Each autumn, American culture pauses to take stock of itself — through art, music, film, and the stories we tell about danger and ambition. CBS News Sunday Morning, long a steward of that reflective tradition, turns its September 27 broadcast into a kind of cultural atlas: mapping where creativity is heading, what risks we are willing to name, and which human journeys still deserve to be told. From a pop singer who walked away from the industry's machinery to an aging icon who once bet everything on a single screenplay, the program asks, in its quiet way, what it means to make something that l
CBS Sunday Morning previews fall's hottest entertainment: Haring, Raye, Stallone
He wrote the role for himself and refused to sell it any other way.
Mark
So this is just a preview of what's on the show—not news reporting itself, right?
Mimi
Exactly. It's a program guide, essentially. They're telling viewers what segments will air and giving some context for why each one matters.
Luke
Which means we should be careful about treating the descriptions as reporting. When they say Raye "has been putting in the work since she was a teen," that's her framing, not independently verified reporting.
Mark
What about the Stallone piece? Is that new reporting or just promotion for his memoir?
Mimi
It's a profile interview tied to the book release. Tracy Smith is conducting it, so there's reporting happening—but the news hook is the memoir itself.
Luke
Right. And we don't know what Stallone actually says in the interview from this description. We know the memoir exists and the documentary opens November 19, but the substance of what he reveals is still unknown to us.
Mark
What strikes me about the lineup is how much of it is about people making choices—Raye leaving her label, Stallone writing his own role, the true crime audience choosing to engage with these stories.
Mimi
That's a fair read. There's a thread about agency and risk-taking running through several segments.
Luke
Though I'd note: we don't have reporting on whether Raye's independence was actually successful financially or creatively. We know she did it and has a hit song, but the full picture of that decision's consequences isn't in this description.
Mark
And the AI segment—is that presenting both sides fairly?
Mimi
It sounds like it. They're talking to people who've raised alarms and also to Andrew Ng, who cofounded Google's AI program, so presumably he has a different perspective.
Luke
But we don't know what Ng actually says. The description just says they'll discuss "whether recent declarations of threats to humanity are to be taken seriously." That could mean he agrees or disagrees. We're not told.
The Pulse
- A new generation of filmmakers is arriving just as the fall season floods screens with anticipated releases, creating both excitement and the pressure of comparison.
- Keith Haring's three-dimensional works are traveling through major American museums, pulling a beloved artist's legacy out of the archive and back into living conversation.
- British singer Raye severed ties with her record label and turned personal trauma into a family album — a high-stakes wager on artistic freedom that is now paying off.
- AI researchers, including a Google co-founder and a former insider, are publicly disagreeing about whether self-teaching machines represent a genuine civilizational threat or a manageable risk.
- Sylvester Stallone's memoir lands alongside a documentary, reframing his 'Rocky' gamble not as Hollywood myth but as a calculated, desperate act of self-invention.
- The true crime industry has grown large enough to host its own convention, prompting scholars and podcasters alike to ask what our obsession with unsolved violence reveals about us.
Each autumn, American culture pauses to take stock of itself — through art, music, film, and the stories we tell about danger and ambition. CBS News Sunday Morning, long a steward of that reflective tradition, turns its September 27 broadcast into a kind of cultural atlas: mapping where creativity is heading, what risks we are willing to name, and which human journeys still deserve to be told. From a pop singer who walked away from the industry's machinery to an aging icon who once bet everything on a single screenplay, the program asks, in its quiet way, what it means to make something that lasts.
CBS News Sunday Morning's September 27 broadcast, anchored by host Jane Pauley, arrives as a kind of seasonal reckoning — a single program attempting to hold the full breadth of American cultural life in view. The cover story, reported by Luke Burbank, profiles the emerging generation of filmmakers reshaping cinema, framed against a wider preview of what music, books, television, and theater have in store for the months ahead.
Jane Pauley also guides viewers through the current wave of Keith Haring exhibitions, including a major show at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas, running into early 2027. The segment weaves in archival footage from a 1982 CBS Evening News profile in which Charles Osgood captured Haring's early subway drawings — a reminder that the artist's instinct to meet audiences where they live has always been central to his power. Other fall exhibitions noted include shows at SFMOMA, the Art Institute of Chicago, MoMA, the Whitney, and the British Museum.
Correspondent Seth Doane profiles British singer-songwriter Raye, whose music confronts loneliness, assault, and addiction with unusual directness. After her hit 'Where Is My Husband!' broke through, she made the difficult choice to leave her record label entirely. Her latest album, 'This Music May Contain Hope,' became a collaborative family effort — a portrait of what independence can look like when the risk actually works.
