Exclusive | Top CBS Evening News producer may be on chopping block as ratings plummet to new low: sources

Time may be ticking for the top producer at “CBS Evening News” as ratings sink below 4 million — a new low for the Tony Dokoupil-anchored show, CBS insiders told The Post.Executive producer Kim Harvey, who has overseen the nightly broadcast since last August, will ultimately take the fall unless she can pull the network’s flagship show out of the abyss, insiders said.CBS News editor in chief Bari Weiss installed Dokoupil as anchor in January — replacing co-anchors John Dickerson and Maurice DuBois — in hopes of reviving ratings that had slid under 4 million.Dokoupil’s debut drew 4.4 million viewers and reached a ratings high of 4.6 million in late January, but viewership has steadily declined since — sinking to 3.8 million viewers for the week ending March 13, according to Nielsen ratings.“It’s pretty terrible.Once you’re under 4 million, you’ve got to be worried that you’re in a death spiral,” said one CBS insider.

“If they can’t retain an audience in the middle of a war, God help you when the war ends.”Some insiders griped that “CBS Evening News” is just “too soft” under Harvey’s direction.This week, the show ran a segment on a meteor sighting, and it has consistently closed the show with cute animal segments — which one source described as played out.“It’s animal story overload,” the source said.

“Kim’s thing is animals.She’s turning Tony into the animal anchor.”What’s lacking is enterprise reporting, the person added, noting that one bright spot for the show was a recent hospice fraud investigation that Weiss pushed Harvey to put on the program.A second CBS News source said, “The show has lost over a half a million viewers in three months.

You’ve got to sacrifice somebody to the ratings gods.”The outlet blamed the drop in ratings to the recent time change due to daylight savings time, according to Variety.In contrast, top-rated “ABC World News Tonight” reeled in 8.5 million viewers, follo...