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October 2007 GW’s Kalb Report Welcomes Katie Couric
By Julia Parmley The war in Iraq, the role of television news anchors, and the challenges inherent in providing balanced media coverage were among the topics CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric discussed with host Marvin Kalb in a special appearance on The Kalb Report Sept. 25. The program, taped before a standing-room-only audience of students, faculty, club members, and journalists at the National Press Club, was the first of four forums on democracy and the press in the Kalb Report’s 2007-08 series. Since 1994, the series has featured 57 forums. Couric, who recently returned from Iraq, discussed the complexities of covering the war and the “enormous” bravery of the American troops. “Many of them really do believe very strongly in the mission of trying to help the Iraqi people build a better society,” she said. “Whether or not that is doable, there is certainly a difference of opinion among the servicemen and women with whom I spoke. But the extraordinary sacrifice was something that I was reminded of.” Couric also addressed the difficulties of balancing points of views and the role of television journalists. Couric defined her job as a news anchor as one of asking “challenging questions” rather than expressing her own opinion. “What I try to deal with in covering the news is what is happening today, here and now, and how this country is going to be able to deal with it,” she said. Kalb asked Couric about the challenges she has faced since taking over Dan Rather’s spot at CBS, including low ratings, negative response to new segments, and possible resistance to a female news anchor. Couric says she thinks her lighter personality on The Today Show might have given people the impression she was not capable of delivering serious news. While she admits to being frustrated at times by the lack of flexibility with the more “traditional” news broadcast, Couric said she is proud of the work she and the show’s team produce. “I frankly have never been obsessed with ratings … At The Today Show I felt that some of our best years were when we were number two and taking risks and trying things and playing with the format,” she explained. “But more than 6 million people are watching the CBS Evening News every night. That’s an extraordinarily high number, and I feel really honored that that many people are entrusting us to give them their news.” The Kalb Report is jointly produced by GW, Harvard University’s Shorenstein Center, and the National Press Club, and is underwritten by a grant from the Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation.
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