Go Behind the Scenes

WENDY ROSE BICE SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

“When one man, for whatever reason, has the opportunity to lead an extraordinary life, he has no right to keep it to himself.” These are the words of Jacques Cousteau, and they are the sentiments behind why Ira Rosen, producer of some of the most significant stories for the CBS show 60 Minutes, wrote his memoir, Ticking Clock: Behind the Scenes at 60 Minutes. On April 5, Rosen will Zoom into a SOAR Lifelong Learning Institute (formerly Society of Active Retirees) program for an hourlong discussion on life, family, career and 60 Minutes.

For nearly 25 years, Rosen stood beside Mike Wallace and other legendary reporters to produce and share some of the most memorable and ground-breaking stories for the CBS show. Before CBS, Rosen spent 15 years at ABC as senior producer and one of the co-creators of Prime Time Live.

His career includes major innovations, such as pioneering use of hidden cameras. While at ABC, his stories included exposing racial discrimination, abuses in VA hospitals, mistreatment of farm workers, and unsafe and unsanitary food handling practices inside meat packing plants and supermarkets.

At CBS, the former Nieman Fellow in Journalism at Harvard University was behind some of the Sunday evening news show’s most significant pieces: exposing how congressmen used campaign contributions for personal use; revealing how the U.S. smuggled Nazi war criminals into the U.S. for intelligence purposes and unleashing the report on who was responsible for the opioid epidemic, which won more awards for 60 Minutes than any segment in the show’s 52-year history.

In the years after 9-11, his stories included exposing how the government’s No Fly list, used to prevent potential terrorists from flying on U.S. flights, included common names like Robert Johnson, which hampered real Robert Johnsons from boarding planes. After the story aired, the No Fly list was amended.

In 2005, he traveled to Pakistan and obtained the interrogation tapes of some of the most dangerous terrorists captured by Pakistan, including the mastermind of 9-11, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.

But, life behind the scenes at CBS wasn’t all glitz and glamour. Ticking Clock: Behind the Scenes at 60 Minutes, is an honest, tellall look at the often chaotic and toxic culture of this iconic news institution. The book is also about Rosen’s life. “It is a book about family, about growing up. I wanted to leave a trail of the stories of my life,” he said.

His life includes the story of Leo Rosen, Rosen’s father. At age 15, Leo Rosen was saved from the Holocaust by a Catholic family who hid him in their barn. The influence of his father is clear. “My father came here penniless and made a life for him and his family,” he said.

Since leaving CBS, Rosen has

been producing some upcoming documentaries and lecturing around the country. His April 5 Detroit appearance will surely support SOAR’s mission to enlighten, inform and educate.

Tickets are $10 per person and available at www.soarexplore. com or by calling (248) 626-0296. Zoom invitations will be distributed to ticket holders one day in advance.

Wendy Rose Bice is SOAR interim executive director.