Now that CNN has fired Piers Morgan, attention has turned to who it can find to fill the 9 p.m. hour once famously occupied by Larry King.
Though the writing was on the wall for “Piers Morgan Live” — and Morgan was set to be canned due to historically low ratings — CNN was reportedly caught off-guard by the British host giving a definite timetable for his push out the door in a New York Times interview published Sunday.
“They knew the [David Carr] piece was coming, so they weren’t surprised . . . but they were surprised that Piers jumped the gun and put out that March [exit] date,” says an insider. “They wanted to get someone signed [to replace him] first, so they were semi-blindsided by the fact he named a date to leave the show.”
With “Piers Morgan Live” expected to end next month, work has already begun on setting the next iteration of the 9 p.m. hour, with Morgan’s producers and staff expected to stay on.
One change that seems likely is for CNN to build the next show around a dynamic anchor rather than an interview show based on guest bookings.
“The lesson is the world is not waiting until 9 o’clock for an interview with any single person,” says another insider. “The world has changed since Larry [King] was doing his show.”
As for who could fill the seat, the source says, “There really is no answer about that. Everyone is being honest when they’re saying they don’t know.”
While CNN chief Jeff Zucker has hired names like Jake Tapper and Bill Weir since taking control of the struggling cable news network in January 2013, insiders don’t see any current network talent as the likely heir to Morgan’s timeslot.
Whoever does end up at 9 p.m. will have an uphill ratings battle. “Piers Morgan Live” sunk to its lowest total viewership ever on Feb. 7 (235,000 viewers), while posting its second-worst rating in the key adults 25-54 news demo (a mere 50,000 viewers) last Tuesday.
While rumors persist that Zucker will try to hire his former NBC colleague Jay Leno, an industry insider says CNN would be wiser to look not to Leno, but to someone more akin to the guy who replaced him, Jimmy Fallon.
“That’s what you need — [someone] young and engaging with pop culture but able to handle politics and economics,” says the source, pointing to CNN’s test show with George Stroumboulopoulos last summer and MSNBC’s recent hire of Ronan Farrow.
“Expect to see Jeff experiment with different ideas,” says a network insider.
Zucker and Morgan, meanwhile, remain in conversation about a possible role for him at CNN beyond “Piers Morgan Live.”
“He hasn’t determined what his role, if any, will be at the network,” says the source.