CBS is expanding its morning news coverage in various parts of the country as CBS Mornings will add a third hour of content starting on Monday, September 30.
CBS News will launch a live third hour of its flagship CBS Mornings program, with Tony Dokoupil and Adriana Diaz co-hosting. The third hour will air weekdays on CBS-owned stations in Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Detroit, and Miami. It will also simulcast on CBS News 24/7, the network’s free streaming news outlet.
“This expansion of CBS Mornings shows a commitment to the brand, and I’m excited to see what this team can do with another hour of real estate to experiment with,” Shawna Thomas, executive producer of CBS Mornings, said in a statement, per Variety.
She continued, “People say all the time they wish we had another hour. Now it’s time for us to do something smart with the time that the audience will appreciate.”
Dokoupil currently serves as co-host of CBS Mornings alongside Gayle King, Nate Burleson, and featured host Vladimir Duthiers. Dokoupil will continue in that role in addition to co-hosting CBS Mornings Plus, which will expand the program into the 9 a.m. hour.
Diaz is the anchor of the Saturday edition of CBS Weekend News. She joined the network as a national correspondent based in Chicago, Illinois, and her reporting has been featured across all CBS News broadcasts and platforms, including the CBS Evening News with Norah O’Donnell, CBS Mornings, and CBS News 24/7.
CBS joins other networks that have expanded their morning news programming over the years. NBC’s Today first increased to three hours in 2000 and then added a fourth in 2007. ABC’s Good Morning America added the early afternoon GMA3 in 2018. Meanwhile, on cable, MSNBC’s Morning Joe expanded into the 9 a.m. hour in 2022.
“We are building on the momentum of CBS Mornings and giving audiences more of the signature storytelling and differentiated reporting that they have come to expect from CBS News in the mornings,” Wendy McMahon, president and CEO, CBS News and Stations and CBS Media Ventures, added, per Variety.
CBS Mornings, Weekdays, 7am/6c, CBS
