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Norah O'Donnell QUITS CBS Evening News for new role after 12 years as network anchor as she pens emotional farewell letter
Norah O'Donnell has quit CBS Evening News after five years leading the show and 12 years as a network anchor.
Per THR, O'Donnell, 50, will become CBS News special correspondent at the network - conducting 'interviews and other reports for CBS News programming with appearances on CBS Evening News and 60 Minutes.'
O’Donnell - who faced allegations of toxic behavior in 2022 - penned in a memo to staff on Tuesday obtained by the outlet: 'There’s so much work to be proud of!
'But I have spent 12 years in the anchor chair here at CBS News, connected to a daily broadcast and the rigors of a relentless news cycle. It’s time to do something different
'Beyond that, I’m pleased to share that I have made a long-term commitment to CBS News to continue to do the same storytelling and big interviews that have been our hallmark.'
Norah O'Donnell has quit CBS Evening News after five years leading the show and 12 years as a network anchor- seen 2022
Per THR, O'Donnell, 50, will become CBS News special correspondent at the network - conducting 'interviews and other reports for CBS News programming with appearances on CBS Evening News and 60 Minutes - pictured July 16
'It's time to do something different. This presidential election will be my seventh as a journalist, and for many of us in this business we tend to look at our careers in terms of these milestone events.
Her replacement has not yet been announced.
O'Donnell replaced Jeff Glor as anchor and managing editor on CBS Evening News in July 2019 - leading the broadcast from Washington, D.C.
O'Donnell served as CBS This Morning co-host from 2012 and before that, CBS News’ chief White House correspondent during President Obama's administration.
Wendy McMahon, president and CEO of CBS News and Stations wrote in a memo to staff: 'In this new role, Norah will have the time and the support to deliver even more of the exceptional stories she is known.'
'Norah’s superpower is her ability to secure and then masterfully deliver unparalleled interviews and stories that set the news cycle and capture the cultural zeitgeist.
'How many people can effortlessly shift from field-anchoring on an aircraft carrier in the Red Sea to sitting down with Bono and Dolly Parton? Norah’s work here is legendary, and she has several major interviews in the works that will be equally memorable and momentous.'
Sources told the publication O'Donnell's departure is not related to the proposed takeover of Paramount Global by Skydance.
O’Donnell penned in a memo to staff on Tuesday: 'There’s so much work to be proud of! 'But I have spent 12 years in the anchor chair here at CBS News, connected to a daily broadcast and the rigors of a relentless news cycle. It’s time to do something different' - pictured with Pope Francis
She was previously CBS This Morning co-host from 2012 and before that, CBS News’ chief White House correspondent during President Obama's administration
Earlier this month CBS News president Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews stepped down from her role into a senior adviser position for the 2024 election.
Ciprian-Matthews wrote in a memo reviewed by Variety: 'Some may be asking why I’m announcing this now. We all know our industry and company are going through a transformation and a number of short- and long-term decisions need to be made.
'I do not want to be disingenuous with any of you about who should drive these decisions. I’ve always leaned into my integrity and my values, and I felt it was important to be transparent at this juncture about my plans.'
In April 2022, following reports that she could be replaced, O'Donnell re-signed with CBS News for $3.8 million a year, down from her previous $8 million package, sources told the New York Post at the time.
One source told the outlet that CBS execs gave O'Donnell a 'low ball' offer which they expected her to reject, and were taken by surprise when she accepted.
It followed numerous reports that O'Donnell had clashed with CBS News co-president Neeraj Khemlani, a no-nonsense, budget-cutting exec who had reportedly cast a wide net searching for her potential replacement.
A spokesperson for CBS News referred DailyMail.com to a statement provided to the Post, which denied that Khemlani had sought to replace O'Donnell.
'Wrong again. Neeraj led the effort to retain and re-sign about a dozen of our biggest anchors and correspondents over the last year including Norah O’Donnell and Gayle King – and recruited a few new ones like Nate Burleson and Robert Costa,' the statement said.
In March 2022, speculation ran rampant in the industry that CBS might axe O'Donnell to her alleged 'toxic behavior' and purported $65,000-a-year wardrobe allowance.
O'Donnell's publicist Cindi Berger denied the accusations at the time, telling the Post: 'It's a clothing allowance, every news anchor has one. That figure is incorrect.'