‘Awkward’: Tony Dokoupil’s Fill-In Delivers CBS Evening News’ Best Ratings in Four Months

Key Points:

• Tony Dokoupil's two-week summer vacation led to CBS Evening News achieving its strongest weekly audience in months, with temporary anchor Matt Gutman averaging 4.1 million viewers, the highest in 17 weeks.
• CBS Evening News has struggled to maintain viewership above 4 million since a major overhaul by editor-in-chief Bari Weiss earlier this year, despite executives considering that number the minimum acceptable audience.
• Industry insiders criticized Dokoupil's decision to take a vacation amid declining ratings, with one veteran executive calling it a "baffling move" and suggesting Gutman's strong performance further harmed Dokoupil's standing.
• Within CBS, Gutman was praised for being "likeable" and "personable," contrasting with mixed internal opinions of Dokoupil, who has faced criticism for his role and effectiveness at the network.
• Previous reports have portrayed Dokoupil negatively, with some CBS staffers labeling him as lacking self-awareness and being a "useful idiot" in the eyes of Bari Weiss.