CBS Evening News: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|American television news program}}
{{Infobox Television
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}
| show_name = CBS Evening News with Katie Couric
{{Infobox television
| image = [[Image:CBS Evening News w Katie Couric.jpg|300px|CBS Evening News with Katie Couric logo]]
| image = CBS Evening News 2025.svg
| caption = Still from the the ''CBS Evening News with Katie Couric'' open used since September 5, 2006
| caption =
| format = [[News]]
| alt_name = {{plain list|
| runtime = 30 minutes
* '''Weekdays:'''
| creator = [[Don Hewitt]]
* ''CBS Television News'' (1941–1950)
| starring =[[Katie Couric]]<br>(2006-Present)<br>[[Bob Schieffer]]<br>(2005-2006)<br>[[Connie Chung]]<br>(1993&ndash;1995)<br>[[Dan Rather]]<br>(1981&ndash;2005)<br>[[Walter Cronkite]]<br>(1962&ndash;1981)<br>[[Douglas Edwards]]<br>(1948&ndash;1962)
* ''Douglas Edwards with the News'' (1950–1962)
| country = {{USA}}
* ''Walter Cronkite with the News''<br>(1962–1963)
| network = [[CBS]]
* '''Weekends:'''
| num_episodes = N/A (airs daily)
* ''CBS Weekend News'' (since 2016)
| first_aired = [[August 15]], [[1948]] (as ''CBS Television News''), [[1951]] (as ''Douglas Edwards with the News''), [[September 2]], [[1963]] (as ''CBS Evening News'')
}}
| last_aired = present
| genre = [[News|News program]]
| imdb_id =
| creator = [[Don Hewitt]]
| tv_com_id =
| director = {{Plain list|
* Brian Nalesnik
}}
| presenter = {{Plain list|
* [[John Dickerson]]
* [[Maurice DuBois]]
}}
| narrated = Joe Cipriano
| theme_music_composer = {{Plain list|
* Walt Levinsky (1982–1987)
* [[John Trivers]], [[Elizabeth Myers]] and [[Alan Pasqua]] (1987–1991; 2011–2016; since 2025)
* Rick Patterson, Ron Walz and Neal Fox (1991–2006)
* [[James Horner]] (2006–2011)
* Joel Beckerman (2016–2022)
* [[John Trivers]], [[Elizabeth Myers]] and [[Alan Pasqua]], arranged by [[Antfood]]<br>(2022–2025)
}}
| opentheme =
| endtheme =
| composer = [[John Trivers]], [[Elizabeth Myers]] and [[Alan Pasqua]] (1987; 2022; 2025)
| country = United States
| language = English
| num_seasons = 72
| num_episodes = 16,400+
| list_episodes =
| executive_producer = Guy Campanile<br>(since January 27, 2025)
| ___location = {{Plain list|
* [[New York City]] (1941–2019, since 2025)
* [[Washington, D.C.]] (2019–2025)
}}
| editor =
| camera = [[Multi-camera setup|Multi-camera]]
| runtime = 15 minutes (1941–1963)<br />30 minutes (since 1963)
| company = [[CBS News|CBS News Productions]]
| network = [[CBS]]
| first_aired = {{Start date|1941|7|1}}
| last_aired = present
| related = {{ubl|''[[CBS News Mornings]]''|''[[CBS News Roundup]]''|''[[CBS Mornings]]''|Competitors:|''[[NBC Nightly News]]''|''[[ABC World News Tonight]]''|''[[PBS News Hour]]''}}
}}
'''''CBS Evening News''''' is the flagship nightly television news program of the American television network [[CBS]]. The network has broadcast this program since [[1948]], and has used the ''CBS Evening News'' title since [[1963]]. Currently, weekday broadcasts are anchored by [[Katie Couric]], and are dubbed as the '''''CBS Evening News with Katie Couric'''''. [[Russ Mitchell]] currently serves as the Sunday anchor, and thus the program during that night is titled the '''''CBS Evening News with Russ Mitchell'''''. [[Thalia Assuras]] serves as the Saturday anchor, and is titled the '''''CBS Evening News with Thalia Assuras'''''.
 
The '''''CBS Evening News''''' is the flagship evening [[News broadcasting#Television|television news program]] of [[CBS News]], the news division of the [[CBS]] television network in the United States. The ''CBS Evening News'' is a daily evening broadcast featuring news reports, feature stories and interviews by CBS News correspondents and reporters covering events around the world. Since 2025, the program has had more of a [[news magazine]]-styled format, with a larger focus on long-form stories. The program has been broadcast since July 1, 1941, under the original title '''''CBS Television News''''', eventually adopting its existing title in 1963.
Overseas [[Sky News]] ([[United Kingdom|UK]]) and [[Sky News|Sky News Australia]] in New Zealand and Australia also broadcasts the program in the mornings, usually with a 2 to 4 hour time delay.
 
Since January 27, 2025, the flagship nightly broadcast has been co-anchored by [[John Dickerson]] and [[Maurice DuBois]] from the [[CBS Broadcast Center]] in New York City. Previous weeknight anchors have included [[Douglas Edwards]], [[Walter Cronkite]], [[Dan Rather]], [[Connie Chung]], [[Bob Schieffer]], [[Russ Mitchell]], [[Katie Couric]], [[Harry Smith (American journalist)|Harry Smith]], [[Scott Pelley]], [[Anthony Mason (journalist)|Anthony Mason]], [[Jeff Glor]], and [[Norah O'Donnell]].
==The Douglas Edwards era==
 
Saturday and Sunday broadcasts of the ''CBS Evening News'' began in February 1966. On May 2, 2016, CBS announced that the weekend edition would be rebranded, effective May 7, 2016, as the ''CBS Weekend News''. Weekend newscasts originate from the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City, and are anchored by [[Jericka Duncan]]. From 2016 to 2020, the ''CBS Weekend News'' was anchored by [[Reena Ninan]] on Saturday and [[Elaine Quijano]] on Sunday. By the summer of 2020, Ninan and Quijano were replaced by [[Major Garrett]] and Jamie Yuccas. In December 2020, [[Adriana Diaz (journalist)|Adriana Diaz]] and Jericka Duncan were announced to be the new weekend anchors; Diaz left the program in 2024.
CBS began broadcasting full-length news shows on Saturday nights, expanding to two nights a week in 1947. On [[August 15]], [[1948]], CBS launched its nightly 15-minute news show as '''''CBS Television News''''' at 7:30 p.m., anchored by [[Douglas Edwards]]; it was broadcast in five eastern cities. The show was later sponsored by [[Oldsmobile]]. In 1950 its name changed to '''''Douglas Edwards with the News'''''. When in 1951 it became the first news program to be broadcast on both coasts, thanks to a new [[coaxial cable]] connection, Edwards started using the greeting "Good evening everyone, coast to coast." [http://web.sbu.edu/friedsam/archives/Edwards/chronology.htm]
 
The weeknight edition of the ''CBS Evening News'' airs live at 6:30&nbsp;pm in the [[Eastern Time Zone]] and 5:30&nbsp;pm in the [[Central Time Zone]], and is [[broadcast delay|tape delayed]] for the [[Mountain Time Zone]]. A "Western Edition", with updated segments covering [[breaking news]] stories, airs previously recorded<ref name="Anthony Mason">This program will air a live West Coast edition in the event of a major breaking news story or if the anchor originates that day's broadcast from a CBS West Coast affiliate, most commonly in Los Angeles</ref> at 6:30&nbsp;pm for most stations in the [[Pacific Time Zone]] and 5:30&nbsp;pm in the [[Alaska Time Zone]] and on tape delay in the [[Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone]].<ref>Alagot, Calvin [http://www.laweekly.com/news/cbs-evening-news-gives-the-west-coast-some-love-4485313 "CBS Evening News Gives The West Coast Some Love"], ''LA Weekly'', March 4, 2014. Retrieved March 18, 2015.</ref> At midnight Eastern, the Western Edition is posted on the website for ''[[CBS News]]'' and their YouTube channel.<ref>{{Cite web |title=CBS Evening News {{!}} Full Episodes |url=https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLotzEBRQdc0cMXjf4FKw6_1Pu8in6rzBQ |access-date=2023-12-18 |publisher=YouTube}}</ref> The Western Edition additionally airs along with the weekend versions on ''[[CBS News 24/7]]''.
The program competed against the ''[[Camel News Caravan]]'' on [[NBC]], launched in 1949. Edwards attracted more viewers during the mid-1950s, but lost ground when [[Chet Huntley]] and [[David Brinkley]] were teamed up by NBC on the ''[[Huntley-Brinkley Report]]''.
 
As of April 11, 2024, ''CBS Evening News'' remains in third place of the three major television news programs, with around 4,969,000 total viewers.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/week-of-march-25-and-q1-2024-evening-news-ratings-world-news-tonight-remains-dominant/ | title=Week of March 25 and Q1 2024 Evening News Ratings | date=April 3, 2024 }}</ref>
The Edwards broadcast was the first television program to use [[videotape]], which was used to [[time delay]] broadcasts to the western U.S. on [[November 30]], [[1956]] [http://www.knpb.org/staff/awards.asp]. However, none of these early recordings is known to survive.
 
==History==
==The Walter Cronkite era==
===Early years (1941–1948)===
[[Image:Cronkite.jpg|thumb|right|[[Walter Cronkite]] on the ''CBS Evening News'' in the 1970's.]]
Upon becoming commercial station, WCBW (channel 2, later [[WCBS-TV]]) on July 1, 1941, the pioneer CBS television station in New York City broadcast two daily news programs, at 2:30 and 8:00&nbsp;pm weekdays, anchored by Richard Hubbell. Most of the newscasts featured Hubbell reading a script with only occasional cutaways to a map or still photograph. When [[Attack on Pearl Harbor|Pearl Harbor]] was bombed on December 7, 1941, WCBW (which was normally off the air on Sunday to give the engineers a day off), took to the air at 8:45&nbsp;pm with an extensive special report. The national emergency broke down the unspoken wall between CBS radio and television. WCBW executives convinced radio announcers and experts such as George Fielding Elliot and Linton Wells to come to the CBS television studios at Grand Central Station from the radio network base at 485 Madison Avenue, to give information and commentary on the attack. The WCBW special report that night lasted less than 90 minutes, but it pushed the limits of live television in 1941 and opened up new possibilities for future broadcasts. As CBS wrote in a special report to the FCC, the unscheduled live news broadcast on December 7 "was unquestionably the most stimulating challenge and marked the greatest advance of any single problem faced up to that time."
[[Walter Cronkite]] gained the anchor chair in 1962 and on [[September 2]], [[1963]], ''CBS Evening News'' became network [[television]]'s first half-hour weeknight [[news]] broadcast, lengthened from its original 15 minutes to 30 minutes. During most of the 1960s, the ''CBS Evening News'' lagged behind the ''Huntley-Brinkley Report'' in terms of viewership levels. The beginnings of corporate ossification at [[RCA]], the parent company of NBC, set in and Cronkite helped guide the broadcast to ratings wins in the summers of [[1968]] and [[1969]]. In [[1970]], upon Huntley's retirement, the ''CBS Evening News'' began a period of domination in terms of viewership unmatched in American television. In the process, Walter Cronkite became an American icon, judged "the most trusted man in America" in a [[Gallup Poll]] from that era, a status that had first been fostered by his coverage of the [[John F. Kennedy assassination|JFK Assassination]], and further bolstered by his anchoring [[CBS News]]' coverage of the [[Apollo 11]] Moon landing in [[1969]].
 
