CBS News Ratings Collapse After Norah O’Donnell Exit
CBS News’ recent changes that were meant to entice viewers seem to be failing as the network’s Evening News program continues its ratings woes following the exit of longtime anchor Norah O’Donnell.
Veteran journalist O’Donnell anchored her final episode of Evening News on January 23. She was replaced by John Dickerson and Maurice DuBois for a new-look version of the program, which took on a more 60 Minutes-style style magazine format. Rather than rattling through the headlines, the new show provides longer segments on specific topics.
However, it appears the new format is struggling to connect with viewers, as CBS Evening News saw a 24 percent drop in the 25-54 demographic when compared to the same period last year, per Nielsen ratings.
In comparison, David Muir‘s World News Tonight on ABC has seen an 8 percent annual gain in the 25-54 demographic, while Lester Holt‘s Nightly News on NBC has seen an 8 percent gain in that same demo. For the week of February 10, CBS Evening News was the only evening broadcast to experience week-to-week declines.
The show launched with 5.2 million total viewers but slipped to 4.8 million viewers on average for its first week on air. It shed another 300,000 viewers in its second week and, by the third week, had fallen to an average of just under 4.5 million total viewers.
According to the New York Post, an insider claims CBS News is already thinking of reverting to a news headline-driven broadcast due to the recent ratings slump.
“They’ve realized they can’t ignore the news,” the insider told the outlet. “You can’t really ignore the tsunami of news that is coming out of the White House and Washington.”
This comes after Evening News led with a six-minute report on student literacy titled “Why Can’t Johnny Read?” last week, despite breaking news including Elon Musk appearing at the White House, Russia’s release of a US prisoner, and President Trump‘s controversial comments about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The new Evening News format came from CBS News CEO and president Wendy McMahon, who tapped 60 Minutes executive producer Bill Owens to helm the show. The changes came after O’Donnell’s show trailed in third place to NBC and ABC for the past five years.
On the other side of the coin, it can take a while for a new show to find its feet, and CBS News appears aware of this. According to the Post, a source close to the network said the drop-off in viewers was “not a surprise.”
“When there is an anchor change, traditionally, there is a dip in ratings. We understood there would be a short-term ratings hit and we are in this for the long term and are confident in our long game,” the source stated.
Conversation98 Comments
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G
Nora was our favorite national news anchor. We (my husband and I) miss her. We don't like the new format. We tune in for the breaking news stories and we don't get that from the new format.
55 15
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I've always liked Nora O'Donnell and was disappointed when they dropped her from CBS Mornings and kept Gayle King. I haven't watched that show since then. I would watch it again if they got rid of Gayle.
54 15
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O
Agreed!
12 1
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O
I love John and Maurice together and they do a great job! It makes me sad how mean things are being said about these two. They are NOT unknowns . I wish them success and hope they get a fair chance
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G
I agree
1 1
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G
They are both great but 2 men taking Norahs place is kind of creepy. One would have been good. Goes to show you it takes 2 men to do the job of one women 😂
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O
It seems a bit appropriate that one of their stories was "Why Johnny Can't Read" when TPTB seem to have determined that neither anchor is capable of reading an entire story or intro by themselves. They are adults. Let them read more than one consecutive sentence. I have enjoyed the more subdued tone, the lack of "Breaking News" banners about stories that were breaking 10 hours earlier and a general lack of zapping the cornea, but I get so tired of the trading of sentences between anchors and the lack of information on the screen. I also wouldn't mind seeing the CBS eye a few more times (like next to a reporter's name) and a tasteful use of color (the black and white graphics and maps are boring), but I'm watching -- hoping for improvements. Just think, in this short paragraph there would have been at least four switches back and forth between anchors!
27 5
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P
Well said.
1 1
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G
You can put any news station on right now & hear the same stories. Why not try a different format where you get more in depth stories. I like them both.
20 6
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G
The problem was not Nora, it is number of commercials they run. Its made the program unwatchable.
13 1
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C
I love the new format with John and Maurice!
25 13
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O
I like the new format...works well for those of us who have an attention span longer than 30 seconds... 🙂
21 10
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P
I hear you, Mary. But maybe just for the next week keep an eye on the topics rather than the segment length. You might feel differently. (Or you might not, and that’s fine too, of course.)
