Tony Dokoupil’s early CBS Evening News tour exposes technical and editorial problems

James Poniewozik of The New York Times wrote that Tony Dokoupil, the new anchor of The CBS Evening News, has been broadcasting from a different city each night and interviewed President Trump in Detroit, but his opening road trip has shown significant glitches and editorial lapses.

Poniewozik said the broadcasts have included attractive locations and notable interviews but revealed weaknesses in Dokoupil’s readiness and in the news division’s philosophy under new management. He noted that CBS became property of Skydance last year and that The New York Times reported President Trump said he had received assurances that the company would steer CBS News in a more conservative direction.

Poniewozik also described Bari Weiss’s hires and editorial moves, including pulling a "60 Minutes" segment on an El Salvador prison camp and hosting a prime-time town hall with Erika Kirk. The critic outlined specific on-air problems: the road trip was postponed by military action against Venezuela, an unplanned weekend debut featured a mild interview with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Dokoupil stumbled when a photo of Senator Mark Kelly appeared while he introduced a report on Governor Tim Walz — a fumble The Times reported occurred in part because Weiss and her aides were rewriting the news script minutes before airtime.

Other moments included a Miami segment on internet memes about Marco Rubio and brief treatment of the Jan.

Key Topics

Culture, Tony Dokoupil, Cbs Evening News, Bari Weiss, Skydance, Donald Trump