Additional newscasts were scheduled in the early days of [[World War II]], including ''War Backgrounds'' (December 1941–February 1942), ''World This Week'' (February–April 1942), and ''America At War'' (March–May 1942). In May 1942, WCBW (like almost all television stations) temporarily suspended studio operations, which resulted in the station sharply cutting back its live program schedule, and resorting exclusively to the occasional broadcast of films. This was primarily because many of the staff had either joined the military service or were redeployed to war-related technical research, and to prolong the life of the early, unstable cameras, which were impossible to repair due to the wartime lack of parts.
==The Dan Rather era==
[[Image:DanRather-CBS2005.jpg|thumb|left|[[Dan Rather]] on the ''CBS Evening News'' in [[2005]].]]
[[Dan Rather]], a CBS news correspondent since the early 1960s, took over the program in 1981. Rather had been co-host of the successful investigative news program ''[[60 Minutes]]'' for some years.
 
In May 1944, as the war began to turn in favor of the Allies, WCBW reopened the studios and the newscasts returned, briefly anchored by [[Ned Calmer]], followed by Alan Jackson, Everett Holles, and Dwight Cooke. After the war, expanded news programs appeared on the WCBW schedule. The station's call letters were changed to WCBS-TV in 1946. Anchors included Bob McKee, Milo Boulton, Jim McMullin, Larry LeSueur, [[Thomas Burton O'Connor|Tom O’Connor]], and beginning in 1947, [[Douglas Edwards]].
At first, Rather was not well-accepted by Cronkite's audience. Viewership levels dropped. This came to CBS News management as a shock. Within months, the off-camera staff was reshuffled, and correspondents reassigned to suit Rather. Further corporate resources were devoted to the CBS Evening News, at the expense of other CBS News programs. The CBS Evening News regained viewership, but a tone had been set within the news division in favor of Rather's preferences and biases, which would last through the remainder of his tenure on the broadcast.
 
===Douglas Edwards (1948–1962)===
Concerns about excessive liberalism in the media, which gained great favor during the [[Ronald Reagan|Reagan]] years, were frequently leveled at Rather and CBS in general. Some of these concerns dated from Rather's position as White House correspondent for CBS News during the Nixon Administration. An interview related to the [[Iran-contra affair]] with then-Vice President [[George H.W. Bush]] where the two engaged in a shouting match on live television did little to dispel those concerns. Rather apologized for his behavior in statements the following day.
[[File:Douglas Edwards With the News CBS 1952.JPG|thumb|right|Edwards on set of ''CBS Television News'']]
On May 3, 1948, Edwards began anchoring ''CBS Television News'', as a regular 15-minute nightly newscast on the CBS television network, including WCBS-TV. It aired every weeknight at 7:30&nbsp;pm, and was the first regularly scheduled, network television news program featuring an anchor.<ref>For a time in the early 1940s, the nightly [[Lowell Thomas]] NBC radio network newscast was simulcast on television locally on NBC's WNBT—([[WNBC]]).</ref> (WCBW/WCBS-TV newscasts prior to this time were local television broadcasts seen only in New York City.) [[NBC]]'s offering at the time, ''NBC Television Newsreel'', which premiered in February 1948, was simply film footage with voice narration.
 
The network also broadcast a recap of the week's news stories on a Sunday night program titled ''Newsweek in Review'', which was later moved to Saturday and retitled ''The Week in Review''. In 1950, the nightly newscast was renamed ''Douglas Edwards with the News'', and in September the following year, it became the first news program to be broadcast simultaneously on the [[East Coast of the United States|East Coast]] and [[West Coast of the United States|West Coast]] through the installation of a new [[coaxial cable]] connection. That transcontinental link prompted Edwards to start each broadcast with the updated greeting "Good evening everyone, coast to coast."<ref>{{cite web|title=Douglas Edwards Chronology|url=http://web.sbu.edu/friedsam/archives/Edwards/chronology.htm|author=Dennis Frank|work=The Douglas Edwards Archives at St. Bonaventure University|publisher=[[St. Bonaventure University]]|date=March 2, 2006|access-date=September 9, 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927224551/http://web.sbu.edu/friedsam/archives/Edwards/chronology.htm|archive-date=September 27, 2007}}</ref>
On September 11, 1987, Dan Rather stormed off the news set when it appeared that [[CBS Sports]]' coverage of a [[U.S. Open (tennis)|US Open]] semifinal match was going to cut into "his" airtime. When the tennis match ended at 6:32pm, Rather was nowhere to be found. Six minutes of dead air followed while he was rounded up from a nearby office. Surprisingly, nearly half of the audience watched and waited. [[Walter Cronkite]] later responded "I would have fired him. There's no excuse for it".
 
On November 30, 1956, the program became the first to use the new technology of [[videotape]] to [[broadcast delay|time delay]] the broadcast (which originated in New York City) for the [[Western United States]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Channel 5 Engineer Honored With Lifetime Achievement Emmy Award |url=http://www.knpb.org/staff/awards.asp |publisher=[[KNPB]] |access-date=September 9, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070813015019/http://www.knpb.org/staff/awards.asp |archive-date=August 13, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
On January 23, 1991, demonstrators from [[AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power]] (ACT UP) broke into CBS using forged ID's and were heard chanting "Fight AIDS, not Arabs" during the show's intro. One person was seen on camera just as Dan Rather began speaking. Rather immediately called for a commercial break. [http://www.tvparty.com/trailers/actupCBSnews.ram Video clip courtesy of TVParty.com]
 
===Walter Cronkite (1962–1981)===
[[Connie Chung]] began co-anchoring the broadcast with Rather on [[June 1]], [[1993]]. Although Rather never said so publicly, CBS News insiders said he did not approve of her appointment, according to an article in "MediaWeek" from April 26, 1997. When Chung left in [[1995]], after using material in a report she had told a source would be off-the-record, Rather did not seem displeased.
[[File:CBS News Anchor, Walter Cronkite, Interviews President John F. Kennedy.jpg|thumb|Cronkite interviews President [[John F. Kennedy]] to inaugurate the first half-hour nightly news broadcast in 1963]]
On April 16, 1962, [[Walter Cronkite]] succeeded Edwards, and the broadcast was retitled ''Walter Cronkite with the News''. On September 2, 1963, the newscast, retitled ''CBS Evening News'', became the first half-hour weeknight news broadcast on network television and was moved to 6:30&nbsp;pm Eastern time (NBC's ''Huntley-Brinkley Report'' expanded to 30 minutes exactly one week later on September 9, 1963). As before, some affiliates (including flagship [[owned-and-operated station]] WCBS-TV in New York City) had the option of carrying a later edition, scheduled at 7:00&nbsp;pm Eastern. NBC also allowed this practice for the ''Huntley-Brinkley Report'', with [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] later following it for the ''[[ABC World News Tonight|ABC Evening News]]'' (now ''ABC World News Tonight''). The networks ended this practice after 1971, although some affiliates – mostly in larger markets – continued to carry the national newscasts at 7:00&nbsp;pm Eastern on a half-hour tape delay.
In 2005, Rather left the anchor position amidst controversy over a September [[2004]] ''[[60 Minutes Wednesday]]'' story questioning [[George W. Bush]]'s [[Texas]] [[Air National Guard]] record. The [[Pentagon]] challenged the authenticity of the [[Killian documents]] used for the report. A number of bloggers analyzed scans of the documents, and rapidly concluded the documents were forgeries. Subsequently, CBS commissioned an independent inquiry into the matter. Rather denied this incident was the reason for his departure from the broadcast. Since his departure from the anchor chair, Rather worked on other CBS News programming. On June 20, 2006, CBS News President Sean McManus announced Rather had come to an agreement with CBS News to end his 44-year career with the network.
 
The ''CBS Evening News'' was first transmitted in color as a one-evening test broadcast on August 19, 1965,<ref>{{cite web|title=CBS at 75|url=http://www.cbs.com/specials/cbs_75/timeline/1960.shtml|publisher=CBS|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100216141637/http://www.cbs.com/specials/cbs_75/timeline/1960.shtml|archive-date=February 16, 2010}}</ref> before permanently switching to the format on January 31, 1966.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Television Listings|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,842371,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080623072331/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,842371,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 23, 2008|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|date=January 28, 1966}}</ref> Cronkite's prime time special report, ''Who, What, When, Where, Why'', broadcast on February 27, 1968, ended with his declaration that the United States could only hope for a stalemate in [[Vietnam]]. It is often credited with influencing [[Lyndon B. Johnson|Lyndon Johnson]]'s decision to drop out of [[1968 United States presidential election|the race]] for [[President of the United States|President]]. "If I've lost Walter Cronkite... [I]'ve lost Middle America," he stated.<ref>{{cite web|title=Walter Cronkite – Filmmaker Interview: Catherine Tatge|url=https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/walter-cronkite/filmmaker-interview-catherine-tatge/|work=[[American Masters]]|publisher=PBS|date=July 20, 2009|access-date=April 12, 2011}}</ref>
==The Bob Schieffer transition period==
[[Image:BobSchieffer.jpg|thumb|right|197px|Bob Schieffer]]
[[Image:CBSEveningNews.jpg|thumb|right|197px|''CBS Evening News with Bob Schieffer'' title card]]
Rather retired from the ''Evening News'' on [[March 9]], [[2005]], at 7:00 eastern time, exactly 24 years after succeeding Cronkite. He was succeeded on an interim basis by longtime CBS News correspondent [[Bob Schieffer]]. Schieffer has hosted the CBS News public affairs program ''[[Face the Nation]]'', based in Washington, DC, since 1991.
 
