CBS News brings in former Nightline chief to help mornings and evenings
CBS News has hired former Nightline chief Steven Baker to help lift its mornings and evenings.
Variety reported the appointment on 2 October 2026, citing two people familiar with the matter. Baker joins as a consultant and adviser on daily news programmes. He will work directly with CBS News president Tom Cibrowski.
The task is clear. CBS Mornings and CBS Evening News sit third in their time slots, behind rivals at ABC and NBC. CBS wants both shows to climb.
The numbers show the gap. CBS Mornings averaged 1.6 million viewers in the third quarter, including 256,000 viewers aged 25 to 54, according to Nielsen, the company that tracks US television audiences. That age group is the one advertisers watch most closely.
The evening broadcast has also been in change since Norah O’Donnell left the anchor desk in early 2025. Right now Jon Tower oversees CBS Mornings and Kim Harvey oversees CBS Evening News. A consultant and adviser typically works behind the scenes, suggesting ideas and reviewing plans rather than managing staff directly.
Baker is a long-time newsroom operator. He joined ABC’s Nightline as a production assistant in 2005. He rose to executive producer in October 2017, meaning he ran the show’s daily production and operations.
That rise took more than a decade, from entry-level production work to the top job. He stepped down in summer 2021. During his time at ABC News he also produced for 20/20 and several primetime specials.
He has a record of trying new formats. Under Baker, Nightline developed an hour-long special for Freeform, the cable network aimed at younger viewers. In 2020 he helped hand the Nightline slot for a month to Turning Point, a documentary effort focused on race relations in the US.
Since ABC, Baker has worked in streaming-era production. He teamed with former ABC News president James Goldston to lead a nonfiction division at Candle Media. That company is led by former Disney executives Tom Staggs and Kevin Mayer. Cibrowski also came from ABC News, where he was a senior executive.
Baker will not be on air. His role is backstage. For people watching at home, any change will show up only if the shows start to move in the ratings.
