerous deployments may have contributed to moral injury and impaired decision-making.
The report described junior officers as effectively subservient to senior non-commissioned officers, a dynamic it called “learned helplessness.”
It said allowing SAS soldiers to drink alcohol in Afghanistan despite orders imposed on others signaled that rules did not apply to them.
The report said false battlefield reports, written with language focused on rules of engagement, helped conceal misconduct.
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President Donald Trump is in Ohio campaigning for Republican candidates less than a week before the midterm elections. CBS News correspondent Nikole Killion reports on his visit.
Key Facts
Trump is campaigning in Ohio.
He is urging voters to support Republican candidates.
The midterm elections are less than a week away.
CBS News correspondent Nikole Killion reports on the visit.
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European natural gas prices rose above €100 per megawatt hour as winter approaches, reaching their highest level since 2022. The EU says it is not concerned about supplies, but warned households to expect a difficult season.
Key Facts
European natural gas prices topped €100 per megawatt hour.
Prices reached their highest level since 2022.
The EU said it was not worried about gas supplies.
EU gas storage facilities were 72% full.
The EU warned households that the coming season could be difficult.
The program also reported that the UK government was trying to reduce the impact of high energy bills.
About 200 passengers were stranded in Cambodia after a multi-year cruise was cancelled over high fuel costs.
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President Donald Trump is traveling to Ohio on Wednesday evening to campaign for Republican Sen. Jon Husted ahead of next week’s midterm elections. Husted faces former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown in a race that could affect control of the Senate.
Key Facts
Trump is expected to campaign for Sen. Jon Husted in Ohio.
Husted is a Republican senator from Ohio.
Husted is facing former Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat.
The Ohio Senate race could help determine control of the Senate.
The campaign visit comes ahead of next week’s midterm elections.
Republicans are making a last-minute effort to rally voters.
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King Charles joined a Junkanoo parade in Nassau on the second day of his nine-day Caribbean visit. Earlier, he honored fallen members of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force, visited a youth boxing academy and a mangrove conservation site, and met Bahamians at a reception.
Key Facts
Charles carried maracas in the colors of the Bahamian flag and danced alongside Junkanoo performers.
The King laid a wreath at the Flamingo Monument, which commemorates four Royal Bahamas Defence Force Marines killed in 1980.
At the Bahamas Boxing Academy, Charles watched young fighters spar and spoke with children who train there.
Charles visited Bonefish Pond National Park, where conservation work protects 1,235 acres of mangroves.
The King met students doing field work in the wetlands and asked about their studies and career ambitions.
Charles's visit follows a speech in which he acknowledged the suffering caused by the slave trade and historic injustices.
Police moved a small protest near the Junkanoo parade.
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The Federal Election Commission’s electronic filing system returned online Wednesday afternoon after an outage that lasted nearly two days. The FEC announced the restoration on X shortly before 5 p.m. EDT and said work was continuing, though the article does not include the rest of its statement.
Key Facts
The FEC electronic filing system went down nearly two days before it was restored.
The system was back online and available to filers by Wednesday afternoon.
The FEC announced the restoration in a post on X.
The post appeared shortly before 5 p.m. EDT Wednesday.
The outage began with little explanation, according to the article.
The FEC said work was continuing after the system returned online.
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New Hampshire Senate nominee John E. Sununu said his brother, former Gov. Chris Sununu, was “totally wrong” about a hypothetical claim that the nominee would lead by 30 points if voters thought Chris Sununu were on the ballot. Chris Sununu made the remark in an interview with CNN, according to the article excerpt.
Key Facts
John E. Sununu is a nominee in the New Hampshire Senate race.
John E. Sununu pushed back against a recent comment by his brother.
Former New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu made the comment in an interview with CNN.
Chris Sununu said the nominee would be “up by 30 points” if voters believed Chris Sununu was on the ballot.
The article excerpt identifies the Democratic nominee as a representative but does not include the nominee’s name.
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