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I was borderline shocked when it was announced that Brian Williams was set to host an election night special for Amazon Prime Video. For a variety of reasons.
First of all, Brian Williams has sort of faded from the public eye after his high-profile exit from NBC Nightly News and shift to The 11th Hour on MSNBC.
Secondly, it was a rather large first foray into the news media space for Amazon Prime Video as it continues to spread its proverbial content wings into areas outside of limited scripted series’.
Finally, the “election night special” category felt like it was an already crowded space. And, generally, that’s not something Amazon Prime Video dives head-first into.
So, I watched coverage from about 7 PM ET through Midnight.
I left the coverage thinking one persistent thought: if there isn’t a place in television news for Brian Williams, there should be.
In the current cable news landscape, there are too many partisan firebrand hot takes, and not enough well-thought-out, well-researched, and thought-provoking questions to the biggest newsmakers and lawmakers. The sphere is dominated by lackeys who believe their favorite political party can do no wrong and believe it is their job to help get candidates elected instead of informing the American public.
On the network news side, outlets like ABC News, CBS News, and NBC News have seen viewership totals plummet as consumers have shifted away from terrestrial and cable television. The chairs that were once dominated by venerable news anchors — Williams included — are now going to be occupied on a rotating basis in the case of CBS Evening News.
But with his coverage on Election Night, Brian Williams showed that he still has it. He’s still remarkably handsome and exudes a conversational tone. I laughed out loud several times throughout the night, from him using phrases “pissed off”, “damn”, “hell”, an argument about the best cheesesteak in Philadelphia with Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-PA), and asking Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) if he needed to be rescued from a hostage situation.
He is so insanely smooth. That conversational tone is so desperately needed by television news anchors and cable news hosts. Not one time did I think Brian Williams was talking at or down to me throughout the night. I felt as if he was talking to me. And that’s an important aspect.
Additionally, the way in which his interview subjects spoke about him with reverence showcased the credibility he still has with so many important figures in the political sphere. It was so evident how many high-profile figures viewed him as a titan of the industry, in spite of his descent out of the public eye in recent years.
Credibility — like a conversational tone — is another thing the television news industry could use heaping piles of in 2024. On the network news side, ABC World News Tonight anchor David Muir faced charges of political bias after his performance as a debate moderator earlier this year. Similar charges were lobbed at CBS Evening News anchor Norah O’Donnell and Face the Nation moderator Margaret Brennan.
Meanwhile, on cable news, Fox News famously paid out $787.5 billion for knowingly broadcasting lies about the validity of the 2020 election. Newsmax is still in the midst of a similar lawsuit. CNN has seen its ratings fall off a cliff as viewers continue to lose trust in the brand. Credibility isn’t exactly in abundance in either sector.
And yet, I don’t know where Brian Williams fits in the landscape today. The days of high-priced, big-time network news anchors are now a thing of the past. In cable news, the only thing in the middle of the road is roadkill. I don’t and wouldn’t expect Brian Williams to turn into an opinion-based host at this stage of his career. Furthermore, I don’t know if there would be demand from an audience for a show that features great conversations with prominent figures, similar to the famous CNN show Larry King Live.
That speaks more to the changing style of television and the more personalized nature of our content choices in 2024, but that’s a different discussion for a different day.
Ultimately, I don’t know what his news television future looks like. Maybe it’s a show with Amazon Prime Video or something similar. But I know that if Brian Williams wants to get back in the game on a more permanent basis, I hope he gets that opportunity. Because he deserves it. He reminded not only me, but I hope many others in the industry, that he still has it and is at the top of his game.
Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing bi-weekly industry features and a weekly column. He has previously served as Program Director and Afternoon Co-Host on 93.1 The Fan in Lima, OH, and is the radio play-by-play voice of Northern Michigan University hockey. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
