Interesting news coming out of CBS today. First, the Wall Street Journal reporting that Katie Couric is "likely" to leave the network--before her contract expires, possibly after the inaguration of the next president:
After two years of record-low ratings, both CBS News executives and people close to Katie Couric say that the "CBS Evening News" anchor is likely to leave the network well before her contract expires in 2011 -- possibly soon after the presidential inauguration early next year.
Ms. Couric isn't even halfway through her five-year contract with CBS, which began in June 2006 and pays an annual salary of around $15 million. But CBS executives are under pressure to cut costs and improve ratings for the broadcast, which trails rival newscasts on ABC and NBC by wide margins. [...]
CBS, of course denies all this.
It's possible that Ms. Couric could survive if a major news event lifted the newscast's ratings or some other shift occurred at CBS.
Assuming the two part ways, it's unclear what will happen to either the "Evening News" or Ms. Couric. CBS executives are investigating which prominent news personalities are nearing the end of their contracts.
One possible new job for Ms. Couric: succeeding Larry King at CNN. Mr. King, who is 74 years old, has a contract with the network into 2009. CNN President Jon Klein, a CBS veteran with close ties to some at the network, has expressed admiration for Ms. Couric's work, and the two are friends. They had lunch in late January, and the anchor attended Mr. Klein's birthday party in March. Time Warner Inc.'s CNN said, "Larry King is a great talent who consistently delivers the highest profile guests, and we have no plans to make a change." Through a publicist, Mr. King declined to comment.
Read the rest.
Oh and that story about Dan Rather's lawsuit being set back somehow by the court it's being tried in? Don't believe it. The main part of it is still around. Rather is still a huge thorn in CBS's side.
—Matthew Sheffield is Editor of NewsBusters.
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Comments Policy
I heard about all of this
April 10, 2008 - 17:46 ET by bigtimerI heard about all of this early this morning...I also find it all amusing.
Replace Larry King barely Alive...okay....
Stay until after the next President is inaugurated, okay agenda full-filled in that area...
Help their ratings or finances...
I don't know how unless they maybe hire Mika to take her place on the evening news....
Just kidding folks...
They need to gt fair and balanced just a little...but heck I cannot ever see that happening, not something simple like that, without an agenda...not CBS...but heck CBS/CNN are working together now anyway.
"Never murder your opponent when he is committing suicide." ~ W. Churchill
What are the odds that
April 10, 2008 - 18:20 ET by fitzfongWhat are the odds that "More Money, Les Moonves" replaces the network news show horse with his wife (Julie Chen)?
By the way, would it be wise of CNN to replace an actual fossil with someone whose career has fossilized?
Well fitz... LMAO...you
April 10, 2008 - 18:25 ET by bigtimerWell fitz...
LMAO...you did it again with your brilliant play on words...
...thanks...
"Never murder your opponent when he is committing suicide." ~ W. Churchill
CNN wants to replace Larry
April 10, 2008 - 20:00 ET by ApacheCNN wants to replace Larry King soon because they are worried the intense stage lighting will set his skin on fire and then Al Gore will make them buy carbon credits for burning fossil fuel as well as the emissions from burning hair spray and Bengay.
I can't imagine the odds are
April 10, 2008 - 20:10 ET by balboaI can't imagine the odds are real strong. You don't replace one light-hearted woman with another one.
The "earnest" Connie Chung
April 11, 2008 - 07:28 ET by motherbeltThe "earnest" Connie Chung didn't fare well either. I don't know about Julie Chen, but I think the odds are good that it will be another woman. If not, they would be accused of admitting that a woman can't be an effective news anchor.
So Wilde was wrong....being
April 11, 2008 - 13:51 ET by JerSo Wilde was wrong....being "earnest" isn't so important--at least not in Connie's case.
Jer
Maybe they'll get
April 11, 2008 - 14:11 ET by fitzfongMaybe they'll get Christiahhhhhn Amanpour to wash her hair for once so that they can have another "serious" journalist presenting the news. Worked so well with Dan "Captain Ahab" Rather.
Christiahhhhhn...
April 11, 2008 - 14:28 ET by JerMaybe wearing a burka would be the most appropriate solution for Christiahhhhhn and her hair.
Jer
"headed"...
April 11, 2008 - 15:03 ET by heldmyw...it's light-"headed", bal.
Perhaps she could team with Randi Rhodes over at Clear Channel? That's turning into a regular dumping ground.
Something she's qualified for, hmmmm.....
