Bari Weiss and CBS News president are butting heads like ‘the odd couple’ as ratings plummet: report

Insiders have revealed that CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss and the network’s president, Tom Cibrowski, have been butting heads over how to boost ratings, with staffers branding them “the odd couple,” according to a report.The pair has different visions for the direction of the news network, with Cibrowski taking a “softer coverage” approach to appeal to Middle America, while Weiss came in with an “aggressive” digital strategy to implement hard news and enterprise reporting, according to The New York Post.“They are an odd couple to me,” a CBS staffer told the outlet. “There doesn’t seem to be a lot of synergies between them.”Ratings dipped below 4 million in mid-March for the CBS Evening News, anchored by Tony Dokoupil. By the end of the month, the show’s ratings had picked up to 4.1 million, but the figures are down 7 percent from last year. Weiss was named as the network’s top editor in October, to much criticism after CBS’ parent company, Paramount, acquired her “anti-woke” digital media outlet, The Free Press.Insiders have revealed that CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss and the network’s president, Tom Cibrowski, have been butting heads over how to boost ratings, with staffers branding them ‘the odd couple,’ according to a report (Getty)Under Weiss and Paramount boss David Ellison’s leadership, the network has already seen significant staffing changes. CBS News cut about 6 percent of its staff and shut down CBS Radio last month. This comes after Weiss told employees in January they should leave if they don’t believe she’s the “right leader” for the network.And while Cibrowski, a TV veteran, is reportedly “trying to be loyal” to Weiss, he has been left feeling more of an “outsider,” according to the Post, which noted that his office is on a different floor to hers.“Usually the No. 2’s office is right near their boss’s office,” a source told the newspaper. “Tom is profoundly frustrated,” another source said. “He has no power.”CBS News pushed back on the claims in a statement. “Bari makes editorial decisions, is standing up new projects, and oversees the organization’s transformation,” a spokesperson said. “Tom leads business operations and is working closely with the Morning Show. That’s not ‘odd.’ That’s how successful leaders work together.”The pair has different visions for the direction of the news network, with Cibrowski taking a ‘softer coverage’ approach to appeal to Middle America, while Weiss came in with an ‘aggressive’ digital strategy to implement hard news (Getty)Weiss installed Dokoupil in January but a former CBS executive told the Post that the anchor can’t compete with David Muir on ABC’S World News Tonight, or NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas. Both shows are supported by “teams of seasoned, heavy-hitting correspondents,” the newspaper noted.“You can’t do David Muir lite,” the source told the outlet. “When s*** hits the fan, CBS doesn’t have heavyweights like [ABC’s] Martha Raddatz, Pierre Thomas or Jonathan Karl.”The report is the latest that paints a portrait of an unhappy ship since Weiss took over last year.Weiss shocked employees and drew backlash after she introduced herself to President Donald Trump and exchanged kisses on the cheek with him after his 60 Minutes interview in November.A month later, Weiss canned a 60 Minutes segment about El Salvador’s notorious CECOT prison just before it was about to air, a decision that sparked a “revolt” at the network.Weiss defended the move at the time, telling The New York Times: “My job is to make sure that all stories we publish are the best they can be. Holding stories that aren’t ready for whatever reason — that they lack sufficient context, say, or that they are missing critical voices — happens every day in every newsroom.”