CBS has officially named 44-year-old Tony Dokoupil as the new sole anchor of CBS Evening News, ending months of speculation and internal debate — but the appointment has triggered a wave of frustration inside the network. The decision comes after the interim anchor duo, John Dickerson and Maurice DuBois, both exited CBS following long tenures of 16 and 21 years. Yet despite the need for stability at a time when CBS Evening News continues to trail ABC’s World News Tonight and NBC’s Nightly News in the ratings, the choice of Dokoupil — a younger anchor often praised as much for his appearance as for his journalism — has ignited significant backlash. Some longtime staffers consider the move a troubling break from the network’s legacy, calling it an insult to the history of the broadcast once chaired by Walter Cronkite and Dan Rather.
The announcement, first reported by Status News, revealed that CBS’s Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss pushed for Dokoupil’s appointment. Weiss herself remains a controversial figure in the newsroom, having been installed by CBS CEO David Ellison as part of a sweeping leadership overhaul. Her selection of Dokoupil has intensified criticism from employees who believe the decision prioritizes optics over experience. Speaking anonymously to The Independent, one staffer described the new anchor as a “mediocre straight white man,” while another expressed disbelief that Weiss — who now wields near-total editorial authority and substantial corporate resources — concluded that Dokoupil was the best candidate CBS could offer.
Internally, many had expected the position to go to someone with a deeper bench of reporting experience or a more robust history with the network’s flagship broadcast. Names of veteran journalists circulated widely as alternatives, with some employees arguing that several seasoned anchors were not only more qualified but more aligned with the journalistic values historically associated with CBS Evening News. Instead, staffers said the network has chosen someone widely recognized for his “good hair” and polished television presence, further fueling the perception that the role has shifted from a prestige post to a cosmetic one.
Dokoupil’s professional history includes earlier work at The Daily Beast, NBC News and MSNBC before joining CBS in 2016 as a New York correspondent. He rose to greater visibility in 2019 when he became a co-anchor of CBS This Morning (now CBS Mornings) alongside Gayle King and Nate Burleson. He is married to journalist Katy Tur, who hosts Katy Tur Reports for MS NOW. Together, they have two children, and Dokoupil has two older children from a previous marriage. His résumé, while solid, has not quelled internal criticism about whether he has the gravitas expected of the face of a major evening broadcast.
Weiss’s interest in Dokoupil reportedly intensified after September 2024, when he sparked controversy for a contentious interview with author Ta-Nehisi Coates. The conversation, which centered on Coates’s book The Message, was widely regarded as confrontational. Critics accused Dokoupil of adopting an overly aggressive tone in questioning Coates about his analysis of Palestine’s history and Israel’s political stance. The interview drew internal scrutiny, with CBS executives privately expressing concern that his approach failed to meet the network’s editorial standards. Weiss, however, leapt to his defense. On her media platform, The Free Press, she published leaked remarks from a CBS editorial meeting and condemned what she characterized as a culture hostile to assertive journalism. She wrote that journalists like Dokoupil were “an endangered species” within legacy media companies pressured by what she described as “a new elite consensus.”
The selection of Dokoupil cannot be separated from the larger upheaval within CBS. Parent company Paramount was taken over in an $8 billion merger by Skydance, led by David Ellison — an executive seen as friendly to Trump-era political viewpoints. This acquisition was followed by Paramount’s purchase of Weiss’s anti-woke Substack platform for as much as $150 million, a move that symbolized the network’s dramatic ideological redirection. Once Weiss assumed her role as Editor-in-Chief, CBS News underwent sweeping changes: significant layoffs, the termination of the race and culture unit, and the cancellation of several programs including CBS Saturday Morning. Her restructuring efforts have left some employees feeling destabilized and wary of her long-term vision for the newsroom.
Amid this backdrop, Dokoupil’s elevation to the anchor chair feels to many like part of a broader ideological and cultural shift rather than a purely journalistic decision. Indeed, several CBS staffers have expressed frustration that Weiss initially pursued high-profile figures from Fox News and CNN. She reportedly sought to hire Bret Baier, who ultimately could not be secured due to a contract extension through 2028. She also approached Fox News anchor Dana Perino and CNN’s Anderson Cooper, both of whom reaffirmed commitments to their networks. Only after these attempts fell through did the focus settle fully on Dokoupil, leaving some employees with the impression that he was a compromise candidate rather than the first choice.
The criticism has grown increasingly pointed. One CBS reporter told The Independent that Dokoupil is “clearly being rewarded with the Evening News throne,” only to add that “some might argue it’s more of a toilet seat now.” The remark reflects broader internal cynicism about what the position represents in the current CBS climate. Where the anchor chair was once synonymous with authority, stability, and a commitment to rigorous reporting, some staffers fear it is evolving into a symbol of the network’s struggle to define itself amid political pressures, leadership change, and declining ratings.
Still, Dokoupil is expected to take over the desk in January, stepping into a role fraught with both opportunity and controversy. Whether he can reshape the trajectory of CBS Evening News remains to be seen. For now, his appointment stands as a focal point in the broader debate over the future of CBS News — a debate shaped by questions of editorial integrity, ideological influence, and the shifting identity of one of America’s most storied broadcasts.
