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Tony Dokoupil‘s first week as “CBS Evening News” anchor under Bari Weiss continued to raise eyebrows during the new host’s Tuesday half-hour, which broadcast from Miami, Fla. as part of Dokoupil’s “Live From America Tour” to celebrate his first week on the job. Dokoupil, who was raised in Miami for a time as a child, did a companion interview with CBS Miami and fought back tears when asked why the city is his favorite place in the world.
“It makes me emotional, it’s so funny,” Dokoupil said as he started wiping back tears and saying “let me get a second here” to compose himself.
“To help people understand why I have such a reaction… Florida is where I grew up,” he continued, fighting back more tears. “My grandmother’s here, my father, my mother, my aunts and uncles, cousins, and it’s where I would have spent all of my childhood. But we left because my father got in trouble with business. We laugh about it now, but he was a drug dealer and he went to jail. The reason it’s so emotional for me is because I feel like I was robbed of the full Miami experience.”
During the official broadcast, Dokoupil turned heads again by signing off with a tribute to Secretary of State and Miami’s own Marco Rubio. The host acknowledged the “many lives and many jobs” of Rubio, from being the face of U.S. foreign policy to “his roles as interim national security advisor” and more.
“Whatever you think of his politics, you’ve got to admit it’s an impressive résumé,” Dokoupil said before showing AI memes casting Rubio in other jobs such as the prime minister of Greenland, the head of Hilton Hotels and the Michelin man.
Dokoupil concluded with a salute to Rubio: “Back in real life, of course, these memes may not add up to much, but for Rubio’s hometown fans, which are many around here in Miami, it’s a sign of how Florida, once an American punchline, has become a leader on the world stage. Marco Rubio, we salute you. You’re the ultimate Florida man.”
Earlier in the week during Dokoupil’s debut, he struggled to read a teleprompter during an on-air gaffe and got confused over which segment he was supposed to be presenting. Dokoupil next heads to Dallas, Texas for the Wednesday broadcast of “CBS Evening News” as part of his “Live From America Tour.”
English (US) ·