Lesley Stahl Biography
Lesley Stahl is a renowned American television journalist whose career has been largely defined by her long and influential tenure at CBS News. She joined the network in 1971 as a producer and, since 1991, has been a correspondent for the iconic newsmagazine 60 Minutes. Widely respected for her investigative journalism and award-winning foreign reporting, Stahl’s body of work has earned her numerous honors, including a Lifetime Achievement News and Documentary Emmy Award in 2003 recognizing her overall excellence in reporting.
Before joining 60 Minutes, Stahl made history as CBS News’ White House correspondent, becoming the first woman to hold the position. She covered the administrations of Presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan, as well as part of George H. W. Bush’s term. Her reporting frequently appeared on the CBS Evening News, first under Walter Cronkite and later with Dan Rather, along with other CBS News programs.
In addition to her White House coverage, Stahl served as moderator of Face the Nation, CBS News’ flagship Sunday public affairs program, from September 1983 to May 1991. In that role, she conducted high-profile interviews with global leaders such as Margaret Thatcher, Boris Yeltsin, and Yasser Arafat. From 1990 to 1991, she also co-hosted America Tonight, a nightly CBS News program of interviews and essays, alongside Charles Kuralt.
Lesley Stahl Age
Stahl is 84 years old as of 2026 She was born Lesley Rene Stahl on 16 December 1941 in Lynn, Massachusetts, United States.
Lesley Stahl Family
Stahl was born in the Boston suburb of Lynn, Massachusetts, to a Jewish family, and grew up in Swampscott, Massachusetts. Dorothy J. (née Tishler) and Louis E. Stahl, a food company executive, are her parents. She graduated with honors from Wheaton College in Massachusetts, where she majored in history.
Lesley Stahl Husband
Stahl married author Aaron Latham in 1977, and together they have one daughter, Taylor Latham. The couple resides in New York and are also the proud grandparents of two granddaughters.
Lesley Stahl Salary
Stahl earned an annual salary of $1.8 million. CBS News asked Stahl to take a $500,000 pay cut to accommodate Couric’s salary, bringing her total compensation to $1.8 million.
Lesley Stahl Net Worth
Stahl has an estimated net worth of $40 Million.
Lesley Stahl 60 Minutes
She also hosted 48 Hours Investigates from 2002 to 2004. Stahl made headlines in 2002 when Al Gore appeared on 60 Minutes for the first time and announced for the first time that he would not run for president again in 2004. Stahl gained attention in 2007 for her interview with then-French President Nicolas Sarkozy for a 60 Minutes segment when the President abruptly ended the conversation and walked out, calling it “stupid” and a “big mistake.” Sarkozy chastised Stahl for asking questions about his wife, Cecilia. Two weeks after the interview, Sarkozy and his wife announced their divorce.
Stahl co-founded wowOwow.com in 2008 with Liz Smith, Mary Wells Lawrence, and Joni Evans, a website for “women over 40” to discuss culture, politics, and gossip. By the end of 2010, it had merged with PureWow, a site geared toward younger women.
She worked as a correspondent for Years of Living Dangerously, a documentary about climate change, in 2014. Becoming Grandma: The Joys and Science of New Grandparenting, her second book, which chronicles her own experiences with her grandchildren, was released in 2016. During the 2020 United States presidential election campaign, Stahl interviewed President Trump for a segment on 60 Minutes on October 20, 2020. Trump cut the interview short and took to Twitter to express his displeasure. Trump released the full interview on Facebook on October 22, ahead of its scheduled broadcast on 60 Minutes on October 25.
Stahl was chastised by LGBTQ advocacy groups in May 2021 for a 60 Minutes special on transgender healthcare. CBS News, the show’s producer, stated that the special came “amid a spate of legislation being introduced in states across the country that would limit care for transgender youth,” and that it focused on “detransitioners.” PinkNews quoted GLAAD as saying it was “fearmongering about trans youth,” while the ACLU’s Chase Strangio said Stahl and others involved in the production “knew exactly the harm they were causing with last night’s segment.”
Lesley Stahl 1980s
Between September 1983 and May 1991, Stahl was the moderator of Face the Nation. She later worked as a White House correspondent during the administrations of Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush. At the 1980 Republican National Convention, she announced on CBS that Reagan’s talks with ex-President Gerald Ford had broken down, and the answer to the question of who would be the vice-presidential nominee was: “That’s Bush! Yes, this is Bush!” George H. W. Bush had been standing nearby, largely by himself, looking disheartened because he was certain he would not be chosen. During her time at CBS, she covered the 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan as well as the Gulf War in 1991. Throughout her career, she covered the US-Russia summit meetings, the industrialized countries’ economic summits, national political conventions, and election nights.
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