Katie Couric: 90 days, One Decision (POLL)

By Chris Ariens 

So it begins. The window in Katie Couric’s CBS contract has opened, which means she can entertain offers outside the Eye. She could also stay with the company in a renegotiated deal presumably earning less than the $15 million a year she reportedly makes.

The Hollywood Reporter’s Marisa Guthrie & Lacey Rose spoke with “two sources familiar with her plans.”

[S]he is believed to have begun conversations with Time Warner, NBCUniversal and CBS. Each of these entities offers a powerful syndication arm as well as a news outlet, which is said to be a particularly appealing, if not necessary, combination for Couric. If Couric were to move forward with a syndicated show — which is a “strong likelihood,” according to one source — it would premiere in fall 2012. That would make staying with the news through the next election, as many had predicted, impossible.

Advertisement

Former PageSix editor Richard Johnson, now writing for the News Corp. iPad publication The Daily talked to an insider who says, “People are pitching her. It’s like baseball, and she’s a great free agent who is on the market.”

And Marketwatch.com’s Jon Friedman has his thoughts:

CBS, as the employer, should be holding the cards. If Couric left the anchor chair, the show would go on, and we’d see someone else in the job. Who knows? CBS, which has languished in third place in the ratings with and without Couric over the years, might even draw more viewers if she departed.

Of course, the syndication talk is nothing new.

Media writers have been speculating for monthsyears really — about Couric’s next move.

For now, the only news is that Couric can and is talking with interested parties about her future. She’s got three months to decide what to do.

What do you think she should do?


Advertisement