36 Comments
User's avatar
Christina's avatar

I am still watching…but with a different lens.

Democracy Spark's avatar

That's where I am too. Still watching, but differently now. As a witness rather than a viewer. That's what writing this piece did for me.

Ron Moorhead's avatar

I am not viewing CBS Programs and will miss Sunday Morning.

Democracy Spark's avatar

Another decades-long relationship ended this week. You're not alone

Kathleen McLane's avatar

MSM is dead. Get you news elsewhere. Get out there, talk to your neighbors, sign up to help. Join the resistance. Power to the people ✊

Democracy Spark's avatar

Getting out there, talking to neighbors, showing up — that's exactly it. And you just did part of it right here by saying it out loud where others can hear it. ✊

Coco's avatar

All of CBS has been compromised. Stop watching. Walk instead.

Democracy Spark's avatar

Stephen Colbert was the canary in the coal mine.

Terri Hanson's avatar

I too am saddened by CBS’s capitulation! I’ve loved the Sunday Morning show for as long as I can remember. I used to trust the CBS evening news-I don’t anymore! I feel sorry for Tony Decopal. For no fault of his own his name will be forever attached to the CBS station’s downfall.

Democracy Spark's avatar

The trust that took decades to build is being spent in months — and the people who showed up every day to do the work are caught in that too. Your loyalty to what it was is worth honoring. So is your willingness to name what it's becoming.

Carol Keeney's avatar

I have watched CBS News, Saturday and Sunday morning shows for decades. I gave up CBS News when Norah O’Donnell was the anchor. Saturday Morning has gone down hill for several years and I quit watching months ago. Now they have ruined Sunday Morning. I, too, noticed the “thousands” not millions and brevity of their report. I am sad and grieving what was once a great, interesting, and informative show on so many different topics.

Democracy Spark's avatar

The grief is real — these weren't just shows, they were relationships built over decades. And you noticed the "thousands" too, which means you were paying attention even as it was slipping away. That attention matters.

Judy Carnivale's avatar

Like you I watched Sunday for years, but I stopped watching it earlier this year because CBS was changing and I didn’t like the changes. SAD!

Democracy Spark's avatar

You saw it coming before most of us did. Your instincts were right.

Stacie's avatar

Thank you. Ended one of my decades long favorite Sunday morning ritual also.

The effort is to keep citizens ill-informed, ignorant, and dumb.

Dumbing down of America is real and we are paying for it in so many ways now. Once leaders, now losers.

Democracy Spark's avatar

Losing a decades-long ritual is a real loss — and noticing why it happened is the first step. The antidote to being kept ill-informed is exactly what you're doing right now: seeking out the real story and saying it out loud. That's how we stay sharp.

Saralyn Fosnight's avatar

It’s too bad a couple if small-brained conservative dullards bought CBS and are proceeding to destroy it. But what will they have purchased? A reputation that depended on honesty, which they are trying to destroy. And when they are done they will no longer own what they bought. They bought a jewel and then stomped all over it, making it less than it was. In the end, their bigotry and stupidity will have destroyed it, and it will be no more. Then they’ll either kill it or try to sell it to someone else, but they will have robbed it of all value. It amazes me that these Captains of Industry can’t seem to understand that Conservatism is now and has always been a niche voice that has been blanketed by Fox and two smaller companies. There is most likely no appetite for a fourth such entity.

The American public isn’t suddenly going to start watching traditionally “liberal” stations as they morph to conservative ones when TV media is already losing audience share to streaming. I don’t even get regular TV stations or cable anymore through my Roku device. I have never watched CNN either. I subscribe to several podcasts of shows from MS NOW, which I get on my phone. I just don’t have endless funds to pay for media I would most likely seldom watch.

Democracy Spark's avatar

You just described the business model failure more clearly than most media analysts have. They bought trust and are spending it down. And you've already done what millions of people are figuring out — you built your own media diet that serves you. That's not a small thing. That's the future.

Daniel Rench's avatar

CIVIL RESISTANCE: 

Movements reaching ~ 3.5% of the population in active participation were extremely likely to succeed.  E. Chenoweth [commonslibrary +1]

3.5% of the current U.S. registered voting population is ~6.63 million people 

189.5 million registered voters.[usafacts]

8 millionpeople participated from the U.S. in the NO KINGS 3.0 protests 3/28/26

NO KINGs ! NO WAR ! NO ICE !

Democracy Spark's avatar

YES! That is the goal! Are you attending the Indivisible call tonight? Up next is a General Strike on May 1. No working, no shopping, no school. They are upping the stakes - Workers over Billionaires. I can't wait to hear more tonight.

Anne's avatar

I watched that show for years and years. No more. That also included 60 Minutes. . . . No more.

Democracy Spark's avatar

You're not alone. A lot of decades-long relationships ended this weekend. That's the cost of the choice they made.

Starter (Star Termopolis)'s avatar

I gave up on 60 minutes a few months ago. I check 60 minutes Australia still sometimes. I had been holding out for Sunday Morning, the only CBS show I still watch. I started watching it when Charles Kuralt (s) was doing phenomenal reporting every week. I may have to let it go. There are better alternatives now anyway.

Democracy Spark's avatar

Charles Kuralt set a standard that deserved to outlast him. What you're describing — holding on, hoping, finally letting go — that's grief. And you're right that there are better alternatives now. The good journalism didn't disappear, it just moved. Sounds like you're already finding it.

Starter (Star Termopolis)'s avatar

Yes it does strike as grief. I have found many sound truthful sources to move forward with though.🐢

Kevin Gilmore's avatar

I totally missed the erroneous sign. Thanks for pointing it out. I started noticing a slight shift in the show two weeks ago, and it is particularly noticeable in their matter-of-fact coverage of the war in Iran, without a hint of negativity, much like their approach to No Kings protests. I’ve been a regular follower of the show for the past few years, but I don’t know how much longer that will continue.

Democracy Spark's avatar

You noticed before most people did — two weeks ago, on the Iran coverage. That kind of attention matters. The pattern you're seeing is real, and you're not alone in seeing it. Thank you for saying it out loud.

Somewhere, Somehow's avatar

Sunday is the last show I watch on CBS. I too thought their lack of reporting of this historic event was bull shit.

Democracy Spark's avatar

You noticed it too. That matters — and now you've said it out loud, which means it's part of the record. Thank you for that.

Sarah  Robinson's avatar

I watched last week's 60 Minutes for the aging dogs piece. It was preceded by two stories of two companies whose CEO's were interviewed about their national security importance: building ships and extracting rare minerals. Basically cheerleading for both.

Democracy Spark's avatar

There is clearly an agenda here. 60 Minutes is another big disappointment. The news division has taken a knee to the pressure. I am grateful to Substack — glad there is a platform for the best thinkers and for those living in the reality of this time. What you just did — watching, noticing, naming it — that's the work.

Gunna WZ's avatar
Democracy Spark's avatar

This is exactly it. You watched, you documented, you published — and now it exists. Your video is powerful and beautiful, and it is part of the record. Thank you for being the archive.

Gunna WZ's avatar

Thank you!! 🩵❌👑