Leslie Moonves news stories on Newser

CBS Honcho Wants Sheen Back Now

Kevin Spak — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 12:46:05 CDT

In spite of all his tiger blood-fueled antics and misdemeanors, rumor has it that CBS wants Charlie Sheen back on Two and a Half Men . CBS head honcho Les Moonves has expressed said desire to Warner Bros. Television, the company that produces the show, a "well-placed insider" tells Radar Online...

NBC, CBS At Odds on How to Survive

Matt Cantor — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 14:45:02 CDT

America’s oldest TV broadcasters see very different roads ahead as they navigate today’s world of splintering audiences, Advertising Age reports. NBC is carving a new path, dropping five hours of potential scripted shows a week for a nightly Jay Leno show, and banking on its cable channels. CBS, meanwhile, is...

Local TV Stations Could Go Off the Air

Kevin Spak — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 13:53:01 CST

For decades, local TV stations ruled the airwaves and were treated with deference by the likes of ABC, CBS, and NBC, which needed them to reach their audiences. But as the recession has pummeled advertising revenue, most have been forced to make drastic cuts, and the networks are contemplating doing...

CBS 'Comfort Food' Wins Over Younger Viewers

Kevin Spak — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 12:39:09 CST

CBS isn’t supposed to jockey for the much-coveted 18-to-49-year-old demographic—it’s supposed to be the network of cop shows starring 50-year-olds. But it’s creaming its rivals during the fall TV season, the New York Times reports, and exec Les Moonves has a theory: “comfort food.” Moonves thinks his network’s simple...

Want to Oust Couric? Show Her the Money

Kevin Spak — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:20:01 CDT

Katie Couric is keeping her CBS Evening News gig because it would be too expensive to fire her, sources tell the New York Post. Couric has a “pay or play” clause that would force the network to fork over $40 million if it replaces her. “The contract is airtight,” says...

So Long Katie; Don't Let the Door Hit You

Kevin Spak — Tue, 20 May 2008 12:41:31 CDT

Katie Couric’s unhappy tenure as CBS Evening News anchor will soon end, and not a moment too soon for Nancy Franklin of the New Yorker. Couric seemed likely to succeed at the start, but she wound up ditching the qualities people liked in her and becoming a teleprompter-reading automaton. But...

CBS Shells Out $1.8B to Buy CNET

Kevin Spak — Thu, 15 May 2008 08:33:04 CDT

CBS has agreed to buy CNET for $1.8 billion, the Wall Street Journal reports. The merger comes just as CNET was facing a full-scale shareholder revolt. Now, those investors are getting $11.50 a share, a price the stock hasn’t touched in two years and a 45% premium on...

Couric Gets Vote of Confidence

Will McCahill — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 14:40:00 CDT

Katie Couric will anchor the CBS Evening News for a long time to come, the network's CEO told staffers today, TVNewser reports. Les Moonves dropped in on the daily news meeting to dispel recent rumors that Couric is not long for the newscast, which sits at the bottom of the...

Trouble at CBS Runs Wide and Deep

Jim O'Neill — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 11:09:05 CDT

With trouble plaguing most divisions of CBS, last week's flap over Katie Couric's contract was just one of the countless items on Les Moonves' to-do list, the New York Times reports. Ad sales are down industry-wide, Fox is on the tail of the prime-time division and gaining fast, and the...