Katie Couric to Leave CBS

According to TMZ, Katie Couric is unhappy with the way things are going with her evening news anchor position at CBS. The network apparently hasn’t been following through on the promises that they made to convince Couric to join CBS. Rumors have been circulating that she will be leaving in the very near future, but according to the article Couric is more likely to leave after the election is over.

Although this story is still developing, so far it looks like Couric is completely in control of her future. She is leaving on her own terms, and as of now, has not made a huge deal about her situation at CBS. TMZ reports that she already has a plethora of options, most of which are just as strong as her current position. According to the article, “several talk show syndicators have already contacted Couric’s reps because they think she has enough heat to break into daytime.” The biggest of all of the rumors is that CNN has an interest in replacing Larry King with Couric, something that would be a huge upgrade from her current position. She is doing a great job blocking out the problems with CBS, and not letting them affect her on-air personality. It is also an incredibly smart idea for Couric to stay with the station until after the election. With one of the most important presidential elections of the last three decades coming up, it would be foolish to leave the air at such an important moment. Once Couric moves to her new station, she will hopefully have played and integral role in the covering of the 2008 presidential race, while leaving the network on her own terms.

Matt Leinart Not Focusing on Football

 

 Matt Leinart has been doing more than studying the play book this off-season. Photos recently surfaced of him and buddy Nick Lachey partying. The pictures show Leinart holding a beer bong for a fairly young looking co-ed, and hot tubbing with a group of girls, among other pics. OMG! Matt Leinart likes to drink beer and hang out with beautiful women. What a shock! According to The Los Angeles Times, the pictures were originally released on thedirty.com and TMZ.com. The Arizona Cardinal’s quarterback is about to enter his third season in the NFL, and after two sub-par years, many feel like this is not the kind of off-season behavior Leinart should be participating in. According to the Times article, Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt was “disappointed” in Leinart, but he said that the quarterback let him know that the pictures were going to be released, and he was pleased that Leinart communicated with him before the incident. The Times also says, “Despite his disappointment, Whisenhunt praised Leinart, a 24-year-old Heisman Trophy winner out of USC, for his effort this off-season.”  

When this report was first released, I thought that it might turn into a big PR problem for Leinart. Once I saw that all of the girls were over the legal drinking age, I felt like it wasn’t really that big of a deal. All athletes party, I guess Leinart was just dumb enough to get caught. It is difficult to tell what kind of affect this incident will have on Leinart’s image. As of now, the quotes from the Cardinals coach seem to be enough to keep Leinart in a positive light, however, if the quarterback has another tough season like he has the previous two years, then we might see this story surface again. I think that he will learn from this mistake, and make sure that it doesn’t happen again. What Matt and his PR people should do is make it clear that from here on out he is committed to football. I’m sure that if he can just perform up to the standards of his coaching staff, this entire issue will be long forgotten.