Katie Couric, CBS News 'Constrained' Her, She Says; Prepares For New Show 'Katie'
Katie Couric is gearing up to launch her new talk show, "Katie," on ABC, and now she's opened up about being happy she no longer works for CBS.
Couric anchored the CBS evening news from 2006 to 2011 and her tenure was marked by misfortune largely beyond her control, including low ratings that put CBS third behind ABC and NBC's news programs, and internal strife within CBS.
In a cover story for Good Housekeeping, Couric said her time at CBS was miserable because people projected problems onto her.
"I'm really proud of the work I did. I had an ultimate sense of satisfaction but I was not ambivalent about feeling this wasn't the place for me for the rest of my career," Couric said. "It wasn't the right environment for me. In terms of the atmosphere, it wasn't a good fit for my sensibilities and my personality."
Even Couric's $15 million annual salary led to negative attention for the broadcast journalist. However, she'll be making a whole lot more at ABC - report suggest the alphabet network will pay her $40 million a year for her new talk show.
Couric said she's excited about the new venture and she described to Good Housekeeping the strength it took to realize she wasn't the problem at CBS.
"I'm not a quitter. There were times when I thought to myself, 'Gee, do I need this?' " Couric said. "But I thought, you know what? I can do this job as well as anyone. If people are projecting their own issues onto me, that's not my problem. I resolved to do the best job I could and focus on the business at hand."
