CBS Evening News: Rick Kaplan Tries to Revive a Dull Market

[turbo]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070308/ap_en_tv/tv_cbs_kaplan;_ylt=AgK7GneiC..eUtWEANwwqrDMWM0F

CBS has hired Rick Kaplan to try to pull CBS news out of the cellar. The boys at the top mistakenly thought that Katie Couric could haul their news division out of the doldrums, and have discovered (to nobody's surprise) that fluff and smiles don't buy viewership once you get out of the morning venue and into evening news. CBS had a stellar tag-team available in Trish Regan and Lara Logan and they could have gained and cemented their dominance by hiring Christiane Amanpour away from CNN and perhaps by hiring a straight-talking political reporter to fill out the line-up (take your pick). These three women are experienced, smart, and tough enough to gain the respect and loyalty of viewers, not to mention that they are all attractive enough to gain the attention of the male, middle-aged news-junkie crowd that prizes smarts and will stick with a news team that demonstrates same. Any one of these women could easily anchor the evening news while the others were on assignment (their strong points!) giving CBS a vibrant, dynamic presence in an evening news market that is cloying and dull. Once again, the boys at the top failed to gauge the market and once again, the US TV market settles for mediocrity. CBS's attempt to put a female face on the evening news is admirable, but their choice was short-sighted and destined to alienate those of us who value content over presentation.

 

[Evo]

I couldn't believe that they put that sickeningly chipper chipmunk on the evening news to begin with.

 

[turbo]

I couldn't believe that they put that sickeningly chipper chipmunk on the evening news to begin with.

Me either. She had already reached the limits of her abilities when interviewing hicks in Rockefeller Center.

Lara Logan is a very sharp foreign-affairs correspondent, Trish Regan is an experienced financial reporter, and is well-versed in Latin American issues, and of course we all know of Christiane Amanpour's willingness to accept assignments in some very dangerous places, and her ability to pull them off with class. If CBS could have assembled such an anchor team and rotated them through field assignments fitting their specialties, they would have a compelling evening news program. Even better if they gave these women the latitude to go in-depth on important stories instead of filling the half-hour with fluff or parroting press releases from political hacks.

 

[Moonbear]

I couldn't believe that they put that sickeningly chipper chipmunk on the evening news to begin with.

I was willing to give her a chance, figuring that maybe she was playing to the intended audience on the Today Show and might have the skills to do well on a serious evening news show, but just didn't get to use or show them on a morning show. But, it seems she is really just a chipper chipmunk, as you put it.

The sad thing is that, as turbo pointed out, if they wanted to bring in a female reporter, there are more qualified people to choose from. Instead, all people are seeing is a female who is all pink fluff flopping miserably on the evening news to be replaced by a serious male reporter. Now, maybe the other women weren't interested in the job because they prefer being in the field over anchoring, but it has an overall negative impact on people's perceptions of women as reporters to subject them to pink fluff as if that's the best they can find. Did CBS really think that's what people want to see for their evening news?

 

[turbo]

Now, maybe the other women weren't interested in the job because they prefer being in the field over anchoring, but it has an overall negative impact on people's perceptions of women as reporters to subject them to pink fluff as if that's the best they can find. Did CBS really think that's what people want to see for their evening news?

Watching Regan's coverage of the Katrina aftermath, and Logan's coverage of political/social problems in Iraq, I got the impression that these women are both very serious, dedicated journalists, not "just" reporters. CBS could have assembled a very competent anchor team from within their own staff with perhaps a few well-chosen outside hires, and still have had the flexibility to rotate them in and out of the field as appropriate stories emerged. CBS had a chance to pull a real coup and sweep the evening news ratings, but lacked the imagination to do so, IMO. Now, they've got an overpaid news reader who inspires about as much confidence as a Chatty Cathy doll. The sad part is that they might have been able to assemble a team of competent serious journalists for no more than they are paying Couric, given the incremental increases they might have had to offer their field journalists to get them to rotate in and out of the anchor desk.

 

[Astronuc]

I couldn't believe that they put that sickeningly chipper chipmunk on the evening news to begin with.

I haven't been able to make myself watch CBS news (with rare exception), since Dan Rather took over.

As for the chipper chipmunk - she owns an estate in the area - along with people like Mary Tyler Moore, Liam Neeson, and James Earl Jones. It's amazing the political clout these people have in terms of preventing the local towns from developing businesses or housing which might interfere with their view or the quietness of the area.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

The good news: Perhaps fluff has finally found a limit.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

CBS, Couric Likely to Split

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 [continued]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120778369100203247.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

 

[turbo]

If the executives at CBS could manage to rub two brain cell together, they would do this:

Hire Lara Logan, Trish Regan, and Christian Amanpour as co-anchors. Depending on the character of the leading news, send one or two of them out to cover it. Regan knows South American politics and economics real well, and has been effective at covering hurricaine/storm damage. An anchor group of these smart, attractive ladies could easily capture the evening news ratings.

 

[Astronuc]

I heard something about CBS Evening News and Couric the other day. CBS apparently pays her $15 million/yr! So a five year contract from 2006 to 2011 would yield $75 million.

 

[edward]

I am surprised Les Moonves didn't suggest his wife for the job, on the other hand perhaps he did and was out voted.

 

[turbo]

I heard something about CBS Evening News and Couric the other day. CBS apparently pays her $15 million/yr! So a five year contract from 2006 to 2011 would yield $75 million.

Pretty sick! If I could take control of that network, I would eliminate that drain (bye, bye Couric!), setup the troika that I've proposed and watch the advertising revenue soar. News executives are ignorant, over-cautious, and excessively anal-retentive. These are three people that love to get to news stories and report them from the source. The fact that they are all smart and attractive should make CBS a news powerhouse overnight. The other networks have little going for them. To be fair, CBS has nothing to offer, and I watch either NBC or ABC every evening, but all US networks seem to be unwilling to press back, question authority, and advocate for average citizens.

 

[Poop-Loops]

I haven't been able to make myself watch CBS news (with rare exception), since Dan Rather took over.

As for the chipper chipmunk - she owns an estate in the area - along with people like Mary Tyler Moore, Liam Neeson, and James Earl Jones. It's amazing the political clout these people have in terms of preventing the local towns from developing businesses or housing which might interfere with their view or the quietness of the area.

Don't you badmouth James Earl Jones. I don't care about all those other hacks, but Darth Vader? Mufasa? Thulsa Doom? "This is CNN" guy? I find your lack of respect disturbing.