AceShowbiz - Steve Kroft, renowned for his 30-season tenure on 60 Minutes, has openly shared that despite his long-running career, he “hated” much of his experience at the iconic newsmagazine. Speaking candidly on Bill O’Reilly’s podcast We’ll Do It Live!, Kroft revealed that if given the chance to start over, he “probably wouldn’t” take the job again.

Kroft described the demanding nature of working on 60 Minutes as a relentless 24-hour commitment. “You may get a couple hours of bad sleep,” he explained, recalling the constant beepers, nonstop travel on jets, and the exhaustive cycle of preparing stories. After returning from assignments, he often spent three to four days writing scripts, attending screenings, and then immediately gearing up for the next story.

Despite the prestige of the position, Kroft was unreserved about the intense pressure and competitive environment behind the scenes. He noted the jealousy and tension among journalists vying for coveted roles. “I thought a lot of people would congratulate me, but instead, I made a bunch of enemies,” he said, calling the workplace “a snake pit.”

Looking back, Kroft identified his time as a correspondent in the CBS London bureau as possibly his favorite role. “I got to see the world, that was the job I always wanted,” he shared, contrasting it with the relentless pace and politics of 60 Minutes.

Still, Kroft acknowledged that the stories he covered were what truly fueled his passion. “It was exhilarating because of the stories I could do, and because the show valued good journalism,” he reflected. His work included some of the most memorable interviews in the program’s history, including with former President Barack Obama, actors Woody Allen and Clint Eastwood, and the Clintons during the contentious 1992 presidential campaign.

One standout moment for Kroft was the 1992 interview with Hillary Clinton, who famously referenced Tammy Wynette amid rumors about Bill Clinton’s alleged affair with Gennifer Flowers. “It began awkwardly,” he recalled, “but as Hillary got more involved, I knew we had a good story. When she made the Tammy Wynette remark, I knew we were home free.”

Beyond interviews, Kroft led major investigations into Saddam Hussein’s secret financial networks and insider trading within Congress. However, he identified the 2001 report on Sandler O’Neill — a financial firm that lost a third of its employees in the World Trade Center attacks — as the story that left the deepest impact. He recounted how the surviving partner, Jimmy Dunne, allowed the team to document the company’s struggle to continue operating amid tragedy, a narrative of resilience that ended with the firm thriving today.

When asked how his producers would describe him, Kroft admitted he was a perfectionist who could be tough during the scripting process. “If you asked them then, the answer would be unprintable,” he joked. “But when the story was finished and screened, they were more complimentary. I’m not easy.”

After retiring in 2019 at age 73, Kroft held the distinction of being 60 Minutes’ longest-serving correspondent. Though retired, he briefly returned to the public eye in the summer when he appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. There, he spoke about Paramount’s $16 million settlement with former President Donald Trump regarding the editing of a 60 Minutes interview with Trump’s 2024 election opponent, former Vice President Kamala Harris. Kroft was blunt, calling the settlement a “shakedown.”

Discussing the current atmosphere at 60 Minutes, Kroft echoed Stewart’s sentiment that the deal was “devastating to the people who work in a place that prides themselves on contextual, good journalism.” He expressed concern over the pervasive fear among the staff — fear of losing jobs, fear for the country’s future, and fear of erosion of First Amendment rights.

In sum, while Steve Kroft cherishes the impactful journalism he was able to produce during his tenure, he remains deeply aware of the personal toll and the challenging dynamics of working at one of television’s most prestigious news programs. His reflections underscore the complex realities behind the scenes of broadcast journalism’s highest echelons.