'CBS Mornings' stuck in third place as Skydance merger looms for network

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Gayle King calls Colbert cancellation by CBS a kick in the stomach

CBS Mornings hosts reacted with sadness and surprise to the cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert that was announced Thursday.

A longtime network morning show veteran believes Gayle King "has lost a lot of her leverage" as "CBS Mornings" is mired in third place with an ownership change looming. 

The FCC approved a long-planned, $8 billion merger between Paramount Global and Skydance Media last month which will soon place CBS News under new ownership. The deal, which is set to close Thursday, will see Skydance CEO David Ellison take control of the Tiffany Network and its struggling news division. 

Industry insiders believe Ellison, who was spotted sitting with President Donald Trump at a UFC event in April, will aim to eliminate the perceived liberal slant at CBS News. Ellison’s team has already committed to appointing an ombudsman to oversee CBS News content, and staffers are bracing for other changes as Skydance honchos put their stamp on the network. 

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"CBS Mornings" co-host Gayle King reports for CBS Mornings live from the United Center in Chicago for the 2024 Democratic National Convention. (Michele Crowe/CBS News via Getty Images)

This has put a spotlight on King’s "CBS Mornings," which has never seriously challenged NBC’s "Today" or ABC’s "Good Morning America" for any substantial length of time, instead settling for a perennial third-place finish among all relevant viewership measurables. 

"CBS Mornings," co-anchored by King, Tony Dokoupil and Nate Burleson, averaged 1.8 million total viewers during July, compared to 2.7 million for "GMA" and 2.4 million for "Today." 

While third place is nothing new for CBS’ morning show, the program is also steadily losing viewers. 

"CBS Mornings" averaged 1.9 million viewers in 2025 through July 27, shedding 10% of the 2.2 million it averaged during the same time period in 2024. The ratings drop is even worse among the advertiser-coveted demographic of adults aged 25-54, as "CBS Mornings" has averaged 332,000 demo viewers in 2025—a loss of a quarter of the 441,000 it managed in 2024. 

NBC’s "Today" and ABC’s "Good Morning America" have also lost viewers compared to the first seven months of 2024, but the declines are not as severe as the drop-off at CBS. 

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Gayle King kisses the ground after exiting the Blue Origin hatch. (Courtesy: Blue Origin)

"CBS Mornings" has also lost 6% of total viewers and 18% in the demo when comparing its average audience since Election Day 2024 to the period before President Trump’s victory over former Vice President Kamala Harris. 

King, who has long been the subject of often-unflattering tabloid fodder, has not helped "CBS Mornings" increase its audience despite the free publicity she generates by hobnobbing with A-listers. King is regularly on red carpets and often posts photos at lavish events. The high-paid anchor was photographed alongside Oprah Winfrey and Kris Jenner lounging on a yacht off the coast of Spain in July after attending Jeff Bezos’ $50 million wedding.

In April, King drew criticism when she was part of an all-female crew for a 10-minute Blue Origin space flight. Some complained about the environmental impact, and others questioned if the brief flight was a worthwhile use of resources. 

The Blue Origin space flight gave "CBS Mornings" a brief bump, but the program has since lost 5% of its 2025 total viewers and 17% of demo viewers since the day King went to space. 

The ownership change has led to industry chatter that changes are inevitable, with much speculation around King and whether incoming executives will keep her around when her contract expires—reportedly in May 2026. 

"Gayle is the only CBS News employee making eight figures, and she’s gotten anything she wants for years, including choosing her executive producer [Shawna Thomas] and doing alienating coverage out of touch with the CBS viewer," a longtime network morning show producer told Fox News Digital. 

"Now that the numbers are slipping badly, Gayle has lost a lot of her leverage," they continued. "Combine that with her embarrassing space flight and her tasteless swanning around on David Geffen’s yacht last month with Kris Jenner, and she’s due for a big pay cut and a comeuppance." 

King has also been a champion of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), which is something Ellison’s team has promised to dismantle at CBS. She also sparked backlash for taking a 2017 vacation with the Obamas while she worked on a show that covered politics. At the time, King insisted her trip to Tahiti alongside the former president was not political, but her cozy relationship with the former First Family helped tarnish the reputation of CBS News—something incoming management is believed to want to distance itself from.

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CBS Mornings Co-Hosts Gayle King, Tony Dokoupil, and Nate Burleson with CBS Mornings and CBS News Streaming Network Anchor and Correspondent Vladimir Duthiers, and CBS Mornings Executive Producer Shawna Thomas. ( Michele Crowe/CBS News)

A CBS News staffer recently told Fox News Digital that King is "insulated by her team," which includes Thomas. However, an "editorial shift" is being pushed by CBS News president and executive editor Tom Cibrowski and his No. 2, Wendy Fisher, the network's senior vice president of editorial.

"They’re changing story selection and tweaking the show some," the CBS staffer said.

"I know Tom has been involved in the show heavily though," they continued. "He wants us to focus on stories outside of major cities and in the middle of the country. Stories that affect real people and that they’re talking about at home."

The staffer believes the changes Cibrowski has implemented over the past couple of months are him "putting his mark on the division" and have nothing to do with the parent company Paramount's settlement with Trump or the Paramount-Skydance merger.

In September, "CBS Mornings" will ditch its studio in Times Square and return to CBS Broadcast Center on 57th Street in New York City. It remains to be seen what other changes are on the horizon once Skydance executives begin to put their mark on the division.

CBS News did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

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Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.