Geoff Tracy Wiki – Geoff Tracy Biography
Geoff Tracy, 47, is a chef and entrepreneur from New York City. He graduated from Georgetown University, where he met O’Donnell, and later attended the Culinary Institute of America. After graduating in 2000, he opened his own restaurant called Chef Geoff’s in Washington D.C. After receiving the success of his business, Tracy opened a second version of Chef Geoff’s in the downtown D.C. area. in 2002.
Four years later he opened his third restaurant in Maryland, called LIA’s. In 2008, he opened another Maryland restaurant called Hank’s Tavern. Tracy is in charge of the menu, marketing, finance and restaurant concept for him. He is also a co-author of the book Baby Love-Healthy, Easy, Delicious Meals for Your Baby and Toddler.
Tracy and O’Donnell have twins, Henry and Grace, 13, and another daughter, Riley, 12. She told People magazine how she was managing parenting while working from home due to the coronavirus pandemic. , saying, “I was on a call with someone from the White House and my daughter was yelling at me that the printer was not working.
She adding, “A lot of times, I’m on a conference call and making breakfast for the kids at the same time. Fortunately, they have the ‘stop video’ feature in Zoom.” Despite juggling family life during the pandemic, O’Donnell’s newscast garnered 7.437 million views in April 2020, making her the most-watched woman in national television news.
Norah O’Donnell in danger of losing anchor spot at ‘CBS Evening News’
Norah O’Donnell is in danger of losing first place on “CBS Evening News,” as cost-cutting executives at the broadcasting giant quietly seek her replacement amid falling ratings, The Post learned.
The 47-year-old news anchor, who made her way into the late-night space in 2019 while fleeing a supposedly strained relationship with co-host Gayle King on “CBS This Morning,” is now vulnerable to the net’s bean counters. , since their ratings have been stubbornly stuck in third place, according to sources close to the situation.
Insiders also pointed to O’Donnell’s high salary package, which hovers around $ 8 million a year and a three-year contract that expires next spring. She faces the possible uproar after CBS sheds millions to move the late-night broadcast to Washington, DC, from New York City to accommodate O’Donnell and her husband, chef Geoff Tracy, and their three children. she.
In fact, sources said that new co-chair Neeraj Khemlani, a former Hearst executive who along with former ABC executive Wendy McMahon was chosen this spring to replace Susan Zirinsky as head of CBS News, is not just looking to replace O ‘Donnell, but also bring “CBS Evening News” back to New York.
Khemlani denied a potential move or reorganization of the presenter, telling The Post: “There are no plans to move the Washington Evening News. Norah’s presence in Washington has elevated CBS Evening News coverage on all fronts – politics, breaking news, to big interviews, including Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen last week. Her reports of military and domestic abuse have won awards and changed policies in Washington. And in addition to being news, the show is gaining audience share. ”
But behind the scenes, The Post learned that Khemlani has hired management consultants to find ways to cut the fat, as parent company ViacomCBS continues to take in the merger of CBS and Viacom in 2019, potentially making the company more attractive for a sale, sources said. .
“Neeraj is accused of cutting costs and increasing profits and does not understand why the ‘Evening News’ is in DC,” a source told The Post.
With rumors of a major shakeup, Khemlani, who along with McMahon formally took over the reins from Zirinsky in August, stopped by the DC office two and a half weeks ago. But insiders said the visit ended up being more of a “meet and greet” than a state of the union. The new boss did not mention a potential move for the “Evening News,” nor did any staff member dare to ask about O’Donnell’s future as a presenter, the sources said.
“I don’t see a world where Norah O’Donnell is the host of the show from DC,” said a source. “The network definitely needs to cut their salary, cut it in half, or put in someone who costs less.”
Sources speculate that Khemlani may cut O’Donnell’s salary when she pushes her out of the presenter’s chair and casts him in a bigger role than she already has on “60 Minutes.” That would mirror the CBS playbook for “60 Minutes” correspondent Scott Pelley, who ran “CBS Evening News” through 2017.
Sources told The Post that O’Donnell’s diva demeanor would not be lost in the halls of the network. They said that she continues to be rude to the hair, makeup and wardrobe staff, despite years of complaints that she is “divisive” and “toxic” with her colleagues. She has also demanded new designer threads throughout the pandemic, a move that hurt some as it reports on COVID deaths, political upheaval and unemployment.
It’s a mess Khemlani inherited from Zirinsky, who three years ago chose O’Donnell to host the “Nightly News” of “CBS This Morning” (since it was renamed “CBS Mornings”). At the time, sources told The Post that the move came amid friction between O’Donnell and King, who would not re-sign his contract without an anchor change.
Zirinsky, who denied at the time that O’Donnell’s move had anything to do with King, “thought she could control” O’Donnell’s ego, but couldn’t, according to a source close to the television network.
