CBS in Talks to Outsource News to CNN

Deal would mark watershed for mother of network news
By Peter Fearon,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 8, 2008 9:44 AM CDT
CBS in Talks to Outsource News to CNN
Former CBS News anchor Dan Rather. After he left CBS he accused the network of 'dumbing down and tarting up' the news.    (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

CBS, the network of Ed Murrow and Walter Cronkite that is widely credited with inventing television news, is considering outsourcing some of its news gathering activities to CNN, according to the New York Times. No deal is imminent but talks are reportedly taking place at the highest level at both networks. CBS denied negotiations were under way.

Any deal to outsource news production to any significant extent would mark a watershed in broadcasting history. Once the undisputed masters of the medium, the CBS morning and evening news shows are struggling in third place. Their traditional audience is aging and developing different viewing habits, often satisfied by 24-hour cable news operations. (More CBS stories.)

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