To improve "Good Morning America"s ratings performance, which briefly fell to third place among the morning shows in January 1999, ABC News management selected Shelley Ross from the field of executive producer candidates. As part of Rossʼs proposed changes, Ross ousted the McRee-Newman team and lobbied to bring in Diane Sawyer and team her with Charles Gibson, who had been reluctant to return. On January 18, 1999, the Gibson-Sawyer team paired by Ross debuted on-air, which during the first full season resulted in a dramatic increase in viewership while all other network news franchises saw losses.