The Subtle Signs John Dickerson's CBS News Departure Is Messier Than It Seems

The times are a-changin' over at "CBS Evening News." Just seven months after becoming the co-anchor on the network's evening news broadcast, John Dickerson is officially leaving CBS. Between his short-lived stint in the co-anchor chair and the mystery surrounding his departure, many fans are wondering if there's more to this story, and it's starting to seem like they may be right.

After a shake-up that led to Norah O'Donnell parting ways with CBS, Dickerson took over the coveted evening news co-anchor role back in January. In an October 27 Instagram post, Dickerson announced that he's leaving. "Local news: At the end of this year, I will leave CBS, sixteen years after I sat in as Face the Nation anchor for the first time," he wrote. "I am extremely grateful for all that CBS gave me— the work, the audience's attention and the honor of being a part of the network's history— and I am grateful for my dear colleagues who've made me a better journalist and a better human. I will miss you."

 Based on the comment section on the post, this statement clearly left plenty of fans shocked and saddened by the change. Yet, there was one thing that was glaringly missing from his post: a reason for his upcoming career move. Since sharing the reason surely would have kept the rumor mill at bay, it's fair to assume that he's keeping things vague because all isn't exactly well behind the scenes.

There has been little insight into why John Dickerson, a beloved member of the team at CBS, didn't even make it to his one-year anniversary in the co-anchor role. In fact, neither he nor CBS News responded when The Independent reached out to them for comments. One senior staff member at CBS News told the outlet, "He's a huge, huge loss." And, interestingly, another member of the staff noted that it seemed as though CBS "wanted him to fail." Others said that they were "not surprised," considering CBS News' controversial new editor-in-chief Bari Weiss. Weiss is known for being "anti-woke" and is reportedly even considering bringing Fox News host Bret Baier on board, indicating that the network may be headed in a bit of a kowtowing direction.

Norah O'Donnell was replaced as the anchor of CBS Evening News after the network was struggling. Unfortunately, despite the obvious respect Dickerson has among his peers, he hasn't helped CBS' ratings. The network's evening news ratings have continued to struggle, putting it behind the competition. Now, the question is who will replace Dickerson, and will this actually be an improvement for CBS?