April 10, 2008 - 17:53 ET by HumblepieI hear Mike Rowe, "Dirty Jobs" needs an assistant.
During this time with political correctness at its zenith, I reserve the right to let you know you're an idiot.
Gee, I wish I could get paid
April 10, 2008 - 18:14 ET by fitzfongGee, I wish I could get paid $15 million a year to fail so miserably. Where do I sign up for that?
I'd think the best job ever
April 10, 2008 - 18:16 ET by balboaI'd think the best job ever would be relief pitcher. That's a sweet life.
→ No way, bal
April 10, 2008 - 18:23 ET by Cool ArrowDesignated hitter.
♣ a seal
Middle relief or closer?
April 10, 2008 - 18:24 ET by fitzfongMiddle relief or closer? Wouldn't it be better just to be a punter? Seems Sean Landetta has carved out quite a living for himself over the years...and since virtually nobody would be able to point him out on the street, he could enjoy spending his considerable wealth in public without interruption! That's my dream job.
True, except every once in
April 10, 2008 - 18:31 ET by balboaTrue, except every once in a while you have to look like an idiot trying to tackle someone who's eluded the other 10 guys on the field, a lose-lose situation.
I suppose so. But my
April 10, 2008 - 18:45 ET by fitzfongI suppose so. But my frame of reference might be a little different. When I was young, I watched in horror as Tom Niedenfeur managed to give up a walk-off home run to Ozzie Smith in Game 5 of the 1985 NLCS (Smith's first and maybe only left-handed home run) and followed that up by serving up a game winner to Jack Clark in Game 6...a ball I still don't think has landed. He was pretty much finished after that. But he did manage to marry one of the Landers sisters...so maybe there's something to your theory.
But then there was Donnie Moore.
You have to have talent to
April 10, 2008 - 18:50 ET by SDSYou have to have talent to be a relief pitcher. You have to earn your spot on the roster day in and day out. Cupcake Couric has no talent. She’s just a marketing scheme. Failed marketing scheme.
Easy Jobs
April 10, 2008 - 23:40 ET by Biff McCainAbout five years ago my company got a new computer system which eliminated my job with the old system.
My boss told me to be calm, something will come way soon. In the meantime I was to clean up records from the old system.
My boss retired four years ago and now I don't even have a boss. I get
5% raises every year and a $5,000 bonus every Christmas. The head of
the department, who has no clue who I am, emails me the good news
twice a year.
I work in a remote part of one of many buildings the co has, three
stores underground. Everyone on this floor works for another department
and has no idea I have no work. I had the presence of mind to save some
of cleanup in case someone should drop in. I could go back to work where
I left off four years ago.
Like Kati Couric, I read the news a lot, too.
5% raises and $5000 annual
April 10, 2008 - 23:45 ET by Scout Finch5% raises and $5000 annual bonuses ain't chicken feed, biff. It's about 2% and $5000 more than I get working at my local public library.
Hey, I'm not complaining.
April 10, 2008 - 23:51 ET by Biff McCainHey, I'm not complaining.
$15 million....for third
April 10, 2008 - 18:15 ET by msh1973$15 million....for third place in the nightly ratings, no wonder CBS wants to get rid of her.
This was my comment this AM
April 10, 2008 - 18:17 ET by motherbeltThis was my comment this AM This'n'That posted the topic:
Well, TnT, we can take solace in the fact that CBS will be paying painfully to honor their megabucks contract with Miss Katie until 2011....
Kind of like the TV contract version of how Robin Williams described divorce (paraphrasing): from the Latin "divorcear" which means to extract one's testicles through one's wallet ..LOL!
You gotta love it!
Oh no!
April 10, 2008 - 18:41 ET by Roger the ShrubberHow will I be able to sleep tonight?
Sigh...
She's a giant who has
April 10, 2008 - 18:52 ET by Chris NormanShe's a giant who has changed news forever.
I need a hug.
April 10, 2008 - 18:54 ET by Roger the ShrubberI need a hug.
Here's a cyber hug. Just
April 10, 2008 - 18:58 ET by Chris NormanHere's a cyber hug. Just imagine, laying in bed tonight and hearing the clickety clack of her stiletto shoes coming down the hall to tuck you in...
a giant what?
April 10, 2008 - 18:55 ET by wizardjrer.. ahhh.. horse's rump comes to mind
→ A giant
April 10, 2008 - 18:59 ET by Cool ArrowPlankton from Spongebob comes to mind.
♣ a seal
radioactive?
