COOPER AND COURIC TO BE JUST REGULAR FOLKS IN DAYTIME

ABC plans to challenge Judge Judy (Sheindlin’s) dominance in daytime TV with a newer, softer, Katie Couric, the Wall Street Journal observed today (Wednesday). “The plan is to pitch Ms. Couric as “the girlfriend next door” and to appeal to viewers using her experience as a working, single mother,” the newspaper said, citing a person close to the program. Meanwhile the producers of Anderson Cooper’s new syndicated show, Anderson, are also planning to present him as less serious-minded than he appears on CNN. The Journal says that Cooper will be talking about what he did over the summer on one of his initial episodes, and discuss his “eccentric eating habits, on another. Even his mother, Gloria Vanderbilt, will appear on one of the early programs. “People see anchors on a news program as one dimensional,” he told the newspaper. “This show is a chance for me to show more of my personality.” But Bill Carroll, a programming consultant for Katz Television Group, suggested that the plan for Couric and Cooper may be difficult to implement. “It’s going to be tough for both Anderson and Katie to transition from being authority figures to being something of relatable personalities,” he said.