‘CBS Mornings’ Host Reportedly Tapped for ‘CBS Evening News’

CBS News was in a rush to hire Tony Dokoupil to host CBS Evening News in the wake of Maurice DuBois’ exit. This comes after sources alleged DuBois went “rogue” and surprised his bosses by revealing he was leaving the network, per The Post, which other sources deny.

Dokoupil, who co-hosted CBS Mornings, was reportedly a frontrunner for the job and favored by top CBS executives. Sources said negotiations for him were fast-tracked after DuBois was told by higher-ups last week that he was not “the future” of CBS Evening News, which allegedly inspired his exit, and for him to reveal such on his social media. 

In a written statement, CBS’ president denied that claim, telling The Post that he had “worked directly with Maurice for 2 weeks, who is a complete professional, on announcing his departure.” But previous sources told the publication, “He went rogue,” adding that DuBois had not been on board with the company’s plan to announce his departure while simultaneously revealing his replacement. DuBois reportedly was not supposed to be replaced until the New Year.

Dokoupil is expected to become the sole anchor of the show in the coming days. When asked about DuBois’ replacement, a CBS rep simply shared a “thank you” memo its network president wrote.

DuBois revealed his last day on air would be Dec. 18. He’s been with the network for 21 years. This comes as CBS Mornings faces its own uncertain future as Gayle King won’t be returning as her contract expires next Spring.

Sources have said she’s being pushed out of the gig due to her large salary. She’s set to potentially remain on the network but will do “special projects” instead of anchoring. Initially, King denied she was being axed and told TMZ reporters that the executives were happy with her there, she was happy, and refused to publicly negotiate a new deal.