April 10, 2008 - 18:54 ET by wizardjrSo she's approaching her half-life and will split? Into what? Twice as much vitriol but of a sub type?
Murrow, Severeid, Cronkite,
April 10, 2008 - 18:59 ET by JerMurrow, Severeid, Cronkite, and Couric...CBS's Rushmore of American journalism.
Jer
A divorce of convenience
April 10, 2008 - 19:23 ET by CobraMan"Couric, CBS Likely to Split"
Would this be considered a divorce of convenience? I know that she’ll still collect her salary even if she's no longer the anchor. I estimate that she'd make about 30 to 40 million dollars even those she would be “off the air”, so to speak. That’s one hell of an alimony settlement!
Sexism lives in America!
April 10, 2008 - 19:28 ET by nkviking75With Couric and Clinton sinking in the same year, it's clear that America is as sexist as ever. Just ask Elton John.
</sarcasm off>
When you put the clowns in charge, don't be surprised when a circus breaks out.
And Sir Elton answers,
April 10, 2008 - 19:32 ET by Chris Norman"It seems to me, Katie and Hillary lived their lives like candles in the wind..."
Boost ratings?
April 10, 2008 - 19:29 ET by Mark_for_SenateMaybe they could try actually reporting the news instead of manufacturing it. Oh wait. Then they would have to report that manufacturing jobs are down. Oh wait. Maybe that would work?
To know and not do, is to not yet know
So CBS needs...
April 10, 2008 - 19:45 ET by EvilCon555to take a cr*p....doesn't a 'couric' weigh 2.5 pounds? Flush away Tiffany.....
"All great change in America begins at the dinner table" Ronald Reagan, Jan 21, 1981
(french accent) Who will
April 10, 2008 - 19:43 ET by EvilCon555(french accent)
Who will play Katie Couric to my Diane Sawyer?
"All great change in America begins at the dinner table" Ronald Reagan, Jan 21, 1981
Gas
April 10, 2008 - 19:56 ET by jmad627If she is let go how will she eventually pay to fill up the gas tank in her car; let alone afford the (illegal alien) nanny?
The View
April 10, 2008 - 20:08 ET by Chris NormanThe View
The Couric Apologists Coming Out Of The Woodwork
April 10, 2008 - 21:02 ET by BeukeboomMichael Ventre, MSBNC commentator, is schmoozing Couric with his column which can be read at:
http://www.msnbc.msn...
He actually refers, in all seriousness, to Couric as "an accomplished journalist" who "has the gentle touch needed to put a grieving family at ease on national television, and the tenacity to keep a mendacious world leader epoxied to the hot seat."
Oh good grief. Couric has never been the tenacious reporter Ventre would have you believe. Couric's claim to infamy in the media world is that she is a queen of the puff piece. That's what made her so popular on NBC's Today Show. Even her pre-network work experience was never that of an "accomplished journalist" who has tenacity unless it was the tenacity to keep a cooking segment going when the food was burning. Ventre's apologism of Couric is typical of the MSM's mutual butt-kissing.
Honest journalists knew from day one that Couric would not be successful but were afraid to say so publically. And those who did, or even alluded to it, were branded immediately as sexist and chauvanistic which effectively silenced the handful of dissenters. Ventre tries to lay the blame only on CBS for making the decision to hire her but Couric should be held accountable as well and not allowed to get off the hook as Ventre and other Couric apologists so desperately desire. Couric should do everyone a favor and resign sooner than what has been reported by the WSJ. After all, why suffer through another sweeps with Couric anchoring and thus sinking CBS News even further?
She was never qualified to be a network anchor in the first place.
"He actually refers, in all
April 10, 2008 - 22:48 ET by RESTLESS 1"He actually refers, in all seriousness, to Couric as "an accomplished
journalist" who 'has the gentle touch needed to put a grieving family
at ease on national television, and the tenacity to keep a mendacious
world leader epoxied to the hot seat.'"
Ugh!!! Not only is Ventre an idiot, he's an idiot who can't write. Blech!!!
Yeah, she was just a
April 10, 2008 - 23:32 ET by fitzfongYeah, she was just a trivial morning show fluff "journalist" until she conducted that ambush interview with an obviously defeated George H.W. Bush...then she became the darling among media circles because she was able to do what Dan "Captain Ahab" Rather was unable to do to Bush 41. Ironic that CBS would have chosen her to succeed that serial fraud, isn't it?
