jeff-fager
- United States
- Deviant for 3 months
- Portfolio
- He / Him
Jeff Fager built a long career in broadcast journalism, rising from entry-level newsroom roles to senior leadership at CBS News. Over nearly 40 years, he contributed to some of the network’s most recognized programs and helped guide them through periods of editorial and technological change. His work was centered on careful reporting, disciplined production, and steady management.
After graduating from Colgate University with a degree in English literature, he entered television news in the late 1970s. Fager began at a CBS station in Boston as a production assistant, news writer, and assignment editor. These early positions gave him direct experience with daily reporting operations. He later became a broadcast producer at KPIX-TV in San Francisco before moving to CBS News at the network level. There, he worked on the weekend editions of the CBS Evening News and the overnight broadcast Nightwatch.
International assignments soon followed. Based in London, he produced coverage of major global events, including conflicts in the Middle East, the 1986 bombing of Libya, and diplomatic meetings between President Ronald Reagan and Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev. He also covered developments tied to the collapse of the Soviet Union. These experiences strengthened his background in international reporting.
Jeff Fager later helped launch 48 Hours and became a producer at 60 Minutes, working with Correspondents Morley Safer and Steve Kroft. In the 1990s, he took on senior production roles at the CBS Evening News, overseeing coverage of the war in Bosnia and the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. His work during this period contributed to a Peabody Award. As executive producer of the CBS Evening News with Dan Rather, he reinforced the show's focus on rigorous reporting and expanded its foreign coverage.
He went on to lead 60 Minutes II and later the main 60 Minutes broadcast for 14 seasons. In 2011, Jeff Fager was named chairman of CBS News, overseeing television, radio, and digital operations. Jeff supported new digital initiatives and strengthened the network’s commitment to hard-news reporting across platforms.