Drew Barrymore Show in Trouble as CBS News Plans Third Hour of 'Mornings' at 9am

Drew Barrymore's CBS-owned syndicated talk show is in trouble.

CBS just announced that they will soon be adding a third hour of “CBS Mornings” from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m.

Currently, WCBS in New York offers a half hour of local programming and then 30 minutes of Barrymore. In other markets, Drew Barrymore is offered for an hour. In some markets, the show airs in the middle of the night.

However, if the broadcaster secures the opportunity, Barrymore will most likely suffer.

NBC's Today show is already running for a third and fourth hour, and ABC's Good Morning America returns in the afternoon after the morning shift.

CBS doesn't have much wiggle room. From 10 a.m. to noon, “The Price is Right” and “Let's Make a Deal” are on. There is a half-hour of local news, followed by the soaps “The Young and the Restless” (one hour) and “The Bold and the Beautiful.” CBS has already announced the end of “The Talk” in December and has signed a deal for a new soap called “The Gates,” which will run at 2 p.m. starting in January.

An additional hour of “CBS Mornings” would be fatal for what is now broadcast at 9 a.m.

Barrymore's show could continue to be offered to non-CBS affiliates. But compared to other talk shows, her ratings are low, even after five years of staying power.

Variety was the first to report on the additional 9 a.m. slot for CBS Mornings. The new hour will also be available on CBS's streaming service, it says. Isn't that all there is to it?

Stay tuned…