CBS News scrambled Thursday to sign Tony Dokoupil to helm “CBS Evening News” — after insiders claimed Maurice DuBois went “rogue” and surprised his bosses by revealing he was leaving the network, The Post has learned.
While insiders cautioned the talks could fall through, “CBS Mornings” co-host Dokoupil has been a frontrunner for the job and a favorite of both Bari Weiss, the network’s editor in chief, and Tom Cibrowski, its president, as The Post previously reported.
Sources said negotiations went into high gear after DuBois was told by higher-ups last week that he was not “the future” of “CBS Evening News” — prompting the anchor to go off-script by posting his own goodbye on his Instagram page Thursday.
A source close to CBS claimed that the network had already been aware of DuBois’ plan to post his news on Instagram — but other insiders close to the network said otherwise.
“He went rogue,” a CBS insider said, adding that DuBois had not been onboard with the company’s plan to announce his departure the same time it revealed his replacement.
“Maurice’s announcement sped up the timeline” to replace DuBois, a move originally planned for the New Year, the person said. That left the network hustling to renegotiate Dokoupil’s contract with his agent, UTA’s Jay Sures.
Sures, DuBois and CBS News declined to comment.
CBS News was expected to announce that Dokoupil will become the sole anchor of the show in the coming days, sources said.
When asked Thursday who will replace DuBois, a CBS rep simply shared a “thank you” memo Cibrowski wrote about the outgoing journo, with no mention of what would happen to the prestigious show.
DuBois broke the news of his exit Thursday morning, saying his last day at the network where he worked for 21 years would be Dec. 18.
DuBois — who is best known for anchoring WCBS-TV in New York — nabbed the spot at “CBS Evening News” with co-anchor John Dickerson last January.
Dickerson revealed in late October that he was leaving the network at the end of the year, sparking rumors that Dubois would likely follow suit. A source close to Dickerson said his last day will be Dec. 19.
DuBois’ announcement surprised CBS insiders and media watchers, who thought it odd that the network had no news on who would host the venerable nightly news show.
Weiss mulled candidates such as Fox News’ Bret Baier and Dana Perino, but both were under contract. She also expressed interest in CNN’s Anderson Cooper and ABC News correspondent Matt Gutman for the “CBS Evening News” anchor chair, according to reports.
The problem Weiss faces, of course, is a limited budget and the outside talent’s existing contract obligations.
That leaves Dokoupil, who makes a more modest salary than his co-hosts Gayle King and Nate Burleson, sources said.
Assuming the deal gets inked, it calls into question who will replace the morning show co-anchor.
King’s name has been aired as someone who might get pushed out of the network due to her hefty $13 million salary. But one insider speculated that if the network could get her pay down, it might be worth keeping the star anchor and getting rid of Burleson, who is said to make a multimillion-dollar salary.
“It’s a game of chess,” said a second CBS source. “It all depends on where the chips fall.”
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