Allbritton’s WJLA-TV in Washington, D.C. has committed to air the new syndicated talk show hosted by Anderson Cooper, which will be called “Anderson,” at 4:00 p.m., where it will replace “Oprah” when it debuts in Fall 2011. The series will also replace “Oprah” on KFMB (San Diego) and KBAK (Bakersfield). “Anderson” has picked up 15 additional stations and is now sold in 40 markets. The announcements were made today by Ken Werner, President, and Rick Meril, Executive Vice President/General Sales Manager, Warner Bros. Domestic Television.
“Stations are recognizing the immediate, as well as long-term positive gain that they will derive from investing in ‘Anderson,’” said Meril. “Anderson is an outstanding journalist and storyteller and he is poised to satisfy viewers’ appetites for the type of entertainment and information talk series which has always generated the biggest ratings in early fringe and daytime television. This is the kind of programming opportunity stations have identified as a franchise in the making.”
Like his predecessors Oprah Winfrey and Phil Donahue, Anderson will create a daily destination for multiple generations of women looking to be informed and entertained, gain perspective, have a voice and stay connected to each other and the world around them. Anderson will address water cooler topics from the big celebrity interview one day to the personal story behind the headlines the next. From undercover investigations to hidden camera experiments, the show will give the audience new perspective in an effort to gain insight into relevant issues and social trends affecting women’s lives.
Anderson will continue to anchor CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360,” the network’s evening newscast which focuses on hard news, politics and pundits, airing weeknights at 10 p.m. ET. He joined CNN in December 2001 and moved to prime time in March 2003. In addition to reporting for CNN, Anderson, a multi-award winning journalist, also provides reports for CBS’s “60 Minutes.” Dispatches from the Edge, Anderson’s memoir about covering the South Asia tsunami, Hurricane Katrina and other news events, topped the New York Times Bestsellers List and other bestseller charts. Before joining CNN, Anderson was an ABC News correspondent and host of the network’s reality program, “The Mole.” He anchored ABC’s live, interactive news and interview program, “World News Now,” as well as providing reports for “World News Tonight,” “20/20” and “20/20 Downtown.”
The series will be based in New York City and produced by Telepictures Productions in association with StrongChild Productions and Anderson will serve as an executive producer.
(Source: Warner Bros. Domestic Television)
