• WSJ (paid subscription required), Monday, March 20, 2006 11 AM

This morning's Wall Street Journal takes a look at NBC's predicament if, as could occur within the next few weeks, it learns that “Today” co-host Katie Couric is leaving to take the Evening News anchor seat at CBS. Who would assume Couric's job, and what kind of domino effect would that have at the popular morning show, not to mention other programs on network TV?  For example, would co-host Matt Lauer stay, go, or demand a huge payday when his contract comes up for renewal in 2008?  Would ABC's “Good Morning America” use the opportunity to surge past a reconstituted “Today”?  (Of course!)  The Journal says that NBC has decided on three possible replacements for the highly popular Couric: NBC newswoman Campbell Brown, “Today” newsreader Natalie Morales, and Mredith Vieira. At 52, Vieira is the oldest, the best known, and thought to best embody all the qualities NBC wants in a “Today” anchor.  Currently she co-hosts ABC's “The View.”  She is also host of the syndicated “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” strip.  But, as the Journal points out, Vieira has turned down morning jobs in the past, chiefly out of concern for how the grueling schedule would affect her family.  

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