ABC's Changes of the Guard

Barbara Walters' high-profile retirement from her equally high-profile career isn't the only transition at ABC's news department.  Diane Sawyer, who's anchored ABC's weeknightly newscast since 2009, is stepping down from her position, and ABC says that the decision to step down was hers and hers alone.  

ABC explains that Sawyer wishes to concentrate on "conducting in-depth investigations and enterprise reporting for future prime-time specials."  Well, Ann Curry at NBC is actually doing such reports, like her recent special on climate change; perhaps we'll see Sawyer produce similar documentaries (psst!  Diane!  High-speed rail!  Do something about that!) in due time.  But every time I hear that a veteran news anchor - especially a female one - is planning to to special reports and documentaries, I always think it's a ploy to cast her aside to the point of irrelevance and make her go away.  (Remember Soledad O'Brien at CNN?)  As it turns out, ABC is replacing Sawyer with David Muir, meaning that, once again, all three major commercial networks will have male anchors, and not one of them has excessive skin pigmentation.  (I know I'm a traitor to my race and gender for complaining about too many honkies on network TV news, but, hey, I've been called worse than that.)  At least there's the PBS NewsHour - the only broadcast news program I watch - which is anchored by two women, Judy Woodruff and Gwen Ifill . . . and Ifill, who is black, has the added distinction of being the daughter of West Indian immigrants.     

Those who seek greater diversity on broadcast news can take solace in the fact that George Stephanopoulos  - who, unlike Muir, CBS's Scott Pelley, or NBC's Brian Williams, is at least a white ethnic - will assume the newly created job as chief anchor for ABC, meaning he'll go on the to report major breaking news stories and special events while remaining the co-host of "Good Morning America" and the host of the Sunday news talk show "This Week."  And ABC is certainly taking comfort in the fact that George Will - who left ABC in October 2013 for Fox - didn't make those ugly comments about rape until after he was gone.