"The Early Show" CBS News
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On the whole, CBS appears to be merely in survival mode, given its weak showing at the Emmy's last week, in which it raked in only two major awards. Nevertheless, the network has high hopes for its 10-
month-old "Early Show," which saw a considerable jump in ratings following its coverage of the network's "Survivor" saga. Senior executive producer Steve Friedman, who characterizes his two-hour program
as "a third alternative in the morning," says that the show targets viewers of all ages. But, he adds, the "Survivor" segment brought an influx of 18-49 viewers, and that demographic shift has remained
steady.
Content/Contacts
"The Early Show" is co-anchored by Bryant Gumbel and Jane Clayson, but it's no shocker that the show's producers (not its talent) serve as primary PR gatekeepers. Senior producer Alexandra Wallace is
the best point of entry for most news and feature pitches. While she accepts queries by fax (212/975-6766), she prefers email ([email protected]). Using the same fax
number, direct entertainment news bits to Nanci Ross, medical stories to Matthew Geers, and consumer or business items to Janice DeRosa.
Friedman says show content is structured around four principles: "One, we tell people what's happened between when they went to bed and when they got up. Two, we give them stuff they can use in their
lives regarding money, health and the like. Three, we give them something to talk about. And four, because the morning time can be stressful, we try to give people something to smile or laugh about."
Each show's balance of news vs. feature fare is dictated by current events. "Sometimes we might have two hours of news and other days, there may be 20 minutes of news and an hour and 40 minutes of
other stuff," Friedman says. "We make that call. We just don't want people to watch and feel like they're missing something."
Pitch Tips
Send a brief summary explaining, "what the story is, why we should do it and when you are proposing we do it," says Wallace. "I got a pitch recently about how to make a healthy lunch for your kid to
take to school. That's a good morning show topic."
"I always appreciate people who reference segments we've done recently...it makes me know they watch our show and are not just blindly pitching," she adds.
Pitching a product? Don't expect to go solo, Friedman warns. "If we're doing a segment on cameras, we're not going to devote the whole thing to your camera, but you can be a part of it." And if
you've got news, it should be "below the fold" interesting - as in today's news, not yesterday's.
Comments
"We're trying to do a smarter, edgier version of "The Today Show," says Friedman. "NBC's [morning show] has ceased to be a program about the world and has become a program about the four people who do
the program. It's not about the Olympics, it's about Katie Couric and Matt Lauer at the Olympics," he snipes. "We call it 'Friends.'"
"We are aggressive about covering the news of the day, and we like stories that engage our viewers in thought-provoking debates," says executive producer Lyne Pitts. "We cover cutting-edge developments
in technology, health and consumer fields, as well as fashion, celebrity news and entertainment. It runs the gamut."
Among the show's most recent feature segments: Football tailgate party recipes, courtesy of chef Bobby Flay, a selection of travel fitness tips, and a human interest piece on a woman who lived in Grand
Central Station 10 years ago and has since written a book.