Under Cronkite, the newscast began what eventually became an 18-year period of dominating the ratings among the network evening news programs.<ref name="museumcbs">{{cite web|title=Columbia Broadcasting System|url=http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/C/htmlC/columbiabroa/columbiabroa.htm|author=Albert Auster|publisher=[[Museum of Broadcast Communications]]|access-date=September 9, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130820111743/http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/C/htmlC/columbiabroa/columbiabroa.htm|archive-date=August 20, 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> In the process, Cronkite became "the most trusted man in America" according to a [[Gallup, Inc.|Gallup Poll]], a status that had first been fostered in November 1963 through his coverage of the [[Assassination of John F. Kennedy|assassination of President John F. Kennedy]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Former CBS anchor 'Uncle Walter' Cronkite dead at 92|url=http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/07/17/walter.cronkite.dead/index.html|work=CNN|date=July 18, 2009}}</ref>
At the time Schieffer took over, it was uncertain how long he would host the broadcast, or whether it would retain its current shape or instead adopt some kind of multiple-host or other alternative format.
 
In late 1972, Cronkite prodded the show's producers to feature two nights of lengthy explanation on the [[Watergate scandal]], which had been extensively covered by ''[[The Washington Post]]'', but had not received major national coverage. After the first half of the report, shown on a Friday, ran for 14 minutes, roughly half of the air time of the broadcast, [[White House]] officials complained to CBS founder [[William S. Paley]]. The second half of the report was aired the following Monday, but only for eight minutes.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ben Bradlee Remembers Walter Cronkite|url=http://www.newsweek.com/id/207346|work=Newsweek|date=July 17, 2009}}</ref>
Under Rather in the years leading up to his retirement, the show trailed its rivals at ABC and NBC by a fairly large margin. [[John Roberts (television reporter)|John Roberts]], the [[White House]] correspondent and [[Scott Pelley]], his predecessor in that position, were often mentioned as possible successors to Rather when he retired. [[Jim Axelrod]] took over as White House correspondent when Roberts later left for [[CNN]].
 
===Dan Rather (1981–2005)===
In the months following Rather's departure, the program came to emphasize live exchanges between Schieffer and the various CBS News correspondents around the world. In contrast to traditional network-news practice, these exchanges are unrehearsed as part of an effort to make the language on the broadcast sound more "natural," according to Schieffer. Viewership levels increased over this period of time. It has been the only news broadcast to gain viewers during 2005.
 
====1981–1993====
In November 2005, CBS announced that Evening News executive producer Jim Murphy would be replaced by Rome Hartman, who took the helm over in early January of 2006.
[[File:Dan Rather and Ronald Reagan 1982.jpg|thumb|right|Rather (right) with President [[Ronald Reagan]] in 1982]]
Cronkite was replaced as anchor of the program the Monday after his retirement, March 9, 1981, by 49-year-old [[Dan Rather]],<ref name=crnksgnoff>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=vkdOAAAAIBAJ&pg=1523%2C1525272 |work=Wilmington Morning Star |___location=(North Carolina) |agency=Associated Press |title=Cronkite signs off as CBS anchorman for last time |date=March 7, 1981 |page=1A}}</ref> who had been with CBS News as a correspondent since the early 1960s, and later became a correspondent for the network's [[news magazine]], ''[[60 Minutes]]''. Concerns about excessive [[Liberalism in the United States|liberalism]] in the media were frequently leveled at Rather, the ''CBS Evening News'', CBS News, and CBS in general.<ref>{{cite news|title=Dan Rather: a pioneer and a lightning rod|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0309/p03s01-ussc.html|work=[[The Christian Science Monitor]]|date=March 9, 2005}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Dropping the anchorman|url=http://www.economist.com/people/displayStory.cfm?story_id=3428729|newspaper=[[The Economist]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=The Dan Rather File|url=http://www.mediaresearch.org/profiles/rather/welcome.asp|work=[[Media Research Center]]|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325062704/http://www.mediaresearch.org/profiles/rather/welcome.asp|archive-date=March 25, 2012}}</ref> Some of these concerns dated from Rather's position as White House correspondent for the network's news division during the [[Richard Nixon#Presidency|Nixon administration]]. A shouting match with Vice President [[George H. W. Bush]] during an interview on live television in January 1988 related to the [[Iran–Contra affair]] did little to dispel those concerns.<ref name=srapquar>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8FpWAAAAIBAJ&pg=4933%2C5933735 |work=Spokesman-Review |___location=(Spokane, Washington) |agency=Associated Press |title=Bush quarrels with Rather about interview questions |date=January 26, 1988 |page=A2}}</ref><ref name=borivtko>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=v5ZTAAAAIBAJ&pg=2116%2C3923285 |work=The Bulletin |___location=(Bend, Bulletin) |agency=UPI |title=Bush over Rather in a video TKO |date=January 26, 1988 |page=A1}}</ref> Rather unapologetically defended<!--apologized for? no --> his behavior in statements the following day,<ref name=regunapol>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=HeAhAAAAIBAJ&pg=3488%2C4432597 |work=Reading Eagle |___location=(Pennsylvania) |agency=Associated Press |title=Rather unapologetic in Bush flap |date=January 27, 1988 |page=9}}</ref><ref name=nashtel>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=FOslAAAAIBAJ&pg=4676%2C7508225 |work=Nashua Telegraph |___location=(New Hampshire) |agency=Associated Press |last=Baker |first=Kathryn |title=Rather unapologetic; Bush holds no grudge |date=January 27, 1988|page=1}}</ref><ref name=bsbgirqu>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=JtlOAAAAIBAJ&pg=6862%2C3706016 |work=Wilmington Morning Star |___location=(North Carolina) |agency=''New York Times'' News Service |title=Bush scores big in Rather quarrel |date=January 27, 1988 |page=4A}}</ref><ref name=bbrfc>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0NszAAAAIBAJ&pg=6284%2C5471861 |work=Eugene Register-Guard |___location=(Oregon) |agency=news services |title=Buoyant Bush 'ready for combat' |date=January 27, 1988 |page=1A}}</ref> and Bush went on to win the [[1988 United States presidential election|presidential election]] in&nbsp;November.
 
Earlier, on September 1, 1986, amid a brewing battle among CBS's [[board of directors]] for control of the company and turmoil at CBS News, Rather closed his Monday broadcast with the word "courage", and repeating it the following night. On September 3,<!--1986,--> Rather said the masculine noun for the [[Spanish language|Spanish]] word for "courage", ''coraje'' (the primary translation for "courage" in Spanish is ''valor''). In the face of media attention and pleas from his staff, Rather abandoned the signoff on September 8.<ref>{{cite book|title=Who Killed CBS? The Undoing of America's Number One News Network|pages=304–06|author=Peter J. Boyer|publisher=[[Random House]]|___location=[[New York City]]|year=1988<!-- year and ISBN#?? -->}}</ref>
Schieffer led the CBS Evening News to become the #2 newscast beating out [[ABC World News Tonight]]. This came after a five-year period of being a distant third. The death of Peter Jennings in 2005 put the ABC News division in flux. Some speculate Jennings's death as a major factor in the ground that CBS has gained in the ratings war. But when Charles Gibson was appointed as anchor at World News Tonight, ABC regained much of its momentum and is also closing in on rival NBC Nightly News.
 
On September 11, 1987, Rather marched off camera in anger just before a remote broadcast of the program when it appeared that [[CBS Sports]]' coverage of a [[1987 US Open (tennis)|U.S. Open tennis]] semifinal match between [[Steffi Graf]] and [[Lori McNeil]] was going to run over into time allotted for the newscast.<ref>{{cite news|title=Rather Walked Off Set of CBS News|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/09/13/nyregion/rather-walked-off-set-of-cbs-news.html?pagewanted=all|author=Peter J. Boyer|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=September 13, 1987}}</ref> Rather was in [[Miami]] covering the [[List of pastoral visits of Pope John Paul II|visit to the city]] by [[Pope John Paul II]]. When the tennis match ended sooner than expected at 6:32&nbsp;pm Eastern, Rather was nowhere to be found, and six minutes of dead air followed before he returned to the broadcast position;<ref name=mrwoset>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=HTpOAAAAIBAJ&pg=5791%2C5062262 |work=Sunday Star-News |___location=(Wilmington, North Carolina) |agency=''New York Times'' News Service |title=Mad Rather walks off set at CBS |date=September 13, 1987 |page=2A}}</ref> nearly half of the audience watched and waited. Rather attempted to explain his actions with a statement release on Sunday<!--apologized for the outburst the next day-->,<ref name=netswot>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=TeZVAAAAIBAJ&pg=5777%2C3254634 |work=Eugene Register-Guard |___location=(Oregon) |agency=Associated Press |title=Tennis nets a walkout by Rather |date=September 14, 1987 |page=9A}}</ref> but made no mention of it on his next newscast on Monday, delayed by the men's final.<ref name=scirst>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=HzpOAAAAIBAJ&pg=4968%2C6426291 |work=Wilmington Morning Star |___location=(North Carolina) |agency=news services |title=Sports cuts in; Rather stays |date=September 15, 1987 |page=2A}}</ref> By 1990, the ''CBS Evening News'' had fallen to third place in the ratings, behind ABC's ''World News Tonight with [[Peter Jennings]]'' and ''[[NBC Nightly News]] with [[Tom Brokaw]]''.<ref name="museumcbs"/>
Schieffer's final broadcast of the newscast occurred on Thursday, [[August 31]] [[2006]].
 
