‘CBS Mornings’ ditches luxe Times Square studio – Business News
The last-place CBS morning show is ditching its state-of-the-art Times Square studio — which price it tens of millions to construct — after simply 4 years because the beleaguered community scrambles to cut prices, The Post has discovered.
“CBS Mornings” — co-hosted by Gayle King, Nate Burleson and Tony Dokoupil — will transfer back to its dingy former home at CBS Broadcast Center on West 57th Street from the luxe digs at 1515 Broadway, based on source with information of the scenario.
“It’s all about saving money,” the community insider mentioned. “This is another example of them not competing. It’s going back in time.”
“CBS Mornings,” co-hosted by Tony Dokoupil, Gayle King and Nate Burleson, might be leaving its Times Square studio and returning to the Broadcast Studio in Hells Kitchen. CBS through Getty Images
The struggling morning show posted an all-time weekly rankings low final week because it was relaunched on September 20, 2021 – drawing underneath 1.87 million complete viewers, based on Nielsen.
The transfer, which is slated for September, comes as CBS News CEO Wendy McMahon slashes prices as half of a greater mandate at company father or mother Paramount Global to cut $500 million from the funds forward of its hoped-for merger with Skydance Media.
A source advised The Post that “CBS Mornings” will share a smaller studio with “CBS Evening News,” which was just lately overhauled after the printed returned to New York from DC following the exit of anchor Norah O’Donnell.
McMahon’s job has been rumored to be on the road as shell-shocked staffers lose religion in her management, one other well-placed source advised The Post.
“The atmosphere at CBS News is one of fear,” the source mentioned. “Nobody opens their mouths because they are scared of losing their jobs.”
CBS News declined to remark.
The Tiffany Network’s morning show is presently housed in Paramount’s headquarters in Times Square. Christopher Sadowski
The Tiffany Network had been renting the Times Square space, which as soon as hosted the long-running MTV program “TRL,” from Paramount Global, previously referred to as ViacomCBS.
Another source speculated that Paramount might rent out the “CBS Mornings” studio to a different tenant or that maybe there may be a broader strategy to slim down its real estate footprint earlier than the new proprietor is available in.
Sharing the cramped space with the “Evening News” crew poses its own challenges, regardless of latest upgrades to the gloomy studio reminiscent of an LED ground.
Sources mentioned the morning program will share the cramped set with “CBS Evening News” when it returns to the CBS Broadcast Center within the fall. Helayne Seidman
“The studio is much smaller. There’s no space for couches for when the morning show hosts interview A-listers,” one source mentioned.
When the morning show was moved in 2021, newly appointed CBS News co-presidents Neeraj Khemlani and McMahon touted the innovative storytelling capabilities of the studio to the press.
“The new studio in the heart of Times Square will bring us a wealth of new opportunities for high-quality production, changing our look without changing our commitment to impactful news in the morning,” he advised commerce publication NewsForgedStudio on the time.”
CBS News CEO Wendy McMahon has made a slew of price cuts and adjustments to the community’s “Evening News” program forward of the proposed merger with Skydance Media. CBS through Getty Images
But the transfer immediately drew the ire of King and different staffers as a result of the home windows overlooking Times Square had been coated up — stopping onlookers on the road from gawking on the reside broadcast, as The Post beforehand reported.
Instead, the anchors sit in entrance of huge LED screens that project a manufactured view of Times Square.
One factor the anchors possible received’t miss in regards to the Times Square studio is that Paramount shut off the heat in a single day, resulting in gripes about having to reach to a freezing set within the wee hours of the morning.
Star anchor King and different staffers griped in regards to the present studio up to now as a result of its home windows overlooking Times Square had been blocked out, defeating the aim of its plum location. CBS through Getty Images
Since the transfer to 1515 Broadway, the community has gone via a collection of layoffs and management adjustments, together with Khemlani getting ousted in 2023 and McMahon being promoted to president and CEO.
Under her management, the community has prioritized centralizing the information division and leaning on its native information stations for some of its reporting so as to slash prices.
But her determination to switch O’Donnell with John Dickerson and Maurice DuBoise has to this point been a rankings catastrophe.
