CBS News execs are scrambling because there is no obvious replacement for ousted “CBS Evening News” anchor Scott Pelley.
While Anthony Mason has been named as the interim stand-in, he is unlikely to get the big job on a permanent basis, sources say, and there’s a race to replace Pelley.
CBS insiders say Norah O’Donnell has the gravitas for the job, but news chiefs are reluctant to take her out of “CBS This Morning,” which she hosts alongside Charlie Rose and Gayle King, because the show is doing so well it could soon overtake NBC’s “Today” in overall ratings.
One insider said, “Norah would be willing to do both the evening and the morning if CBS wanted her to do so, but it would be a lot of work.”
CBS News chiefs had been in talks with Willie Geist last year, but insiders said he wanted too much money to leave NBC. Other TV insiders say CNN’s Jake Tapper could have been up for the role as he “had been making it clear that he’s ready for something bigger.”
But Tapper, as well as Anderson Cooper, who’s reported for “60 Minutes,” have long-term contracts with CNN.
Plus, CBS News doesn’t need to get the new evening anchor into the chair until September for the fall-ratings push.
Reps declined to comment.
Meanwhile, it is still chaos at CBS News, we’re told. “Josh Elliott’s firing was embarrassing, but this is one hundred times worse. It’s a complete fiasco.” They added, “Scott was groomed to be anchor of the ‘Evening News’ and spent decades at CBS.”
The source calls the decision to ax Pelley “deeply unpopular” with CBS News staff.
Pelley had ordered his assistant to clear out his offices on Tuesday after he clashed with CBS News President David Rhodes.
Pelley, who’s reporting in Syria, knew of his firing and took action ahead of next week’s planned announcement of his move to “60 Minutes.”
A source said, “Pelley asked for the curtains of his office to be opened, so everyone in the news division could see, as the boxes from office were lined up outside with his Texas home address on them.”
If it helps, we hear Kathy Griffin is available.
Additional reporting by Carlos Greer