We have already talked quite a bit about Andy Lack, the former NBC News chief who recently returned to try and dig out the network from beneath scandal and miserably low ratings. He has his work cut out for him on so many levels, from trying to pull Meet the Press out of its third-place standing to completely transforming MSNBC back into a credible news network. He also has to eventually figure out what to do about Brian Williams and NBC Nightly News. While it was originally believed that one of Lack's main functions would be to figure out how to bring Williams back after being suspended for six months for lying to the American public, that may no longer be the case.
According to a report by Page Six, "The speculation is that, despite Lack's warm relationship with Williams, he may not return to the Nightly News anchor chair. This comes after exhaustive focus-group polling done by NBC staffers during his absence, while Lester Holt has done a solid job standing in for the disgraced newsman and maintaining the show's ratings," explained a source.
This shift in thinking is pretty interesting. At first it was just assumed that Lack was returning to the network, mainly to help bring back Williams. Instead, of just having one major agenda, it now is starting to sound like Lack really does value the imput of others and that those focus groups might have been key in his deciding what to do.
Do you think that after being caught in several questionable stories Williams could ever return to NBC Nightly News and benefit the show? Would the ratings take a considerable tumble if Williams were to be back in that top anchor seat? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below.
