NEWSGayle King Likely Won't Have Her CBS Contract Renewed After Ratings Plummet From 'Woke' Content: Source
Gayle King could be making her exit from 'CBS Mornings' after her contract is up in 2026.
Aug. 4 2025, Published 3:07 p.m. ET
Gayle King has been the face of CBS Mornings since 2012 — but continued leftist-skewed coverage could put an end to her career as soon as May 2026.
King signed an estimated $13 million extension contract with CBS until next spring, but according to inside sources, the 70-year-old anchor likely won’t be offered a deal to renew it.
'The Audience Doesn't Want Woke'
Gayle King has been with the network since 2012.
“The audience doesn’t want woke. It doesn’t like progressive and provocative bookings,” a source revealed to a news outlet. “The morning show audience wants optimism and cheer and joy, and what they were producing is at odds with audience expectations.”
The longtime morning show host has reportedly “dug in” against the network’s attempts to produce unbiased content despite a rapid decrease in ratings.
CBS Ratings Plummet
CBS staff reportedly couldn't hide their 'distaste' for the 2024 election results, which may have led to their demise.
In recent months, CBS Mornings viewership has plummeted from 3 million to below 2 million views per day. According to the analytical audience database Nielsen, within the last month, King and co-hosts Tony Dokoupil and Nate Burleson lost between 20 percent and 30 percent of their target demographic (ages 25 to 54) compared to 2024.
A second insider claimed “CBS Mornings lost its curveball” when Donald Trump was elected 47th president because King and network staff couldn’t hide their “distaste” for the election results and were too “shocked” and “sad” to recover from the Republican win.
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'The Culture at CBS News Prevents Progress'
CBS views have decreased by over 1 million in recent months.
Another source privy to the leftist intentions of the network added that “the culture at CBS News prevents progress.”
“There is something just ingrained in a place that was once so great that they can’t quite see the fact that to remain and be great again — whatever that looks like in 2025 and beyond — it requires doing things differently,” the insider added.
Paramount-Skydance Merger
Skydance acquired CBS owner, Paramount, for $8.4 billion.
On July 24, the Federal Communications Commission approved an $8.4 billion deal for Skydance to buy the owner of CBS, Paramount Global. Full acquisition is expected to be completed on August 7.
Skydance CEO David Ellison will be in charge of the depleting network after the merger is completed. One stipulation in the deal, though, was for Skydance to hire an ombudsman, someone who addresses consumer complaints, to monitor political biases within the company.
Another stipulation was for Skydance to eliminate Paramount’s existing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs. They also had to agree not to implement any DEI policies of their own.
