Strangely, Katie Couric used People magazine for her official announcement. Confirming rumors that had been circulating for some time, the anchor of the “CBS Evening News” since September 2006, says she will not renew her contract with CBS.
“I have decided to step down from the CBS Evening News,” Couric said in the exclusive interview with People. She did not, however, reveal what she plans to do next. The rumor mill has said for some time that she is working on a potential daytime TV talk show with former NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Zucker, once her producer at NBC’s “Today” show.
“I am looking at a format that will allow me to engage in more multi-dimensional storytelling,” was all she told People about the next step in her career.
Couric’s contract with CBS reportedly paid her $15 million per year. CBS Corp. CEO Les Moonves had made it clear that, while he’d like to keep her at the network, it would not renew the contract at such a level.
RBR-TVBR observation: Had Couric succeeded in bringing new life to the network news format and dramatically growing the female and 18-49 audience for the “CBS Evening News” we would be applauding her and hailing Les Moonves as a genius for his $15 million per year investment. But it didn’t work out that way. The type of newscast Couric wanted to do was ditched years ago, so she’s not happy in the format and the network bosses are not happy with the ratings and her pay check. So, why wouldn’t she leave?
