Peter Attia steps down from CBS after name appears hundreds of times in DOJ Epstein files

Dr. Peter Attia stepped down from a newly created CBS News contributor role after his name appeared “hundreds of times” in a Justice Department file release that included communications with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. CBS had named Attia one of 19 contributors on Jan. 27; days later the DOJ disclosed documents from its probes of Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, a batch that news organizations said included millions of pages and messages.

The disclosures prompted a rapid series of personnel and programming changes. CBS pulled a repeat airing of a 60 Minutes segment featuring Attia in early February, and media reporting said staff were informed via an internal booking department email that Attia would be leaving. Attia’s spokesman framed the change as temporary, saying in a statement, “Dr Attia’s contributor role was newly established and had not yet meaningfully begun. As such, he stepped back to ensure his involvement didn't become a distraction from the important work being done at CBS. He wishes the network and its leadership well and has no further comment at this time.” Other outlets reported Attia told CBS he would be resigning effective immediately.

Documents described in reporting show multiple exchanges between Attia and Epstein dating largely to the mid‑2010s. News accounts highlighted a 2016 message in which Attia made a crude joke characterized by one outlet as insinuating that female genitalia was “low carb,” and instances where he wrote that he went into Epstein “withdrawal when I don't see him” and told the financier he missed him. Attia apologized publicly, calling the emails “embarrassing, tasteless, and indefensible,” denied any involvement in Epstein’s criminality and said he “never flew on Epstein's plane, never visited his island and never attended ‘any sex parties.’” He also told reporters he visited Epstein’s New York home “seven or eight” times between 2014 and 2019 and said he never witnessed illegal activity or saw anyone who appeared underage.

Beyond reputational damage to Attia, the episode exposes governance and vetting risks for newsrooms and corporate owners. Attia was recruited as part of a 19‑person contributor slate assembled by Bari Weiss after a corporate overhaul that saw David Ellison assume control of CBS as part of a wider merger in 2025; some coverage referred to the parent company as Paramount Skydance. The quick removal of programming and the contributor’s exit underscore how DOJ releases and archival disclosures can rapidly upend editorial plans and force executives into damage control.

For media companies, the economic stakes are concrete. Programming pulled from linear and streaming schedules can depress short‑term viewership and advertising inventory value; high‑profile reputational incidents can also spur advertiser scrutiny and raise questions about editorial oversight. The broader trend of public access to large DOJ archives creates recurrent legal and PR exposures for public figures who appear in sprawling investigative files, even where appearing in the records does not itself imply criminal wrongdoing.

Attia has left a separate corporate post as chief science officer at the protein bar company David, according to reporting, and his social media apology was shared with his team and patients. Public reaction has been mixed; some fans expressed anger at his appearance in the files, while others urged restraint pending document verification. Journalists and regulators will now likely press to obtain the specific DOJ documents cited to confirm context and wording as newsrooms reassess contributor vetting practices.