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Thursday, May 19, 2011

Katie Couric's Reality Check

Five Years at CBS Marked by Liberal Agenda and Low Ratings

From Rich Noyes at newsbusters.com



[Thursday]  marks Katie Couric’s last night at the anchor desk of the CBS Evening News. Five years ago, CBS executives were so excited about the Today show star taking over, her September 5, 2006 debut was preceded by a massive publicity campaign. Outgoing interim anchor Bob Schieffer vouched for his replacement: “She’s tough, she’s fair, she’s a straight shooter....Just watch.”  Long-retired anchorman Walter Cronkite even lent his voice to a new opening segment, announcing: “This is the CBS Evening News, with Katie Couric.”

Intrigued by the publicity, more than 13 million Americans tuned into that first night, according to Nielsen research, but Couric’s honeymoon was brief. CBS had been in third place for years under Dan Rather and Schieffer, but the slide worsened after Couric took over. By August 2010, the CBS Evening News was recording its lowest ratings ever — fewer than 5 million viewers.
Under Dan Rather, the CBS Evening News was the poster-child of liberal media bias, with the broadcast’s reputation suffering its worst hit after Rather’s almost-comical attempt to sabotage President Bush’s 2004 re-election. Couric’s years at NBC’s Today, however, were marked by a similar liberal tilt that made her a questionable choice to rebuild the damaged network. In the end, the reputed $15 million per year that CBS spent on its new star was just money down the drain.

For a flavor of the liberal agenda that marked Couric’s tenure at CBS News, the Media Research Center has assembled, in no particular order, ten of her most biased moments, showcasing her infatuation with liberal politicians and her chirpy promotion of left-wing policies.
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