On January 22, 1991, demonstrators from the [[ACT UP|AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power]] (ACT UP) broke into the CBS News studio and chanted "Fight [[HIV/AIDS|AIDS]], not [[Gulf War|Arabs]]" during the show's introduction. One protester was seen on camera just as Rather began speaking. Rather immediately called for a commercial break, but the screen went black instead for six seconds before returning to Rather. He apologized twice to viewers about the incident.<ref>{{Cite news|title= AIDS Protesters Enter Sets of 2 Newscasts|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/01/23/arts/aids-protesters-enter-sets-of-2-newscasts.html|work=The New York Times|date=January 23, 1991|access-date=January 16, 2009}}</ref>
==The Katie Couric era==
[[Image:KatieCouricCBSEveningNews.jpg|thumb|right|197px|Katie Couric anchors ''Free Speech'', a new segment of the ''CBS Evening News''.]]
On [[December 1]] [[2005]], it was reported that [[Katie Couric]], host of [[NBC]]'s ''[[The Today Show|Today]]'' morning show, was considering CBS's offer to take over the ''CBS Evening News''. On [[April 1]], [[2006]], Couric officially signed the deal to become the anchor of the ''CBS Evening News'' [http://nbcumv.com/release_detail.nbc/news-20060405000000-nbcnewsquottoday.html].
 
====Connie Chung as co-anchor (1993–1995)====
On [[April 5]], [[2006]], Couric officially told the ''Today'' audience she would step down as co-anchor, a spot she had held for fifteen years, longer than any other Today show anchor. There had been a great deal of speculation on whether she would leave a multi-million dollar contract with ''Today''. To lure Couric away from NBC, CBS offered her the anchor post and additionally, the opportunity to become a contributor to ''[[60 Minutes]]''. Couric is the first female to anchor a national network newscast solo and will also serve as the program's managing editor.
On May 31, 1993, CBS News correspondent [[Connie Chung]] began co-anchoring the broadcast with Rather. Chung normally co-anchored in the studio with Rather, but sometimes one of them appeared on ___location, while the other remained in the studio. Though Rather never said so publicly, CBS News insiders said he did not approve of her appointment.<ref>''[[MediaWeek]]'' article from April 26, 1997 {{Full citation needed|date=November 2012}}</ref> Chung's last broadcast as co-anchor was on May 19, 1995.
 
====1995–2005====
Many have criticized the move by CBS to promote Couric to the broadcast chair, questioning Couric's ability to deliver hard journalism after 15 years of entertainment and fluff segments on ''Today''. Critics claim she lacks the weight to be a sole anchor of the ''CBS Evening News.'' Also, Couric has little experience doing live field reports from news hotspots nor any experience leading a news team as evening anchors have traditionally done. [http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/2006-04-09-forum-couric_x.htm] This is all despite the fact that she was once a Washington deputy reporter on the Pentagon beat for NBC News in the 1980s. [http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/television/2002915706_couric07.html]
The newscast returned to a solo anchor format on May 22, 1995, with Dan Rather continuing in his role as anchor. At age 73, Rather retired from the ''Evening News'' on March 9, 2005, exactly 24 years after succeeding Cronkite.
[http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/living/14307297.htm?source=rss&channel=mercurynews_living]
 
Rather left the anchor position amid controversy and a credibility crisis over reports broadcast during the [[2004 United States presidential election|2004 presidential election]] campaign. The report was a segment featured on a September 2004 broadcast of ''[[60 Minutes II|60 Minutes Wednesday]]'', questioning President [[George W. Bush]]'s [[Texas Air National Guard]] record.<ref name="rather statement">{{cite news|title= Dan Rather Statement On Memos|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dan-rather-statement-on-memos/|work=CBS News|date=September 20, 2005|access-date=March 20, 2006}}</ref><ref name="CBS statement on panel">{{cite news|title=CBS Names Memo Probe Panel|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cbs-names-memo-probe-panel/|work=CBS News|date=September 22, 2004|access-date=March 20, 2006}}</ref> Conservative activists challenged the authenticity of the [[Killian documents controversy|documents]] used for the report. A number of bloggers analyzed scans of the documents, and rapidly concluded they were forgeries. Subsequently, CBS commissioned an independent inquiry into the matter and several CBS staffers were fired or asked to resign.
Katie Couric began working at CBS News in July 2006 after a June vacation. She met with CBS executives focusing on the direction of the evening newscast. During her first broadcast as anchor on Tuesday, [[September 5]] [[2006]], new graphics, a new set, and a new theme composed by [[Academy Award]] winning [[composer]] [[James Horner]] were introduced. A new [[Title sequence|opening title sequence]] was designed with Walter Cronkite providing the voiceover. The program also debuted a new feature called "Free Speech" in which different Americans, ranging from a well known national figure to an average person, would provide a news commentary.[http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/09/05/eveningnews/main1967177.shtml]
 
After departing from the ''Evening News'', Rather remained with CBS News as a correspondent. On June 20, 2006, CBS News President [[Sean McManus (television executive)|Sean McManus]] announced that Rather and CBS had agreed to end his 44-year career with the network.<ref>{{cite news|title=Moving Ahead, Rather Throws Sad Look Back |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/17/business/media/17rath.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0|newspaper=The New York Times|date=June 17, 2006|access-date=August 31, 2013}}</ref>
The debut episode for Katie Couric nearly doubled the average audience the program had pulled in up until then, bringing in 13.6 million viewers, a considerable number even for a primetime series. So far, the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric has remained number one every night since its debut, with the exception of Monday, September 11th, when it slipped back to third place. For the week of September 18th it dropped to second.
 
===Bob Schieffer (2005–2006)===
Since its debut, the Couric version of the CBS Evening News has been repeatedly criticized by liberals and the American left for its inclusion of highly conservative voices such as [[Rush Limbaugh]] without counterbalance, and its failure to include commentary from prominent liberals.[http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2006/10/03/publiceye/entry2059105.shtml][http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6372793.html?display=News] Most recently, a dust-up with [[Bill Maher]], who claims he was denied the opportunity to speak about religion during his appearance on the show's "Free Speech" segment, intensified these criticisms. [http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/41811/]
[[File:Bob Schieffer.jpg|thumb|right|Schieffer in April 2006]]
On March 10, 2005, Rather was succeeded on an interim basis by ''[[Face the Nation]]'' host and CBS News correspondent [[Bob Schieffer]]. At the time Schieffer took over, how long he would host the broadcast, whether it would retain its current structure, or instead would adopt some kind of multiple host or alternative format was uncertain. Under Rather in the years leading up to his retirement, the ''CBS Evening News'' trailed its rivals at ABC and NBC by a fairly large margin. White House correspondent [[John Roberts (journalist)|John Roberts]], and [[Scott Pelley]], his predecessor in that position, were often mentioned as possible successors to Rather when he retired.<ref name="observ2004">{{cite web|title=Anchor Battle! CBS News Boys Go to Corners|url=http://observer.com/2004/12/anchor-battle-cbs-news-boys-go-to-corners/|work=[[The New York Observer]]|date=December 5, 2004|access-date=December 22, 2012}}</ref> [[Jim Axelrod]] became White House correspondent when Roberts later left for [[CNN]].
 
In the months following Rather's departure, the program came to emphasize live exchanges between Schieffer and various CBS News correspondents around the world. In contrast to traditional network news practice, these exchanges were unrehearsed as part of an effort to make the language on the broadcast sound more "natural".<ref>{{cite news|title=CBS won't drop solo anchor|url=https://www.boston.com/ae/tv/articles/2005/04/26/cbs_wont_drop_solo_anchor/|work=[[Boston Globe]]|date=April 26, 2005}}</ref> Viewership increased over this period, with the program being the only network evening news broadcast to gain viewers during 2005. In November 2005, CBS announced that ''CBS Evening News'' executive producer Jim Murphy would be replaced by [[Rome Hartman]], who took over in January 2006.
==Weekend Editions==
[[CBS]] correspondent [[Russ Mitchell]] has frequently substituted for Schieffer on the ''CBS Evening News''. As of April 3, 2006, Mitchell also anchors the Sunday edition of the ''CBS Evening News''.
 
Schieffer led the ''CBS Evening News'' to become the number-two evening news broadcast, ahead of ABC's ''World News Tonight''. The [[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] division was in flux following the death of anchor Peter Jennings in 2005, and with the adoption of a dual-anchor format on ''World News Tonight'', life-threatening injuries suffered by co-anchor [[Bob Woodruff]] in January 2006 when an [[Iraq]]i military convoy he rode in hit a roadside bomb, leaving [[Elizabeth Vargas]] as sole anchor. When [[Charles Gibson]] was appointed sole anchor of ''World News Tonight'' in May 2006, after Elizabeth Vargas resigned in connection with her pregnancy, ABC regained stability and momentum to regain the second spot.
The Saturday editions of the ''CBS Evening News'' are anchored by [[Thalia Assuras]].
 
Bob Schieffer's final ''CBS Evening News'' program was broadcast on August 31, 2006. [[Russ Mitchell]] filled in for the following nights (September 1, 2006 & September 4 2006), after which he was succeeded by [[Katie Couric]] on September 5, 2006.
Substitutes for the weekend edition include [[Tracy Smith]], [[Harry Smith (television)|Harry Smith]], [[Charles Osgood]], [[Maurice DuBois]] and [[Sharyn Alfonsi]].
 
===Katie Couric (2006–2011)===
Former anchors of the weekend newscasts include [[Bob Schieffer]], [[Paula Zahn]], [[John Roberts (television reporter)|John Roberts]], [[Deborah Norville]], [[Giselle Fernández]], and [[Mika Brzezinski]].
[[File:Defense.gov photo essay 110408-F-DQ383-026.jpg|thumb|Couric with U.S. Defense Secretary [[Robert Gates]] in [[Mosul]], Iraq, April 8, 2011]]
On December 1, 2005, Katie Couric, co-anchor of NBC's ''[[Today (American TV program)|Today]]'', reportedly was considering an offer by CBS to anchor the ''Evening News''. Couric officially signed a contract to become anchor of the ''CBS Evening News'' on April 1, 2006, and formally announced four days later on ''Today'' that she would be leaving the show and [[NBC News]] after a 15-year run as the morning show's co-anchor.<ref>{{cite web|title=NBC NEWS "TODAY" KATIE COURIC TRANSCRIPT|url=http://nbcumv.com/release_detail.nbc/news-20060405000000-nbcnewsquottoday.html|format=Transcript|work=[[Today (American TV program)|Today]]|publisher=[[NBC]]|date=April 5, 2006|access-date=September 9, 2007}}{{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref> Ratings during Couric's period as anchor fluctuated, seemingly improving at times, but also posting historic lows rivaling those dating back to at least the 1991–92 season.<ref>{{cite web|title=What Is Going on with the Ratings at CBS Evening News?|url=http://www.observer.com/2009/media/closer-look-cbs-evening-news-historically-low-ratings|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090620000839/http://www.observer.com/2009/media/closer-look-cbs-evening-news-historically-low-ratings|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 20, 2009|work=The New York Observer|access-date=April 12, 2011}}</ref>
 
Couric began working at CBS News in July 2006. During her first broadcast as anchor on September 5, 2006, a new graphics package and set, and a new theme composed by [[Academy Awards|Academy Award]]-winning [[composer]] [[James Horner]] were introduced. Similar graphics and music were introduced on other CBS News programs such as ''[[CBS News Roundup|Up to the Minute]]'', ''[[CBS News Mornings|CBS Morning News]]'', and ''[[The Early Show]]'' throughout October. A new [[Title sequence|opening title sequence]] was designed, with [[Walter Cronkite]] providing the voiceover, replacing Wendell Craig unless a temporary voice-over was needed. Following Cronkite's death months earlier, actor [[Morgan Freeman]] recorded a new voice-over for the title sequence, which debuted on January 4, 2010. The program also debuted a new feature called "freeSpeech" in which different Americans, ranging from well-known national figures to average people, would provide news commentary.<ref>{{cite news|title=CBS News Debuts 'freeSpeech' An Original Segment Of Opinion And Commentary|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/09/05/eveningnews/main1967177.shtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061110080813/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/09/05/eveningnews/main1967177.shtml|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 10, 2006|work=CBS News|date=September 6, 2006|access-date=September 9, 2007}}</ref> After overwhelmingly negative reaction, the segment was discontinued.
 
