World News with Charles Gibson
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- "World News Tonight" redirects here. For the former Sky News program, see World News Tonight (Sky).
| World News with Charles Gibson | |
|---|---|
| Image:WNwCG.jpg </small> | |
| Genre | News |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Creator(s) | Roone Arledge |
| Starring | Charles Gibson (2006–present) Elizabeth Vargas (2006) Bob Woodruff (2006) Peter Jennings (1965–1967 and 1978–2005) Max Robinson (1978-1983) Frank Reynolds (1968-1970, 1978-1983) |
| Country of origin | Image:Flag of the United States.svg United States |
| Original channel | ABC |
| Original run | 1953 (as ABC Evening News), July 10, 1978 (as World News Tonight), July 19, 2006 (as World News)–present |
| No. of episodes | N/A (airs daily) |
| IMDb profile | |
| TV.com summary | |
World News with Charles Gibson (previously known as World News Tonight and often abbreviated as WNT) is the ABC television network's flagship news program. Charles Gibson currently serves as anchor on its weekday telecasts. Weekend broadcasts of the show are titled World News Saturday and World News Sunday.
[edit] Early years: 1953-1978
ABC first began a nightly newscast in the Fall 1953 with John Charles Daly as anchor of the then 15-minute ABC Evening News. Daly anchored the news until 1960 with multiple hosts and formats succeeding him. Hosts during the early 1960's included John Cameron Swayze, Howard K. Smith, Bill Lawrence, Bill Shadel, Fendal Yerxa, Bill Sheehan and Edward P. Morgan. This lasted until 1962 when Ron Cochran was made full-time anchor until 1964. Then in 1965 a 26-year-old Peter Jennings was named anchor of Peter Jennings with the News. It was also during this time the program expanded from 15 to 30 minutes.
In 1967, Jennings left the anchor chair and was reassigned as an international correspondent for the news program. ABC News was hosted by Bob Young (October 1967 to May 1968), Frank Reynolds (May 1968 to May 1969), and, eventually, Reynolds and Howard K. Smith (May 1969 to December 1970).
Smith and Harry Reasoner, formerly of CBS News and 60 Minutes, co-anchored ABC Evening News beginning in December 1970. In 1975, Reasoner assumed sole anchor responsibilities until his pairing in 1976 with Barbara Walters, the first female network anchor. Ratings for the nightly news broadcast declined shortly thereafter, possibly due in part to the lack of chemistry between Reasoner and Walters.
[edit] World News Tonight: The Early Years 1978-1983
Always the perennial third in the national ratings, ABC News president Roone Arledge reformatted the program, relaunching it as World News Tonight on July 10, 1978. Frank Reynolds returned as lead anchor, reporting from Washington D.C. Max Robinson, the first African American network news anchor, anchored national news from Chicago, and, also returning for a second stint, was Jennings, reporting international headlines from London. Occasional contributions included special reports by Barbara Walters and commentary by Howard K. Smith. The program’s distinct and easily identifiable theme was written by Bob Israel. Ratings slowly climbed to the point where "World News Tonight" eventually beat both NBC Nightly News and the CBS Evening News.
[edit] World News Tonight With Peter Jennings: 1983-2005
In April 1983, Frank Reynolds became ill leaving Jennings and Robinson to co-anchor the broadcast until his planned return; he never did and succumbed to bone cancer on July 20. A rotation of replacement anchors (including Jennings) anchored the program until August 9, 1983 when Jennings became the sole anchor and senior editor of World News Tonight. In September 1984, the program was renamed World News Tonight with Peter Jennings in order to reflect its sole anchor and senior editor. Robinson left ABC News in 1984, after stints of hosting news briefs and anchoring weekend editions of World News Tonight; he died of AIDS in 1988.
With Jennings as lead anchor, World News Tonight was the most-watched national newscast throughout 1985 - 1997, but since 1997 it has been in second place behind its main rival NBC Nightly News.
In April 2005, Jennings announced that he had lung cancer and, as before, other ABC News anchors, mostly consisting of 20/20 co-anchor Elizabeth Vargas and Good Morning America co-anchor Charles Gibson, filled in for him. Jennings died of lung cancer on August 7, 2005, at his apartment in New York City at the age of 67. He is survived by his wife, KC.
The August 8, 2005 edition of the program was dedicated to Jennings' memory and four-decade career in news. His death ended the era of the three network news anchors of Jennings, Brokaw, and Rather.
During his career, Jennings had reported from every major world capital and war zone, and from all 50 U.S. states, according to the network. The Jennings era was known for his ability to calmly portray events as they were happening. He was known for his covering of many major world events.
- Further information: Peter Jennings
[edit] World News Tonight with Bob Woodruff and Elizabeth Vargas: January 2006-May 2006
Image:Abc woodruff vargas 3.jpg On December 5, 2005, ABC announced Elizabeth Vargas and Bob Woodruff would be the new permanent co-anchors starting January 3, 2006, replacing Jennings. People in the news industry looked at the choice of Vargas and Woodruff by ABC News as the start of a new era in network television news.
