Date: 8th September 2000

Koppel Signs New Deal With More Time Off


Ted Koppel has signed a new five-year contract with ABC under which he will anchor Nightline three nights a week except during six week-long specials. In an interview with today's (Friday) New York Times, Koppel said that he regarded his diminished role -- he currently anchors four nights a week -- as a "transition period" for himself and the audience. He has indicated that he intends to pursue further opportunities on the Internet. Koppel told the Times that he hoped the period would be "so long and so gradual and so smooth that when it his departure finally happens, the public won't even notice it."

Source: Studio Briefing