On March 8, 2007, ''[[The New York Times]]'' reported that the program's executive producer Rome Hartman was being replaced by television news veteran [[Rick Kaplan]]. Hartman left as executive producer on March 7. Kaplan came to the ''Evening News'' after stints at [[MSNBC]], [[CNN]], and ABC's ''World News Tonight with Peter Jennings''.
 
On April 4, 2007, Couric read a one-minute commentary about the importance of reading, in a piece substantially lifted from a ''[[The Wall Street Journal|Wall Street Journal]]'' column by [[Jeffrey Zaslow]]. Couric appeared to personally reminisce about her first [[library card]] — "I still remember when I got my first library card, browsing through the stacks for my favorite books" — but the words were all Zaslow's. It was later determined that a producer had actually [[plagiarism|plagiarized]] the piece, and the video was subsequently removed from the CBS News website.<ref>{{cite news|title='Katie's Notebook' Item Cribbed From W.S. Journal|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/10/AR2007041001537.html|author=Howard Kurtz|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=April 11, 2007}}</ref> Zaslow responded that CBS had "been very gracious and apologetic, and we at the ''Journal'' appreciate it."<ref name="tv.com">{{cite news|title=CBS says Couric unaware video essay plagiarized|url=http://www.tv.com/cbs-says-couric-unaware-video-essay-plagiarized/story/9319.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130204213217/http://www.tv.com/cbs-says-couric-unaware-video-essay-plagiarized/story/9319.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 4, 2013|agency=[[Reuters]]|publisher=TV.com|access-date=April 12, 2011}}</ref> Furthermore, this was a notable case of "double plagiarism"; the producer claimed the text from Zaslow, and the anchor claimed the words from the producer.<ref>{{cite web|title=About "Couric's" Plagiarism|url=http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/140588/about-courics-plagiarism/jonah-goldberg|author=Jonah Goldberg|work=The Corner|date=April 4, 2007|access-date=April 12, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Double plagiarism at CBS News|url=http://www.thedailybackground.com/2007/04/10/double-plagiarism-at-cbs-news|work=The Daily Background|date=April 4, 2010|access-date=April 12, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721043424/http://www.thedailybackground.com/2007/04/10/double-plagiarism-at-cbs-news/|archive-date=July 21, 2011}}</ref> That producer, Melissa McNamara, was fired hours after the ''Journal'' contacted CBS News to complain.<ref name="tv.com"/><ref>{{cite web|title=Couric in the Eye of Plagiarism Case|url=http://www.nysun.com/arts/couric-in-the-eye-of-plagiarism-case/52279|publisher=[[New York Sun]]|date=April 12, 2007|access-date=April 12, 2011}}</ref> The network promised changes to its procedures.<ref>{{cite web|title=CBS News Fires Producer, Revamps Procedures After Plagiarism Incident|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=3031455&page=1|work=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]|date=April 11, 2007|access-date=April 12, 2011}}</ref>
 
On July 28, 2008, the ''CBS Evening News'' became the third network evening newscast to begin broadcasting in [[high-definition television|high definition]] (behind ''NBC Nightly News'' and [[PBS]]'s ''[[PBS News Hour|The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer]]'').<ref>{{cite web|title=CBS Evening News Gears Up for HD|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6576275.html?industryid=47168|work=[[Broadcasting & Cable]]|date=July 26, 2008}}</ref>
 
On August 27, 2008, [[Mediabistro (website)|Mediabistro]] wrote a piece about the [[Big Three (American television)|Big Three network]] newscasts, praising Couric's ''Evening News'' for extensive reporting that had, in its opinion, content better than its rivals.<ref>{{cite web|title=Evening Newscasts Ending Year Surprisingly Strong|url=http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/generalities/evening_newscasts_ending_year_surprisingly_strong_104198.asp|work=[[AdWeek|TVNewser]]|publisher=[[Mediabistro.com]]|date=December 24, 2008|access-date=April 12, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090618151054/http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/generalities/evening_newscasts_ending_year_surprisingly_strong_104198.asp|archive-date=June 18, 2009}}</ref> Another critic from [[MarketWatch]] praised Couric's work, and said that people should watch out for her in 2009.<ref>{{cite web|title=Five media stories to watch for in 2009|url=http://www.marketwatch.com/video/asset/five-media-stories-watch-2009/3F71F405-A6A2-4A35-B105-E3A2A0BEE77F?dist=msrv_2|publisher=Marketwatch.com|access-date=April 12, 2011}}</ref> ''Washington Post'' writer [[Tom Shales]] praised Couric as a warmer, more benevolent presence than her two competitors, something that she brought to the program nearly 16 years of goodwill from doing ''Today'' and becoming America's sweetheart, or else very close to it, and he claimed that this goodwill remained. Shales added that viewers "may find bad news less discomforting and sleep-depriving if Couric gives it to them". He also added that she does not try to "sugarcoat" or "prettify" grim realities. According to Shales, the ''Evening News'' may be a more hospitable, welcoming sort of place than its competitors. He concluded by stating, "it's naive to think that viewers choose their news anchor based solely on strict journalistic credentials, though Couric's do seem to be in order, despite her critics' claims."<ref>{{cite news|title=Katie Couric's Ease as CBS News Anchor Grows, Along With Her Audience|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/28/AR2009012803756.html |author=[[Tom Shales]]|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=January 29, 2009|access-date=April 28, 2010}}</ref>
 
The ''CBS Evening News with Katie Couric'' won the 2008 and 2009 [[Edward R. Murrow Award (Radio Television Digital News Association)|Edward R. Murrow Award]] for best newscast. In September 2008, [[Palin–Couric interviews|Couric interviewed Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin]], earning respect from a MarketWatch critic for asking tough questions.<ref>{{cite web|title=Katie Couric deserves the 'I'm Still Standing' award |url=http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/story.aspx?guid={5C747603-F143-45ED-AED7-84AC269BABD9}|author=Jon Friedman|publisher=[[MarketWatch]]|date=April 11, 2011|access-date=April 12, 2011}}</ref> In 2011, the program was the recipient of both an [[Emmy Awards|Emmy]] for Outstanding Continuing Coverage and the [[Edward R. Murrow Award (Radio Television Digital News Association)|Edward R. Murrow Award]] for Video News Series for foreign correspondent [[Terry McCarthy (journalist)|Terry McCarthy]]'s feature story "Afghan Bomb Squad."<ref>{{cite web|title=32ND ANNUAL NEWS & DOCUMENTARY EMMY® AWARDS WINNERS|url=http://emmyonline.com/news_32nd_winners-2|work=[[Academy of Television Arts and Sciences]]|year=2011|access-date=October 9, 2014|archive-date=November 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116001014/http://emmyonline.com/news_32nd_winners-2|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Edward R. Murrow Awards National Winners|url=http://www.rtdna.org/content/2011_murrow_national_winners|work=[[Radio-Television News Directors Association]]|year=2011|access-date=October 9, 2014|archive-date=October 7, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141007085120/http://www.rtdna.org/content/2011_murrow_national_winners|url-status=dead}}</ref>
 
On May 18, 2009, the newscast's graphics were overhauled, using a blue and red color scheme with [[web design|web]]-influenced motifs and layouts. The new graphics design featured a look influenced by the graphics that CBS used during the [[2008 United States presidential election|2008 presidential election coverage]].<ref name="tvn-2009newlook">{{cite web|title=CBS Evening News To Debut New Logo, Graphics Monday |url=http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/cbs/cbs_evening_news_to_debut_new_logo_graphics_monday_116637.asp|work=TVNewser|publisher=Mediabistro.com|date=May 15, 2009|access-date=May 19, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090519083851/http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/cbs/cbs_evening_news_to_debut_new_logo_graphics_monday_116637.asp|archive-date=May 19, 2009}}</ref>
 
On April 3, 2011, the [[Associated Press]] reported that Couric would be leaving the ''Evening News'' when her contract expired in June. Couric later confirmed her departure to ''[[People (magazine)|People]]'', citing a desire for "a format that will allow (her) to engage in more multidimensional storytelling."<ref>{{cite news|title=Katie Couric confirms she leaving "CBS Evening News |url=https://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110426/en_nm/us_couric_6|agency=Reuters|publisher=[[Yahoo! News]]|date=April 26, 2011}}</ref> On May 13, 2011, Couric announced that the following Thursday, May 19, 2011, would be her last broadcast.
 
Despite originally retooling the newscasts to add more features, interviews, and human-interest stories, over time, it returned to the hard-news format popularized by Cronkite.<ref>{{cite news|title=Report on Katie Couric's departure from CBS|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-xpm-2011-may-18-la-et-onthemedia-20110518-story.html|author=James Rainey|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=May 18, 2011|access-date=April 5, 2014}}</ref> [[Harry Smith (American journalist)|Harry Smith]] served as an interim anchor until Pelley's tenure started on June 6, 2011 (like Couric before him, Smith would also depart from CBS a month later).
 
