The journalist claims in 'Going There' that CBS former boss Les Moonves, who was fired in 2018 in the wake of sexual misconduct allegations, was 'a close-talker with bad breath.'
- Oct 5, 2021
AceShowbiz - Katie Couric's tell-all memoir was not well-received by CBS. After dissing the network and its former boss Les Moonves in "Going There", the former "Today" co-anchor was reportedly banned from promoting her book on the network.
The 64-year-old, who hosted "CBS Evening News" from 2006 to 2011, was supposed to promote her memoir on "CBS This Morning" with Gayle King. However, after chiefs and producers read it, the plan was scrapped, according to Page Six.
A TV insider also claimed that Couric had also been in talks to appear on "CBS Sunday Morning", but the idea was canceled as well. "The segment was never [officially] booked, it was only in discussion," said the source.
In "Going There", Couric revealed that Moonves once tried to move her to the morning show after her gig at "CBS Evening News" got low ratings. She quoted Moonves as saying, "We've been thinking about you and what you're good at. The evening news really doesn't give you a place to showcase your talent."
"Would you be interested in going to the morning show?" Moonves allegedly told Couric. "You're so great at it, and they could really use your help." In response, the journalist replied, "Absolutely not... I didn't leave the morning show I helped make number one so I could go to the third-place morning show."
"I had come here to accomplish something, and if it didn't work, it didn't work," she further explained. "I'd rather leave the network than retreat to the morning show, which at the time was a cheap imitation of the other two."
Couric then detailed about Moonves, who was fired in 2018 without his $120 million severance package in the wake of sexual harassment and assault allegations. "I always liked Les Moonves, even though he was a close-talker with bad breath," she penned.
"At an affiliates' meeting, Les would smugly disclose how he finally got me to say yes: 'We drank many bottles of expensive wine on the sofa in my apartment... Don't worry, my wife was in the next room.' Hardee-har, Les," she continued.
Aside from Moonves, Couric also dissed a number of famous people in her book. They included Martha Stewart, Prince Harry and Deborah Norville, whom she replaced on the "Today" show in 1991.