Maybe NBC's longtime "Today" hostess Katie Couric.

According to Time magazine, CBS has contacted Couric to gauge her interest in taking over Rather's newsreader chair.

Couric, who has been at NBC for much of her professional career, still has 16 months left on her current contract, says the magazine. But some analysts say the strategy is a sound one: Replace a big-name anchor with someone who has as big a name – or bigger – to restore "CBS Evening News" to the top in the ratings race.

However, after Rather's "60 Minutes II" fiasco, in which he broadcast a story questioning President Bush's Air National Guard service using forged documents, CBS might better restore its credibility by hiring outside the company, say some analysts.

Four CBS execs were fired over the bogus story, aired in the weeks before the Nov. 2 election. Rather was spared but had already said he'd be stepping down from the anchor chair.

Others in the running, according to Time, include ABC "Nightline" host Ted Koppel, whose contract runs out later this year; CBS Chief White House Correspondent John Roberts; and Anderson Cooper, a star at CNN who could get the job if a "rumored CNN-CBS merger moves ahead," Time reported.

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