Les Moonves Calls CBS Promotion 'Great Honor'

Brian Stetler, Les Moonves

Les Moonves wants people to be talking about CBS's Sunday telecast of Super Bowl 50, not about the board meeting that made him CBS Corporation's chairman this week.

But when, Brian Stetler from CNN's Reliable Sources, asked about the promotion in an interview on Thursday, Moonves said it was "a great honor and a great privilege."

"I'm very pleased that Sumner Redstone handed the reins to me," Moonves told CNNMoney. He referenced his 20-year tenure with CBS and the company's storied past, including the legacy of the man who built CBS, Bill Paley, and said, "I'm very excited to be the chairman."

Moonves quickly pivoted to the Super Bowl, an event that CBS has invested a year's worth of preparation and promotion into. The company is charging a record $5 million per 30-second commercial spot and is using the game to flex its muscles across television and the Internet.

He spoke with CNNMoney from San Francisco, the site of Sunday's game. Watch more from Moonves on CNN Reliable Sources Sunday morning at 11 (Eastern).

His trip out West followed an unexpected meeting of the CBS board of directors on Wednesday, one day after Redstone sent a resignation letter to the board.

Redstone, 92, the controlling shareholder of both CBS and Viacom, has been in poor health. After he resigned as CBS's executive chairman, his daughter Shari nominated Moonves to take his place.
Related: Les Moonves replacing Sumner Redstone atop CBS

Moonves declined to comment on Redstone's health. When asked if they had spoken, Moonves said, "I've received correspondence from him."

He also had nothing to say about the succession plan at Viacom, where CEO Philippe Dauman was named chairman on Thursday over the objections of Shari Redstone.