KUDOS TO KATIE COURIC

editorial by San Diego News Service . . .

San Diego -- Kudos go to CBS News anchor Katie Couric for her revealing and exclusive interview of vice-presidential candidate Sara Palin.

We have never been an admirer of the performance or substance of the work of Couric.

Remarkably, she is the nation's first, female, solo anchor of a major, network, evening TV newscast.

But, her exclusive interview with Gov. Palin in September, "early" in the campaign, produced the memorable and frankly inane - some would say stupid - comment that Palin has "foreign policy" experience because she can see Russia from Alaska. (Is that physically, true; and what would you see if you looked, anything important to our national security?)

That significant statement by Palin made even our republican editor question the candidate's judgement and ability to serve as president and Commander-in-Chief, if McCain wins and dies in office.

"President Palin?"

Oh, "pulleeze."

That is scary!

CBS's Couric may leave her anchor post on the CBS Evening News With Katie Couric soon after the new president is inaugurated, according to the Wall Street Journal.

That has been the scuttlebutt in journalism for many months.

CBS and Couric are downplaying the WSJ report, as can be expected.

Couric has been the CBS solo anchor for 19 months, following Bob Schieffer, Dan Rather and Walter Cronkite.

"Rather was an arrogant S-O-B who rarely connected with staff on a personal level," says our editor, Leo E. Laurence, J.D., who worked with Rather on the CBS News coverage of the 1996 Republican National Convention."

"Schieffer, however, is upgrading the position of dean of national TV news, which formerly was held by Cronkite - once considered the 'most trusted' person in America," our editor added. "Schieffer is now easily the 'most respected' in American network journalist today," he continued.

"Following an initial boost in her rating," Couric's nightly audience has generally lagged well behind her immediate predecessor, Bob Schieffer," said Reuters news service.

"After trying various changes to accentuate Couric's more casual style, the (CBS) network has returned to a more traditional presentation," Reuters reports.

CBS has earned an average of only about 5.9 million viewers weekly, compared to 8.3 million for NBC's far-more popular NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams.

At stake is the roughly $450-million in annual ad revenue.
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Editorial copyright 2008 by San Diego News Service (619) 757-4909 leopowerhere@msn.com