Couric Watch: NBC Wants Situation Resolved By Upfronts On May 15

Monday’s Wall Street Journal features a recap of the Today-after-Katie conventional wisdom. (Campbell Brown is newsy, Natalie Morales has “warmth,” and Meredith Vieira has both, but she may not want to wake up early.) Here are the newsy grafs:

“Under a contract that expires in late May, Ms. Couric is prohibited from negotiating with other parties until May 1, although her representatives aren’t as restricted. As a result, an announcement of her plans could come just before the annual “upfront” marketplace, in mid-May, when TV networks secure billions of dollars in advertising commitments for the following season…

Whether she stays or goes, NBC wants the matter resolved before it shows its fall program lineup to advertisers on May 15. To speed up her decision, NBC is considering releasing her from the May 1 negotiation restriction, people familiar with the matter say.”