CBS News, which is remaking its evening news and news magazines in the wake of the Dan Rather scandal, may be turning to an unusual source for help – MTV.
According to knowledgable sources, among the alternatives CBS boss Les Moonves is considering is moving MTV entertainment chief Brian Graden to head CBS News.
Graden, 42, is considered one of the most imaginative executives in parent company Viacom, and has developed some of the most popular series on cable, including MTV’s “Laguna Beach,” “The Osbournes,” “Pimp My Ride,” “Jackass” and “Newlyweds.”
No final decision has been made – and an insider emphasized that bringing in an MTV exec is only one of several plans being considered.
But it seems to underline Moonves’ pledge to completely change the nightly news formula that has been in place for decades.
Currently, Graden oversees programming on a slew of CBS’ sister networks, including MTV, VH1, CMT and Logo, the first basic cable gay and lesbian network.
He is a graduate of Oral Roberts University who holds an MBA from Harvard and first gained notoriety in the late 1990s when he befriended “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone and helped them develop the popular, raunchy cartoon for Comedy Central.
The show went on to become one of the most watched series in the network’s history.
CBS News’ current chief Andrew Heyward’s position has been vulnerable since the scandal.
Yesterday, CBS officials declined to comment on any changes.
Graden and Heyward also declined comment.
CBS News has still not recovered from last year’s Memogate scandal, which sparked Dan Rather’s early retirement from third-ranked “CBS Evening News.”
The Memogate report, delivered by Rather last September, was discredited two weeks later after drawing fire, first from politically conservative Web logs and later from mainstream media.
The network has yet to name a permanent replacement. It has toyed publicly with the possibility of a multi-anchor telecast. But that idea has reportedly been abandoned in recent weeks.
The scandal erupted when “60 Minutes Wednesday” used unverifiable documents in a story on President George W. Bush’s National Guard Service.
“60 Minutes Wednesday” has since been scrapped.
An internal investigation of the fiasco laid blame on insiders at the program. Ultimately three top CBS News executives were forced to quit as a result of the report.
The talk of Heyward’s departure comes as George Clooney’s new film on CBS News legend Edward R. Murrow, “Good Night, and Good Luck,” has drawn good reviews.
“To use the old cliché, Edward R. Murrow would be turning over in his grave – I think this would simply be another turn,” said veteran TV newsman Marvin Kalb, who is now with Harvard’s Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy.
“It is consistent with a pattern of trivializing serious news on TV that’s been going on for a long time,” Kalb said yesterday.
Appointing a talented programming executive with little or no news experience to the top of a network’s news division is far from unprecedented.
ABC’s Roone Arledgeis credited with revolutionizing TV sports in the U.S. He was named head of news in 1977 while still running ABC Sports.
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Beyond gray
If MTV exec Brian Graden (inset, right) ends up the boss at CBS News, the network may be considering some of these ideas:
* Telecast the “CBS Evening News” from Daytona, Fla., during spring break.
* Replace Andy Rooney with Ozzy Osbourne as “60 Minutes” commentator.
* Cancel “The Early Show” ’cause the new target audience sleeps ’till noon.
* Ape MTV’s “Pimp My Ride” and put an Xbox and a goldfish tank on the anchor desk.