CBS News Plans Third Hour of ‘CBS Mornings’ for Streaming, Stations
“CBS Mornings” may soon have more time in the sun.
Executives at CBS’ news-and-stations unit are developing plans for a third hour of the A.M. news show, according to a memo issued to staffers Friday by Shawna Thomas, the executive producer of the weekday morning program, which is co-anchored by Gayle King, Tony Dokoupil and Nate Burleson. “A few of our colleagues and I have been working on developing a third hour of CBS Mornings that we think will hit the airwaves at the end of September,” Thomas said. “It is being developed for a few of our owned stations and will simulcast on CBS News 24/7.”
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The third hour, she added, “won’t look or feel exactly like the first two hours. Yes, the talent will be a little different and the name will be a little different, but it will still be the smart and engaging content everyone expects from the CBS Mornings family.” Tony Dokoupil and Adriana Diaz are believed to be in line to host the new edition of the show, according to a person familiar with the matter. CBS News declined to comment on the potential talent line-up for the new concept.
Launch of a third hour could prove ambitious. After all, many CBS stations and affiliates already take a syndicated half-hour talk show hosted by Drew Barrymore following the end of “CBS Mornings.” Yet both NBC and ABC have extended their flagship morning programs, “Today” and “Good Morning America.” NBC offers hours of “Today” that are much lighter in tone from the show’s flagship 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. show. ABC runs a third hour of “GMA” in the early afternoon.
CBS has long been mired in third place among morning-news broadcasters. Even so, the show has enjoyed some tailwinds in recent months, notching gains among viewers between the ages of 25 and 54 — the demographic most coveted by advertisers in news programming. Meanwhile, “Good Morning America” has seen its standing in that category — typically dominated by NBC’s “Today” — erode in the recent past.
More to come…
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