While newsmen usually occupy the front row seats as history unfolds, news anchors are often newsmakers themselves and Katie Couric is no different.
The million dollar faces behind the evening TV news here are often side stories by themselves, as these news anchors come under scrutiny in the ratings war.
Among the big names that reportedly earn millions in annual salaries are Charles Gibson, Brian Williams and Katie Couric who helm the primetime newscast by ABC, NBC and CBS respectively.
These media people were among those featured in one recent celebrity magazine that focussed on their fat paychecks.
Couric, especially, has been closely watched. Her “CBS Evening News” has remained in third place despite a much-publicised move from NBC as a morning talk show co-host to debut in CBS as the first female solo anchor among the three heavyweight networks.
But Couric seemed unfazed by the harsh spotlight, looking relaxed and good-natured when she gave a public talk last week. The 900-seat hall was almost full with participants paying between US$25 and US$50 to hear her talk about her childhood and career.
“Journalism is in my blood. I have always loved to write,” said Couric, 50, whose father was a political reporter.
She recounted that as a young girl she would do her homework just before the school bus arrived at the doorstep. “I have this ability to do things under pressure,” she laughed.
Describing herself as “extremely open and friendly to the point of nauseating,” Couric said she was also never inhibited in a crowd and that these were traits that helped her as a journalist.
“If I have a gift, it would be that I make people comfortable with me.”
Her childhood, she said, was a normal, unremarkable one with incredibly loving parents. “But they were not helicopter parents. They always wanted us to be independent,” she said.
Her foray into news anchoring did not have a smooth start as she was initially seen as a “scrappy street reporter” with little hint of glamour.
“It was debilitating, demoralising at first. But I just kept trying to keep things going,” she said, adding that she liked to do things well and that she enjoyed competition.
Well, compete she must. Latest ratings show that 7.51 million viewers watched CBS Evening News with Couric, a number that does not look good compared with the 9.57 million tuning into ABC’s “World News with Charles Gibson” and “NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams” (9.39 million).
Couric’s response? “I’ve never been really obsessed over ratings. I’m more interested in a good product.”
Conceding that advertising dollars had a crucial role, she said that she tried not to get stressed out over it.
“I do the best I can. This really is an exciting job but it’s not my entire being; otherwise this can eat you up,” she said.
As for negative reports about her, Couric said she tried not to read them if they did not come as constructive criticisms.
“It says more about the writer than me. At least that’s what I tell myself,” she said, laughing.
Such unpleasant remarks were a “tall poppy syndrome”, she said, referring to an Australian saying about the practice of raising people to a high level to cut them down.
As a female anchor, Couric is also often dissected on her appearance on TV.
“Viewers don’t check out what Charles Gibson wears. But women are scrutinised on their accoutrement, their mascara, earrings. That’s the nature of the beast.”
She counted her blessings, too. “People have always been gracious to me,” she said, which was why she would always do likewise.
“I would be mortified if people say ‘you know, she looked so nice on TV but when we met her, she was such a ...,” she said.
Couric acknowledged that she had been “well-compensated” in her job.
Advice for young people keen on TV journalism?
“Work for an Internet company,” she said. “I’m not a big fan of journalism schools although it’s good to get a masters in journalism.” Couric studied English and History in University of Virginia.
The media landscape, she said, was changing at breakneck speed and that her newscast was trying to look ahead, producing special reports and all that.
Indeed, the pressure is mounting on the TV stations, with executive producers of NBC and CBS being replaced as ABC surged ahead in the evening news ratings.
It also means that news anchors are increasingly being watched. As The New York Times noted, ABC’s Gibson covered the State of the Union address from his office desk and he was on vacation while NBC’s Williams was in Iraq but “it doesn’t seem to matter. Viewers apparently trust his (Gibson) seniority and low-key style; they are content to have him read the news, not live it.”
