Sawyer's Not Going to "World News Tonight"
Mark J.
Sawyer? Gibson? Westin's Dilemma Heats Up
The tough task of selecting a replacement for the late Peter Jennings
as the anchor of ABC's World News Tonight- difficult in any
circumstances-may be getting even harder for ABC News President David
Westin.
Insiders at the network are buzzing over Diane Sawyer's apparent
interest in the blue-chip slot. Word is that the Good Morning America
co-host began contemplating an evening-anchor role for herself when
news surfaced late last year that CBS boss Leslie Moonves had made
overtures to NBC's Katie Couric about the CBS Evening News gig (see
B&C, 12/12/04). After Jennings unexpectedly relinquished the World News
position last spring and it became apparent that he would not return,
factions at the network began promoting Bob Woodruff and Elizabeth
Vargas for the anchor job; neither of those two have Sawyer's star
patina, and observers began detecting that she had started campaigning
for the job.
VP, ABC News Communications, Jeffrey Schneider said Sawyer was not a
candidate for the job. Saying he had talked to both ABC News President
David Westin and Sawyer, Schneider said: "Diane Sawyer has never asked
to come off Good Morning America. She is not a candidate to host World
News Tonight.
As you can imagine in a post-Peter Jennings world, everybody has been
asked to step up and help out in other areas. We are talking to Diane
about doing documentaries and other events," he said.
Sawyer's recent insistence on doing fewer celebrity interviews-unless
she's talking to bona fide A-list personalities-and on doing more
hard-news material was interpreted by network tea-leaf readers as a
sign that Sawyer was positioning herself for the World News job.
All this, of course, could put her at odds with her able GMA co-host
Charlie Gibson, who has made no secret of his desire to take the World
News reins, where he has been alternating, most often with Vargas, in
the anchor chair.
One scenario being touted outside ABC's walls: If Gibson is passed over
for the World News job, he might be open to an overture from Fox
Broadcasting once his contract comes up for renewal, reportedly next
year. Fox brass have recently been floating the idea of launching a
national newscast; someone of Gibson's stature would give instant
credibility to the project.
Some ABC insiders note glumly that, by rights, this should be a time of
excitement and backslapping at GMA, which after a long, hard slog is
seriously challenging the dominance of NBC's Today. Instead, GMA is
rife with uncertainty about who, other than co-host Robin Roberts, will
still be with the show in the none-too-distant future.
As one ABC insider tells Flash!: Westin, a close ally of Sawyer's,
"is going to have to play King Solomon."
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But then ABC said it was phooey:
Steve Timko
> Fox brass have recently been floating the idea of launching a
> national newscast; someone of Gibson's stature would give instant
> credibility to the project.
really have any stature?