Growing Pains At CBS News

Tony Dokoupil’s rocky debut as anchor of CBS Evening News last week exposed significant operational challenges under new editor-in-chief Bari Weiss, whose lack of television news experience—rather than just her political views—has emerged as a key liability in the network's high-profile relaunch.

The live East Coast broadcast featured a major on-air flub when Dokoupil attempted to transition from a story on Venezuela to one about Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, but the graphics and prompter displayed Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly instead. This caused several seconds of dead air, confusion, and Dokoupil visibly flustered as he ad-libbed, "First day, first day, big problems here," while pleading for help from the control room. He also mistakenly referred to Minnesota as the "Great Lake State" (Michigan's nickname). CBS edited out the mishap for the West Coast feed, streaming versions, and later rebroadcasts, labeling it a technical difficulty.

Tony Dokoupil

Additional debut issues included Dokoupil introducing himself multiple times early in the show, contributing to an overall unpolished feel compared to predecessors like Walter Cronkite or Dan Rather. 

Ratings were middling—slightly up from recent averages but far behind ABC and NBC—and drew widespread criticism from media outlets, social media users, and CBS insiders, who described the launch as "embarrassing," a "total disaster," and "amateur hour."

Bari Weiss

Critics argue the stumbles underscore Weiss's inexperience in managing broadcast operations. A former New York Times op-ed editor with no prior TV news leadership background, Weiss handpicked Dokoupil (after failing to land bigger names) and pushed ambitious changes like a rapid "Live From America" multi-city tour. While Weiss's center-right politics and efforts to appeal to conservatives skeptical of legacy media dominate headlines—along with accusations of a "MAGA-coded" shift—the debut's execution flaws highlight deeper operational naivety, rushed decisions, and low staff morale.

The first week continued with mixed results: Dokoupil secured high-profile interviews (including Trump administration officials), but faced backlash for insufficiently challenging guests. He also teared up on air during a Miami segment reflecting on his childhood, drawing further scrutiny. 

Dokoupil has defended the changes, urging accountability, but the bumpy rollout has fueled questions about whether Weiss's vision for rebuilding trust can overcome these early growing pains.