Blogs and Stories
Katie Talks Katie
Dennis Brack, CBS / Landov
The CBS News anchor talks candidly about facing off with Sarah Palin, being lied to by Alex Rodriguez, how she landed Sully, why George W. Bush is smarter than you think—and of course that new haircut.
For Katie Couric—who replaced Bob Schieffer as anchor of The CBS Evening News nearly three years ago and has spent much of her time since as a television-press piñata—things are finally looking up. A small surge in the ratings for her third-place newscast has been accompanied by professional awards and critical raves, dispelling earlier rumors that Couric and CBS will part company well before the end of her five-year-contract.
“I never have judged any broadcast I’ve been involved with solely on ratings, and CBS has been in third place for many, many years.”
“If Couric stands a chance of elevating the newscast to second or first place in the nightly ratings, one reason may be that she's finally the right anchor for the times,” the Washington Post’s authoritative Tom Shales wrote the other day in the kind of media valentine that has been filling up her in-box lately. “Not simply because she is a woman, Couric has a warmer, more benevolent presence than her two competitors… That doesn't mean she tries to sugarcoat or prettify grim realities. She has proved her toughness time and again.”
On Wednesday afternoon, after a long weekend in Mexico, the 52-year-old Couric sat down with me in her windowless office in the rabbit warren at the CBS Broadcast Center on West 57th Street. Wearing sexy high boots (“I wanted to look nice for you.” that showed off those celebrated gams, she seemed grateful for her turn on the right side of the zeitgeist, as she dished about being lied to (and recently apologized to) by Yankee Alex Rodriguez, her infamous Sarah Palin interviews, her salary, and how she landed US Airways pilot Chesley Sullenberger from under the nose of the Today show.
Two years ago, everybody was saying this move to the anchor desk is a disaster, Katie can’t stay here too much longer. The worm has turned—why is that?
I don’t think everybody was saying this is a disaster. I think there were a handful of media critics maybe, and then some media writers who basically regurgitated stuff that was already out there, so it became a bit of a feeding frenzy. Clearly, things weren’t going as well as we had hoped, the ratings weren’t doing as well as we had hoped. I think we had a change in executive producer pretty early on, but I never felt like my hair was on fire, and, oh my god! I also think part of it was kind of a typical hazing that you go through when you’re in a very high-profile position, and an established person coming from another network after being there for 17 years, a brand-new job that had never really been held by a solo female. So I think there was a lot of interest, a lot of the spotlight was pretty white-hot. I never felt like “Oh woe is me,” even though that New York magazine headline said, “Some mornings I wake up and say, 'Oh my god, what have I done?'” But if you open the magazine, it says, “I think 98 percent of the time I’m really happy I made the move.”
Are there days even now when you have that 2 percent?
No, no, not at all. I’m really happy I took on the challenge. I mean, it’s frustrating for me when people misrepresent things I say in that manner. It makes me embarrassed for journalism at times, but no, I feel really positive that I took this challenge head on. And there have been moments where it hasn’t all been easy, but that’s OK, too. I'm really very proud of the quality of what we put on every night. I feel the program is really good and I feel that the correspondents are really contributing great journalism.
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Lloyd Grove is editor at large for The Daily Beast. He is also a frequent contributor to New York magazine and was a contributing editor for Condé Nast Portfolio. He wrote a gossip column for the New York Daily News from 2003 to 2006. Prior to that, he wrote the Reliable Source column for the Washington Post, where he spent 23 years covering politics, the media, and other subjects.
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Lloyd Grove is editor at large for The Daily Beast. He is also a frequent contributor to New York magazine and was a contributing editor for Condé Nast Portfolio. He wrote a gossip column for the New York Daily News from 2003 to 2006. Prior to that, he wrote the Reliable Source column for the Washington Post, where he spent 23 years covering politics, the media, and other subjects.
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Lloyd Grove is editor at large for The Daily Beast. He is also a frequent contributor to New York magazine and was a contributing editor for Condé Nast Portfolio. He wrote a gossip column for the New York Daily News from 2003 to 2006. Prior to that, he wrote the Reliable Source column for the Washington Post, where he spent 23 years covering politics, the media, and other subjects.
hey katie....dont confuse you or your mainstream media co horts with edward r. murrow.. he actually asked tough questions to democrats too !!!
This comment has been removed by The Daily Beast's editors.
This comment has been removed by The Daily Beast's editors.
This comment has been removed by The Daily Beast's editors.
Hey Lloyd what the heck do you pour on your wheaties? It must be powerful stuff if you think Katie Cuuric has any talent. She is the master or is it mistress of the powder puff question unless she is interviewing a Republican. 50 or 60 years ago, in the age of true journalism and integrity Katie would be lucky to get a job in the mail room.
