Sawyer: And then there were two

“One female network TV anchor is a breakthrough,” said Alessandra Stanley in The New York Times. “Two become a catfight.” So brace for those “Betty & Veronica comparisons,” now that ABC has announced that Diane Sawyer will be replacing Charles Gibson in the evening anchor chair in January. Never mind that Sawyer, 63, unquestionably earned this shot, having patiently co-hosted Good Morning America for more than 10 years, employing a rare combination of gravitas and elegance. But “in the program of public perception,” what matters most is that Sawyer will face off against another woman, CBS’ Katie Couric (along with NBC’s Brian Williams). Inevitably, said Rachel Sklar in Huffingtonpost.com, we’ll be hearing all about “Sawyer’s wardrobe and hairstyle.” Still, Sawyer will be taking over “one of the most important posts in news,” and two of the three network anchors will be women. And any way you cut it, that’s “progress.”

If women aren’t celebrating, said Karen Heller in The Philadelphia Inquirer, it’s because Sawyer has ascended to the top of a crumbling mountain. In the age of the Internet and 24/7 cable news, the 30-minute evening newscast has long felt like “an ossified relic.” Yes, 20 million viewers collectively still watch the three network newscasts each evening, but that’s half the audience of 15 years ago and the number shrinks each year. Sawyer has paid her dues, and we wish her well. Still, “reading the teleprompter, fighting in a perpetual anchor death match, and being blamed for stalled ratings doesn’t seem like a dream job—or a watershed moment for women.”

That’s putting it mildly, said Jack Shafer in Slate.com. To be blunt, the nightly newscasts “have become irrelevant to smart news consumers,” and as their audience ages, soon enough the only ones left watching will be those “too infirm to change channels.” But because the broadcasts remain profitable, the networks continue to lavish small fortunes on their star anchors, even as they shutter bureaus and concede the best journalism to cable. By all accounts, Sawyer is a committed journalist, so here’s my advice: “If you really want to make an indelible mark on journalism, turn down the job and persuade ABC News to divert the millions it ordinarily pays its anchor and spend it on 50 or 80 additional reporters to break stories.” The alternative is “ending her career as one of the last overpaid network announcers.”

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