MW
While I like Couric's fluffy style, It will be nice to see some fresh air blown into the evening news. She can be quite monotonous.
What doesn't help are Bob Peterson's god awful, lazy, cheap, poor, savage, sickening, vile and repulsive graphics he slams onto every CBS News programme. The man is an editor, not a graphic designer. He has systematically presided over and ruined every single CBS institution's look since 2006. First it was the election coverage, then the Evening News. Then Morning and Up to the Minute before finally smashing up The Early Show's on screen look.
The man's graphics are awful.
Futura, Times New Roman and basic 3D, this is not the 1990s and Powerpoint.
Relaunch the evening, CBS. Please. (Worth noting, it is the same basic set that CBS has had since 1994! just tarted up in 2006 and 2008)
What doesn't help are Bob Peterson's god awful, lazy, cheap, poor, savage, sickening, vile and repulsive graphics he slams onto every CBS News programme. The man is an editor, not a graphic designer. He has systematically presided over and ruined every single CBS institution's look since 2006. First it was the election coverage, then the Evening News. Then Morning and Up to the Minute before finally smashing up The Early Show's on screen look.
The man's graphics are awful.
Futura, Times New Roman and basic 3D, this is not the 1990s and Powerpoint.
Relaunch the evening, CBS. Please. (Worth noting, it is the same basic set that CBS has had since 1994! just tarted up in 2006 and 2008)
SE
I don't like the graphics, but then again, none of the networks have particularly good graphics.
I'd imagine that they'd get a new set with the new presenter, but I wouldn't say that it's been the same for the past 15 years. It's in the same newsroom, yes, but it's significantly changed. Still not a great set, it pales in comparison to NBC/MSNBC's which is 3.5 years old, and looks brand new.
Most importantly, I hope the editorial content of the program improves. It's too lightweight. That's what The Early Show is for.
I'd imagine that they'd get a new set with the new presenter, but I wouldn't say that it's been the same for the past 15 years. It's in the same newsroom, yes, but it's significantly changed. Still not a great set, it pales in comparison to NBC/MSNBC's which is 3.5 years old, and looks brand new.
Most importantly, I hope the editorial content of the program improves. It's too lightweight. That's what The Early Show is for.
LM
They got rid of the set they had since 1996 (although it was modified over the years, mainly with the addition of video screens in the background of the production area) when Katie Couric took over. The Couric set is in the same area of the CBS Broadcast Center - Studio 47 - which took quite a while to fit out as the production area behind the set was also given a makeover. In that time up to when Couric took over, Bob Schieffer was anchoring from a single camera position with the old set keyed in behind him.
Relaunch the evening, CBS. Please. (Worth noting, it is the same basic set that CBS has had since 1994! just tarted up in 2006 and 2008)
They got rid of the set they had since 1996 (although it was modified over the years, mainly with the addition of video screens in the background of the production area) when Katie Couric took over. The Couric set is in the same area of the CBS Broadcast Center - Studio 47 - which took quite a while to fit out as the production area behind the set was also given a makeover. In that time up to when Couric took over, Bob Schieffer was anchoring from a single camera position with the old set keyed in behind him.
JO
I think NBC has good graphics overall. Particularly 'The Today Show' and MSNBC.
Why is it that US TV has such awful graphics? It's not like it's a universal American thing - just TV. There are plenty of good examples of good American design in other places, perhaps it's just a tradition thing. Americans are very conservative on the whole.
I think NBC has good graphics overall. Particularly 'The Today Show' and MSNBC.
HO
I think NBC has good graphics overall. Particularly 'The Today Show' and MSNBC.
Agreed - though I wasn't a fan of Today's previous look. And like Moz said, tv graphics around the world can be mixed - BBC News, ITV News and Daybreak all have incredibly boring graphics.
Why is it that US TV has such awful graphics? It's not like it's a universal American thing - just TV. There are plenty of good examples of good American design in other places, perhaps it's just a tradition thing. Americans are very conservative on the whole.
I think NBC has good graphics overall. Particularly 'The Today Show' and MSNBC.