The broadcast was produced live three times per day: the regular Eastern/Central Time zone live broadcast, plus separate broadcasts for the Mountain and Pacific time zones. In addition, a live webcast, World News Now, with a newsbrief and a preview of that evening's broadcast, was added. It currently airs live 3 p.m. EST on ABC News Now and ABCNews.com and can be viewed throughout the rest of the day after 4 p.m. EST.
On January 29, 2006, Bob Woodruff and his camera-man, Doug Vogt, were injured by a road-side bomb while they rode in an Iraqi military convoy in Iraq. Both were operated on at a U.S. military hospital in Balad (50 miles north of Baghdad). It is reported that both men had head injuries even though they were both wearing body armor and helmets. Both men were evacuated to a U.S military hospital in Germany on January 30, 2006. Woodruff and Vogt have since been transferred to Bethesda Naval Hospital in the United States for further treatment and released for outpatient treatment.
On February 10, 2006 ABC announced that Elizabeth Vargas was pregnant and due to give birth in late summer.
For about a month, Good Morning America co-hosts Charles Gibson and Diane Sawyer had taken turns co-anchoring the newscast with Elizabeth Vargas. From about March 2006 to May 2006, Elizabeth Vargas had been anchoring the broadcast alone, becoming the first de facto woman evening news solo anchor. At the time, it was unknown what ABC News planned to do until Bob Woodruff returned to the anchor chair, which appeared to be distant, and when Elizabeth started to go on maternity leave. Rumors flew that Diane Sawyer wanted to become the sole anchor of WNT in order to beat Katie Couric's switch to the CBS anchor chair.[1] However, the New York Post's Cindy Adams reported that Charles Gibson would become Bob Woodruff's Temporary Permanent Replacement. [2].
Starting around March 2006, the West Coast editions of WNT were scaled back due to the fact that Elizabeth Vargas anchored the broadcast on her own at the time. [3]
[edit] World News with Charles Gibson: 2006-present
On May 23, 2006, Elizabeth Vargas announced her resignation from WNT. Charles Gibson was then named sole anchor of the show, effective May 29, 2006, effectively replacing Vargas and her injured co-anchor Bob Woodruff. [4] Vargas cited her doctors' recommendation to cut back her schedule considerably due to her maternity leave, and her wish to spend more time with her new baby. She has since returned to co-anchor 20/20 and ABC News specials, and has already substituted for Gibson on World News.
Bob Woodruff, still rehabilitating after suffering a major injury in Iraq, is still not scheduled to return as co-anchor of WNT and there is "no timetable for his return." [5] While the 3 p.m. World News Now webcast remains, the West Coast editions have been scrapped. Gibson will continue to update the newscast as warranted for the other time zones, but the entire newscast will not be presented live as was previously the case.
Some media analysts found the reasons for the change to be merely a cover for ABC News' real intentions to bring stability to its flagship news program that had been slipping in the ratings, and to attract some older viewers away from the CBS Evening News with interim anchor Bob Schieffer. [6] [7] Indeed, the advertising campaign focuses on Gibson's experience, calling Gibson "Your Trusted Source", similar to a campaign for Peter Jennings, "Trust is Earned", in the wake of the Killian documents scandal at CBS and Brian Williams' transition to NBC anchor. [8] On the job for over a month, Gibson seems to be slowly closing the gap between his broadcast and NBC Nightly News.
On July 19, 2006, ABC News announced that World News Tonight would be now known as World News With Charles Gibson.[9] The cause of this name change is that the program is now available twenty-four hours a day through its webcast (retitled as simply World News) and through ABCNews.com.
Jon Banner is currently the show's executive producer.
[edit] Weekends
WNT expanded to 6 nights a week with World News Sunday on January 28, 1979, and to a full 7 days with the premiere of World News Saturday on January 5, 1985. These editions added the word "Tonight" in the mid 1990s, and in the mid 2000s their respective names were shortened to simply World News Tonight to match up with the weekday editions. However, the original names were restored on July 19, 2006 to go along with the weekday broadcast's name change, but the title card says World News for both days.
Some former anchors of the weekend news include Sam Donaldson from the mid-1970s to 1988, Carole Simpson from 1988-2003, Elizabeth Vargas in the mid 90's, Terry Moran from 2001-2005, and Bob Woodruff from 2003-2005. Currently, Jim Avila is the Saturday edition anchor and Dan Harris is the Sunday edition anchor.
The Saturday broadcast is traditionally pre-empted by ESPN on ABC's college football coverage.
[edit] International Broadcasts
ABC News programming is shown for several hours a day on the 24-hour news network Orbit News in Europe and the Middle East. This includes ABC World News.
In the UK, the programme is shown at 01:30 on BBC News 24. BBC News 24 is frequently simulcast by BBC Two (and, less frequently, BBC One) at this time, meaning the programme is broadcast terrestrially throughout the UK.
In Australia, WNT is shown weekday mornings at 10:30 on Sky News Australia.
[edit] See also
[edit] Sources
[edit] External links
- ABC World News With Charles Gibson Official Website
- ABC Evening News/World News Tonight/World News at the Internet Movie Database
- Network News Music: ABC
| Anchors of ABC Evening News/World News Tonight/World News |
|---|
| Daly • Young • Reynolds • Smith • Reasoner • Walters • Robinson • Jennings • Woodruff/Vargas • Gibson |
