Don S. Hewitt

American television producer
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Also known as: Donald Shepard Hewitt
Quick Facts
In full:
Donald Shepard Hewitt
Born:
December 14, 1922, New York City, New York, U.S.
Died:
August 19, 2009, Bridgehampton, New York (aged 86)
Also Known As:
Donald Shepard Hewitt
Awards And Honors:
Emmy Award

Don S. Hewitt (born December 14, 1922, New York City, New York, U.S.—died August 19, 2009, Bridgehampton, New York) was an American television producer who was perhaps best known for creating and producing the television news magazine 60 Minutes.

After serving as a war correspondent in World War II, Hewitt joined CBS in 1948, and he directed its first televised evening news broadcast, with Douglas Edwards (1948–62). From 1951 to 1958 he directed See It Now, a weekly news show hosted by Edward R. Murrow. Hewitt later served as executive producer of CBS News with Walter Cronkite (1962–81), and he created the popular 60 Minutes in 1968; he served as executive producer of the series until 2004. He was the recipient of numerous honours, among them eight Emmy Awards and an Edward R. Murrow Award (2008). Minute by Minute (1985) and Tell Me a Story: Fifty Years and 60 Minutes in Television (2001) are memoirs.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Encyclopaedia Britannica.