Good move, CBS!

Recently, Katie Couric announced she was stepping down from anchoring CBS Evening News. It was about time. She was never really a fit there, and I don't think audiences really bought her as a serious anchor. She was a daytime host, and that's where she belongs. Aside from the highly public Sarah Palin interview, she passed completely off America's radar; nobody cared about her. When she would do pieces on 60 Minutes, you could tell there was just a different energy, like a kid trying to play with the big boys. The marketing folks at CBS seem to have had a hard time with her too, working overtime to promote the show. She was put in suits, and glasses, and posed at computers. "Right, Katie, now start typing! Make it look like you're hard at work!" And I never bought it. So I have been curious to see who CBS would replace her with.

Well, I saw a commercial today on CBS that I thought was an ad for 60 Minutes, but was in fact a promo for the new Evening News host: Scott Pelley. Now, it's a well-made promo regardless; classy and everything that the Couric promos were not. No need to try fancy tricks. It's just Pelley at the desk. And I thought this was a wonderful choice. For years, Scott Pelley has been somewhat carrying 60 Minutes and doing many of its best segments as the old guard continues to age or dies off. While I disagree with him politcally, and thus with the bias that sometimes creeps its head into his pieces, Scott has my respect for being a guy of integrity and a good journalist. He knows what he's doing. What this will mean for the future of 60 Minutes, I don't know (but they'd be smart to keep Couric out of it). Probably Pelley will be present in a more limited capacity, and Steve Kroft will carry the show. But this is a big move for CBS, and a great way to rectify a mistake. What do you think of the decision?