Katie Couric’s Future At Disney/ABC: ‘It can go either way’

By Alex Weprin 

TV Guide‘s Stephen Battaglio takes a measured look at the future of Katie Couric’s syndicated talk show, and her future with Disney/ABC. At the moment, the scale seems to be tipping toward her program not returning for a third season, although it sounds like the door is open, provided Couric takes a pay cut.

With the soft ratings performance of this season’s freshmen talk shows (like Bethenny), Disney/ABC wants to see if it can make a Couric renewal work financially, something that will have to be determined in a matter of weeks. “The sales team is currently in the marketplace having conversations with our station partners,” the company says in a statement to TV Guide Magazine. “The viewer response has been great, and we’ve been very pleased with the creative changes and direction.” According to a Disney/ABC insider, “It can go either way.”

It isn’t clear what Disney would replace Couric’s talk show with on its local stations. The only sure thing: Couric’s future at the company will become clear within the next month or so. She has been rumored to possibly launch an online program for Yahoo! or to rejoin her old friend and colleague Jeff Zucker at CNN.

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