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G
I don't think you need two men to do the job one women did successfully. It seems John reads a few sentences and then Maurice reads the next few. Idiotic and very segmented. Go back to one anchor. And now that Lonnie has been promoted he no longer does the 6:00 weather. Is that his dinner break? They now have to get another person in to read the 6-6:30 weather. Ridiculous!
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J
No surprise with the format/host change. I majored in Broadcasting and grew up in the era of Cronlite on CBS and studied Edward R. Murrow and even read a biography of this stellar journalist. The industry has strayed far from objective, relatively unbiased reporting and strayed too far into "social responsibility" reporting. Cronkite, Murrow and so many more anchors of 60s and 70s news programs were journalists first, broadcasters secondarily. We need more solid reporting and less opinion.
11 2
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G
Bring back Jeff Glor!
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R
What a refreshing change for the CBS Evening News. I was Sick to Death of hearing Nora O'Donnell say BREAKING NEWS, BREAKING NEWS every night. I have always liked John Dickerson. John and Maurice do a great job together! I hope they stay.
16 8
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O
Breaking News was a hook to get the viewer. ABC Nightly, especially on weekends, reads a 3 minute intro with great urgency attached to every story. At least CBS used to just get to it.
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R
Love the new format!!!
11 4
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G
Bring back Norah O'Donnell and this household will go back to cbs news. We need to know what's going on in Washington DC and everywhere!
16 9
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O
Bring back Jeff Glor and / or Scott Pelling
7 1
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P
I agree, the dual format and the hosts are totally zeros.
8 2
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P
Just don't like John Dickerson's approach.....he is an interviewer NOT a news anchor. The two of them together are simply not easy to watch. The show is Evening News not Evening Stories!!!
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R
The show should be anchored by John and Maurice should do an in-depth segment multiple times a week. This will streamline quite a few things.
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B
We miss, Norah! We've watched CBS News for as long as I can remember. We switched over to ABC because the new news format is awful. We understand that anchors come and go, we really liked Scott Pelley. There is nothing wrong with Maurice and John, but the format has got to go. We feel like CBS News has pulled back from reporting the "NEWS" due to political pressure. Goodbye, CBS! 👋
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B
Format change is fine but the coverage is more left biased. I gave it 2 weeks and moved on to more balanced reporting on another channel. Goodbye CBS news.
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R
The rating collapsed because those guys don't hold a candle to Norah.
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O
I do not like the new format or anchors. It seems to have gone 'back in time' and 'old fashioned.'
Norah was a great, good and refreshing anchor!!
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O
Tried these two for a few days, this may very well be the end of CBS News.
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G
Bring back Nora, she was really good at her job of delivering the nightly news.
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G
Sorry Bob. Norah is gone from
CBS and she was finally
moving on with her life
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C
Awful format. Hate it.
Abandoned cbs and went to nbc. And now that lester is leaving i guess muir will continue to lead.
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O
CBS really slipped when they chose a has been and a wannabe in the anchor position. Their switching back and forth presenting the news is confusing to me. News programs need one anchor to present the news. Two people telling one story doesn't work.
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O
I agree. I miss Norah O'Donnell so much! This new set up pales by comparison. I watch David Muir 1st. CBS made a BIG mistake.
3 1
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B
CBS, bring back Nora!
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O
Both graduates of great universities, UVA-John, Northwestern-Maurice. Let them continue with their own reasoning!
3 1
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G
I liked Jeff Glor
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P
Won't work. Norah did a great job & I have nothing against Maurice. Still, the American people have little attention span & need the actual news presented in brief ... not 60 Minutes long-form human interest pieces
Dan Jessop
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B
I'm not shocked as much as I like these two, I enjoyed Nora's 1 woman news pieces more. I'm guessing her style or personality is what won me over. Sometimes management doesn't know what they had till it's gone.
3 1
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C
Nora was the best part of CBS News. The new version is unwatchable.
3 1
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R
Nora was awesome as a news anchor. She told the news in a way that showed compassion for the stories she delivered. I would like to see her come back. She would be a great reporter for 60 minutes.
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P
Dislike the new format. I watch ABC now. Bring Norah back.