Agreed - though I wasn't a fan of Today's previous look. And like Moz said, tv graphics around the world can be mixed - BBC News, ITV News and Daybreak all have incredibly boring graphics.
HO
Worth noting, if anyone cares, that there are fresh suggestions Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira are both on their way out at Today when their contracts expire, Glenn Beck as I'm sure you know is quitting (rather, leaving) Fox and JuJu Chang was replaced by ESPN sportscaster Josh Elliott at the GMA news desk. Seem to be quite a lot of changes at the moment, when you remember The Early Show's anchor-revamp earlier this year.
Last edited by House on 7 April 2011 1:34am
HO
So it's official - Katie Couric is leaving CBS. Associated Press.
According to the Mail, ABC are offering her a very generous deal. I wonder, should she not manage to secure a successful syndicated talk show, if she could fit into somewhere like The View?
Also, Ann Curry will reportedly be announced as new co-host of Today "within weeks", assuming Meredith Viera steps down. Savannah Guthrie, the (very good) White House correspondent is tipped to join as a replacement for Curry or Natalie Morales (co-host of the third hour).
According to the Mail, ABC are offering her a very generous deal. I wonder, should she not manage to secure a successful syndicated talk show, if she could fit into somewhere like The View?
Also, Ann Curry will reportedly be announced as new co-host of Today "within weeks", assuming Meredith Viera steps down. Savannah Guthrie, the (very good) White House correspondent is tipped to join as a replacement for Curry or Natalie Morales (co-host of the third hour).
NG
I think there is a legacy of having to deliver graphics that were legible on their awful NTSC composite SD system. They always had bigger text and awful levels of drop/block shadow. (And whilst they've switched off NTSC for terrestrial broadcasts, it is still in use for analogue cable)
In Europe, our PAL system was cleaner, sharper and survived a lot better, allowing us to use smaller type sizes, less drop/block shadow, and thus we evolved a much more subtle tradition of on-screen graphics.
The US broadcasters also have a very 'commercial' view on graphics - where less is definitely less and more is definitely more... Anything that can glint will, anything that can animate does, and the more you put on-screen the better.
This is not universal - and in recent years there have been some very nice US packages. However there are still lots of awful ones...
noggin
Founding member
Why is it that US TV has such awful graphics? It's not like it's a universal American thing - just TV. There are plenty of good examples of good American design in other places, perhaps it's just a tradition thing. Americans are very conservative on the whole.
I think there is a legacy of having to deliver graphics that were legible on their awful NTSC composite SD system. They always had bigger text and awful levels of drop/block shadow. (And whilst they've switched off NTSC for terrestrial broadcasts, it is still in use for analogue cable)
In Europe, our PAL system was cleaner, sharper and survived a lot better, allowing us to use smaller type sizes, less drop/block shadow, and thus we evolved a much more subtle tradition of on-screen graphics.
The US broadcasters also have a very 'commercial' view on graphics - where less is definitely less and more is definitely more... Anything that can glint will, anything that can animate does, and the more you put on-screen the better.
This is not universal - and in recent years there have been some very nice US packages. However there are still lots of awful ones...
NE
Noggin, that's really interesting.
Remember CNNI's really understated music and graphics before the last revamp? Gorgeous. Then they went all American again and it grates on anyone, I think, who's not from the States... all brassy music and animating everything in super duper technicolor.
And talking of CNN... I would have thought Anderson Cooper would have been a great replacement for Couric... I don't know of this new guy they've lined up, but on just looking at the picture (And that alone, don't scream at me), he doesn't look to be the future of television news... or anything different from what the other two main networks are offering.
Remember CNNI's really understated music and graphics before the last revamp? Gorgeous. Then they went all American again and it grates on anyone, I think, who's not from the States... all brassy music and animating everything in super duper technicolor.
And talking of CNN... I would have thought Anderson Cooper would have been a great replacement for Couric... I don't know of this new guy they've lined up, but on just looking at the picture (And that alone, don't scream at me), he doesn't look to be the future of television news... or anything different from what the other two main networks are offering.