Jonathan Bernstein wants to do away with them:
The big deal about the Sunday shows, their real remaining actual function, is that for years the shows have been used to float trial balloons. Any trained monkey could handle that, which makes me think that Amanpour is a poor choice -- not because she couldn't handle it (please!) but because her considerable talents as a real reporter will be largely wasted there. Beyond that, I have to say that no one should care who hosts the Sunday shows, and that any attempt at "improving" them is a total waste of time.
My view of Sunday morning is that it should involve sleeping. But as for TV shows, what's needed, I suspect, is a reinvention of them. Real questioning of people in power; discussion of issues, not process; fewer Beltway hacks; no predictions; no sports-journalism masquerading as a serious discussion of politics. You know: what a serious version of the Daily Show would do. Its possible; just not without disturbing the balance of power in Washington.