Dobbs signs on for 'Early Show'
CNN anchor joins CBS show
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Dobbs will appear Thursdays on the third-rated network ayemcast to comment on business and social topics that fuel his opinionated CNN newscast, "Lou Dobbs Tonight."
CBS News veep Steve Friedman said he pursued Dobbs to bring some issue-driven "heat" to the show, and while he'll be free to state his opinions, he'll also be challenged by "Early" anchors, when appropriate.
As a network, CBS is attempting to use national personalities developed on CNN to bolster its bench of analysts, contributors and correspondents.
In addition to Dobbs, CBS signed CNN medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta as a contributor to the "Evening News With Katie Couric." The Eye also signed CNN anchor Anderson Cooper as a part-time contributor to "60 Minutes."
CBS News and Sports prexy Sean McManus had targeted both Gupta and Cooper for full-time gigs at CBS, but both had personal reasons to stay at CNN.
Gupta wanted to keep his neurosurgery practice in Atlanta, which he balances with his CNN role, while Cooper wanted to keep his two-hour primetime show on the cable news net.
But sharing personalities has the potential to be mutually beneficial. CNN lends news personalities with a national profile. CBS provides a bigger, broadcast platform that exposes them to many more viewers than see them on CNN.
"Cable news has a lot of great people they have developed that the news and information audience is familiar with," Friedman said.
ABC's "Good Morning America" tried a similar tack last year when it signed CNN Headline News personality Glenn Beck as a contributor.
CNN has served as something of a farm team for the Eye. Former CBS News prexy Andrew Heyward started the trend when he signed Christiane Amanpour as a contributor to "60 Minutes" while she was chief foreign correspondent for CNN.
Earlier this week, CBS signed CNN political analyst Jeff Greenfield to the "Evening News." Also added to the "Evening News" since McManus took the reins was former CNN correspondent Kelly Wallace.
The talent flow has gone the other direction as well. Former CBS White House correspondent John Roberts, once heir-apparent to the anchor chair at the "Evening News," ankled for CNN after Katie Couric got the job.
Amanpour returned to CNN full-time after not landing a full time position on "60 Minutes."
