On a day when 'The News' was the news, it turns out there wasn't much news to discuss.
Katie Couric made her historic debut on the CBS Evening News on what was otherwise a slow news day. CBS heralded her as the $15-million savior of their third-place broadcast. Many in the media proclaimed it a landmark day for female broadcasters. Others wondered what she would wear. I'm somewhere in the middle. While I didn't think it was a 'Jackie Robinson'-level achievement (after all Connie Chung was already an achor at CBS, admittedly with Dan Rather, who was thrilled), I think Katie could actually bring a fresh perspective to an otherwise staid genre. (And I'm going to tell her so at CBSNews.com, because she wants to hear from me.)
For better or worse, I doubt that Bob 'Hug It Out' Shieffer would have embraced Katie's big scoop (The Suri Emergence!) with as much gusto. But hey, did you notice how the other networks picked it up?
The other big non-news news was Rosie O'Donnell's debut on "The View." Rosie was assertive. She was ballsy. She was aggressive. In short, she was Rosie. She basically relegated the others to being sidekicks; Elisabeth Hasselbeck looked like she was afraid to open her mouth. The ladies of "The View" have always worked well as a cohesive unit, with Meredith Viera acting as a calming influence and effective mediator. Rosie, on the other hand, basically took over. Even Babs looked scared. On the other hand, Rosie did give men everywhere a new image to help them not, ahem, spoil the party too soon (let's just say it has to do with Rosie bathing naked with her kids and inquiries about fur). Hey, don't shoot the messenger.
One last thing about Couric. At the end of her broadcast she invited viewers to help her find a sign-off line. I have a suggestion:
"Good night America. I'm Katie Couric, and I am the news."