Looks like David Gregory gets Tim Russert's chair on 'Meet the Press'
(UPDATE: Once again, The Times' Matea Gold nails it.)
So much for a female Sunday talk-show host, it seems. We'll just stick with the aging white guys.
Huffington Post has just reported that Andrea Mitchell, Gwen Ifill, Ted Koppel and Chuck Todd will not be replacing the late Tim Russert as host of the iconic Sunday morning NBC talk show, "Meet the Press."
The heir, according to HuffPo, is David Gregory, veteran NBC newsman.
NBC isn't saying anything yet about who will be the face of the 61-year-old show that still leads the Sunday morning ratings. But fill-in moderator Tom Brokaw is scheduled to interview President-elect Barack Obama this coming Sunday.
Last week, as usual, The Times' Matea Gold took a comprehensive look at the quiet competititon and found a decision expected on or right after Brokaw's last appearance on Dec. 7.
NBC had to make the crucial decision whether Gregory could make the more-difficult-than-it-looks transition from chasing the day's hot news story that has film to go with it to the more serious, probative moderator that the long-running 'Meet' needs.
That's the kind of questioner who doesn't mind making news on those slow Sabbath mornings while the nation sips coffee in its bathrobes but is also after understanding what's behind the guests, their thinking and their decisions. Russert will be a very hard act to follow in that way.
Apparently, NBC is also undeterred by the cost of a larger 'Meet" roundtable given Gregory's instinctive propensity to shout his questions at people, primarily presidents pretending to ignore the desperate reporters held behind the rope line.
--Andrew Malcolm
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Photo credits: Getty Images
Andrew Malcolm's immigrant parents repeatedly stressed the importance of active participation in a democracy. Early lessons included learning the alphabetical list of states by watching televised roll calls of national political conventions. That childhood exposure led to a lifelong fascination with politics, including 40-plus years of covering them and a brief stint practicing them as press secretary to Laura Bush in 1999-2000. A veteran foreign and national correspondent, Malcolm served on the Times Editorial Board and was a Pulitzer finalist in 2004. He is the author of 10 nonfiction books and father of four.
Johanna Neuman is a veteran Washington correspondent for both The Los Angeles Times and USA Today, having covered presidents and politics as far back as Ronald Reagan. A former president of the White House Correspondents Assn., she authored a book on media and foreign policy, “Lights, Camera, Wars.” Most recently she was co-author of the 
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wow, a telegenic white guy got hired instead of one of the more qualified non-anglo-male catidates?
shocked! i am scandalized!
Posted by: paxcincinnatus | December 02, 2008 at 11:48 AM
I'm actually glad they're having so much trouble replacing Russert. It shows there's no one who could fill his shoes.
But I can't see David Gregory hosting that show. I just can't.
Posted by: Jeff Balla | December 03, 2008 at 12:44 AM
NBC doesn't have the guts to pick Chuck Todd, but they should. Todd has the zeal, brains, and down-to-earth goodheartedness that was so appealing in the great Tim Russert. I don't mind David Gregory - he's good on the Today Show - which makes my point exactly. Give me a real news guy instead of a dude who looks good in a suit anyday.
Posted by: Julie Matthews | December 03, 2008 at 02:15 PM
I am disappointed David Gregory got the position of Host for Meet the Press. Of course, I'm still mourning for Tim Russert and Peter Jennings. I had hoped Gwen Ifill would get the position because she's the best of the hopefuls. However, Todd and Mitchell are also very good and each are so much better than Gregory. I would be anxious to watch the show again if either Andrea, Chuck, or my favorite Gwen had gotten the position. Now, I will DVR the show and see if its worth my time.
I have not been able to watch an entire show with fill-in host Tom Brokaw, he's horrible. I think Gregory will be a younger version of Tom. I tried to give his MSNBC Show a chance, but he was not very good and he is really boring.
Too bad NBC did make a real Change!
Posted by: jazzie | December 05, 2008 at 07:11 AM