Business

Zucker landing top job at CNN

Former NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Zucker is set to sign on as the new boss of CNN’s global news operations, The Post has learned.

Zucker, 47, has been the lead candidate for one of the most important roles inside Time Warner since boss Jeff Bewkes began looking for a new leader to reinvent the flagging flagship news network.

While some minor details still have to be worked out and may still scuttle the deal, sources warned, it appeared that an announcement concerning the hiring of Zucker could be forthcoming in a matter of days.

“It’s been Jeff all along,” one source said late yesterday. “It was not a good fit at NBCUniversal, and he made some enemies, but this is a chance for him to refresh. It’s really good for him.”

Zucker is currently executive producer of the daytime show “Katie,” featuring Katie Couric, the telegenic former co-host of “Today,” which Zucker oversaw for nearly two decades.

Zucker’s “Katie” obligation runs only to the end of the year, sources said, though any new gig, such as the CNN job, could be complicated by his part-ownership in the syndicated show, distributed by Disney.

Zucker would replace CNN boss Jim Walton, who is leaving Dec. 31.

The only real competition for Zucker was Mark Shapiro, a former ESPN boss — but CNN’s conversations with Shapiro never went very far.

Zucker began his career as one of the youngest news producers in the business. He ran “Today” back in 1992 and went on to have a wider role at NBC News before ultimately winning control of the entertainment division and later becoming CEO of NBCUniversal.

But after years of success, Zucker’s career at NBCU ended harshly, and his reputation as having a talent for picking hit shows was sullied.

A return to TV as head of CNN would present Zucker with a chance to write a comeback story — and tweak NBCU at the same time.

Zucker exited when Comcast acquired 49 percent of NBCU almost two years ago.

CNN is a huge profit center for Time Warner around the globe — and is poised to have its most profitable year ever — but its poor performance in prime time in the US market has made it a cause of frequent embarrassment.

CNN’s ad-revenue growth over the last two years is roughly 12 percent — the smallest increase of any of its rivals, including younger sibling Headline News, which saw ad revenue grow 20 percent in the period.

A spokesman for Time Warner couldn’t immediately be reached after hours. Zucker did not respond for comment.