===Scott Pelley (2011–2017)===
[[File:Pelleyobama.jpg|thumb|right|Pelley interviews President [[Barack Obama]] in the Diplomatic Receiving Room of the White House in 2011]]
 
In an April 2011 article, the ''New York Times'' reported that ''60 Minutes'' correspondent Scott Pelley was considered to be the front-runner to replace Couric as anchor of the program.<ref>{{cite news|title= Front-Runner for CBS Anchor Is '60 Minutes' Reporter|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/12/business/media/12anchor.html|author=Brian Stelter|work=The New York Times|date=April 11, 2011|access-date=April 12, 2011}}</ref>
 
On May 3, 2011, CBS confirmed that Pelley would replace Couric as anchor for the ''CBS Evening News'' in June.<ref name="pelleyappt">{{cite news|title=Scott Pelley named anchor of 'CBS Evening News' |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/scott-pelley-named-anchor-of-cbs-evening-news/|work=CBS News|date=May 3, 2011|access-date=May 4, 2011}}</ref><ref name="pelleyappt2nd">{{cite news|title=Scott Pelley confirmed as CBS Evening News presenter|url=http://www.mediaspy.org/report/2011/05/04/us-scott-pelley-confirmed-as-cbs-evening-news-presenter|work=The Spy Report|publisher=Media Spy|date=May 4, 2011|access-date=May 4, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130728174411/http://www.mediaspy.org/report/2011/05/04/us-scott-pelley-confirmed-as-cbs-evening-news-presenter/|archive-date=July 28, 2013}}</ref><ref name="pelleyappt3rd">{{cite news|title=It's Official: Scott Pelley to Replace Katie Couric on the 'CBS Evening News'|url=http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/its-official-scott-pelley-to-replace-katie-couric-on-the-cbs-evening-news_b64511|work=TVNewser|publisher=Mediabistro.com|date=May 3, 2011|access-date=May 4, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120918232103/http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/its-official-scott-pelley-to-replace-katie-couric-on-the-cbs-evening-news_b64511|archive-date=September 18, 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> The graphics were subtly updated (the Couric 2009-2011 graphics were used for the first two days of Pelley's tenure as anchor in 2011), the [[Flag of the United States|American flag]] background on the news set (which had been used since the 2008 elections, this was last used on Harry Smith interim anchor episodes until 2011) was replaced by a replica of the globe fixture during the Cronkite era, and the James Horner theme was replaced by the 1987–91 theme composed by Trivers-Myers Music that was used during the Rather era (the theme was last used on ''Up to the Minute'' on June 24, 2011, and was replaced by the Rather and Pelley theme the same year).<ref name="CBSNewTune">{{cite video | url=https://www.cbsnews.com/videos/cbs-evening-news-finds-a-new-tune/ | title=CBS Evening News finds a new tune | date=May 31, 2016 |work=CBS News | access-date=June 18, 2016}}</ref>
In his first nine months in the anchor chair, Pelley gained an additional 821,000 viewers. CBS News also enjoyed increases in its audience for special news events. After election night in 2012, ''Variety'' wrote, "With Scott Pelley front and center; the Eye was up 8% from four years ago." The ''CBS Evening News'' had increased its audience every year from 2011 through 2015. On May 29, 2015, media website The Wrap wrote: "These days, CBS brass may finally have a reason to smile. On Wednesday, the network announced 'Evening News with Scott Pelley' added more than 1.25 million viewers over the past four years – a whopping 21% jump. The show also saw audience growth for the fifth consecutive season, the first time any network evening news broadcast has done that since 1987."
 
At the end of the 2015–2016 television season, CBS News announced, "''The CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley'', America's fastest-growing network evening news broadcast, finished the 2015–16 television season with CBS's highest ratings in the time period in 10 years (since the 2005–06 season), according to Nielsen most current ratings. ''The CBS Evening News'' has grown its audience for six consecutive seasons, a first-time achievement for any network evening news broadcast since the advent of people meters (since at least 1987). Under Pelley, who assumed the anchor chair in June 2011, the ''CBS Evening News'' added 1.4 million viewers and an audience increase of 23%, double NBC and ABC's growth combined over the same period (since the 2010–11 season).
 
Pelley refocused the program towards hard news and away from the [[Soft media|soft news]] and [[infotainment]] features of the early Katie Couric era. Story selection focused more on foreign policy, Washington politics, and economic subjects.<ref>{{cite web|title=New life in television's evening news|url=https://news.yahoo.com/life-televisions-evening-news-105534857.html|publisher=Yahoo! News|date=October 17, 2011|access-date=April 5, 2014}}</ref> The program's audience viewership began to grow immediately, closing the gap between the ''CBS Evening News'' and its competitors by one million viewers within a year, although the CBS program remains in third place among the network evening newscasts.<ref>{{cite web|title=Evening News Ratings: Week of November 14 |url=http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/evening-news-ratings-week-of-november-14_b99176|work=TVNewser|publisher=Mediabistro.com|date=November 22, 2011|access-date=April 5, 2014}}</ref> In late May 2016, a new theme tune composed by Joel Beckerman of Man Made Music was introduced.<ref name="CBSNewTune"/> Later that same year in December, the program moved permanently into CBS Studio 57, which the newscast used during their 2016 election coverage (moving from its longtime home of studio 47) at the [[CBS Broadcast Center]], and gained a new set to go with it.<ref>{{cite web|title=A look back at 'CBS Evening News' in Studio 47 |url=https://www.newscaststudio.com/2016/12/07/cbs-evening-news-studio-47/ |work=Newscast Studio |date=December 7, 2016 |access-date=September 13, 2018}}</ref>
 
=== Anthony Mason (June 2017&ndash;December 2017) ===
On May 30, 2017, reports surfaced confirming that Scott Pelley had been relieved of his duties at ''CBS Evening News''. Pelley remained at CBS News as a ''60 Minutes'' correspondent. Pelley reportedly asked staff members to clear out his office.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/335729-scott-pelley-ousted-from-cbs-evening-news-anchor-role-report/ |title=Scott Pelley ousted from 'CBS Evening News' anchor role: report |work=The Hill |date=May 31, 2017 |access-date=May 31, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Byers |first=Dylan |url=https://money.cnn.com/2017/05/30/media/scott-pelley-cbs-evening-news/ |title=Scott Pelley out at 'CBS Evening News' – May. 30, 2017 |publisher=Money.cnn.com |date=May 31, 2017 |access-date=May 31, 2017}}</ref> The move was made official on May 31, 2017, and [[Anthony Mason (journalist)|Anthony Mason]] was named interim anchor.<ref>{{cite web|author=Lisa de Moraes |url=https://deadline.com/2017/05/scott-pelley-out-cbs-evening-news-full-time-60-minutes-cbs-announce-1202104889/ |title=Scott Pelley Out As 'CBS Evening News' Anchor To Work Full Time On '60 Minutes' |publisher=Deadline |date=May 31, 2017 |access-date=June 7, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Sblendorio |first=Peter |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/scott-pelley-officially-cbs-evening-news-article-1.3209989 |title=Scott Pelley officially out at 'CBS Evening News' |publisher=NY Daily News |date=May 31, 2017 |access-date=June 7, 2017}}</ref> On June 6, 2017, ''CBS Evening News'' announced that Pelley would anchor until June 16, 2017.
 
===Jeff Glor (2017–2019)===
[[File:Jeff Glor in Singapore.jpg|thumb|right|Glor in Singapore in 2018]]
On October 25, 2017, CBS News announced that correspondent [[Jeff Glor]] would be the new ''CBS Evening News'' anchor.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/cbs-names-jeff-glor-as-evening-news-anchor/2017/10/25/5374a58a-b99c-11e7-9b93-b97043e57a22_story.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171026001424/https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/cbs-names-jeff-glor-as-evening-news-anchor/2017/10/25/5374a58a-b99c-11e7-9b93-b97043e57a22_story.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 26, 2017 |title= CBS names Jeff Glor as evening news anchor |author= David Bauder (AP) |date= October 25, 2017 |via= www.washingtonpost.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jeff-glor-cbs-evening-news-new-anchor |title= Jeff Glor named anchor of CBS Evening News |website= [[CBS News]] |date= October 25, 2017 }}</ref> On November 26, 2017, the organization announced his first official air date for December 4, 2017.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cbs-evening-news-with-jeff-glor-begins-december-4/|title="CBS Evening News with Jeff Glor" begins December 4|website=[[CBS News]]|date=November 26, 2017 |access-date=February 5, 2018}}</ref> Together with Glor's debut, the newscast also updated its looks and used a new logotype and updated typography, using Ridley Grotesk as its base.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Abxhh5VBLOw| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190910230022/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Abxhh5VBLOw&gl=US&hl=en| archive-date=September 10, 2019 | url-status=dead|title=CBS Evening News with Jeff Glor 2017 Open and Close|publisher=Bbabybear02|date=December 4, 2017|access-date=February 5, 2018|via=YouTube}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newscaststudio.com/2017/12/05/cbs-evening-news-jeff-glor-debut/|title='CBS Evening News' updates look for Jeff Glor debut|date=December 5, 2017 |access-date=February 5, 2018}}</ref> However, the theme music and set from the later Pelley era were retained.
 
