CBS and NBC To Team Up On Kabul Bureau?

By SteveK 

The New York Observer’s Felix Gillette writes about the Afghanistan foreign coverage focus by news networks.

NBC News correspondent Richard Engel says he’s currently scouting locations in Kabul for a bureau. “We have some local staff who have always worked for us there,” he said. “Now we’ll have a fully staffed and operating bureau.”

But bigger news is the possibility NBC may be sharing the bureau with a competitor.

Advertisement
[CBS News SVP Paul] Friedman said that back in the fall of 2008, CBS began talking with other U.S. news organizations, including NBC News, about the possibility of opening a joint facility in Kabul, which would allow everyone to share the costs of housing and providing security for their people. According to Mr. Friedman, the talks are ongoing.

“It would be preferable for us to be able to get the expenses down far enough that we can get our own people in there,” said Mr. Friedman. “I think the cable guys are talking about going their own way because they have different demands than we do.”

Advertisement