Are suits at NBC sweating this summer over their decision to let Ann Curry take over “Today” from Meredith Vieira?
Sources close to the show said that NBC staffers have been “in disarray” behind-the-scenes because second-place “Good Morning America” has been closing the gap this month since Curry took over in June as co-host with Matt Lauer after her 14 years as news anchor.
“GMA” won a rare Monday in the national ratings in July. The show also posted its smallest total viewer gap with “Today” in four years, pulling to within 416,000 of the NBC show’s 4.8 million viewers, according to Nielsen.
Meanwhile, some are questioning whether viewers relate to Curry as easily as they did to Vieira. “They put themselves in a box because they basically had to let her anchor,” said one source.
“She comes across as having an affectation,” said another. “But she lobbied for the job, and she had to get it or she’d walk out the door,” said another industry observer. “Maybe that wouldn’t have been the worst thing. There are two shows waiting for her to show any signs of weakness.”
But another source insisted that Curry isn’t going anywhere. “She can have five bad Mondays or 10 bad Mondays,” the insider said. “They’re not going to pull the plug on her for a while.”
Sources close to NBC discounted the “GMA” Monday win because it was on the heels of Diane Sawyer‘s first interview with Jaycee Dugard. They said summer ratings for “Today” tend to fluctuate, and that it’s overall ratings have gone up since Curry took over despite “GMA’s” inroads.
An NBC rep said, “Ann’s transition couldn’t have been more successful. ‘Today’ has gained viewers since she started and remains a solid No. 1. This sounds like our competitors are spreading misinformation to distract from their abysmal ratings.”