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O
I absolutely loved Norah O’Donnell and would watch religiously every single night after work and had it on recording in case I wouldn’t be home on time. What I especially loved about her was her compassion and true human emotion on Friday night’s On The Road With Steve Hartman which quite often brings me to tears, and many times her as well on air. I was so disappointed to see her go, and I still continue to watch every evening, but I really do find John & Maurice dull and almost annoying, especially how they finish each other’s sentences. If I look down at my phone for a moment all the sudden I hear one sentence and the next in another voice and I look up wondering what the hell is going on? I do like the new format in ways, I like how they have headlines on the bottom banner during the first commercial break, but I also agree that they arent focusing enough on actually talking about those headlines, sometimes i’ll put on CNN before bed and wonder to myself why am I just hearing about this now rather than at 6:30?? But I also do like the new Evening News Roundup where they go thru about 4 major headlines of the day so at least I see a quick summary of those headlines but then usually when I go to CNN later they have a much more detailed report on them.
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O
Can’t help but notice there are no women anchors in this new format. Two guys in suits telling stories. Miss Nora and the old format.
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C
Anchors are good.. do not like new format.
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C
Love John Dickerson and Maurice, but I feel their talents are being wasted on this format! Bring back traditional news!!
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C
Chet Huntley and David Brinkley they they aren't. Norah had a following. I just watch the local news.
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C
They need to put Tony Dokoupil in the driver seat…you have to complete with top rated show which is David on ABC, especially now since NBC will be going with a younger anchor. They just wanted to cheap and it didn’t work.
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R
It’s TV show with the word news in the title.
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R
The program and anchors are dry and boring. Watching is a waste of time.
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G
I’m very sorry about news reporters who were stepping back from those networks and most of them were leaving very quickly.
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O
I watch the new news show nightly......I it is OK, but it moves too quickly between co-anchors, with one finishing the sentencing of the other. The actual news segment, in a 30 minute program, is 20 minutes, the rest....ads. Also, spending time showing segments of what is to follow is a waste of precious time. (I, too, miss Scott Pelley.)
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O
John Dickerson is a fantastic interviewer. He shined when he hosted Face The Nation, which for some reason, CBS changed the host. His talents are being wasted on the current format on the Evening News. In fact the format isn't an evening news program. It's more like 60 minutes. When people turn on the five o'clock news, they want to see todays news.
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W
The “new” format with Tony D. Is pretty bad. Try as he might, he seems completely out of his depth!
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C
This is so unacceptable. Ratings, slayings!! I'm SO UPSET THAT CBS ruined their nightly news AGAIN. I finally found a nightly news that we enjoyed. Cmon CBS. You lost it. Ratings will really go down. I'm so upset!! 👎👎👎
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C
It was very refreshing. When I heard that tony was starting on monday, l was shocked. Y
They lost a viewer. So upset over this.
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C
I did too. I would even record it if I couldn't be home . SHAME ON CBS. LOST a viewer
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P
I don’t like the new format with John Dickerson. His voice isn’t clear, I don’t understand when he talks (I have to use closed captions).
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O
You do not need two anchors, very awkward and no where near the personality of Norah or Jerika Duncan. We always enjoyed the news, but theses two guys need to go!
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G
CBS NEWS SUCKS
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G
All of the network's nightly news shows are terrible but these 2 on CBS are the worst. We only watch the last few minutes because it leads into Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy. Even my says "Time for the boring guys" when she changes the channel.
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P
CBS needs to quit screwing around with it's successful programs. Dropping them, moving them or changing them. Nobody wants to watch 2 men co anchor evening news!
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O
The CBS news is a joke. The weatherman is WALKING on the map, which is on the floor. They interviewed Dr. Lapook in what looked like a warehouse . Sit at a desk for the love of god! Just report the news.
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R
Seems most of CBS's news stories have an anti-Trump lean. Perhaps they didn't get the memo. Trump is still popular!
And Dickerson was not on tonight. Did they can him already?
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G
I no longer watch anything by CBS, ABC, or NBC News. Nor do I watch FOX
These supposed mainstream media outlets are not reliable sources. Starting with the pandemic, wear masks and social distancing, did they ever actually ask a real scientist about the effectiveness of masks on an airborne respiratory virus? If not why not? Isn't that their job?
Then Leslie Stahl basically called Trump a liar about the Hunter Biden laptop being real.
