Dr. Peter Attia, a well-known physician and medical influencer on social media, resigned from his newly appointed role as a contributor at CBS News after emails he exchanged with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were made public in a recent Department of Justice (DOJ) document release.
Attia’s name appears more than 1,700 times in the searchable batch of records released in February. The documents show that in the 2010s, Attia and Epstein traded crude jokes, scheduled in-person meetings, and discussed the late financier’s lifestyle and health. Attia has not been accused of any crimes.
In a statement shared by CBS News, Attia’s spokesperson said his contributor role at CBS “was newly established and had not yet meaningfully begun,” adding that he chose to step back to prevent his involvement from being “a distraction from the important work being done at CBS.”
Attia, known for his podcast “The Drive” and his book “Outlive: The Science & Art of Longevity,” joined CBS in January as part of a group of new contributors announced by editor-in-chief Bari Weiss. He had not yet appeared on air, and CBS reportedly pulled a planned “60 Minutes” segment featuring him earlier this month after the emails became public.
Attia addressed the email release in a lengthy Feb. 2 post on X. He insisted his “interactions with Epstein had nothing to do with his sexual abuse or exploitation of anyone” and added that he was “not involved in any criminal activity” and was “never on [Epstein’s] plane, never on his island, and never present at any sex parties.”
The following email is what I sent my team last night. I sent a similar version to my patients, also.
— Peter Attia (@PeterAttiaMD) February 2, 2026
***
You’ve put your trust, your credibility, and your hard work into what we have built together, and I take that responsibility seriously. You deserve a complete and honest…
“That said, I apologize and regret putting myself in a position where emails, some of them embarrassing, tasteless, and indefensible, are now public, and that is on me,” Attia said. “I accept that reality and the humiliation that comes with it.”
The resignation adds Attia to a growing list of public figures facing fallout from their ties to Epstein. As Zeale News previously reported, British police arrested Peter Mandelson, a former UK ambassador to the U.S., Feb. 23 on suspicion of misconduct in public office tied to Epstein. British authorities also detained Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, after the DOJ records showed that he allegedly shared confidential information with Epstein while serving in the UK’s government.