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American Morning

Letterman To Stay At CBS, ABC Relations With Koppel Tarnished

Aired March 12, 2002 - 09:51   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: All jokes aside, now that David Letterman has finally ended his flirtation with ABC and decided to stay with CBS, you would think the story would just kind of fade away. But for the people at Disney who lobbied hard to get Letterman, and alienated some of ABC's biggest new stars in the process, the story is just beginning, and no one there is laughing.

Susan Lisovicz reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST, "LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN": I woke up this morning, got out of bed, checked the "New York Times" to see where I was working today.

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The network battle over Dave Letterman may give him his best material since his heart surgery. CBS and ABC, with the backing of their deep-pocketed corporate owners, battled fiercely for a star with a penchant for biting the hand that feeds him.

LETTERMAN: Whoever watched CBS? Nobody.

LISOVICZ: But, while Letterman always wanted to be the successor to Johnny Carson, he was clearly uncomfortable with the legacy as the guy who toppled Koppel.

LETTERMAN: The point is, that Ted Koppel -- he's one of these guys that kind of -- what he has done, and his contributions to American culture speak for themselves. He is one of a very small group of men and women who represent the absolute highest echelon of broadcast achievement. There's just without question...

LISOVICZ: CBS President Les Moonves, frequently the butt of Letterman's jokes, said he is thrilled to keep him, and indicated that his star comic would get the promotional support he craves from the network's stations and affiliates.

PORTER BIBB, MANAGING PARTNER, TECHNOLOGY PARTNERS: I think that CBS probably will applaud whatever he wants to do, because they want attention and they want new eyeballs, and younger eyeballs.

LISOVICZ: The statement from Ted Koppel verified there was damage as a result of the efforts to sign Letterman. He said he hoped Disney would send a signal that "Nightline" can count on serious corporate backing, and that the program needed something more than short-term guarantees.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ABC seems to have a black hole on its schedule, and NBC is delighted that 10 years ago, they picked a steady Eddie in Jay Leno, and don't have to go through all this kind of thing.

LISOVICZ (on camera): And that's the challenge for Letterman. CBS has promised additional promotional support, but there is still no guarantee he will be able to overtake his arch rival at NBC.

LETTERMAN: So, we can look forward to another four or five years of barely entertaining audiences, night after night after night.

LISOVICZ (voice-over): Susan Lisovicz, CNN Financial News, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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