Nolte: Scott Pelley Mocked for ‘Unhinged,’ ‘Self-important’ Commencement Speech

60 Minutes anchor Scott Pelley is facing widespread ridicule for a commencement address last week that is being described as “self-important” and “unhinged.”

“This morning, our sacred rule of law is under attack. Journalism is under attack, universities are under attack, freedom of speech is under attack, and insidious fear is reaching throughout schools, our businesses, our homes, and into our private thoughts,” Pelley told the freshly-minted graduates at Wake Forest University.

“The fear to speak in America. If our government is, in Lincoln’s phrase, ‘of the people, by the people, for the people,’ then why are we afraid to speak? Ignorance works for power,” Mr. Sunshine added. “Power can change the definition of the words we use to describe reality. This is an old playbook, my friends. There is nothing new in this.”

The New York Postreports that the speech was met with “scattered applause” and “ridiculed on social media by those baffled by Pelley’s dramatic gestures and dread-filled rhetoric during the celebratory event.”

The Post quotes X users describing the event this way: “Scott Pelley raged at Trump in angry, unhinged commencement address at Wake Forest…as he speaks openly and freely in America.”

Such a great point. Pelley claims people are afraid to speak up. Then he speaks up.

“This self-important, sermonizing propagandist is what passes for a legacy media ‘journalist,’” wrote another X user.

“Did Scott Pelley mention that 60 Minutes edited Kamala’s campaign interview, and they helped her answer questions ???” said one critic on X, adding that until “he does that, his credibility is ZERO.”

This is a big part of why the Democrat Party is losing young people.

Young people are genetically skeptical of authority, and here comes a humorless and smug Scott Pelley, all puffed up with himself, lying to them about how America is entering its darkest days under President Trump.

Contrast that with Trump himself, who at least has a sense of humor, a sense of playfulness, optimism, and belief in the future.

Think of Caddyshack. The Pelley v. Trump contest for the hearts and minds of the young is Judge Elihu Smails (Ted Knight) v. Al Czervik (Rodney Dangerfield). That’s no contest. So I’m not accused of being partisan, there’s a reason why former president Bill Clinton prevailed over his Republican political enemies, men who might have been morally right but came off as prudes and hypocrites.

Plus, young people can feel how manipulative Pelley is. They instinctively understand that he is 1) fabricating a dark world so 2) people join his cult, his side of the political aisle.

Also, don’t forget that these are people in their early 20s who suffered through the unnecessary and fascist COVID shutdowns and school closings, who had their proms, graduations, and homecomings canceled. They know who the villains are — and that’s authority that accuses you of being evil and racist if you question them.

Pelley went at them in the exact wrong way. A sense of humor, some self-deprecation, and a little faith in the future go a long way with young people. Instead, Pelley was Jim Jones up there: Join me to stop the Trumpocalypse.

Young people can smell a phony a mile away, and Scott Pelley is not only insufferable, he’s one of the phoniest.

John Nolte’s first and last novel, Borrowed Time, is winning five-star raves from everyday readers. You can read an excerpt here and an in-depth review here. Also available in hardcover and on Kindle and Audiobook.