Has anyone got a recommendation (other than Fox News) for an American news broadcast? What are CBS and ABC News like?
The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric is great. Unbiased (towards any UK parties) journalism and decent world news. The presenter is fantastic, she is warm and welcoming and seems to be very real and believable. It's aired on Sky News at 0030 and is the repeat broadcast, not the live version. CBS also has decent title music, interesting graphics and a decent newsroom/set.
I cannot stand Katie Couric. There's just something about her that feels lightweight. In comparison I think Diane Sawyer and Maggie Rodriguez are far better, but can't stand George Stephanopoulos or Harry Smith. If Couric were to leave - which could happen given CBS's failure to close the gap on ABC, let alone NBC, in ratings - and Maggie Rodriguez were to take over I'd find it far more bearable.
Comparing ABC and CBS in terms of presentation and content, I think both have their strengths. I think ABC have some very, very good reports, though can sometimes become a bit lighter towards the end, while CBS too have some very good reporting but can sometimes (to me at least) feel a bit full on in reporting.
I think ABC's studio and titles are pretty good, and somehow feel refreshing compared to what we have in the UK. The studio and music far outperform CBS's, while CBS have the edge on on-screen graphics.
The reporting feels far more natural and the dialogue between Sawyer and correspondents, some of whom are very good, makes it a more lively, fresh programme and I seriously wish we had a British equivalent.
CBS too have some good reporters, but it all feels far more rehearsed and forced between them and Couric.
And in terms of BBC and Sky airing them, Sky seem to retain the original break slots which annoys me beyond belief (because they seem to be every 5 minutes!) while the BBC broadcast it with only one break in the middle (which is filled by BBC News headlines - and James Dagwell seems to be the only one who knows Sawyer's name!) but at points they do seem to edit it down (is this because of rights??). Also, due to the removal of breaks, the programme only begins at about 01:36 after sports news, while CBS starts a little before :30 on Sky it seems.
For me, Robert, ABC World News is better than CBS, though I can understand why Michael likes CBS. CBS feels a bit stagnant at points, but the BBC's late showing of ABC means I often miss Sawyer, Muir, Vargas and co.
I haven't yet managed to see NBC - if anyone gets hold of it please let me know! I also love how Sky show CBS Evening News all week long it seems (including with Russ Mitchell on Sundays) where as it's only Mon-Thu on the BBC with ABC.
I'm certainly more interested in American news programmes than British ones at the moment! They just feel so much quicker!