Tom Touchet was fired yesterday as executive producer of NBC's "Today" show, a victim of the ratings surge by "Good Morning America" that has brought the ABC program close to overtaking the longtime leader among network morning shows.
Touchet, ironically, had been a producer at "Good Morning America" before NBC tapped him in October 2002 to take over the lucrative program hosted by Katie Couric and Matt Lauer.
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An NBC executive, in confirming Touchet's ouster, said a successor would be announced this morning.
NBC Universal President Jeff Zucker, who once was a "Today" executive producer, and NBC News President Neal Shapiro made the decision, said the executive, who declined to be named because no official announcement has been made. The reason, the executive said: "Look at the ratings."
While "Today" has been the top-rated morning show for nearly 10 years, ABC's Charlie Gibson and Diane Sawyer have been closing fast. "Today" is not losing viewers, but its average lead over "GMA" has shrunk to 662,000 viewers this season, down from nearly 1.3 million last year. "Today" has averaged just over 6 million viewers this year, compared with 5.4 million for "GMA."
On some days, such as the Monday after Pope John Paul II died, the ABC program has beaten "Today," according to the Associated Press.
Couric and Lauer endorsed the move, said the NBC executive: "The feeling was this guy had done all he could do and it was time to freshen up the show once again."
Gibson has been filling in on "World News Tonight," along with Elizabeth Vargas, since anchor Peter Jennings announced that he is battling lung cancer. ABC executives must weigh how much time they want Gibson to spend away from the program in light of the morning momentum.
The "Good Morning America" surge by Gibson and Sawyer -- who signed on as temporary replacements in 1999 and never left -- has taken place since Ben Sherwood succeeded Shelley Ross as the program's executive producer last year. Now NBC is hoping to boost its perennial moneymaker, which has expanded to three hours, with a management shuffle.