Now I remember WHY I don't watch her on TV! (Other than her ridiculous "gummy" smile.) There is absolutely nothing floating on the river! Yawn ... yawn ...
Why doesn't Kati Couric report on the excellent state of affairs
the state of Alaska is in.Glenn Beck is the only source of this info.They have a 6 billion reserve and a 1 billion education reserve.How stupid is Sarah Palin? She's not as stupid as Katie or Pres Obama and his cronies.
This comment has been removed by The Daily Beast's editors.
Man, this lady is a professional. Some of these comments are personal and downright vitriolic. Jabott? Whose polling are you referring to? And, did you sleep with her?
CBS and Katie Couric will be in first place when the fairness doctrine passes.
I would still do her just to see how she likes conservative view points.
This woman is the most overpaid, unprofessional person reading the news today. Her disrespect and rude treatment of Sarah Palin and behaving like a love sick puppy towards BHO is sickening. I agree with the 69% who say she's a phony. YUCK!!
Katie has been irrlevant for a long time. No one takes her "journalism" seriously.
Katie has been irrelevan for a long time. Noone takes her "journalism" seriously.
Wow perkins. Rude.
I thoroughly enjoy Couric's work. I think she is down-to-earth without ever losing her air of first-class professionalism. I don't know why people feel the need to slander her. Oh well.
You're a rockstar, Katie.
Dear Liberal Advocate, you are not a journalist, nor a reporter, or even a news reader. You are a liberal activist who has forced a marxist down the throats of patriotic Americans. As such, if and when an overthrow becomes required, you will be on the list of Enemies of the People.
She's a liberal hack. She has no business comparing herself, or any other MSM liberal advocate to Murrow.
LitaMarieH
keep drinking that liberal kool aide..
Katie talks BS. Her so-called critical acclaims are from her liberal buddies in the media. No one likes her except liberal elites. She's not a journalist, she is a lap dog pawn for the DNC.
Where was the report last night on the protestors in Phoenix at President O'Bama's speech?.....There were plenty of them. But NO MENTION of them on The CBS evening propaganda show! If there were 2 people protesting at a President Bush speech..this woman was all over it!! Where was the report about all the money spent to lay down new sod and landscaping around the school...which complains about not having enough money for the needs to teach the students. NOT A WORD from this "Journalist"....WAKE UP AMERICA!
Time to turn off this crap so it'll go away and be replaced with real journalism. I'm tired of being told that this Hooters waitress knows how to ask questions about the things that ARE important! The garbage she peddles is one of the reasons we now have THE MOST inexperienced empty suit occupying the White House!
So A-Rod lied to Katie. Just proves he's not all bad. I can't get over her being paid 13 mil for being perky and she ain't so perky anymore. The fact that she has any ratings proves Barnum was right.
A real journalist is first and foremost fair. A real journalist doesn't create or make news as NBC has done in the past. If you cannot or will not for any reason ask the important questions, you do not belong where you are. And I question whether you do.
I have to hand it to her, she hung in there and she's making that newscast work. I liked her on Today and I'm glad she's gaining credibility. It's refreshing!
Katie is another biased, far-left "journalist" who portrays herself as objective and fair. Basically a female version of Dan Rather. She is about as neutral and unbiased as Bill O'Reilly. The difference is, he doesn't try to pass himself off as a news anchor but a commentator. Katie will stay in a distant 3rd place no matter how she cuts her hair.
Yeah -You're a rock star, Katie. You sure as heck are not an unbiased news reporter. I guarantee you that if you were - your ratings would skyrocket.
LitaMarie, what color is the sky in your world? I can pull over 20 clips from this last year alone where Katie has either misrepresented, or didn't have a clue as to what she was speaking about. I will put her accessment in the hands of a wonderful liberal, Camille Paglia. Paglia says that Couric was the most partisan, narrow-minded, least informed person who had ever interviewed her. When Couric interviewed Joe Biden and he told her that FDR went on the TV to discuss the Depression and New Deal, Couric didn't even blink. She, like most people in America, are ignorant in regards to history that an average 5th grader should know. She attepted to interview Sarah Palin, but instead of inquisitive, she angered the interviewee, and wasn't able to establish a rapport with her. She managed to accomplish absolutely nothing other than a spiteful, petty interview, that made both parties look poorly. Couric has a reputation of being both a diz and a witch. Ed R. Murrow, indeed. CBS, this is part of the reason your ratings are failing. We are just not that into Katie.
Thank you.
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