CBS News Says Jeff Glor To Lead North Korea Summit Coverage As ‘Evening News’ Replacement Rumors Abound
CBS Evening News anchor Jeff Glor will lead the network’s division-wide coverage of the U.S.-North Korea summit from Hanoi, Vietnam, for all CBS News broadcasts and platforms, CBS News said Wednesday, the same day an “exclusive” war broke out among news outlets reporting yet another plan to replace Glor – this time with Norah O’Donnell.
Glor’s coverage from Hanoi of President Donald Trump’s summit with North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un will start Monday and continue through the week. Glor’s evening newscast will originate from Hanoi on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, CBS News touted.
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The announcement follows by one day reports George Stephanopoulos had re-upped at ABC News after being wooed by CBS to take Glor’s anchor chair.
From Hanoi, Glor also will lead special reports of summit coverage, and contribute regularly to CBS This Morning, where O’Donnell currently is one of four co-hosts.
Awkward!
Glor succeeded Scott Pelley in the anchor chair in December 2017, one of the moves by former CBS News chief David Rhodes. Since that re-casting, the CBS newscast has continued to trail its broadcast competitors, falling even further behind.
For the most recent week, CBS Evening News clocked 6.667M viewers – a lap behind NBC Nightly News’ 8.747M viewers and ABC World News Tonight’s 9.350M.
In the news demo of viewers ages 25-54, Glor’s newscast averaged 1.374M viewers, trailing ABC’s 2.004M and NBC’s 2.034M.
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One source tells Deadline that O’Donnell, who previously lobbied for the job, has been told by incoming CBS News boss Susan Zirinsky she could have any job she wants.
Zirinsky told Deadline she would do a “top down” look at her franchises and, “like a baseball team,” consider whether everybody is “in the right place” rather than looking at individuals in isolation.
“I think the advantage CBS has now is there isn’t a single person in a position who isn’t doing a good job,” she boasted when she was named to the job last month.
CBS News is staffing up in Washington D.C., where O’Donnell owns a home, commuting to and fro, one source notes.
As for the division’s announcement today, Glor’s reports from Vietnam also will be featured on CBSN, CBS News’s 24/7 streaming news service and Glor’s old stomping ground.
Contributing to CBS News’ effort with on-the-ground reports from Vietnam: Face the Nation moderator Margaret Brennan, CBS News chief Washington correspondent Major Garrett and CBS News foreign correspondent Ben Tracy.
On CBS News Radio, Glor will co-anchor CBS News on the Hour With Jeff Glor throughout the week from Vietnam.
Should Glor exit Evening News for a correspondent post, this is another high-profile assignment with which to burnish his credentials.
In Wednesday’s announcement, CBS News noted that Glor’s summit coverage follows his extensive international reporting, including from Singapore for the first U.S.-North Korea summit; Jerusalem and Ramallah for the opening of the U.S. Embassy, which included on-the-ground dispatches from extended clashes in the West Bank; and his interview with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris for the One Planet summit.
Glor also conducted back-to-back interviews with President Donald Trump in Scotland and at the White House surrounding the Helsinki summit with Vladimir Putin, CBS News reminded.
All that’s left is for Glor to talk about how excited he is that he’s no longer chained to a desk and can get back to his first love – reporting.
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