Couric's Evening News Replacement: Pelley? Smith? Mitchell? Schieffer?

On Monday I asked: Theoretically, if/when Katie Couric makes a move to 60 Minutes, who would replace her on the CBS Evening News?

The responses flooded in. "To go outside of the house twice in a row would be a death sentence to the division's morale," one insider wrote.

Many voted for Scott Pelley and Russ Mitchell. Others leaned toward Harry Smith -- another morning anchor who could move to the evening. One person wrote: "Is it me or does Harry Smith possess the same type of skills and resume that Charlie Gibson brought to World News?"

Still others hoped for a comeback: "Purely a guess, but by the winter, Bob Schieffer will pull a Charlie Gibson, say, 'I want it for real,' and take over the evening show again."

Click continued to read a sampling of responses...


> "I wouldn't bet against Scott Pelley."
> "To go outside of the house twice in a row would be a death sentence to the division's morale. So it seems like Scott Pelley might be leader-by-default. Harry Smith has a small chance as does Russ Mithchell, but my money would be on Scott."
> "I believe they will go with Pelley. He has all the credentials now, and has followed the same path as Dan Rather. I think they should look at someone else though...how about Steve Kroft?"
> "It's obvious: Russ Mitchell."
> "Russ Mitchell is smart, credible, and serious. Furthermore, he would be the network's first African American anchor, reminscent of the Bernard Shaw era."
> "Russell Mitchell is the future leader of CBS. He has the presence and calmity that makes a good Nightly anchor. He has been filling in a lot these days."
> "Is it me or does Harry Smith possess the same type of skills and resume that Charlie Gibson brought to World News?"
> "I would expect (and love) to see Harry Smith take over if Couric steps down."
> "Purely a guess, but by the winter, Bob Schieffer will pull a Charlie Gibson, say, 'I want it for real,' and take over the evening show again."
> "They should bring back Bob Scheiffer or go with Harry Smith."
> "Bring back Bob Scheiffer. He was excellent."
> "Bring back Bob Scheiffer, he is young by 60 Minutes standards."
> "Anderson Cooper... A network friend told me that's why they wanted him on 60 Minutes."
> "I think Harry Smith would make an ideal anchor of the CBS Evening News, much like Charlie Gibson has done for ABC. However, a major coup would be Ted Koppel, who is not only respected but has the serious news chops to subplant Gibson and Brian Williams as well."
> "I would love to see Harry Smith."
> "I'd like to see Lara Logan hosting the newscast from the field... And if a big story happened, they could use a standby anchor in the studio."
> "Lara Logan should be next. She is a smart, articulate, well-educated, beautiful woman. Don't knock the woman anchor off just because of Couric."
> "If I were CBS, I'd hire Shep Smith from Fox or newly unemployed John Seigenthaler for the anchor job."
> "Former CNN anchor Aaron Brown is available."
> "I think it will be Diane Sawyer who saves the day at CBS -- think about when her contract is up..."
> "Dan Rather."

New from mediabistro.com

20 Tips in 20 Minutes
mediabistro.com's PR Speaking Series: Online & In Person

The phone rings. It's CNBC. They want your CEO in the studio and on air. In three hours. Oh, and your CEO has never done a broadcast interview. What do you do? Find out at our new monthly breakfast speaking series for PR and marketing professionals, "20 Tips in 20 Minutes." Our next topic is "Media Training: How to Prep Your Company, Client, and Yourself for Interviews," with Garrett Glaser, former CNBC and MSNBC.com reporter and founder of Glaser Media LLC at 9am on Thursday, February 18. Join us for breakfast or watch the live webcast from your desk. Click here to sign up and view the full schedule of topics.

Email This Post

Fill out the following information and click on the Send button in order to send this post, Couric's Evening News Replacement: Pelley? Smith? Mitchell? Schieffer?, to a friend.
Friend's name
Friend's email address
Your name
Your email address
Note to your friend (optional, max 200 Characters)

Read more on TVNewser >

And Now the News...About TV News

TVNewser in Your Inbox

Job Listings

Featured Listings

Sales Planner
Westwood One - Metro Networks
Culver City, CA

Metro Marketing Manager, Sales Support NY
Westwood One
New York, NY

Senior Archivist
WNYC Radio
New York, NY

Executive Producer
AARP
Washington, DC

ADVERTISEMENT


mediabistro.com l Member Benefits l Jobs l Freelance Marketplace l Courses l Events l Forums l Content
mediabistro Blogs: Media News l TVNewser l GalleyCat l UnBeige l FishbowlNY l FishbowlLA l FishbowlDC l PRNewser l AgencySpy
MobileContentToday l WebNewser l BayNewser l eBookNewser l MediaJobsDaily l mbToolbox
Site Map l Advertising/Sponsorships l Partners l About Us l Contact Us/Help

WebMediaBrands
mediabistro learnnetwork freelanceconnect SemanticWeb
Jobs | Events | News
Copyright 2010 WebMediaBrands Inc. All rights reserved.
Advertise | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy