CBS’ News Division Replaces President

CBS announced Wednesday that its longtime news division president, Andrew Heyward, was leaving his post and would be replaced by CBS Sports President Sean McManus, capping a tumultuous year for the beleaguered news organization.

The shift at CBS comes at a particularly vulnerable time for the network, which was once regarded as the standard-bearer of broadcast journalism but more recently has had to contend with harsh criticism and moribund ratings for its news programming.

Heyward’s departure is just the latest upheaval in a changing industry. NBC News is looking for a permanent successor for its former news president, Neal Shapiro, who left in September. And ABC News executives are pondering how to replace the late anchor Peter Jennings.

CBS Chairman Leslie Moonves said he decided to seek new leadership for the news division after what he called “a traumatic year” for CBS News, which was enveloped in turmoil last fall after reporting a controversial story about President Bush’s service in the Texas Air Guard based on documents that the network eventually admitted could not be verified.

The network has yet to settle on a permanent replacement for Dan Rather, who left the anchor desk in March, or solve a larger challenge posed by Moonves this year: to develop a new format for its low-rated evening news.

“We’ve been looking to change and how to make that work,” said the CBS chairman, who noted that Heyward had been in his post for almost a decade. “It just felt like the timing was right for both of us. This has been a rough year for the news division and for him.”

Heyward said the discussions about his departure, which began after Labor Day, were “amicable and respectful.”

The 54-year-old news president, who has worked at CBS for almost a quarter-century, said Moonves would “like to see somebody new and I’d like to do something new, so it’s good timing.”

Heyward’s contract is up in December, but he is stepping aside early to allow McManus -- who will oversee both the news and sports divisions -- to take over Nov. 7. Heyward will remain an advisor for the rest of the year and says he then plans to pursue a job related to new technology in media.

McManus, 50, has served as president of CBS Sports since 1996. He does not have a news background; he has also worked for the ABC and NBC sports divisions.

By tapping McManus -- son of famed ABC sports broadcaster Jim McKay -- Moonves relieved news division employees who had feared the CBS chairman would turn to the entertainment world for ideas about how to remake the evening news.

“When I think about some of the things that could have happened here, I think this is an excellent choice,” said veteran Washington correspondent Bob Schieffer, who has been anchoring the evening news since March. “He is from CBS and he has respect for CBS News, and I think that is very, very important.”

Moonves called McManus’ record at CBS Sports “extraordinary,” noting that he helped the network acquire the broadcast rights to NFL games and brokered an exclusive agreement to carry the NCAA men’s basketball championship until 2014.

“He’s a perfectionist, and he’s also a great leader,” Moonves said. “The people who work for him feel a great sense of loyalty. There will be some things he has to learn and he knows that. But you can’t teach character and leadership.”

Heyward’s position has been considered shaky for some time. Under his tenure, the news division has won numerous awards, including 57 Emmys, and “60 Minutes” has remained one of the most highly rated programs on the air. But last September, CBS fielded relentless criticism after Rather reported allegations that Bush received preferential treatment during his Vietnam War-era Texas Air Guard service.

The network ultimately was forced to apologize for relying on documents that could not be verified. In the aftermath, Moonves fired the segment’s producer and forced three other news executives to resign.

Many media observers expected Heyward to be hurt by the incident as well, but Moonves said Wednesday that the news president’s departure was not related to his handling of the Bush story.

Perhaps more damaging for Heyward was the fact that network news programs such as the once top-rated “CBS Evening News” have consistently lagged behind NBC and ABC. At Moonves’ urging, news executives have spent the last several months experimenting with different formats for the broadcast.

But many CBS News staffers doubted that Heyward -- a traditional journalist with a collaborative style that some colleagues describe as overcautious -- could give Moonves what he wanted.

In recent months, editorial employees have described the newsroom as deeply demoralized. Scarred by last year’s furor over the Bush story and bracing for more turmoil, many privately expressed fear about the direction of CBS News.

“We’ve been through the worst period we’ve had in the last 15 years,” said one veteran CBS News employee who did not want to be named. “Hopefully, this closes the door on that.”

McManus said he believed his sports background would serve him well in his new job.

“Obviously, it’s different producing a Super Bowl than producing a convention or election, but I think there are probably more similarities than differences,” he said.

“He’s got a strong conviction,” said Tony Petitti, executive vice president of CBS Sports, who will assume a larger role in the division while McManus focuses on news. “If Sean believes in something, he’ll stand by what he believes.”

On other matters, McManus said he was turning to guidance from Heyward, who is not only his predecessor but a personal friend. “He has been terrific with respect to wanting the transition to be seamless, cordial and painless,” McManus said.

The incoming news president praised the division’s “great journalism traditions” but added that “there’s a lot of work to do.”

“I’m not satisfied at all being in third place, whether it’s the evening news or morning news,” he said, noting that he works for “the most competitive man in the industry.”

McManus said he would begin immediately assessing the effort to develop a new format for the evening news, a project that had been expected to be completed by this fall.

On Wednesday, Moonves said the appointment of the new president would delay that endeavor. And he seemed to back away from earlier statements that he was seeking a wholesale makeover of the newscast.

“Reinvention may be a little strong,” said the CBS chairman, who said a more apt description for McManus’ task was “redoing” the evening news.

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Times staff writer Thomas Bonk contributed to this report.