CBS News has experienced massive changes in the last few weeks after Norah O’Donnell announced she would leave the network’s evening news program. Katie Couric had some criticism in the aftermath.
In an op-ed penned for The New York Times, the former CBS Evening News anchor shared her belief that CBS News needs a more diverse cast of reporters and anchors as the demographics of news consumers change. She believes the network is failing currently, especially as it covers a presidential election with the possibility of seeing the first woman elected to the White House.
“It’s a potentially historic story— one that needs a diverse group of journalists covering it,” wrote Couric.
She added that while CBS Evening News has often been at the forefront of bucking trends and precedents when it comes to its on-air talent selections. However, Katie Couri believed that the male anchors tabbed to replace O’Donnell — John Dickerson and Maurice DuBois — as well as the male executives and producers now leading the program — Bill Owens, Guy Campanile, and Jerry Cipriano — can have “blind spots” when it comes to covering female news subjects, stating that she was forced to re-write copy about former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton that she found “subtly sexist.”
“It’s odd and more than a little out of touch that even while CBS has announced a restructuring that introduces an additional layer of women executives, the leading editorial decision makers will mostly be men,” Couric stated. “
If Norah doesn’t want to be in NY and DC anymore why not do a duel hosting with one in DC and one in Ny like the old Huntley Brinkley style