Tuesday, September 13, 2005
AC Perfect For CBS Evening News?
While writing about the Hurricane Katrina coverage TV Week's Tom Shales writes this:
"Probably the most criticized performer of the coverage so far has been Anderson Cooper, the insanely telegenic anchor of his own nightly CNN news hour. In the early stages of the coverage, when the incompetence of government officials and bureaucrats was becoming shamefully obvious, Cooper became openly emotional on the air, berating at least one such official for the lack of preparedness.
Maybe Cooper's involvement in the story became extreme at that point, but I, for one, was not offended. Indeed, if I were Leslie Moonves, I would right now be trying to entice Mr. Cooper over to CBS to anchor the remodeled "CBS Evening News," if such a thing ever does actually appear on the air. Ironically or not, Cooper's status as a newsman-with-a-heart makes him television kin to Dan Rather, whom Mr. Moonves coldly "nudged" out of the anchor chair earlier this year. (Ironically, too, Rather first made his name during coverage of a deadly hurricane, and marched bravely into many a storm long after becoming anchor. He has been greatly missed during coverage of Katrina.)
Beyond that, Cooper has a newness to him, a wry touch of attitude that he very effectively modulates on the air. It is something that, combined with his visual appeal, could help bring young viewers to news-thus bucking or perhaps even reversing a long and dismaying trend in the other direction. Cooper, uh, still, um, has, uh, trouble ad-libbing, but when reading, when talking into the camera and making viewer contact, he is all poise and polish without being slick. He's no Stepford Anchor, and he deserves a bigger and better chance than CNN can give him."
"Probably the most criticized performer of the coverage so far has been Anderson Cooper, the insanely telegenic anchor of his own nightly CNN news hour. In the early stages of the coverage, when the incompetence of government officials and bureaucrats was becoming shamefully obvious, Cooper became openly emotional on the air, berating at least one such official for the lack of preparedness.
Maybe Cooper's involvement in the story became extreme at that point, but I, for one, was not offended. Indeed, if I were Leslie Moonves, I would right now be trying to entice Mr. Cooper over to CBS to anchor the remodeled "CBS Evening News," if such a thing ever does actually appear on the air. Ironically or not, Cooper's status as a newsman-with-a-heart makes him television kin to Dan Rather, whom Mr. Moonves coldly "nudged" out of the anchor chair earlier this year. (Ironically, too, Rather first made his name during coverage of a deadly hurricane, and marched bravely into many a storm long after becoming anchor. He has been greatly missed during coverage of Katrina.)
Beyond that, Cooper has a newness to him, a wry touch of attitude that he very effectively modulates on the air. It is something that, combined with his visual appeal, could help bring young viewers to news-thus bucking or perhaps even reversing a long and dismaying trend in the other direction. Cooper, uh, still, um, has, uh, trouble ad-libbing, but when reading, when talking into the camera and making viewer contact, he is all poise and polish without being slick. He's no Stepford Anchor, and he deserves a bigger and better chance than CNN can give him."
# posted by ATN @ 5:13 PM 