=== Rotating hosts (May–July 2019) ===
On May 6, 2019, it was announced that Glor would leave ''CBS Evening News''. The last day of his tenure was May 10, 2019. [[John Dickerson]], [[Major Garrett]], [[Margaret Brennan]], [[Anthony Mason (journalist)|Anthony Mason]], [[David Begnaud]], [[Bob Schieffer]], [[Bill Whitaker (journalist)|Bill Whitaker]], [[James Brown (sportscaster)|James Brown]], [[Jane Pauley]], [[Jim Axelrod]], [[Maurice DuBois]], and [[Tony Dokoupil]] anchored on an interim basis until Norah O'Donnell took the anchor chair on July 15, 2019.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/2019/tv/news/john-dickerson-cbs-evening-news-1203210797/|title=John Dickerson Will Do Fill-In Stint on 'CBS Evening News'|last=Steinberg|first=Brian|website=Variety|language=en-us|date=May 10, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cbs-evening-news-with-norah-odonnell-to-debut-july-15/|title="CBS Evening News with Norah O'Donnell" to debut July 15|work=[[CBS News]]|date=June 24, 2019 |access-date=June 27, 2019}}</ref>
 
===Norah O'Donnell (2019–2025)===
[[File:Secretary Blinken Participants in an Interview on 60 Minutes (51109588529).jpg|thumb|O'Donnell speaks to US Secretary of State [[Antony Blinken]] at the US State Department in April 2021]]
On May 6, 2019, CBS News announced that [[Norah O'Donnell]] was named anchor and managing editor of ''CBS Evening News'' to replace Glor, effective July 15, 2019.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cbs-news-announces-anchor-changes-at-cbs-this-morning-and-cbs-evening-news/|title=CBS News announces anchor changes at "CBS This Morning" and "CBS Evening News"|website=CBS News|date=May 7, 2019 |language=en-US|access-date=May 9, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=https://cbspressexpress.com/cbs-news/releases/view?id=52610 | title=ViacomCBS Press Express &#124; CBS News and Stations | access-date=May 9, 2019 | archive-date=May 9, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190509192609/https://cbspressexpress.com/cbs-news/releases/view%3Fid%3D52610 | url-status=dead }}</ref> CBS also announced that the show would be moving to [[Washington, DC]], on December 2, 2019. This marked the first time that a major network evening news program was based outside of New York City since 1978, when ''ABC World News Tonight'' used bureaus in Washington, DC, [[Chicago]], and [[London]] for its broadcasts.<ref>{{Cite web |last=de Moraes |first=Lisa |date=May 6, 2019 |title=Gayle King Details Changes At Struggling 'CBS This Morning', 'CBS Evening News'; Jeff Glor Talks Continue |url=https://deadline.com/2019/05/gayle-king-norah-o-donnell-jeff-glor-cbs-evening-news-1202607809/ |access-date=May 6, 2019 |website=Deadline |language=en}}</ref> O'Donnell's approach has been described by her as "hard [[news]] with heart", combining investigative reporting and original storytelling, which connects with people and is solutions-oriented.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-12-23 |title=Year-End #AskNewser: TVNewsers Discuss Overcoming 2021's On-Air Challenges and How Their Shows Will Evolve in 2022 |url=https://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/the-year-end-asknewser-broadcast-newsers-discuss-overcoming-on-air-challenges-in-2021/ |access-date=2024-02-22 |website=www.adweek.com |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Barone |first=Gabrielle |date=2023-10-12 |title="Hard news with heart" |url=https://today.advancement.georgetown.edu/georgetown-magazine/2023/hard-news-with-heart/ |access-date=2024-02-22 |website=Georgetown Today |language=en-US}}</ref>
 
On April 8, 2022, O'Donnell reportedly had renewed her contract through at least the [[2024 United States presidential election|2024 presidential election]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Norah O'Donnell Lands New CBS Deal to Extend 'Evening News' Run|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/norah-odonnell-cbs-evening-news-1235127637/|work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|last1=Gajewski|first1=Ryan|last2=Weprin|first2=Alex|date=April 8, 2022|access-date=April 9, 2022}}</ref> A rebranding of the program was unveiled on August 29, 2022, featuring a world map motif (a design that has frequently been used in CBS News programming as an ''homage'' to Walter Cronkite's era) and elements of the CBS brand identity first introduced in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |title='CBS Evening News' to debut design, music refresh focused on global reach and heritage |url=https://www.newscaststudio.com/2022/08/29/cbs-evening-news-design-2022/?og=1 |access-date=August 29, 2022 |website=NewscastStudio | date=August 29, 2022 |language=en-US}}</ref> As part of the rebrand, the show introduced a new theme composed by [[Antfood]], which is an arrangement of the 1987−91 Trivers-Myers theme used during Dan Rather and Scott Pelley's tenures as anchor during their respective eras (1987 and 2011), and incorporates Antfood's sonic branding for the network.<ref>{{Cite web |title='CBS Evening News' to debut design, music refresh focused on global reach and heritage |url=https://www.newscaststudio.com/2022/08/29/cbs-evening-news-design-2022/?og=1 |access-date=February 27, 2023 |website=NewscastStudio | date=August 29, 2022 |language=en-US}}</ref>
 
===John Dickerson and Maurice DuBois (2025–present)===
 
On July 30, 2024, O'Donnell announced that she would step down as anchor of the ''CBS Evening News'' after the 2024 elections. She remains with CBS News as a senior correspondent.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Koblin |first=John |date=2024-07-30 |title=Norah O'Donnell to Step Down as Anchor of 'CBS Evening News' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/30/technology/norah-odonnell-cbs-evening-news.html |access-date=2024-07-31 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> On August 1, CBS News announced that the ''Evening News'' would undergo a retool and introduce a multianchor format with an emphasis on its "ensemble of journalists"; [[John Dickerson]] and [[Maurice DuBois]] would serve as co-anchors, while [[Margaret Brennan]] of ''Face the Nation'' and [[WCBS-TV]] weather reporter [[Lonnie Quinn]] would serve as regular contributors for politics and weather-related topics.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Johnson |first=Ted |date=2024-08-01 |title='CBS Evening News' Revamp Unveiled: John Dickerson & Maurice DuBois To Anchor From New York With Focus On Ensemble Team |url=https://deadline.com/2024/08/cbs-evening-news-anchors-john-dickerson-maurice-dubois-1236028559/ |access-date=2024-08-01 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}}</ref> ''60 Minutes'' executive producer Bill Owens was named supervising producer, and fellow ''60 Minutes'' producer Guy Campanile was named executive producer.<ref name=":0" /> O'Donnell anchored her final edition of the ''CBS Evening News'' on January 23, 2025, with Dickerson and DuBois debuting on January 27, 2025.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Steinberg |first=Brian |date=2024-11-22 |title=Norah O'Donnell's 'CBS Evening News' Exit Set for January 24 |url=https://variety.com/2024/tv/news/norah-odonnell-cbs-evening-news-exit-january-24-1236218284/ |access-date=2024-11-23 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Stahl |first=Jay |date=January 23, 2025 |title=Norah O'Donnell signs off, Hoda Kotb's out: 'God-like days' are over for big name anchors |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/tv/2025/01/23/norah-odonnell-hoda-kotb-tv-news-business/77884090007/ |accessdate=January 24, 2025 |publisher=USA Today}}</ref>
 
The retooled ''Evening News'' carries a [[news magazine]]-like format with a focus on [[Long-form journalism|long-form]] stories, rather than the headline-focused formats of its main competitors (brief summaries of other headlines are relegated to a short "RoundUp" segment at the end of the opening block).<ref>{{cite news |date=January 26, 2025 |title=Here's What the New CBS Evening News Will Look Like |url=https://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/cbs-evening-news-reimagined-ratings/ |access-date=January 28, 2025 |work=Adweek}}</ref><ref name="CBSENEWS2">{{Cite web |last=P. Hill |first=Michael |date=January 29, 2025 |title=CBS debuts reimagined 'Evening News' with clean graphics, LED volume set |url=https://www.newscaststudio.com/2025/01/29/cbs-evening-news-127-debut/ |access-date=January 29, 2025 |work=Newscast Studio}}</ref> CBS News and Stations CEO [[Wendy McMahon (television executive)|Wendy McMahon]] explained that the program would share the "values" of ''60 Minutes'' and make use of its correspondents, aiming for it to be "[where] they have big news to break".<ref name=":0" /><ref name="returntonyc">{{cite news |last=Alvord |first=Kyler |date=January 24, 2025 |title=CBS Evening News Returns to N.Y.C. with a Twist: Inside the Making of a New, Dual-Anchor Broadcast (Exclusive) |url=https://people.com/cbs-evening-news-premiere-exclusive-sneak-peek-8779449 |accessdate=January 24, 2025 |publisher=People}}</ref> Dickerson explained that "people have the news all day in their pockets, and we're not trying to compete with that. What we can share is the perspective that comes from the deep reporting that our correspondents do."<ref name="returntonyc" /> DuBois emphasized the increased emphasis on correspondents in the new format, explaining that they would "feel like people you know describing incredible things that they just witnessed."<ref name="returntonyc"/>
 
Production returned to studio 47 at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York City, with a new studio using a [[On-set virtual production|three-sided video wall]].<ref name="CBSENEWS">{{Cite web |last=P. Hill |first=Michael |date=January 29, 2025 |title=CBS debuts reimagined 'Evening News' with clean graphics, LED volume set |url=https://www.newscaststudio.com/2025/01/29/cbs-evening-news-127-debut/ |access-date=January 29, 2025 |work=Newscast Studio}}</ref> The theme music adopted in 2022 was also dropped, with the original version of the Trivers-Myers theme reinstated.<ref name="CBSENEWS" /> Alongside the new ''Evening News'', CBS also announced that it would introduce a half-hour extension—''CBS Evening News Plus''—anchored by Dickerson, which premiered two weeks later on February 10, 2025. The program features several additional key segments, such as "The Interview", and "In Depth". Similarly to ''[[CBS Mornings Plus]]'' (a similar extension of ''CBS Mornings'' that premiered in September 2024), the program streams on [[CBS News 24/7]], and airs on selected CBS owned-and-operated stations (predominantly on the West Coast) immediately following the main program.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Steinberg |first=Brian |date=2024-12-04 |title='CBS Evening News' Gets Streaming Companion 'CBS Evening News Plus' |url=https://variety.com/2024/tv/news/cbs-evening-news-plus-streaming-john-dickerson-1236234985/ |access-date=2025-01-27 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hayes |first=Dade |date=2024-04-09 |title=CBS News Streaming Overhaul Doubles The Number Of Live Hours And Expands Shows Like John Dickerson's 'Daily Report' |url=https://deadline.com/2024/04/cbs-news-streaming-overhaul-24-7-john-dickerson-live-1235879550/ |access-date=2025-01-27 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=P. Hill |first=Michael |date=February 13, 2025 |title='CBS Evening News Plus' brings extended coverage, unique segments|url=https://www.newscaststudio.com/2025/02/13/cbs-evening-news-plus/|access-date=February 14, 2025 |work=Newscast Studio}}</ref>
 
By February 12, 2025, the new format began to see changes, including some broadcasts featuring a more traditional "tease" in the introduction, or leading with conventional, headline-based packages in the opening block rather than immediately beginning with a long-form story.<ref>{{Cite web |title='CBS Evening News' updating overhauled broadcast's format |url=https://www.newscaststudio.com/2025/02/21/cbs-evening-news-changes-221/ |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=NewscastStudio |language=en-US}}</ref> On April 22, 2025, Owens resigned from CBS News; amid ongoing legal action from President [[Donald Trump]] over a story broadcast on ''60 Minutes'' during the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election, Owens believed he could no longer "make independent decisions based on what was right for ''60 Minutes''."<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Maglio |first1=Tony |last2=Weprin |first2=Alex |date=2025-04-22 |title='60 Minutes' Producer Bill Owens Resigns Citing Inability to Make "Independent Decisions" |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/60-minutes-producer-bill-owens-resigns-no-independence-1236198056/ |access-date=2025-04-25 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |language=en-US}}</ref>
 
