An Eye on America, And Your Pen

(By Linda Kaye -- Associated Press)

But what did you expect her to say, really?

McManus said that when he was named president of CBS News seven months ago, he decided quickly that there wasn't enough "meaningful work" for Rather, what with "60 Minutes II" having been canceled and Rather stepping down from the evening news. So he let Rather's reps know early, after which lawyers got involved. McManus told the room that he'd twice tried to get together with Rather but two scheduled lunches were canceled and the day he had his first lunch with Rather was the day Rather was scheduled to leave the network, darn the luck. He said he explained his decision to Rather and that he told Rather he wanted to stay in touch with him to get his advice on this and that.

"I do wish we could have figured out a way to keep Dan at CBS," he said, but Rather wanted to do "long-form programming," which "we don't do a lot of . . . anymore at CBS."

"I have nothing but the warmest thought about Dan and hope we stay in touch," he said.

After choking that down, critics ruminated on Couric's insistence that the opportunity to become the first woman to solo anchor a Big Three newscast was not the reason she took the job. It was the "paucity of occasions" on which these jobs become available, though she said her two young daughters were "like Helen Reddy" round the kitchen table when she was in talks, telling her she had to do this because she'd be the first woman "and I thought, 'Where did you come from?' "

Couric said women had come a long way in TV journalism since she got into the biz. And if they needed proof: It was a man who asked Couric what she planned to wear on her first night anchoring the "CBS Evening News." And he was immediately chastised by McManus, who wanted to know whether the guy put the same question to Charlie Gibson before he became anchor of the ABC evening newscast.

The reporter has since noted that it's too late, since Gibson has already taken over that anchor chair, but has promised to ask Gibson why he wore what he wore when Gibson appears at the press tour later this week.

We'll keep you posted on this important development as part of a TV Column push to add more perspective and greater context, go a little deeper and be less depressing.