Tony Dokoupil laughed off the strong reaction to his roll out as anchor for “CBS Evening News,” thanking his critics for their “notes” while struggling to bury a chuckle on-air.
The newsman concluded his first full week as the new face of “CBS Evening News” Friday evening and signed off his broadcast with an acknowledgement of the criticism. However, Dokoupil didn’t appear too bothered by all the feedback, as he forced back a cheeky smile while wrapping things up.
“And that is another day in America and the world for all of us here at CBS,” Dokoupil said at the start of his sign off. “I’m Tony Dokoupil. Thank you for joining us on our first week of broadcasts. Our ‘Live from America’ tour continues next week.”
At this moment, Dokoupil subtly lost his composure, biting back a giggle while stating, “Thanks for your notes as well. We are making our way through them and we’re going to be talking about what we heard in the weeks ahead.”
He then confirmed that Monday’s show would take place in Denver, Colo. Watch the moment below.
It’s been quite a week for Dokoupil, whose era as anchor kicked off early on Saturday amid U.S. military action in Venezuela. He later faced ridicule for crying during a hometown segment in Miami, Florida, where the newsman reflected on a tougher moment from his childhood.
Dokoupil was later dragged online for presenting “both sides” takes for the fifth anniversary of the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol attack and for the situation unfolding in Minneapolis following an ICE agent fatally shooting a 37-year-old woman.
Additionally, “CBS Evening News” senior producer Javier Guzman was let go mere days into Dokoupil’s tenure as anchor.
Because of all of this, many have described Dokoupil’s debut as “rocky.”
“CBS Evening News” airs weeknights at 6:30 p.m. ET on CBS.
