All Eyes On Norah O'Donnell & Eva Pilgrim As CBS Morning Lineup Gets Interesting

Norah O'Donnell left "CBS This Morning" in 2019, but lately there have been rumblings that Bari Weiss could be sending her right back to take the third seat on the show (since renamed "CBS Mornings"). That said, O'Donnell reportedly isn't the only candidate being considered — Eva Pilgrim might be, too. News of O'Donnell's potential return to CBS' morning programming broke in August 2026, with a source dishing to Status she'd become very chummy with controversial CBS editor-in-chief Weiss. It wasn't the first time insiders spoke to the press about O'Donnell's relationship with Weiss and the possibility that it could lead to her regaining a morning anchor's position at the network. In February 2026, after O'Donnell was floated as a potential guest host on "CBS Mornings," during her book tour, a network source reasoned to the New York Post, "If you are going to promote a book, you could do segments on it, you don't have to have them co-host." 

Another insider confirmed that Weiss wanted to see if O'Donnell and her former colleague Gayle King would pull in more viewers if they were back on the air together again. Of course, it's worth noting Gayle King and Norah O'Donnell have long sparked feud rumors. They addressed them directly in 2019, with both women clarifying that there was no drama between them. Even so, given the swirling speculation about O'Donnell's possible return to the morning slot, a source disclosed to the New York Post, "Gayle was not happy. She does not want Norah to return to the show." Still, she isn't the only broadcast journalist being eyed for the position. "Inside Edition" anchor Pilgrim's name has also come up, though we're not sure she'd be keen on the idea herself.

Eva Pilgrim officially joined the CBS family in 2025 when she became the new anchor for "Inside Edition." At the time, the broadcast journalist made an appearance on "CBS Mornings," and co-host Gayle King joked about Eva Pilgrim's move from ABC's "GMA," where she replaced Amy Robach, to CBS. "You may have watched her on the other network, but now she's ours!" King quipped excitedly. If there is any residual tension between the beloved TV personality and Norah O'Donnell, Pilgrim might just be the ideal candidate for "CBS Mornings." However, there's a good chance she might not even be interested in the job. During that same "CBS Mornings" appearance, Pilgrim gushed about how much she was enjoying a much-needed change of pace after so many years as an in-demand newscaster. 

"I love what we do, I love getting to tell stories, but I also, like, really wanted to be a mom and a wife, and this job gives me that ability to be all of that," the "Inside Edition" host explained. As a news anchor, she often felt like she could only be the kind of mom she wanted to be on vacation. In fact, the very same day news broke that Pilgrim and O'Donnell were being considered for "CBS Mornings," a new People interview was published, in which Pilgrim shared similar sentiments. Of being able to create memories with her daughter, she pointed out, "I can sneak off to the beach on the weekends, and I never have to be afraid that I'm going to get called back into the city to work or have to catch a flight. You don't know what you're missing out on until you have it."