Late-night shake-up may affect "Nightline" (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - Nearly three years after it could have been dealt a fatal blow by the departure of Ted Koppel, ABCs "Nightline" is now thriving.

But with Jay Lenos departure from NBCs "The Tonight Show" next year set to shake up late-night TV, "Nightline" may be facing an even stiffer challenge.

Losing a talent of Koppels magnitude has killed lesser shows, even without the radical transformation that the show underwent. "Nightline" went live after years on tape, offered three anchors instead of one and three stories every day instead of the single focus and conversation that had been a Koppel trademark.

But something unexpected happened on the way to the TV scrap heap. "Nightline" grew year-to-year in its first two years, even beating CBS "Late Show With David Letterman" in some weeks. And in the crazy, strike-impacted TV season just past, it was down only slightly while both Letterman and Leno saw steeper declines. Season-to-date, "Nightline" is a competitive No. 2 to Leno and has increased its retention from the ABC stations late local news from 39% in 2005 to 50%.

"The audience really responded right from the start," executive producer James Goldston said. "Clearly, there was a worry that a lot of traditional Nightline viewers would reject change. Viewers dont like change at all, under any circumstances. It could all have been very different. It could have gone quite badly here."

Co-anchor Cynthia McFadden said she and colleagues Martin Bashir and Terry Moran werent sure at the start that things would go well. But she credits the audience and the network for sticking with the new "Nightline" and its potential.

"We tried really hard to stay true to the excellence that Koppel and his team brought to this broadcast and at the same time finding new ways to tell stories," she said.

Today, "Nightline" stands as one of the brighter lights in TV journalism, a daily newsmagazine that both serves as a last word on the news and has its own sometimes serious, sometimes quirky take. "Nightline" also has played a large role in making ABC competitive in late-night for the first time, and its pairing with "Jimmy Kimmel Live" has worked so well that ABC recently extended Kimmels deal through 2010.

But with Leno on his way out of "The Tonight Show," theres a chance that "Nightline" might be axed if ABC and parent company Disney decide to go after Leno. It would be a cruel irony for a program that has managed not only to keep its journalistic integrity intact but done everything that its been asked to do and more ratings-wise.

The subject came up in a skit this week on "The Tonight Show." Leno held up a magazine cover that showed "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno ... starring Jay Leno on ABC." Leno quipped, "Its like a headline from the future."

But no ones laughing about the late-night comedic shift at ABC News, which has fought hard for years to keep the coveted 11:35 p.m. time slot that was on the verge of being given to Letterman when ABC secretly attempted to lure him to the network. Even if ABCs interest in Leno isnt as secret this time around, the result could end up being the same: the end of "Nightline."

Unlike its rivals, ABC has only from 11:35 p.m.-1 a.m. for its late-night programming. That means only one show, either "Nightline" or "Kimmel," would remain if Leno joined ABC. Its something that ABC News president David Westin said he hasnt contemplated, though he understands that the network has to look at every option. But he said theres something to be said for "Nightline" as a viable alternative to late-night laughs.

"Its showing that its fully competitive with the entertainment programs, and thats something that I dont think anyone would have expected," Westin said.

Bashir said its providing that alternative, the serious alternative, that rings true with the audience and would be missing if "Nightline" went away. But he knows that "Nightline" has to win the right to stay every day.

"If (network executives) decide in their wisdom that its over, thats their decision," Bashir said. "But they will have made the decision from a position of our strength, not our weakness."

Thats not to say that "Nightline" is automatically a goner if Leno jumps to ABC. The show is a cheaper program to produce than "Kimmel" or anything that Leno would do. There also would be a tremendous investment in Leno, in terms of salary and putting together a show, that would run in the hundreds of millions of dollars over the life of a contract. Would ABC be able to capitalize on that, especially since Leno wouldnt be able to bring "Tonight" with him? And with staggering ratings drops for the late-night comedy shows, does there need to be another one on network TV?

Koppel was miffed in 2002 when ABC tried to lure Letterman for the "Nightline" time slot. He said this week that the news business is, in fact, a business and he understands that ABC might decide that Leno would be better for the network than keeping "Nightline." But that doesnt mean he likes the idea.

"I think it would be a terrible shame," he said. "There are plenty of good comedy shows out there. There are very few thoughtful television programs."

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter