Anchors aweigh! says Marissa as Katie joins Yahoo as global news anchor

She wrote, “Today, I am incredibly excited to announce that Katie Couric is joining Yahoo as our Global Anchor. Starting in early 2014, Katie will lead a growing team of correspondents at Yahoo News who will cover the world’s most interesting stories and newsmakers.

“I’ve always respected Katie for her thoughtful, charismatic approach to journalism. From pivotal coverage of natural disasters and historic elections to the Royal Wedding and the Olympic Games, groundbreaking interviews with heads of state and leading tastemakers, her experience is unmatched. Katie is dynamic, savvy and has a way of connecting with viewers that I really admire.”

In addition to being the face of Yahoo News and shooting features for the Yahoo! homepage , Mayer confirmed Katie will continue to host her syndicated ABC daytime talk show, Katie.

Mayer said the incredibly talented Yahoo editorial team was “ pioneering a new chapter of digital journalism. At Yahoo, we are investing in bringing our users the absolute best content and video experiences available — and this is just the beginning!”

The hiring of Couric,56, who once earned $15 million a year anchoring the CBS Evening News, and also spent 15 years at NBC’s Today, " an accelerated drive by CEO Mayer to bring buzz and video advertising dollars to Yahoo,” said Bloomberg.

Ms. Couric will also have a presence on ABCNews.com due to an existing distribution partnership between Yahoo and ABC News, according to AllThingsD.

Mayer, CEO since July 2012, is striving to build a news business to make her site a stronger alternative to Google and Facebook for advertising dollars. Yahoo shares have surged more than 130% on her watch,since she took over.

.