It's Official: Piers Morgan to Replace Larry King
9/09/2010 01:35:00 AM
kenmouse
, Posted in
CNN has made it official, announcing Wednesday that reality TV host and former tabloid editor Piers Morgan will replace the departing Larry King in the coveted 9PM time slot, according to The New York Times.The British-born Morgan, currently a judge on NBC's 'America's Got Talent,' will debut the as-yet-unnamed interview show in January, a month after King signs off from the long-running 'Larry King Live,' which has aired for 25 years.
Jonathan Klein, the struggling network's president, informed staffers of the news in an upbeat internal memo. "We are delighted that he will now bring his dynamic, probing interview style to American television and to CNN viewers around the globe."
CNN and NBC worked out a deal to allow Morgan to continue his work on the popular 'Talent.' Before breaking into British television, Morgan was the editor of a tabloid, the Daily Mirror. He was fired after the newspaper published fraudulent photos of British soldiers abusing Iraqi prisoners.
Klein said that the final 'Larry King Live' will air Dec. 16, but its 76-year-old host will continue to host occasional programming for the network.
Morgan, 45, has been in talks with CNN since the summer about replacing King.
King dropped the bombshell in June that he was giving up his show. King made the surprising announcement via his Twitter account right before he taped that evening's program. "Announcing tonight: I'm ending my nightly show this fall but continuing at CNN," King wrote.
In a larger statement on CNN, King gave his reasons, which involved family but didn't mention his plunging ratings.
"I talked to the guys here at CNN and I told them I would like to end 'Larry King Live,' the nightly show, this fall, and CNN has graciously accepted, giving me more time for my wife and I to get to the kids' little league games."
The decision to leave the show came after months of declining ratings and media speculation about the future of King's career. The NY Times reported in March that the program was down about 50 percent in viewers and had seen its worst quarter ever at the start of the year.
0 Response to "It's Official: Piers Morgan to Replace Larry King"
Post a Comment
Leave Your Thoughts & We Will Discuss Together