Leave it to Katie Couric to make light of a “weighty” situation. That’s exactly what she has done with the very uncomfortable situation she was presented with courtesy of some “creative digital airbrushing.”
The editorial staff of a promotional magazine (which is only distributed to CBS stations and passengers aboard American Airlines) took the liberty of retouching a photo taken of Couric at a recent advertising presentation. Editors of “Watch!” magazine say they digitally altered Couric’s photo to make her look about 20 pounds thinner, without the knowledge of Couric and CBS News management.
But, the incoming CBS Evening News anchor is taking the incident in stride. According to New York’s “Daily News,” the former “Today” show host quipped: “I liked the first picture better because there’s more of me to love.” Classic Katie. I give her a lot of credit because not only was she unaware that her photograph would be altered (sources report that she was as “shocked as anyone” when the magazine crossed her desk), she then had to deal with the decision by various newspapers to run both the unaltered and altered picture of her side-by-side. (Click here to see the side-by-side comparison.)
Executives at CBS say the picture mishap was the work of some “overzealous” photo department employees. CBS News President Sean McManus told the paper he was “obviously surprised and disappointed when I heard about it.” Of course, what’s done is done. But, you can’t let an incident like this go without asking a few questions. For example: Is Katie Couric thinking that the people in the photo department feel she would look better minus a few pounds? And what of the further humiliation she had to endure courtesy of the other media outlets publishing both photos side-by-side?
I’m sure at this point in her life she could really care less. But, then again, you never know. Personally, I would stay out of the public eye for a few days. But, this is Katie Couric we’re talking about. She debuts in her history-making role in less than a week and CBS has already spent millions on marketing to prepare viewers for her arrival (airbrush “accidents” not included).