Brian Williams and MoneyBall in Network News

Now that Brian Williams has effectively ended his career at NBC News with yesterday’s announcement that he would receive a six month suspension without pay, perhaps it is time to reflect upon the economic realities of network news as well as its slow and continuous decline in a multi-channel cable and web-based universe.

The charges against Brian Williams are fairly straight forward. He had been accused of inflating stories about events that took place in Iraq and Hurricane Katrina.  With his credibility called into question about his Iraq reporting, questions emerged about his reporting during that natural disaster.  Some insiders note that Brian Williams had been warned about the danger of his past comments but they returned in a firestorm that immolated his career with NBC.

Is he guilty of over inflating stories?  Probably.  Does the punishment equal the crime?  No.   What we are seeing is a calculated overreaction from the senior management of NBC to remove what is now considered an overvalued asset. MoneyBall has come to network television news.

Brian Williams looks as if graduated top in his class from the Anchorman School of Good Looks and Wry Charm.   In that sense he channeled a style that harked back to the days of Chet Huntley and David Brinkley.  Williams was also comfortable enough with his persona that he made several forays into the entertainment side of NBC with cameos on a number of shows including several appearances on 30 Rock.  He was a mainstay on The Tonight Show and even became an accidental rap star of sorts with the edited compilations of old-school hip-hop songs.

It worked.  For the past 5 years, NBC News commanded a lead against ABC.   CBS, once the sterling home of Walter Cronkite and Dan Rather, has rusted in the basement.