But now, the chickens are coming home to roost. Nobody with any self-respect is going to watch a network news program hosted by someone who uses Friends quotes and 12-year-old brat colloquialisms to chastise the Secretary of State. Katie's hit the iceberg and I love watching her sink.
Adios, Katie
April 10, 2008 - 22:46 ET by BlondeThis is so humorous, on so many levels.
I haven't a clue where to start....so I won't.
But, wow, I am sooooo laughing!
David Gregory, do you know which damn network you lie for? ~ Uncle Jimbo, @Blackfive
Katie C,
April 10, 2008 - 23:35 ET by gfrrman...the highest paid teleprompter reader in history!!! I too am LOL on sooo many levels.
"Eventually, Socialists run out of other peoples' money...." MARGARET THATCHER
Dammit
April 11, 2008 - 07:35 ET by juspassinthruShe just ain't perky anymore.
Why wait?
April 11, 2008 - 07:26 ET by ecnirPI don't get why CBS would wait until after the election or after the inauguration. The presidential campaign is a huge story. If Ms. Couric is not pulling her weight and needs to be replaced, they need to do this prior to the big story of the year, not after. Today's update from "Couric's friends" suggests this might be true.
Not simple to unload Katie
April 11, 2008 - 07:50 ET by nkviking75It's probably not that simple with the contract and all. Katie undoubtedly had the best showbiz lawyers working for her. CBS will probably pay through the nose to buy her out.
When you put the clowns in charge, don't be surprised when a circus breaks out.
→ viking
April 11, 2008 - 08:13 ET by Cool ArrowI'll take Katie if you throw in a Richie Ashburn, a Rocky Colaveto, and that Moose Skowron rookie card.
I think I can trade Katie to Ted Turner.
♣ a seal
"It's probably not that
April 11, 2008 - 09:22 ET by ckc1227"It's probably not that simple with the contract and all. Katie
undoubtedly had the best showbiz lawyers working for her. CBS will
probably pay through the nose to buy her out."
According to Geraldo this morning(said he knows what's in the contract), even if they let her go they will have to pay her what's left on the contract. That's $45 million bucks. If you have to pay her anyway, may as well make her work for it.
Couric lost it with on-sided lack of objectivity
April 11, 2008 - 08:14 ET by ballwana13Ratings drive television shows or at least the smart people in TV are driven by the numbers. Katie was never going to keep ratings for lack of objective reporting. CBS is known for its support of liberal causes and liberal reporting, but at least Bob Shaeffer made it seem like he was somewhat objective and could report the news without taking swipes at everything Republican, like Katie does. Her reputation preceded her and that is what is killing the CBS Evening News.
Thank God for websites like www.newsbusters.org for reporting the truth and when the rest of the drive-by's don't tell the truth (which unfortunately for us is often).
Almost a year ago, Noel...
April 11, 2008 - 08:57 ET by Guy Arthur ThomasAlmost a year ago Noel S., did post an article for us to predict Couric's anchoring demise (Want To Bet When Katie Couric Loses Her Anchor Job?). I thought I did pretty well.
_________________________________________________
July 15, 2007 - 10:26 ET by Guy Arthur Thomas
Okay,
as for Katie...it will NOT be before January 1, 2008...My loose prediction as of now is early 2008 and
quickly after it is announced.
_________________________________________________
Couric was an amazingly mypoic decision. But it is not surprising. The industry is very removed from the denizens of "Average America" and their goings on. Much of what they believe and view in life and business is on paper, idealistic wishes that they constantly impose upon their news broadcasts.
And so they indulge their imagination and acts as if the typical person in America is like them, interested in pretending Katie Couric isn't what she obviously is, a very unintellectual, unsophisticated, and immature personality trying to anchor a serious delivery of the news.
This is why she got picked. No one really thought she would succeed, they hoped that their consciences were wrong when their consceinces kept telling them, "hey stupid, your fantasy world is fine for the office and the social hour but now you are imposing your idealist crap on people who don't have your money or your set of self-aggrandizing mutual admiration society friends who can afford to look the other way when you are your usual jackass self".
But frail egos often ignore the last vestiges of common sense that remain with them. So CBS failed and LES MOONBAT, well like American Airlines, the guy at the top will suffer the least though he is most responsible for the horrendous decision.
Look for another very bad decision from CBS in finding her replacement.
Next Please! If you claim to be a conservative, please don't disgrace yourself and conservatism by thinking and arguing like a liberal.
Katie's new profession
April 11, 2008 - 14:25 ET by political mavenPole dancer
very dim lights required