CONNIE CHUNG AND MAURY POVICH COME TO MSNBC
CONNIE CHUNG AND MAURY POVICH TEAM FOR MSNBC PROGRAM SCHEDULED TO LAUNCH JANUARY 7, 2006
SECAUCUS, NJ - November 7, 2005 - Award winning news anchor Connie Chung and legendary talk show host Maury Povich will team for a half hour weekend news program on MSNBC, it was announced today by Rick Kaplan, president of MSNBC. The program will premiere on January 7, 2006 and will air on Saturdays at 10 a.m. & 4 p.m. (ET) and Sundays at 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. (ET) on MSNBC.
Touching on everything from politics to pop culture, the program will examine the week's headlines, from top to bottom and inside out. Connie and Maury will cut through the spin and get to the truth, exploring all sides of a story as only two people who have been married for 20 years can do. They will also speak with a wide range of guests including authors, journalists, newsmakers and entertainers. This will be the first time Connie and Maury have worked together on a national news program. The title and other production details are still in development.
"Connie Chung and Maury Povich are two of the most extraordinary talents in television and we are absolutely thrilled to have them at MSNBC," said Rick Kaplan. "They each bring such a unique perspective to the table, their chemistry is unmistakable and their humor is contagious. We look forward to letting our viewers join in on their 'conversation' each week. We know they will enjoy it."
"Maury's been on my case to get out of the house and get back to work, but I didn't want to until he came up with this idea," said Chung. "The question is not whether the program will last...the question is 'can our marriage survive?!'"
Povich said, "It has taken me the last two decades to establish myself nationally as 'Maury Povich.' Something tells me I'm about to become 'Mr. Chung' once again."
Connie Chung's illustrious news career has included stints at CBS, NBC and ABC. It all began in 1969 at WTTG-TV in Washington, DC, where she started on the copy desk and rose to reporter. While at CBS news, Chung worked as a national correspondent for the "CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite" covering such historic events as the 1972 presidential campaign, Watergate and the Nixon/Brezhnev SALT I talks. She worked at NBC News for several years anchoring the weekend "Nightly News," "NBC News at Sunrise" and several primetime specials. She returned to CBS News in 1989, anchoring the Emmy Award winning "Face to Face with Connie Chung." In 1993, she co-anchored the "CBS Evening News with Dan Rather and Connie Chung." In 1997, Chung joined ABC News as co-anchor and correspondent for "20/20." Most recently, Chung anchored "Connie Chung Tonight" on CNN.
Povich, whose storied career includes a 20-year run in national syndication, is currently in his eighth season of the hit NBC Universal Domestic Television Distribution talk show "Maury." Povich also spent time in his early career at WTTG-TV in Washington, DC, first as a news and sports anchor and host of the station's popular midday talk show, "Panorama." Povich anchored news in major markets including Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Philadelphia, returning to WTTG briefly to anchor the news, before joining the long running hit "A Current Affair." From 1991-1998, Povich hosted the successful talk show "The Maury Povich Show" for Paramount, and in 1998 NBC Universal's "Maury" made its debut.
Both Chung and Povich are native Washingtonians who have covered politics, political conventions and elections spanning five decades.
Lizz Winstead is executive producer. Winstead was a co-creator and former head writer of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show." She was also part of the original creative team that developed Air America Radio and hosted the network's "Unfiltered."
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