Couric Blames Poor Ratings on Local News Lead-Ins

As Katie Couric prepares to leave the anchor desk at “CBS Evening News,” which has perennially come in third place during her tenure, she is blaming  her ratings woes on CBS-affiliates.

In a recent interview with The New York Times, Couric indignantly points the finger at CBS stations:

I believe we were in third place for 13 years before I got here, and I think habits, particularly with an evening news broadcast, move at a glacial pace. And I think that local news stations have something to do with it.

Pressed to clarify her damning view of CBS’s local news lead-ins, Couric responded, “I’m just saying what I’ve read or some of the theories about it.” Not willing to go into greater detail, she said that “some people” have told her that “local news is really important in terms of lead-ins.”

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