==Weekend editions==
{{Main|CBS Weekend News}}
 
The ''CBS Evening News'' expanded to weekend evenings on February 5, 1966. Sunday editions of the program were dropped in September 1971, when CBS began airing ''[[60 Minutes]]'' at 6:00&nbsp;pm Eastern time slot to help affiliates fulfill requirements imposed by the [[Federal Communications Commission]]'s [[Prime Time Access Rule]]. The Sunday edition returned in January 1976, when the network moved ''60 Minutes ''one hour later to 7:00&nbsp;pm Eastern Time. The weekend editions of the CBS Evening News were periodically abbreviated or pre-empted outright due to [[CBS Sports]] programming. On May 2, 2016, CBS announced that the weekend editions of the ''CBS Evening News'', effective May 7, would be revamped as the CBS Weekend News. The new program would rely on resources from CBS's streaming news channel CBSN (now [[CBS News 24/7]]), as well as reports from local affiliates, and highlights from the past week.<ref name="deadline-weekendnews">{{cite web|title=Reena Ninan & Elaine Quijano Anchor Renamed 'CBS Weekend News'|url=https://deadline.com/2016/05/reena-ninan-elaine-quijano-anchor-renamed-cbs-weekend-news-1201747907/|website=Deadline|access-date=May 2, 2016|date=May 2, 2016}}</ref><ref name="variety-weekendnews">{{Cite web |last=Steinberg |first=Brian |date=May 2, 2016 |title=CBS Will Revamp 'CBS Evening News' on Weekends |url=https://variety.com/2016/tv/news/cbs-evening-news-weekend-cbsn-elaine-quijano-reena-ninan-1201764635/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803175839/https://variety.com/2016/tv/news/cbs-evening-news-weekend-cbsn-elaine-quijano-reena-ninan-1201764635/ |archive-date=August 3, 2020 |website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref>
 
==Western edition==
CBS introduced a Western edition of the program in 1979, which was anchored by [[Terry Drinkwater]]<ref>{{cite news|title=Veteran CBS Journalist Terry Drinkwater Dead at 53|url=https://apnews.com/5e96da35d6f75db26278abeaa9e3e7e2|author=Bruce V. Bigelow|work=[[Associated Press]]|publisher=APNewsArchive.com|date= May 31, 1989|access-date=April 5, 2014|quote=In 1979, in addition to his correspondent duties, Drinkwater served as anchor of the CBS Evening News' Western Edition.}}</ref> with staff based in its Los Angeles bureau being placed on standby for updates to the main ''CBS Evening News'' broadcast each weeknight; this lasted until September 1985, when CBS News instituted layoffs at the Los Angeles bureau following a successful fending off of a takeover attempt of the network by [[Ted Turner]].<ref>{{Cite news|title=CBS Cutbacks Affect L.A. 'Evening News' Staff|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-10-23-ca-14073-story.html|author=Jay Sharbutt|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=October 23, 1985|access-date=April 5, 2014|quote=Because of cost cuts ordered after CBS' expensive victory over Ted Turner's takeover attempt, the CBS News bureau in Los Angeles no longer keeps a five-member technical crew on standby for three hours to update the "CBS Evening News" each week night. And anchorman Dan Rather no longer begins the show seen on the West Coast as "the Western Edition of the CBS Evening News," a nightly announcement that was inaugurated with some fanfare about six years ago. It was dropped about a month ago, a CBS executive says.}}</ref> The program eventually resumed production of the Western edition from its New York City and Washington studios (which may also be produced from remote locations where the program is broadcast when warranted). The host previously announced, "good evening to our viewers in the West" and packages may be updated to reflect late breaking news.
 
==Anchors==
* Richard Hubbell (1941–1942)
* [[Ned Calmer]] (1944)
* Everett Holles (1944–1945)
* [[Allan Jackson]] (1944–1945)
* Dwight Cooke (1945–1946)
* Tom O’Connor (1945–1946)
* Bob McKee (1946)
* Milo Boulton (1946)
* [[Jim McMullin]] (1946–1947)
* [[Larry LeSueur]] (1947)
* [[Douglas Edwards]] (1947–1962)
* [[Walter Cronkite]] (1962–1981)
* [[Terry Drinkwater]] (Western Edition co-anchor; 1979–1985)
 
* [[Dan Rather]] (1981–2005)
* [[Connie Chung]] (co-anchor; 1993–1995)
* [[Bob Schieffer]] (2005–2006)
* [[Russ Mitchell]] (2006)
* [[Katie Couric]] (2006–2011)
* [[Harry Smith (American journalist)|Harry Smith]] (2011)
* [[Scott Pelley]] (2011–2017)
* [[Anthony Mason (journalist)|Anthony Mason]] (2017)
* [[Jeff Glor]] (2017–2019)
* [[Norah O'Donnell]] (2019–2025)
* [[John Dickerson]] (2025–present)
* [[Maurice DuBois]] (2025–present)
 
==Audio format==
Former CBS Radio owned news stations had aired an audio simulcast of the ''CBS Evening News'' airs weekdays. [[KYW (AM)|KYW]] is the last of these stations to do so. Only the first 13-15 of the broadcast are aired, before resuming regular programming.
 
[[WCLO]] airs an audio simulcast of the entire ''CBS Evening News'' from Madison-based [[WISC-TV]].
 
In addition to a radio broadcast, the ''CBS Evening News'' is also available as a podcast.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/podcasts/|title=CBS News Podcasts Page News, Headlines and Video |website=CBS News|language=en|access-date=October 1, 2018}}</ref>
 
==International broadcasts==
In Australia, the program is shown daily on [[Sky News Australia]] at 11:30&nbsp;am in [[New Zealand]], [[Sky News Australia|Sky News]] broadcasts the program live at 1:30&nbsp;am local time.
CBS Evening News is shown on [[Sky News]] to viewers in Europe, Africa, Middle East and Asia also by sister station [[Sky News Australia]] to viewers in [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]]. CBS is not shown outside the Americas on a channel in its own right. However, CBS News is shown for a few hours a day on satellite channel [[Orbit News]] in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. CBS Evening News is broadcast lively on [[Asia Television Limited|ATV]] World in Hong Kong daily.
 
From March 17, 1987, until the early 2000s, the program was shown daily (from Tuesday to Saturday) with French subtitles on French network [[Canal+ (French TV channel)|Canal+]] at 07:00 every morning.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Guetta |first1=Bernard |title=Dan Rather ou le journalisme à l'américaine |publisher=[[Le Monde]] |date=March 16, 1987 |page=17 |language=fr}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Fabrikant |first1=Geraldine |title=THE MEDIA BUSINESS; French TV Giant Turns Global |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/06/20/business/the-media-business-french-tv-giant-turns-global.html |website=The New York Times |date=June 20, 1990}}</ref>
 
The program was broadcast on the [[American Network]] in [[Mexico]], [[Guatemala]], and [[El Salvador]].
 
In [[Japan]], the ''CBS Evening News'' was shown on [[BS-TBS]] as part of that network's morning news program.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tbs.co.jp/newsbird/index-j.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130219010144/http://www.tbs.co.jp/newsbird/index-j.html|url-status=dead|title=TBS「News Bird」|date=February 19, 2013|archive-date=February 19, 2013}}</ref>
 
The ''Evening News'' was broadcast live on [[ATV World]] in [[Hong Kong]] daily until January 1, 2009.
 
[[Belize]]'s [[Tropical Vision Limited]] occasionally airs the program as a substitute for its airing of the ''[[NBC Nightly News]]'' on Saturdays and occasionally during the week.
 
== Logos ==
'''Weekday version'''
<gallery>
File:CBS Evening News logo July 2019.png|July 15, 2019 – August 28, 2022
File:CBS Evening News with Norah O'Donnell logo.png|July 15, 2019 – August 28, 2022 (version with anchor name)
File:CBS Evening News 2022 (without anchor name).svg|August 29, 2022 – January 24, 2025 (version without anchor name)
File:CBS Evening News horizontal 2022.svg|August 29, 2022 – January 23, 2025 (version with anchor name)
File:CBS Evening News 2025.svg|Since January 27, 2025
</gallery>
'''CBS Evening News Plus'''
<gallery>
File:CBS Evening News Plus logo.svg|Since February 10, 2025
</gallery>
 
==See alsoReferences==
{{Reflist|30em}}
* [[CBS News]]
* [[Killian memos]]
* [[World News with Charles Gibson|ABC World News with Charles Gibson]]
* [[NBC Nightly News|NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams]]
 
==External links==
*{{Official website}}
* [http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/eveningnews/main3420.shtml CBS Evening News Official Website]
*Internet Movie Database links:
*{{imdb title|id=0193671|title=CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite}}
**{{imdbIMDb title|id=01892460927228|title=CBS EveningTelevision News/Douglas Edwards with Danthe News Rather(1948-1962)}}
**{{imdbIMDb title|id=04509030193671|title=Walter Cronkite with the News/CBS Evening News with BobWalter Cronkite Schieffer(1962-1981)}}
**{{imdbIMDb title|id=08002810189246|title=CBS Evening News with KatieDan CouricRather (1981-2005)}}
**{{IMDb title|id=0450903|title=CBS Evening News with Bob Schieffer (2005-2006)}}
*[http://www.cbscorporation.com/news/prdetails.php?id=463 CBS Press Release of Announcement of Couric's appointment]
**{{IMDb title|id=0800281|title=CBS Evening News with Katie Couric (2006-2011)}}
{{CBSEveningNewsAnchors}}
**{{IMDb title|id=1943174|title=CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley (2011-2017)}}
**{{IMDb title|id=7709122|title=CBS Evening News with Jeff Glor (2017-2019)}}
**{{IMDb title|id=10573354|title=CBS Evening News with Norah O'Donnell (2019-2025)}}
**{{IMDb title|id=11492866|title=CBS Weekend News}}
 
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[[Category:CBS network shows]]
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