How to Run a TV Newsroom in the Time of Trump — and When Viewers Are Tuning Out the News

Here’s an evergreen news lede: These are strange times we’re living in. (Feel free to borrow that one, Almin Karamehmedovic and Chris Dinan.)

At a time when the world could not be more unstable, Karamehmedovic’s ABC News division keeps cruising along. A large piece of its overall, longstanding success lies at 6:30 p.m. weekdays, when David Muir anchors one of TV’s top shows, ABC World News Tonight, which averages about eight million viewers each evening. (Not counting sports, Muir’s program topped all of TV for 24 of the past 52 weeks.) It performs strongly on YouTube as well. That’s more than the competition, CBS Evening News and NBC Nightly News — combined.

World News Tonight pretty much doubles the Evening News audience, which probably helps explain why CBS Evening News just announced a new anchor, Tony Dokoupil. In stark contrast to the success and stability of ABC News, CBS News is in rebuilding mode. New editor-in-chief Bari Weiss has her hands full. (She inherits some successes, like CBS Sunday Morning and 60 Minutes, though the latter has made as many headlines this year as it’s reported — and for not-great reasons.)

As Weiss attempts to pick up the pieces of a once-great news organization shattered by a combination of stagnant style, new ownership and Donald Trump, Karamehmedovic’s mission for ABC is maintaining status quo: “Straightforward journalism — but the true meaning of it,” he told The Hollywood Reporter.

“We are aggressive in our reporting, we try to get as many sides as possible,” Karamehmedovic said. “We are not afraid to put resources where they need to be, and we are where the stories are. We really are.”

The world is complicated, which makes reported the stories complicated. The part you cannot forget, Karamehmedovic said, is to “try to deliver the news in a relatable way.”

“They want clarity,” he continued, speaking of the viewers. “There’s extraordinary amounts of news out there on a daily basis, right? There’s a lot of confusing news, and it’s our job to cut to the chase and cut through the all this uncertainty.”

Making the cuts for Muir is Dinan, primarily, who joined ABC News just over a year ago as executive producer of World News Tonight. The program was kicking ass well before Dinan’s butt was in the seat.

Dinan tells THR he “felt the burden of taking on the responsibility.” It helps to inherit a winning squad.

Quarterbacking the team, of course, is Muir.

“The connection he has with people is undeniable,” Karamehmedovic said of QB1.

He would know: Karamehmedovic and Muir spent a decade together in “every war zone you can think of.”

Of his star player, Dinan says Muir has “set the tone, the vision, the standard. He works harder than anybody I’ve ever met in that position — and I’ve met many.”

One of those guys he’s met is Matt Gutman, whom he and Karamehmedovic recently said goodbye to. Gutman, formerly among the top ABC News correspondents, has jumped ship to the aforementioned CBS News, where he’ll be its new chief correspondent. He’ll be a steady presence for Weiss, the founder of The Free Press.

Karamehmedovic and Dinan declined to answer as to whether they attempted to keep Gutman, but both men do seem to like him — personally and professionally.

“Matt is a phenomenal reporter. He had a really fantastic two decades with us,” Karamehmedovic said. “I wish him all the best.”

Dinan offered his well-wishes as well, saying Gutman is “a good guy,” and that it may have just been time for a new challenge.

Gutman’s a great utility player — at CBS News, he’ll report for CBS Morning, CBS Evening News and 60 Minutes, and as lead correspondent for 48 Hours. Weiss is gonna need a shipful of Gutmans to get back on track.

Both Dinan and Karamehmedovic say they are rooting for a CBS News turnaround — to some degree, at least — arguing that a rising tide lifts all boats. Dinan was a bit more willing to get into it than Karamehmedovic.

“I think we all benefit if we’re all doing well, so I’m hoping that they’re able to get their footing — as they have for decades — and do as well as they can,” Dinan said. “It’s best for us if the entire industry is healthy, so we want that to be the case, and we enjoy the competition.”

“No one likes to see disarray. People know each other. There’s no schadenfreude here,” he continued. “Nobody enjoys when others are going through difficult times, because you never know when those difficult times may attend you. So we’re hopeful that everybody has a healthy broadcast and can continue to do it, because the institution in general, regardless, is significant and important at all times, and especially now.”

I asked the president of ABC News how he navigates covering the spiteful, litigious President of the United States.

Karamehmedovic says he doesn’t care about the audience of one — he cares about his audience of eight million.

“We do our work with our head high, with our journalism integrity,” he said.