Bari Weiss’ Hand-Picked CBS Evening News Anchor Just Made His Debut — And It’s Painful To Watch

On Jan 7, 2026

Tony Dokoupil’s debut as the new anchor for “CBS Evening News” is off to a shaky — and possibly shady — start.

Dokoupil had an awkward on-air hiccup that seems to have been edited out of recordings of the broadcast featured on CBS News’ website and YouTube channel.

Tony Dokoupil having an awkward moment during his debut on “CBS Evening News.”

In multiple clips online, Dokoupil can be seen contending with a technical snafu that leaves him visibly confused about which story he’s supposed to introduce next after wrapping up a segment on Venezuela.

“All right, to other news… to other news, now, to—” Dokoupil says in a live moment that outlets like the Independent and the Daily Beast have also captured.

“Uh, to Gov. [Tim] Walz! No, we’re gonna do Mark Kelly,” he stammered on.

Then, shaking his head and smiling apologetically, he got real.

“First day, first day, big problems here,” Dokoupil said before continuing to question what segment was next.

“Are we going to Kelly here, or are we gonna go to [Minnesota correspondent] Jonah Kaplan?” he asked.

Four seconds of silence and paper shuffling ensued before a relieved Dokoupil finally announced:

“We’re doing Mark Kelly. Possibly demoted from his retired rank of captain in the Navy…”

Although other outlets, like Variety, reported on the on-air screw-up during Dokoupil’s debut, a recording of the broadcast later uploaded to CBS News’ YouTube channel shows a pretty smooth transition from Venezuela to the Kelly piece.

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HuffPost has reached out to CBS News for comment.

Dokoupil was handpicked for the role by CBS News’ controversial editor-in-chief, Bari Weiss, a former right-leaning opinion columnist.

Last month, Weiss pulled a “60 Minutes” episode about a notorious prison in El Salvador by claiming that it wasn’t “ready.” This is despite Sharyn Alfonsi, the correspondent who reported the piece, saying it was vetted and deemed “factually correct,” in an internal email, according to multiple news outlets. Alfonsi added that Weiss’ decision to cut it at the last minute was “not an editorial decision” but “a political one.”

“If the administration’s refusal to participate becomes a valid reason to spike a story, we have effectively handed them a ‘kill switch’ for any reporting they find inconvenient,” Alfonsi said.

Dokoupil’s new role as the anchor of “CBS Evening News” has also drawn speculation, given that his previous gig was as a “CBS Mornings” personality. Now he follows in the footsteps of venerable “CBS Evening News” anchors like Walter Cronkite, Dan Rather and Katie Couric.

Ahead of his debut, Dokoupil published a video on Instagram in which he promised he’d be a trusted source for news.

“So, here’s my promise to you, today and every time you see me in this chair: You come first,” Dokoupil stressed in his video message. “Not advertisers. Not politicians. Not corporate interests. And, yes, that does include the corporate owners of CBS. I report for you.’

He continued, “I tell you what I know, when I know it, and how I know it. And when I get it wrong, I’ll tell you that, too.”

An Instagram user gently pushed back at Dokoupil’s message, and said in the comments of his video, “I grew up on Cronkite. Too bad CBS has lost its Tiffany shine. But good luck to you anyway.”

In response, Dokoupil said: “What did you love most about him? I can promise you we’ll be more accountable and more transparent than Cronkite or any one else of his era.”