On 'World News Tonight,' post-Jennings era begins

The two anchors won't always be behind a desk.
NEW YORK (AP) -- When the post-Peter Jennings era officially begins on ABC's "World News Tonight" today, co-anchors Elizabeth Vargas and Bob Woodruff will be on different sides of the world instead of different sides of a desk.
Vargas will be in a New York studio while Woodruff reports from Iran.
Get used to the idea of a different kind of anchor team. If ABC's vision pans out, Vargas and Woodruff may be apart as often as they are together, with one or occasionally both jet-setting to the scene of a story for the show.
Both Vargas, 43, and Woodruff, 44, have had prominent roles at ABC News for several years. Jennings' death, however, thrust them into the network's on-air leadership position prematurely, and their first few months will be a get-acquainted period for viewers.
Destiny?
While rival Brian Williams was groomed for NBC's top anchor job for years, it hardly seemed like destiny for ABC's pair.
"This was never a job I had set my sights on," Vargas said. "I was really happy as host of '20/20' and doing my work there and never once did I dream that this was something that I would eventually do."
Neither did her former bosses as she climbed the ladder of local TV markets, from Columbia, Mo.; to Reno, Nev.; to Phoenix; to Chicago. They all advised her to stick to reporting because she wasn't a good anchor.
A stint at "Good Morning America" honed her live, in-studio skills. Her cool, cerebral style seems better suited to the evening than the morning.
Woodruff grew up in Michigan and became a corporate lawyer in New York City. He took a leave of absence to teach at a school in China and helped CBS News during the Tiananmen Square uprising. He became hooked on journalism.
During the last few years Woodruff anchored the weekend edition of "World News Tonight," evidence that he was considered an up-and-comer at ABC News.
Vargas and Woodruff each say they're good friends; they and their spouses can usually be found chatting together in a corner at ABC holiday parties, she said.