The new MAGA-coded anchor selected to transform CBS Evening News has instantly provoked an online backlash after appearing to throw shade at network legend Walter Cronkite.
Tony Dokoupil waded into the comments section on a CBS Instagram post about his new role as anchor of the nightly news.
One viewer wrote, “I grew up on Cronkite. Too bad CBS has lost its Tiffany shine. But good luck to you anyway.”
Dokoupil, 45, replied, “I can promise you we’ll be more accountable and more transparent than Cronkite or any one else of his era.”
Amid an outpouring of shocked comments, one X user said of the comparison, “The difference between Walter Cronkite and Tony Dokoupil is the difference between the sun and a sunbonnet,” photoshopping a pink MAGA sunbonnet onto his photo.
The Daily Beast has contacted CBS for comment.
Cronkite was anchorman for the CBS Evening News from 1962 to 1981 and was often cited as being “the most trusted man in America.”
“Since the passing of Walter Cronkite in 2009, he’s become a part of history; he’s no longer an anchorman or a celebrity but somebody that we can reflect on and understand for his journalistic accomplishment,” historian Douglas Brinkley said.
The 2026-model Evening News host has already been dropping MAGA-coded language before his “transparent” comment referencing Cronkite.
In a New Year’s Day video railing against “elites,” he claimed the public had lost trust in the “legacy media” and he would reflect the experience of his “mom in West Virginia” and not “academics.”
Dokoupil was hand-picked by CBS News’ editor-in-chief Bari Weiss, who is already bowing to pressure to make the network more Trump-friendly, including personally spiking an unflattering 60 Minutes story on the notorious Salvadoran prison CECOT at the last minute.
After Dokoupil’s premiere on Saturday, CBS News’ chief legal correspondent, Jan Crawford, took to her X account to say she had attempted to read most of the comments and appreciated the constructive criticism.
“I also understand your skepticism and anger. I agree,” she wrote. “We have to be better, and we are going to do our best to prove we can be. Please tune in again tomorrow night, and let me know what you think in the days and months ahead as we strive to get it right.”
Dokoupil also shared Crawford’s post on his own account.
Crawford did not shy away from tricky viewer feedback, including being directly asked why Jericka Duncan and Weijia Jiang—“the two women who have demonstrated they can solo anchor the CBS Evening News adeptly”—were passed over for the permanent weekday role and “got leap-frogged by a guy from ensemble morning show work?”
She replied, “That question is above my pay grade, but I have a lot of respect for both Jericka and Weijia. And Tony. And many others. We have a lot of great and dedicated people at CBS News!”
CBS announced Dokoupil would take over the prestigious role last month, despite network staffers calling the move an “insult” to the show’s storied legacy.
One staffer called the new host a “mediocre straight white man,” while another was shocked that with “the full power of CBS News” Weiss was only “able to come up” with Dokoupil as a replacement.
A former reporter for the Daily Beast, Dokoupil used his introductory video to use MAGA-friendly language including references to “Hunter Biden’s laptop” and “Hillary Clinton’s emails.”
“On too many stories, the press has missed the story,” he said. “Because we’ve taken into account the perspective of advocates and not the average American. Or we put too much weight in the analysis of academics or elites, and not enough on you.”
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