AFTER MONTHS OF UNCERTAINTY

Gayle King CONFIRMS Return to CBS Amid Network Turmoil and ‘BL00DBATH’ Layoffs

It has been a confusing past few months over at CBS, prompting many of its leading stars to up and leave, and now Gayle King’s stance on the situation has been exposed

Gayle King has been a part of the CBS network for over a decade(Image: Getty Images for CMT)
Gayle King isn’t going anywhere at CBS … for now, anyway.

Sources have told Page Six that the 70-year-old TV veteran wants to see what Paramount’s new owners have in store for the network. According to the outlet, Gayle, who has hosted CBS Mornings for over a decade, has signed a contract extension that runs through next summer.

As The Post previously reported, Gayle has already taken a pay cut from $13 million to $10 million, but an industry insider has said she will not leave before parent company Paramount’s planned $8.4 billion merger with Skydance Media goes through, even though CBS is ” shy.”

“It’s a very useful platform for Gayle,” the insider said before adding: “[I think] she would certainly want to continue through the midterm [elections in November 2026].”

Gayle King will remain at CBS until at least the summer(Image: Getty Images)
It comes after News boss Wendy McMahon stepped down amid plummeting ratings at CBS Mornings and CBS Evening News, which she had tried to save by introducing a new format and anchor lineup.

“It’s become clear that the company and I do not agree on the path forward,” she wrote in a memo to staff. CBS News president Tom Cibrowski has now stepped in to try and to keep things afloat at the network.

“As much as it’s still —— over there, it’s good for her to wait and see what happens with the merger, with new people, if they can get their act together,” the industry pointed out, referring to Gayle’s stance.

“The folks at the Skydance have very specific ideas about how they can revitalize the news side of things, so there is reason for Gayle to hang around,” they continued.

A CBS spokesperson told The Post: “Gayle is an incredibly valuable member of the CBS News family. She has no plans to go anywhere and we couldn’t be happier about that.”

Insiders also previously told the publication that Gayle’s salary is far too high to justify her show’s plummeting ratings.

While another source told PageSix: “I bet she stays, even if she gets a pay cut,” said another TV source, “People assume incorrectly that the money is the deciding factor. When in reality, a pay cut doesn’t mean that much when you are making that kind of money.”

For the week of May 19 GMA racked in 2.6 million viewers, followed by Today with 2.5 million, and CBS Mornings lagged behind at two million viewers.

Compared to 2024, CBS’ morning show has dropped nine percent in total viewers and 30 percent in the crucial 25-54 demo — the steepest drop in the demo among the three morning broadcasts, according to Ad Week.

It seems Gayle isn’t letting the ongoing situation weigh her down, as on Wednesday night, she joined her pal Hoda Kotb at the launch of her new wellness brand, Joy 101, at Chelsea Piers in NYC. Today hosts Savannah Guthrie, Jenna Bush Hager, Craig Melvin and Dylan Dreyer were also in attendance

Then on Thursday, the TV icon was spotted at a New York Knicks game alongside Kylie Jenner and her Hollywood heartthrob boyfriend Timothee Chalamet.