Viewer outrage as CBS This Morning replaces veteran reporter Anthony Mason with ex-NFL player Nate Burleson because he's a 'better fit' with Gayle King
CBS This Morning viewers have reacted angrily to the news that veteran journalist Anthony Mason is being replaced with former NFL player Nate Burleson in an effort to boost the show's ratings and take on GMA and Today.
The network announced on Wednesday that Burleson, 39, would join Gayle King and Tony Dokoupil in September as their new co-host.
Mason, 65, will then move to a cultural correspondent role, covering music, arts and entertainment.
He joined the This Morning anchor team in 2019 after working at CBS for 40 years as a news and business reporter.
But the show has trailed behind the more light-hearted competitors at NBC and ABC for years.
A CBS source told DailyMail.com on Thursday that by bringing Burleson in, it gives them a 'real chance' to compete in the ratings.
'Anthony is a nice man and an excellent journalist, he just isn’t the right fit for the morning. By pairing Nate with Gayle we have a real chance.'
CBS announced on Wednesday that Nate Burleson, left, will be replacing Anthony Mason as one of the hosts of CBS This Morning later this year
Meet the newest member of our @CBSThisMorning family, former NFL player @NateBurleson.
— CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) August 12, 2021
"I'm in a position right now after being retired since 2014, where doors are opening up. Sports will always have a special place in my heart but the morning news is exactly what I talk about." pic.twitter.com/GJldpnR3qV
Meet the newest member of our @CBSThisMorning family, former NFL player @NateBurleson.
"I'm in a position right now after being retired since 2014, where doors are opening up. Sports will always have a special place in my heart but the morning news is exactly what I talk about." pic.twitter.com/GJldpnR3qV
Many viewers are have complained that the show is ditching its news roots to focus more on entertainment.
They say Mason was the last true reporter on the panel and that they're turned off by the change in direction.
'The last journalist at CBS News, turn out the light. Compared to GMA, and the Today Show, CBSTM still resembled a news show.
'Now it steps down a rung to the lite-not-much news shows,' one viewer said.
'Nothing personal to Nate - he was great as a guest - I just hate seeing a NEWS show replacing a journalist with an entertainer.
'There are fewer and fewer journalists on news problems.
'I hope to see Anthony Mason continue his stellar career,' another told the network on Twitter.
Burleson was an NFL player until 2014 and he has since made a career out of sports broadcasting.
The source said the show 'doesn't have to take itself too seriously' in order to cover news, and that Burleson would provide that balance.
'For over two decades we haven’t been able to get it right in the morning. By pairing Nate with Gayle we have a real chance.
‘Nate and Gayle also have genuine chemistry and this is really important.
Viewers reacted to the news angrily and questioned why CBS was replacing a veteran reporter with a TV entertainment host
'People want to watch morning television that is engaging and with people who the like.
'That’s why Savannah and Hoda at NBC and Robin and Michael at ABC all work so well.
‘Anthony is a nice man and an excellent journalist, he just isn’t the right fit for the morning.
‘And for those questioning Nate' experience, take a seat. He kicks it out of the park on CBS Sports and Extra.
'He’s going to fit in just fine on CBS This Morning.’
On Thursday, Dokoupil played a clip of him interviewing Burleson where the former athlete said he would be focusing on the 'news', and not just sports, because it's what he is most interested in.
In an internal memo to staff that was obtained by DailyMail.com, Neeraj Khemlani, president and co-head of CBS News and Stations, said the network would still focus on news.
'We’re excited to take mornings on CBS in a direction that allows the journalism and storytelling we do so well to continue to lead the conversation and define the culture of our times.'
Mason joined the This Morning anchor team in 2019, around the same time aa Susan Zrinsky joined the network as head of news. She left the network in April this year
Insiders say Mason struggled to adapt to the tone executives wanted to take with the morning show and that Burleson will have better, 'genuine chemistry' with Gayle King, the star anchor who draws on her celebrity friends like Oprah to boost ratings
'In developing this next chapter, I have been speaking with Anthony Mason.
'He has shared his passion for the kind of storytelling we are looking to increase across the news division and he will take on a new role that is tailor-made for him.
'After 40 years as one of the great talents, writing and crafting impeccable pieces that are thought provoking and memorable, later this summer Anthony will step away from the anchor desk to do what he loves most -- reporting stories about culture.'
Burleson retired from the NFL in 2014
In another memo about Burleson's hiring, he said: 'On “CBS This Morning,” we quickly saw Nate‘s extraordinary ability to pivot from news of the day to making topics like NFTs relatable and understandable to the audience to the more informal conversations around the table.
'Nate is accustomed to the morning grind.
'He brings with him years of experience anchoring a live, morning show on the NFL Network and a roster of high-profile interviews as an entertainment correspondent for 'Extra' on Fox…not to mention his NFL Wild Card Game experience on Nickelodeon.'
Burleson said in a press release on Wednesday: 'I am absolutely thrilled to be joining the incredibly talented team at CBS This Morning...
'Having a chance to inform, enhance or simply brighten up the morning for our viewers is an honor.'
CBS This Morning has, like other shows, seen a sink in ratings this year.
For the week of August 2, it averaged an audience of 2.3million total viewers but only 417,000 who were aged 25-54, which is the key advertising demographic.
Good Morning America had an average total audience of 3.09million with 787,000 adults aged 25-54. Today was the top - thanks to a bump in ratings from the Olympics - with an average of 3.43million and 985,000 adults aged 25-54.
The CBS numbers represent a 6 percent decrease in total viewers and 13 percent decrease in adults aged 25-54 from the previous week.