Nightline Anchor Ted Koppel To Leave ABC News In December

[Newsjock]

http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/abc/end_of_an_era_nightline_anchor_ted_koppel_to_leave_abc_news_in_december_19987.asp

ABC News President David Westin broke the news in an e-mail to staffers this morning:

"After 42 years with ABC News and 25 years as anchor and managing editor of Nightline, Ted Koppel has advised me that he intends to leave the network at the end of his current contract, which expires on December 4th of this year. His long-time executive producer, Tom Bettag, will also be leaving.

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[peekaloo]

1. Chris Bury or Michelle Martin get my vote to replace Ted.

[justsomegirl]

2. Goodbye 'Nightline'

I bet they just cancel 'Nightline', which is a shame.

[peekaloo]

4. That was my first thought, too.

Do not go gently Ted.

[tishaLA]

5. It might be Stephanopolous

Apparently ABC had tried to convince Koppel to switch roles with Steph, so Ted would be on This Week. Guess that didn't happen.

There's also the possibility that they will turn it into an hour long program with lighter content--a mix of news and entertainment stuff. Corporate synergy and all that, I'm sure.

[peekaloo]

6. Crap. That would solve my dilemma over watching Dave or Nightline

or whatever they rename their infotainment.

[AlCzervik]

8. I love Michelle Martin, she's be good there.

[coffeenap]

3. Get him to help start liberal tv news network nt

[JamboGuide]

10. I bet ALL the money in the world

This has to do w/ Iger! U see, Iger tried to get rid of Ted AND Nightline and bring in David Letterman into that timeslot. Needless to say, this caused a HUUUUGE rift especially since Koppel found out from REGULAR news. Letterman he would NOT go to ABC if it meant displacing Koppel. Me thinks that Koppel just doesent want Iger as boss.

[CO Liberal]

7. Is Ted's Toupe Leaving, Too?

:-)

[AlCzervik]

9. that'll be embedded with the troops.

[Dover]

11. I hope he continues to work......hopefully in a more independent venue.

I would really be impressed if Rather, Brokow and Koppel formed their own news program on cable or something!

[chelsea0011]

12. Some parting shots I hope from him

[last_texas_dem]

13. He's one of the good guys

or at least one of the better guys... so of course he's leaving; that just seems to be the way things go these days. That sucks.

[Boo Boo]

14. ABC already tried to get rid

of Nightline once before (Letterman), so it wouldn't surprise me if they try something new with the slot. Nightline's demographic is not making the bottom-liners at ABC happy.

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

15. good riddance

who's going to kiss henry kissinger's ass now that ted's gone?

FAIR did a study of nightline's roghtwing slant:
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Media_Reform/HowDetect_BiasNewsMedia.html

[Benhurst]

16. You're right on target. Koppel is a right-wing stooge, a protege of

Henry Kissinger. Nightline got its start with "America Held Hostage," pounding away at Jimmy Carter, whose hostages eventually were all returned unharmed. When hostages were taken during Reagan's term, and some of them killed --notably Col. Higgins, according to Koppel, American was not being held hostage and Nightline covered other issues.

So it's farewell to another right-wing creep, although one who did occasionally report the news.

[AngryAmish]

17. Another drooling Freeper bites the dust

[skeeters]

18. Buh-Bye

Buh-Bye Ted. You won't be missed. Journalism had their feeding tube removed long ago. He did spotlight the lies of the Swift Boat scum, but big frickin deal. Too little too late.

Who will replace him? Might as well be Karl Rove. Same as Steph.

[acmavm]

19. Won't miss the guy. He just parrots the official party line nightly

on television. Watching him is ALMOST as bad as watching CNN (which I gave up a couple years ago) but obviously not as bad as Faux.

[dhinojosa]

20. We should DU this poll in relation to Ted Koppel

http://money.cnn.com/2005/03/31/news/newsmakers/abc_koppel/index.htm?cnn=yes

[barb162]

21. his first few years of Nightline were excellent. Sometime back , hard

questioning and good investigation somehow dropped away.