Fox News anchor Bret Baier responded to reports that CBS News’ new editor-in-chief, Bari Weiss, is interested in bringing him to the network as she begins reshaping CBS’s news division and flagship evening broadcast.
Appearing on Meghan McCain’s Citizen McCain show on 2WAY, Baier said he was aware of the chatter but made clear his current position.
“I’m flattered by all the press and everything like that, but I’m in a multi-year contract with Fox,” Baier said. “I don’t know where everything’s going. I’m signed onto Fox, very happy at Fox and we’ll see what happens at the end of that. But it’s interesting to see all the press about it.”
Baier’s contract with Fox News runs through 2028.
Reports surfaced last week indicating that Weiss, who was named editor-in-chief of CBS News earlier this month, had spoken privately about the possibility of recruiting Baier, potentially to anchor CBS Evening News. Weiss, the former opinion writer who founded the centrist Free Press, has drawn scrutiny within the media industry as observers attempt to determine whether her hiring signals a broader ideological shift at CBS News.
As part of the Skydance-Paramount Global merger process, CBS’s parent company committed to hiring an ombudsman to respond to viewer concerns. The role was filled by Kenneth Weinstein of the Hudson Institute, a conservative think tank. Paramount also acquired Weiss’s Free Press for a reported $150 million.
Baier has anchored Fox News’ Special Report since 2009 and has been with the network since 1998.
His name surfaced as CBS faces a major transition. John Dickerson announced earlier Monday that he will depart the network at the end of the year after co-anchoring CBS Evening News since January and spending 16 years at CBS.