“No one listened to Zirinsky,” the source said.
Insiders say O’Donnell had pushed hard to unseat then-CBS Evening News host Jeff Glor, convincing Zirinsky to put her in the lead and move to Washington, DC. CBS invested millions of dollars in the move, giving the show a redesign and a new theme song, with the as yet unrealized hope that it would knock it out of third place.
In fact, some claim that Zirinsky’s career as president was “cut short” because he hitched his wagon to O’Donnell. One source cited the fact that O’Donnell was named editor-in-chief, an esteemed title in the hands of news legend Walter Cronkite who had retired once Pelley was removed from the presenter’s desk.
“Why did Zirinsky give O’Donnell the title of editor-in-chief?” asked a source. “If it had worked, people would have thought Zirinsky was a genius. But it was not like that “.
While Zirinsky had presented the new “Evening News” as a place for strong investigative journalism, that hasn’t worked because “Norah O’Donnell didn’t want it,” a source said. When original investigative stories that are of interest to O’Donnell air, she is usually the correspondent presenting the piece, the source said. If O’Donnell is not the focus, the segments tend to be knocked over by the anchor, the source added.
Others believe that Zirinsky’s period was short simply because she was “not victorious” and that O’Donnell’s failure in the “Evening News” is simply emblematic of that. Another knowledgeable person said the reason the effort failed is that O’Donnell brought nothing new to the position.
“She is a female version of an outdated presenter,” said the source. “His appointment of her was an example of the worst kind of change. It was about optics. ”
Moving the “Evening News” back to New York could be cheap, since the network has broadcast space and a larger staff. One source pointed out that it would be easy to place someone like Tony Dokoupil, the 40-year-old CBS Mornings co-host who makes about $ 2 million, for the concert.
CBS may also recruit elsewhere. MSNBC’s Brian Williams’ contract ended this year, but sources say his salary, rumored to exceed $ 10 million, is too much for CBS to pay. Other candidates who have been discussed include “60 Minutes” correspondent Bill Whitaker and “Today” co-host Craig Melvin, according to an Insider report last month.
“We’ve already made it clear that none of the people listed outside of CBS are moving into presenter roles here and Bill Whitaker and Tony Dokoupil already have the best jobs on television,” said a CBS spokeswoman. CBS Evening News can be successful in terms of reputation without spending a ton of money, ”said a person with knowledge of the network’s thinking. They definitely want Norah out of her, but they have no idea how to replace her, ”said a well-placed source.
The source explained that while the “Evening News” is prestigious, it does not make the amount of money that “CBS Mornings” does, so the network does not feel the need to shell out a lot of money. CBS doesn’t need to pay someone $ 8 million to be in third place, “said a source, referring to O’Donnell’s paycheck.” I don’t see Norah wanting to leave her family in DC. ”
Although television ratings have dropped across the board, O’Donnell’s show continues to appear in the rear. With a total of 5.9 million viewers in the 2019-2020 season, he was behind “ABC World News Tonight with David Muir” with 9.4 million total viewers and “NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt” with 8 , 3 million, according to Nielsen.
O’Donnell directed half of the 2018-2019 season, which increased slightly with 5.8 million total viewers, but below the 2017-2018 season with Glor, which garnered 6.2 million viewers. While O’Donnell has had some wins in viewership ratings, he is also losing the significant 25- to 54-year-old demographic. In the most recent season, “CBS Evening News” saw a nearly 15 percent decrease in those viewers, to 1.1 million, from the 2017-2018 season hosted by Glor.
However, one insider said that finding out the next “Evening News” host is not the network’s top priority at the moment. The priority is King, who is currently in the “thick” of the contract negotiations, the source said. King’s star has risen in recent years for his spirited interviews with the likes of R. Kelly, the Obamas, Miya Ponsetto and Oprah Winfrey from “Soho Karen,” the day after he sat down with Prince Harry and Meghan. Markle.
King is rumored to be considering moving to the West Coast to be closer to his granddaughter, who was born last month. CBS is in talks to give King a new deal that may include a Los Angeles-based show and a role in creating content for its streaming service, Paramount +, a source told The Post. But it’s unclear whether King wants to stay on the network. Gayle doesn’t need to work, “said a source.” Let’s see what she wants to do. ”
If King leaves, Khemlani can replace her with “Top Chef” host Padma Lakshmi, whom she recently reached out to, according to Insider. That would likely mean Dokoupil would go to the “Evening News,” a source told the Post, noting that “CBS Mornings,” which is last in the morning show’s ratings, is in need of another major shakeup after it recently moved from studies and added co-anchor Nate Burleson. Everyone is waiting to see what Gayle does. She has become the face of the network, “the source said, before turning to O’Donnell.” We all see the writing on the wall. ”
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