Then there was President Biden's dementia, why was this never reported? Isn't it their job to report things that can have / do have a huge effect on the country? Who was actually doing the job of chief executive of the United States? It sure as hell wasn't Joe.
When the nations news outlets, the fourth estate, is not doing their job, why bother watching.
It is a shame overseas news outlets are better than our news outlets.
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C
CBS news is all garbage. So one sided and disruptive.
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R
Although I personally have been a CBS fan since Douglas Edwards; admittedly I have reverted to PBS Channel 13 beginning at 5:00 p.m. evenings. Their coverage and approach far superior and warrants greater praise.
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C
I don't like John Dickerson, Maurice is ok. But the way the read the news it looks rehearsed
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G
The new format is like watching an episode of Dark Shadows. It's awful! I'm out.
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O
We appreciate the new format and anchors as they bring new stories that we do not commonly hear about on mainstream media.
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P
I like the new CBS evening news. Love john Dickerson. I think he is highly respected as a news commentator and needs a chance.
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O
Of course they did. She was the reason they were high. Not everyone is replaceable.
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R
John & Maurice are excellent together! As with any new format, change takes some getting used to. They are fantastic on their own even better together. It’s refreshing to see two men who actually have respect for each other co-anchoring this show. I like the new format!
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C
Nora was the BEST!
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G
Norah never had a strong following and cbs is see what happens when you become so left leaning hateful and degrading of people with different views
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P
Lefty bias still showing with or without Norah
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G
Make Jericka Duncan the host, perfect age and solid presentation. I thought she was going to be Noras successor
1 1
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G
They beat the same dead horse every night. It gets old after awhile
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J
The best evening news program on television is Special Report with Bret Bair on Fox. You finish the program having a detailed understanding of the national and global news of the day.
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G
The ceo is a long way from being very good. Whoever takes blue bloods off the air has to have their judgement questioned. And now throw the network 630 news disappointment. This is a station had no.1 for years. Walter is not looking down with a smile
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C
People tuned into Nora because she was smoking hot
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A
Well, that's one way of looking at it!
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O
Bring back Nora!!! I don't care for the new format. I am not sure why there are 2 men now (no I'll will to John & Maurice.)
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G
norah odonnell! where did she go?!
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O
Give Them Time, Tough Shoes To Fill 👍🤞
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R
Miss Nora. Don't care for new anchors or format. Wish Dickerson would stop fiddling with his glasses. Very distracting.
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O
Hard to replace those beautiful blue eyes
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B
Their ratings are tanking because they do nothing but continue to bash the Trump Admin nightly. So they are basically doubling down on a losing strategy. OMG.
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O
The "cutesy" practice of finishing each others' lines, that the two anchors have been handed, is jarring. It makes me divert my eyes from the set in embarrassment.
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R
I l love new team
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R
Yea I liked Nora, these two guys definitely don't do it for me, nor do I want to watch a 60 minutes style show as the 530 evening news. Terrible choices, I have switched stations and my family has too. I wish they would all stop with the hit pieces on the president. I don't want to see and hear constant negativity. We get enough of it everyday anyway. Even if you don't like the guy, he's still the president and his politics can be criticized more tastefully. The blatant bias is what I find distasteful. I just want the news, not emotions and opinions. Just factual news presented professionally.
1
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G
I love these 2 guys! Please don't take them off this program. You can lose the weather guy! He's annoying.
1
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G
We miss Norah. She is like the late great Walter Cronkite of CBS News.
We missed Jeff Glore, too! Why fix it if it ain’t broke? We are giving the new guys a chance but don’t care for the new format either. Thank goodness they kept the best part of the good stories at the end of the segment on Fridays!
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G
I miss Nora and her newcast...don't like the reporter in the field giving all the info to John and Maurice.
It's too watered down in my opinion...but still watch CBS.
1
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O
The left news network on all of them. That's why. I seldom watch any news except financial. Good luck.
1
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G
The new format for CbS is fine
I miss Norah but having Maurice and John is fantastic I watched the today show with Savannah and Hoda and that is normal we shouldn’t have some cookie cutter way of what an anchor team should be this is normal deal with it!
1 3
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O
Lester Holt no great loss.
1 3
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A
He's not going anywhere!
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