Faith Daniels Turns Back the Clock

Faith Daniels won’t take the bait.

She won’t speculate. She won’t talk out of school. And she won’t dish dirt--at least not for the benefit of the press.

It is a healthy approach, because the 33-year-old news anchor for NBC’s “Today” show and “NBC News at Sunrise” lives in the glass house known as morning television.

“Part of the reason I’ve lived so long is because I was in news, where I was safe,” said Daniels during a recent interview at NBC’s Manhattan headquarters. “I think it lengthens my life considerably in morning television.”

The reality of it, too, is you have to get up very early in the morning to slip one past Daniels, who has been rising at 3 a.m. for about five years as co-anchor of the “CBS Morning News” and news anchor of “CBS This Morning” and, more recently, for her double-dip roles at NBC.

One of several highly regarded and attractive women on the front lines of NBC News, Daniels has managed to avoid the kind of catty flak that hit Deborah Norville when she replaced Jane Pauley on “Today” and that dogged Kathleen Sullivan at “CBS This Morning.”

“Tumult is a way of life” in morning television, she said.

Maybe that is why she’s moving to midday. Starting Jan. 28, Daniels will become anchor of “A Closer Look,” a half-hour Monday-through-Friday news and information program.

A combination of taped reports and live interviews, the midday show is designed for women and will be issues-oriented, with a news-you-can-use slant.

Daniels says that the program “just fell out of the sky” (care of NBC News chief Michael Gartner) and taps into her first love: reporting.

“I’ve had great input in terms of topics,” she continues, referring to her new show. “I certainly didn’t want my name attached to the title. I didn’t want it to be called ‘The Faith Daniels Show.’ I don’t want my name to be canceled ever.”

What the success of the show might mean to Daniels’ current responsibilities is unclear. Already there is speculation that Katherine Couric, the national correspondent for “Today,” might move into Daniels’ slot, and from there to Norville’s seat. Daniels took the position previously occupied by Norville.

“I really don’t know how all that is going to shake down,” Daniels says. “It’s probably premature to say. It’s certainly unrealistic to think I can go from 3 o’clock in the morning to 1 o’clock in the afternoon non-stop. I enjoy doing the broadcast; it’s the hours that are so difficult.”

When it is suggested that “A Closer Look” may have been designed to keep her happy, she replies, “If you really want to be realistic, keeping their daytime schedule happy is more important than keeping Faith Daniels happy.

“I don’t worry about those things. I think if you do, you make yourself nuts--’Am I the star of tomorrow? Am I the star of yesterday?’ ”