Rice alum David Rhodes named president of CBS News

FROM RICE NEWS STAFF REPORTS

A Rice alumnus will soon be in charge of all coverage and staffing for one of the nation’s top news networks.

	DAVID RHODES

David Rhodes ’96 has been named president of CBS News, effective Feb. 22. He will run the daily operations of CBS News, whose television network is the home of ”60 Minutes,” ”The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric,” ”The Early Show” and ”Face the Nation,” and whose radio network produces ”World News Roundup.”

Previously Rhodes served as head of U.S. Television for Bloomberg, where he managed the channel’s programming, development, editorial, newsgathering, production and operations at the company’s New York headquarters. Before joining Bloomberg in November 2008, Rhodes spent 12 years at Fox News, where he started as a production assistant when Fox began operations. He worked his way up to vice president of news, with an emphasis on breaking news and political coverage.

Rhodes, who has a Bachelor of Arts in economics and political science and was a member of Will Rice College, returned to campus last March at the invitation of the School of Social Sciences to give a lecture about his career.

And in December he was interviewed in New York City by Rice junior Aida Luu before she left for Hong Kong to serve as an international ambassador for the School of Social Sciences’ Gateway program. Reflecting on his first promotion at Fox News, Rhodes told Luu, ”You should always just try to do what will give you more responsibilities. If it’s something you enjoy, the rest you will figure out.”

Rhodes’ brother, Ben, who is an ’00 Rice alum (Baker College), has written speeches for President Barack Obama and currently serves as the U.S. deputy national security adviser for strategic communications. Ben Rhodes made Time magazine’s list of 40 ”rising stars of American politics” under the age of 40 last fall.

The Rhodeses’ father, James, is also a Rice alum (Class of ’62 and a member of Baker College).