David Pogue takes on artificial intelligence, speaking with researchers Daniel Kokotajlo and Geoffrey Hinton about the dangers of AI systems that improve themselves autonomously, then turning to Google AI co-founder Andrew Ng for a counterpoint on whether the alarm is proportionate. The segment captures a genuine disagreement among experts — one that is quietly reshaping how institutions and governments think about the future.
The Sunday Profile belongs to Sylvester Stallone, whose memoir 'The Steps' revisits the moment he wrote the 'Rocky' screenplay and refused to sell it unless he could star in it. Correspondent Tracy Smith explores how that single act of stubbornness — made from a position of near-total obscurity — became the hinge on which his entire life turned. A documentary, 'I Play Rocky,' opens in theaters November 19.
Luke Burbank also visits CrimeCon, the annual gathering of true crime devotees, speaking with 'My Favorite Murder' hosts Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark alongside genre scholar Jean Murley. The segment asks what it means that millions of people now spend their leisure time trying to solve murders — and what that collective appetite says about anxiety, justice, and the stories we need to feel safe.
CBS News Sunday Morning is devoting its September 27 broadcast to the cultural landscape taking shape this fall, with host Jane Pauley steering viewers through a season of significant artistic and entertainment releases. The program, which airs Sunday mornings at 9 a.m. ET on CBS and streams via the CBS News app at 11 a.m., has built its reputation on deep dives into culture and ideas—and this week's lineup reflects that commitment.
The cover story examines a new generation of filmmakers entering the industry, reported by Luke Burbank, setting the stage for a broader look at the fall film season. Alongside that, the program will preview anticipated releases in music, books, television, and theater, offering viewers a roadmap of what's coming in the months ahead. It's the kind of comprehensive cultural survey that has become the program's trademark.
Among the week's segments is an exploration of Keith Haring's artistic legacy. Jane Pauley will examine current museum exhibitions featuring the artist's three-dimensional works, including a show at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas, running through January 2027. The segment will also draw on archival footage from a 1982 CBS Evening News profile in which Charles Osgood documented Haring's early subway drawings that transformed New York City's transit system. Beyond Bentonville, the program notes other major fall exhibitions: works at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, a Lee Miller retrospective at the Art Institute of Chicago, a Krasner and Pollock show at MoMA in New York, a Roy Lichtenstein exhibition at the Whitney Museum, and the Bayeux Tapestry at the British Museum in London.
The music segment focuses on British singer-songwriter Raye, who has built her career on unflinching songwriting that addresses loneliness, sexual assault, and substance abuse. Her breakthrough hit "Where Is My Husband!" propelled her to mainstream success, but her path has involved significant risk. Correspondent Seth Doane will discuss her decision to leave her record label and pursue independence, the challenges and rewards of that choice, and how her latest album, "This Music May Contain Hope," became a family project. The segment underscores how contemporary artists are reshaping their relationship with the industry itself.
A separate segment tackles artificial intelligence and its potential dangers. Correspondent David Pogue will speak with AI researchers Daniel Kokotajlo and Geoffrey Hinton about the risks of AI systems teaching themselves to become more intelligent, and the recent warnings about autonomous AI systems. He will also interview Andrew Ng, who cofounded Google's AI program, to explore whether current fears about AI pose genuine threats or represent overstatement. The conversation sits at the intersection of technology and existential concern—a question that increasingly shapes public discourse.
The program's Sunday Profile features Sylvester Stallone discussing his new memoir, "The Steps," which recounts his journey to stardom. Stallone's story is one of deliberate self-creation: as a struggling actor, he wrote the screenplay for "Rocky" and refused to sell it unless he could star in it—a gamble that paid off. Correspondent Tracy Smith will explore how Stallone engineered his own breakthrough and the obstacles he overcame before and after that pivotal film. The memoir arrives as a documentary titled "I Play Rocky" prepares to open in theaters on November 19.
Another segment examines the cultural phenomenon of true crime entertainment. Correspondent Luke Burbank will visit CrimeCon, the annual convention where enthusiasts gather, and speak with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, hosts of the popular "My Favorite Murder" podcast, as well as professor Jean Murley, who studies the genre's appeal. The segment explores why audiences have become so invested in solving crimes through podcasts, television, and film—and what that appetite says about contemporary culture.
The broadcast also includes the program's traditional Almanac segment, which looks back at historical events that occurred on September 27, and a Passage segment honoring notable figures who died in the past week. Web exclusives will include archival material on the history of salt, featuring author Mark Kurlansky and celebrity chef David Burke. Beginning September 28, CBS News Sunday Morning will launch a new collaboration bringing conversations with major newsmakers in arts, politics, and culture to the stage and online, with tickets available through 92NY.
Notable Quotes
Raye has built her songwriting around unflinching subjects—loneliness, sexual assault, substance abuse—and her breakthrough hit 'Where Is My Husband!' propelled her to mainstream success.— CBS News Sunday Morning preview
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